The color purple – Eggplant Sandwich with quick Basil Aioli

Recently, I was hanging out with a group of friends when the topic of cancer came up. One my friends recently suffered a bout with cancer (he’s free and clear now) and another friend’s father was recently diagnosed with cancer (his prognosis is good). We immediately started to speculate on what could have caused these cancers. Was it the non-organic milk we drank as children? Or maybe it’s all the red meat and potatoes we eat? The conversation quickly shifted to prevention. One thing that stood out to me in our conversation was the quote, “My doctor told me the best things to eat are foods that are purple.” When you first hear this, you might think, HUH? But within seconds I started thinking of purple foods and how I could see these foods being cancer fighters. I recalled that deep red, blue or purple foods are known to be high in antioxidants. This conversation was the inspiration for an Eggplant Sandwich (since I still have the color purple on the brain).

Eggplant Sandwich

Ingredients

• 1 medium eggplant
• grape seed oil
• 1/2 cup of flour
• 3 eggs (or egg substitute equivalent)
• 1 1/2 cups panko bread crumbs
• 2 Tablespoons light mayo
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon fresh chopped basil
• sliced tomato, lettuce (for garnish)
• 8 Arnold Select Sandwich Thins

Directions

1. Slice eggplant into 1/4 inch thick slices and lay flat on wire rack
2. Sprinkle with kosher salt and let sit for 30min to 1 hour or until water is beading on top of eggplant
3. Rinse eggplant in cold water and pat dry
4. Dredge eggplant in flour, then egg, then panko. Shake excess.
5. Heat large skillet over high heat and lightly coat skillet with grape seed oil
6. Add eggplant to skillet being careful not to overcrowd pan
7. Cook until light golden brown color is achieved, approx 4 minutes per side
8. Remove from pan and pat excess oil
9. Serve on toasted Arnold Select Sandwich Thin with tomato, lettuce, and basil aioli

For Basil Aioli, whisk to combine mayo, lemon juice and basil.

Serves 8

Enjoy with a glass of red wine and a handful of fresh blueberries for dessert!