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Yield
2 servings (serving size: 1 sandwich)
Ingredients
* 8 (1/2-inch-thick) eggplant slices
* 2 teaspoons olive oil, divided
* 1 large red bell pepper
* 4 (1-ounce) slices ciabatta bread
* 2 tablespoons refrigerated pesto
* 1 cup baby arugula
* 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
* 1/4 cup (2 ounces) soft goat cheese
Preparation
1. Preheat broiler.
2. Arrange eggplant slices in a single layer on a foil-lined baking sheet. Brush both sides of eggplant with 1 teaspoon oil. Cut bell pepper in half lengthwise; discard seeds and membrane. Arrange bell pepper halves, skin sides up, on baking sheet with eggplant; flatten with hand. Broil 4 minutes; turn eggplant over (do not turn bell pepper over). Broil an additional 4 minutes; remove eggplant from pan. Broil bell pepper an additional 7 minutes or until blackened. Place bell pepper in a zip-top plastic bag; seal. Let stand for 15 minutes; peel and discard skin.
3. Broil bread slices for 2 minutes or until lightly browned, turning once. Spread 1 tablespoon pesto on each of 2 bread slices. Layer each bread slice, pesto side up, with 2 eggplant slices, 1 bell pepper half, and 2 eggplant slices. Toss arugula with remaining 1 teaspoon oil and black pepper; divide arugula mixture evenly between sandwiches. Spread 2 tablespoons goat cheese over each of 2 remaining bread slices; place, cheese side down, on sandwiches.
I had to make some changes to this one...
First of all, they didn't have ciabatta bread at my grocery that was fat enough for sandwiches. So I did a whole grain loaf and sliced it myself. It worked fine, although I do love ciabatta.
Next, I decided to do open faced sandwiches. There was no way all of that was going to fit in one sandwich...and two halves makes it last longer and seem like I'm getting more.
Also I doubled everything so we will have leftovers.
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My final word...we thought these were really good, if you like eggplant. There's A LOT of eggplant in here. I LOVED the flavors of the goat cheese, pesto, eggplant, pepper, and arugula. It says in the magazine that these hold up well for the lunchbox - we shall see. I thought the prep and cleanup were fast, and they'll be even fast next time. Also, I'm thinking of doing open faced sandwiches with cucumbers or portabellas in place of the eggplant. I think that would be yummy!
I served it with the Tomato-Parmesan Soup that was mentioned in the recipe. I used the Pacific boxed soup. If you haven't tried it, you should. It is sinfully good.
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I did these addins, and it was delicioso!
Combine 2 cups commercial boxed tomato soup, 1/4 cup half-and-half, 1/2 tsp dried basil, and 1/8 tsp freshly ground black pepper. Cook in a small saucepan over med heat 8 min or until thoroughly heated. Stir in 2 Tbl grade fresh parm regg.
We also sometimes add red pepper flakes. We just forgot tonight, and now that I think of it, I'm so sad. lol. The red pepper flakes are the best part.
