Eggplant Burgers

I had a huge eggplant sitting in my refrigerator for a few days and wanted to make something different. The following recipe is what I ended up doing and it turned out quite good. Its quite healthy and low on calories. You can serve it with oven baked fries or potato wedges. If you want to make it healthier, replace the regular fries with sweet potato fries. I'm still trying to calculate the final calorie count. Will add that in when I do.

Makes: 4 servings

Patties:

4 large round eggplant slices, each about 1/2 inch thick

2 tbsp olive oil

Salt, to taste

2 tsp balsamic vinegar (optional)

4 hamburger buns

Tomato Salsa:

1 large ripe tomato, finely diced

1/2 small red onion, finely diced

1 green chili, finely chopped

2 tsp lemon juice (or 1 tsp balsamic vinegar)

1 tbsp grated fresh parmesan cheese

Salt, to taste

Black pepper, to taste

Toppings: (all optional)

Lettuce (I did a combination of lettuce and bok choy)

Mayonnaise

Ketchup

Cabbage (thinly sliced)

Parmesan cheese, grated

Take the eggplant slices and sprinkle them with salt on both sides. Place in a colander and set aside for 30 mins.

In the meantime, combine all the ingredients for the salsa and keep aside.

Take the eggplant and squeeze each slice lightly. Heat a grill pan on medium heat and brush with a little oil. Place the eggplant flat on the pan. Grill on both sides till eggplant is soft and moist (but not breaking), switching sides every 2 minutes and brushing with a little more oil each time. When the eggplant is ready (in about 6-10 minutes), drizzle each slice with 1/2 tsp balsamic vinegar and remove from heat.

Assemble the burgers by putting a slice of eggplant on the bottom on a bun. Add the salsa and then the lettuce and parmesan cheese. Serve hot.