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There’s just no getting around it. Being the only veggie in the house means sometimes, I have to make two separate meals for dinner. My Deliciously Versatile Roast Eggplant Tray means my reality doesn’t have to be a pain in the @r$e. Nourishing, comforting, and delightfully tasty, this dish is a real winner when faced with those weeknight conundrums.
Not only is it a nourishing and tasty meal but it’s super easy to throw together too. The perfect antidote to: long-day-at-work-school-pickup-who-knows-how-to-do-fractions-anyway?!?-itis. 😉
Most of the time I’m pretty good at planning ahead. By which I mean, often what I cook for dinner only needs to be tweaked slightly to make it veggie friendly. But some days are just too hectic, or the meat eaters want something specific that feels like a hassle to veggify. That’s when I pull out this bad boy. I crack open a tin of chickpeas, chop and slice an assortment of veg, sprinkle a bit of herbs and chilli flakes over the top and whack the whole thing in the oven. Done ✔
Roasting this particular combination of veggies creates sweet, deep, comforting flavors that makes dinner feel a little fancy. Serve on top of pasta, couscous, rice, pop it in a taco – the possibilities are endless. Just make sure you give it a go. I promise you’ll love it.
What about you? What’s your favorite roast veg combo? Hit me up in the comments with your ideas and feedback, I’d love to hear from you. xx
Deliciously Versatile Roast Eggplant Tray
Serves 2
1 small eggplant (sliced thinly into rounds)
1/2 red onion (sliced)
400g tin chickpeas (drained and rinsed)
2-4 cloves of garlic (skin on)
100g cherry tomatoes (about 1/2 punnet, washed and halved)
1+1/2 tbs olive oil
1 tsp chilli flakes
1 tsp dried oregano
a good grinding of sea salt
Method:
- Preheat your oven to 200C fan-forced. Line a oven tray with baking paper.
- Start by spreading your eggplant rounds out evenly on the bottom of the tray. Next comes the onion, then the chickpeas, the cherry tomatoes, followed finally by the garlic.
- Drizzle your olive oil over the whole tray of veg. Then sprinkle over the dried oregano, chilli flakes and sea salt.
- Pop in the oven to roast for around 35 – 45 minutes or until the veggies are golden and aromatic.
- Serve over freshly cooked pasta, couscous, or rice.
