Did you know that improving your health can be as easy as cutting out meat and processed cold cuts one day a week? Doing so can reduce your risk of preventable chronic conditions like cancer, cardiovascular disease, diabetes and obesity.

Enter Meatless Monday. This week's recipe is Japanese eggplant with sundried tomatoes. The eggplants are more tender and don't require the old-fashioned 'salting' that many of us think of when preparing eggplant," says Chef Asata, who provided the recipe. She adds, "Adding the sundried tomatoes brings a meaty depth and sweetness to the dish, which is very low in cholesterol and a good source of vitamin K, niacin, vitamin B6, folate, iron and fiber."

Japanese Eggplant w/ Sundried Tomatoes

1 Tbsp cooking oil

1 Tbsp garam masala or curry powder

4 Japanese eggplant, halved and cut into half moons

2 Tbsp fresh thyme leaves, chopped and divided

1/2 cup dry-packed sundried tomatoes, reconstituted in water

1 Tbsp Hungarian paprika (sweet paprika)

Pour oil into a cold pan, add garam masala and put over medium-high heat. Swirl the pan as the oil heats so that the spice toasts and doesn't burn. When the oil is shimmery, add the cut eggplant and sauté, stirring constantly to coat the eggplant with the spice-infused oil.  

Add 1 Tbsp of thyme, paprika and the drained sundried tomatoes (reserve the tomato water). Cook for 10 minutes until the eggplant is tender. Deglaze the pan with 1/2 cup of the reserved tomato liquid, scraping any browned bits from the bottom of the pan.

Stir in the remaining 1 Tbsp of thyme and serve.

Nutrition info: 109 calories, 4 g total fat, 1 g saturated fat, 0 grams trans fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 147 mg sodium, 18 g total carbs, 9 g dietary fiber, 8 g sugar and 4 g protein.

About Chef Asata:

Chef Asata completed her degree in culinary arts from the International School of Culinary Arts at the Art Institute of Atlanta in 2000 and has been a professional chef for nearly a decade, in some of Atlanta’s top-rated restaurants and in private homes. She started Life Chef LLC in 2006 to educate people how to make healthy eating a delicious, easy and inexpensive part of their lifestyle. Asata teaches cooking classes for teens and adults at the Cooks Warehouse in Atlanta. For more information, visit www.lifechef.net

(Photo: Creative Commons via Flickr.com/grassvalleylarry)