Grilled Eggplant and Spinach Salad

I am so ready for fall!!! These Texas temps have been too much lately. I want chili mornings, fire pits, and sweaters. Honestly, that won't happen till Nov. but still... A girl can dream. I really can't even believe it's already September!! I hope everyone is healthy and happy and if you have kiddos, school is going well. My kiddos are back plugging away, so far, so good.

This time of year when I am wishing for cooler weather, I start to crave fall foods. This recipe is kind of a good in between summer and fall dish. It's warm but still a salad. It is SO GOOD! Smokey and lemony....Let's just get to it.

INGREDIENTS:

1 large eggplant cut in to 3/4 round slices

1 tablespoon fresh mint chopped

1 tablespoon fresh parsley chopped

1 tablespoon fresh oregano chopped

1 tablespoon shallot chopped

1 tablespoon sun-dried tomatoes chopped

1 bag of spinach

DRESSING:

1-2 cloves of garlic minced

1 heaping teaspoon tahini

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika

juice of 1 lemon

salt and pepper to taste

1/4 cup olive oil

HOW YA DO IT:

Slice eggplant in to rounds, lightly salt both sides. Let sit for a while so some of the bitter juice is released while you prepare the rest of the salad.

Make the salad dressing by combining all dressing ingredients and whisking them together. Set aside.

Heat up grill or grill pan to medium heat.

Prepare the other salad ingredients-chop the herbs, sun-dried tomatoes, shallot. Throw em' together in a bowl, set aside.

Brush both sides of the eggplant and grill 4 "ish" minutes on each side. Should be brown and crispy on the outside and soft and tender on the inside.

Let cool for a hot sec. Then cut into quarters.

2 OPTIONS HERE!!

1.I throw my spinach and other salad ingredients in to the warm pan because I like it all warm. Just for a few min. I don't let the spinach get wilty, just warm. Then, make a bowl and add dressing.

2.BUT, you can always put the spinach and other salad ingredients in a bowl and add the cooled off eggplant in and toss in the dressing.

Serve asap! Because it's that good.

I hope you enjoy this delicious salad! It is one of my top 5 favorites for sure.

Healthy inside, happy outside!!

Lots of almost fall snugs,

onehappypoppy