Diet Recipe: The Ricky
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Low in calories, low in fat and absolutely delicious - the humble eggplant is a savvy trickster to the old taste buds, making the dieter feel like they are enjoying a meaty feast rather than a healthy vegetable feast.
The key to our low calorie recipe is choosing a good eggplant specimen at your local market or favorite fruit stand. If you can grow your own - even better.
It is almost impossible to rescue an eggplant that is filled with a bitter taste. To avoid the bitter 'apples' look for a specimen that is firm to the touch - and without blemish as this will assure you the best of the bunch.
Eggplant is naturally low in caloric and dietary fat content. One cup of cubes contains a skinny 20 calories. One eggplant with the peeling left on and which weighs about one and one-fourth pound contains only 132 calories and 1.04 total fat grams. It also contains almost 19 dietary fiber grams. How impressive is that?
But wait! We're not finished. It also contains 1,260 mg of potassium, 49 mg of calcium, 1.32 mg of iron, and 5.53 grams of protein. There are 19.2 µg of Vitamin K, 148 IU of Vitamin A, 12.1 mg of Vitamin C and zero cholesterol grams. What a super food!
Now let's move on to our low calorie toaster sandwich recipe which features the delicious eggplant.
1 eggplant
1 egg white
all purpose flour for dredging OR Panko bread crumbs
two slices of whole grain bread
reduced calorie Ranch salad dressing or your favorite low fat dressing
lettuce or baby spinach, sliced tomato
non-stick cooking spray, salt, pepper, reduced fat margarine
Start preparing this recipe by cutting two, one-half inch slices from the eggplant. Dip these into a slightly beaten egg white OR egg substitute that contains both yolk and white. The object is to keep the cholesterol out of our recipe; however - if you wish to use a whole egg in your recipe, please do.
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Next, dredge the eggplant slices in the Panko bread crumbs OR the all-purpose flour that has been seasoned with salt and cracked pepper. If you want to add some of your other favorite spices - such as Italian seasonings, please do.
The use of the egg wash will assist in adhering the Panko bread crumbs or the flour to the eggplant and adds minimal calories. The white of one egg contains less than 20 calories.
Spray a non-stick skillet with the cooking spray and then 'fry' the eggplant in a pan. Be sure to spray your pan very generously as you don't want the eggplant to stick. Cook on low to medium heat to avoid scorching the flour.
Next, spread the reduced fat margarine onto the two slices of whole grain bread. 'Slow cook' them in a non stick pan until golden brown.
This requires a bit of time but is well worth the effort. You want a nice crunch to the bread as well as that golden color. Cooking on a very slow heat will accomplish such.
Remove the bread and spread with a teaspoon of light ranch dressing or your favorite low calorie dressing. The low calorie poppy seed dressing also tastes delicious with the eggplant - or reduced fat Mayo.
Next, add 1 lettuce leaf or a small bunch of baby spinach, thin slices of tomato and some sprouts if desired. Add 1-2 slices of eggplant to the vegetables and the tomatoes.
You can save additional calories by using diet bread which contains about 35 calories per slice.
The caloric content of this toaster sandwich is about 200 when sixty calorie whole grain bread is used in the recipe.
Enjoy the sandwich with a serving of low fat cottage cheese and a diet beverage.
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