Oh, hey November. You sneaky little hussy. I knew you were there, just didn’t think I’d see you pop up so soon. I’m excited for you, you bring great things. Like snow, the holiday season, Charleston (for Thanksgiving) and tons of delicious new recipes. I’m just not quite ready for you. So, give me a few days to really warm up to you being here and then we’ll be friends. Capiche?

Hope y’all had a fabulous Halloween! It was lowkey over at the Volkman household (thanks to my pesky stomach) but it was still fun. I dressed Oscar as a little devil and, although he hated his life while that costume was on him, he looked absolutely adorable.

We had a few trick or treaters and there was a Halloween [Michael Myers] movie marathon on. Which, as always, gave me nightmares that a deranged serial killer was coming after me. As much as I love Halloween, I’m happy its over. All of the sweets I’ve been eating have wreaked havoc on my figure and my intestines. I’m ready for a much needed fast (more on that tomorrow!) Because I’ve been eating chocolate after chocolate, cupcake after cupcake, I made a really light and hearty dinner last night as we eagerly awaited the trick or treaters. And yes, I know, it involves eggplant.

I know, I know. Eggplant weirds me out. But I’m forcing myself to eat more of it. Because of my stomach, I’m going to try to really limit my gluten and lactose consumption (where I can) and limit the amount of meat I eat. So, weird Eggplant, we meet again. Except, this time, I stuffed you with caramelized onions, mushrooms, feta cheese, tofurky and Greek seasoning. The only way I could overcome my discomfort with you was to disguise you amongst other delicious things.

And thankfully, it worked. I have found another way I can eat eggplant! I think what really made this dish delicious was how the eggplant filling was cooked. I caramelized it with the onions, tofurky and mushrooms, so the flavor was totally different than normal. Plus, I’m pretty sure I could eat anything that’s caramelized. Bugs, livers, kidneys, you name it. Throw it in a pot with some olive oil and I’ll eat it. In addition to tasting amazing, I love the presentation.

Talk about an easy “dishes” night, right? Anything I can do to avoid doing dishes. Dishes are the devils work, I’m sure of it.

Stuffed Eggplant

Yield: 2 servings

Prep time: 10-15 minutes

Cook time: 15 minutes

What You’ll Need:

1 small – medium size eggplant, cut in half

1 small onion, chopped

1 cup of chopped mushrooms

3 tofurky breakfast sausages, sliced

1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil

3 tablespoons of feta cheese, crumbled

1 tablespoon of Greek seasoning (recipe for Greek spice here)

Dashes of salt and pepper

Cooking spray

How to Make Them:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a roasting sheet with cooking spray. Scoop out insides of the eggplant. Place in a bowl and sprinkle with sea salt. Set aside for at least 20 minutes. In a medium saucepan, heat oil. Add onions, mushrooms, tofurky, cook for about 3-5 minutes. Add eggplant filling, cook until heated, about another 5-7 minutes. Stuff the sausage mixture into the eggplants. Top with crumbled feta and Greek spice. Bake for about 15 minutes, or until cheese is melty. Serve and enjoy!

Nutritional information per eggplant half: 250 calories, 8 grams of fat, 11 grams of fiber, 10 grams of protein and 25 grams of carbohydrates.