baked eggplant bruschetta salad

i love bruschetta. it has tomato and basil – some of my favorite fresh summer flavors – and in this incarnation i even threw in some roasted eggplant.  but what i don’t love is trying to balance all those delicious veggies on top of a little piece of toast before it finds its way to my mouth.  i figured it would be much easier to just chop up the bread too and toss it all together as a salad.

baked eggplant bruschetta salad
2 c cubed bread
2 c cubed eggplant
1 tsp salt
1 tsp fresh oregano
3 tbsp + 2 tbsp olive oil
2 c chopped tomatoes
1/3 c chopped red onion
1 garlic clove
1 tbsp fresh chopped basil
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar

chop up the bread and eggplant into little cubes and measure out two cups of each.  i used a whole wheat french baguette and japanese eggplants, but you could use traditional eggplant and any type of bread you’d like.  this recipe would even be good with zucchini or another light squash.

toss with the fresh chopped oregano, salt and 3 tbsp olive oil.

arrange on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper and bake at 350F for 35-40 minutes.  when the eggplant is soft and the bread is toasty, take them out to cool.

meanwhile, chop up the tomatoes and red onion, and mince the garlic clove and basil.  when the baked ingredients are slightly cooled you can mix everything together with the remaining olive oil and balsamic vinegar.

this would be perfect to bring to a picnic or barbecue!

yields 4-6 servings

this post was featured on foodgawker.com