Eggplant Pizza Bites

To all my Pizza Lovers...

Whether it's a late night snack or a side-dish to a meal, these little eggplant pizza bites provide the deliciousness of pizza without the excess calories, sodium, cholesterol and saturated fat found in a typical pizza. 

If you're not a huge fan of veggies, I highly encourage you to try cooking with eggplant. It's subtle flavor and soft texture tends to receive a positive response! Keep the dark purple exterior of the eggplant on with cooking as it offers an assortment of micronutrients, including anthocyanins (antioxidants - flavonoids), that helps improve immunity against illness and injury. 

Eggplant Pizza Bites
Prep Time: 5min
Bake Time: ~10-12min
Total Time: 15-20min

Yields ~6

Ingredients: 

• 1 Eggplant, Sliced into 1/4" circles
• 2Tbsp Olive Oil
• 3/4 Cup Pizza Sauce or Sauce of Choice
• 1Tbsp Garlic Spread Seasoning (or concoction of garlic powder, onion powder, oregano)
• 1/2 Cup Grated Parmesan Cheese
• 1/4tsp Salt

Directions:

1. Pre-Heat oven to 420F and place aluminum foil on a baking sheet
2. Place sliced eggplant on sheet. In the following order, layer the eggplant: drizzle olive oil, sprinkle garlic spread seasoning, spread pizza sauce (leaving a little room around the edges), sprinkle grated parmesan and then lightly season with salt to taste.
3. Bake in the oven for about 10-12min or until the eggplant is cooked through. 
   1. Optional: At the end of baking, I broiled my pizza bites for about 60 seconds give the pizza bites a little more browning. :) 
4. Enjoy!

Nutrition Facts per Serving: 
111 Calories, 7g Fat, 2g Saturated Fat, 7mg Cholesterol, 146mg Sodium, 7g Carbohydrate, 3g Fiber, 3g Sugar, 0g Added Sugars, 4.5g Protein

Healthy Regards, 
Jessica G. Anderson, MS, RD, LD, ACSM EP-C
#FuelForTheGOLD