Farmer's Market Salad with Eggplant Vinaigrette

Serves 4

www.ZsusVeganPantry.com

1 tablespoon neutral oil, divided

1 medium eggplant, about 1 pound

1 medium cauliflower, coarsely chopped

5 garlic cloves, halved, plus 2 teaspoons minced, divided

Sea salt and fresh ground black pepper

8 ounces green beans, trimmed

1 cup grape tomatoes

1 teaspoon plus 2 tablespoon fresh lemon juice, divided

¼ cup vegetable broth

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 tablespoon tahini

2 teaspoons chipotle in adobo

2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives

6 cups fresh spinach

1. Coat the eggplant with the oil. Heat a skillet over medium heat. Add the whole eggplant and cover the skillet with a stainless steel bowl. This will create smoke; use a kitchen fan to keep the air clean. Turn the eggplant a quarter turn when the bottom is charred. Turn as needed until the eggplant is tender. Cool the eggplant and peel. Set aside.

2. Pulse the cauliflower in a food processor until the size of grains of rice. Heat 1 teaspoon of oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the cauliflower, the halved garlic cloves, season with salt and black pepper, and stir and cook until golden, about 7 minutes. Set aside.

3. Toss the green beans, tomatoes, 1 teaspoon lemon juice, 1 teaspoon oil, minced garlic and season with salt and black pepper. Heat a grill pan or skillet over medium heat and cook the green beans until charred and crisp-tender, about 4 minutes. Set aside. Add the tomatoes to the grill pan and cook only until lightly charred, about 1 minutes. Set aside.

4. Add the peeled eggplant, vegetable broth, olive oil, tahini, chipotle, 2 tablespoons lemon juice, and any garlic you can pick out of the cauliflower saute to a personal blender. Blend until smooth. Season with salt and black pepper and stir in the chives.

5. Toss the spinach with about ¼ cup of the vinaigrette and serve with the cauliflower, green beans and tomatoes.