Eggplant Buns

prep time: 10 minutes
cook time: 15 minutes

I have NEVER been successful at creating eggplant crisps/chips...especially thick ones. I was given a BEAUTIFUL eggplant by a friend recently and as always, the damn thing intimidated me. I originally thought, "Maybe I'll just dice it and add it to my breakfast scramble." Easy, right? No! I needed a challenge. So, yesterday, my partner and I were down to the last of our amazing 4 lb home-roasted chicken and I wanted leftover sandwiches. Kinda like Thanksgiving, but from a bird of another feather. The chicken was BEGGING to be put in a sandwich after 3 days of bathing in its own buttery, flavorful broth. 

My first roasted whole chicken! Turned out PERFECT!

Garden fresh veggies from my friend Elise. Damn eggplant!

WHAT YOU NEED

• 1 large (wide) eggplant 
• stable cooking oil/fat (lard, tallow, clarified butter, coconut oil, etc.) 
• a few pinches of sea salt
• any desired seasoning

WHAT TO DO

Amazon sells these for a great price! 

1. Preheat oven to 450F.
2. Using a mandolin slicer set to the THICKEST slice setting, slice the eggplant into however many slices you need. Don't slice the entire thing if you don't plan on using it, it will brown and get all nasty. If you want to make "chips," use the thinner setting. 
3. Place each slice between a few layers of paper towels and press down evenly to remove as much excess moisture as you can without murdering the veggie. The more moisture you extract, the better.
4. Use your fingertips to rub an even, THIN layer of oil on both sides of each eggplant slice. Place them on a silpat lined baking sheet. I believe the success of this recipe is half technique, half equipment. Invest in a silpat liner, you will NOT regret it! 
5. Sprinkle some sea salt on the slices and/or your desired seasoning. 
6. Line the slices on your baking sheet and once the oven has reached 450F, place the sheet on the middle rack and bake for 15 minutes.
7. Enjoy! You can eat them as is, or use them in place of bread like I did. These sandwiches were DELISH!