Moroccan Eggplant with Garbanzo Beans

This dish is a great example of how tasty and nutritious a vegetarian dish can be. One serving provides 166% of the Daily Value (DV) for molybdenum, 119%DV for vitamin C, 64% DV for manganese, and 62% DV for fiber.

Prep and Cook Time: 35 minutes
Serves 4

Ingredients:
• 1 large onion cut in half and sliced thin
• 5 medium cloves garlic, pressed
• 1 medium red bell pepper cut in 1 inch squares
• 1 medium eggplant cut into 1 inch pieces
• Pinch of red pepper flakes
• 2 tsp turmeric
• 1/2 tsp garam masala
• 1 15oz can garbanzo beans
• 1 15oz can lentils, drained
• 1/2 cup tomato sauce
• 1 1/4 cups + 1 TBS vegetable broth
• 1/2 cup raisins
• 1 TBS chopped fresh cilantro
• Salt & black pepper to taste

Directions:
1. Slice onion and press garlic and let sit for at least 5 minutes to bring out their health-promoting properties.
2. Heat 1 TBS broth in a 10-12 inch skillet. Healthy Sauté onion in broth over medium heat for 5 minutes stirring frequently. Add garlic, red bell pepper, eggplant, garam masala, and turmeric. Stir to mix well for a minute and add broth and tomato sauce. Stir again to mix, cover, and cook over medium low heat for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally or until peppers and eggplant are tender. This is our Stove Top Braising cooking method.
3. Add garbanzo beans, lentils, red chili flakes, and raisins. Simmer for another 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Serve sprinkled with chopped cilantro.

Healthy Cooking Tips:
Cutting the eggplant and peppers into 1 inch pieces gives the spices a chance to come through in cooking without the vegetables overcooking. This recipe is organized so it can be made quickly. However, when adding the garam masala and turmeric, stir well and give it time to heat up, at least 1 minute, before adding liquid. You will get much more flavor by doing so.