breaded baked eggplant

It's the time of year when my garden seems to produce a new eggplant every time I blink.  I'm still learning to cook with the stuff, but here's the best method I've found so far:

Slice eggplant into 1/4-1/2 inch thick rounds, put in a colander, and sprinkle liberally with salt.  Let it sit for about a half hour, then rinse the salt off and squeeze some of the water out.
Get three bowls:

1.  flour mixed with spices (garlic, pepper, etc.)
2. bread crumbs
3. something wet (I used soy milk blended with vegenaise)

Dredge eggplant in flour, then liquid, and finally breadcrumbs (sort of mash it in to make them stick).
Put on a sprayed or oiled baking sheet, and spray the tops with cooking spray.
Bake at around 425 for 15-20 minutes, flipping halfway.

I ate these plain hot off the pan, and reheated leftovers for breakfast with dallops of salsa on top.

"happy hens"

Egg farms are despicable. The Humane Society has filed a complaint against Rose Acre Farms, one of the nation's largest egg producers, asking the Federal Trade Commission to stop the company's false claims about the living conditions of the hens in their factory farms. The company claims the hens live in a "humane and friendly environment." Yeah, "friendly," that's what I'd call being crammed in a cage with a corpse, unable to move.

BOO

Okay, let me just say a big BOO-HISS on being served "vegan" food, only to discover bits of flesh in it midway through the meal.
ICK-TACULAR!

joy

Patxi's pizza in Palo Alto just started offering Daiya vegan cheese pizzas. I had resigned myself to a future of thin, almost sauceless pizzas from Amici's (where they also offer Daiya cheese), but now I can succumb to the siren song of the thick and saucy. Obesity, here I come...

arepas!

Arepas, the South American corn-flour patties, deserve a much wider audience, and since they pretty much consist of flour, water, and oil, they're easy to veganize.

I'm told you can buy special "arepa flour," but I prefer to use the masa harina that is cheap and readily available at the Mexican markets in my neighborhood; it makes a nice soft arepa. I also like to mix some slivered green onions into the dough.

Most people seem to make their arepas as thick patties, which are then sliced in half horizontally and filled like a sandwich, but I prefer to make two thin patties, put a spoonful of filling on one, and seal them together before cooking. This makes the arepa easy to pack, and is less messy to eat than the sliced version. I'm still experimenting with fillings, and usually use some form of beans, perhaps mixed with some salsa and minced onions or peppers. But I'm planning to try some soon with fried bananas or plantains, and some with caramelized onions. mmm...almost lunchtime.