Roasted Eggplant Sandwiches with Basil Garlic Aioli

Anthony and I try to bring our lunch to work everyday. Obviously this doesn't work 100% of the time, but we like to aim to BYO at least four outta the five days in the week. It saves money, plus the eateries around my office can get prettttttty boring after a while (you can only eat that same salad so many times in a week).

The easiest way to successfully commit to packing lunch for work is by making a bit extra for dinner the night before so that you have leftovers for the next day. Just make your dinner and set some aside in a Tupperware container before you eat (key word here being BEFORE you eat... otherwise you end up eating all the extras!).

These eggplant sandwiches are one of my favorite 'make ahead' BYO lunches. You can either assemble them the night before when you're making the rest (tip: wrap them in a paper towel before you wrap them in plastic wrap so they doing get soggy), or put the pieces in separate baggies / tupperware for assembly at the office. Either way, they're delicious!

Roasted Eggplant Sandwiches with Basil Garlic Aioli

INGREDIENTS

Makes 4 Sandwiches

• 4 Chibatta Rolls, halved lengthwise
• 1 Large Heirloom Tomato, sliced into 1/4 inch slices
• 1 Medium Eggplant, sliced into 1/4 inch slices
• 1 lb. Fresh mozzarella, sliced into 1/4 inch slices
• 1/4 cup mayonnaise
• 2 tablespoons basil, finely minced
• 1 clove garlic, finely minced 
• Olive Oil 
• Salt & Pepper

DIRECTIONS

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees. 
• Grease a large baking sheet with olive oil. Sprinkle a small amount of salt and pepper on both sides of the eggplant and place on baking sheet. Bake for 20-30 minutes until cooked and slightly browned, turning halfway through. 
• While your eggplant is roasting, whisk together the mayonnaise, basil, garlic and 1 teaspoon of salt and 1 teaspoon of pepper in a small bowl *
• Once your eggplant is done, put the bottom halves of the chibatta bread on your baking sheet and top with one slice (or two if your eggplant is smaller) of eggplant. Top each eggplant with a slice or two of mozzarella cheese, then put the sheet back in the oven for five minutes or so to melt the cheese. Once melted, remove from the oven and top with a slice or two of tomato. Then spread a (generous) amount of the mayonnaise mixture on the top half of the chibatta bread, close your sandwich and enjoy! 

* If you have time to make this spread the night before, go for it! The longer it sits in the fridge the better the flavors are!