Falafel Stuffed Eggplant with Tahini Sauce and Tomato Relish

I love falafel but I actually have never tried making it so when I saw this recipe in Cooking Light I was intrigued and thought well it is as good of a time as any to try this.  I was not disappointed, this turned out great and makes for a healthy and filling meal.

Here is what you will need: This is what the original recipe called for.  A little * denotes that I didn't have this and I used a substitute.

For Tahini sauce:
3 TBSP warm water
2 TSBP Tahini
4 tsp fresh lemon juice
1 tsp honey
1/2 tsp cumin
1 garlic clove minced

For Eggplant:

1 large eggplant *
Cooking spray
3/4 tsp kosher salt, divided*
1/4 cup chopped onion
1/4 cup fresh breadcrumbs *
1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1 TBSP tahini
2 tsp olive oil
1 1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp coriander
1/4 tsp freshly ground  blackpepper
1/4 tsp ground red pepper
2 large eggs
2 garlic gloves, minced
1 (15 oz) can no salt added chickpeas, rinsed and drained


For Relish:

1 cup chopped seeded tomato
1/2 cup chopped seeded peeled cucumber
1/2 cup vertically sliced red onion
1/2 cup coarsely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1 TSBP fresh lemon juice
1 TBSP extra virgin olive oil

Preheat oven to 475 degrees

To prepare eggplant, slice the eggplants in half lengthwise; score cut sides with a crosshatch pattern.

Place the eggplant halves, cut sides down, on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray. Bake at 475° for 7 minutes or until slightly tender and browned.

 Remove from oven; carefully scoop out pulp, leaving a 3/4-inch shell. Season cut sides with 1/4 teaspoon salt. Reserve pulp for another use. (Need an idea for what to do with the pulp...read my recipe for Babaganoush!)

   Combine remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt, onion, and next 11 ingredients (through chickpeas) in a food processor; process until smooth. Spoon 1/2 cup chickpea mixture into each eggplant shell. Bake at 475° for 25 minutes or until eggplant halves are tender and chickpea mixture is lightly browned.

To prepare sauce, combine first 6 ingredients, stir with a whisk and set aside.

To prepare relish, combine the tomato and remaining ingredients in a bowl; stir to combine.

 Place 1 eggplant half on each of 4 plates. Top each half with 1/4 cup relish and 1 1/2 tablespoons sauce.

For a side I made some cheesy orzo with broccoli.  While cooking the orzo, I microwaved some broccoli.  After the orzo was done cooking, I added 1/4 cup parmesan cheese, TBSP of milk, and shredded cheese to the hot orzo and simmered it on the stove until it all melted together.   It made for a very yummy and cheesy side.

  * I didn't have kosher salt so I just used regular salt * For the sake of time, I used store bought breadcrumbs instead of making fresh bread crumbs,