Name: Italian Eggplant Sandwich
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 35 min
Cuisine: Mediterranean
Ingredients: 2 medium eggplants, about 1 pound each; Extra virgin olive oil; Kosher salt; Black pepper; 4 to 6 medium-sized ripe tomatoes (we used Village Farms Sinfully Sweet Campari®); 1/2 pound fresh mozzarella cheese; 1/4 cup basil pesto (purchased, Best Basil Pesto, Cashew Pesto, Walnut Pesto, or Vegan Cashew Pesto); 1/4 cup olive spread or tapenade (purchased or homemade Kalamata Olive Spread); 4 artisan hoagies or focaccia bread (or 8 pieces of bread, like Sourdough Bread or Dutch Oven Bread); Basil leaves, for the garnish (optional)

This Italian eggplant sandwich is bursting with flavor! Fresh mozzarella, basil pesto, juicy tomatoes, and tapenade pair perfectly with eggplant.

This post was created in partnership with Village Farms. All opinions are our own.

This sandwich is so irresistible, with one bite it will become part of your kitchen repertoire. Meet this Italian eggplant sandwich! Inspired by a little sandwich shop from a trip to Italy, this mighty sandwich has all the best Mediterranean flavors. Tender grilled or roasted eggplant, creamy fresh mozzarella, basil pesto, and a unique flavor maker: olive spread. Place it all on focaccia bread, and it’s the stuff summer dreams are made of: ideal for patio parties, picnics and beach blankets. Here’s how to make it!

Ingredients for an eggplant sandwich

Even with something as simple as a sandwich, it can become complex the more components you add. We wanted this eggplant sandwich to be as easy as possible, so we chose each component carefully. The key is in the ingredient quality: make sure to use best quality ingredients! Here are the secrets on how to make this eggplant sandwich:

Tomatoes: Make sure to use best quality ripe tomatoes! Here we used Village Farms Sinfully Sweet Campari® tomatoes, basically a large cherry tomato. Village Farms are sustainably grown hydroponic tomatoes, and their flavor is better than any grocery tomatoes we’ve found.
Eggplant: To make this sandwich ultra flexible, you can grill your eggplant or bake it!
Basil pesto: Use your favorite brand, or make it at home! Our favorite recipes are Best Basil Pesto, Cashew Pesto, or Walnut Pesto.
Olive spread: The “secret” flavor-maker here is olive spread, also called tapenade. You should be able to find it your local grocery. Or, make our homemade Kalamata Olive Spread.
Best quality bread: Use the best bread you can find! Look for an artisan hoagie or focaccia bread.

Method 1: Make grilled eggplant!

There are two ways to cook the eggplant for this eggplant sandwich: grilled and roasted! Summer is all about throwing summer vegetables on the grill. So if it’s that time of year and you have a grill, we recommend this method! It brings a smoky undertone to the eggplant. Grilled vegetables can be tricky because the timing depends on their thickness and each grill’s specific model and temperature. The most important thing is to pay attention!

Here are a few tricks on how to grill eggplant (or go to Grilled Eggplant):

Preheat a grill to medium high heat (that’s 375 to 450 degrees Fahrenheit).
Thinly slice the eggplant into 1/2-inch rounds. The size is important: don’t go thicker or the eggplant will not cook through.
Directly before grilling, rub with olive oil. Don’t do this step in advance, or the eggplant will absorb all of the oil and become dry.
Grill 4 to 5 minutes per side, until tender and charred. Add salt to taste and enjoy!

Looking for more grilling ideas? Try Grilled Dinner Ideas, Summer Dinner Recipes to Eat Al Fresco

Method 2: Make roasted eggplant!

The other option is to roast your eggplant! This method is great because you can do it any time of the year. It’s a little easier than grilling because you can just pop it in the oven and it’s very hands off.

Here are a few tricks on how to roast eggplant (or go to Roasted Eggplant):

Chop: Slice the eggplant into rounds.
Mix with olive oil and salt: Mix with ¼ cup olive oil and ¾ teaspoon salt. Eggplant soaks up the oil in an instant, so mix it right as soon as the oil hits its flesh.
Roast at 425 degrees: Roast for about 30 to 35 minutes until the eggplant is browned and tender, turning the slices once.

Make this eggplant sandwich gluten free or vegan

This eggplant sandwich is a fantastic summer vegetarian recipe that you can change up to make it fit into other diets. Here’s what we’d recommend:

Serve it as an eggplant stack (gluten-free). Try a low carb version of this eggplant sandwich by omitting the bread and using the grilled eggplant as the stacking base. It makes for a beautiful tower of eggplant, tomatoes, and mozzarella. Or, serve it over salad greens!
Use vegan pesto and omit mozzarella (or use plant-based). Try our Easy Vegan Pesto or Vegan Cashew Pesto. You can either omit the mozzarella (the sandwich has enough flavor on its own), or use your favorite vegan mozzarella brand.

Tomato & Eggplant Sandwich | A Couple Cooks

Check out Village Farms

Check out our tomato grilled eggplant stacked sandwich over on the Village Farms website:

This eggplant sandwich recipe is…

Vegetarian and refined sugar free. For gluten free, use gluten free bread or omit the bread and serve as a stack. For vegan, omit the mozzarella and use Vegan Pesto.