Grilled Eggplant w/ Goat Cheese Tomato Topping

I have wanted to start posting some of my favorite recipes here for a long time, but now, by the time I have finally gotten around to it, the recipes I'm ready to share are, well, somewhat out of season. However, if there's any place in the world where it's okay to eat summer food in the winter, it would be here in Florida.

Most of the recipes I post will err on the side of healthy, with the occasional reeeeally unhealthy dessert. They're mostly adaptations of things I found online or borrowed from friends.  My first one below is not much changed from a gluten-free one I discovered last year. It's awesome. You should try it. I used some home-grown basil and cherry tomatoes from our backyard.

Grilled Eggplant with Goat Cheese Tomato Topping (serves 2 or 3)

Non-food stuff you need:
Grill pan or grill
Basting brush
Tomato knife

Ingredients:
1 large eggplant (or 2 to 3 small ones, which are much easier to cook in a grill pan)
1/2 cup olive oil (used in three different places)
4 large tomatoes, chopped or a basket of cherry tomatoes
1 small white or red onion
4 ounces goat cheese (leave in fridge until needed)
1/4 cup fresh basil leaves, chopped
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
2 large handfulls fresh baby arugula
1 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice

Directions:
In a medium-sized bowl, combine tomatoes, onions, 1/4 cup of the olive oil, basil, oregano and balsamic vinegar. Salt and pepper to taste. Set aside to marinate.

In a small bowl, mix together a small amount of olive oil and lemon juice (1:1). Lay a generous bed of fresh arugula on each serving plate. Sprinkle with olive oil/lemon juice mixture.

Heat a grill pan or grill on high heat. Cut off the ends of each eggplant and slice 1/2 inch thick. Don't slice too thin or they get flimsy. Brush both sides of each slice of eggplant with olive oil. Salt and pepper both sides. Grill eggplant slices 4 to 5 minutes until they get golden brown and have nice grill marks. Then flip each piece, leaving them for another 3 to 4 minutes until softened.

Just before serving, lay grilled eggplant slices on arugula. Crumble the goat cheese into the tomato, basil and onion mixture and mix gently. With a large, shallow spoon, top the grilled eggplant slices with the tomato mixture and serve immediately.

Enjoy!