Good 'n healthy Summer Veggie Pie

While called Summer Veggie Pie, these vegetables are usually available in your grocery store year round, so you can enjoy our good ‘n healthy recipe any time. But if you garden or visit your local farm market, this delicious, nutritious pie is a good way to use those fresh vegetables from summer’s harvest.

This veggie pie will help you get your 2 ½ cups of vegetables per day as recommended by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. All are high in fiber, vitamins and minerals and low in calories, fat, cholesterol and sugar.

Veggie Pie Health Benefits

• Eggplant provides 5% of your daily need for potassium and B-6 in a one-cup serving.
• Tomatoes contain all four major carotenoids -- alpha- and beta-carotene, lutein, and lycopene, which gives them their rich red color and is linked to reducing a number of cancers.
• Green peppers provide more than your daily requirement for vitamin C in just one cup.
• Onions give us at least 10 percent of our daily need for vitamin C, B-6 and manganese; and zucchinis are rich in flavonoid poly-phenolic antioxidants such as carotenes, lutein and zeaxanthin that work to keep our bodies healthy.

Blend these vegetables with a bit of olive oil, vinegar and seasonings to complement your entrée as a side dish, or provide a complete vegetarian meal. Eliminate the cheeses and spare yourself extra calories, fat, cholesterol, salt and sugar.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 medium eggplant, skin on, cut crosswise into ½ inch slices

Slice following vegetables ¼ inch thick:

• 1 medium tomato
• 1 medium green pepper
• 1 medium onion
• 1 medium zucchini
• 1 cup mushrooms

Seasonings:

• 2 Tablespoons olive oil
• 1 Tablespoon red wine vinegar
• ½ teaspoon garlic powder
• ¼ teaspoon black pepper
• 1 teaspoon dried basil
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano

Topping:

• 4, one-ounce slices provolone cheese
• ¾ cup low-fat skim mozzarella cheese, shredded

(Eliminate cheeses and drastically cut calories, fat, cholesterol, carbohydrates and sodium. See nutritional information comparison below.)

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Place eggplant slices on a baking sheet sprayed with no-stick cooking spray. Broil on one side for 8 minutes until browned on top, but not burnt. Remove from oven.
2. Preheat oven to 375° F degrees.
3. Arrange eggplant slices, broiled side down, in 9-inch pie plate. Overlap slices.
4. Layer tomatoes, green pepper, onion, mushrooms and zucchini over eggplant.
5. Sprinkle olive oil, vinegar and seasonings over vegetables.
6. Cover pie with aluminum foil and bake 30 minutes.
7. Remove foil and top with cheeses. Bake, uncovered, for another 15 minutes. If eliminating cheeses, uncover and bake another 10 minutes.
8. Cut into pie wedges and serve.

Since vegetables are high in moisture, juice may collect on the bottom of the plate during baking. Simply drain off some of the juice prior to serving, if desired.

Makes 6 servings.

Nutritional Information
Per 4.5-inch pie wedge serving WITH cheeses: 194 calories; 12.9g total fat (5.6g saturated, 0.7g polyunsaturated, 5.5g monounsaturated); 272.6mg sodium; 23mg cholesterol; 11.5g carbohydrate; 4.0g fiber; 1.9g sugars; 10.5g protein; 483.7mg potassium.

Per 4.5-inch pie wedge serving WITHOUT cheese: 71.4; 4.7g total fat (0.6g saturated, 0.5g polyunsaturated, 3.3g monounsaturated); 5.2 sodium; 0.0mg cholesterol; 7.4g carbohydrate; 2.5g fiber; 1.8g sugars; 1.5g protein; 313.5mg potassium