This sandwich is suprisingly delicious, but lacks a few things.
Ingredients
Ciabata Bread w/ Sunflower Topping: They’ve stated the ciabata bread’s “brown”, but not whole wheat. The goal of an ingredient list is to specifically list down what’s used.
Eggplant: The star of this vegan sandwich. You can’t go wrong with this vegetable, unless you deep fry it.
Tomato Ketchup: Provides a subtle sweetness to the sandwich. Never even knew it was there.
Light Feta Cheese: Some brands add oil to feta, while others pack it in water. Feta’s high in protein and calcium, and low in carbs.
Yellow Capsicum: Proven metabolism booster. High in vitamin C.
Chili Ketchup: Why not add this instead of the ketchup up top to minimize sugar?
Pomegranate Molasses: More sugar! We’ll have to wait and see how the 3 sugary sources effect total carb count.
Garlic: I love garlic. It’s addition is welcome anywhere.
Soy Oil & Seasoning: Why won’t Diet Care use something better than Soy Oil? There are better alternatives.
Macro-nutrients and Calories
Calories: 260′s not bad for a meal or a snack.
Fat: Manages to stay below 15 grams. 9 grams of fat, of which come from healthy sunflower seeds.
Sodium: With all the ketchup and seasonings used, I have no idea how they kept this at 370mg.
Net Carbohydrates: 35 grams is GREAT for a sandwich. In addition, vegan usually means high in carbohydrates which isn’t the case here.
Fiber: Vegan also means high in fiber. Add a salad for extra fiber, nutrients and to stave off hunger. I personally found this sandwich light.
Sugar: With 3 sources of sugar, I’m surprised they managed to keep sugar content at 6 grams. Looks like the consortium of carby sauces didn’t effect the sandwich too much.
Protein: Way below the minimum of what is needed per meal. As a snack, this would do. If you want to truly enjoy this, power-pack it with a few slices of lean roast beef. I tried it with turkey breast, but the roast beef complimented the ingredients better.
Fahad’s Final Take: APPROVED
Great! I had that yesterday with a Greek salad. It’s one of my favorite “diet” sandwiches! Although it’s called ‘spicy’ eggplant, it’s not spicy AT ALL ! I tend to add filfil qrash, is it ok ?
I love this sandwich and I’m so glad it got approved.
Yet contrary to your belief, it’s not vegan, it’s vegetarian because it has feta cheese (dairy product).
Fay: Filfil qrash is OK.
Aisha: In Kuwait, you’re probably the only person that differentiates between a “vegan” and a “vegetarian”. Add more low-fat feta cheese to increase protein intake.
Fahad: don’t hate the player, hate the game.
Aisha: you’re not a player, and there is no game :p
It has cheese, it’s not vegan
Fahad the only way we keep our sodium content ths low is cz we use KI (Potassium Iodine). It’s not only great for sodium count but also heart friendly and a blood pressure regulator:) As for the Soy Oil the only good alternative and heat stable option is Canola and we are still looking into that. However, the amounts are minimal and just the daily required dose of PUFAS needed, that is if you are on a sole DC meal plan or if you are on a calorie controlled healthy diet.. Hope I came with some assistance:D
Farah: Thank you for your input! I personally use potassium when seasoning my food. And I greatly agree with you.