my brother refuses to eat eggplant, too. and okra
eggplant is one of those foodstuffs that tastes like whatever you make it taste, its a very neutral flavor on its own. nothing to be afraid of, texture is similar to zucchini but a little softer.
try eggplant parm. its not terribly exciting, but its not boring either. ratatouille usually has eggplant in it too. its pretty tasty grilled w/ oil, s+p.
how can you hate onions? raw i can understand, but they add so much flavor to everything. mm. hungry now.
sweetbreads are awesome.