Transform our Eggplant into Baba Ghanoush
Recipe provided by Raleigh City Farm board member Miranda Miller
Baba Ghanoush is a traditional Mediterranean dip. It is heart healthy and a great component in a Mediterranean diet. Traditionally, the eggplant is roasted over coals to achieve a smoky flavor, but I use a gas grill which seems to work as well (you can also roast in a broiler or over gas flames, but the flavor won’t be as good). In addition to making a lovely dip, I often use Baba Ghanoush in lieu of mayonnaise. One of my favorite summertime meals is a sandwich composed of grilled veggies (e.g., sliced zucchini, onions, tomatoes, etc.) on hearty bread slathered with Baba Ghanoush. Yummy!
Ingredients:
2 medium fleshy eggplants or 2 or 3 smaller eggplants (in each case, preferably younger eggplants with fewer seeds).
3 or 4 tbsp Olive oil
2 or 3 cloves garlic either crushed with a garlic press or in a mortar and pestle with salt.
Juice of up to1 lemon
2 to 3 tbsp Tahini
½ tsp. toasted ground cumin.
½ tsp salt
Additional salt and pepper to taste
Olive oil, chopped parsley and/or sumac or paprika for garnish
Directions:
Using a fork or sharp knife poke holes on all sides of the eggplant (this is an important step that will prevent your eggplant from exploding!).
Heat grill.
Once grill is hot, grill eggplants, turning occasionally until the eggplant skin is blackened (charred) all over and the eggplant has collapsed and softened.
Put grilled eggplant in bowl and cover with plate. Let sit until you can handle without burning your fingers.
Once cool enough to handle, peel blackened skin off of flesh of eggplant and discard burned skin and top of eggplant. If peel sticks to flesh of eggplant, you can run the flesh under cold water to get smaller pieces of eggplant off of the flesh. If eggplant has large hard seeds, discard the seeds to the extent you can without sacrificing too much flesh.
Put eggplant flesh in food processor with ½ of lemon, 2 tbsp of olive oil, 2 tbsp tahini, garlic, ½ tsp salt, a few grinds of black pepper and cumin and process with on and off pulses until somewhat smooth. Taste. If needed, add more of tahini, olive oil, lemon, salt and cumin to taste.
Put in bowl, drizzle a little olive oil on top (and/or dust with a little sumac or paprika and garnish with a little fresh parsley). Serve with sliced pita bread, pita chips or raw sliced vegetables. Also great on grilled vegetable sandwiches.