Baba Ganoush - Everyday Annie

I love when I find a new ingredient that I was previously unfamiliar with, or thought I didn’t like. Case in point – eggplant. I thought I didn’t like it, though I’m honestly not sure I had any basis for that feeling. Regardless, I now know that I do like eggplant, and I feel like a new world of recipes has been opened up to me. Eggplant parmesan was a great place to start, and now I have a list about a mile long of eggplant recipes to try. Aside from the fact that I flat out like eggplant, I think the pretty, deep purple peel has something to do with my newfound love – what a gorgeous vegetable!

A standout on my list of recipes, baba ganoush seemed like a must-try. I have heard of this roasted eggplant dip many times before, and decided to give it a shot. It seemed like a nice snack food to have ready when the in-laws came over to babysit for Andrew. By the way, I think a great way to keep babysitters coming back is to have a nice meal ready for them if they are babysitting during a mealtime. (I also served them cranberry pecan chicken salad on honey wheat rolls, and some fun individual black and white strawberry tarts for dessert.) This dip was enjoyed by all. The flavor of the roasted eggplant was fantastic, and combined with the garlic and a hint of tahini, it made for a wonderfully delicious and healthy snack. Being so easy to throw together, I’m sure we’ll be enjoying this frequently.

Yield about 6 servings

Ingredients

2 lb. eggplants (about 2 large globe eggplants, 5 medium Italian eggplants, or 8 small Japanese eggplants)
1 tbsp. freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 clove garlic, minced
2 tbsp. tahini
¼ tsp. salt
¼ tsp. pepper
Olive oil, for drizzling
Minced fresh parsley leaves

Directions

01
Preheat the oven to 500˚ F. Poke the surface of the eggplants all over with the tines of a fork to prevent the peel from bursting during roasting. Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil. Set the eggplants on the baking sheet and roast, turning every 15 minutes, until the eggplants are uniformly soft when pressed with tongs (about 60 minutes for large eggplants, 50 minutes for medium, and 40 minutes for small).
02
Remove the eggplants from the oven and let cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes. Set a colander in the sink. Trim the top and bottom off of each eggplant. Slit the eggplants in half lengthwise. Use a spoon to scoop the pulp from the skins, and place the pulp in the colander (you should have about 2 cups). Let the pulp drain for 3 minutes.
03
Transfer the pulp to a food processor. Combine with the lemon juice, garlic, tahini, salt and pepper. Process until the mixture has a coarse, choppy texture, about eight 1-second pulses. Adjust the seasonings with salt and pepper to taste. Transfer to a serving bowl. Cover with plastic wrap pressed onto the surface of the dip, and refrigerate until lightly chilled. To serve, drizzle lightly with olive oil and sprinkle with minced parsley leaves.

Source

adapted from The New Best Recipe by the editors of Cook’s Illustrated