Directions: |
Directions:This is a vegetarian recipe
Begin by roasting the eggplant. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F. Pierce the eggplant with a fork to allow steam to escape while cooking. Place the eggplant on a lightly greased baking sheet and cook for about 30 to 40 minutes, turning occasionally. The eggplant should be soft enough to run a knife through it. It is important that it is thoroughly cooked because under cooked eggplant will not have the creamy consistency needed.
Remove the eggplant from the oven and set aside to cool. While it is cooling off, place the garlic, scallions, tahini, lemon juice and parsley in a food processor. Puree these ingredients until smooth.
Now go back to your eggplant. It should be cool enough to handle at this point. Split the eggplant down the middle and peel away the skin, remove as many of the seeds as you can. Discard the skin and the seeds.
Add the eggplant, cumin, salt and pepper to the tahini mixture in the food processor. Run the blade to create a thick paste. Add the olive oil and blend until smooth.
Scoop the dip into a serving bowl and serve with pita slices and mixed, raw vegetables.
Many recipes using eggplant mention salting the eggplant to draw out bitter flavor. For this recipe you won't need to go through the trouble of salting because the eggplant is prepared by oven roasting in the skin.
Grow eggplant and flat leaf parsley in your garden to have the ingredients for baba ghanoush. 'Hansel' eggplant produces petite fruits in abundance early in the growing season. It's a good choice for gardeners with limited space. Flat leaf parsley is extra flavorful and a little more heat-tolerant than the curly leafed variety. HALLELUJAH! |
This recipe for BABA GHANOUSH is from