Recipe

We are attending a dinner party tomorrow night and I volunteered to make Baba Ghannuj (Baba Ghanoush).  It's a very tasty Middle Eastern eggplant dip.  You serve it with pita triangles.  It's best to make this a day ahead of time to let the ingredients sit and marinate.  The raw garlic will be stronger the next day so be mindful of that when adjusting to your tastes.

You'll Need:

1 large eggplant

1 clove garlic

salt to taste

4 Tbsp. Tahini (sesame paste)

1/4 cp. water

1/4 cp. lemon juice

parsley garnish (if you want to)

So first off you roast the eggplant. I find it best for this dip that you will puree, to roast the eggplant whole.  Take a fork and poke lots of holes around the eggplant.  Place on a baking sheet covered w/ foil.  Roast at 400 degrees for 20 minutes.  Then turn it over and roast for another 20 minutes.  The eggplant should be squishy after the 40 minutes.  But you can adjust the time to the size of the eggplant.  Once it's all squishy, let it cool.  Then slice the eggplant in half and use a large spoon to scoop out the flesh.  You don't want the skin for this dip.

In a food processor, puree the garlic with some salt.  Then add the tahini.  Then a bit at a time, add the water and lemon juice.  Once this is all smooth, add the eggplant.  You can pulse it or puree it, depending on how smooth you'd like your dip.  Give it a taste for salt and tartness.  Adjust as needed.  **I add a little bit of Cumin for a smoky flavor**