Look Hummus! Our friend Baba Ghanoush is in the House!
We all know and love some hummus for a great appetizer to accompany your meals or to take on a picnic for something easy. I would like you to meet hummus’ cousin Baba Ghanoush for a little change of hummus pace. Baba Ghanoush is made just like hummus except it calls for a wonderfully roasted whole eggplant! It is easy to make, just like hummus but switching out the beans for the eggplant.
When you roast an eggplant, it comes down to some easy steps. Find a nice firm eggplant with smooth skin. If they look kinda small, get two. They are typically in the vegetable chiller in the produce section of the grocery store. Rinse when ready to use (as you would all produce) and towel dry. Take a knife or something sharp, and pierce that eggplant skin to create several little holes to prevent it from possibly expanding and bursting in the oven. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees and place the pierced eggplant on a rimmed baking sheet. You may want to use a silicon mat or parchment paper to prevent the liquid from baking onto your sheet pan. In about 45 minutes, your eggplant will now be imploded and have some lovely wrinkles so it’s most likely done. Pull that out of the oven and let it cool off for about 5 minutes. Once it has cooled, you can then easily peel the skin off of the eggplant and discard it.
Now it is time to add the garlic to your food processor and mince. Next, add that big warm peeled eggplant to the food processor and pulse away. Next, you will add in the creamy sesame tahini, lemon zest, lemon juice, olive oil, cumin, sea salt, and freshly cracked pepper. Blend in that food processor until smooth and creamy. Serve warm with pita, pita chips, naan bread, carrots, cucumber, and whatever else you can dream up!
Roasted Eggplant Baba Ghanoush
Equipment
- 1 Food Processor
Ingredients
- 1 large eggplant or 2 smaller eggplant
- 2-3 cloves garlic, peeled
- 2 tablespoons sesame tahini
- 1 lemon, zested
- 1 lemon, juiced
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
- 1/4 teaspoon fresh cracked pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika (optional)
- 1 tablespoon fresh chopped flat-leaf parsley
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°. Pierce eggplant with a knife tip several times. Place eggplant on a baking sheet and roast for 40-45 minutes until soft and wrinkled, turning once. Remove roasted eggplant from the oven and let cool before easily peeling the skin.
- In a food processor, mince garlic, Add peeled eggplant, tahini, lemon zest, lemon juice, olive oil, cumin, sea salt, and pepper, and blend until smooth and creamy.
- Transfer baba ghanoush to a serving bowl, sprinkle with smoked paprika and chopped parsley. Serve with toasted pita, naan bread, baby carrots, and fresh-cut cucumbers.
- Alternative: Heat grill or cast-iron grill pan to medium-high. Grill pierced, whole eggplant for about 15-20 minutes until soft, rotating a few times. Remove from grill and let cool.
