March 19, 2014 March 19, 2014/ Morgan
So we all know that vegans are famous for loving hummus but did you know that baba ganoush can be just as delicious? It can be virtually the same but you use roasted charred eggplant instead of chickpeas. This results in a lighter but smoky delicious dip that can be mildly addictive!
You can eat it on pita chips, cut vegetables and even use it as a fabulous sandwich spread. I’m a dip fanatic, if you haven’t heard, and there are few foods that don’t get some dip or sauce slathered on them!
Since the recipe calls for charring the eggplant you could always do this on the grill – which is super fun in the summer! Just keep turning them over the grates to get them charred and toasted. Then you can wrap them up and place them on a higher rack to let them cook until they are very soft (or transfer them to the oven to finish off!) Then you could eat this dip slathered on some plant-strong burgers for the best BBQ ever!
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2 large eggplant
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3 Tablespoons sesame seeds
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Juice of 1 lemon
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1/2 teaspoon salt
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2 large garlic cloves
Preheat the broiler in your oven. Cover a baking sheet with foil (parchment paper should not be put under a broiler or it can catch on fire, trust me!)
Prick your eggplants several times with a fork and place on the baking sheet. Put under the broil and char for 2-3 minutes, or until the skin starts to darken and blister. Use some long tongs to turn it so that each side gets charred.
Leave them in the oven, turn off the broiler and turn it to bake at 375 degrees. Let it bake for 30 minutes, or until they are very tender.
Take it out and let them cool until you can handle them comfortably.
Scoop the eggplant flesh out of the skins and put into your blender (I used my high speed Blendtec and it made this the smoothest dip I’ve ever had!) Add in all of the remaining ingredients and blend until very smooth (my blender totally blended up the sesame seeds.)
Add additional salt or lemon juice to taste if necessary. Garnish with some sesame seeds and parsley if desired.
Serve up with some vegetables, pita chips (bake some pita at 425 degrees for 8-10 minutes or until lightly browned and crisp!), or spread it on a sandwich… mmm!!!