I’m on an eggplant kick! And babaganoush was on my ‘to do’ list and as you can see, I ‘did’!
We LOVE our mediterranean food and one of my “usuals” to order as a side was hummus. When I gave up chick peas, there was nothing to dab my chicken or roasted veggies into! My hubby loves babaganoush and though I love it now, I had a hard time with it at first and I believe it was because of the tahini. Some restaurants must use more tahini in their recipes than others because I always had a different response to babaganoush —- I liked, then I didn’t…..and so on.
When I came up with this recipe, I used tahini to taste as I mixed it in so though it may be perfect for me, if you love the taste of tahini, you may want to add a bit more. I also added a bit of spice to give it a little kick. It’s nothing too crazy….just a little end note of spicinesss but omit the spice if you don’t want any kick at all. We like more of a bite at the end so I may add a tad more when I whip this up again.
I tried to come up with a pita bread that failed but ended up being a success as a biscuit & it was pretty good with this dip. And when I made chicken the night after this dip was made, it served the purpose of the hummus that I used to love to dip a piece of my chicken in!
Oh….and if you have plantain chips on hand, you should probably double this batch! It was an addicting snack and we literally stood in the kitchen eating this combo til the bowl was wiped clean!
- 1 large eggplant (or 2 smaller)
- 2-3 tbsp tahini
- 2 cloves garlic (+ if you prefer garlic!)
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- 1/2 tsp cumin
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 -1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees
- Cut eggplant(s) in half lengthwise & poke skin with knife or fork a few times.
- Brush flesh side of eggplant with olive oil and sprinkle a little garlic powder & salt.
- Lay skin side down on a parchment lined baking sheet & bake for 35 minutes.
- Once eggplant is done, let cool enough to be able to touch....and scoop out insides into a bowl - add the rest of your ingredients and combine.
- Mash/combine with fork. Depending on the consistency you prefer, you can do this in a food processor or even with an immersion blender. Mashing with fork will give you a chunkier consistency, while the latter will smooth it out.
- Serve with cucumber slices, paleo pita, plantain chips or just on side of your favorite protein!
