I made this a long time ago and then I got swept up with fish. It’s not gourmet but it sure is delicious. I should probably stop eating entire eggplant after roasting them. It’s probably hard on digestion. I guess it’s too late to make that a New Years resolution. And, really, there are worse vices…
Personally I prefer my babaganoujsh sesame-less, which means no tahini, but it’s traditional with the sesame paste. you can also substitute almond butter, peanut butter, or really any other butter. A tbsp of sesame oil doesn’t hurt either, but again, it’s optional. My favourite trick is the roast the eggplant the day before and let it sit in a colander overnight to drain out some of the slippery, slightly bitter liquid. Then add it to the freshly-roasted garlic and tomatoes the day you want to serve it. But you can also just let the roasted eggplant sit in colander for 30 minutes (or however much time you can wait) after scooping out the flesh to drain as much liquid as possible. It’ll be fine.
Babaganoujsh (Roasted Eggplant Dip with Pomegranate Seeds)
1 large eggplant (or 2 or 3 long, thin Asian eggplants. The small ones are less bitter)
2-4 medium tomatoes, green stems removed but otherwise left whole (4 cocktail tomatoes or 2 larger ones, or 6 cherry tomatoes if you’re feeling luxurious)
5 cloves garlic
2 tbsp tahini, optional
1 tbsp toasted sesame oil, optional
1 tbsp miso, or 1 1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/3 cup pomegranate seeds (cut into it and then pull it apart in a bowl of water so you don’t paint your kitchen red)
Instructions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Wash the eggplant, cut off only the top (because it could burn) and prick it all over with a fork. This way it won’t explode in the oven. Please the eggplant on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet along with the unpeeled cloves of garlic and stick the sheet in the oven until it starts to implode (not explode!). It should start to soften and break down, and a fork should go in easily (about 40 minutes). You can turn up the heat if you want it to go a little faster (don’t go past 425) or you can broil it, but if the eggplant is big it may burn on the outside before cooking through on the inside. If you like the charred flavour what you can do is bake it at 350 and then after about 30 minutes put it up under the broiler, turning it every few minutes so all the sides char. Remove from the oven before you set off the smoke alarm!
With 20 minutes left in the eggplant baking time add the whole tomatoes to the baking sheet. The tomatoes are done when they start to release their juices and soften. the cherry tomatoes and smaller tomatoes will cook more quickly, so add them with only 10 minutes remaining. These can be broiled more successfully, so if they’re not done by the time you want them to be done, crank the heat and put them under the broiler for just a minute or two to finish them off.
Mmm…warm, sticky mess of eggplant
Let the eggplant cool for at least 10 minutes, then scoop the flesh out int a large bowl. Peel the garlic cloves and tomatoes (or leave the tomatoes whole if you prefer), and add them to the bowl along with the rest of the ingredients except the pomegranate seeds. Mash it all together and adjust to taste (more miso – or salt – for salt, maybe a little honey for sweetness, but remember the pomegranate seeds are coming) and add some herbs if you feel like it (parsley is great. So is fresh thyme. Toasted sesame seeds also work).
Top with the pomegranate seeds and serve warm or let cool and refrigerate for later. You can refrigerate it for up to 5 days, and I’d say it’s best on about day 2 when the flavours combine. If you’re saving it for day, though, follow my eggplant roasting instructions for the day before, as described in the intro to the recipe above.
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