Baba Ghanoush, Baba Ghannouj, Baba Ghanoug, Babaghannoush

All words for the same wonderful, perfect, delicious smoky dip.

I like hummus.  I really do.  I think it’s nice.  Hummus is like an ex-boyfriend who has a perfect driving record and is a big fan of Third Eye Blind.  You really thought you liked him at the time;  it was all healthy and chickpea-y, was easy to bring to work in a little tupperware container and went well with baby carrots.  Baba ghanoush is like a mysterious stranger that seduces you from the mezze menu and takes you on exciting weekend excursions out of town on its motorcycle and recites little poems, which might be Baudelaire if you knew more about poetry, but could also be originals.

The point is, baba ghanoush is sexier than hummus, by 1000%.  Hummus is Bill Compton, baba ghanoush is Eric Northman.  If hummus is Jack Hodgins, baba ghanoush is Seely Booth.  If hummus is the lead singer that everyone finds adorable, baba ghanoush is the brooding, quiet bass player.  You get what I’m saying.

Baba ghanoush is exactly the same thing as hummus, but instead of chickpeas as the base, it has roasted or grilled eggplant.  If you think you don’t like eggplant (because I, for one, do not like eggplant), don’t let that put you off baba ghanoush.  A weird alchemy happens to eggplant when you roast or grill it.  It stops being a purple, weird shaped thing that tastes and feels exactly like a dish sponge, and starts being a smoky, lightly sweet and totally unique substance that is crying out for you to enjoy with some pita bread.  I don’t have a grill (yet), so I roasted mine in the oven, and for good measure kept a few pieces of the blackened skin when I processed it to make sure the smoke flavor was imparted to the dip.  I watched 6 people (myself included) devour the whole bowl of baba ghanoush in about 4.5 minutes, so it must have worked.

Baba ghanoush

2-4 smallish – medium eggplants (I like a smaller eggplant as I think they are less bitter than larger ones.  I used 2 medium eggplants this time, and it made probably 3 cups of baba ghanoush.  Next time, I will use 400 eggplants, because I never want to stop having baba ghanoush.)

3 cloves garlic

3 tbsp tahini (Tahini is sesame paste, they should have it in a jar in the mediterranean section of your grocery store.  If they don’t, you need to find a new grocery store.  You may have this in your fridge already, if you ever make hummus at home.)

Juice of 2 lemons

2-3 tbsp olive oil

salt and pepper

Method:

Turn your broiler on high.  Cover a cookie sheet (rimmed) with foil, and prick your eggplants all over with a fork.

eggplants are weird.

If you don’t, they will explode, which sounds awesome, but makes an absurd mess.  Put the eggplants on the sheet under the broiler for about 30-40 minutes, turning every 10 minutes or so to make sure it’s blackening evenly.  The eggplants will deflate slowly like a balloon, and start to look really sad and weird, as the juices run out.   When the eggplants are soft all the way around, remove them from the oven and let them cool to room temperature.

this picture is horrible and not clear, but you can kind of see how soft the eggplants are.

Prepare a colander in the sink.  Strip the skin off the eggplants (no need to be super picky about this, some skin is okay, I’d say if you remove 90% that’s fine) and put the flesh in the colander.  Squeeze the flesh against the holes of the colander to remove all the liquid you can.  A lot will seep out.

When most of the liquid is removed, put the flesh into a food processor with the other ingredients.  Pulse until smooth and serve.  Enjoy total adulation.

mmmm dip.

- Cat

BBQ week: Dill and Tarragon Dip

You know that dill dip that comes with the pre-packaged vegetable platters? This is SO much better than that. I was never a huge dill fan until I started growing my own, now I seem to find uses for in tons of recipes. OH and tarragon, do you use tarragon in cooking? I find that not a lot of people really know what it tastes like, but here is the funny thing, it really changes depending on the type and use. Fresh tarragon is a bit lemony with a little licorice flavor. Then you have dried tarragon, which has a slightly sweeter taste still with hints of lemon and almost a faint tea flavor. I use a mix of tarragon (both fresh and dry), lemon, and dill in this dip, along with Greek yogurt.  Greek yogurt is my favorite ingredient; it’s thick, rich, and tart. It is a great alternative to sour cream and is low fat and packs a ton of protein. Most dips contain a 1 to 1 mixture of sour cream and mayonnaise. This dip is mostly Greek yogurt, so it’s a healthier version of that crappy supermarket dill dip too.

Ingredients:

1 ½ cups Greek yogurt (I use Fage 0%)

¼ cup mayonnaise

2 tbs Lemon Juice

1 clove garlic finely chopped

 1 ½ tbs fresh chopped dill (aprox. one big handful)

1 tbs fresh chopped tarragon

2 tsp dried tarragon

1 tsp salt

Method: Finely chop all the herbs and the garlic. Whisk together all remaining ingredients until evenly mixed. Serve with toasted pita points and fresh vegetables (or anything else you think would go with it).

My friend Heidi made a good suggestion that this “dip” would also be a great as a salad dressing. I haven’t tried this yet, but I think you could easily thin this out with a bit of skim milk to make a delicious salad dressing…I’m thinking something with arugula. Someone try it and let me know!

 -Sue