Burnt Baba Ganoush Recipes

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 450°. Cut eggplant in half lengthwise. Place cut side up on an ungreased baking sheet. Brush 1 tablespoon olive oil over cut sides. Sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon salt and paprika. Bake until dark golden brown, 20-25 minutes. Remove eggplant from pan to a wire rack to cool., Peel skin from eggplant; discard. Put flesh into a food processor and pulse to mash; transfer to bowl. Stir in tahini, lemon juice, garlic and and remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt. Spoon into serving dish. Drizzle with additional olive oil. Sprinkle with parsley and additional paprika.

Steps:

• Prepare a hot gas or charcoal grill. Pierce the eggplants in several places with a fork or the tip of a knife, and place over the hot coals. Grill, turning regularly, until soft and blackened all over. If you don't have a grill but do have a gas stove, preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Cover the top of your stove under the burner grates with foil to facilitate cleaning. Turn on your oven fan (so the smoke alarm won't go off), and roast the eggplants directly over the flame, turning often until charred and softened. Small, thin eggplants will cook through this way, but larger eggplants must be finished in the oven. Wrap in foil, and place in the hot oven for 20 minutes until thoroughly softened. You can also roast the eggplant under a broiler until charred and softened. The flavor of the baba ganoush will not be as smoky.
• Place the grilled eggplant in a colander in the sink, and allow to cool and drain. Peel and discard the black skins, cut off the stems, and let the eggplants sit in the colander to drain for another 15 to 30 minutes.
• Puree the eggplant in a food processor fitted with the steel blade. Add the lemon juice, yogurt and tahini. In a mortar and pestle, pound the garlic to a paste with a generous pinch of salt. Add to the food processor, and blend with the eggplant. Add salt to taste.
• Mound the puree in a bowl or on a platter, and drizzle with olive oil. Sprinkle with parsley. Serve with pita bread.

Steps:

• Preheat the barbeque to 475°F.
• Pearce the eggplant in several places with a fork.
• Bake the eggplant for 45-50 minutes, turning 2 or 3 times.
• Remove from heat and let cool about 10 - 15 minutes.
• Remove the skin, and optionally reserve a small portion.
• Mash the eggplant with a fork. The eggplant should not be stringy.
• If you want extra smokey, finely chop a bit of the skin.
• Add tahini and mix, about a tablespoon at a time, to taste.
• Add remainder of ingredients, except for the olive oil. Depending on the size of the eggplants you will need to add a bit more of the other ingredients. The result should have a half-lumpy/half-creamy consistency.
• At this point, you can drizzle olive oil and sprinkle the parsley to taste and serve warm. Alternatively, to allow the garlic to blend, I find that setting it aside for a few hours also works well.
• Spread on a serving plate and serve with pita bread.