The Recipe!
Baba Ganoush
Nikki Guerrero, Hot Mama Salsa
I love eggplant dip of all kinds, and you can make many different variations. This version has just the basics, but is made rich and flavorful by smoking your eggplants.
Ingredients:
3 medium size eggplants
1 garlic clove
Juice of one Meyer lemon
3 tablespoons tahini paste
¼ cup olive oil (give or take)
Salt to taste
1–2 tablespoons water
Directions:
Cut small slits into your eggplants, and place in a smoker at 200°F for a couple of hours.
Remove eggplants from the smoker, place in a baking dish, drizzle with olive oil and cover with foil or a lid.
Bake in a 350°F oven until very soft (about an hour).
Let cool.
Peel off the skins and top.
Add the soft, smoked, and roasted flesh of the eggplant to a Cuisinart or blender with the tahini, lemon juice, garlic, and salt.
Purée and drizzle the olive oil in.
Add water to create a light, fluffy consistency.
Enjoy as is or finish off with fresh herbs, olive oil, chili oil, pomegranates, or any accoutrement of your choice.
Alternatives if you don’t have a smoker:
Add some smoky coffee chili oil in step 6.
Or do a smoke on your BBQ by soaking some wood chips and putting them in one side of a roasting pan, with the eggplant on the other side. Cover with foil with just a small vent for air. Smoke for approx. 30 minutes.