I’m no farmer and I don’t know anything about the seasonality of produce. Visiting most American grocery stores, the average shopper would have no idea when various fruits and veggies were in season, because stores sell pretty much everything, all year round. And while it can be nice to have fresh avocados in winter and apples in spring, there’s really nothing as good as in-season local produce, picked by farmers and eaten by me on the very same day! On Saturday morning at the farmers market, I saw more eggplants in more different varieties than I even knew existed, so my keen non-farmer Spidey Sense tells me it must be eggplant season in the midwest. I picked up a nice big one and made this classic Middle Eastern roasted eggplant spread. Go get your own before the season passes!
INGREDIENTS
1 large eggplant
4 cloves garlic, peeled and cut in half
1 tbsp good quality extra virgin olive oil
1 tbsp tahini
2 tsp lemon juice
fresh parsley, chopped
1/8 tsp hot paprika, plus more for dusting
salt and pepper to taste
DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 375 F.
Pierce eggplant 8 times. Place on hot grill or directly on gas stove over medium high flame. Turn so that each side chars evenly.
When the skin is charred, remove from heat.
Stuff garlic cloves into the slits in the eggplant.
Roast on baking sheet for about 20 minutes, until eggplant is completely softened. Set aside to cool.
While eggplant cools, combine all other ingredients in a bowl.
When the eggplant has cooled enough to touch, cut off the stem and peel off as much of the skin as you can.
Cut into three pieces and add to a food processor along with all other ingredients.
Spoon into a bowl and dust with more paprika. I forgot to do it for the photo, but an extra drizzle of olive oil isn’t a bad idea either.
KellyintheKitchen 
I never was adventurous enough to try this, but with your simplified recipe, I will make it this week. Thanks Kelly.
I really like baba ganoush but have never attempted making it. Putting the garlic in the eggplant is really cool. I have been inspired…thanks for sharing!
You’re welcome! It’s a surprisingly easy recipe, let me know how it turns out :)
Very good idea to put the aubergine on the stove to get the traditional baba ganoush smoky flavor…What are those red wine (indian red) vegetables next to onions and augergines? Are those okras?
They are okra! I’m thinking of making a lentil and okra curry or something. I’ve never cooked okra before, so it will be interesting!
Sounds great. Just be careful of cooking time. The first time I used okra was to prepare a Vietnamese curry of vegetables and I think I kept it for to much time over the stove. The result was that the okra disappear (just few pieces of it) and the sauce became just a bit slimy. The flavor was really good.
I love baba ganoush but have never tried to make it myself. Your detailed and beautifully illustrated recipe offers more than adequate inspiration to do-it-myself – just as soon as it cools down enough to cook in the kitchen. Currently everything is uncooked (Tabouleh tonight) or done on the bbq. Thanks, Kelly! And congrats on your well-deserved award!