Baba Ghanouj

I decided to change my approach to pot luck appetizers. I would normally bring a batch of pork spring rolls, salsa and chips plus dessert. When my HS girl friends decided to call a reunion, I thought of bringing something that would be slightly different from the average Filipino appetizer fare. Why not bring a batch of Baba Ghanouj?

Baba Ghanouj or Baba Ghanoush is commonly served as a starter or appetizer. It is a dip that is paired of with pita chips (but it may be paired with anything your heart desires :D ). The main ingredient is baked or grilled eggplant combined with a mixture of spices, tahini and oil. Tahini is ground sesame seeds with oil that was turned into paste. It is rich in protein, folic acid, B vitamins and iron. It helps with digestion too. However this dish should be taken in moderation for those with arthritis and gout because it may aggravate their condition.

The dish is easy to make and the ingredients are readily available in the market. I figured I would be able to try something new and play around in making my own home-made tahini too.

The Ingredients:
400-500 grams eggplant
2 cloves of garlic, peeled
1/4 cup tahini
1/4 cup lemon juice
pinch of salt
2 tablespoons of olive oil (optional)
1/8 - 1/4 teaspoon of smoked paprika or cumin

pita chips for dipping

Cooking Procedure:
Cook the eggplants by either baking or grilling. If you decide to bake them, pierce the skin with a fork for a few times; slice the eggplants into 2 length-wise. Lay them with the cut side down over a lightly greased cookie sheet and roast at 375F until they are soft and tender (about 30-60 minutes depending on their sizes). Cool and drain them them by laying them over a strainer. Scoop out the flesh into a bowl.

To grill, lay the eggplants over open flames and cook until the skins are dark and the meat is tender. Peel off the burned skin. Squeeze out the excess liquid and place the meat in a bowl.

Combine all the ingredients in a food processor or blender, except for the olive oil. Blend all the ingredients together until everything is blended. Add olive oil into the eggplant mixture one tablespoon at a time until you have reached the desired consistency. Let it rest for 5-10 minutes and taste. Adjust the saltiness and tangy flavor by adding more salt or lemon juice. Transfer dip into a serving bowl. Sprinkle with paprika or cumin. Serve with pita chips.

My Notes:
I prefer to grill the eggplants because the smoky flavor gave the dish more character.
Tahini may be found in super markets. Here is a copy of a homemade recipe.

Tahini - Sesame Paste

In my exploration of recipes, I have encountered the term Tahini a couple of times already without really knowing what it is. Until I met a friend, Ayman and mentioned that it was just sesame seeds turned into paste. Ahhhhh. It is similar to peanut butter except it uses sesame seeds instead of peanuts.

So, in the two years, I didn't even bother trying to find this product locally because no one would appreciate its use. Until recently, I decided to make baba ghanouj. I needed tahini and I had no clue which local grocery carries this. So searched the web and came across homemade tahini recipe by Emeril Lagasse . And boy, it sure made my life easier from ransacking all the grocers here in the metro. I just adjusted the amount since I wouldn't be needing a lot of this.

I just toasted 50 grams of sesame seeds for a few minutes until golden in color. Tried not to over cook and burn the seeds else I would end up with a bitter paste. Placed the toasted seeds in a blender and added 1 teaspoon of olive oil. Blend the ingredients together. Add another teaspoon of oil to make it more spread able. You may add more but try to add in small amounts else you would end up with an oily paste. Store blended paste in a tightly sealed container in the refrigerator up to a few months.

The 2007 Christmas Gift Winner

After trying a couple of recipes for this year's Christmas 2007 treat search, finally it is over. And the winner is ....



Chocolate
Pumpkin
Cupcakes.


I saw this online from find.myrecipes.com and since I became slightly obsessed with the idea of using locally available productS (pumpkins in particular) I had to give it a try.

Actually, this recipe is not for cupcakes but actually a marble cake recipe. But I wanted to mass-produce this for friends, so I baked it in muffin cups. I was able to make 4 dozen delicious babies with 1 recipe. I tried to repeat this and was able to make 3 large loaves with one recipe. It was moderately difficult for me at first since I never made marble cakes. But once you get the hang of it, everything was a piece of cake (no pun intended). I didn't add the frosting anymore because I found the cake just right and adding the frosting would make it too sweet. We liked it better refrigerated because it made it more dense-like but eating it in room-temperature is good too.

Maybe, I would be adding this as a regular gift treat and conduct another Christmas Project for 2008.