Laziness and lack of planning. If anyone ever asks me the source of my “culinary creativity,” I will have to admit that I owe it all to the fact that I put off cooking until the last minute and then have to break cooking rules and take shortcuts in order to get dinner on the table before bedtime. I’ve had a few disasters, such as the time I skipped pre-cooking the 2 cups of onions in a crockpot recipe and wound up with soup that tasted like organic fertilizer, but often I learn that some rules deserve to be broken. Like this one: Baba Ganoush is served cold.
One of my “I don’t feel like cooking” meals is to make my quick blender hummus and a big salad and serve it with pita bread. On this particular night, I had an eggplant I needed to use, so before making the hummus, I put the eggplant in to bake for baba ganoush.
Of course, the hummus was ready long before the eggplant finished baking, so there was no time to let it cool. I picked it up with a potholder to scrape the flesh from the skin directly into the blender. After a quick blending at medium speed, I opened the blender to a burst of steam, and my husband cautioned me not to get “all hot and baba-ed.” We laughed about hot baba ganoush, but with no time to let it cool, that’s how we ate it. And as you can guess, we loved it.
I refrigerated the leftover baba, and for lunch the next day I did the unthinkable and reheated it in the microwave. Instead of stuffing it in a pita, I spread it on top and sprinkled it with red onion, sweet red peppers, and kalamata olives. I baked it just long enough to heat things up and then sprinkled it with spinach just before devouring. It was a wonderfully warm way to eat a dish I previously thought of as a summer salad food.
My basic baba ganoush recipe has evolved slightly to be spicier and quicker since I first posted it, so here’s the latest version. If you’re not a spice lover or a fan of pita bread, be sure to check out the original: Baba Ganoush Vegetable Plate.
Spicy Baba Ganoush
Ingredients
- 1 large eggplant about 1 1/2 pounds
- 2 cloves garlic
- 2-4 tablespoons fresh lemon juice to taste
- 1 tablespoon tahini or to taste
- 1 teaspoon salt or to taste
- 1/4 teaspoon chipotle chile powder
- ground cumin
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425 F. Cut the eggplant in half lengthwise (through the stem) and place it cut side down on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a silicone baking liner. Cook for about 30 minutes, until the eggplant is soft and sunken in.
- Remove from the oven and let it cool just enough so that you can handle it. Holding the stem end, with a pot holder if necessary, scrape the flesh out of the skin into a blender or food processor. Add all remaining ingredients except cumin and process until it’s almost smooth. Scrape into a serving dish, sprinkle the top with cumin, and serve warm or refrigerate and serve cold.
Notes
Nutritional info is approximate.
Enjoy!
Jain
February 28, 2014 at 11:35 amThis sounds fantastic; will try soon.
I’ve only made baba a couple of times, but I thought that grilling over coals was necessary to get the baba-smokiness that makes it so special. I might try a drop of liquid smoke to recreate that element. Thanks!
Imaan
March 1, 2014 at 10:16 pmI’m not Susan but I was taught by an Arab friend that it’s not authentic baba unless it’s grilled and the flesh charred so that’s how I’ve always done it, but liquid smoke sounds like a good substitute.
Susan Voisin
March 2, 2014 at 8:36 amI love baba ganoush too much to just have it when I have access to a barbecue grill! That’s why I cut the eggplant in half and add chipotle powder. Roasting eggplant cut-side down chars the flesh and chipotle powder adds even more smoky flavor, so this becomes a treat that you can have even when the weather isn’t conducive to grilling.
Jain
March 3, 2014 at 6:52 pmAhhh! I didn’t catch the charring earlier, and the chipotle makes sense. It sounds as if this will work out fine! 🙂
Sylvia
March 17, 2014 at 2:49 pmI usually poke a few holes in my eggplants and broil them till black, turning every so often. Or char them on my gas burners (messier)!
When eggplant is on sale, I broil a whole bunch and freeze the flesh. So many great uses!
Jain
March 3, 2014 at 6:49 pmThanks for the feedback, Imaan!
moonwatcher
February 28, 2014 at 1:31 pmOh Susan, this looks just wonderful!! I agree, such rules are made to be broken. 🙂 Beautiful mouth-watering photos, too. You are making me hungry!! And “don’t get all hot and babah’d”? PRICELESS.
xoxo
moonwatcher
Art Mealer
February 28, 2014 at 2:13 pmIs there a non-fat substitute for tahini available?
Em
February 28, 2014 at 2:58 pmoh those punny lawyers!! It is funny though and the pitza looks good. Would go well with the chopped salad.
How is Loki? Can we have photos of him everyday??? Just kidding! What a cutie.
Asa
February 28, 2014 at 5:53 pmThank you Susan! Have to try that. I always make my baba ganoush hot and am usually too starved to wait for it to cool (never knew you should wait for the aubergine to cool before mushing it), But making a pizza out if it is a new idea. Thanks!
Winona
March 3, 2014 at 5:21 pmWow! This looks great! I am gluten-free, but this would go amazing on the raw pizza crust drying in the dehydrator right now. I know what we are having for dinner!
Lee at Veggie Quest
March 4, 2014 at 9:35 pmSusan, this looks delicious! I’ve never made baba ganoush, but I think I’m going to try it. And I’m completely with you–necessity is the mother of invention in the kitchen! Don’t you love it when the results turn out beautifully? (Makes the “organic fertilizer” moments all worthwhile. 😉 )
Nancy
March 6, 2014 at 11:04 amBaba Ghanoush pizza! This is brilliant! This is hitting my dinner table. What a great idea. I make fat free vegan baba g. all the time. Now it can be the ‘sauce’ on my whole grain pizza crust! Fantastic idea. And then too with the fixings off of a Greek salad….! Thanks Susan!
Noreen
May 15, 2014 at 12:38 pmJust made some. Delicious. Your recipes are always wonderful Susan. Thank you so much. I’m not sure if I could stick to a vegan diet without all your lovely recipes. 🙂
Sam Walton
July 5, 2014 at 7:31 amMaybe I misread, but in did you add eggplant TO the hummus? Or just follow the recipe given? I have only had baba ghanoush once and I didn’t really care for it. But I LOVE hummus. So maybe mixing them? Hmmm..
Carole
November 1, 2014 at 6:09 amHi Susan,
I have been wanting to email you for some time about 2 things – your recipes, and more recently, your struggle with cancer. The former I will do here, the latter is private (I’m an RD and an LAC and have too much experience with cancer).
So, this recipe and your Creamy Kale with Chickpeas have become staples in my kitchen. I love the flavors, the easy preparation and how quickly both come together. Seriously, each time I make them, I’m surprised at how quickly they’re done! To give you an idea of how much I love them, I always make a double batch of the kale and at least a triple batch of the baba ganoush. My husband can’t tolerate spice and my kids are out of the house so this is for my private consumption most of the time! And that’s the other bonus; both recipes freeze beautifully. I just picked up 6 eggplants from my CSA and will be getting a head-start on my Thanksgiving cooking today.
Thank you for being so generous with your recipes. I recognize the time it takes to perfect them. Know that you are in my thoughts and prayers as you and your family continues to heal.
Sincerely,
Carole
Nicole
December 30, 2015 at 1:17 pmI love Baba Ganoush, but this is the first time I have made it. Delicious!!! Thanks for sharing the tweaks on the recipe as I started the eggplant cooking in the microwave as the oven pre-heated, and it turned out so well.
Georgie Halpin
August 20, 2017 at 3:12 pmU had never had this before. I love it. Your recipes are always so good 🙂 Very easy to make.