So grateful for my Mediterranean/Middle Eastern roots where dishes like this are the norm… yes this dip has a strange name but if you love aubergine/eggplant and tahini, I am sure you will love this!!

Fun fact: Apparently in Arabic, baba means father and ganoush/ghanoush means spoiled. This delicious, creamy dip is a popular alternative to hummus in the Middle East. Growing up, I couldn’t stand the taste of aubergine and could easily detect it in ratatouille and other dishes in which mom tried to disguise it. But thankfully, a few years ago I grew to love the taste and will now happily enjoy it in dishes, on its own (roasted) and in this tasty dip.

I will add the full detailed recipe on my blog soon, but for now, here is the simple version. Roast 2 aubergines in the oven (or even better – if you have a gas stove, roast it over the open flame until it is burned and blistered – this will produce the traditional smoky flavour. The aubergine needs to be very soft with the skin almost falling off).

Once the aubergines have cooled, peel off the skin and add to a blender (I used a hand blender) with 1/4 cup tahini (1/3 cup for a richer flavour), 2 cloves crushed garlic, 1 tsp herb salt (or to taste) juice of half a lemon, and 1-2 tsp ground cumin. This time I also added some za’atar (roasted sesame seed mix), cayenne pepper and smoked paprika. Add 1-2 tsp water and blend until smooth. Serve with crudités, pita bread, falafels etc. Enjoy!

Be sure to visit my blog for more healthy ideas: https://z4zest.wordpress.com

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