Smoky, bitter, creamy, sweet, nutty and enormously scoopable. Not altogether authentic, but still very good – and handily avoids the whole Explosion in the Oven scenario, which left me picking bits of auberine out of the fan for an hour last time I tried.
- 2 aubergines, peeled and diced into 2cm chunks
- 2 garlic cloves, peeled, left whole and squished gently with the flat of a knife
- Juice of ½ lemon
- ½ tsp salt
- 100ml olive oil
- 2 tbsp tahini
- 1 tsp cumin
- Heat oven to 140C fan (160C)
- Put the aubergine and garlic in a baking dish, add the lemon juice, olive oil and salt and mix together well
- Cover with a tightly fitting lid or foil
- Bake for an hour (or more) until everything is squishably soft
- Tip the contents of the baking dish into a bowl and add the tahini and cumin
- Use a hand blender to whizz it up into a paste (or just squish with a fork for a rougher texture). Taste for seasoning and add more salt or lemon juice if needed
- For a looser dip, add another 100 ml olive oil before blending
- Try not to eat all of it at once before serving (sprinkled with pomegranate seeds or za’atar) next to a pile of hot toasted pitta strips for the scooping.
Sophie cooks 