So good. Let’s make Baba Ganesh that would make my Lebanese cousins proud. Hopefully. Baba Ganesh is not just a dip here. It’s of course a piece of Lebanese history. The name actually means pampered father which is tied to a beloved village elder. In Lebanon, it’s always part of the mezz table with roasted eggplant blended with taheen, lemon, garlic, and olive oil. That smoky flavor comes from the fire roasting in the eggplant, a tradition that goes back centuries. More than food, it’s about the community, hospitality, and turning humble crops into abundance and love. Okay, so right off the rip, I know I have Chinese eggplant. Ideally, you want the big ones, but I had Chinese eggplant, so that’s what I’m using. Try to get the seed string out of it. If you don’t, it’s not that big of a deal. Chinese eggplants tend to have this one peel of seed right here. Drain off all the extra liquid. One large garlic clove grated into the bowl. And number two, I’m mixing Lebanese with a little Egyptian here because I love the pomegranates and the addition of Greek yogurt because it just gives it this smooth, creamy taste that is absolutely decadent. So, after you roast your eggplant and you get it out, you’re going to peel it and get the seed out. And for the love of God, please don’t put it in a food processor. Hand mash it. Use a fork. Use anything besides a food processor, please. Once you get the eggplant all mashed up, use the zest of one lemon and the lemon juice of that said lemon. And here comes the Egyptian part, the Greek yogurt, about a/4 cup of that. And then you’re going to add about a half a cup of olive oil. Then a pinch of salt, a little bit of sumac, and about 1/4 cup of taheen, maybe 3 tablespoons. Don’t worry, I’ll write the recipe down in the description below. Mash it all together. Get it in your serving vessel, and then smooth it out with a spatula. Add a little paprika and sumac on top. Another gug of olive oil. And then throw some pomegranates. That too is an Egyptian part on top with a little green mint. Just look how gorgeous this turns out. And the taste is phenomenal. Can we take a second to look at the pomegranate? Isn’t it beautiful?
2 Comments
Perfect
You’re so cute! And I had just started asking if those were Japanese eggplants right as you said what they were 😂