Smoky Roasted Eggplant Dip

Roasted Eggplant Dip Recipe

I think I’m about to jump into a glut of posts just to make up for all the empty space from the last month…

The logical thing to do would be to write some posts in advance and save them to post every few days, but, frankly, I suck at delayed gratification on a global scale. Its like that kid that yanks on his mom’s shirt constantly until she goes over to see his new drawing. Come see it, come see it NOW. :)

So, come back and see it now! I’m kinda thrilled because as a certifiable technophobe – I was having the most frustrating time trying to figure out how to turn on email notifications for this blog.  And NOW, thanks to my patient-but-slightly-annoyed-brother-who-fixed-it-for me, it works!  So, lots of new posts, and now you can sign up for email notifications!

So sign up for email notifications! It finally works! :)  Click on the little envelope icon on the right column of this page.  Dooooo eiiiiiit. 

(note to brother, yes, I know you are rolling your eyes again. )

OK, Smoky Roasted Eggplant Dip. Its ridiculously easy, and has the most unusual flavour I have encountered since trying truffles for the first time. Read about it in the Food and Wine magazine- and was intrigued (my ‘stressful’ ‘research’ on lawnchairs in the sun accompanied by a glass of red while my unruly lawn remains blithely uncut).

What caught my attention about this was the simplicity.  I had to try it to see if it really did deserve the ‘best new find’ label from some big name chef.  The eggplant is double roasted until the skin is charred black and easily breaks(smokey flavour), and the insides are sticky and concentrated and caramelized. A little olive oil, and salt. Perfect. Suprisingly complex flavours. Not like a truffle, (nothing is), but totally unique. Hm. I bet shaved truffle in this would be delicious, though!

Make this when its a rainy day or you are spending the day around the house- its low maintenance but it takes a while to make. Great with blue corn chips (if you can have corn), or rice chips.  Would be super with roasted pita bread chips, if you can eat wheat.

Or eat it with corn-free, gluten-free nacho chips.

Note:  I suggest doubling or tripling the recipe- one large eggplant reduces to a scant cup of dip. (Crazy!).

Smoky Roasted Eggplant Dip

Ingredients

• 1 large eggplant
• 1 tbsp strong flavoured olive oil
• salt, to taste

Directions

1. Pierce the eggplant skin once or twice so that the skin doesn’t burst or split.
2. Place on an old cookie sheet, middle rack of the oven
3. Cook for 2 hours at 350 degrees
4. Let cool in the oven, until totally cold (about 1 hour, or longer)
5. Turn over, and turn the heat back on- cook for another hour (the skin should start to be charred and brittle).
6. Let the eggplant cool till just warm,  open it up, and scrape out the insides.
7. Blend with a hand blender, olive oil, salt.

Note: To kick this recipe up a notch, replace the regular olive oil with hot pepper olive oil… mmmm….

Roasted Eggplant Dip Recipe