Eggplants are one of those vegetables I never tire of. They take on whatever flavour you give to them and their creamy texture nurtures and soothes us. Baba Ghanouj is easy to make and consists of only four ingredients plus a sprinkling of fresh parsley if you choose.

In traditional baba ghanouj, the eggplant is roasted which gives it a smoky, charcoal-like taste. I confess to liking my eggplant baked and I do not miss that smoky taste everyone raves about. Feel free to grill or cook your eggplant over a barbecue if you can but if not, you can still enjoy the essence of the dish with baked eggplant!

Baba Ghanouj

Ingredients

I large organic eggplant

1/4 cup Lebanese or Israeli tahini

4 tbs fresh lemon juice

2 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed

1/4 tsp plus a pinch of Himalayan pink salt

fresh parsley leaves, finely chopped (for garnish)

Method

Preheat the oven to 200c.

Trim off the stalk and cut a large eggplant in half lengthwise. In a large, round and wide dutch oven, lined with baking paper, place the eggplant halves face down. Cover with a lid and bake for about 40 minutes or until a fork pierces through the skin and flesh with ease.

Scoop out the flesh of the eggplant with the juices. Break up the flesh with a fork and knife and mash until you have . Add the tahini, lemon juice, garlic and salt. Mix thoroughly and taste. Adjust to your preferred tastes. As every eggplant is a different size, you many need slightly more or less lemon, tahini, garlic and salt.

Serve with a sprinkling of finely chopped, fresh parsley leaves. You can serve this with a drizzle of very good quality cold pressed virgin olive oil, a dash or ground sumac or cumin. However it is delicious just as it is!