Baba Ganoush

Steps

1. Heat oven to 450°F and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Slice the eggplants in half lengthwise and poke the purple skins with a fork a few times, then brush the exposed white flesh of the eggplants and the unpeeled garlic cloves with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil. Place the eggplants flesh-side-down on the baking sheet along with the unpeeled garlic cloves.  Roast everything together for 20 minutes*, then remove the garlic cloves and set them aside to cool.  Return the sheet of eggplants to the oven and continue roasting for 25-35 more minutes, until the eggplants have collapsed and the flesh is completely soft and tender. (Cooking time will depend on the size of your eggplants and garlic cloves.) Transfer the baking sheet to a wire cooling rack and let the eggplants rest flesh-side-down, undisturbed, for about 20 minutes so that the eggplant flesh can continue to steam inside of its skins.

2. Once the eggplant has cooled a bit, use a spoon to scoop out the soft flesh and transfer it to a large fine-mesh strainer. Use the spoon to gently press and strain out the excess water over the sink, then transfer the flesh to a large mixing bowl.

3. Peel the roasted garlic and add it to the mixing bowl.  Use a fork to stir and gently mash the eggplant and roasted garlic until they reach a smooth-yet-slightly-chunky consistency. Add in the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil, tahini, lemon juice, salt, cumin, and a tablespoon or two of chopped fresh parsley, and stir until combined.

4. Taste and season with extra salt, if needed.

5. Serve immediately, topped with an extra drizzle of olive oil and sprinkled with some extra parsley and a pinch of sumac. Leftovers can be refrigerated in a sealed container for up to 3-4 days.