Baba Ganoush, or Middle Eastern Eggplant Dip

Besides hummus (chickpea dip) and tahini (made from seasame seed paste), a common dip for pita or fresh veggies is eggplant dip, or baba ganoush in Arabic. The traditional Israeli version is smoky from grilling whole eggplants over a grill. This version doesn't have that smoky taste, but is still good.

Ingredients:

1 large or 2 medium firm eggplants

3-6 garlic cloves, peeled (depending on your taste for garlic)

1 tbsp olive oil

¼ cup mayonnaise

¼ cup fresh lemon juice

2 tbsp red wine vinegar

2 tbsp tahini (optional)

• Preheat oven broiler to medium Hi

• Cut stem ends off eggplants, pierce skin in several places, put in a pan lined with aluminum foil

• Broil eggplant for about 15 minutes, turn over and broil for another 10-15 min until eggplant is soft and skin is crinkly

• When eggplant is done take out of oven and let cool

• After cooling, carefully peel and put the cooked eggplant flesh in a food processor bowl or blender. The eggplant should be soft and somewhat slimy. Scrape and discard the peels.

• Add garlic and other ingredients to eggplant and process until a smooth paste is formed.

• Put the dip in a covered container and store in refrigerator, serve with pita bread and/or raw sliced vegetables

6 servings: 120 calories (with tahini), 3 g protein, 9 g fat, 48 mg sodium, 5 g fiber, 4 g sugar