Cheat's Baba Ganoush & Lebanese Tabbouleh

As mentioned in my first recipe post focused on aubergines, I've really come to appreciate Middle Eastern flavours so much more being able to live in Kuwait. I love that one will find ready prepared kofta mince at the butchery section of the supermarkets. And I discovered that I've been making tabbouleh incorrectly for 15 years!  And of course, it's only natural that hummus and baba ganoush and other dips have become a bi-weekly occurrence in our home. Mostly from really amazing Lebanese take out options. So here's my 3rd recipe making use of all the aubergines I had a few weeks ago. This, my friends, is a cheat's version of baba ganoush. Usually, you need to roast whole aubergines for about an hour, then scoop the cooled flesh out and blend with tahini, garlic, spices, olive oil and lemon. As you read on, I've tweaked, shortened and simplified the process and still end up with super delicious results. So, in the end, this creamy dreamy baba ganoush is served with pan-fried lamb kofta (made with ready-made spicy kofta mince from our local shop) and tabbouleh (prepared the proper Lebanese way). I also add some roasted chickpeas (as seen in recipe 1), pomegranate rubies (because I'm can't get enough of this stuff) and a good sprinkle of sumac. P.s. I cheated [even more] in the past by using IKEA meatballs that I simply roast with a little olive oil and season with sumac and cumin. Making your own kofta mince is super easy too, you can find simple recipes all over the interwebs.
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Prep Time 20 mins
Cook Time 20 mins
Total Time 40 mins
Course Side Dish
Servings 4

Ingredients
  

Baba Ganoush:

  • 2 medium aubergines diced
  • 2 tsp (10 ml) ground cumin
  • 2 tsp (10 ml) smoked paprika
  • ½ tsp (2.5 ml) dried chilli flakes
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • zest of 1 lemon juice of half a lemon
  • 2 garlic cloves crushed
  • small handful of coriander mint or parsley (optional)
  • ¼ c (60 ml) extra virgin olive oil
  • ¼ c (60 ml) thick yoghurt or more olive oil

Tabbouleh:

  • ½ c (125 ml) cooked bulgur wheat or quinoa, cooled
  • 60 g flat leaf parsley chopped
  • handful of mint leaves chopped
  • 125 g ripe tomatoes diced
  • ¼ c (½ small) red onion, finely chopped
  • a good pinch of salt
  • olive oil and fresh lemon juice
  • 500 g prepared kofta mince rolled into 5 cm balls

Optional:

  • Roasted chickpeas
  • Pomegranate rubies

Instructions
 

  • Preheat the oven to 200°C.
  • Toss diced aubergines with cumin, paprika, chilli, salt, pepper and a good drizzle of olive oil.
  • Arrange on a baking paper lined roasting tray and roast for +- 20 minutes or until soft and some bits of lightly charred.
  • Add roasted aubergine (keep a few bits aside for serving) in bowl together with remaining baba ganoush ingredients and blend until smooth and creamy using a stick blender. For a more rustic texture, simply mash together until well combined. Season to taste.
  • When ready to serve, combine all the tabbouleh ingredients together. Add just enough olive oil to lightly coat the ingredients and lemon juice to taste. Tabbouleh should be quite zingy and refreshing, allowing the flavour of the herbs and tomato to come through. It’s all about the herbs (parsley in particular), not the grain/bulgur wheat!  Life changing, I know...😉
  • Pan fry rolled kofta in olive oil until golden.
  • Serve up the baba ganoush, tabbouleh and kofta and garnish with a few bits of extra roasted aubergine and optional roasted chickpeas and pomegranate. Season with sumac.
  • Enjoy!

Notes

I hope you've enjoyed my 3 recipes embracing aubergines, 2 of which being Middle Eastern inspired and the other, Italian.
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