Greek Theme Part 1: Quick and Easy Greek Dips

My friend, Miss T, and I decided to have a Greek themed day of cooking. We fixed all sorts of Greek food, watched "My Big Fat Greek Wedding", and talked about travel to Greece. (She's been. I haven't. Lucky her!) We cooked Baba Ganoush, Tatziki, Peppers Stuffed with Feta, Lemon Olive Roast Chicken, Broiled Figs, and topped the day off with Lemon Sorbet (not homemade, but very refreshing). Greek food is remarkable easy to prepare and very tasty. The flavors are fresh and varied. I'll be posting our delicious Sunday cooking spree recipes over the next few days. There's no promise these are truly authentic Greek recipes, but they speak Greek to me.

Try a few recipes out and as you are enjoying the fruits of your labor, close you eyes and imagine the aqua-blue Mediterranean, white washed stucco buildings, hot sun, and millennia of history.

BABA GANOUSH

Couple of notes before we start: 

Miss T wanted to try Japanese eggplants, too, so we included a couple of those in our recipe. I don't think they are necessary for the recipe but you'll see them in the pictures. If you want to use Japanese eggplants, you'll need quite a few (maybe a dozen) to equal one large regular eggplant. 

Tahini is a ground sesame seed butter, like peanut butter but with sesame seeds. It can be found in most large grocery stores these days, either with the peanut butter or in the Mediterranean section. I bought mine at Albertsons. It does separate. It's okay if there is a layer of oil on top and a really thick layer of nut butter on the bottom. Just stir is up good before measuring.


INGREDIENTS
1 large eggplant 
1-2 T olive oil
1/4 cup Tahini
2-4 large garlic cloves
Salt to taste
1-2 T lemon juice

1) Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2) Cut the stem off the eggplant and split it down the center length-wise. Brush the flesh with a little olive oil. Not too much, it will absorb all the olive oil you brush on.
3) Place the eggplant, cut side down, on a foil lined baking sheet and bake at 400 degrees for 30-40 minutes until the insides are soft.

4) Set aside and let cool. When cool enough to comfortably handle, peel back the outer skin. If it sticks, scrape off gently with a spoon. Discard the skins.

5) Place the roasted eggplant flesh in a blender or food processor. Add tahini, garlic, lemon juice to taste, and salt to taste. Blend until smooth.

That's it! Simple!

Serve with cut up veggies or soft pita as a dip. Use on sandwiches, pita pockets, or wraps. 



You can add other things to the Baba Ganoush just like you can with hummus. Try parsley, dill, or a little thyme and oregano to make it an herbed dip. Or add more garlic, or roast the garlic first. Add cayenne or red pepper flakes to make it spicy.




TATZIKI
INGREDIENTS
2-3 pickling cucumbers, or 1 regular cucumber
8 oz plain Greek yogurt
2-3 T chopped dill
2 T lemon juice
1 clove garlic minced
Salt to taste

1) Peel, seed and dice the cucumber, the finer the better.

2) In a bowl, mix the cucumber with all of the remaining ingredients. Add salt to taste.

That's it! Super simple!

Serve with veggies, soft pita, or pita chips a a dip. Or serve with a spicy meat dish to help cut the heat. It could be blended and used as a salad dressing. It's also good in wraps and pita pockets.

Baba Ganoush on the left and Tatziki on the right