I have always been a huge fan of dips. I can destroy a veggie and ranch platter in a matter of minutes. If a Superbowl party has french onion dip and/or queso, I won’t even come up for air. Hummus is fine, too…though try spending a few months living in Israel, where hummus is an art form – a full freshly prepared meal – then go back to preservative-filled containers from the grocery store, and you’ll understand my lack of enthusiasm. But I don’t discriminate, so I’ll probably swoop in on the tub of Sabra hummus as well.
Usually, I try to complement the dip(s) with something more substantial because…healthy. But if I’m being honest, sometimes I just want to eat an entire bowl of dip and call it a day. The recipe I’m sharing tonight allows one to do just that – eat a bowl of dip, feel okay about it, and move on. It’s a simplified spin on baba ghanoush and can be an easy-to-make dinner party appetizer…or, if you’re more my speed, a dinner for a party of one (see what I did there?). This serves 6 as an appetizer.
*For the pita chips, I simple sliced up two store-bought pitas into small triangles, separated each triangle to make two triangles (using the layers of the pita), then lightly sprayed with oil (Pam or olive oil mister). I topped with a bit of garlic salt and popped them under the broiler until brown on the edges.
Ingredients:
1 large eggplant
2 tbsp of fresh lemon juice
3 tbsp of plain whole fat Greek yogurt
1/3 cup of pomegranate seeds
1/4 cup of feta crumbles
Salt
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Slice the eggplant lengthwise, then use the same knife to score the flesh of the inside of each half. I drew a little tic-tac-toe board.
Lay the eggplant flesh (flat) side up on a baking sheet and bake for 40 minutes at 400. Meanwhile, collect your lemon juice, pomegranate seeds, and feta. If you bought a pomegranate and not just the seeds (which you should do – it’s so much cheaper!!), check out this awesome shortcut for seeding the fruit.
When the eggplant has roasted for 40 minutes, remove it from the oven. You may not be sure it’s fully cooked, but you can always move onto the next step and, if it’s not yet roasted, pop it back in for another 10-15 minutes.
Using a fork, rake at the flesh of the eggplant, loosening the strips and separating the meat from the skin. Scrape what you can into a mixing bowl, making sure to get as much flesh as possible. If the strips feel long and stringy and aren’t naturally breaking apart, use a fork and a serrated knife to slice things down a bit.
Add the Greek yogurt and lemon juice and stir thoroughly. Add in salt to taste.
Top with feta crumbles and pomegranate seeds and serve warm!
