Eggplant with Crushed Chickpeas and Herbed Yogurt from "Plenty More"

One of the reasons that I am loving using Plenty More for recipe inspirations is that I am finding such creativity in side dishes - a part of the plate that is generally an afterthought. My latest test could be considered either a side dish or an appetizer given the strength of flavors. I also thought that the recipe could be modified to become a main dish with some ground lamb on top. Regardless of its placement on the menu - I found Ottolenghi's "Eggplant with Crushed Chickpeas and Herbed Yogurt" to be, like many of his other recipes, complex and comforting.

I can't say much about the presentation as there was no guiding image in the book. I found the final "verbally" recommended presentation a bit sloppy so I chopped up some additional parsley and sprinkled that on top in hopes of tying it all together. Even still, it wasn't the most beautiful dish I've eaten, but it was tasty and isn't that really the most important part of a dish anyway?

The recipe consisted of three basic parts: Roasted Eggplant, Crushed Chickpeas (think chunky hummus sans tahini), and Herbed Yogurt (with multiple herbs, of course). And what's beautiful about that is, despite three components, there are only eight ingredients! Simplicity is beautiful.

The eggplants are to be sliced crosswise and about 3/4-inch wide. They are then simply roasted at a high temperature (475F!) for 40 minutes. That makes them look nearly burnt but, trust me, they aren't - they are just beautifully roasted and provide that rich, deep foundation for the rest of the ingredients.

For the "crushed chickpeas" I used canned because I already had these on hand. And to be honest, I think the canned version is probably best for this recipe. The chickpeas need to be very soft and in order to achieve that from dried chickpeas - you'll have to cook them for a very long time. And you are mashing them so some of the best things about dried chickpeas (cooked) is the texture of the full bean so save yourself time and use canned chickpeas. 

I had to re-read the recipe a few times to understand that you are actually using the lemon part of the lemon and not the rind, the pith, or the juice. Little bits of lemon get chopped up and add brightness and tang to the chickpea mixture. It really is reminiscent of a hummus - just without the tahini. Personally, I could see myself serving just this chickpea mash with some pita and having that be a simple little snack to munch on.

Crushed Carrots with Harissa and Pistachios from "Plenty More"

This recipe was delayed for nearly a week due to an apparent harissa shortage. I know harissa isn't quite as common as - say ketchup (in America at least) but it certainly isn't too foreign of a condiment, or is it? I was first formally introduced to harissa when I was living in New York and sharing a fabulously shanty chic West Village apartment with an amazing bohemian-esque roommate "Sarra" whose family came from Tunisia in Northern Africa. Just as Mexico has its Cholula and Thailand has its Sriracha - Northern Africa has its Harissa. It's a vibrant paste of chili peppers, garlic, and vinegar - and then kicked up a notch with local spices such as caraway, coriander and cumin. These spices "warm" up the spicy condiment, making it something so pleasing to the palate that you would almost, just almost, want to take a big spoonful of (before you realize it is, in fact, hot sauce).

So when I finally made it to Whole Foods, I figured third time was the charm to find this harissa so I could make the next recipe on my list from Plenty More. Success! Not only did they have harissa, they had four kinds of harissa: regular, mild, spicy and green. Jackpot. Regular was just fine for me - it was certainly spicy - enough to where you don't want to leave a little tidbit on your lip if you were perhaps licking the spoon (guilty) because it will be sure to sting. But the regular was still mild enough that you could enjoy it and have it compliment rather than overpower many different types of dishes.

And when I say dishes - I also mean wine, another important "condiment" with meals (at least weekend meals). This night I was having a pre-meal glass of the Etude Pinot Gris, a wine that we first became familiar with when we were members at Cellar 360 in San Francisco.We grew to love Etude for their Pinot Noir but were later introduced to their lovely Pinot Gris - a varietal that I admittedly misunderstood and shunned for quite some time. Pinot Gris is, in fact, the same grape as Pinot Grigio (which I used to call wine water for its lack of anything enjoyable) but the wine itself is quite different. A Pinot Gris tends to be a richer, fuller-bodied dry white - so think of Pinot Grigo with a backbone that is quite food-friendly. Etude does a nice job with theirs and at just under $30 a bottle, it's a bottle that I will enjoy, but not crack open for anyone who claims to love Pinot Grigio :-)

This recipe was quite simple in nature. Ottolenghi describes it as an appetizer dish - one to have out and ready for guests to pick at when they arrive for a dinner party. The thought of this excites me as it is unique and impressive - but easy. I'll be sure to serve to to someone other than Derek at some point. But for its trial run, this recipe landed a spot on our dinner plate, making it a bit of an odd presentation but a refreshingly unique side dish at that.

The majority of time for this recipe is devoted to cooking the carrots, during which you can eaily throw together the add-ins and additional components to the final dish: combine zests and spices for final carrot mixture, make yogurt, chop pistachios. Done.

Baba Ganoush with Pita Chips

Selected as an appetizer for a Moroccan Lamb dinner party - this dish proved to be an easy and impressive offering. It was especially easy when utilizing our new kitchen toy - the VitaMix. I simply threw all of the ingredients into the heavy-duty blender and voila, in seconds I had baba ganoush!

To make the pita chips, I took whole wheat pita purchased from the store and cut it into wedges. Then I sprayed each side with EVOO using my Misto and then sprinkled the pieces with sea salt (pink himalayan sea salt to be exact). Baked at 400 for about 8-9 minutes - the pita became pita chips!

Baba Ganoush with Pita Chips

1 globe eggplant
2 tbsp. tahini
1 tbsp. EVOO
1 garlic clove
1/2 tsp. cumin
1/4 tsp. chili powder
juice of 1/2 lemon, plus more as needed
1 small handful of cilantro (about 1/4 bunch)
salt, to taste

1. Preheat the oven to 375F (190C).

2. Prick each eggplant a few times, then char the outside of the eggplants by placing them directly on the flame of a gas burner and as the skin chars, turn them until the eggplants are uniformly-charred on the outside.

3. Place the eggplants on a baking sheet and roast in the oven for 20 to 30 minutes, until they’re completely soft; you should be able to easily poke a paring knife into them and meet no resistance.

4. Remove from oven and let cool.

5. Split the eggplant and scrape out the pulp. Puree the pulp in a blender or food processor with the other ingredients until smooth.

6. Taste, and season with additional salt and lemon juice, if necessary. Chill for a few hours before serving. Serve with toasted pita chips.

What a healthy, delicious dip - great for sandwiches, vegetables, pita, etc.