Inna's Eggplant Spread

In our last farm share we received two eggplants: one regular, one Japanese. Given the extremely short supply of energy I seem to have these days, an intensive preparation was out of the question. With the oppressive heat and humidity, a hot meal just didn't seem too appetizing either. Enter in my mother in law's eggplant spread. It's cold, delicious, and most of all, easy.

Inna starts by roasting the eggplants over an open flame on her gas stove. We have an electric stove, and I was not about to fire up my husband's grill and stand there holding them above the flames. I decided to roast them in our oven, which was simple enough. I set the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit and put the eggplants into a baking dish, sprayed them with some olive oil spray and covered them with foil. I put them in the oven for twenty minutes, turned them over in the dish, and then continued to roast them for another twenty or thirty minutes. When they were soft to the touch I knew they were ready.

I let the eggplants cool for a little while so they were easier to handle. Then I peeled them and removed the seeds. I put the eggplant "meat" into the food processor and pulsed until it was the consistency of applesauce.

I added two chopped tomatoes and about a third of a red onion, and continued to pulse until it was all blended together. I then added about a teaspoon of salt and mixed that in as well.

Inna recommends adding extra virgin sunflower oil, or any oil that does not have an overly strong flavor. She does not recommend using olive oil, but I had some lemon olive oil I really wanted to try, so I added about two tablespoons and mixed it in well.

The result was quite delicious, and the olive oil was not too overwhelming at all. This is a recipe that can be honed to your own tastes. Inna tends to use more onion than I did, but I usually find onion to be overpowering when it's raw. You can add spices or herbs, or just a little fresh pepper would work really well with this spread. It makes a great appetizer or snack!