Baba Ghanoush with Smoked Duck

X was based in Beirut for a little bit & while he was there, he fell in love with Baba Ghanoush - a Lebanese eggplant dip. He raves about it all the time but last weekend was the first time I tried it. It's delicious.

Generally it's eaten with pita bread or as a spread over toasts. But for this appetiser, he combined it with smoked duck & sliced parmesan cheese as garnish.

Baba Ghanoush or Lebanese Aubergine Dip

Dry roast 2-3 aubergines until the skin blackens on all sides & the aubergine is soft. Let cool in order to remove skin without burning your fingers. Put the skinless aubergine into a food processor with 2 small boiled potatoes, 2 cloves of garlic, 2 Tbsp tahini paste, handful of parsley (optional) & as you puree, drizzle about 3 Tbsp of olive oil.

For the appetiser, he rolled slices of smoked duck (which you can buy from any supermarket) over an olive & placed it over the dip with slices of parmesan cheese & cut tomatoes.

We all loved this dish & my only feedback is that it would have been better to serve this on a plate cos it was a little difficult to cut the smoked duck in the ramequin.