It's Elementary! Roasted Eggplant Spread- Rustic Style

This is a spread I used to have all the time as a kid. For some reason, Romanians just love eggplant. In the summer, everybody is roasting them and making their own versions of spreads and dips. It is a shame we don’t eat it that much in other ways, but we dig dips. J

I roasted 2 eggplants in the oven. Make tiny holes with a fork all over the eggplants so that they don’t explode all over your oven walls. Then, put them in the oven in a tray on some baking sheet.  I let them roast for 40-45 minutes, until you can fell that the inside is soft.

Let them cool a little and then peel the roasted skin off them. After that you have to beat them and mix them with a spatula to make them like a cream. The easy way is to use the food processor, of course.

While the eggplants are roasting, grate one onion with a manual grater or just chop it finely using your food processor. Then chop as fine as you can (don’t worry too much, this is supposed to be rustic and have a crunch) one medium bell pepper.

Mix the eggplant paste with the onion and bell pepper, add some salt, 2 tbsp of olive oil and some lemon juice if you feel it needs it. I like this version because the bell peppers give it a crunch and a nice sweetness.

Enjoy,