baba ganouj (eggplant dip) + flax seed crackers

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Eggplants await their next life as Baba Ganouj.

The evite for Tara's 40th b-day last Saturday came with a request to please bring some snack food. With iffy weather and a guest list of diverse palates, I settled on an old favourite..... I've been making this Baba Ganouj (Mooseswood Cookbook) recipe for over 15 years and it continues to serve as a consistently yummy success (though I must admit that David O.'s gourmet Mac + Cheese left everyone else's offerings in the dust). The old standby would be to serve this dip with plain white bread, but I thought it might be fun to try something different. Having never made crackers before, I patched together this second recipe from a variety of others I had read. It actually worked out quite well. I think that next time I will try substituting 1 t of the milk for 1 t of Tamari, to provide a little extra zing. Keep in mind that you could experiment with different kinds of flour, such as spelt, rice or kamut.

Flax Seed Crackers, ready for dippin'.

Baba Ganouj (Eggplant Dip) + Flax Seed Crackers
(from 'Moosewood Cookbook' -by Mollie Katzen)

1 T olive oil
2 eggplants, cut in half lengthwise
1 garlic clove, minced
¼ c fresh lemon juice
¼ c raw tahini paste
½ t salt
¼ t Spanish paprika (optional)

Garnish:

1 T olive oil
2 T finely chopped fresh parsley

Preheat oven to 350*. Lightly oil a baking sheet. Place eggplant halves face-down on the baking sheet. Bake for 30-40 minutes, until eggplant slightly yields when poked with the tip of your finger. Cool. Scoop eggplant pulp into a food processor and discard the skin. Add remaining ingredients except for the lemon juice and whirl together, processing until smooth. While machine is running, slowly add lemon juice, a bit at a time. Use only as much juice as needed to make a creamy dip (not too runny). Transfer to serving dish and garnish with parsley and olive oil. Serve with bread or crackers.

Flax Seed Crackers

½ c raw flax seeds
2 T sesame seeds (optional)
1 ½ c all purpose flour
½ t baking powder
3/4 t salt
4 t butter
1 T onion powder
½ c milk

Preheat oven to 325*. In a food processor, combine all ingredients except the milk. Transfer ingredients to a large bowl. Slowly add in the milk. Mix and knead dough together until the dough forms a ball. Chill for a few hours.

Divide dough into 4 equal parts. On lightly floured counter top, roll out the first section of dough (to 1/16" thick) using a lightly floured rolling pin. Cut into 6 squares. Repeat with remaining dough. Transfer crackers onto a lightly oiled cookie sheet and bake for 15 minutes, then flip them over and bake for 5 minutes more. Put crackers directly onto baking racks to cool. Makes 24 crackers. Store at room temperature in a dry, airtight container.