M’Nazaleh (eggplant, garlic, and tomato)

When you think of Middle Eastern food, you might think of hearty meat and rice dishes but in fact, we have so many healthy vegetarian and vegan dishes that are hard to find in restaurants. This dish is one of many “mezze” or appetizer dishes that we often had on repeat when eggplants were in season. This dish is eaten cold alongside some warm bread. It is a humble dish and the ingredients are super simple: eggplants, tomatoes, garlic, olive oil. Before asking my parents how to make this, I tried finding a similar recipe online but all the recipes I found looked completely different from our family’s version so I am really excited to share this dish with you. These days, I will meal prep a large batch of this dish for breakfast. I’ll take a piece of toast and smash the cooked garlic on it first then layer on the eggplant and tomato mixture. It pairs perfectly alongside some scrambled eggs for protein.

Ingredients:

• Italian eggplant (6)

• beefsteak tomatos (3 large)

• garlic (12 whole cloves)

• extra virgin olive oil (6-7 tbsp)

• paprika (1 tsp)

• salt and pepper

• Aleppo pepper (optional)

Recipe:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

• Peel the eggplants, leaving a small sliver of skin on in between each peel, if desired. Cut the eggplants once lengthwise and then once crosswise so that you have 4 pieces total of each eggplant. Brush each piece of eggplant in olive oil, coating both sides, and place on a baking sheet, without overcrowding. You will probably use about 3-4 tbsps of olive oil for this process.

• Bake the eggplant pieces for 20-25 minutes until soft, but not crispy.

• While the eggplant pieces bake, peel the garlic cloves and cube the tomatoes into 1.5-2 inch pieces.

• Once the eggplant is cooked, take a large pot and add 3 tbsp of olive oil and add your garlic cloves. On top of the garlic cloves, add the cooked eggplant. On top of the eggplant, add the tomatoes. Add salt, pepper, paprika, Aleppo pepper, and 1/2 cup of room temperature water to the pot. Cover the pot and place on the stove. Bring the mixture to a boil, and then reduce to a simmer for 25-30 minutes. Let cool and enjoy!