Pardon? You'd be forgiven for not being familiar with this delicious levantine dip. Unlike its name, Baba Ganoush is actually a remarkably simple mix of aubergine and spices. If you've ever had the pleasure of enjoying a mezze platter between friends (or, no judgement, all to yourself) you might have dipped your Pita/Lavash/Khubz in this dip without even realising it wasn't hummus. Baba Ganoush, however, belongs firmly in a category of its own and I'm happy to have pleasure of revealing its smoky secrets for you to recreate at home.

Step 1 - Baking

• Preheat your oven to 180°C

• Oil a baking tray with a little olive oil

• Take your aubergines and prick a few of holes around them with a knife

  Top Tip: Don’t prick quite as many holes as a jacket potato, you want to keep the moisture in but prevent an aubergine explosion in your oven

• Place the aubergines on the baking tray in the oven and bake for around 45min - 1hr or until the aubergines are nice and soft throughout, turning over half way

• Allow the aubergines to cool enough to get hands on with them

Step 2 - Slicing

• Place a colander above a mixing bowl, we’ll use this for draining excess moisture

• Take your cooled aubergines and remove the stalk by slicing just beneath it

• Slice them in half lengthways, then again into quarters

• To separate the skin from the flesh, work your knife between them at one end then peel the skin away in a similar fashion to a banana
  Top Tip: If some parts of the skin are difficult to remove you can also employ a fillet technique and run your knife along horizontally, scooping any remaining flesh off with a spoon

• Place the flesh in your colander and allow to drain whilst you prepare the rest of the ingredients

Step 3 - Blending

• Grab your food processor and get it ready for business

• Roughly chop your garlic clove and throw it in (you can be really lazy here)

• Add the yogurt, lemon juice, smoked paprika, 2 tbsp of olive oil and a twist of salt and pepper

• Throw in your drained aubergine flesh and blend thoroughly until smooth and silky

• Grab your tasting spoon. Don’t be afraid to add a dash more of anything, you’re aiming for rich and smoky but making sure the aubergines are still the star of the show

This dip can be smothered hastily into a wrap or straight onto a plate, but for a slightly classier finish, serve in ramekins with an additional topping of olive oil and a light dusting of paprika.

 Ingredients

• 2 aubergines

• Olive oil

• 4 Tbsp smoked paprika

• 1 garlic clove

• 1 Tbsp lemon juice

• 2 Tbsp natural (or any unsweetened) yoghurt

• Sea salt

• Black pepper