Tag: israeli food

Aubergine & Tahini Dip with Oryx Desert Smoked Salt

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Hatzilim im Tchina

This is a very common dip in Israel and I often make it for Shabbat dinner. Traditionally the aubergine will be cooked on an open flame, giving it a smoky flavour. Using Oryx Desert Smoked Salt gives it that same flavour, while simply roasting it in the oven.

Ingredients

1 large aubergine
2 tbsp tahini
juice of 1/2 a lemon, or to taste
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 clove of garlic, finely minced
1/4 tsp ground cumin
small handful fresh coriander leaves
Oryx Desert Smoked Salt
Black pepper

Method

Heat the oven to 200C.
Pierce the skin of the aubergine with a sharp knife a few times. Place it in the oven, straight on the rack. Roast until the skin is blackened and the interior is soft, about 40 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool.

Remove the skin of the aubergine and chop up the flesh. Combine with the rest of the ingredients, adding the smoked salt and black pepper to taste.

Health & happiness!

Love,
Raine

Tahini / Tchina (depending on where you’re from!)

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Tehini

Sorry for the strange title… in the west, this is called Tahini (the paste itself is called that) but in the Middle East, where this originated, it’s called Tchina. Whatever it’s called, it’s yummy, easy to make and is one of the best sources of calcium out there. So if you read our article about why to stay away from milk and you are wondering where to get your calcium, tahini is one of the best places to find it.

Ingredients

3 tbsp tahini paste
Quarter cup purified water
5 tbsp lemon juice
Half tsp Himalayan salt
Half tsp garlic salt
Quarter tsb paprika
Drizzle extra virgin olive oil

Method

Spoon the tahini paste into a medium size bowl (it gets quite messy so you want to make it in a separate bowl to the one you’ll be serving it in), then add the water and mix really well. You will see it go from a weird texture to smooth quite quickly and it will become much more pale. If it still seems quite thick (it should be relatively runny) then add some more water; gauge it for yourself. Then add the rest of the ingredients and mix well.

Taste to see if it needs more of anything and add to your taste. Transfer to a smaller bowl.

Great with other dips and salads (have a look on both those pages on our website for more ideas) and with bread or crackers.

Enjoy!

Love,
Lauren