Baba ganoush, and "refried" lentil tostadas

I love a good baba ganoush--not as much as I love hummus, but hummus sometimes gets boring and I want a bit of a change, and baba fits the bill. I had never made baba ganoush, however, because I don't typically keep eggplants on hand, and I never think "Hmm, baba ganoush would be great" when I am planning a shopping trip. Today, though, I did happen to have an eggplant on hand, and I remembered that Susan V recently shared her baba ganoush recipe. You know what this leads up to.


I tweaked her recipe in a couple of ways: First, I was afraid of all that lemon juice, so I cut back to 2 tablespoons. Second, I tasted it and thought it needed a kick, so I added about 1/2 teaspoon cumin to the food processor instead of saving it to sprinkle on top. I garnished it with a dash of paprika instead, and enjoyed it with slices of carrot, Roma tomato, and portobello, and a little heap of sprouts. I very much enjoyed this light dinner, and I shall put it on my "will make again" list!

This I will also make again--it was simply delicious. I wanted a quick taco filling that was legume-based instead of soy-based, and I didn't have any cooked beans on hand. Nothing cooks up faster than red lentils, so I ran with this idea.


"Refried" Red Lentil Taco Filling

1/2 yellow onion, diced
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup red lentils
1 cup vegetable broth
1 tablespoon tomato paste
2 teaspoons chipotle paste
1 teaspoon crushed oregano
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon salt
Dash cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon sugar (optional--I may or may not use it next time)
1/4-1/2 cup water, as needed

Sauté the onion in a pan until beginning to caramelize. Add the garlic and cook for a couple minutes more. Deglaze the pan with the vegetable broth, then add the lentils and seasonings. Bring to a simmer and cook, covered, for about 30 minutes until lentils are done and the liquid is completely absorbed. Stir often to prevent sticking and add water, as needed, throughout the cooking process. It should be very thick like the consistency of refried beans. If you prefer, you can mash up the lentils a bit, but I didn't bother. This makes 2 large servings, or 3 more moderate servings.

I toasted up some whole wheat tortillas in the oven, just as Vivacious Vegan does (although check on them before 8 minutes--mine only took about 7). Then I assembled the tostadas beginning with a scoop of the lentils, then topping that with a generous squeeze of lime juice, a dollop of homemade guacamole, some shredded spinach and chopped tomato, a spoonful of salsa, and a sprinkle of cilantro. Taco salad goodness.


How I love the toasty tortillas! I may never eat a regular burrito again.

If you take a peek over at my sidebar, you will notice that I have gone back and tagged all the recipes that I have posted on this blog, labeling them by type. All the recipes I have labeled have been either created by me, or modified by me in some way (while, of course, giving credit where credit is due)--I have not tagged the recipes that I have reposted straight from another site. There are still more recipes hidden in my blog in "paragraph" form, which I have to hunt down and tag and re-write in "recipe" form. Time for this Eden kitchen to get a bit more organized! I hope this helps you--I know it will help me, at least.

All you bloggers residing up in the Northeast states--stay warm! Spring is a' coming!