Cookbook author Eugenia Bone hunts porcini mushrooms with her kids on the Western Slope near Crawford. She often grills eggplant and mushrooms to accompany a main course and then uses the leftovers to construct this dip. She writes in “At Mesa’s Edge: Cooking and Ranching in Colorado’s North Fork Valley” that the dish is “similar to baba ghanoush, smoky, rich and lewdly earthy.” Serve with a mound of tortilla chips.
Ingredients
4 slices grilled eggplant (about 1 inch thick), warm or at room temperature
4 slices grilled porcini (boletus) mushrooms (about 1 inch thick), warm or at room temperature
4 cloves garlic
1/2 cup olive oil
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh cilantro for garnish
Truffle oil for garnish (optional)
Directions
Place the eggplant, mushrooms, garlic, olive oil and lemon juice in a food processor or blender. Process until the ingredients are blended, but not to a smooth paste (a few little chunks are good.)
Transfer the dip to a serving bowl and add salt and pepper to taste. Garnish the dip with the cilantro and a drizzle of truffle oil, if you like. Serve warm or at room temperature.
Wine ideas: This could easily stand up to a tannic, impressive red such as a Barolo, but if you’re serving it as a snack or first course, then Barolo is a bit much to start. Try something lighter and fruitier but from the same region, such as a dolcetto or a barbera. Michèle Chiarlo’s Barbera d’Asti Superiore Le Orme is a good buy at $13.-Tara Q. Thomas
