| Yield: 4 servings | Time: 50 minutes | 

Ingredients

Garlic hummus

3 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 15-ounce can chickpeas, drained

6 cloves garlic, thinly sliced

1 teaspoon cumin

½ cup water

2 teaspoons tahini  

zest and juice of 2 lemons

¼ cup olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

Eggplant steaks  

2 large globe eggplants

¼ cup salt, divided  

2 cups pomegranate juice

2 tablespoons red wine or apple cider vinegar

1 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons black pepper

½ teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional, add more if desired)

2 teaspoons chili powder

1 teaspoon ground cumin  

1 tablespoon cornstarch, dissolved in 1 tablespoon cold water

vegetable oil as needed

1 pomegranate, seeded

1 small bunch of mint, cut into ribbons

4 ounces feta cheese or vegan feta (try this homemade version)

Preparation

For the garlic hummus

Heat the vegetable oil over medium-high heat in a large pan, add the chickpeas and garlic and saute for 4-5 minutes, just until the garlic lightly browns. Add the water to the pan and bring to a boil. Boil for two minutes to soften the chickpeas.

Transfer the cooked chickpeas into a blender or food processor with the remaining ingredients and blend until smooth and pliable. Add a little extra water if needed to smooth it out. Season to taste with salt and pepper and set aside until ready to serve.

For the eggplant steaks

Cut the eggplants lengthwise into ½ inch steaks, you should get about 4-5 steaks per each eggplant, depending on size. Lay the sliced eggplants out onto a large roasting rack with a baking sheet underneath.

Sprinkle half of the ¼ cup salt over top of the slices of eggplant and rub in. Turn the salted side face down on the rack and allow to sit for 15 minutes so that the bitter liquid can drip out of the eggplant. After 15 minutes, turn over and repeat on the other side.

Bring the pomegranate juice, vinegar, and dried spices to a boil in a small pot. Once it reaches a boil, stir in the cornstarch, and water, and reduce the heat to a simmer. Simmer the glaze for five minutes or until it reaches a syrup-like consistency.

Meanwhile, preheat the grill or cast-iron grill pan over medium high heat. Once the eggplant is done salting, pat the outsides dry with a paper towel and brush with vegetable oil on both sides. Grill the steaks on each side for 3-4 minutes or until lightly charred and soft in the middle.

Brush a generous amount of the pomegranate glaze on top of each steak and cook for 1 more minute to allow the glaze to caramelize.

Remove the steaks from the grill and serve warm with a spoonful of hummus on the bottom of the plate.

Garnish with pomegranate seeds, chopped mint, and a sprinkle of feta cheese. Drizzle some of the extra glaze over each plate.  

Zero-waste tips

• Save the liquid from the can of chickpeas to use as an egg white substitute for baking.

• If you have any old hummus in the fridge, use it up in this recipe instead of making your own.

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