Roasted Eggplant and Red Pepper Spread

This roasted eggplant and red pepper spread takes longer to prepare than some of our other batch cooked elements, but boy is it worth it. We use this spread with souvlaki chicken and other mediterranean inspired meals. Like the Kale and Basil Pesto, this recipe makes about two pints and freezes well. So rest assured, your hard work will pay off for weeks.

Our inspiration for this recipe is another Trader Joe’s favorite, also called Roasted Eggplant and Red Pepper Spread, which we were buying all the time during lockdown. The homemade version is even better and can be served warm or cold.

Cooking Process

Start by preparing your ingredients. Your two eggplants should be cubed into roughly 1 inch pieces. You do not need to peel them. Whenever you roast vegetables, it’s helpful to cut uniform pieces so that the whole pan roasts evenly. If the pieces are all different sizes, the smallest ones will cook much faster and could burn before the larger pieces cook all the way through.

Toss the eggplant in olive oil, salt and pepper and spread it evenly on the sheet pan. I like doing this in a mixing bowl to make sure everything is coated evenly, but you can do it right on the sheet pan to save a dish! Spread the eggplant evenly across your baking sheet.

Cut the top off of the bulb of garlic, drizzle with olive oil and wrap tightly in aluminum foil. Place the garlic on the baking sheet with the eggplant.

Roast for 90 minutes at 350º. The eggplant will be browned. Let the roasted eggplant and garlic cool for 20 minutes before moving on.

Add eggplant and red peppers to food processor. Unwrap garlic and squeeze the whole bulb into the processor. Pulse everything until smooth and taste for salt and pepper levels.

Enjoy your roasted eggplant and red pepper spread warm or cool!

Ingredients Deep Dive

Eggplant

We use a standard italian eggplant for this recipe, but I’m sure if you have graffiti eggplant or other varieties it would work wonderfully. I loved this visual guide to eight different eggplant varieties if you aren’t quite sure what you’ve got. Eggplants come into season from July-October, so keep this recipe in mind if you’ve got a CSA and end up with way more of these than you know what to do with.

Jarred Roasted Red Peppers

If you’re feeling ambitious, I’m sure this recipe would be amazing with fresh roasted peppers. We love using the jarred ones because it takes off one step and they are easy to keep in the pantry to use when we want. If you are determined to roast your own you can do so by chopping the peppers and adding them to the roasting pan. Alternatively, if you have a gas stove you can quickly roast them on a burner. I buy peppers stored in water, so if yours are stored in oil you may consider reducing the amount of olive oil you use.

Serving Suggestions

As a Dip

We love this as a warm addition to charcuterie boards. It pairs well with a variety of cheeses and honey. You could also set it out as an appetizer dip with triangles of pita, crackers or crudités.

As a Spread

Having this on hand in the fridge will seriously up your sandwich game. It can dress up a deli or breakfast sandwich, adding some much needed depth to either. Often, we use it on homemade gyros or wraps with souvlaki chicken or falafel. The eggplant and roasted pepper definitely give it a Mediterranean flavor profile and it pairs perfectly with feta or tzatziki sauce.

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