This was created by Susan Hattie Steinsapir. Before she died, Susan was on a sodium restriction, but I found it a little bland without the salt. I also doctored it up slightly. See my notes at the end.

It was so good, even Jack Hartman ate it...and taunted Kay with it.

Eggplant and Raw Tomato Salad

A refreshing salad with a garlicky punch.

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1.75 to 2 pounds of eggplants
Salt
1 lemon, halved
3 tomatoes, peeled, seeded and diced
1 medium red onion, minced, rubbed with salt, rinsed, and dried
2 cloves of garlic, minced fine
1 tsp minced green hot pepper
0.66 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 Tbs red wine vinegar
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
3 Tbs chopped parsley

Preparing the Eggplant

1.You want to char the outside of the eggplant to give it a smoky flavor. Wrap the eggplant in two or three layers of tin foil and set it on top of a gas jet. Turn until the eggplant has collapsed. The time will depend on the size of the eggplant. You could also grill the eggplant.

2.After the eggplant has collapsed, drop it, still wrapped, into cold water. Unpeel the tin foil and remove the charred skin from the eggplant. Throw away the skin.

3.There are two choices for the next step. If you use the large globe eggplants, soak the eggplant flesh in a lemon-water bath (1 cup water, the juice of one lemon, and 0.5 teaspoon salt). This soaks any bitterness out of the eggplant. Gently squeeze the extra water from the eggplant and put the flesh in a strainer to drain.
If you use Japanese eggplants, skip the lemon-water bath and place the eggplant flesh in a strainer, allowing the juices to drip out.

4.Mash the eggplant flesh into a cream.

5.Add all of the other ingredients, except for the parsley.

6.Blend well and let stand for a few hours to give the flavors a chance to blend.

7.Top with the parsley and serve with warm flat bread.

I used regular olive oil. I didn’t mince the onion with salt.

This should be parked in the refrigerator; just bring it up to room temperature for serving.

SHS

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My notes: I added salt to taste, additional red wine vinegar, and some chopped sun-dried tomatoes (the kind packed in oil).