Smoked Eggplant Cream Soup with Yogurt, Feta Crumble, and Hazelnuts

6 servings | 60 min | Easy | Kosher | Vegetarian

Ingredients:

• 100g Kfar Tavor butter
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 2 onions
• 4 garlic cloves
• 3 eggplants
• Leaves from 5 thyme sprigs
• 2 cups milk
• 1 cup Kfar Tavor natural yogurt
• 1 flat tbsp salt
• Black pepper

For the crumble:

• 100g Kfar Tavor feta cheese
• 100g flour
• 100g Kfar Tavor butter
• 1 tbsp demerara sugar
• 100g roasted hazelnuts
• Leaves from 2 thyme sprigs
• A pinch of dried chili powder

Instructions:

1. Char the eggplants over an open flame until the flesh is completely soft. Peel and set the flesh aside.
2. Prepare the crumble: in a food processor fitted with the metal blade, blend the flour, sugar, butter, 50g of the feta, thyme, chili powder, and hazelnuts (set aside a handful of whole hazelnuts for serving).
3. Once a crumbly dough forms, remove from the processor and spread it on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
4. Bake at 150°C (300°F) for about 15 minutes, until golden. Let cool, then crumble.
5. Prepare the soup: dice the onions and sauté in a medium pot with butter and olive oil over relatively low heat for about 10 minutes, until softened, without browning the onions. It’s best to cover the pot.
6. Add the sliced garlic and thyme leaves to the pot and sauté for another minute or two.
7. Add the charred eggplant flesh along with its juices to the pot, along with the milk. Bring to a boil and cook for about 20 minutes, until the onion is completely soft.
8. Blend the contents of the pot thoroughly and stir in the yogurt. Adjust seasoning to taste.
9. Serve the soup hot, topped with the crumble, pieces of feta, broken hazelnuts, and a drizzle of olive oil.