Ingredients

2 large eggplants
½ cup Tahini paste (see sidebar for recipe)
1 t. minced garlic
Lemon juice to taste
Tabasco to taste
2 ounces olive oil
Salt to taste
Pepper to taste
30 Belgian endive leaves
3 Roasted peppers, julienne sliced
2 T. sesame seeds, toasted

Soak endive leaves in ice water for 15 minutes.  Drain just before assembly.

Grill or roast the red peppers until skins are slightly charred. Cool. Remove the blackened skin, cut open and remove seeds. Cut into julienne strips about ¼ inch thickness.  Place one strip on each endive leaf. 

Grill or roast the eggplants until completely soft. Cool.  Peel the eggplant and remove some of the seeds.  Rough cut flesh into quarters.  Place eggplant, tahini paste, garlic, lemon juice, salt, pepper and Tabasco in the bowl of a food processor fitted with knife blade. 

Add the remaining red pepper strips into the food processor bowl and process with eggplant mixture until smooth, about 30 seconds.  Add the olive oil into food processor in a slow steady stream.  Check seasonings and adjust to taste as necessary.  The final product should be slightly thickened.

Place Moutabel in a pastry bag and pipe 1 teaspoon of the mixture onto the endive leaves along with the red pepper strips.  Sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds.