Ottolenghi Roasted Eggplant with Buttermilk sauce

I have loved Ottolenghi since I lived in London.  I finally got his first cookbook a few months ago and I just got another one for an early Chanukah present.  This is the cover recipe from his book, Plenty.  I have read some reviews that said it was not as good as expected, but I thought it was delicious, and the leftovers were even better the next day.

Ingredients:
3 eggplants
1/3 cup + olive oil
salt, pepper
thyme
1/2 cup greek yogurt
about 9 tbsp buttermilk
1 garlic clove, crushed
za'atar
pomegranate seeds

Directions:

Cut the eggplant in half long ways.  Score each half diagonally, cutting deep, but not all the way down.  Brush the olive oil over the eggplant.  (I used more than 1/3 cup because I had an extra eggplant than the recipe called for).  Try to get the olive oil in the scored slits.  Season well with salt and pepper, rub the seasoning into the scored marks.  Sprinkle with fresh thyme leaves.  Roast at 375 for about 40 minutes until softened and brown on top.

Meanwhile, make the topping.  Mix the yogurt and buttermilk together.  I used 1 small container of full fat greek yogurt and counted out 9 spoonfuls of buttermilk, but did not measure.  Use a good pinch of salt to crush the garlic and break it down before mixing it in.  Add a swirl of olive oil.

To assemble, drizzle about 2 tablespoons of sauce onto each eggplant, sprinkle with za'atar, and top with pomegranate seeds.

before going in the oven

just out of the oven