Eggplant and Olive Spread Provençal

Melintzanosalata (eggplant spread) became a standard item on Greek restaurant menus during the mid-1960s, as the number of tavernas all over Greece grew rapidly, competing to attract tourists and an expanding Athenian middle class. People loved the creamy concoction of roasted eggplant, garlic, and mayonnaise that most places served. In English the appetizer was referred to as “eggplant caviar,” a direct translation from the French caviar d’aubergine. In La Table d’un Prove