Aubergine and chraimeh b’siniyah
Although this dish takes a while to cook, it's mostly hands off and a very easy recipe. We loved this so much we made it twice in one week!
Serves 4 (not 6-8 as indicated in the original recipe)
Vegetarian, vegan, dairy free, gluten free
Ingredients
2 aubergines (500g)
2 onions, peeled and cut into ½cm-thick rounds
350g cherry tomatoes
1 tbsp olive oil
Fine sea salt and black pepper
For the chraimeh:
4 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
1 tsp paprika
¾ tsp caraway seeds
¾ tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp lazy chilli
1¼ tsp cumin seeds
1 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp tomato puree
40g dried sour cherries or dried cranberries
For the batter:
90g tahini
170ml milk of your choice
40g fine polenta
Directions
Aside from reducing the quantity of olive oil, I didn't change anything from the original recipe. Head over to https://www.theguardian.com/food/2023/jul/22/aubergine-recipes-yotam-ottolenghi-pahi-prawn-stuffed-aubergines-chraimeh-bsiniyah for the how to.
As noted in the recipe, this dish can be made in advance and rested, and I would highly recommend doing that if you have time. The flavours develop and excess liquid is soaked in if you can allow the dish to sit for a few hours after cooking.
I'd also advise making sure the aubergines are thoroughly cooked. It's worth letting them roast longer if necessary.
This recipe tastes even better made with vegetables from Community Harvest Whetstone :)