Roast aubergines with spiced chickpeas and tomatoes

MUSAKA’A This dish is etched in my memory forever after a magical moonlit evening spent in the garden of Sumood wa Hurriya. She is a vivacious social organiser involved in the Palestinian local organic food movement, and one of the founders of the Farashe Yoga Centre in Ramallah, which runs yoga classes for women in refugee camps. Sumood insisted that I visit her on the evening of a ‘super full moon’, when she gathered a group of her yogi friends and we sat outside, wrapped in scarves under the stars, feasting on her delicious food. I don’t know if it was the good company, her non-stop jokes, or the vast moon’s luminescent energy, but every morsel Sumood fed us that night in the garden tasted incredible, including this simple yet fl avoursome vegetarian dish. It is an easy weekday supper and is best served at room temperature (musaka’a actually means ‘cold dish’ in Arabic). Moonlight al fresco dining optional. Serves 4 as part of a spread

Great

% Daily Values based on a 2,000 calorie diet

Step 1

Preheat the oven to 200°C/fan 180°C/Gas 6.

Step 2

Cut the aubergines in half, then into quarters and fi nally slice them into 2.5cm chunks. Place in a baking tray, drizzle with some light olive oil, sprinkle over a pinch of salt and then toss the aubergines to coat. Place in the oven and bake for 20 minutes, or until soft.

Step 3

Meanwhile, fry the onion in a large saucepan in 2 tablespoons light olive oil until soft and golden (this will take about 15 minutes). Add the garlic and fry for a few minutes before adding the tomatoes, chickpeas, sugar, spices and some salt and pepper. Fill the tomato can up with just-boiled water and add that to the pot, too. Cover and cook for 30 minutes, until the chickpeas are very soft.

Step 4

Add the aubergines and cook for a fi nal 10 minutes, splashing in more hot water if the dish looks dry.

Step 5

Leave to cool to room temperature before drizzling over plenty of extra virgin olive oil and scattering with coriander.