Harissa Spiced chickpea and Aubergine Casserole

Serves 4

Sunflower oil

2 medium onions, sliced

1 large clove garlic, crushed

2 aubergines, cut into even dice

1 teaspoons Bart powdered Harissa and a further ½ for roasting the second aubergine

 *Alternatively make your own spice blend:  1/2 tsp ground cumin, 1/8 tsp chilli powered, 1/2 tsp ground coriander,1/4 ground caraway seeds , ¼ tsp dried mint, 1/8 tsp cayenne pepper

400g tin chickpeas, drained

400g tin chopped tomatoes

Extra virgin olive oil

Flaked sea salt

7g fresh Coriander, chopped

Method

Preheat the oven to 200c/gas 6

Heat 2 tablespoons of sunflower oil in a casserole and sauté the onion until fragrant. Stir in the garlic cooking for a further 30 seconds.

Add half of the diced aubergine and the Harissa powder. Stir well to evenly coat with the oil and spice. Put the lid on the pan and let the aubergines soften for about 5 minutes.

Add the drained chickpeas, the chopped tomatoes and half a tin of water. Stir well and with the lid on simmer, stirring occasionally for 20 minutes.

Put the remaining aubergine into a roasting tin and mix well with 4 tablespoons of sunflower oil and the ½ teaspoon of the harissa powder. Roast for 15 minutes in a hot oven. When it is golden, tip into the chickpea casserole along with its fragrant cooking oils.

To serve, drizzle the casserole with spicy extra virgin olive oil and sprinkle with flaked sea salt and the chopped coriander.

To serve:

Serve with plain yoghurt and flat breads such as coconut Naan, or these delicious Wild Garlic Flat breads  from :  Ben Tish (Times Weekend, 10th April 2020)

For those of you with a little less time, or  less familiar with using yeast, try this Wild garlic naan recipe which uses a simple scone base.

Wild Garlic Naan

Ingredients

Makes 4 Naan

50g butter, melted

1 egg

100ml milk

50g plain yoghourt

350g plain flour or half spelt half plain

3/4 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

125g wild garlic leaves, thinly sliced

1 teaspoon yellow mustard seeds, toasted

Method

Melt and then cool the butter.

Whisk together the egg, milk, yoghurt and the cooled melted butter in a jug or a bowl.

Put the flour into a large mixing bowl along with the baking powder, salt, toasted mustard seeds and the, sliced, wild garlic.

Pour in the milk and egg and mix to a soft dough. Shape the dough into a neat disk with well-floured hands and then cover the bowl with a damp cloth. Leave the dough to rest for 15 minutes.

When ready to roll and cook turn the dough onto a lightly floured worksurface and dived into 4 equal pieces. Shape each piece neatly into a disc.

Put the skillet or a heavy based frying pan over a high heat to warm through.

Roll each disc thinly into 18cm/7inch discs. Cook one at a time in the hot, dry pan for about 2-3 minutes on each side or until well browned. Once cooked remove toa warm plate and cover with a clean cloth.

Alternatively preheat the oven with two baking trays in place to 220c/gas 7. Place the breads on the hot trays and bake for 4-5 minutes. .

Serve warm.

Happy Cooking