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DAWAT-E-BAINGAN



    Eggplants are an often overlooked vegetable, but I just love to eat them in any form. Thought of converting this humble and under appreciated vegetable into something exotic and delicious.


    I created this dish with a combination of flavours from India and Middle East, using ingredients such as chaat masala, coriander, ginger and green chilies, alongside dates and pine nuts.

    It’s such a simple dish to make but it tastes really delectable and regal, hence I named them Dawat-e-Baingan - dawat means royal feast, and baingan means eggplant!


    I hope you enjoy this simply delicious recipe.




    YIELDS: 24

    PREP TIME: 20 minutes

    BAKE TIME: 20 minutes

    ASSEMBLE TIME: 8 hours or overnight



    INGREDIENTS


    • 10-12 baby eggplants

    • 250g dates, chopped

    • 2 tbsp ginger, finely chopped

    • 2-3 green chillies, finely chopped

    • 3-4 tbsp lemon juice

    • 4 tbsp fresh coriander, finely chopped

    • 3/4 tsp salt or to taste

    • 1 1/2 tsp chat masala

    • 3 tbsp pine nuts, lightly toasted

    • 1/4 cup fresh pomegranate seeds

    • 3-4 tbsp rapeseed oil/vegetable or sunflower oil

    • Freshly ground black pepper for seasoning

    • Salt for seasoning


    For Garnishing:

    • 1 tbsp fresh coriander, finely chopped

    • 2 tbsp pomegranate seeds

    • 1 tbsp pine nuts, lightly toasted


    METHOD


    1. Wash, pat dry and cut the eggplants in half lengthwise along with stalks.

    2. Grease a large baking dish with the rapeseed oil, place the eggplants facing cut side up. Season them well with salt and pepper. Generously drizzle some more oil on top to coat well.

    3. Bake in preheated oven at 225°C for 20 minutes or until they are tender and cooked. Remove from oven and let it cool.

    4. In a bowl, combine dates, green chillies, ginger, lemon juice, pomegranate, pine nuts, salt, chat masala and coriander. Mix them well to make the stuffing. Check the seasoning, add more if you need any extra.

    5. Take the eggplant half, press the center with the back of a small spoon to make a cavity, put a small amount of stuffing on top. Repeat with rest of the eggplant halves.

    6. Place them on serving tray and garnish with pomegranate seeds, pine nuts and chopped coriander leaves.


    COOK'S NOTES:


    • If you are serving these in a dinner party, eggplants can be baked ahead of time and kept aside to be assembled later.

    • The stuffing can be prepared without adding coriander, pomegranate seeds and pine nuts. Add these at last minutes to savour the crunch and freshness of the herb.


    BEETROOT CARPACCIO SALAD



      Beetroot carpaccio is the vegetarian version of the classical Italian recipe of carpaccio which is prepared with thin slices of raw beef dressed with a vinaigrette using olive oil, lemon, capers, and even mustard is added for bit of a kick.


      This beetroot carpaccio salad is an impressive yet effortless appetizer salad which is so fresh, healthy and delicious. It’s one of those recipes that barely requires any cooking but still looks like a million bucks on the table.


      Beetroots are packed with essential nutrients and are a great source of fibre, folic acid, vitamin B6, iron, potassium, magnesium and many more.


      Recently I was detected with low iron deficiency and I was kind of worried. Started googling, reading and searching about the best natural sources of food to enhance the levels of the deficiency and found that beetroot is an amazing vegetable which contains nitrates and pigments that helps in increasing the blood flow.

      During this lockdown I ordered my bulk quantity of the veggies from the vendors and I had a large bag full of beautiful beetroots and I still had some organic arugula leaves growing in my garden. I paired it with orange vinaigrette which adds the beautiful sweet citrusy note to this refreshing summery salad. I served it with some grilled sumac and za’atar chicken and hassle back potatoes and everyone in the family was thrilled and thoroughly enjoyed the feast.



      SERVES: 4-5

      PREP TIME: 10 minutes

      BAKE TIME: 1 hour

      PASSIVE TIME: 1 hour

      ASSEMBLE TIME: 10 minutes



      INGREDIENTS


      • 3 medium beetroot

      • 4 cups/1 bunch Arugula leaves, washed and spin dried

      • 40g feta cheese

      • 40g hazelnuts, toasted & roughly chopped


      For Orange Vinaigrette:

      • 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

      • 3 tsp lime juice

      • 1 tsp grated ginger

      • 1/2 small navel orange, zested and juiced (2tbsp of juice)

      • 1 tbsp honey or maple syrup

      • 1/3 tsp salt or to taste

      • Dash of freshly cracked black pepper


      METHOD


      1. Preheat the oven to 200°C.

      2. Wash the beetroots and wrap them individually in a piece of foil.

      3. Place them on a baking tray and bake them for an hour.

      4. Cool completely and gently peel off the skin.

      5. Slice them thinly with the help of a mandoline or a sharp knife.

      6. Arrange the slices on a platter, slightly overlapping each other.

      7. Mix all the ingredients of the orange vinaigrette to prepare the dressing.

      8. Sprinkle half of the vinaigrette dressing on the arranged beetroot slices. Place arugula leaves in the center, sprinkle feta cheese and toasted hazelnuts, drizzle rest of the dressing on top of arugula leaves and serve immediately.


      COOK'S NOTES:


      • Beetroots can be baked and kept wrapped in the refrigerator for 2 days. Cool them completely before placing in the refrigerator.

      • Dress the beetroots only at the last minute before serving else the beetroot will sweat and the arugula salad leaves will wilt and won’t stay fresh and crisp.

      • I added ginger in my vinaigrette but you can always skip it if you don’t like the flavour.

      • Prepare vinaigrette few hours ahead or a day before and refrigerate. This will intensify the flavours and make it more delicious.

      • I don’t prefer to boil the beetroot as all essential nutrients and deep colour of beetroot is lost. Always try and bake them wrapped in foil to ensure all the nutrients are still intact.


      AVOCADO, COTTAGE CHEESE AND CHERRY TOMATO TOAST


        Waking up to a healthy breakfast is all you need to start your day to boost that energy for the whole day. Wholemeal brown bread layered with cottage cheese and topped with sliced avocado, grilled cherry tomatoes and arugula. This is one of my favorite breakfasts which I eat like 2 to 3 times a week.


        If you love your eggs in breakfast like I do, top it with poached eggs or sunny side up. I made this a vegetarian version, and for those who are vegan, skip the cottage cheese and layer it with hummus or just some mashed avocado...top it with sautéed garlic mushrooms or grilled asparagus...there’s loads of toppings you can use to make it more delicious and interesting to have a variety in your everyday breakfast toast.

        SERVES: 2

        PREP TIME: 10 minutes

        COOKING TIME: 5 minutes



        INGREDIENTS

        • 1 large hass avocado, ripe but firm

        • 8 tbsp low fat cottage cheese

        • 10-12 cherry tomatoes

        • 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

        • 1/2 cup baby arugula leaves, loosely packed, washed and dried

        • 4 wholemeal bread slices

        • Salt and pepper for seasoning



        METHOD

        1. In a small pan, warm extra virgin olive oil, drop cherry tomatoes, and grill for 5 minutes on a low heat until soft and slightly pulpy. Season them with salt and pepper.

        2. Lightly brush the bread slices with olive oil and toast them in a griddle pan on both sides. Spread 2 tbsp cottage cheese on top of each toast and season a little with salt and pepper.

        3. Cut the avocado in half, deseed and remove flesh from the skin with the help of a large table spoon. Be careful not to bruise the flesh. Slice it thinly with a sharp knife.

        4. Place a quarter of an avocado on each of the cottage cheese toasts, and top it with few cherry tomatoes and arugula leaves.

        5. If need be, season the avocado with a dash of salt and pepper.



        COOK'S NOTES:

        • Sprinkle a dash of lime or lemon zest on the cottage cheese will totally accentuate the flavours of the toast.

        • You can also serve with poached or sunny side egg on top.



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