Name: Persian ratatouille-baked tomatoes with cashew kibbeh crust
Yield: Serve 4
Ingredients: 4 tablespoons golden syrup; 1 courgette, cut into 1 cm dice; 175 g young leeks, cut into 1 cm lengths; 100 g bulghur, soaked in warm water for 10 minutes; little olive oil; 4 tablespoons olive oil; 50 g unsalted butter; 1 tablespoon tomato puree; pinch of cayenne pepper; 1 aubergine, cut into 1 cm dice; 2 garlic cloves, crushed; 1 onion, chopped; 1 teaspoon orange zest; 1 tablespoon sugar; ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon; 100 g cashew nuts; 175 ml white wine vinegar; salt and freshly ground black pepper; good pinch of saffron; 8 beef tomatoes, tops discarded and seeds scooped out; 3 tablespoons chopped fresh coriander; 2 green peppers, deseeded and cut into 1 cm dice; ½ teaspoon ground cumin; 50 g raisins

Preparation info

Serve
4

Difficulty
Medium

Appears in

Pure Vegetarian

By Paul Gayler

Published 2006

About

Stuffed vegetables are popular all over the Middle East and date back to ancient times. They are served with a variety of sweet and sour sauces, ranging from spiced syrups of lime to tamarind and butter. The tomatoes can be prepared a day in advance and baked when needed. They are also delicious served cold with warm flatbread.

Ingredients

For the Tomatoes

4 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves

Method

Preheat the oven to 160°C/325°F/gas mark 3. For the ratatouille, heat half the olive oil in a large pan over a moderate heat, add the onion and garlic and cook for