We served this with steak but it would be nice with other vegetable dishes too.
Pomegranate-glazed aubergine – serves 4
2 large aubergines, peeled and cut into 2.5cm rounds
3-4 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp pomegranate molasses
3 tbsp maple syrup
1 scallions, finely sliced on the diagonal
a generous handful of salted peanuts, chopped
Preheat the oven to 220C/200C fan/Gas 7.
Line a large baking tray with baking paper.
Set the aubergine slices onto the baking tray, then brush both sides with olive oil. Bake in the oven for 22-25 minutes until cooked through but not browned.
Mix the pomegranate molasses and maple syrup together, then use a pastry brush to brush evenly over both sides of the aubergines, then sprinkle with some flaked sea salt. Roast for another 5-6 minutes or until glazed and sticky.
Scatter with the scallion and peanuts before serving.
(Original recipe from Persiana Everyday by Sabrina Ghayour, Asteer, 2022.)
This is delicious with a load of warm flatbreads for scooping up the baba ghanoush. To burn the aubergines place them directly onto gas rings turned up high, scorch for about 20 minutes, turning once. You will need to open all of the doors and windows but it is definitely worth it!
Wine Suggestion: A Spanish red was called for, but to be a little contrary we went to Roussillon: Roc des Anges’ Segna de Cor. A Grenache, Carignan and Syrah blend from the “young” vines of this estate which average only 40 years of age … they have some wonderful old vines in this part of the world and Marjorie Gallet has some of the best parcels scattered across the incredible landscape that is Catalan France. Exceptionally refined and smooth, with layers of spices, warm fruits and a core of salty stones and smokey earth. For an entry level wine this is truly exciting. Also a good match for the smokey aubergines, earthy lentils and tart pomegranate.
Smoky baba ganoush with roasted cauliflower, lentils & pomegranate – serves 4 to 6
1 cauliflower, cut into florets
2-3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
300g Puy lentils (or similar lentils)
2 large handfuls of spinach leaves
a small handful of coriander leaves
½ a lemon, juiced
1 pomegranate, seeds extracted
pomegranate mollasses
FOR THE BABA GANOUSH:
4 large aubergines
4 tbsp tahini paste
2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
1 lemon, juiced
2 tbsp Greek yoghurt
5 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
Preheat the oven to 200C.
Coat the cauliflower in olive oil and season well with salt and pepper. Spread over a baking tray and roast for 25-30 minutes.
To make the baba ganoush, put the aubergines directly over a gas flame on high, for about 20 minutes, turning once. When cool enough to handle, peel off the blackened skin and place the flesh into a large bowl. Break the aubergine flesh up with a fork, leaving it a bit chunky, then add the tahini, garlic, lemon juice, yoghurt and olive oil. Mix with a fork until well combined and season well with salt and pepper.
Bring a large pot of water to the boil and cook the lentils for 20-25 minutes until just tender, then drain.
Combine the roasted cauliflower, lentils, baby spinach, coriander, a drizzle of olive oil and a good squeeze of lemon juice and season well with salt and pepper. Serve with plenty of baba gaanoush on the side, scatter over the pomegranate seeds and drizzle with a few drops of the pomegranate molasses.
(Original recipe from Community by Hetty McKinnon, A Plum Book, 2014.)
This is so simple for mid-week and the colours are just fab! Healthy too and generous portions.
Roast onion, chickpea & halloumi salad – serves 2
2 red onions, peeled and each cut into 8 wedges
400g tin chickpeas, drained and rinsed
2 tsp ras el hanout
extra virgin olive oil
250g cooked Puy lentils – we used a tin but you can of course cook them yourself or buy one of those pouches
100g roasted red peppers, cut into strips
a large handful of mint leaves, finely chopped
a large handful of flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
2 tsp pomegranate molasses
250g packet of halloumi, sliced
2 tbsp pomegranate seeds
Preheat the oven to 220C/200C fan/Gas 7.
Line a baking tray with baking paper. Spread the onion wedges and chickpeas over the tray, then sprinkle with the ras el hanout and some salt and rub gently to coat, then drizzle with oil. Cook in the oven for 20-25 minutes or until the chickpeas or golden and crunchy.
Meanwhile, mix the lentils, roast peppers, mint and half the chopped parsley in a bowl. Drizzle over 1 tbsp of oil and the pomegranate molasses and season well with salt and pepper. Mix well and divide between serving plates.
Heat a large non-stick frying pan over a medium-high heat. When hot, add a little oil, then fry the halloumi slices for a couple of minutes on each side or until golden brown.
Spoon the onions and chickpeas over the lentils, then top with the halloumi and scatter over the pomegranate seeds and parsley to serve.
(Original recipe from Lose Weight & Get Fit by Tom Kerridge, Bloomsbury Absolute, 2019.)
We try to eat fairly light mid-week with an emphasis on veg and not too many carbs. It’s much easier in the summer when the nights are bright and we don’t crave comfort food the same way.
Today is the first Monday of June, it’s been grey and lashing with rain all day and it feels far from summery, but we live in hope. So there is loads going on in this roasted cauliflower dish – hot chilli, cooling yoghurt, sour pomegranate, fresh herbs and crispy chickpeas. Just what we needed.
Wine Suggestion: A great match is the mildly unfashionable, but very beloved by wine enthusiasts, Mosel Riesling. For simplicity the Dr Loosen Estate Riesling which balances a lighter body with a good depth and personality; light alcohol and body but a dancing, full flavour.
Spiced Cauliflower Roast – serves 4
50g butter, softened at room temperature
2 tsp chilli flakes
½ tsp sumac
½ tsp allspice
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
1 cauliflower (about 1kg)
2 x 400g tins chickpeas, drained and rinsed
small bunch of flat-leaf parsley, chopped
small bunch of coriander, chopped
small bunch of mint, chopped
1 red onion, very finely chopped
200g cherry tomatoes on the vine
50g pine nuts, toasted
pomegranate molasses
FOR THE FETA DRESSING:
100g good-quality feta
100g Greek yoghurt
juice of ½ lemon
Heat the oven to 220C/200C fan/gas 7.
Beat the butter and spices with a wooden spoon in a small bowl.
Trim the outer leaves of the cauliflower and remove the very bottom of the root but not all of it as it will help hold it together. Bring a large pan of salty water to the boil. Cook the cauliflower for 3-4 minutes to soften slightly, then gently remove from the water and onto a baking tray.
Scatter the chickpeas around the cauliflower. Rub the cauliflower with the spiced butter, dot a little butter over the chickpeas and season everything. Roast in the oven for 35 minutes or until the cauliflower is completely tender and the chickpeas crispy.
Meanwhile, make the feta dressing by whisking the feta and yoghurt together in a large bowl until creamy. Add the lemon juice and whisk again, then season. Chill in the fridge until needed.
Remove the cauliflower and chickpeas from the oven and transfer the cauliflower onto a plate. Mix the remaining ingredients except the pomegranate molasses, with the warm chickpeas on the tray. Arrange the chickpeas on a platter and put the whole cauliflower on top. Spoon over the feta dressing and drizzle with a little pomegranate molasses to serve.
We love this Persian dish, so rich and full of unusual but intriguing flavours. We’ve tried to make it before with limited success but this version by Yasmin Khan was much more like the dish we remembered. Serve with steamed basmati rice and salad.
Chicken with Walnuts & Pomegranates – Fesenjoon – serves 4
250g walnuts (fresh is best)
1.2 litres of cold water
100ml pomegranate molasses
1 tbsp tomato purée
¼ tsp ground cinnamon
2 tbsp sugar
2 tsp sea salt
1 tsp black pepper
800g skinless chicken thighs, on the bone
a handful of pomegranate seeds to garnish
Grind the walnuts in a food processor until extremely fine – they will eventually turn into a smooth paste. Transfer the ground nuts into a large casserole pot with a litre of water and mix well. Bring to the boil and cook over a high heat for 5 minutes, then reduce the heat and simmer for 1 hour, partially covered. Stir occasionally to make sure the walnuts don’t stick.
Stir in the remaining 200ml of water and simmer for another hour with the lid on. Add more cold water if the sauce starts to look dry – in the end it should have a thick, porridge-like consistency.
By the end of the time the sauce should have thickened and darkened in colour. Add the pomegranate molasses, tomato purée, cinnamon, sugar, salt and pepper and stir well. Add the chicken, put the lid back on the pot and cook over a low heat for 45 minutes, until the chicken is cooked and the sauce is dark and glossy.
Taste the sauce and season, you might like to add more sugar or pomegranate molasses to adjust the sweet/sour balance. Cook for a final 10 minutes with the lid off so the sauce thickens around the meat. Serve over rice and sprinkled with the pomegranate seeds.
(Original recipe from The Saffron Tales by Yasmin Khan, Bloomsbury, 2016.)
Honey & co strikes again with a great veggie Sunday supper and fab left-overs for lunch-boxes on Monday. They suggest serving with yoghurt and green salad – we had some steamed rice too.
Wine Suggestion: a conundrum in matching this with the slight bitterness from the walnuts, the earthy, smoky, velvety aubergine and the sweet-sour-crunchy pomegranates. In the end we went with the Chapelle en Rosé from Chateau St. Jacques d’Albas in Minervois which was red-fruited, sappy and minerally dry. If you can’t find this then open a dry rosé made in the style of Provence.
100g toasted walnuts, roughly chopped (keep 2 tbsp for garnish)
2 tbsp pomegranate molasses
½ tsp freshly ground black pepper
5 cm piece of fresh ginger, peeled & grated
15-20g parsley, chopped
100g fresh pomegranate seeds (keep 2 tbsp for garnish)
a pinch of cayenne pepper
Heat the oven to 220C/200C Fan/Gas Mark 7.
Slice each aubergine into 5 or 6 slices lengthways. Keep the outside slices for the filling and the long inner slices for the rolls. Brush a couple of baking trays with oil and lay the inside aubergines slices flat on them. Drizzle with more oil and season with salt and black pepper. Roast for 20-25 minutes or until golden and soft, turn the trays around mid-way to make sure they cook evenly. Set aside to cool.
Cut the aubergine trimmings into small dice (similar to the onion). Fry the onion in the olive oil over a medium heat until starting to soften, then add the diced aubergine and salt. Cook until the aubergine goes very soft. Take the pan off the heat and add the rest of the ingredients. Mix well and season again if needed.
Put a large spoon of filling at the end of each aubergine slice and roll into thick sausages. Put the filled rolls into an ovenproof serving dish. Spoon any leftover filling around the edges. Put into the oven for 5 minutes to warm through before serving.
Sprinkle the rolls with the reserved walnuts and pomegranate seeds. Serve about 3 rolls per person with a dressed green salad, some yoghurt and steamed rice.
(Original recipe from ‘Honey & Co. Food from the Middle East’ by Sarit Packer & Itamer Srulovich, Saltyard Books, 2014.)
This makes such a lovely weekend dish and looks really attractive served on a large platter in the middle of the table. It requires a few hours in the oven but is hardly any work at all and uses just a few ingredients.
Wine Suggestion: this dish cries out for a Moorish influenced wine and nothing quite achieves this more than a Spanish Tempranillo. Our choice of the evening was the Carmelo Rodero Ribera del Duero Crianza which is juicy, powerful and also manages to achieve a perfumed elegance with exotic eastern spice hints.
2kg lamb shoulder (or get your butcher to give you a forequarter if the lambs are small)
1 onion, sliced
1 tbsp pomegranate molasses, plus extra to serve
300g couscous
butter
1 tsp harissa
a small bunch of mint, leaves roughly chopped
seeds from 1 pomegranate
Heat the oven to 190C/fan 170C/gas 5.
Put the lamb into a roasting tin with the fatty side facing up. Scatter the onion around the lamb. Score the lamb with a sharp knife and rub in the pomegranate molasses with your hands. Season well. Add 2 mugs of water to the tin, then cover with foil and roast for 4 hours. Rest for 15 minutes before pulling chunks of the lamb off the bone with 2 forks.
While the lamb is resting, put the couscous into a large bowl with a large knob of butter, the harissa and seasoning, then add enough boiling water to just cover. Cover the bowl with cling film and leave for 5 minutes before fluffing the grains gently with a fork. Put the couscous onto a platter and arrange the shredded lamb on top. Pour off any fat from the roasting tin and pour the juices over the lamb and couscous plus a little more molasses. Scatter with the mint and pomegranate seeds.
(Original recipe by Lulu Grimes IN: BBC Olive Magazine, February 2014.)
Oh my goodness, how lovely this is. We bought Honey & Co., by Sarit Packer & Itamar Srulovich, after reading many a rave review and every time we try one of their recipes we are impressed all over again. This is just delicious and you can make your work colleagues very jealous if you’re lucky enough to have leftovers for your lunchbox.
Pomegranate Molasses Chicken with Bulgar Wheat Salad – Serves 4
8 skinless, boneless chicken thighs
1 tbsp vegetable oil, for frying
FOR THE MARINADE:
2 cloves of garlic, peeled and sliced
1 green chilli, sliced
3 tbsp pomegranate molasses
1 tbsp vegetable oil
½ tsp freshly ground black pepper
FOR THE SALAD:
200g bulgar wheat
½ tsp salt
1 tsp olive oil
200ml boiling water
50g shelled pistachios, roasted and coarsely chopped (half reserved to sprinkle over before serving)
75g currants
2 tsp dried mint
1 tbsp pomegranate molasses
50g fresh pomegranate seeds (1 tbsp reserved to sprinkle over before serving)
15-20g mint, roughly chopped
15-20g parsley, roughly chopped
Mix the marinade ingredients together, add the chicken and stir to coat completely with the marinade. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours. (You can do this and refrigerate for up to 48 hours in advance.)
Preheat the oven to 200C/180C fan/gas mark 6.
Place the bulgar in a bowl with the salt and oil, pour over boiling water and cover with cling film for 5 minutes. Uncover and fluff up with a fork. Add the rest of the salad ingredients except those needed for the garnish and stir.
Heat the vegetable oil in a large oven-proof frying pan over a medium heat and put the chicken thighs in smooth-side down. Season with salt and pepper and fry for 2-3 minutes or until the thighs have taken on a good colour, then flip over and cook for another 2 minutes. Put the frying pan in the oven for 12 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through.
Spoon the salad onto plates or a large platter and top with the chicken and any juices from the pan. Sprinkle with the remaining pistachios & pomegranate seeds before serving.
(Original recipe from Honey & Co. by Sarit Packer & Itamar Srulovich, Saltyard Books, 2014.)
Jono & Jules do food & wine 