Back to Jerusalem: Stuffed Eggplant with Lamb Mince

Three and a half years ago I wandered the well-worn streets of old Jerusalem.  Just four days there was enough to leave a permanent indent in my heart.  Jerusalem (the city) has an incredible energy bubbling away under the surface of a concentration of deeply significant sites (if not the most significant) for four main religions.  The history, the people, the smells, the food...!  As the meeting point of Europe, Asia and Africa, a wide and varied influence is ingrained in the most simple and sophisticated cuisine.

When my friends Jess (check out her awesome blog here) and Jono gave me Ottolenghi and Tamimi's new cook book Jerusalem I couldn't wait to dive into the pages and (hopefully) resurrect some of those memories.  Aside from the mouthwatering recipes, one of the things I love about the book is the introduction - eight pages explaining the importance and passion invoked by food in the region and how history has shaped what you are about to prepare.  The gorgeous street life photography captures the hustle and bustle, and the gritty character of every day life.

Stuffed Aubergine with Lamb and Pine Nuts

Ingredients
4 medium aubergines halved lengthwise
6T olive oil
1 1/2t ground cumin
1 1/2T sweet paprika
1T ground cinnamon
2 medium onions, finely chopped
500g minced lamb
50g pine nuts
20g flat leafed parsley, chopped
2t tomato puree
2t caster sugar
150ml water
1 1/2T lemon juice
1t tamarind paste
4 cinnamon sticks
salt and black pepper

Method
Preheat the oven to 220°C.

Place the aubergine halves, skin-side down, in a roasting tin large enough to accommodate them snugly.  Brush the flesh with 4T olive oil and season with 1t of salt and plenty of black pepper.  Roast for about 20 min, until golden brown.  Remove from the oven and allow to cool slightly.

While the aubergines are cooking, you can start making the stuffing by heating up the remaining olive oil in a large frying pan.  Mix together the cumin, paprika and ground cinnamon and add half of this spice mix to the pan, along with the onion.  Cook on a medium-high heat for about 8 minutes, stirring often, before adding the lamb, pine nuts, parsley, tomato purée, 1t sugar, 1t salt and some black pepper.  Continue to cook and stir for another 8 min, until the meat is cooked.

Place the remaining spice mix in a bowl and add the water, lemon juice, tamarind, remaining sugar, cinnamon sticks and 1/2 t salt; mix well.

Reduce the oven temperature to 195°C.  Pour the spice mix into the bottom of the aubergine roasting tin.  Spoon the lamb mixture on top of each  aubergine.  Cover the tin tightly with foil, return to the oven and roast for 1h 30min, by which point the aubergines should be completely soft and the sauce thick  twice though the cooking, remove the foil and baste the aubergines with the sauce, adding some water if the sauce dries out.  Serve warm, not hot, or at room temperature with some bread or simple rice.

My Notes:  Lamb mince wasn't available so I substituted for beef mince and it still tasted delicious.  I forgot to cover the pan with foil during the cooking and mine dried out pretty quickly (as you can probably see by the photos).  My aubergines also cooked very quickly, so you might not need the full 1h 30min for roasting.  Instead of rice, I served mine with an adaptation of the artichoke and herb salad, using artichokes from a jar, green apple roughly cubed, finely sliced fennel and lots of fresh herbs.  Delicious!

You can get your own taste of Jerusalem on The Book Depository (here) with free international shipping.