I wanted something on the vegetable lines to go with the Marcella’s melt-in-the-mouth lamb which I’d been trying out. I thought roast potatoes would be a bit too much of a good thing. Lamb goes well with aubergines though, and with mint, and also garlic, so this impressive looking platter incorporates of all these…and there is a degree of nuttiness added to bring out the flavour of the cauliflower, which breaks up the aubergine.

This is good with any lamb dish. It’s also good with scallopine alla milanese.

If you have any left over, it reheats well, and, obviously, you can make the garlicky sauce ahead of time – just take out of the fridge to allow it to reach room temperature and give a brief stir before serving.

Go here for some lamb recipes on Saucy Dressings which would go with this dish.

Recipe for mixed roast aubergines and cauliflowers with a garlicky yoghurt sauce

Serves 4

Ingredients

• 1 cauliflower
• 1 aubergine
• up to 120 ml/½ cup olive oil, plus a couple of additional tbsps. for the sauce
• 25g/1 oz mint leaves
• 30g/⅓ cup toasted, flaked almonds
• 1 lime
• drizzle of walnut or pistachio oil
• textured salt and freshly ground black pepper, or Urfa pepper flakes
• 240 ml/1 cup runny yoghurt (I use The Collective)
• 3 fat cloves of yoghurt, peeled and crushed with 1 tsp salt

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C.
2. Divide the cauliflower into florets. Save any bits of stalk to use later as crudités.
3. Cube the aubergine, add to the cauliflower.
4. Spread out in a big roasting tray. Drizzle with the oil. Scatter over a little textured salt and the pepper or pepper flakes.
5. Bake for about 45 minutes to an hour, stirring every fifteen minutes or so. If the cauliflower doesn’t start to look charred and crispy turn up the heat a little.
6. Meanwhile make the garlicky yoghurt sauce. Mix together the yoghurt, a couple of tbsps. of olive oil, the garlic and salt, and a pinch of pepper flakes.
7. Add the juice and zest of a lime. Stir again.
8. Move to a warmed serving dish. Tear over the mint and the almonds, drizzle over the nut oil, and serve with the garlicky yoghurt sauce.