This dish of roasted and spiced aubergines is an excellent vegetarian lunch.

If you happen not to be two greedy people (just a couple of couch-potatoes with normal appetites), you may find you have a little of this left over. Chop it and serve it as a dip – it’s really very good!

Recipe for roasted and spiced aubergines

For lunch for two greedy people

Ingredients

• 2 fat aubergines
• Olive oil for roasting, frying and for the dressing
• 180 ml/¾ cup thick yoghurt
• 1 tsp mild curry powder
• ¼ tsp turmeric
• 1 onion
• ½ tsp cumin seeds
• ½ tsp coriander seeds
• 2 tbsps raisins (or dried cranberries)
• Smoked salt
• Freshly ground black pepper or a pinch of Urfa pepper flakes
• Crusty bread to eat with it

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 210°C.
2. Warm the plates and the serving platter.
3. Take the yoghurt out of the fridge.
4. Line a large roasting tray with foil, and oil it.
5. Cut the aubergines into slices about a generous centimetre… just less than half an inch…thick.
6. Lay on the roasting tray, drizzle over some oil, and sprinkle over some salt and pepper or the pepper flakes.
7. Roast for about 15 minutes at the top of the oven. After 15 minutes, take out, turn over, drizzle with more oil, and seasoning, and return to the oven for another 15 minutes, or until cooked through and starting to turn golden.
8. Meanwhile, in a smallish frying pan dry fry the two seeds. After a couple of minutes, after you’ve enjoyed the fabulous waft of spicy scents, remove to a pestle and mortar. Don’t wash up the pan!
9. In the same pan, get some oil warm. Peel and chop the onion, and gently fry, with a pinch of salt, and half a teaspoon of curry powder, until golden…usually about ten minutes.
10. Crush the seeds.
11. In a small bowl mix the yoghurt, the turmeric, the other half teaspoon of curry powder. Add two tablespoons of olive oil, and some salt and pepper, or pepper flakes. Keep
12. Put the aubergine slices, overlapping a little (they look better this way) on the warmed platter. Dollop the spiced yoghurt over them. Scatter over the onion, the crushed seeds and the raisins, and serve with the crusty bread.