serves
4
prep
10 minutes
cook
35 minutes
difficulty
Easy
serves
4
people
preparation
10
minutes
cooking
35
minutes
difficulty
Easy
level
This dish is easy to prepare for a mid-week dinner – just toss it all together in the one dish! For a creamy topping, serve with a little Greek yoghurt or hummus. This is great on its own or with flatbreads.
Ingredients
- 2 zucchini (courgettes), cut into 2-cm slices
- 1 red onion, cut into 8 thin wedges
- 1 medium eggplant (aubergine), cut into small cubes
- 2 red capsicum (peppers), de-seeded and cut into chunks
- 1 red chilli, de-seeded and finely chopped
- 2 large garlic cloves, chopped
- 1½ tbsp (30 ml) extra-virgin olive oil, plus extra for drizzling
- 2 tsp fresh marjoram leaves (or 1 tsp dried oregano)
- 1 400 g tin lentils, drained and rinsed
- 3 tsp (15 ml) balsamic vinegar
- 250 g cherry tomatoes
- 250 g block halloumi, thickly sliced
- zest and juice of ½ lemon
- 8–10 basil leaves, shredded. with a few reserved whole for garnish
- sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
1. Preheat the oven to 200°C/180°C fan/gas 6.
2. Put the zucchini, onion, eggplant, red capsicum, chilli and garlic into a large, shallow baking dish, drizzle with half the olive oil, season well, then scatter over half of the marjoram and toss together. Roast for 16–18 minutes.
3. Remove from the oven and toss through the lentils and balsamic vinegar, then stir in the cherry tomatoes and sit the halloumi slices on top. Drizzle with remaining olive oil and sprinkle over the lemon zest and remaining marjoram. Roast for a further 16–18 minutes until the tomatoes start to blister and release their juices and the halloumi is golden around the edges. If you like, you can brown the halloumi a little more under a hot grill for 1–2 minutes after baking.
4. To serve, drizzle with a little oil, squeeze over the lemon juice and scatter with the fresh basil.
Extracted from Ainsley’s Mediterranean Cookbook, by Ainsley Harriott (Ebury Press). Photography by Dan Jones.
Cook's Notes
Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.
This dish is easy to prepare for a mid-week dinner – just toss it all together in the one dish! For a creamy topping, serve with a little Greek yoghurt or hummus. This is great on its own or with flatbreads.
