Roast aubergine & chickpea salad

Aubergines are sometimes referred to as “the poor man’s meat”, due to their firm texture and ability to make you feel full. This warm salad is a case in point. Here, aubergines are paired with chickpeas and feta to create a delicious and satisfying meal.

Serves 4

Prep: 15 minutes

Cook: 20 minutes

Ingredients
2 aubergines, trimmed
3 tbsp olive oil, plus extra for grilling
2 tsp harissa
1 radicchio, trimmed and separated into leaves
balsamic vinegar, for drizzling
1 x 400g tin chickpeas, rinsed and drained
1 small red onion, diced
75g wild rocket or baby spinach leaves
a handful of flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
60g feta cheese, crumbled
seeds of ¼ pomegranate

For the yoghurt and tahini dressing
240g natural yoghurt
2 tbsp tahini
1 garlic clove, crushed
2 tbsp olive oil
grated zest and juice of 1 lemon
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Method
Preheat the oven to 190°C/gas mark 5.

Make the yoghurt and tahini dressing: mix all the ingredients together in a bowl.

Cut the aubergines into thin slices lengthways. Mix the olive oil and harissa and brush over both sides of the slices. Arrange on ?a baking tray and cook in the preheated oven for about 20 minutes until golden brown and tender.

Meanwhile, lightly oil a griddle pan and place over a high heat. Add the radicchio and cook for 2-3 minutes until slightly charred on both sides. Remove from the pan and drizzle with balsamic vinegar.

Put the roasted aubergines in a large bowl with the warm radicchio, chickpeas, red onion, rocket or spinach and herbs. Lightly toss everything together and drizzle the yoghurt and tahini dressing over the top. Serve warm, scattered with feta and pomegranate seeds.

Or you can try this…
Add some toasted seeds or chopped hazelnuts and pistachios. Use red or white chicory instead of radicchio. Try using coriander instead of parsley. Substitute tinned cannellini or butter beans for the chickpeas.

Add roasted sweet peppers, courgettes and red onions. Serve with griddled halloumi cheese. Serve with warm pitta triangles.

Extracted from The Aubergine Cookbook by Heather Thomas (Ebury Press, approx €11.50).