Greetings, Hive! Sometimes, when you get creative in the kitchen, the results can be disastrous. But not this pomegranate bake! I wasn't sure if all the flavors would work together when I started cooking it, but OMG, it's delicious!

My Persian friend taught me a thing or two about Middle Eastern cuisine, and I'm so grateful! I especially love the sweet flavor of cinnamon combined with the freshness of pomegranate in this dish.

I'm so disappointed that I haven't been able to find pomegranate molasses here yet. My Persian friend used to use it a lot in his cooking before moving to Cambodia. It's one of his favorite ingredients. He has talked about pomegranate molasses so much that I'm dying to experiment with it myself.

I love how people from all walks of life come together here to share their love of food and learn about new cultures. It's like a culinary journey around the world, without ever leaving your home.

MIDDLE-EASTERN INSPIRED POMEGRANATE EGGPLANT WALNUT BAKE

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Inspired by the Persian dish fesenjan, I created this fusion bake. After making variations of fesenjan many times, I wanted to try something new. I'm quite happy with the result, and I can't wait to get my friend's opinion.

You can serve this bake as is, or with brown rice, quinoa, amaranth, or any other whole grain of your choice.

Ingredients (serves 2-3)

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• 2 bell peppers (any color), quartered
• 2 heaping cups of tomatoes, chopped
• 1 big eggplant or 2 small, cut in rounds or ovals
• ½ cup onion, chopped
• 2 tsp fermented garlic paste (or minced garlic)
• 1 cup pomegranate arils
• 1 tbsp maple syrup
• 1.5 cup cooked chickpeas
• About ½ cup walnuts, crushed
• Dried oregano to taste
• Himalayan pink salt to taste.

Spice mix

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• 1 tsp turmeric powder
• 1 tsp coriander powder
• ½ tsp cinnamon powder
• ½ tsp all spice powder
• Black pepper to taste

Directions

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Under the grill of your oven, grill quartered bell peppers until charred. This will take about 15-20 minutes. When the bell peppers are charred, peel and blend them with the chopped tomatoes to form the base of the tomato sauce.

Meanwhile, slice the eggplants and sprinkle them with a generous amount of Himalayan pink salt to draw out some of the moisture. Let the eggplant and salt sit for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes pat dry and roast in a preheated oven (200C or 400F) with a little olive oil until both sides are golden brown. Halfway through, flip the eggplant slices to make sure they are evenly brown on each side. This will take about 10 minutes on each side.

In a pan or pot, cook the onions in cooking oil until they start to brown. This will take about 6-7 minutes. Then add the garlic paste. Stir well to combine and add the spice mix. Stir well to coat the onions with the spice mix. Then add the blended tomato bell pepper mix and maple syrup.

Cook without a lid for 10 minutes. add the cooked chickpeas, stir well, and cook on low heat for another 5 minutes. Turn off the heat and add pomegranate. Stir well.

FYI: As I am not a big salt lover, the salt in the eggplant layer is enough for me. However, if you like your dishes more salty, season the tomato chickpea mix with salt to taste.

In an oven dish, layer half of the tomato chickpea sauce followed by all the roasted eggplant slices. Sprinkle with dried oregano to taste. Add the other half of the tomato sauce and top with the crushed walnuts.

Bake in a preheated oven (180C or 350F) for 15-20 minutes.

Optional: serve with extra pomegranate and fresh rocket lettuce on top. This will add extra flavor and freshness to the dish. Or serve with brown rice or quinoa if you like.

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WISHING YOU ALL A HAPPY AND HEALTHY DAY ღ ღ ღ

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