Roast summer vegetables

A recipe shamelessly pinched from Nigel Slater’s Observer column, because I want to make sure I always have it to hand. I suppose it’s a variation on escalivade really, but the carrots and spice make it quite different. I have changed it a little — Nigel said to put two tablespoons of harissa in it. I think harissa in the UK must be quite feeble. If I’d used that much of the ubiquitous Tunisian harissa in tubes that we get here, it would have blown our heads off. Naturally you can adjust the level to your taste and the strength of your harissa.

Make lots of this, as it’s ideal for keeping in the fridge and eating at room temperature when it’s so hot you don’t want to cook. A good party buffet dish too I should think.

60 ml olive oil
2-3 onions (preferably red), or 5-6 shallots, or a mixture
2-3 aubergines, depending on size
2 courgettes
500 g ripe tomatoes
4 slim new carrots
a handful of mint leaves
1 preserved lemon
Thick Greek yoghurt to serve
Dressing:
60 ml olive oil
1-2 tsp of harissa paste (or more, if yours is feeble)
2 tsp ground cumin
2-3 cloves garlic
salt

Pre-heat the oven to 200C. Peel and halve the onions, then cut into wedges (if using shallots, just halve them). Put in a large roasting tin. Trim the stems of the aubergines, then quarter lengthways. Cut them into short lengths (about 3 cm) and add to the tin. Pour over the olive oil, toss everything with your hands, and put in the oven for 25 minutes. Meanwhile trim, wash, and halve the carrots. Add them to the tin after about 10 minutes, stirring everything together.

Cut the courgettes into chunks and put them in a bowl. Cut the tomatoes into quarters or eighths depending on how big they are and add to the bowl. For the dressing, whisk together oil, cumin and harissa. Crush or finely chop the garlic and add to the dressing with a little salt. Pour over the tomatoes and courgettes, mix well, then add to the roasting tin and stir again to distribute the dressing. Roast for another 30-40 minutes till the edges are caramelising.

Cut the preserved lemon in half, and scrape out and discard the pulp. Rinse the shells and cut into small dice. When the vegetables are done scatter the lemon over the contents of the tin with the chopped mint leaves. Add a dollop of cold Greek yoghurt as you serve.