Baked Aubergine and Bell Pepper Stuffed with Lamb - Sheikh El Mahshi شيخ المحشي باذنجان و فلفل حلو

Stuffed vegetables are a feature of Arab Cuisine with innumerable recipes falling under the generic name mahshi, which simply means "stuffed." There are regional variations and even vegetarian versions but the base is a rice and herb stuffing. The exception that proves the rule is sheikh el mahsi, so called because it is richer, stuffed with meat and nuts.

The stuffed vegetables most popular for sheikh el mahsi are aubergine and to a lesser extent zuchinni. In my family there are a few people who don't eat either so we added sweet bell peppers, which work really well with the flavors of this dish. It also makes a variation from the traditional Libyan stuffed bell peppers recipe, filfil mahshi. This adaption of sheik el mahshi combines bell peppers and aubergines filled with a lamb and aubergine mix, then baked in tomato sauce and sprinkled with pine nuts.

Ingredients

2 large eggplants

2  bell peppers (preferably not green)

Filling

1/2 kilo minced meat (or ideally finely chopped lamb)
 about 50g  butter 
1 chopped medium onion
1 cup boiling water
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp salt
2 tbsp dry mint
for decoration
1/2 cup pine nuts (or blanched almond )


Sauce
3-4 tablespoon olive oil 
1 grated garlic clove
1 chilli finely chopped
1 tablespoon tomato paste
4  finely chopped tomatoes (or tin of chopped tomato)
1 teaspoon salt

Partially peel the eggplants ( leaving strips of alternating peel and flesh). Prepare the eggplant and bell peppers by cutting them in half and hollowing them out.

Chop the eggplant hull into cubes and saute.

Put the butter and the minced meat in frying pan cook on medium heat stir occasionally until it releases its own liquid add chopped onions and spices one cup of water cook for 30 minutes. When the mix ready it should be moist. Remove from heat add the fried aubergines to the mix.

Prepare the sauce while the meat is cooking. In a pan fry grated garlic and chilli, add 1 tbs paste and stir. Add 4 fresh tomatoes and put through a food processor.  Leave on medium heat for 10-15 minutes. Place the aubergines and peppers in a deep oven-proof dish. Spoon the meat and aubergine mixture into the eggplant and bell peppers, pour about 2 spoon tomato sauce over each vegetable piece,  use any extra to fill the bottom of the dish.

Cover with foil and bake for about 1/2 hour at 250. Remove the foil and cook for anothr 15 minutes.

Decorate with roasted pine nuts or halved browned almonds. Serve with rice and salad. 

    

Aubergine and Tomato Salad - Mtabal متبل

Mtabal is an aubergine dish originating from the Levant and popular throughout the Arab world. It is a quicker version of Baba Ghanouj, where the aubergine is roasted until smoky, peeled then blended into a paste with tahini thinned out with lemon. Mtabal on the other hand is chunkier, made by dicing the vegetable up rather than mashing it, and drizzling tahini and olive oil on top.

It is served as an appetizer or side dish, and is eaten as a dip with hot Arabic bread.

Ingredients:

1 large aubergine (or 2 medium)

2 firm tomatoes, pulp removed (optional)

1-2 Chili peppers (optional)

1 large garlic clove, grated

Salt to taste

Lemon juice to taste

3 tablespoons tahini paste

Generous drizzle of olive oil

Handful finely chopped parsley

Roast the aubergine over an open flame until the skin begins to crisp. Alternatively slice thickly, brush with oil and place in a hot tray in the oven until golden on both sides. Leave to cool, then dice and place in a bowl. Grate one garlic clove over the cut up aubergine, add the lemon juice, a pinch of salt then mix and adjust to your taste. For some extra flavor you can add diced tomatoes (flesh only) and/or finely chopped chili peppers, but both are optional.

Drizzle with lots of tahini and olive oil. Make sure the latter is the raw unmixed sesame seed paste, not a ready made dip. Stir well before pouring in, so you don't just take the oil which gathers at the top. Decorate the Mtabal with chopped parsley and serve (warm or cold) with hot fresh bread.