Greetings!
In my last Tel Aviv visit I came across the magical combination of tomatoes, cauliflower and tahini in a form of a popular dish from the Arab kitchen: Sinaya (+at least 5 different ways of spelling it…). Sinaya is the traditional clay pot that is used to cook this dish, but I do not have it so I make it in a simple glass form.
We will need (for 2-4 people):
- A medium cauliflower, separated to small to medium size flowers, washed wall
- 3 -5 big tomatoes, sliced and oven dried with olive oil, pepper and salt
- Lots of tahini (with or without parsley, up to you) – recipe here
- Salt & pepper
Directions:
- Cook cauliflowers flowers (sounds funny! :)) until they are soft – but not too soft
- Oven dry the tomatoes – slice, add olive oil, salt & pepper and roast for not more than 30 minutes in the oven at 250 c / 480 f
- Make tahini according to instructions BUT add an extra half a cup of water – the tahini should be more “watery” than the usual
- Once ready – in the glass form:
- set first layer of roasted tomatoes
- set second layer of cooked cauliflower
- cover with tahini generously
- Add some salt and pepper
- Bake on 200 c / 400 f for 20-30 minutes or until brownish on top
Important: the tahini tends to dry quickly in the oven, put aside some tahini and add it on top before serving
Serve with rice – I love it with Venera, black rice – or quinoa or mujaddara (rice & lentils) or simple Israeli/Arabic salad.
Enjoy!