Farewell to Summer Vegetable Casserole

At the change of seasons I am often confused about what to eat. On a chilly morning when you can still feel the breath of the rain that had been pouring the whole night I open the fridge stuffed with tomatoes, cucumbers, herbs, eggplants and other summer goodness while the only thing on my mind is red lentil soup. The day warms up towards the noon suggesting that something cooling and yogurt-based may be a good idea. But if I continue along with those lines in the evening and - out of my summer habit - make a raw salad, it hardly feels as satisfying as it was on a balmy evening just a few weeks ago.

At the moments of seasonal confusion I turn to various sources of culinary inspirations, one of them being cookbooks. Currently I am in love with Olives, Lemons and Za’atar by Rawia Bishara, the chef and owner of Tanoreen restaurant in Brooklyn, New York. Born in Nazareth, Israel, Mrs. Bishara shares through the book her childhood memories of the family meals and the women in her family, noteworthy, her mother, who created food that gathered the whole family around the table.

As Middle Eastern cooking becomes so on demand in the West and the cookbooks on the topic are popping up one after another, I had carefully researched many alternatives before buying Olives, Lemons and Za’atar. I am happy to have chosen this one as it compliments another favorite of mine, Ottolenghi’s Jerusalem. While the cooking in the latter is quirky and gears towards the restaurant style, Mrs. Bishara’s dishes do have a unmistakable female touch and motherly feel.

For one thing, it is her generosity. After halving her Baked Eggplant recipe meant for 6-8 people I still got a huge dish of at least 6-8 servings. She admits having a “heavy hand” when it comes to the use of her favorite seasonings - parsley, lemon and warm spices. Mrs. Bishara also teaches you kitchen thrift as she shares her recipes. She explains how you could turn remaining marinade into a sauce (Grilled Red Snapper in Grape Leaves) or use the juices from roasting her Whole Stuffed Chicken to make a soup you can serve before the chicken. My favorite of her tips is the one she shares in her Tanoreen’s Specialty Fava Beans recipe when she notes, “The recipe calls for twice as many fava beans as you need. I did this as a favor to you; freeze them for next time.” Finally, she demonstrates motherly care when she instructs you how to make a nourishing portable breakfast with Arabic bread or kaak or how to turn the nutritious dandelion greens into a scrumptious side (Sauteed Dandelion Greens with Caramelized Onions).

Mrs. Bishara’s cooking reminds me that of my mother-in-law’s, not at least because they both being half-Arab share similar culinary memories. Because of anne I got up close and personal with all the hummus, muhammara, kibbeh, stuffed vegetables, semolina cake and alike. But it’s not just about the wholesome and delicious recipes. Mrs. Bishara tells about the food memories of her childhood, her grandma pressing oil from the olives grown on the family land, her mother making her own vinegar, cheese and preserves of all sorts, the whole village engaging in the preparation of kibbeh or mamool and ka’ik cookies for festivities, loud gatherings around the abundant table at family breakfasts, generous meze spread at a relative’s wedding Mrs. Bishara attended as a child. When I read Mrs. Bishara’s stories, I hear my mother-in-law speaking. That’s probably I love the book so much.

So it was in the Olives, Lemons and Za’tar where I found the recipe perfect for the time when summer slowly gives the stage to autumn. Humbly named “Baked Eggplant” the dish of siniyat el fokrra meaning “a tray for the poor” is an excellent way to use the summer produce in a way that’s nourishing and satisfying both in a warm afternoon and a chilly night. The “tray” includes baked vegetables (eggplants, zucchini, potato, tomato, you name it) laced with the herbed and spiced tomato sauce.

The dish complies with my favorite formula for a winning recipe: it can be served cold or warm, as a meatless main or as a side while the leftovers offer a superb material for frittata or a sandwich. It’s not your vegetarian lasagna minus the gluten or a rich gratin: thick vegetables slices have beautifully softened and soaked all the flavors of the last tomatoes of the season accompanied by a merry bunch of spices and herbs, loud like a house cooling party that could not care less about disturbing the neighbors.

After a few tries I have modified the original recipe a bit. I scaled it down as I found the servings being too generous. I decided to go easier on potatoes and opted for the balance of rich eggplant, juicy zucchini, grounding potato and sour-sweet tomato; I used approximated the same quantity of each vegetable. You can obviously play with the vegetables you choose for this casserole and decide which of them you appoint to be a star.

In addition I replaced cilantro and basil with parsley as the latter is more commonly available and more dear to a Turkish eater, but I am confident that any mix of herb would work beautifully in this dish. Finally, I halved the amount of lemon juice for a more balanced flavor and used the juice of preserved lemon I made at home following the technique I learned in Morocco. While preserved lemon is a game changer in any dish, freshly squeezed lemon juice will work just fine; you’d simply need to add more salt than my recipe specifies.