Ingredients
22 total- 1.2 kg pumpkin, cut into 4 cm wedges, or use butternut squash
- 2 tbsp olive oil, plus 50ml
- 1 tsp za’atar, plus extra to serve
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 2 cloves
- 2 cardamom pods
- 1 onion, cut into 8 pieces
- 500ml lamb or chicken stock
- 200g basmati rice
- 200g greek yoghurt
- 400g lamb mince (we used 20% fat)
- 4 garlic cloves, crushed or grated
- 2 tsp ground coriander
- 1 tbsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp hot paprika
- 2 pittas, cut into 2.5 cm pieces
- 1 handful mint, leaves picked and chopped
- 1 handful flat-leaf parsley, leaves picked and chopped
- 50g pine nuts
- 100g pomegranate seeds
- ½ lemon, for squeezing over
Method
5 stepsStep 1
Preheat the oven to 220°C/200°C fan/gas 7. Put the pumpkin in a roasting dish, rub with 2 tbsp oil and 1 tsp za’atar; season. Roast for 25 mins, turning once, until cooked through, sticky and golden.
Step 2
For the rice, put the bay, cinnamon, cloves, cardamom, onion, stock, 300ml water and a big pinch of salt in a saucepan. Bring to the boil; simmer for 15 mins. Remove the onion with a slotted spoon; set aside. Add the rice to the pan, cover and cook for 10 mins. Turn off the heat and keep covered for 15 mins.
Step 3
Blitz the yoghurt and boiled onion in a blender until smooth and creamy; season to taste and set aside.
Step 4
In a separate pan, fry the pitta in the remaining 50ml oil until crisp and golden. Drain on a plate lined with kitchen towel.
Step 5
Pile the rice, lamb and pumpkin onto a platter; top with the pitta, mint, parsley, yoghurt, pine nuts and pomegranate seeds. Finish with a squeeze of lemon and sprinkling of za’atar.