Recipe Index

Ingredients

• 4 onions, topped and tailed
• 8 tomatoes, tops removed and reserved
• 2 round courgettes, tops removed and reserved
• 2½fl oz olive oil
• 2 tbsp tomato purée
• 9oz medium grain rice
• 2½oz pine nuts, toasted
• 1¾oz golden raisins or sultanas
• ⅓oz flatleaf parsley
• 2 tsp dried mint
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 lemon, juice only
• 23fl oz hot vegetable stock
• sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 14oz Greek yoghurt
• 4 tbsp chopped fresh dill
• large pinch dried red chilli flakes

Method

1. Cut each onion halfway into its centre with a vertical slit, cover the onions with water in a large saucepan, boil them for around 40 minutes until cooked through, then drain and leave them to cool completely.
2. Scoop the middles out of the tomatoes and courgettes with a spoon to make hollow shells, keeping the tomato flesh in a bowl, discarding the courgette seeds and reserving all the tops; arrange the shells in a deep roasting tray.
3. Separate the cooled onions into their largest layers — about five per onion — and finely chop the remaining centres.
4. Fry the chopped onion in 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a wide saucepan over a medium-low heat for 10 minutes, stir in 1 tablespoon of the tomato purée with salt and black pepper for a minute, then add the chopped tomato flesh and cook until most of its juices have reduced.
5. Stir the rice, toasted pine nuts, raisins or sultanas, dried mint, cinnamon and chopped parsley into the pan, season again and let the filling cool; meanwhile heat the oven to 400°F.
6. Spoon the filling into the tomato and courgette shells until they are three-quarters full, and roll the onion layers around spoonfuls of filling too, shaping them like eyes and nestling them seam-side down in the tray.
7. Stir the lemon juice into the hot vegetable stock and pour it into the tray so it comes just over halfway up the vegetables, topping up with hot water if needed, then replace the reserved tops, drizzle everything with the remaining olive oil and cover the tray with foil.
8. Bake for 1 hour covered, then uncover, raise the heat to 475°F and bake for a further 20 minutes until the edges caramelise slightly.
9. Let the gemista rest a while so the flavours settle, and stir the Greek yoghurt together with the dill and chilli flakes to serve alongside.

Prep: 2 h · Cook: 2 h

Nutrition (per serving, where published)

Estimated from USDA FoodData Central ingredient data