Diana Henry’s butter-roast aubergines and tomatoes with freekeh and koch-kocha

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 190C/fan 170C/ gas 6. Pierce each aubergine with the tip of a knife – you don’t have to remove the tops – and cut the tomatoes in half. Put them into a roasting tin or a shallow casserole dish 30cm (12inches) in diameter. They don’t have to quite lie in a single layer but they should almost do so.
2. Melt the butter in a saucepan and add the garlic. Cook over a low heat for a few minutes, then pour the butter all over the vegetables, turning them over. Season and sprinkle each tomato half with a little sugar if they aren’t very sweet. If you have great tomatoes, you won’t need it.
3. Roast for 30 minutes, turning the aubergines over once during this time.
4. For the koch-kocha sauce, simply put everything into a food processor and whizz until smooth.
5. Add the freakeh to the roasting tin, pushing it down under the vegetables (you don’t want it sprinkled on top of them). Return to the oven for a final 5-10 minutes, or until the tomatoes are caramelised, the aubergines are tender right through and the freekeh has become slightly sticky at the edges.
6. Serve the dish with the sauce, a big bowl of natural yoghurt and good bread.