Get Premium access to all the latest content online
Subscribe and view full print editions online... Subscribe
Date caponata tartlets with candied chillies
Makes 24 Cakes, Bread and Pastries
Ingredients
- 3tbsp olive oil
- 2 small aubergines, finely diced
- 1 red onion, finely diced
- 1 yellow pepper, deseeded and finely diced
- 2 celery sticks, finely diced
- 400g can chopped tomatoes, drained and rinsed
- 4 tomatoes, deseeded and chopped
- 2-3 tbsp capers, drained and rinsed
- 2-3 tbsp green olives, roughly chopped
- 4tbsp date molasses
- 30ml red wine vinegar
- 6 pitted dates, roughly chopped
- 24 shop-bought mini tart cases
For the candied chilli twists
- 300g caster sugar
- 4 long red chillies, deseeded and cut into long thin strips
Method
First, make the candied chilli twists. Put the sugar in a pan with 300ml water and stir over a medium heat until the sugar dissolves. Bring to the boil, turn the heat down and bubble for 2-3 minutes until the syrup has thickened slightly. Add the chilli strips and cook over a low heat for around 7-8 minutes until soft and glossy. Leave in the syrup until cool enough to handle, then wind around oiled chopsticks and leave to cool completely.
To make the caponata, heat the oil in a large frying pan and add the aubergines. Cook for around 5 minutes, until golden, then add the onion. Continue to cook for a couple more minutes, then add the pepper and celery.
Pour the can of chopped tomatoes into a sieve and discard the juice. Rinse the tomatoes under cold running water, until only the pulp remains in the sieve. Add this to the pan with the fresh tomatoes, capers and olives. Stir in the date molasses and red wine vinegar and cook for around 25-30 minutes until everything is softened and sticky. Add the chopped dates and cook for a further 5 minutes.
Serve warm or at room temperature, spooned into pre-made tartlet cases. Alternatively, use to top bruschetta or serve in little spoons. Garnish with the candied chilli twists.
This recipe was taken from the January/February 2021 issue of Food and Travel. To subscribe, click here.
Advertisement