Pindjur

Preheat the oven to 220°C. Arrange the green peppers and eggplant on a baking sheet and roast for 25–35 minutes, turning the vegetables halfway through, until the pepper skins are well charred and the eggplant has turned soft.

Transfer the hot peppers to a bowl, cover with a lid and let them steam for 10 minutes. Peel off the skins and remove the stems and seeds. Peel the eggplant and cut the flesh into chunks.

Dip the tomatoes in boiling water for 2–3 minutes, then transfer to cold water, peel and chop.

Pour 200 ml of oil into a wide pot, add the tomatoes and cook over medium heat for 20–25 minutes, until almost all the liquid has evaporated but the tomatoes aren't dried out.

Put the peeled peppers, stewed tomatoes and eggplant into a blender jug and pulse briefly: the mixture should stay coarse, with visible pepper chunks, rather than turning into a purée.

Crush the garlic with salt, stir it into the vegetable mixture and add the remaining 300 ml of oil. Mix well; if you like, drizzle the pindjur with hot oil just before serving.

Serve pindjur warm or cooled to room temperature as a Macedonian spread-style appetizer.