Stuffed tomatoes Greek style

Method

1 Preheat the oven to 170°C (150°C fan, gas mark 3).

2 Carefully slice the top off each tomato and set aside - you'll be using them later as ‘lids'. Scoop out the flesh and all the seeds, taking care that each tomato's basic structure remains intact. Place in a bowl.

3 Season the scooped-out tomatoes with salt, freshly ground black pepper and a sprinkling of sugar. Set aside.

4 Heat a splash of olive oil in a large, heavy pan. Sweat the onion, courgettes, garlic and oregano until thoroughly cooked. Add the rice, reserved tomato pulp and juice. Season, cover and cook until the rice is almost cooked.

5 Stir in the chopped herbs and set aside for about 5 min to cool a little - the rice will finish cooking in this time.

6 Stuff the tomatoes with the rice mixture, put the ‘lids' back on, drizzle with olive oil and bake for about 20 minutes.