Turkish Eggplant Pie | Food Stuff

Ingredients

• 2 ½ tsp. anise seeds
• 1 Tbs. dried mint
• 2 eggplants (1 lb.), pierced with fork
• 3 cloves garlic, minced (1 Tbs.)
• 2 tsp. ground cumin
• 2 Tbs. olive oil
• 12 pitted black and/or green olives, halved
• 12 sheets phyllo, thawed
• 1 medium red onion, chopped (1½ cups)
• ½ tsp. red pepper flakes
• 1 ½ lb. Roma tomatoes, chopped, plus 2 sliced tomatoes for garnish
• 1 tsp. smoked paprika
• 2 Tbs. tomato paste
• 1/3 cup whole-wheat breadcrumbs, plus more for topping, optional
• 1 yellow bell pepper, chopped (1 cup)