1. To make the pizza base,place the room temperature water,yeast,olive oil and brown sugar in a jug;stir to combine then set aside for five minutes to allow the yeast to activate.
2. Place the flour,semolina,cumin and salt to a mixing bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook. Give it a quick stir to combine. Once the yeast mixture foams and bubbles on top,pour it over the flour mixture. Turn the mixer to low to incorporate,then increase the speed to medium and mix the dough until combined and smooth (about three minutes).
3. Cover the mixing bowl with a cloth and put in a warm place until the dough has doubled in size (about one hour).
4. Meanwhile,make the mince topping. Place a frypan over medium heat. Add the mince and cook until just browned (one to two minutes). Add the remaining mince topping ingredients and cook for an additional minute or so,until the meat is coated and almost sticky looking. Remove from heat.
5. Preheat the oven to 165C (185C conventional).
6. Turn the dough onto a flat tray and stretch out to make a large rectangular pizza. I used a tray approximately 30cm x 20cm. (If you don't have one as large as this,you can shape the dough into 2-4 pizza rounds instead.)
7. Spread the tomato paste over the pizza base. Spoon the lamb mince mixture onto the base and spread out across the area (reserve the frypan). Bake for 12-20 minutes,turning the pizza regularly to prevent the nuts and dried fruit from catching and burning.
8. While the pizza is cooking,make the tahini sauce. Put all the sauce ingredients in a small bowl,loosen with two tablespoons of water,add a pinch of salt and whisk until smooth. Set aside until ready to serve.
9. Return the frypan to high heat. Add the olive oil,and once searing hot,add the shallot halves,turning occasionally so the'petals'separate and char nicely – this will take anywhere between one and three minutes.
10. Remove the pizza from the oven. Scatter over the charred onion pieces and drizzle with tahini sauce. Scatter over the zaatar,fresh herbs and pomegranate seeds (if using) and serve piping hot.