Sammy's Dot

The 2010 February Daring COOKs challenge was hosted by Michele of Veggie Num Nums. Michele chose to challenge everyone to make mezze based on various recipes from Claudia Roden, Jeffrey Alford and Naomi Dugid.

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Back in December, I had a fantastic meal with the Fellow at a Lebanese restaurant in Dublin. (We also ate Hungarian takes on Italian, Thai, and Mexican food in Budapest. We approve of checking out regional twists on the cuisines of others. The Lebanese food was, however, reasonably authentic. As far as I know.) The only problem was the number of possibilities; we had grilled halloumi, tabouleh, hummus, something that involved merguez sausage, and three or four other dishes, but I could easily have ordered a dozen.

Just from the vegetarian section.

It was good stuff. I want to go back. Unfortunately, it may be a while before that happens, but the Daring Cooks gave me an excuse to do it for myself this month.

I’ve been known to make a meal out of small plates before, though the last time I did, I made way too many, and I’ve made this months requirements, pitas and hummus, many times. However, it was fun to try again to play with the flavours of the hummus, try out a few new things, and try to put together a reasonably well-constructed menu. (I’m afraid that I could have incorporated more vegetables.)

My menu consisted of: the requisite pitas, hummus with homemade harissa, baba ghanouj, beet and carrot salad, felafel, grilled halloumi, spiced olives, and pickled turnips.

Recipes:

Pita Bread (adapted from Flatbreads and Flavors by Jeffrey Alford and Naomi Duguid):

2 teaspoons active dry yeast
2.5 cups lukewarm water
5-6 cups all-purpose flour (or like I did, use half whole wheat and half all-purpose)
1 tablespoon sea salt
2 tablespoons olive oil

Method:

1. These are the original instructions: In a large bread bowl, sprinkle the yeast over the warm water. Stir to dissolve. Stir in 3 cups flour, a cup at a time, and then stir 100 times, about 1 minute, in the same direction to activate the gluten. Let this sponge rest for at least 10 minutes, or as long as 2 hours. I actually used instant yeast, mixed it with the flour, and then used my stand mixer to combine with the water to make a sponge. However, as my pitas failed to puff, this might not have been the best idea.

2. Sprinkle the salt over the sponge and stir in the olive oil. Mix well. Add more flour, a cup at a time, until the dough is too stiff to stir. Turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 8 to 10 minutes (or in a stand mixer for about 8 minutes), until smooth and elastic. Rinse out the bowl, dry, and lightly oil. Return the dough to the bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let rise until at least doubled in size, approximately 1 1/2 hours.

3. Place a pizza stone, or two small baking sheets, on the bottom rack of your oven, leaving a 1-inch gap all around between the stone or sheets and the oven walls to allow heat to circulate. Preheat the oven to 450F (230C).

4. Gently punch down the dough. Divide the dough in half, and then set half aside, covered, while you work with the rest. Divide the other half into 8 equal pieces and flatten each piece with lightly floured hands. Roll out each piece to a circle 8 to 9 inches in diameter and less than 1/4 inch thick. Keep the rolled-out breads covered until ready to bake, but do not stack. (Really. I stacked my pitas and they were very hard to separate.)

5. Place 2 breads, or more if your oven is large enough, on the stone or baking sheets, and bake for 2 to 3 minutes, or until each bread has gone into a full balloon. If for some reason your bread doesn’t puff up, don’t worry it should still taste delicious. Wrap the baked breads together in a large kitchen towel to keep them warm and soft while you bake the remaining rolled-out breads. Then repeat with the rest of the dough.

Hummus (adapted from The New Book of Middle Eastern Food by Claudia Roden):

1 1/2 cups dried chickpeas, soaked in cold water overnight (or substitute well drained canned chickpeas and omit the cooking)
2 to 2 1/2 lemons, juiced
2-3 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
a big pinch of salt
4 tablespoons tahini (sesame paste)
4 Tbsp harissa, or more to taste

Method:

1. If cooking the chickpeas, drain the soaking water. Place the chickpeas in a large saucepan and fill with water; the chickpeas should be covered by at least 4 cm of water. Bring the water to a boil then reduce the heat to a simmer. Cook for 1 1/2 hours or until the chickpeas are tender. Drain, reserving a half cup or so of the cooking liquid.

2. In a food processor, combine the chickpeas, garlic, tahini, lemon juice, salt, and harissa. Blend. Add a little of the cooking water, as needed, to get the hummus to your desired consistency.

Harissa (my not-very-authentic version of this spice paste):

5-6 dried chile peppers, soaked in hot water for half an hour (I used guajillo chiles because I had them on hand; I’ve also used fresh chiles in the past, but this is much spicier.)
4 – 5 garlic cloves
2 – 3 Tbsp minced chipotle in adobo (yes, not very authentic, but I love the sweet smoky flavour and they mix in nicely)
2 tsp cumin seed
1 tsp coriander seed
2 – 3 Tbsp sun-dried tomatoes packed in oil (if desired)
big pinch salt
olive oil

Method:

1. In a hot dry skillet, toast the cumin and coriander seed over medium-low heat until fragrant. Drain the dried chiles and remove any tops and seeds.

2. In a food processor, combine the dried chiles, cumin and coriander, garlic, salt, chipotles, and sun-dried tomatoes. Grind to a paste. Spoon the paste into a small jar and pour in enough olive oil to cover the paste. Store in the refrigerator.

Felafels (Recipe from Joan Nathan and Epicurious.com):

1 cup dried chickpeas, soaked in cold water overnight OR use well canned drained chickpeas
1/2 large onion (roughly chopped, about 1 cup)
2 Tbsp fresh parsley, chopped
2 Tbsp fresh cilantro, chopped
1 tsp sea salt (I somehow managed not to add the salt – and regretted it; my felafels were on the bland side.)
1 tsp red chile flakes
4 whole garlic cloves, peeled
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp baking powder
4 Tbsp all-purpose flour (you may need a bit extra)
vegetable oil for frying (or canola, peanut, soybean, etc.); you will need enough so that the oil is three inches deep in whatever pan you are using for frying

Method:

1. Put the chickpeas in a large bowl and add enough cold water to cover them by at least 2 inches. Let soak overnight, and then drain. Or use canned chickpeas, drained.

2. Place the drained, uncooked chickpeas and the onions in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade. Add the parsley, cilantro, salt, hot pepper, garlic, and cumin. Process until blended but not pureed. If you don’t have a food processor, then feel free to mash this up as smooth as possible by hand. (I found this very hard, and I did try; I ended up using my mini-food processor and making the dough in batches.)

3. Sprinkle in the baking powder and 4 tablespoons of the flour, and pulse. You want to add enough flour so that the dough forms a small ball and no longer sticks to your hands. Turn into a bowl and refrigerate, covered, for several hours.

4. Form the chickpea mixture into balls about the size of walnuts.

5. Heat 3 inches of oil to 375 degrees (190C) in a deep pot or wok and fry 1 ball to test. If it falls apart, add a little flour. Then fry about 6 balls at once for a few minutes on each side, or until golden brown. Drain on paper towels. (Following an alternative set of directions, I baked mine at 325F for about 20 minutes, but I think they’re better fried.)

Baba Ghanouj (from The New Book of Middle-Eastern Food by Claudia Roden)

Ingredients:

2 lbs eggplant
2 – 3 garlic cloves, crushed
4 Tbsp tahini (or a bit less)
juice of 2 lemons, or more to taste

sea salt, to taste

Method:

1. Broil or roast the eggplant until it is very soft inside. Peel and let the flesh fall into a colander; use a fork to mash the flesh. (Surprisingly, you will not lose it, which I was half-expecting.)

2. Transfer the eggplant to a bowl and add the garlic, a little salt, lemon juice, and tahini. Mash with a fork until the consistency is fairly smooth and the eggplant is mixed in well. Taste and adjust the seasoning if necessary.

Quick Pickled Turnips (adapted from The Art of Simple Food by Alice Waters)

Note: These are not at all authentic, and I’m not sure that you can get a properly crisp turnip pickle with this method, but it is fast and the pickles taste pretty good.

Ingredients:

2 white turnips, cut into matchsticks
a few pieces of red beet (optional; these add colour only)
1 1/2 cups white wine or cider vinegar
1 3/4 cups water
1 Tbsp sugar
big pinch salt

Method:

1. In a large saucepan, combine the water, vinegar, sugar, and salt. Bring to a boil. Add the turnips and beets and allow to cook for about 5 minutes.

2. Transfer the turnips to 2 500 mL mason jars. Pour the vinegar-water mixture over, cover tightly, and store in the refrigerator. These should keep for at least a week (and I have eaten these pickles up to a month after making them without ill effects).

Carrot and Beet Salad (from Sarah Brown’s World Vegetarian):

Ingredients:

2 beets
5 carrots
2 tsp cumin seed
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp olive oil
salt and pepper, to taste

Method:

1. Place the beets, unpeeled, in a saucepan with enough water to cover. Bring to a boil and cook for about 20 minutes or until the beets are tender. Set aside to cool, then peel and cut into chunks.

2. Peel the carrots and place them in a saucepan with enough water to cover. Bring the water to a boil and cook until the carrots are tender, 10 – 15 minutes or so. Drain the carrots, set aside to cool, and cut into chunks.

3. In a skillet, heat the olive oil over medium-low heat. Add the cumin seed and cook until it begins to pop, about 2 minutes. Add the garlic and saute briefly, then add the carrots and beets and saute for about two minutes more. Remove from heat. This salad can be served warm or cold.

Spiced Olives (adapted from David Tanis’ A Platter of Figs)

1 cup mixed green olives and sun-dried black olives
1/2 lemon, cut into thin slices
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp coriander
1/2 tsp paprika
1/4 tsp cayenne
1 Tbsp olive oil

Method:

1. Toast the coriander and cumin in a dry skillet. Transfer to a spice grinder, add the paprika and cayenne, and grind the mixture to a fine powder.

2. Toss the olives with the olive oil, spices, and lemon slices.

Grilled Halloumi

Ingredients:

1 block of halloumi cheese
2 Tbsp olive oil
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
1 tsp mixed dried herbs (I used thyme)
dash of cider vinegar
black pepper, to taste

Method:

1. Cut the cheese into thick slices and lay in a flat baking dish.

2. In a small bowl, combine the olive oil, vinegar and spices. Brush this mixture onto the cheese slices. Let marinate for about half an hour in the refrigerator, then turn the slices to ensure that the marinade touches top and bottom and allow to sit for another half hour.

3. Broil in your oven until the top is golden brown and bubbly; ovens vary, so check after about 5 minutes. Flip the cheese slices and return to the oven to broil the other side for another 5 minutes or so.

Tags: mezze, vegetarian

This entry was posted on Sunday, February 14th, 2010 at 6:30 pm and is filed under Daring Cooks. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.