Avocado Hummus With Coriander and Lemon

We are coming to the end of the Hass avocado season here now and I can’t believe I haven’t shared a recipe with you using my favourite fruit/vegetable yet. Avocados are excellent for helping to lower cholesterol, keeping  your heart healthy, preventing cancer and alleviating symptoms of arthritis.

They are still cheap and plentiful here at the market so I bought a kilo on Sunday. One of my favourite recipes using avocado is this Tricolor Baked Avocado. If you’ve never tried avocado cooked you should, it’s surprisingly delicious.

This is new recipe to me and I have to say it is definitely a keeper. Two of my favourite dishes fused together in a bowl.  It’s a hummus and guacamole hybrid. It shouldn’t work but it does, brilliantly. And it’s quick, easy, healthy and addictive.

Perfect for a snack or late night supper when you can’t be bothered with anything complicated.

Avocado Hummus Recipe

Serves 2-3, vegan, gluten-free. Adapted from Kiran Tarun

• 200 g cooked chickpeas (drained & rinsed)
• 1 large avocado (I used 2 mini ones)
• 1 large clove garlic
• 3 Tbsp tahini
• juice of 1 lemon
• a big handful of fresh coriander
• 1/2 tsp ground cumin
• 1/2 tsp chipotle chilli sauce (optional)
• salt & black pepper
• olive oil

Put all the ingredients into a food processor (or use a stick blender) with a splash of olive oil and puree until smooth. You can add more oil if you need to get the right consistency. Taste and check seasoning.

Serve with raw veggies or toasted pita for dipping. You could try making your own flour tortilla or flatbread crackers by brushing them with oil, cutting into triangles with scissors, sprinkling with cumin, salt & pepper and baking at 125C for about 10 minutes until crispy.

Or just spread it on some wholemeal toast, sprinkled with sea salt. Heaven.

If you are a bit of a hummus freak like me. Have at look at this Authentic Creamy Hummus and this Roasted Beetroot Hummus too.

Enjoy!

Za’atar Spice Roasted Red Cabbage Steaks

Red cabbage may not be your favourite vegetable. It wasn’t mine.  I have always loved the colour of it though. You’ve got to love food that is such a beautiful shade of magenta. When I run past these purple and green striped fields of  cabbages I can’t help but smile.

Another thing that makes me happy is the price. They are so cheap at the moment at the farmer’s market and if you have ever bought a cabbage you will know how far it goes. I mean these things go on for ever.

I use about a quarter of a white cabbage in this fridge emptying favourite Minestrone Soup that I now serve topped with a swirl of homemade basil pesto, it makes such a difference to the flavour.

You can’t really use red cabbage in that soup though, it turns everything purple. Other than using it to make my Grandad’s Pickled Red Cabbage I have never done anything exciting or blogworthy with this beautiful Brassica. Until now that is.

I found a recipe for roasted red cabbage steaks on Drizzle & Dip that immediately caught my eye.  She used a different spice mix but the idea is the same and I have been wanting to incorporate Za’atar into a recipe for a while.

Za’atar is herb and spice blend popular throughout the Middle East most often made with a mix of dried oregano, thyme, sesame seeds, sumac and salt. There are other variations if you want to research it more.

It has many uses but its most common guise is to be mixed with olive oil, rubbed over flatbread dough and baked. You can also dip your toasted flatbread straight into a pot of it on the table. It can be used as a quick and easy marinade or rub for meat, fish and vegetables as well, as I have done here.

Za’atar Spice Roasted Red Cabbage Steaks

Serves 2-3 as a side dish. Vegan, gluten-free.

For the za’atar

• 1 Tbsp sumac (used ground cumin or coriander if you can’t find it)
• 1 Tbsp fresh or dried thyme
• 1 Tbsp dried oregano
• 2 tsp sesame seeds
• 1/4 tsp salt
•  a few grindings of black pepper
• a pinch of red chilli flakes

Mix this all together and store in an airtight container.

• 3 – 4 Tbsp olive oil
• 1/2 a red cabbage (or more)  cut into 1/2 – 1 cm thick slices 
• sea salt to serve

Mix the oil with the za’atar in a small bowl. Preheat the oven to 180C and line  baking sheet with baking paper.

Lay the cabbage steaks out on the baking sheet and spread the za’atar oil all over them, you may need some more oil. Bake for 20 – 25 minutes depending on thickness and serve sprinkled with sea salt.

Serve these as a side dish or for a party as part of a mezze table with some Baba Ghanoush, Muhammara, Sweet Potato Filo Cigars , Roasted Beetroot Hummus and this Lebanese Lentil Salad. Just a suggestion.

Make some more of the Za’atar straight away so you will always have some for dipping bread into or for a quick salad dressing or to serve over a plain hummus. The possiblities are endless.

You will be addicted, I am.

Things That Made Me Smile Today

This little fella was all ready for the rain. He was really working that outfit and Rufus was a little jealous of all the attention he was getting…

Quick Indian Spiced Broccoli with Yellow Lentils and Toasted Almonds

I bought some lovely tender stem broccoli from the farmer’s market on Sunday. I wanted to elevate it to top billing in a dish rather than the, green vegetable on the side of something else, that it can so often be thoughtlessly demoted to.

One of the most successful recipes on my blog (as in most viewed) is a delicious broccoli as the star dish. It’s my version of an Ottolenghi recipe for Chargrilled Broccoli with Garlic, Chilli & Sweet Soy Rice Noodles. It’s still one of The Washer Up’s favourites, and mine. I don’t make it as often as I would like because chargrilling the broccoli on  my striped grill pan fills the kitchen (and the rest of the house) with smoke. Our extractor fan is useless. I think it actually blows the smoke into the kitchen rather than extracting it, so I have to leave the front door open to let it all out. It might need cleaning I suppose. *Buries head in sand*.

This is a quick and easy supper or lunch dish that can be thrown together in about half an hour. That is a real 30 minutes by the way, not a Jamie Oliver 30 minutes. Which is more like 60 minutes in human time in case you were wondering.

Indian Spiced Broccoli with Yellow Lentils and Toasted Almonds

Serves 2 as a light lunch/supper with some Indian bread. Easily doubled.

Vegan, Gluten-free

• 2 tsp coconut oil (or any cooking oil)
• about 225 g tender stem broccoli or florets
• 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
• 1/2 tsp mustard seeds
• 1 small onion, finely chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1 green chilli, finely chopped (deseed for less heat)
• 1 Tbsp minced ginger
• 1/2 tsp ground turmeric
• 1/2 tsp ground coriander
• 125 g dried yellow lentils (or any quick cook lentil)
• 250 g + veg stock
• salt & black pepper
• a handful of chopped fresh coriander
• 1/2 lemon
• a handful of flaked almonds (or cashews) toasted in a dry pan until lightly browned

Heat the oil in a large pan over a medium high heat, add the cumin seeds & mustard seeds and cook until they start to pop. Add in the onion, garlic, chilli & ginger with a pinch of salt and cook for about 4 minutes until softened. Then add the lentils, turmeric and ground coriander stirring to coat the lentils and pour in 250 ml stock.

Bring to the boil then lower the heat  and simmer, covered for about 12 minutes (depending on the lentils) until they are tender soft. Lay the broccoli on top of the lentils and add a good splash of veg stock, season well with salt & pepper, bring to the boil again then lower the heat and simmer, covered again for about 5 minutes until the broccoli is tender but still crisp.

Add most of the fresh coriander and a squeeze of lemon juice and taste. Adjust seasoning as required.

Serve topped with some toasted flaked almonds, the rest of the fresh coriander and a wedge of lemon to squeeze over.

And no need to use (or clean) the grill pan or the extractor. Result.

Happy Valentine’s Day!

Wholemeal Spelt Flour Soda Bread Recipe

First of all I am sorry for my lack of posts recently. It’s not that I don’t have anything to share with you it’s that I haven’t had the time. I have been busy writing, testing and perfecting recipes for my cookery workshops. I have one this Saturday which is a Festive Vegetarian Middle Eastern Menu, some of the recipes from which I will share with you soon.

We have also just finalised the timetable of workshops for the first three months of 2013. As well as my Vegetarian Mezze Course (the next one being on Sun. 20th Jan 10-2 pm) and my  Healthy Baking Workshop savoury and sweet (the next one is on Sun 3rd Feb 10-2pm), I have also introduced two new ones.

The first new workshop is the second in the series of Healthy Baking courses; Healthy Baking with Chocolate . The first of which is being held on Sat. 2nd March 5 – 9pm.

The second new workshop I have introduced is called Soups of the World. The first one is on Sat. 26th Jan 5 – 9pm. After all the Christmas excess everyone’s thoughts turn towards lighter and healthier food (and bodies!)

Soups are one of my favourite things to make and eat especially in winter. In this workshop you will learn how to make your own veg stock then we embark on a culinary journey through Thailand, Turkey, Italy & France taking some of the most exciting flavour combinations in the world and converting them into delicious soups, some classics and some more unusual.

Thai Squash Wonton Soup

an aromatic Thai style broth with floating delicate wontons filled with sweet roasted squash, herbs & spices

Turkish Ezogelin Corbasi

a hearty red lentil soup with rice & bulgur flavoured with fresh mint and sumac (with a tragic love story behind it)

Italian Winter Minestrone

the classic “big one” a rustic bowl of goodness topped with a delicious homemade basil pesto

French Onion Soup

deep, dark & sweet caramelised onions with a touch of sherry topped with toasted melting Gruyère croutons

So what do you need to go with all those soups? Bread of course.

Some of you who have been following this blog for a while may already know about my irrational fear of yeast. I can’t make it work properly, ever. Whether it is my well-known impatience, hot hands or even the altitude (We live up a mountain and apparently that can affect the “rise”) I don’t know. And I don’t care anymore because I have found the “get out” that is this soda bread.

Made with soda (obvs) instead of yeast, you have no waiting, no kneading and no disappointment. It’s just dry ingredients, wet ingredients, mix and bake. Hooray.

Wholemeal Spelt Flour Soda Bread Recipe

Makes 1 small loaf, vegan, wheat-free. Adapted from The Healthy Chef

• 250 g wholemeal spelt flour
• 25 g (4 Tbsp) flax meal (ground flax seeds) if not add 25 g more flour
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp bicarbonate soda (or baking soda)
• 220 ml (1 cup) oat milk (or soy/rice/almond)
• 1/2 Tbsp honey (or molasses/miel de cana/agave syrup)
• 2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1/2 Tbsp lemon juice
• sunflower seeds/flax seeds/sesame seeds for topping

Preheat the oven to 180C and line a baking tray with baking paper.

Mix the flour, flaxmeal, salt and soda in one bowl. In another bowl, whisk the honey, olive oil, lemon juice and milk until well combined.

Pour the wet ingredients over the dry and mix it all together with your fingers or a whisk. It should be quite sticky like a scone dough. Bring it together and tip it out onto a floured surface and form into a round or oval loaf shape.

Transfer to the lined baking sheet, cut a small cross in the top of the bread with a sharp knife, brush with a little extra milk and scatter over your seeds.

Bake for about 25 minutes then lower the heat to 160C and bake for another 10-15 minutes until browned and cooked.

Cool for at least 10 minutes. It slices better if it is completely cool.

This is a lovely, soft and quite crumbly nutty bread that is also gorgeous toasted. If you want to try a fruitier version which is brilliant for breakfast try my Flax Seed Raisin & Date Breakfast Loaf too.

Enjoy!!

Fresh Fig and Almond Fumble

A fumble, just in case you were wondering or being smutty, is a cross between a fool and a crumble. The best bits of two classic British desserts brought together to create something beautiful and simple to make. It is extremely versatile too. You can basically use whichever fruits are in season. Strawberries, apples, plums, mangoes, pears, rhubarb, gooseberries, you get the idea.

A fool is traditionally made with a fruit puree or compote stirred (or marbled) through whipped cream. I used goat’s yoghurt instead of cream, the sourness is fantastic with the sweet sticky fig compote. You could use Greek yoghurt or a mixture of yoghurt and whipped cream if you like.

My crumble is made with olive oil and honey rather than butter and sugar so it is all round a really healthy dessert. The crumble  is given extra flavour and crunch by adding flaked and ground almonds to the mix. I chose almonds because I saw  families picking their almonds at the same time as picking their figs today and the figs at the market looked beautiful.

I made a compote with the figs just by cooking them with some honey and a bit of water until it resembled runny jam. I left it to cool while I made the crumble mix. You just spread out all of the crumbly lumps on a baking sheet and cook it until it is browning. When it’s cool you can store it in an airtight container and use it to top ice creams, stewed fruit, yoghurt and anything else you think could do with a sweet crunch. This recipe makes more than you need so you should have some left over, unless you keep picking at it of course.

Fig & Almond Fumble Recipe

Makes 2, vegetarian. No butter, no sugar, no cream. Adapted form Hugh Fearnley Whittingstall

• 200 g soft ripe figs, roughly chopped
• 1 tbsp honey
• 1 tbsp water

Put the figs, honey and water in a sauce pan, bring to a  boil then lower the heat to medium and simmer until it resembles a jammy compote. About 3-5 minutes. Leave to cool.

• 3 tbsp ground almonds
• 6 tbsp wholemeal spelt flour (or any flour)
• 3 tbsp oats
• 3 tbsp flaked almonds
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• a pinch of salt
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 3 tbsp honey

Preheat the oven to 180C and line a baking sheet with parchment. Mix all the dry ingredients together in a bowl. Using a fork,  mix in the olive oil and honey the using your fingers make it resemble crumble. You should make lots of  clumpy crumble lumps. Spread the crumble out in one layer on the baking sheet and bake for 10-15 minutes but keep an eye on it incase it burns. It depends how big your clumps are as to how long it will take. It should be nicely browned. Now leave it to cool.

• 2 pots or 250ml goat’s/Greek yoghurt
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• about 4 large tbsp fig compote in each serving
• a large handful of crumble mix for each

When the compote and crumble mix have cooled, mix the yoghurt and vanilla in a bowl and swirl through the compote. Taste it and add some honey if you think it needs it but remember the crumble is going on top.

Pour into serving dishes and top with a generous handful of crumble mix. You may have to crumble it more if you have large clumps.

Enjoy!!

Pretty Pickled Peppers Recipe

As in “Peter Piper picked a peck of…..”. A peck is a lot by the way, about 8 pints worth. I didn’t buy that many, I resisted from buying the whole crate of organic Pimientos Picante that were shining up at me from the floor of one of the stalls at the market on Sunday.

I bought quite few though, enough to think “What the hell..?” when I got home and realised that I already have a freezer full of our own homegrown red and green chillis and a scotch bonnet bush that is producing more than we can cope with at the moment.

I’m a sucker for them though, it didn’t even cross my mind, as I stuffed a few greedy handfuls into a bag, paid and left with a smile on my face and thoughts of pretty jars of pickled peppers on imaginary wooden shelves in a pantry that only exists in my dreams rushing through my brain. What can I say, it’s an addiction.

Pretty Pickled Peppers Recipe

Makes 1 big jar, vegan, gluten-free. Adapted from David Lebowitz

• about 350 g chilli peppers (mixed red & green)
• 350 ml vinegar ( I used a mix of apple, sherry, rice and white wine vinegars)
• 350 ml water
• 3 tbsp sugar
• 3 tbsp course salt Himalayan or kosher
• 2 tbsp coriander seeds
• 3 cloves garlic, peeled
• 2 tbsp black peppercorns
• 2 bay leaves

Pierce the peppers all over a few times with the tip of a knife and pack them into a sterilised jar. Put the rest of the ingredients in a saucepan, bring to the boil then lower the heat and simmer for 5 minutes.

Pour the entire contents of the pan into the jar with the peppers until they are all covered with the pickling liquid, seal with a lid and leave to cool. When cooled store in the fridge. You are supposed to leave them for at least a week but we couldn’t wait that long.

Apparently they get better the longer you leave them but we served them to our friends the next day and they were really good. Jeanne is now known as The Chilli Queen.

Enjoy!

Yellow Cherry Tomato Tarte Tatin with Fresh Herbs

I bought some of these little organic yellow tomatoes at the market and have been saving them to star in something rather than just adding them anonymously into salads. Their beauty deserves a leading role.

A tarte tatin is one of those recipes, like souffle, that strikes fear into the hearts of many. This however, is really easy. There I’ve said it. I’m just waiting for the backlash now.

I used my simple spelt flour olive oil pastry recipe to keep it vegan and because it’s so much quicker than using butter and letting the pastry rest. I used honey and a sherry vinegar syrup drizzle to add sweetness but you could use agave syrup (to stay vegan) and balsamic syrup would be lovely too.

Sprinkling the tomatoes with a handful of breadcrumbs before covering them with pastry soaks up a lot of  the juice that leaks out of the tomatoes while cooking and helps to hold them together with the honey.

Turning it out is the scary part but be careful and confident, or get The Washer Up to do it because you burnt yourself on the handle of the frying pan. You will need an ovenproof frying pan obviously, no plastic handles please that would be messy.

You could also use a shop-bought puff pastry for this recipe to save time. The recipe for the olive oil pastry is here. I used about half of that amount for an 8″ tarte. The amount of tomatoes will depend on the size of your frying pan. You need to cover the base snugly so they can’t move about.

Yellow Cherry Tomato Tarte Tatin Recipe

Serves 2, vegan/vegetarian, wheat-free. I used an 8 “/20 cm ovenproof frying pan/skillet

• about 250 g yellow (or a mix) cherry tomatoes
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tsp honey/agave syrup
• sea salt & black pepper
• dried oregano
• balsamic or sherry vinegar syrup
• a handful of breadcrumbs
• olive oil spelt flour pastry (or your choice of pastry)
• fresh basil, thyme or oregano leaves to garnish

Preheat the oven to 200 C. Put the olive oil in the frying pan/skillet and cover the base with a snug even layer of cherry tomatoes. You want to fill any gaps as much as possible. Drizzle over the honey/agave syrup and balsamic/sherry vinegar syrup. Season well with oregano, salt & pepper and leave to cook over a medium heat for a few minutes.

Meanwhile on a floured surface,  roll out the pastry to a rough circle about 2 or 3 mm thick and about the same size as the top of the frying pan. Sprinkle a handful of breadcrumbs all over the top of the tomatoes and remove from the heat. Cover the tomatoes with the circle of pastry and tuck the edges down the inside of the pan encasing the tomatoes. Prick all over the top of the pastry with a sharp knife and bake for 25-30 minutes (depending on size) until the pastry is cooked.

Remove from the oven and leave to cool on a wire rack for at least 10 minutes (preferably longer). When ready to turn out, tip away any excess liquid (I didn’t have any) and run a knife around the edge of the pan to loosen the sides. Using oven gloves if still hot, place a large plate upside down on top of the pan and press down hard, then quickly and carefully flip the whole thing over so the pan is upside down and the tarte falls out onto the plate. Remove the pan and replace any tomatoes that may have fallen out of their place.

Serve at room temperature scattered with the fresh herbs. Slice and eat with a green salad or offer around thinner slices as a canape before dinner.

Bon Appetit!

Green Fig and Goat’s Cheese Bruschetta with honey, basil and black pepper

It’s green fig season here……

I bought a kilo at the organic market on Sunday…..

I also bought a jar of local goat’s cheese spread. You may have already noticed that one of my favourite food combinations is fig and goat’s cheese from this Dried Fig & Goat’s Cheese Pizza and this Fresh Fig & Goat’s Cheese Quiche.

But this gives all the fabulous flavour in a fraction of the time. It literally takes 5 minutes to make and the ingredients are local. To me anyway… The figs and goat’s cheese are from Coin (next village).  The honey I used is not actually honey, it is called Miel de Cana (cane honey) which is molasses from Malaga, a delicacy used liberally in this local recipe for Berenjenas con Miel (fried aubergines with honey).

I finished it off with a grinding of black pepper, some flakes of sea salt, a drizzle of Andalucian extra virgen olive oil and some baby basil leaves from our terrace. Andalucian sunshine on a plate, sending it your way if you are in need of some….

Green Fig & Goat Cheese Bruschetta Recipe with honey, basil & black pepper

Serves 1 as a snack, vegetarian

• 1 large ripe green fig, cut into 8 wedges
• 1 piece of wholemeal/brown/rustic bread
• goats cheese
• black pepper
• miel de cana or honey
• sea salt
• small fresh basil leaves
• extra virgen olive oil
• salad leaves to serve (optional)

Toast the bread under a hot grill (or in a toaster) on both sides. Spread the goat’s cheese on the toast and top with the wedges of fig. Generously drizzle over the honey and grind over the black pepper.

Put under the grill for a few minutes until bubbling and hot. Serve sprinkled with flakes of sea salt, baby basil leaves and drizzle over some olive oil. Add a handful of salad leaves to the plate if you like.

Serve this as a luxurious breakfast, brunch, lunch, snack or supper. Even as a starter/appetizer it works very well. Easy, impressive and it takes minutes. Which is always a good thing.

Buen Provecho

Baby Leeks and Tomatoes with Oregano and Thyme

I can’t really call this a recipe. It’s just four ingredients cooked quickly in a pan with some olive oil. Which is about all the cooking I can manage in this heat.  I have also been working (in kitchens) for the past three weeks so I also have a slight aversion to being in one longer than absolutely necessary.

This goes someway towards explaining  my recent blogging absence too. We have been working as menu consultants at a beautiful yoga retreat hotel and restaurant called Shanti Som in Monda/Marbella. We have created a menu for them that compliments the style of the surroundings and the health and well-being ethos of the retreat. The new menu takes the best from the hotel’s Asian roots and Mediterranean heart ensuring that there is hopefully something for everyone to enjoy. Starting with fresh, seasonal and colourful salads…

Moving on to a Roasted Vegetable and Goats Cheese Tartlet with an olive oil spelt flour pastry case, Lebanese Lamb Burger with hummus, chargrilled aubergine, tabouli and tzatziki salad, Vietnamese Rice Paper Rolls with Nuoc Cham dipping sauce and Fresh Fish of the Day with an Asian or Mediterranean marinade.

We then moved on to cooking lunch in a private villa for a family of 14 people every day for two weeks. Now this may sound like a bit of a nightmare but luckily they were very open to our “world of flavours” which made our lives a lot easier and more fun. The family was Iranian living in London, Paris, Boston and Switzerland. They meet up once a year for a holiday together. They were lovely people and we really enjoyed cooking for the whole family, including the children, which could be a little challenging at times!!

We cooked from a different country every day but our favourite (and I’m sure theirs) was the Persian food that we made. We learnt a lot about Persian cuisine from the Aunties, the Grandma and the nieces which was fabulous. We served a fresh rocket and herb salad every day, they love fresh herbs and greens (sabzi is the Persian word for greens).

The Washer Up made a gorgeous Persian Roast Lamb marinated in lots of spices and served with an apricot, orange and date glaze. Pomegranates make everything look beautiful and burst like sweet jewels in your mouth.

Alongside the Lamb and Herb Salad we also served Shirazi, a tomato, cucumber and red onion salad with mint and lime juice, Tomatoes Stuffed with feta, apricot and almond couscous and Sabzi (fresh herb) rice. Persian is my new favourite food. I didn’t even like dill before, now I love it! It’s so good in rice and in a Tzatziki dip as well as the mint you should try it. They also add sultanas and chopped walnuts which takes it to another level completely.

So back to the non recipe. It’s all about quality and freshness of ingredients if you’re going to go this minimal. We bought some tiny little baby cherry tomatoes and baby leeks from the organic market this Sunday. There they were next to each other as I unpacked the bag. Sometimes it is that easy. Sometimes you are incapable of anything else. Occasionally it all works out perfectly. This was one of those times. We have fresh oregano and thyme growing on the roof so they went in as well.

I served them with a poached egg and spinach on brown toast. You could eat them with anything. The next evening we had them with some Italian white bean and rosemary cakes. They would be lovely with a steak or to toss with some freshly cooked pasta or on their own with a chunk of nice bread.

Baby Leeks & Tomatoes with Oregano & Thyme

Vegan, gluten-free. Serves 2 as a side dish

• 2 tbsp good olive oil (Andalucian Extra Virgen if possible)
• 250 g baby cherry tomatoes (the smaller the better for quick cooking)
• 3 baby leeks, trimmed, halved lengthways, rinsed to get rid of any mud and finely chopped
• a few sprigs of fresh thyme, leaves removed, chopped (about 1/2 tsp) or dried
• 1/2 tsp fresh chopped oregano leaves or dried
• salt & black pepper

Heat the olive oil in a frying pan over a medium high heat and saute the leeks with a pinch of salt for about a minute then add the tomatoes and herbs. Season well with salt & black pepper. Cook, shaking the pan occasionally for a few minutes until the tomatoes begin to split and soften. Serve with anything you like.

Buen Provecho!!

Restaurant Review and Recipe: Muhammara – Roasted Pepper and Walnut Dip

This is my version of the Muhammara (or hammara) roasted red pepper & walnut dip I had at the fantastic Lebanese restaurant in Malaga, Samarkanda.

Everything that we ordered was amazing. The hummos was the creamiest I have ever tasted and the baba ghanoush (or mutabak) had that deliciously intense smokiness that I can never replicate at home because I don’t have a gas hob to burn the aubergines over an open flame. The tabouli salad was heavy on the herbs, just how I like it and the cheese briwat (like a samosa) heavenly. The falafels were really good but a step to far I think. We ordered too much as usual, I got a bit excited and wanted everything.

This was the first time I had tried Muhammara in a restaurant. I have made it myself before and used it to stuff these Muhammara & Feta Cigars (gorgeous). Samarkanda’s muhammara was much sweeter than mine and it was lovely because of it. They had used cinnamon and I was desperate to get home and try it, none of the recipes I had seen used cinnamon but it made such a difference t o the flavour.