As I write the rain is spilling down and the wind almost blowing a gale, to the point where I am wondering how much further the neighbour’s silver birch tree can bend over. But there must be some summer on the way sometime, so I thought I’d pick out some very good party or buffet/starter food from my two books and re-present them here. You can buy ready made Hommous, but home-made is better. Chick-peas are pretty widely available in supermarkets, but all health foods stores have them. Garlic fanciers can have a field-day with these recipes if they wish! With fresh bread and salady bits these three will get a meal off to a fine start.
It’s good for you, too, and if you want to make really complete lunch out of it, add some cooked beetroot and simply grilled haddock or sea bass.
HOMMOUS
Ingredients
1 400 g can or jar of Chick Peas // 2 tbsp of Tahini paste // 2-3 medium-sized cloves of garlic // Juice of 1 lemon (more if you like) // 2 tbsp of sunflower oil // Salt and pepper
Method
1. Drain the liquid from the chick peas and set aside.
2, Put the chick peas in your food processor/blender.
3. Add the tahini, garlic cloves, lemon juice and sunflower oil, and blend.
4. Season to taste and add as much of the chick pea liquid as you want to produce a creamy, not-too-runny ‘dip’.
Dried chick peas need a good soak and a long cook, but if you do use the dried variety remember they never actually get totally soft, no matter how long you cook them. I use canned or bottled, because the liquid greatly helps the flavour of the dish.
Aubergine and Tahini Purée
This is a great favourite throughout the Middle East and the Eastern Mediterranean. It is easy to make (though in restaurants all too often carelessly done — the slightly burnt flavour must come through). In Greek it is called Melitzanasalata, in Lebanon Br’tinjan bi Tahini and in Egypt Baba Ghanouch. Very frequently it is also called Moutabal, but whatever title it comes by it makes a delicious starter with hot Arabic or Pitta bread, especially as part of a Meze or Hors d’Hoeuvres. Toasted pine seeds make an exotic topping.
1. Put two medium aubergines under a hot grill, until one side is quite burnt (about 8 minutes). Turn over and do the other side.
2. Remove from grill, leave to cool a little, then cut in half and scoop all the cooked flesh out, including some of the toasted skin (a slightly burnt flavour adds to the effect).
3. In your food processor, put the aubergine flesh, two/three tbsp of tahini paste, some cloves of garlic, 1 tbsp lemon juice, salt and pepper and whiz until you have got a lovely smooth paste.
4. Put into a bowl, pat the top with a fork, dribble some olive oil round the edge and put a sprig of parsley in the middle.
SKORDALIA – Garlic Sauce
This is my version of dish you find in various forms all around the Mediterranean. Cypriots love Skordalia with beetroot, but it is splendid with grilled chicken and fried or grilled fish. Here again, a small food processor comes in very handy.
Ingredients
50g [1 coffee cup] of blanched, peeled almonds // 8 cl white wine vinegar // Half a piece of Pitta bread or 1 slice white bread, lightly toasted // 1 or 2 large cloves of garlic (according to taste) // 10 cl of Sunflower oil // Salt and ground black pepper // 10 cl of water or a little more
Method
1. Put almonds into food processor and whiz until ground.
2. Crumble bread and add to almonds. Whiz again.
3. Dribble in the vinegar – whiz. Dribble in the oil – whiz. (By now you should have a thick paste.)
4. Add salt and pepper – keep the whizzing going.
5. Slowly add the water until you get a lovely creamy, finger-licking good mixture.
It also makes a delicious “Dip” – slivers of carrot, cucumber, celery, goujons of fish on sticks, even potato flavoured crisps can be plonked in to fish out a spot of the noble garlic sauce.
