Everybody loves halloumi cheese! Why not make a delicious wrap or pocket sandwich with grilled halloumi, nutty hummus spread and some healthy fresh salad veggies. Perfect all day!
- 100% Sheep Milk Halloumi Cheese, grilled
- Kasih Ready Hummus (blend in some XV olive oil)
- Zorbas Arabic or Pocket Pita Breads
- Shredded lettuce
- 1 small carrot shredded
- 4 to 5 cherry radishes shredded
- 2 scallions minced
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice, Salt & Pepper
A soothing veggie stew with garlic, allspice, cumin, and coriander, this bright and lemony-tasting dish is one many Palestinian families turn to for comfort. It’s nutritious, delicious, filling and inexpensive. It tastes even better a few hours after it’s made, so try to cook it ahead of time. Serve it with rice, or a dry crusty bread.
To make this you will need a medium pot, a small skillet and a mortar and pestle. Let’s do this!
Yield: serves 4
Time: 1 hour, 10 minutes
1⁄4 cup Greek extra-virgin olive oil,
1 medium yellow onion, finely chopped
4 medium garlic cloves, coarsely crushed with mortar and pestle
Two 500g cans of chickpeas, drained and rinsed
2 1⁄4 cups vegetable stock
1⁄4 cup fresh lemon juice, plus more as needed
500g fresh baby spinach, coarsely chopped
1 1⁄2 tsp. cumin seeds
1 1⁄2 tsp. coriander seeds
1⁄2 tsp. ground allspice
1⁄2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1⁄4 tsp. freshly grated nutmeg
1 tsp. sea salt, plus more as needed
Any crusty white bread or steamed rice
In a medium pot over medium heat, add 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil. Once hot, add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened and slightly translucent, 10–12 minutes.
Meanwhile, set a small skillet over medium heat. Add the the cumin and coriander seeds and toast, stirring constantly, until the spices are aromatic and slightly browned, 45–60 seconds. Transfer the seeds to a clean, dry mortar and pestle and let cool to room temperature.
When the spices are cool, grind them with the pestle and transfer them to the pot of onions. Add the garlic, allspice, black pepper, and nutmeg, stir well, and continue cooking until the garlic is fragrant but not yet caramelized, 2–3 minutes.
Add the chickpeas and stock, bring to a boil, then lower the heat to maintain a strong simmer. Cover and cook until the chickpeas are plump and very tender, 30–35 minutes. Stir in the spinach. (You may need to add it in batches and wait for each batch to wilt.) Then, add the lemon juice, salt, and the remaining extra virgin olive oil. Cook for 5–10 minutes, to reduce water and depending on how you like your spinach, then adjust the seasoning, adding more lemon juice or salt as desired.
Serve hot, with crusty bread or white rice if desired.
Lentils enjoy a cult food status for millions of people in the Levant, stretching from the Mediterranean all the way to India. This protein-rich, iron rich pulse is an indispensable cheap and delicious staple that can be enjoyed as a soup or a stew.
In this, one of my favourite lentil recipes, red lentils and hearty butternut squash are transformed into a smooth fragrant soup; served with warm crunchy pita breads, it's perfect as a simple main course or a comforting warm feeling on a rainy day. Let’s do this!
1⁄4 cup Greek extra virgin olive oil
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
3 medium carrots, finely chopped
2 stalks celery, finely chopped
1 medium white onion, finely chopped
1 tsp. ground cumin
1⁄2 tsp. crushed red chile flakes
1⁄2 small butternut squash (about 500g.) peeled, seeded, and finely chopped
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1.5 litres chicken stock (or veggie stock if you want to go vegetarian/vegan)
1 cup red lentils
Finely chopped parsley, for garnish
Pinch of Paprika
Graviera cheese gratings (optional)
Flatbread and lemon wedges, for serving
Heat olive oil in medium sized saucepan over medium-high heat. Add garlic, carrots, celery, and onion; cook, stirring occasionally, until slightly caramelized, 10-12 minutes.
Stir in cumin, chile flakes, squash, salt, and pepper; cook until squash is soft, about 15 minutes.
Add stock and lentils; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low; cook, slightly covered, until lentils are very tender, about 20-30 minutes.
Let soup cool slightly, then, working in batches, purée soup in a blender until smooth.
Ladle soup into bowls and garnish with parsley and paprika; serve with flatbread and lemon wedges on the side. If you like, you can sprinkle some graviera cheese on top to give a wonderful creamy, cheesy layer.
Across the Levant region, eggplants are grilled and mashed to make a silky, delicious dip for flatbreads and vegetables. Charring the skin of the eggplant imbues the pulp with a smoky flavor, while incorporating full-fat Greek yogurt accentuates the dip's sumptuous texture and tartness.
Baba Ghannouj is one of my all time favourite Mediterranean dips and I always imagined it to be something I could only enjoy in a restaurant Well, it’s actually quite easy to make at home! It takes around half hour and can be enjoyed as a healthy snack, with warm pita bread or crunchy veggies any time of the day. I’m drooling already. Let’s go make this!
900g fresh aubergine, halved lengthwise
Fresh lemon juice from 1 lemon
3 tbsp. pure tahini
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup Greek strained, full-fat yogurt
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1⁄4 cup Greek extra virgin olive oil
1⁄4 cup fresh pomegranate seeds (garnish)
Mint leaves (garnish)
Heat up your oven grill to 220-250C.
Prick the aubergines all over with a knife and place them, cut side down on a baking sheet; Grill it, flipping a few times, until skin is charred and aubergine flesh is tender, 20–25 minutes.
Transfer aubergines to a colander set over a bowl; cover with plastic wrap. Let it cool down and peel skin.
Place lemon juice, tahini, garlic, the eggplant, the yogurt, salt, and pepper in a food processor and pulse until slightly smooth, and transfer to a shallow serving dish. If you make more, then keep in a sealed container in the fridge and enjoy later at room temperature.
Using a spoon, make a well on the surface; drizzle with extra virgin olive oil and garnish with pomegranate seeds and fresh mint leaves.
Mediterranean cooking is all about great ingredients coming together and a simplicity in cooking. This is just so simple, yet delicious any-time-of-the-day dish. It can be a main course or your veggie side dish.
There are variations of this depending where you come from in the Middle East, but the basic idea is the same everywhere. This particular recipe comes from Israel and I just love the contrasts and richness of the flavours.
Chose a fresh, large cauliflower from your local market. The whole cauliflower is quartered and roasted with paprika, turmeric, and fresh red chilli pepper. To finish, drizzle the crispy roasted cauliflower with a delicious tahini sauce as a creamy dressing to balance the fiery chillies. Let’s make this!
1 whole cauliflower (about 1Kg.), leaves intact
1⁄4 cup Greek extra virgin olive oil
2 tbsp. kosher salt
1 tsp. ground turmeric
1 tsp. sweet paprika
4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
1 large red horn pepper (chilli), stemmed, halved, seeded, and thinly sliced crosswise
For the Tahini sauce
1 fresh lemon squeezed
1/4 cup Greek extra virgin olive oil
100g pure Tahini
Pinch of salt
Little water
To garnish
Coriander leaves
Heat your oven to 300° (or your highest setting). On a cutting board, quarter the cauliflower, leaving the core and leaves intact. Transfer the quarters to a large bowl and rub with the extra virgin olive oil, salt, turmeric, paprika, garlic, and chillies. Mix well so all the ingredients really sink into the cauliflower.
Arrange the cauliflower on a foil-lined baking tray and roast in the middle of the oven, until tender at the core and lightly browned on the outside, for about 45 minutes. Once ready, heat up the top grill and move tray closer to the top and grill the cauliflower until lightly charred on the top for a few minutes.
In the meantime, move the tahini, olive oil and fresh lemon juice and salt in a small mixing bowl. Use a fork to mix it until all ingredients blend. Add little water at a time to get the consistency of a runny sauce that can easily drip over the cauliflower.
Remove the cauliflower from the oven and transfer to a serving dish. Poor the tahini sauce over the cauliflower and garnish the cauliflower with cilantro and serve while hot. Pair with a warm pita bread to wrap the cauliflower and dip into the tahini sauce!
Hummus is a way of life, a daily staple for millions of people spanning from the north of Africa and covering the whole of the East Mediterranean all the way to the Arabian Gulf. But it's actually become a lot for than that, enjoyed by millions of people around the world who love it for its delicious taste and nutritional properties.
Most of us are familiar with the classic hummus dip, which we enjoy with sliced fresh veggies or a warm pita bread. But did you know that hummus is a versatile dip that can be varied or used as a filler and mixer to make up many different, often surprising dishes?
I want to share with you a really lovely hummus recipe book, which you can download here.
Eggplant Boats with avocado and dried figs, curry hummus and roasted tomatoes or saffron hummus with grilled zucchini
Beatroot Hummus is such a great fresh variant of the traditional hummus recipe
Tuna Hummus Salad. Why not use hummus instead of mayo? Healthier, tastier…
Mexican style hummus acovado open burritos
