Meze (Mezze)

Meze (Serbian), mezze (Arabic), and mezé (Greek), are the Eastern Mediterranean appetizers similar to Spanish tapas.  Derived from the Persian word maze ‘to taste or snack’, meze consists of plates that are a feast for the eyes.   Small bites and dips that are varied in texture, flavor and color, in my native Serbia they are traditionally served with rakija (fruit brandy).  

Of all the Slavic nations, the Southern Slavs are the most hospitable…believe me, I’m not partial…and there is no better way for them to demonstrate their warmth and generosity than through an offering of food.  Even unannounced guests are treated like family, and there is always more than enough to go around come see my parents’ leftovers sometime!   Serbian meze may include pršut (prosciutto), salama, kobasica (sausage), kajmak (clotted cream) and ajvar (red pepper relish).   For the sake of this Daring Kitchen challenge and our hostess, I am keeping it vegetarian with Middle Eastern mezze.   

My friend Chantal and I spent an enjoyable day baking pita bread and bringing the meze plates together.  She has an interesting collection of dinnerware  – many choices for the amateur photographer!  Just look at those pretty yellow ‘triple bowl’ dishes above.    Adorable, and perfect for meze!

In the  picture above you will find (counterclockwise from the top):  sliced radishes, kalamata olives, walnuts, preserved limes (I just happen to make a jar with Mexican key limes a couple of months ago), hummus with olive oil and a sprinkling of paprika, cucumber raita, hummus again, and pita bread.  Feta cheese cubes are in the middle.

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.

The second plate below (from the top) consists of my favorite dip of all muhammara (I will post the recipe soon), pita bread, potatoes with olive oil and lemon zest, and yoghurt cheese sprinkled with dukkah (a blend of sesame seeds, spices and nuts).  Be forewarned:  there are healthy quantities of fresh garlic in the dips and falafel.  So much so that Husbie and I were able to created enough fumes to ward off the vampires and every disease under the sun for a few days now! 

Pita Bread

Adapted from Vefa’s Pita Bread, found at Kalofagas

Serves 8

2½ cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp. salt

3/4 cup warm (body temperature) water

2 Tbsp. olive oil

1 Tbsp. active dry yeast

1 tsp. sugar

coarse cornmeal for dusting the dough

vegetable oil for greasing the pan

Combine the flour and salt in a large bowl. In a smaller blow, combine the warm water, olive oil, yeast, and sugar and let stand for five minutes or until you see that the yeast is active.

Using your hands, gradually add the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and knead with your hands until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl. Cover and leave in a warm spot to rise and rest for about 30 minutes.

Divide dough into six pieces and roll out into 6 - 8 -inch rounds that are about 1/4 inch thick. Dust both sides lightly with cornmeal and poke the surface of your pita breads with the tines of a fork. Stack the dough rounds until you are ready to cook the pita bread.

Place a heavy cast-iron skillet (non-stick pan is fine) and heat to medium-high. Pour a little vegetable oil in the skillet and brush to cover the bottom. Carefully place one pita dough in the hot skillet. Cook for about 3 minutes and turn over when you see bubbles forming in the bread.

Place fried pita breads on to a large cotton kitchen towel and cover. Repeat with the rest of the dough, stacking them as you go. Serve warm with falafel or cut into triangles with the various dips and meze.

Cucumber Raita

adapted from The Indian Grocery Store Demystified by Linda Bladholm

1 medium cucumber, peeled and most of the seeds removed
¼ teaspoon ground cumin
2 cups plain whole milk or Greek yogurt
1 garlic clove, peeled and minced
fresh coriander and/or mint, chopped, to taste

cayenne pepper or paprika, for the garnish (optional)

Dice the cucumber. Blot off excess moisture with paper towels.
Add cumin, yogurt, garlic, coriander and/or mint. Chill until ready to be served. Sprinkle with cayenne or paprika before serving.

Serve with falafel (above) or pita bread as part of meze (below).

 

Yogurt cheese sprinkled with Dukkah

To make yogurt cheese, line a medium sieve with two to four layers of cheesecloth (this depends on the weave:  more layers for a loose weave, fewer layers for a dense weave).  Place the sieve over a bowl.  Spoon 2 cups of plain whole milk or lowfat yogurt on the cheesecloth.  Cover with the excess cheesecloth and refrigerate overnight.   When ready to serve, unmold and sprinkle with dukkah.  Serve with pita bread triangles.

Dukkah

Adapted from Claudia Roden's book, The New Book of Middle Eastern Food and found on Michele’s blog with my adaptations in italics.

1 cup sesame seeds    I made half a recipe, 1/2 cup sesame seeds
1 3/4 cups coriander seeds   I added 2 tablespoons
2/3 cups blanched hazelnuts   I used 1/3 cup raw almonds
1/2 cup cumin seeds   I used 2 tablespoons cumin seeds
1/2 teaspoon salt 
1/4 teaspoon pepper
Put each variety of seeds and nuts on a separate tray and roast them all in a preheated 350F oven for 10-20 minutes, until they just begin to color and give off a slight aroma. As they take different times, you must keep an eye on them so that they do not become too brown, and take each out as it is ready. You could also roast them in a frying pan. Put them together in the food processor with salt and pepper and grind them until they are finely crushed, but be careful not to over-blend them into a paste.
To serve, sprinkle a little dukkah on the yogurt cheese or pour a little oil on small slices of bread and sprinkle with the dukkah.

For the hummus, falafel and preserved lemon recipes, please go to Michele’s blog.

This post will be submitted to Susan’s blog Wild Yeast, for her weekly showcase of yeasted foods: YeastSpotting!

Prijatno!

Chicken salad with the flavors of Mexico

This chicken salad was inspired by the purchase of a good-looking jicama!   Firm to the touch and tight-skinned, it was perfect for the taking and going to shine in a Mexican flavored salad I was already composing in my mind.   Delicious raw or cooked, its crunchy white flesh has the texture of a firm pear.  Slightly sweet on the tongue, the flavor hints of apple and pear.   

The jicama (hick-u-ma) is the root of a legume that is related to the potato and is easily found in Texas stores.  In Mexico and further south it is commonly served by street vendors with a little lime juice and a dusting of chili powder.  When cut into wide strips it can be a healthy replacement for chips – a means to scoop up a guacamole or salsa.  In my chicken salad, it adds a mildly sweet crunch and replaces celery handily. 

 

Composed mostly of water and very high in fiber and vitamin C, it’s the perfect diet food.  Look for jicama that are hard with tight, dry skins; a flattened ball shape, few bruises and no mold.  Pick the smaller ones (1.5lbs – 2.5lbs) as the larger they get, the higher the chance are of them tasting woody.  

Chicken salad with the flavors of Mexico

Serves 4

The marinade:

¼ cup fresh lime juice

¼ cup oil (I used olive oil)

½ teaspoon salt

freshly ground black pepper

2 chicken breasts

The dressing:

¼ cup mayonnaise

2 teaspoons fresh lime juice

¼ teaspoon cumin

¼ teaspoon chili powder

½ teaspoon salt

The veggies:

1 poblano pepper, roasted, peeled, seeded and diced; or left raw, seeded and diced

1 4-oz jar pimento peppers, drained

½ red onion, finely chopped

¼ cup green olives, sliced

1 cup jicama, peeled and diced

¼ cup cilantro, chopped

1 fresh jalapeno or 1 tablespoon pickled jalapeno, chopped, optional – for added spice

1 avocado, peeled and cut into cubes

lettuce leaves or toasted bread for sandwiches

Mix marinade ingredients in a medium bowl until well combined. Add chicken breasts and marinate for 30 minutes while you prepare the rest of the ingredients.

Preheat oven to 350F. Transfer chicken to a roasting pan, cover with and roast for 30 minutes or until cooked. Cool and then chop into bite-sized pieces.

Combine the dressing ingredients in a small bowl and whisk until combined.

Place chicken, poblano pepper, pimento peppers, red onion, green olives, jicama, cilantro and jalapeno (if desired). Add dressing and mix gently with a large spoon. Top with avocado and serve on a bed of lettuce leaves or in a sandwich.

My friend, Debbie, and I enjoyed ours on a bed of lettuce leaves while my nephew, Jovan, loved his sandwiched between buttermilk bread. 

Prijatno!

Chicken Marbella - in honor of Sheila Lukins

Last Sunday, a pioneer in the American culinary world died.  Sheila Lukins, the creative master behind The Silver Palate cookbooks and The Silver Palate gourmet store in New York City, introduced me to pine nuts, pesto, sun-dried tomatoes and pasta primavera when I first became interested in cooking. 

Sheila graduated from the Cordon Bleu School in London.  Back in New York, she began a catering business aimed primarily at bachelors.  She was their ‘little woman in the kitchen’ and her motto was “So discreet, so delicious and I deliver!”  She later met Julee Russo, an accomplished cook herself, who was ready to leave the corporate life and start her own business.  The two opened a tiny shop called The Silver Palate that produced simply prepared but delicious food ready for entertaining or an impromptu picnic.  Using only high quality ingredients, their food was an artful balance of color, texture and flavor, and also a feast for the eyes!    

 Through her unique cookbooks, Lukins (with Russo) helped me understand gourmet cooking.  The Silver Palate Cookbook and The New Basics Cookbook include easy-to-follow recipes based on authentic European cuisine.  Every page is peppered with a menu suggestion, a quote, historical fact or a valuable tip on how to entertain like a pro.  Sheila’s whimsical illustrations complement the clear-cut recipes.   Some of my favorites include Roast Lamb with Peppercorn Crust (my friend Chantal still talks about the time I served her that one!), Chicken Liver Pate with Green Peppercorns, Wild Mushroom Soup, Carrot Cake and a fabulous Bread Pudding accompanied by a very ‘adult’ sauce (think whiskey!).

Sheila’s All Around the World Cookbook includes recipes from her travels to 33 countries.  I continued to learn from her for 23 years through her Simply Delicious column in Parade magazine (the one that comes in the Sunday paper) where she succeeded Julia Child as food editor in 1986. 

Chicken Marbella is a recipe from The Silver Palate Cookbook that became the signature dish at the Manhattan store.  I imagine it’s being made in many kitchens this week.  I recently left a batch marinating for Favorite Son and his roommate, Sam.  The evening they roasted it, he texted me that “The chicken was delicious.  I was just ripping it apart then eating it from the bone!” 

From The Silver Palate Cookbook: 

This was the first main-course dish to be offered at The Silver Palate, and the distinctive colors and flavors of the prunes, olives and capers have kept it a favorite for years.  It’s good hot or at room temperature.  When prepared with small drumsticks and wings, it makes a delicious hors d’oeuvre. 

The overnight marination is essential to the moistness of the finished product:  the chicken keeps and even improves over several days of refrigeration;  it travels well and makes excellent picnic fare.

Since Chicken Marbella is such a spectacular party dish, we give quantities to serve 10 to 12, but the recipe can successfully be divided to make a smaller amount if you wish.

Chicken Marbella

Yields 16 pieces, 10 or more portions

4 chickens, 2 ½ pounds each, quartered

1 head of garlic, peeled and finely puréed

¼ cup dried oregano

coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

½ cup red wine vinegar

½ cup olive oil

1 cup pitted prunes (I also like to add dates, dried cherries and dried figs)

½ cup pitted Spanish green olives (I add a few Kalamatas as well)

½ cup capers with a bit of juice

6 bay leaves

1 cup brown sugar

1 cup white wine

¼ cup Italian parsley or fresh coriander (cilantro), finely chopped

In a large bowl combine chicken quarters, garlic, oregano, pepper, coarse salt, vinegar, olive oil, prunes, olives, capers and juice, and bay leaves. Cover and let marinate, refrigerated, overnight.

Preheat oven to 350ºF.  Arrange chicken in a single layer in one or two large, shallow baking pans and spoon marinade over it evenly. Sprinkle chicken pieces with brown sugar and pour white wine around them.

Bake for 50 minutes to 1 hour, basting frequently with pan juices. Chicken is done when thigh pieces, pricked with a fork at their thickest, yield clear yellow (rather than pink) juice.

With a slotted spoon transfer chicken, prunes, olives and capers to a serving platter. Moisten with a few spoonfuls of pan juices and sprinkle generously with parsley or cilantro. Pass remaining pan juices in a sauceboat.

To serve Chicken Marbella cold, cool to room temperature in cooking juices before transferring to a serving platter. If chicken has been covered and refrigerated, allow it to return to room temperature before serving. Spoon some of the reserved juice over chicken.

Following the advice from Sheila’s Silver Palate Notebook: 

Successful flavoring depends on many things.  To appreciate this fully you must experiment…..Next time combine meat with fresh fruit.  You may feel the need to experiment with small batches at first; as your confidence and your palate develop, you will learn to create boldly, trusting in the results.  You will be a cook. 

To my Chicken Marbella I added some dried cherries, kalamata olives, fresh oregano from the garden, and peeled and cubed potatoes 20 minutes before the end of the roasting period. 

Thanks, Sheila, for teaching me how to entertain, for expanding my horizons, and for giving me confidence in the kitchen.  I cherish your recipes and thank you for sharing them with us.  You will be missed!

Prijatno!

As happy as a clam at high water!

To use a common phrase, I was as happy as a clam at high water when, in most unladylike fashion, I devoured my Clams with red pepper sauce the other day!  Unfortunately for the clams, the waters receded and I became the beneficiary of their savory morsels…yes, I practically inhaled them.  They were so fresh and delicious I had their delicate ocean nectar running down my arms! 

I have been lacking in iron lately, and in my perusal of the internet, I discovered a wonderful fact: clams are loaded in iron (155% RDA), are very high in protein and low in calories!  How convenient!  I adore seafood in any shape or form and always order it in fine restaurants. 

My fishmonger at HEB hand picked every clam for me.  He made sure that they were all closed tightly.  If by chance a clam is open when you are ready to cook it, gently rap it on the counter and if it doesn’t clam up(!) discard it – it’s dead.

In the absence of white wine, I found a great alternative – Mirin.  Mirin is a sweet Japanese rice wine (used for cooking) which is low in alcohol and available in all grocery stores.  It adds both sweet and salty tones to the sauce.  I wouldn’t add salt until you’ve tasted the sauce at the end of the cooking process because the olives will also contribute to the saltiness of the sauce.  The sweet red peppers will cook to velvety perfection, and the cilantro and lemon juice will brighten the flavors. 

Steamed clams with red pepper sauce

Husby is not a clam eater so this was all mine!

Per person: 

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 shallot, finely chopped

1/2 red bell pepper, finely chopped

3 tablespoons aji-mirin or dry white wine

freshly ground black pepper

12 live ‘littleneck’ clams, scrubbed clean.  Discard any opened clams that don’t close when rapped on the counter top.

2 scallions (green onions), chopped crosswise

6 kalamata olives, sliced in half

about 2 tablespoons coarsely chopped fresh cilantro

a few drops of fresh lemon juice

In a medium sized saucepan, sauté the shallot and red pepper in butter and olive oil over medium heat until soft.  Add mirin and do a few turns of the pepper mill and cook for one more minute.  Reduce the heat to low.

Place clams on top of pepper mixture and cover tightly with a lid.  Steam for 5 minutes. 

Add the green onions, olives and cilantro.  Steam for a couple more minutes then check the clams to see if they say aaahhh!  If some of the clams have not opened, steam for a couple of minutes longer.  Discard any clams that do not open.  Finish with a few drops of freshly squeezed lemon juice.  Serve with crusty French bread to sop up the juices!

 Fresh cilantro, red peppers and olives surround this beauty:

Prijatno!

Feta and olive beef patties with caramelized red onion on home made burger buns

I hate going to the grocery store for one item!  Last week, Husby suggested hamburgers for dinner.  I pulled out a package of organic ground beef from the freezer, and lettuce, onions, tomatoes and pickles from the fridge.  All I was missing were hamburger buns, but that’s ok.  It was a leisurely afternoon at home, so flour and yeast came together quickly and before I knew it the dough for home made hamburger buns was rising in a warm place in the kitchen!

Okay, so it would have taken me 15 minutes max to drive to the store, grab the buns and drive back home, but there’s the nagging fact that I have a serious dislike for the texture of gummy, doughy preservative-laden sit-on-the-shelf-for-weeks buns!  I like a crisp crust with a firm body that doesn’t feel pasty on the palate when chewed.  Husby claims the purpose of hamburger buns is to soak up and keep the ketchup, mustard and meat juices from running down one’s hands!  Perhaps…but my home made buns are equally as capable!

I have been waiting for the opportunity to try a bun recipe I came across on Mari’s fabulous blog Once Upon A Plate.  It was inspired by a recipe from the files of King Arthur Flour and a regular contributor to its recipes named Moomie!  Moomie’s legendary sandwich buns recipe can be found here.  With a few changes, I produced wonderful buns sprinkled with sesame seeds (and I finally figured out how to make those pesky seeds stick). 

Did you know that bread baking has become a lot easier since the introduction of instant (rapid rise) yeast?  No longer do we have to proof the yeast (test it to see if it is viable).  You can now mix it in with the flour, add the liquids and you’re on your way!  Please don’t be intimidated by yeast – it’s a leavening agent that works wonders at the right temperature, a little loving (aka kneading) and a little sugar!   All you need is to do is start a little earlier so as to include time for the dough to rise.  You will be rewarded with much healthier and tastier buns!

For the meaty part of the burger, I was in the mood for some zip!  Zesty feta cheese and kalamata olives are staples in my fridge, and they are perfect accompaniments to the ground beef. 

Feta and olive beef patties

1 pound lean ground beef

1/2 – 3/4 cup feta cheese, coarsely crumbled or cubed

1/3 cup kalamata olives, sliced.  People - don’t even think of using rubbery, tasteless olives in a can – they are inferior by far to olives from the olive bar or in a glass jar.  Yes, they are cheaper, but there is no comparison in taste, whatso e v e r!

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes for added spice (optional)

Combine all of the above ingredients by folding the meat over onto itself as you incorporate the feta and olives.  Try not to mash the meat between your fingers as this will ruin the texture of the patties.   Shape into 3 or 4 patties.

Sauté the patties in a hot skillet or cook them on the grill.  I like to cook them in a skillet because it’s easier to flip them over without them falling apart.

Serve on a toasted bun with sliced tomatoes, caramelized red onions, lettuce, mayo…

Serves 3 or 4.

Caramelized red onion

1 large red onion, peeled, cut in half crosswise and sliced thinly

Sauté the red onion slices in a little olive oil over medium heat.  Stir the onions occasionally until very soft and caramelized (they will start to turn black on the edges).  Set aside.

Sesame seed buns

Yield: 8 hamburger or sandwich buns

3 1/4 cups all-purpose, unbleached flour

1 tablespoon instant yeast

1 tablespoon sugar

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup water

2 tablespoons butter

1 egg, lightly beaten

1 egg white (for egg wash)

2 tablespoons sesame seeds or other seed of your choice

Place flour, yeast, sugar and salt in a mixer bowl with dough hook attachment.  Heat water and butter to about 125F (I usually microwave in 30 second intervals and measure the temperature with a candy thermometer).  With mixer at low speed, slowly pour the water mixture into the flour mixture.  Add the egg.  Beat on medium speed for about 5 minutes or until all ingredients are combined and the dough is smooth. 

Place dough in a large bowl (enough to hold twice the amount of dough) greased with olive oil.  Flip the dough over so that the olive oil covers the entire surface.  Cover the bowl with a clean kitchen towel and allow dough to rise until double in volume.  (I turn my oven on to barely heat the interior and place the bowl in the oven, close the door and leave it for about 30 minutes.  You should see the kitchen towel rising on top of the mound of dough above the edge of the bowl.  Sweet!)

When the dough has doubled in size, place it on a lightly floured surface*.  Knead for a minute by hand and let it rest for about 5 minutes.  With a rolling pin, roll the dough into a rectangle (about 12” X 8”) and cut the dough into 8 equal pieces.  For each bun – tuck the ends of each piece of dough under several times, moving the dough from hand to hand, until you get a nice round shape.  Place on a prepared baking sheet lined with parchment paper.  Repeat with other pieces of dough.  Cover with a sheet of wax or parchment paper and allow buns to rise until they are the size of hamburger buns.  Remove wax paper from buns.

Beat the egg white and 1 tablespoon water in a bowl until loose and starting to foam.  Brush the top of each bun very carefully with egg wash and sprinkle the tops with sesame seeds.

Bake buns in a preheated 375F oven for 12 – 15 minutes or until golden brown.  Cool on wire racks.

If you have a bread machine:  Place all ingredients in bread machine. Select ‘dough’ cycle. Allow cycle to run.  Remove the dough and place it on lightly floured surface.  Continue from * in the third paragraph above.       

Good looking buns!

Prijatno!