Mediterranean Celebration Plate

Mains

This recipe celebrates all things Mediterranean, it takes advantage of the wonderful selection of Spring and Summer vegetables, whilst using a combination of raw and cooked foods. It uses plently of olive oil and can be served with or without bread. While there are many processes and ingrediets, feel free to mix and match making all or only a part of the dishes. Finally I say do as the Mediterranean's do and enjoy with a ...

Mediterranean Celebration Plate

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SERVES 3

ingredients

For the Beetroot Hommus
2 medium beetroots
Olive oil
1 cup of cooked chickpeas - we added a teaspoon of dried turmeric to the pot while we were cooking our chickpeas which had been soaked overnight. You could also use tinned chickpeas if you’re time poor.
¼ cup tahini
Juice of 2 lemons
A handful each of mint and parsley
A little apple cider vinegar
Salt and pepper to taste
A Tahini Dressing
3 tbsp of tahini
Juice of 1 lemon
1-2 tablespoons of olive oil
1 clove of freshly crushed garlic, chopped
For the Vegetables
1/2 medium pumpkin, skin on and cubed
1 red onion, cut into thick wedges
Olive oil
salt & pepper
Pomegranate molasses
1 medium eggplant
1 lebanese cucumber
2 tomatoes or 1/2 punnet cherry tomatoes
3 spring onions
A handful of Jumbo Green Olives, pitted
A handful of mint leaves, finely chopped
2 handfuls of parsley leaves, roughly chopped
1 lemon
Zaatar – a herb mix available from middle eastern grocers

method

Step 1For the Beetroot Hommus - Wash your beetroots and then place cut side down in a baking dish. Drizzle with olive oil and roast in the oven at 180 C for 45 minutes or until a knife can be inserted smoothly through (this would be a good time to roast your pumpkin too, see below). Rinse and allow to cool and then peel off the skin and discard.
Step 2Blend all the ingredients together in a food processor with a few glugs of olive oil until smooth. Add a little water or more lemon juice/vinegar if you need to smooth the dip, or some more fresh herbs if its lacking in flavour.
Step 3A Tahini Dressing - Slowly blend the lemon juice into the tahini, a little at a time to prevent yourself ending up with a curdled dressing! Add the olive oil to smooth and finally the garlic. You could whiz this dressing in a mini food processor instead if you have one. Your dressing shouldn’t be watery, but ideally fall easily from a spoon to drizzle. Set aside.
Step 4For the roast pumpkin - Coat the pumpkin cubes and red onion in olive oil, season with salt and pepper and a drizzle of pomegranate molasses. Massage through and place in a hot oven at 180 C and roast for 45-1 hour, until caramelized. Stir once during to cook through evenly.
Step 5For the grilled eggplant - Cut the eggplant into half lengthways and then into 3-4 wedges, depending on how big your eggplant is. Sprinkle with sea salt and leave to draw out any bitterness. When beginning to release water, pat dry with some paper towel, coat with olive oil and then place under a hot grill for 20 minutes or until slightly charred but with a silky inner flesh, you may need to turn once while they grill to prevent burning. Remove from the heat and squeeze with some lemon juice and sprinkle with zataar
Step 6Tomato & cucumber salad - Mix the tomato, cucumber, spring onions, olives and herbs together in a bowl. Drizzle with olive oil and the juice of 1/2 a lemon. Season with some salt and pepper and a sprinkle of zataar.
Step 7And finally, to assemble your plate! Spread each pitta generously to the edges with the beetroot hommus. Place piles of the three vegetable dishes on top and sprinkle everything with zaatar. Drizzle with the tahini dressing and serve.