Mediterranean style Mezze Platter

A simple Mediterranean style mezze platter can never go wrong if one plans to have a light meal or make mezze a part of a hosting dinner. It's easy and yet quite impressive! :)

Mezze are snacks or pre-dinner bites or tapas like food. It can be hot or cold. I chose the latter one just because it is so convenient to prepare well ahead of meal time.

Personally for me, Mezze is a meal in itself. They are pretty light but filling at the same time. To prepare a mezze spread popped in my head after seeing some fresh eggplants at my local grocer. That’s when one dish turned into five and it was a mezze platter!

My mezze platter has (clock wise)

- Homemade whole Meal pita bread

- Mashed Eggplant

- Roasted eggplant salad

- Black eyed peas with generous amount olive oil

- ATOM - Turkish Labneh tempered with paprika fried in butter

These dishes or spread look elaborate but it is not at all time consuming to make. I made all of that while the pita bread was in oven and in perhaps less than 45mins, I was ready with a meal for two.

If you fancy trying out these simple recipes then read on. I am sharing them below..

Prepping for Eggplant Dishes:

Roast 2 long eggplants on open flame until the skin is charred. Poke some holes on the body of eggplant so that the air doesn’t build up.

Once done, place in a container and cover it for 5mins. Peel off the skin keep the pulp aside.

Eggplant salad

1 roasted eggplant pulp

1/2 TB olive oil

1/2 TB mayonnaise

Salt as per taste

1 TSP chopped parsley

• mix all the ingredients and whisk using a fork until well combined. Done.

Mashed eggplant

1 roasted eggplant pulp

1/2 TB olive oil

1 grated clove of garlic

Salt as per taste

Juice of half lemon

• Mix all the above ingredients and mashed egg plant is ready.

Black Eyed Peas

1/2 cup black eyed peas

Salt as per taste

1 TB olive oil

• wash and soak black eyed peas for 3-4hrs

• Pressure cook with 2 cups water for 12-15mins with little salt

• Once pressure settles down, open and drain off the water

• Immediately add olive oil to the cooked peas and salt if necessary.

• Done.

Atom

2 TB labneh

1 TB paprika or Kashmiri chili powder

2 dry red chilies roughly chopped

20gm butter

• spread the labneh on a plate and make a well in the centre

• Heat butter in a pan, until it melts. Reduce flame

• Add chopped chilies and paprika.

• Once you see it foaming, immediately turn off the heat and pour it over the Labneh (well)

• Lightly spread the tempering and done.

Pita bread

60gm whole meal flour

40gm Strong bread flour

40ml bottled water

10ml olive oil

15gm sugar

2gm instant dry yeast

1gm salt

• mix flour and salt first.

• Mix rest of the ingredients and then add flour-salt mix and combine to get a shaggy mass.

• Dust some flour and knead for 7-8mins.

• Keep the dough in a greased bowl to double in size (60mins approx)

• Punch out the air once the dough is risen.

• Divide into 4 equal parts and roll into discs. About 1/2 cm thick and place on a baking tray lined with parchment paper.

• Preheat oven to 270C, gas oven. Place the baking tray and bake for 8-10min.

• Flip the bread once when 5mins are through.

• Once done, cover and keep for 5min.

*electric oven might need less time to cook*

#foodcharmz #mezzeplatter #mezze #vegetarian #homemade