I’ve mentioned before that I am a toppings-girl…like, I love my toppings. There are some things I eat primarily because I can put toppings on them…things like pancakes or waffles, yogurt, cottage cheese, toast, and ice cream. Toppings are the literal cherry on top (although i never use cherries on top…bleh), and I’m constantly toasting up coconut or nuts or baking granola or such things to have on hand for breakfast and snack toppings. I daren’t run out because that would never be good.
Spreads and dips and condiments are in the same family as toppings in my opinion. and I love them as much as toppings. A sandwich or wrap is made excellent by the quality and quantity of condiments, and the other fillings are sorta there just because they have to be, because it would be a little weird to make a sandwich out of hummus and three different kinds of mustard. But if wouldn’t be so weird, I really might just do it. Meat and cheese and all that are great, but really, it’s about the condiments.
I’ve seen rumblings and recipes for this muhammara spread in a variety of places, and it always looked so intriguing and delicious. Muhammara is a Lebanese inspired dip/sauce/spread made with a base of roasted red peppers and toasted walnuts, finished off with a dashes of vinegar, oil, honey, and spices. It has such an earthy profile that is just so…earthy. And delicious! We are eating it on chicken paninis and veggie wraps, but traditionally it is used as a sauce for grilled meat or as a dip for pita bread.
Many recipes I’ve seen for muhammara call for pomegranate molasses, which is a bit of a specialty item as well as an expensive one. Maybe one day I’ll splurge on it, but for today, we’ll stick to the basics. Muhammara is easily made with some basic ingredients and a food processor, and if you are at all inclined to like middle-eastern flavors, give this a shot.
Muhammara
3 red bell peppers
1 1/2 cup walnuts
2 T. apple cider vinegar or juice of half a lemon
1 T. honey
2 cloves of garlic
1 tsp. cumin
1 tsp. paprika
2 T. olive oil
salt + pepper
Chop up the bell peppers, toss with a little olive oil and salt, and roast in the oven at 425 degrees for thirty to forty minutes, until lightly charred (you want the char…such earthy flavor!). Remove and let cool.
Toast walnuts for for eight to ten minutes on a cookie sheet in a 350 degree oven.
Place all ingredients into a food processor and blend until well combined.
Enjoy!
What about you: do you do toppings? Do you like middle-eastern flavors?
I’d love to hear your thoughts!
