Instead of embellishing the enchiladas with a complex (and time-consuming) Mexican pipián (pumpkin-seed sauce), cook a few customary pipián ingredients and then purée them with cilantro for an easy enchilada that's herbaceous and fresh.
Best served at room temperature or lightly chilled, eggplant purees can fill many roles -- appetizer dip for toasted pita or fresh vegetables, anchor of a meze platter, relish to dress up simply cooked meat or fish, or hearty vegetable side dish.
Best served at room temperature or lightly chilled, eggplant purees can fill many roles -- appetizer dip for toasted pita or fresh vegetables, anchor of a meze platter, relish to dress up simply cooked meat or fish, or hearty vegetable side dish.
The cuisines of most Mediterranean and Middle East countries include some type of eggplant salad. The purple orb is usually grilled or roasted, mashed or pureed, and seasoned with olive oil and lemon, at a minimum. In this most basic form, the dish is often called “peasant caviar,” presumably because after grilling or roasting, this pedestrian vegetable assumes a rich, lush -- patrician, if you will -- texture.
Best served at room temperature or lightly chilled, eggplant purees can fill many roles -- appetizer dip for toasted pita or fresh vegetables, anchor of a meze platter, relish to dress up simply cooked meat or fish, or hearty vegetable side dish.
Versions of this recipe have been going around for decades. They’re made with marinated artichokes or canned artichoke hearts (as they are here), spinach, all kinds of cheeses that melt easily, plus mayo. Serve with crackers or crusty bread.
Pebre (pronounced “pay-bray’’) is a popular Chilean condiment something like salsa. Like Argentine chimichurri, the chunky pebre contains herbs and vinegar. Often compared to Mexican pico de gallo, pebre lacks serious chili heat. Choose mild, sweet peppers such as banana, yellow, or wax. Prepare this condiment a day ahead; the flavor and texture are best after a lengthy marinade. Serve it beside grilled meats and seafood or set it on the table with bread. Watch it disappear.
Garlic scapes are the green curly shoots that grow out of garlic when it's young, and apparently only hardneck garlic produces garlic scapes. The scapes are sometimes called green garlic or garlic spears, although many sources call the young, underdeveloped garlic bulbs green garlic. I first tried some of my garlic scapes in an omelet. Then I made a batch of garlic scape pesto, which one online source said was the most popular use of the scapes. I guess I would have to give the garlic scapes a mixed review as far as flavor.