Roasted Red Pepper and Tahini Meze

I spent 3 magnificent weeks in Turkey and Greece this summer and want to share some of the delicious mezes with you. These are small plates of foods eaten before or instead of the main dish. Similar to the Spanish style tapas, mezes are served on small plates which can be shared or eaten in any number, hot or cold.

The Roasted Red Pepper with Tahini is surprising and very tasty. Tahini is ground sesame seeds and usually is a small ingredient when making hummus, but in this meze it is more predominant. You can add these ingredients to your own taste, but here is my interpretation.

In a small bowl place:

2 cups roasted red peppers, diced (bottled and preserved in water or fresh made)

In an even smaller bowl combine:

1/2 cup tahini

1 clove garlic, minced (not too much)

1/2 cup minced flat leafed parsley

Salt and pepper to taste

Add the tahini mix to the peppers and serve at room temperature. Make ahead if you need.

You can eat this plain or place it on French style bread. The Turkish bread is called Naan.  It is an oval shaped bread similar to pita or a tortilla. When it is freshly made it is presented at the table puffy and full of air. It soon collapses and can be torn to eat with your food. I am not enclosing the Naan recipe here, but someday I will try it! Here are some pics though 🙂

You can buy Naan at many grocery store delis.