Healthy, delicious, and easy: Red pepper muhammara dip

Absolute deliciousness...

Last weekend, I got to tag along to a Boston wedding with my friend Alex. Boston’s where I went to college–and where I hardly ever get to go anymore–so just being there felt pretty incredible. The experience was made even better by his sister, whom I’ve heard about for years. Alex can’t stop talking about her cooking skills and I can now say firsthand: “I get it.” Friday night, not only was she amazing and dynamic and fun to be around (after a long week), but when we came home to her apartment late at night, she got to work in the kitchen, whipping up absolutely delicious concoctions. (As she was working away, she gave me a Greek yogurt and told me to sprinkle walnuts and pour honey in. “It tastes like ice cream that way,” she said. Entirely true.) Here, the recipe we all three agreed was unmissable. It’s a Middle Eastern red pepper dip–spicy, healthful, and totally unique.

To give you some context, here’s Shirley’s take on why this was our pick: My brother Alex reliably appears, hovering, commenting, and generally getting underfoot, in any kitchen where yummy-smelling food is being prepared. He calls it “quality control” (his phrase, not mine). This very non-essential task entails his “sampling” every non-vegetable dish cooked, being cooked, or about to be cooked, preferably at every stage of the cooking process, thereby reducing recipe yields by about a third. This service usually earns him a few burnt fingers and several irritated whacks with spatulas. To date, the only documented upside is the disposal of any asymmetrical, over-browned, or otherwise flawed specimens before the food makes it to the table.

More recently he’s taken to pulling out everything in my fridge and asking, “what’s this?” while sampling the food on the stove, in hopes of finding more interesting morsels–or perhaps in an attempt to cool scalded fingers. This led to a happy discovery: A new, exotic appetizer I’d happened to try out, with mysterious ingredients and unusual flavors can keep him distracted and out of the way long enough to finish cooking our actual dinner.

Shirley’s Muhammara (yield: about 4 cups)

Ingredients
2 -2.5 lbs red bell peppers, about 4 large or 5 medium
4.5 oz (1 1/3 cup) walnuts, toasted (see below for toasting instructions)
4.5 oz (1 1/3 cup) cashews, unsalted, toasted
1 tsp ground cumin, (or 2 tsp whole cumin, toasted)
1/2 tsp smoked paprika
3-4 cloves garlic, peeled, germ removed
1/4 tsp ground cayenne pepper
¼ tsp salt
½ tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp lemon juice, freshly squeezed
2 tbsp pomegranate molasses (see note)

Procedure
1) Preheat oven to 400F.
2) Roast bell peppers: Choose large, firm peppers with smooth skins. They should feel heavy for their size, with no blemishes or soft spots. Wash, then place on baking sheet lined with foil. Bake at 400 for about 40 minutes, turning every 10 minutes, until the peppers are very soft and skins are blistered with some dark spots. Remove baking sheet from oven and cover peppers to trap heat. (You can fold the foil over the peppers to make a packet. I usually just invert a large metal mixing bowl over them.) Let stand for 10-15 minutes, or until cool enough to handle.
3) Reduce oven temperature to 350. Place nuts (and cumin, if using) in single layer on baking sheet. Toast for 10 minutes, shaking every few minutes to toast evenly. Very important: Don’t let these burn, or dip will have an unpleasant, bitter taste. (Toasting isn’t essential but gives the recipe a deeper, earthier flavor. When done, remove from oven, and let cool. (If using whole cumin, grind with mortar and pestle after toasted.)
4) When the roasted peppers are cool enough to handle, take them out of the packet or out from under the mixing bowl. Pull out stems, and peel off the skin. Slice the peppers open, and scrape off seeds and stringy membranes with a knife. Save the juices that will have accumulated–these will go into the blender with the peppers.
5) Put all ingredients in food processor or blender bowl. Puree until smooth, scraping sides of bowl frequently. Taste and adjust seasonings if needed. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Serve with slices of cucumber, pita chips (I like garlic-and-salt), or fresh pitas. I usually peel the cucumber in alternating strips so slices come out with a flower pattern. If you’re feeling ambitious, assemble muhammara on cucumber slices, then top with a bit of roasted garlic paste (roast whole cloves of garlic drizzled with olive oil and salt at 400F for 45 minutes, squeeze out cloves and mash) or crème fraiche.

*Note: Pomegranate molasses is a common condiment/ingredient in Middle Eastern food. It is a very sweet, tangy, dark crimson syrup. You can usually find it at Middle Eastern markets, larger chain supermarkets in the ethnic foods sections.

**This recipe freezes well. Simply place in airtight, freezer-safe container. Thaw overnight in refrigerator.