Feasts From the Middle East. Tony Kitous

the eggs and white wine vinegar together in a bowl. Brush this all over the dough, then spread liberally with sesame seeds, pressing them down so that they stick to the egg wash. Slide on to a lightly oiled baking sheet (or lined with baking parchment). Do the same with the rest of the dough until you’ve made six breads in total. Put to one side at room temperature for 40–50 minutes.

      Preheat the oven to 200°C/180°C fan/gas mark 6. Transfer the baking sheets to the oven and bake for 15–20 minutes until golden.

      TONY’S TIP

      You can bake the small rounds of dough you’ve cut out to make little rolls. Brush with the egg wash, scatter over the sesame seeds and put them on a separate tray. Bake them for about 10–12 minutes.

      You’ll never see an Arabic table without bread on it. Bread means so much to people in the Middle East that if we don’t have any bread, we wonder how can we eat the food – there’s nothing to dip into the sauces or mop up any juices from a stew. Sometimes I have wondered whether the food that’s served is more important or the bread. That’s why I’m keen to share my pitta bread recipe so you, too, can always serve bread. This recipe has a particularly wholesome taste, thanks to the wholmeal flour, and is scattered with nigella seeds before baking for extra flavour.

ARABIC BREAD

      KHOBZ

       MAKES 12

      1 tsp dried yeast

      10g sugar

      220ml lukewarm water

      300g white bread flour

      100g brown bread flour

      5g salt

      2 tsp olive oil

      nigella seeds, to sprinkle

      Put the yeast into a bowl with a good pinch of the sugar and half the water. Set aside for 5 minutes to allow the yeast to activate and become frothy.

      Sieve the flours into a large bowl and stir in the salt. Make a well in the middle and pour in the oil, the yeast mixture and the remaining sugar and water. Stir everything together to make a rough dough. Knead on a board until smooth.

      Put the dough into a clean bowl, cover and leave to rise for about 30 minutes until doubled in size.

      Divide the dough into 12 pieces and roll them into rounds on a lightly floured surface. Sprinkle a few nigella seeds over the top of each piece before the final roll so they stick to the surface on the final roll. Put the pieces of rolled dough on to floured baking sheets and cover. Leave in a warm place for 45 minutes–1 hour to prove.

      Preheat the oven to its hottest temperature.

      Bake the pitta breads for 4–5 minutes until the dough has puffed up slightly and is cooked all the way through.

      HOMMOS 4 WAYS

      I love hommos with a creamy texture and packed with garlic and tahina. I’m even happier if it’s served drizzled with peppery olive oil and flatbread to dip in. (see here for photo.)

      This recipe calls for dried chickpeas. When you cook them yourself, you can check when they are ready. I test by pressing one between finger and thumb – it should easily squash into a paste. Too hard and they won’t whizz into a smooth mixture; too soft and the texture won’t be right.

      And, yes, that’s right, there are ice cubes in the ingredients list! Don’t add water instead as it will make the finished texture too watery.

CLASSIC HOMMOS

       SERVES 4–6

      125g dried chickpeas

      ¾ tsp bicarbonate of soda

      3–4 ice cubes

      35–50g tahina

      juice of ½ lemon

      1 small garlic clove, crushed (optional)

      ½ tsp salt

      The night before you want to make the hommos, put the chickpeas into a bowl and cover them with cold water. Set aside and leave to soak for at least 8–10 hours.

      The next day, drain the chickpeas and return to the bowl. Add the bicarbonate of soda and cover with cold water. Soak for 30 minutes.

      Drain off the water again and put the chickpeas into a medium saucepan. Pour in enough cold water to cover them by a couple of centimetres, then put a lid on the pan and bring to the boil.