Muhammara
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Muhammara is a dip made with roasted red peppers and walnuts for a wonderful accompaniment to vegetables, pita, and more.
Lately I’ve been feeling like I’m slogging my way through the remainder of the summer. The time is alternated between long, drawn-out days where I feel like nothing much gets done, and intense activity that, frankly, I’m not used to.
I took three trips in three weeks, and while I love travel, making coffee at home has turned into comforting routine I crave. Us introverts need that quiet alone time, and I’m still working to refill my social cup. Which, if you have kids, is kind of hard.
Luckily with the Olympics on I can let them watch water polo while I get to my kitchen therapy.
I’ve been wanting to make this red pepper dip, muhammara, for a while now, since we started getting gorgeous red bell peppers in our CSA box. Green bell peppers are not a favorite, but I love orange and red, especially chopped and added to a salad.
We had too many on hand to eat quickly, however, so I thought about this dip I had at a local restaurant a few years ago. I love using bell peppers in dips, like my roasted red pepper and caramelized onion dip and this roasted veggie dip, so it’s no surprise muhammara is a favorite as well.
Muhammara is a great dip or spread alternative if you’re getting bored with hummus. The base ingredients are roasted red peppers, toasted walnuts, and pomegranate molasses. Although that might seem like too sweet of a dip, it is balanced out by the addition of cumin, hot paprika, or za’atar.
When making muhammara, don’t feel like you need to get it perfectly smooth. The walnuts ensure a little bit of heft, but you can blend it as much as you like, adding water or olive oil to achieve the consistency you like.
This recipe does make quite a bit, so be ready to store leftovers in the fridge or serve it at a party. You can also toss it with cooked pasta for an excellent sauce, or try it with cooked meats.
If you can’t find pomegranate molasses, you can make your own by reducing pomegranate juice with sugar and lemon juice. For each cup of juice, you’ll need 2 tablespoons sugar and 1/2 tablespoon lemon juice.
Muhammara (Roasted Red Pepper and Walnut Dip)
Ingredients
- 2 large red bell peppers
- 3/4 cup chopped walnuts
- 1/4 cup bread crumbs
- 1-2 tablespoons pomegranate molasses
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon za’atar, or cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3-4 tablespoons olive oil
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°F.
- Halve peppers and scoop out seeds. Place skin-side up on a baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes, until skins are starting to blister. Remove from oven, place in a bowl, and cover with plastic wrap.
- While peppers are cooling, toast walnuts in a dry skillet over medium heat until fragrant. Pour walnuts into food processor.
- Peel and discard the skins from the peppers, then add peppers to food processor. Add bread crumbs, pomegranate molasses, lemon juice, za’atar, and salt, and process until blended. With the processor running, stream in the olive oil and process until smooth or desired consistency is achieved.
- Serve with sliced vegetables, pita, tortilla chips, or whatever you desire.
Notes
- Makes about 2 cups
- Adapted from 101 Cookbooks
I’m going to have to try this–I’m with you. I can do without green bell peppers, but I love red, yellow & orange ones!
Mmmm, this looks good. I’ve long been a fan of FINO/Cantine’s muhammara and am looking forward to trying to make my own!