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Simple Dornish fare

Chelsea M-C

When the sun set the air grew cool and the children went inside in search of supper, still the prince remained beneath his orange trees, looking out over the still pools and the sea beyond. A serving man brought him a bowl of purple olives with flatbread, cheese, and chickpea paste. He ate a bit of it, and drank a cup of the sweet, heavy strongwine that he loved. -A Feast for Crows

Simple Dornish Fare

Thoughts:

Mmmm…hummus. It’s really tough to go wrong with simple, basic, quality ingredients, and this spread is no exception. While you can certainly substitute pre-made pita or naan, nothing quite beats fresh flatbread, warm and straight from the oven. It’s so good that I have twice eaten it all before being able to photograph it.

Add to that some nice olives, a bit of tangy feta cheese, and a glass of strongwine, and this is a simple, easy, light meal perfect for the heat of Dorne, or the heat of summer.

How to Make It

Elements

Take a decorative platter and heap with fresh pita bread, hummus, olives, and feta cheese. To make your feta more exciting, try drizzling it with a little balsamic vinegar. Or try packing the inside of a pita pocket with crumbled feta, honey, and sesame seeds.

Hummus Recipe

Ingredients

  • 1-2 cloves garlic
  • 1 (19 ounce) can garbanzo beans, half the liquid reserved
  • 4 tablespoons lemon juice
  • 2 tablespoons tahini
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • Aleppo Pepper (optional)

In a food processor, chop the garlic. Pour garbanzo beans into processor, reserving about a tablespoon for garnish. Add lemon juice, tahini, and salt. Blend until creamy and well mixed.

Transfer the mixture to a medium serving bowl. Make a decorative imprint in the top, pour olive oil over, and sprinkle with pepper to taste. Garnish with reserved garbanzo beans.

Pita bread Recipe

Makes 15-20 small flatbreads

Prep: 10 minutes      Rising: 1 hour      Baking: 3-5 minutes each

Ingredients:

  • 1/2 cup warm water
  • 1 Tbs. honey
  • 1 package of yeast, about 2 1/4 tsp.
  • 3 cups all purpose flour, plus more for kneading
  • 1 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup lukewarm water
  • olive oil
Dissolve the honey in 1/2 cup of warm water (careful: too hot, and it will kill the yeast). Add the yeast and let sit for 10-15 minutes until it looks bubbly. In a large bowl, combine the flour and salt. Pour the yeast mixture into the middle of this bowl.

A the additional 1 cup of warm water, and stir until the dough has pulled together. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 5-10 minutes. When the dough bounces back after being poked, it’s ready to rise. Grease a large bowl with olive oil and place the dough in it. Cover loosely with plastic wrap or a damp dishcloth, and allow to rise in a warm place until doubled in size (roughly 1 hour).

Place a flat baking sheet in the oven, and preheat to 500F. Deflate the dough, and divide into 15-20 pieces. Roll each piece out into a flat disc. Once the oven is at temperature, toss a couple of these rounds of dough onto the hot baking sheet. Close the oven door, and watch the pita carefully. It should puff up within a minute or two. Flip over, and bake for another minute. Remove from oven and let cool. Repeat with all the dough, and enjoy warm!

*Cook’s Note: although you might be tempted to deflate the freshly baked pita, be careful not to burn yourself on the hot steam!

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