Middle Eastern Spread for 40 people...
Baba Ganoush:
4 large eggplants, roasted
1 cup lemon juice (3-6 lemons)
4 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
1 cup tahini paste (available at whole foods next to the almond butter)
1 teaspoon salt
high quality olive oil to taste
3 teaspoons red chili powder (optional)
To roast the eggplant, pierce each eggplant with a fork (so the steam can escape as they roast) and bake at 350 for approximately 35 minutes. I always check them at 20 minutes. You want them to be soft everywhere so that you can scoop the eggplant out of its skin.
Put the roasted eggplant in the food processor or blender with all the other ingredients except the olive oil. ( You may need to break this into 4 or more batches, depending on the size of your kitchen equipment). Pulse until everything is combined into a smooth paste. Transfer to a serving dish and immediately before serving, cover with a layer of olive oil (9-12 tablespoons - so yes - it's a lot!). That way as people serve themselves, the olive oil mixes with the eggplant dip and the taste explodes in your mouth. If you incorporate the olive oil at the beginning or omit it entirely, the dip tastes flat.
Tabuli Salad
2 cups bulgar wheat
4 bunch parsley
2 bunches green onions
1 bunch fresh peppermint (optional)
5 small or 3 large tomatoes
4 cucumbers (optional)
juice of 4-6 lemons
1/4 - 1 cup olive oil
Rinse the bulgar wheat in filtered water and then soak it in just enough water to cover to the wheat for 6 hours. After the wheat has absorbed all the water and has a soft consistency rather than a hard/crunchy consistency, mince the parsley, green onions, peppermint, tomatoes, cucumbers. Combine everything in a serving dish and enjoy!
Roasted Potatoes with Rosemary and Olive Oil
10 pounds of red skinned potatoes
fresh or dried rosemary (5-10 tablespoons)
salt (about a tablespoon)
olive oil (about 2/3 cup to a cup)
Scrub all the potatoes and cut into bite sized pieces, but do not peel them. The skins add nice color, not to mention nutrients! Toss the potatoes on a baking sheet or baking pan with salt, olive oil and rosemary (enough so that each potatoes is coated with a little oil, rosemary and salt. Bake at 350 until they begin to turn brown. Approximately every 20 minutes, take them out and stir them. They will take 40 minutes to an hour to roast. Alternatively you can bake them in a covered baking dish and then brown them by toasting them at the end. That method allows you to roast more than one layer of potatoes at time, but I've always just roasted them on a flat dish making sure that the potatoes are only one layer deep.
4 large eggplants, roasted
1 cup lemon juice (3-6 lemons)
4 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
1 cup tahini paste (available at whole foods next to the almond butter)
1 teaspoon salt
high quality olive oil to taste
3 teaspoons red chili powder (optional)
To roast the eggplant, pierce each eggplant with a fork (so the steam can escape as they roast) and bake at 350 for approximately 35 minutes. I always check them at 20 minutes. You want them to be soft everywhere so that you can scoop the eggplant out of its skin.
Put the roasted eggplant in the food processor or blender with all the other ingredients except the olive oil. ( You may need to break this into 4 or more batches, depending on the size of your kitchen equipment). Pulse until everything is combined into a smooth paste. Transfer to a serving dish and immediately before serving, cover with a layer of olive oil (9-12 tablespoons - so yes - it's a lot!). That way as people serve themselves, the olive oil mixes with the eggplant dip and the taste explodes in your mouth. If you incorporate the olive oil at the beginning or omit it entirely, the dip tastes flat.
Tabuli Salad
2 cups bulgar wheat
4 bunch parsley
2 bunches green onions
1 bunch fresh peppermint (optional)
5 small or 3 large tomatoes
4 cucumbers (optional)
juice of 4-6 lemons
1/4 - 1 cup olive oil
Rinse the bulgar wheat in filtered water and then soak it in just enough water to cover to the wheat for 6 hours. After the wheat has absorbed all the water and has a soft consistency rather than a hard/crunchy consistency, mince the parsley, green onions, peppermint, tomatoes, cucumbers. Combine everything in a serving dish and enjoy!
Roasted Potatoes with Rosemary and Olive Oil
10 pounds of red skinned potatoes
fresh or dried rosemary (5-10 tablespoons)
salt (about a tablespoon)
olive oil (about 2/3 cup to a cup)
Scrub all the potatoes and cut into bite sized pieces, but do not peel them. The skins add nice color, not to mention nutrients! Toss the potatoes on a baking sheet or baking pan with salt, olive oil and rosemary (enough so that each potatoes is coated with a little oil, rosemary and salt. Bake at 350 until they begin to turn brown. Approximately every 20 minutes, take them out and stir them. They will take 40 minutes to an hour to roast. Alternatively you can bake them in a covered baking dish and then brown them by toasting them at the end. That method allows you to roast more than one layer of potatoes at time, but I've always just roasted them on a flat dish making sure that the potatoes are only one layer deep.