Turkish Walnut & Red Pepper Paté

This cevizli biber ezmesi is a standard dish for Turkish breakfasts with bread, cheese, and olives. It also gets served as a meze dish; one of an array of little salads, dips, spreads and other tidbits.

It seems to me to be one of those funny twists of fate that hummus is now a well-known staple in North America, along with such things as pico de gallo (a.k.a. salsa),  guacamole, and ketchup; and this dish is almost unknown. It is just as good as any of them and better than some (*cough* ketchup *cough*).

I don't really make new year's resolutions, but I find myself attempting to clear out some stuff from the cupboards and freezers that have been there for some ridiculous length of time, and several jars of dried peppers and tomatoes caught my eye. If you don't have a food dryer and didn't dry your own peppers and tomatoes, I'm afraid the ingredients for this will be hard to come by. Still, if you do have them, maybe you are wondering what to do with them all. Wonder no more - this is really delicious.

I mellowed mine out with a small spoonful of apple butter; in Turkey pomegranate molasses would be used. You may or may not wish to add either.


16 servings
30 minutes prep time

50 grams (2 ounces) dried mild peppers
OR dry pepper/dry tomato combo
125 grams (1/2 pound) broken walnut bits
1 teaspoon cumin seeds, ground
1 teaspoon salt
freshly ground black pepper to taste
1/4 to 1+ teaspoon ground Aleppo pepper, optional
2 or 3 cloves of garlic
1/4 cup fine dry breadcrumbs
1/3 cup olive oil
1 teaspoon apple butter, optional
a little soaking water, if needed

Put the kettle on to boil and measure out the dry peppers and tomatoes into a dish in which they can be soaked. Use all dry mild peppers, or up to 25% dry tomatoes. Pour boiling water on them to cover, put a lid on them, and soak for 10 to 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, lightly toast the walnut pieces in a dry skillet. Tip them into the bowl of a food processor as soon as they are done.

Grind the cumin seeds, and add them to the food processor with the salt, pepper, and Aleppo pepper. Peel and slice the garlic, and add it. Add the breadcrumbs and olive oil.

When the dry peppers and tomatoes have soaked for 10 or 15 minutes, drain them well but retain the soaking liquid. Add them to the food processor and process until the paté is close to having the texture you like, whether slightly chunky or smooth. Add a little of the soaking liquid if it is too thick - I added about 1/4 of a cup. Taste it, and if you think it is a little on the bitter side add the apple butter and process it in. Adjust any other seasonings as needed. In particular, I suggest you start on the low side with your hot (Aleppo) pepper and add a bit more after tasting it. I suspect it will also get a bit hotter as it sets and everything melds, so keep that in mind too.

Transfer the paté to a serving dish and spread it out into a neat shape using a spatula or wide spoon dipped in cold water to keep it from sticking. Garnish as you like and drizzle a little more oil over it if you feel like it. 

Serve as a spread with bread, cheese, cold cuts, etc. Thin it with a little more of the soaking water and olive oil if you would like to use it as a dip. Keeps, well covered in the fridge, for up to 4 days. Best made several hours in advance to allow the flavours to come together.





Last year at this time I made Russian Mushroom Cutlets. 

Posted in: Ontario Food