I learnt how to make this vibrant dip in Aleppo, where I led culinary tours before the uprising, said Anissa Helou. They included a lesson from chef Maria Gaspard, who made all kinds of fabulous dishes, including this one.
Ingredients (serves 6)
- 600g beets
- 80ml tahini, or to taste
- 1 clove garlic, peeled, minced to a fine paste
- juice of 1 1⁄2 lemons, or to taste
- sea salt
- extra virgin olive oil, to drizzle over the dip
- 1 tbsp finely chopped flat-leaf parsley or slivered pistachios, for garnish
Method
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- Preheat the oven to 220C.
- Wash the beets and cut any excess stalks but without cutting into the beets. You do not want them to bleed during baking. Wrap each beet with foil and place on a baking sheet. Bake for 1 to 1 1⁄2 hours, depending on their size, until soft but not mushy.
- Remove from the oven on to a large cutting board. Unwrap, then peel and cut into chunks. Place in a food processor. Add the tahini, garlic and lemon juice and process until you have a smooth purée.
- Transfer to a large mixing bowl. Add salt to taste and more lemon juice and/or tahini if you feel it needs it. Spread in a shallow round or oval serving bowl, making grooves here and there.
- Drizzle a little olive oil in the grooves and sprinkle with the chopped parsley or slivered pistachios.
- Serve with good bread.
Taken from Lebanon: A Culinary Celebration by Anissa Helou.
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