This Chips and Crispy Chickpea board has a flame-coloured Harissa-sumac sauce that cloaks the chips, Crispy Chickpeas and hidden pockets of oil-cured black olives. Use a baking dish that can go straight from oven to table, then dig in! starters
Chips and Crispy Chickpea Board Recipe
Serves 2 to 4
Ingredients:
1 (7-ounce/200 g) bag of pita chips
3 ounces (85 g) manouri cheese, thinly sliced
¼ cup (30 g) pitted oil-cured black olives, coarsely chopped
2 sprigs of mint, stemmed
2 sprigs of flat-leaf parsley, stemmed
Crispy Chickpeas
1 (15-ounce/425 g) can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
¼ teaspoon fine
Sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper
Harissa-sumac sauce – Makes about ½ cup (120 ml)
2 tablespoons harissa paste
2 tablespoons sherry vinegar or red wine vinegar
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 teaspoons sumac
Method:
Make the crispy chickpeas: Heat the oven to 400°F (200°C).
On a quarter-sheet pan or small rimmed baking sheet, spread out the chickpeas, drizzle them with the oil, and season with the salt and several grinds of pepper. Mix well. Roast, stirring once or twice, until golden brown and crispy, about 20 minutes. When the chickpeas are done roasting, transfer them to a bowl and keep the oven on. Set aside the baking sheet to use again once everything has been assembled.
Make the harissa-sumac sauce: In a small bowl, stir together the harissa, vinegar, olive oil, and sumac.
Assemble: Place the pita chips on the baking sheet used for the chickpeas. Tuck the manouri cheese slices among the chips. Scatter the olives and crispy chickpeas on top, and spoon the harissa-sumac sauce over all. Bake until everything is hot and the cheese has softened, about 10 minutes.
Garnish with the mint and parsley. Serve right away on the baking sheet.
Smart Tip:
Manouri is a mild semisoft cheese that tastes like fresh milk. It doesn’t melt when heated, but that actually makes it ideal for scooping up with a crisp baked pita chip.
Extract from Boards, Platters, Plates by Maria Zizka (Artisan Books). Copyright © 2021. Available in NZ for $49.99 RRP (hardback) and in Australia for RRP $26.99. Photographs by Erin Scott.
