Turkish Baked Veggies with a Quick Ginger Tomato Relish
Veggies are baked in a wonderful concoction of feta, eggs, herbs and a generous helping of zingy sumac. I have a glut of organic cherry tomatoes in my kitchen and decided to make a very quick 15 minute tomato, chilli & ginger relish that went down a treat dolloped generously over the veggies.
This Turkish inspired recipe is called a Mücveri and it’s kinda like a Turkish-style fritter. It sits somewhere between a quiche and a frittata and it made lovely leftovers.
Last summer I had the pleasure to visit Istanbul for the first time and upon realising that I know very little about traditional Turkish cooking I was eager to explore the cuisine and found Turkish chef Özlem Warren who wrote a fabulous vegetarian Turkish recipe book, Sebze.
This is her recipe which I adapted to what I had in my fridge.
A note on ingredients
Sumac – Is made from crushed sumac berries and it adds a citrus tang to dishes. It is now widely available at supermarkets.
Feta – the quality of the feta that you are using is really important in this dish, I love feta from micro dairies and my favourite is this one from Dalewood Fromage.When in Europe, you might want to try a traditional Turkish white cheese called boyar peynir or a good barrel aged feta.
Balsamic vinegar – balsamic vinegar originates from Modena in Italy. A good balsamic, with the right balance between sweet and acidic is a fantastic way to add flavour to your dishes. A indication of quality is the fact that it has been aged, ideally no less than 3 years which will give you that perfect balance we are looking for. I like this one from Babylonstoren.
Baked Sumac Cauliflower, Peppers & Feta with a Quick Ginger Tomato Relish
Ingredients
- 350 g cauliflower cut into bite sizes
- 1 red onion finely sliced
- 1 large red pepper sliced and chopped into bite sizes or equal amount small baby peppers
- 1 large carrot grated
- 1 large corn cob kernels removed
- 400 g tin black beans, drained
- handful dill chopped
- handful parsley chopped
- 4 mint sprigs leaves chopped (opt)
- 60 ml extra virgin olive oil more to drizzle
- 3 tbsp sumac spice
- 4 large eggs beaten
- 85 g gluten-free flour or normal plain
- 90 g good feta one and half rounds crumbled
- plenty salt & fresh pepper
Quick cherry tomato relish
- 250 g cherry tomatoes halved
- 2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 mild red chilli seeds removed, finely chopped
- 2 tbsp brown muscavado sugar any
- 1 tbsp good balsamic vinegar aged
- 1 tbsp ginger freshly grated.
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180c
- Add the cauliflower, onions, peppers, corn, carrots, beans and herbs to a large mixing bowl.
- Add 2 tspn salt, generous helping of pepper, half the olive oil, half the crumbled feta, sumac and the flour, mix with your hands to incorporate the seasoning well into the veggies. Chef's note: I found that this dish needed a lot of salt, so don't be shy. Season and taste throughout.
- Add the veggies to a big (or small) enough baking dish for everything to lay snuggly flat in one layer.
- Add the beaten eggs and the remaining olive oil to the dish.
- Crumble over the remaining feta and bake in the oven until the veggies and feta has a golden colour - around 30 to 40 minutes. Let it cool for a few minutes.
- While the veggies are roasting let's make the quick relish. Add all the ingredients to a small saucepan, have a taste, you should love the combination of sweet and tangy and a slight hint of heat from the ginger and chilli, if not, adjust the seasoning. Bring to a gentle bubble, and cook, with the lid ajar, stirring occasionally, until the tomatoes have completely 'melted' and you are left with a thick chutney like sauce. Set aside.
- Just before serving, drizzle the bake with more olive oil, sea salt and a pinch or two sumac. Serve alongside the relish. Enjoy!
