Author(s): Rena Patten

COOKING

Welcome to the delicious and wonderful world of the Mediterranean mezze - a way of enjoying food that makes having a meal a fun experience! A mezze plate resembles an antipasti platter or tapas and sharing mezze is very much a way of life in the Mediterranean. It is a social time, a time for family and friends to get together and enjoy a vast variety of delectable dishes over several hours, with a drink or two. This book is a collection of the best mezze recipes from all over the Mediterranean and includes seafood dishes such as pan-grilled calamari, fried whitebait, mussels with herbed breadcrumbs, pickled octopus and prawns with feta saganaki: Dips such as baba ghanoush, chickpea hummus, tzatziki (Cucumber Dip), tahini sauce, skorthalia (Garlic sauce) and taramasalata (Fish Roe Dip); Cheese dishes like Haloumi with Minted Olive Oil, Herbed Ricotta with Antipasto, Grilled Chilli Feta and Ricotta and Parmesan Cakes; Meat dishes including Chicken Kebabs with Garlic, Coriander and Lime, Chorizo Sausage Kebabs, Moroccan Lamb Cutlets, Lamb Shish Kebabs and Greek Lamb Cutlets; and, Pastries and parcels such as Cheese Puffs (Tiropitakia), Mushroom and Goats Cheese Filo Triangles, Spinach and Cheese Triangles, Dolmathaki (Meat-filled Vine Leaves) and Vegetarian delights such as Cauliflower Patties, Dolmathes and Goats Cheese and Tomato Bake.