Mezze Platter for Two and Roasted Garlic Hummus

Last weekend, we discovered two great things in our hood: Baklovah Bakery and the international food market right next door. I never thought I would find anything like either of those two things in San Antonio, but, despite my complaining and lack of faith in the diverse food options here, lo and behold, there is Baklovah Bakery!

They have so many good things there that I can't wait to try them all (slowly, of course and over time...). They have 3 or 4 different kinds of baklovah, turkish delight, cheesecakes, cookies, Turkish coffee, cakes, and so much more! After visiting the bakery, we headed over to the grocery store next door and guess what they sell...

FRESH. PITA. BREAD. for only $1.00!

Y'all, I haven't been so excited in awhile. They had so many different kinds of pita bread too. Naturally, we bought some immediately and then headed home for a mediterranean inspired dinner, which included this mezze platter. 

What's a mezze platter you ask? Um, only the best way to start a party and feed a crowd (or you know, just the two of you!). It's a platter filled to the brim with goodies like hummus, tzatziki, pita, stuffed grape leaves, olives and more. It varies by region but is traditionally served in areas like Israel, Lebanon, and Greece. 

If you want to upgrade your cheeseboard to something a little healthier, you need a mezze board in your life.

With homemade roasted garlic hummus, of course.

One thing that I almost never buy anymore is store bought hummus. 90% of the time, I make it at home. It's so easy and tastes so much better, plus I know exactly what's going into it. When I have the time, I will roast some garlic to go into it too because if you are a hummus fanatic like me, then you know that roasted garlic hummus is arguably the BEST type of hummus out there. 

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Roasted Garlic Hummus and a Meze Platter for Two

Ingredients

• pita bread, store bought
• 1/4 cup tzatziki, store bought
• 1/2 cup tabbouleh, store bought
• 1/4 cup feta, cubed
• 1/2 cucumber, peeled and sliced
• 1 - 2 medium radishes, sliced
• fresh mint, for garnish
• fresh parsley, for garnish
• 1/2 cup roasted garlic hummus (recipe below)

small handful of each (you can get most of these at the olive bar at your grocery store!):

• marinated artichoke hearts
• roasted red pepper
• jalapeño stuffed olives

Directions

On a medium sized platter or board, arrange all of the ingredients. Let sit out on the counter for 30 minutes before serving to allow to come to room temperature. 

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Roasted Garlic Hummus

makes about 2 cups - save leftovers in the refrigerator!

Ingredients

• 1 head of garlic
• 1 15 oz. can (about 2 cups) chickpeas, rinsed and drained* 
• 2 tbl tahini
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1/4 cup room temperature water
• 1/4 tsp cumin
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 tbl fresh lemon juice

Directions

Slice the top (about 1/4") off the head of garlic to expose the tops of the garlic cloves. Wrap in foil and drizzle with a few teaspoons of olive oil. Roast in a 400°F oven for 35 - 45 minutes or until soft and golden. Let garlic cool slightly before pushing the individual cloves out. 

In a food processor, combine the roasted garlic and the rest of the ingredients. Pulse until completely smooth. If necessary, add a little more olive oil (a teaspoon at a time) to get desired consistency.

*If you want super duper smooth hummus, peel each and every chickpea from its outer shell after rinsing them. If you don't want to do this, you will still get really good hummus, it just might not be as silky smooth!

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Peppermint Marshmallows and a Bonfire

Boy, do I love a good bonfire. Growing up in a kind of pyromaniac family (not really, but we do enjoy a good fire), there were many weekends that there was some sort of burn going on outside. My parents would often burn brush or simply start a fire so we could all sit around it and chill. There is something magical about sitting around a fire at night outside, looking at the stars, eating a s'more, and telling stories or just being still in the moment.

I bet you can guess what makes a bonfire even more special - homemade marshmallows!!

Ever since I started blogging and getting crazy serious about food I have been wanting to make homemade marshmallows. I have read all over the internet on different blogs and on social media how easy they are to make. Everyone was right! They are so simple and incredibly fun! Plus, everyone who tries them will be super impressed by the fact that they are homemade.

A little warning though: once you try making marshmallows from scratch, it will ruin store bought marshmallows for you forever. 

Once you get the technique down, there is no limit to the amount of combinations you could try. For these I decided to go with peppermint, which pair perfectly with chocolate in s'mores or with hot chocolate. They are so festive for the holidays too - I am definitely making them again to give out to family and friends!

While this time of year is probably the busiest time of year for most of us, I think it's important to slow down and enjoy the moment as much as possible. Having this bonfire outside at my parent's house in the Texas hill country, sipping on a good glass of wine, and making s'mores with family and friends reminded me of what is truly important in this season! I hope this encourages you to create a moment like this with your loved ones and spend some quality time with them.

The idea for a bonfire with family and friends came together when Sheep Thrills reached out to me about incorporating their wine into an adventure setting. Coming from Abruzzo, Italy, these affordable and easy-drinking wines are the perfect accompaniment for any outdoor adventure. They were the perfect pairing for our chocolate and marshmallow s'mores!

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Peppermint Marshmallows

makes about 20 2-inch marshmallows

Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons (3 packets) gelatin
• 1 cup cold water, divided
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 1 cup light corn syrup
• pinch of salt
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tsp peppermint extract
• 1/2 cup confectioner's sugar for sprinkling

Directions

Grease a 9x13" pan with cooking spray or neutral oil, making sure to evenly coat the corners and sides. Set aside.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with whisk attachment, combine the gelatin and 1/2 cup of the cold water. Stir just until combined, and set aside to allow the gelatin to bloom.

In a medium saucepan set over medium heat, combine 1/2 cup of water, sugar, corn syrup and salt. Stir and cook until the sugar dissolves. 

Raise the heat to high and continue to cook, without stirring, until the temperature reaches 240°F on a candy thermometer. Remove from the heat.

Whisk the gelatin mixture on low speed and slowly pour in the sugar syrup mixture onto the softened gelatin. Increase the speed to high and whip until mixture becomes very thick and fluffy. This will take anywhere from 3-10 minutes depending on the mixer you are using. Beat until mixture is fluffy and temperature has cooled down enough to handle.

Add in the extracts, and stir for another minute until combined.

Pour marshmallow mixture into prepared pan and spread with a spatula until smooth on top. Sprinkle the confectioners sugar on top, and cover with plastic wrap and set aside overnight to allow to set.

The next day, run a very sharp knife under cold water and cut into squares. Alternatively, you can use cookie cutters to cut out shapes. Marshmallows will be sticky so just run your knife under water in between each cut. Enjoy!

*recipe adapted from king arthur flour

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This bonfire came together thanks to Sheep Thrills - an Italian wine all about adventure. Thank you to Sheep Thrills for sponsoring this post! All opinions are mine. 

A Backyard Dinner Party

A couple of weekends ago, my friend Rui and I threw a backyard dinner party at her and her fiance's cute house in central Austin. Rui and I met at SXSW back in March and instantly connected with our mutual love of artsy food photos, styled dinner parties, and mutual distaste for beer and olives (although we don't mind them on pizzas). When we first chatted about doing this together, we both had a similar image in mind and it came out so much better than imagined! I mean, most of it has to do with their epic backyard. Her fiance Anthony built the table himself as well as the charcuterie board you see in the photos below. I hope my backyard is this cool someday!

We got props from everyone's favorite kitchen store, Kettle and Brine, and my friend Shandi at White Kitten Bakes made us the gorgeous cake. Rui picked up the flowers and eucalyptus the morning of and we arranged them on the table before the guests arrived. Kyle and I made three pizzas, and Rui and Anthony made practically everything else. A tomato galette, steak with a chimichurri sauce, apple frangipane tart, and cocktails were a few of the other things served! Everything was so so good. It was a total feast, and everyone was so full and happy afterwards.  

Besides reliving this dreamy dinner over and over again, we have been busy preparing for our trip to Cancun which we leave for on Saturday! Back in January we spontaneously booked cheap flights to Mexico when we saw them for a ridiculously low price. Since Kyle finishes his last final (today!!! omg. omg.) of his undergrad prerequisite courses, we thought it was worth celebrating big. I still can't believe the past 2 1/2 years of him working full time and going back to school is finally coming to an end. To say I am excited is an understatement. So many feelings lately--excited/overwhelmed/uncertain/confused/proud/conflicted. It's been a crazy past couple of months. The good news is we will have almost a full week of nothing but relaxation, beach time, and pina coladas. I'm going to soak up every minute of it!