Malouf: New Middle Eastern Food

Any book put together by the Maloufs will inspire you to make Middle Eastern food and make you want to travel. Their books are always beautiful to look at, and the food, deceptively simple, tastes magic. This is my interpretation of one of their dips.

Ingredients

2 Tbsp	Raisins, golden
2 Tbsp	Shallots, finely chopped
2 cm	Olive oil
¼ tsp	Turmeric
250 g	Spinach leaves, blanch in salted water (Main)
200 g	Natural yoghurt
1 to taste	Salt & freshly ground pepper
1 to taste	Lemon juice

Directions

1. Soak 2 tbsp of golden raisins in warm water for 15 minutes, then drain.
2. Finely chop 2 large shallots and fry in a little olive oil until soft and translucent.
3. Stir in ¼ teaspoon of turmeric and the drained raisins, fry another couple of minutes then set aside to cool.
4. Blanch 250g of spinach leaves in salted water for 20 seconds, run under cold water and squeeze tightly to extract as much water as you can.
5. Chop the spinach finely and mix in 200g of thick natural yoghurt. Season with salt, pepper and lemon juice.
6. Mound the spinach mix onto a platter or in a bowl, top with the turmeric raisins and serve with some pita bread.