Sami Tamimi’s musabaha , or warm chickpeas with spicy cherry tomato and coriander salad, served with turmeric and nigella seed flatbread. Photograph: Matthew Hague/The Guardian. Food styling: Tamara Vos. Prop styling: Anna Wilkins. Food styling assistant: Georgia Rudd. View image in fullscreen Sami Tamimi’s musabaha , or warm chickpeas with spicy cherry tomato and coriander salad, served with turmeric and nigella seed flatbread. Photograph: Matthew Hague/The Guardian. Food styling: Tamara Vos. Prop styling: Anna Wilkins. Food styling assistant: Georgia Rudd. Food Sami Tamimi’s recipes for musabaha (warm chickpea dip) and turmeric and nigella seed flatbreads This rubbly cousin of hummus is flavourful and satisfying at any time of day, served warm, topped with a colourful salad and just made to eat with homemade flatbreads
Prefer the Guardian on Google F ew things make me happier than a bowl of warm musabaha served with freshly baked bread straight from the pan. It’s a combination that shouts comfort, generosity and the simple pleasure of sharing food. Across the Levant, musabaha is a much-loved breakfast or brunch dish, though I’d happily eat it at any time of day. Served with the buttery, soft turmeric and nigella-seed flatbreads, it becomes a meal that is nourishing, intensely satisfying and perfect for gathering family and friends around the table.
View image in fullscreen Sami Tamimi’s musabaha , or warm chickpeas with spicy cherry tomato and coriander salad. When I’m short of time but craving something nourishing, full of flavour and genuinely satisfying, I turn to murabaha time and again. Unlike hummus, the chickpeas are left whole, then gently warmed and topped with a vibrant salad of spicy cherry tomatoes, fresh coriander and good olive oil. Serve with plenty of the warm flatbreads below for scooping.
2 400g tins chickpeas , drained 3 tbsp olive oil , plus extra to drizzle 5 large garlic cloves , peeled and crushed 1 large green chilli , finely chopped seeds and all 1 tbsp ground cumin 100g tahini , plus extra to serve 120g greek-style yoghurt 3 tbsp lemon juice Salt
For the cherry tomato salad 150g cherry tomatoes ,halved 1 mini cucumber (100g), finely diced ½ red pepper (75g), finely diced 20g fresh coriander , finely chopped 2 spring onions , trimmed and very thinly sliced 1 green chilli , thinly sliced seeds and all 1 large garlic clove , peeled and crushed 2 tbsp lemon juice 1 tbsp white-wine vinegar 2 tbsp olive oil 1 tbsp sumac 1 tsp dried mint ½ tsp aleppo chilli , plus extra for sprinkling
Put the chickpeas in a medium saucepan with enough water just to cover them., put on a medium heat and bring to a simmer. Leave to cook for about five minutes, just to soften them a bit more, then drain, reserving about 300ml of the cooking liquid.
Meanwhile, put all ingredients for the cherry tomato salad in a medium bowl with half a teaspoon of salt, and mix well.
Put the oil in a medium saucepan on a medium heat. Add the garlic and cook, stirring often, for two minutes, until the garlic starts to colour, then add the chilli and cook for another minute. Add the drained chickpeas, the reserved cooking liquid, cumin, tahini, yoghurt, lemon juice and a teaspoon of salt, bring to a boil, then turn down the heat to low and simmer, stirring from time to time, for two minutes.
To serve, transfer the warm chickpeas to a large serving plate with a lip or a wide, shallow bowl. Drizzle over some tahini, then spoon the cherry tomato sala…