Mediterranean Mezze Platter

Family-FriendlyQuick and EasyMediterraneanHealthy

A mezze platter is an easy, fun, and family-friendly dinner! Use the ingredients listed as a starting point, with room to swap in other dips, vegetables, or fruits depending on what’s in season and what you have on hand.

If you think the colorful snack board suppers flooding Instagram and Pinterest are new on the scene, think again. Folks throughout the Mediterranean and Middle East have been doing these snacky set-ups for generations, only they call it mezze.

That’s right—what tapas are to Spain (and snack boards are to Instagram), mezze is to places like Greece, Turkey, North Africa, and parts of the Middle East.

What is a Mezze Platter?

Mezze (or meze) is an assortment of small dishes eaten as appetizers or a light meal. Its contents vary by region, but the concept of grazing on a board filled with savory goodies remains the same.

Dips and spreads, such as hummus, yogurt, and baba ganoush are commonplace. You might also find muhammara, a red pepper and walnut spread that’s packed with flavor without being too spicy. Some type of bread, such as pita or lavash, is standard, along with things like olives, cheeses, tabbouleh, fresh and pickled vegetables, and fruits.

How to Make a Mezze Platter at Home

If this all sounds too exotic, not to worry. It’s easy to assemble a mezze platter at home using ordinary supermarket ingredients. I aim for a combination of flavors and textures: creamy, crunchy, fresh, pickled, dried, savory, and sweet.

My general rules of thumb, depending on how many people you’re serving, is to have two to three dips or spreads, one cheese, a few fresh vegetables, one to two pickled items, fresh or dried fruit (or both), and bread. Here’s a step-by-step:

1. Start with couple of spreads, such as hummus, baba ganoush, yogurt, and muhammara. You can make your own or find store-bought options.
2. Add a favorite cheese. Feta is widely available and tasty with a drizzle of olive oil and a pinch of fresh or dried herbs.
3. Include flavorful olives or another pickled vegetable, such as artichoke hearts or peppers.
4. Cut up raw vegetables that are good for dipping, such as cucumbers, cherry tomatoes, carrots, fennel, and radishes.
5. Include a suitable bread to scoop up all the goodies, such as pita or lavash. These are delicious when lightly brushed with olive oil and either warmed in the oven or on a grill.
6. Add dried fruits, such as dates, figs, or apricots, or fresh fruits, such as grapes, melon, or pears.
7. Set out a stack of napkins to manage messy hands.

Mezze Short Cuts

The beauty of mezze is that there is no exact formula for what goes on your platter, in what ratio, and how much. Anything goes, if you ask me. You can do it all 100 percent yourself, right down to the homemade yogurt, if that’s your jam.

I usually make a dip or two myself and then fill in with store-bought items. Hummus is widely available in grocery stores. You might also find other suitable spreads, such as tapenade or baba ganoush. Hit the olive bar at Sprouts or Whole Foods for pickled goodies and pick up pre-cut veggies or baby carrots to save even more time.

These are just ideas to get you started. You can always fling open the refrigerator and start foraging for little bits of this and that. It’s an excellent way to clean out the fridge!

Make Ahead Tips and Serving Suggestions

Mezze is a great make-ahead meal, since you can assemble and refrigerate most everything well before serving. It’s suitable for a family dinner or to serve company.

This muhammara keeps beautifully for up to a week in the refrigerator. I’d suggest you pull everything from the fridge a good 30 minutes before serving, so it comes a little closer to room temp.

Last minute touches are just a matter of pulling out your prettiest platter and piling everything on. Items such as dips, spreads, olives, and feta might do best in small dishes or ramekins. Bread, vegetables, and fruits can fill in right on your platter.

Try These Other Favorite Greek Foods!

• Moussaka
• Lemon Chicken Skewers with Tzatziki Sauce
• Spanakopita
• Baked Shrimp in Tomato Feta Sauce
• Greek Meatballs

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Mediterranean Mezze Platter Recipe

• Prep time: 20 minutes
• Yield: 4 servings

Mezze is basically a party on a platter. It’s easy enough for a weeknight dinner, but festive enough to serve special guests. Use the ingredients listed as a starting point with room to swap in other dips, vegetables, or fruits depending on what’s in season and what you have on hand. Scale the amounts up or down depending on how many are seated at your table.

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup kalamata or other flavorful olives
• 1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt stirred with a pinch of salt and drizzle of olive oil
• 1 cup hummus (homemade or store-bought)
• 1 cup Easy Muhammara
• 2/3 of an English cucumber, sliced
• 1 cup cherry tomatoes
• 1 large carrot, cut on the diagonal into slices
• A small bunch of grapes
• 4 ounces feta cheese, broken into pieces, lightly drizzled with olive oil and a pinch of herbs
• 3 pita breads, quartered, brushed lightly with olive oil, and warmed in the oven

Method

1 Assemble the mezze platter: Set out a large platter or generous cutting board. Put the olives, yogurt, hummus, and muhammara in small dishes and add to the platter. Arrange the cucumber, tomatoes, carrots, grapes, and feta on the platter. Fill in with the warm pita just before serving.

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Katie Morford

Katie Morford is a writer, registered dietitian, and cookbook author. She has written three cookbooks: PREP: The Essential College Cookbook, Rise & Shine: Better Breakfasts for Busy Mornings and Best Lunch Box Ever, which was nominated for an IACP award. Her work has been featured in Family Circle, Better Homes and Gardens, Health, Real Simple, Oprah, Parents, Self, the San Francisco Chronicle, and the New York Times, among others. Katie lives in San Francisco with her husband and three daughters.

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