Green Olive Breadsticks with Aubergine Dip

Recipe

Homemade green olive breadsticks with seasoned baba ganoush.

Serves: 8 people   |   Prep time: 40 minutes   |   Cooking time: 60 minutes

Greek   |   Snack   |   Dairy   |   Vegetarian   |   Vegan

  

Ingredients

For the breadsticks:

  • 400g Plain Flour
  • 7g sachet Dried Yeast
  • 240ml warm Water
  • 10g Caster Sugar
  • 40ml Olive Oil
  • ½ tsp Garlic Granules
  • 100g Green Olives
  • Sea Salt and Black Pepper

For the dip (baba ganoush):

  • 2 Aubergines
  • 100ml Olive Oil
  • 400g tin Chickpeas
  • 2 cloves Garlic
  • Juice ½ Lemon
  • 1 heaped tsp Smoked Paprika
  • 1 heaped tsp Ground Cumin
  • Big pinch of Chilli Powder
  • Sea Salt and Black Pepper

  

Method

Make the breadsticks

  1. Put the yeast in a small bowl with the caster sugar and 120ml of the warm water. Stir well and leave for 5 minutes until it starts bubbling.
  2. Put the flour into a food processor with the garlic granules and season with some salt and black pepper. Cut the olives in half and put into the flour. Blitz for a minute to chop the olives.
  3. Put the flour in a large bowl along with the yeast mixture, olive oil and the remaining warm water. With your hands, mix to a soft dough.
  4. Transfer to a floured work surface and knead for 5 minutes.
  5. Put the dough into a clean bowl somewhere warm and cover. Leave for 40 minutes to prove.
  6. Once it has risen, tip onto the work surface, then knock back and knead for a couple of minutes.
  7. Take balls of the dough – about 60g – and roll out to a thin sausage shape, about 30cm long.
  8. Put onto greased baking sheets and bake at 200°C/Gas Mark 6 for 15 minutes.

Make the dip (baba ganoush)

  1. Pre-heat the oven to 220°C/Gas Mark 7.
  2. Put the aubergines in a baking dish, slit the skin a couple of times, drizzle over 15ml oil and bake in the oven for 45 minutes until blackened, soft and collapsed.
  3. Drain the chickpeas – keep the liquid to use in other recipes. With a paper cloth, dry off the chickpeas.
  4. Peel and mince the garlic.
  5. Allow the aubergine to cool a little, then scoop out the centre, discarding the skin.
  6. Put the aubergine flesh into a food processor along with the chickpeas, garlic, paprika, chilli powder, lemon juice and the cumin. Blitz for a few minutes then gradually add the remaining oil in a thin stream as you continue to blend.
  7. Season with some salt and black pepper.