<Dukkah>

For those of you who know me, you probably know I have a thing about dukkah, the Egyptian blend of nuts and spices. A few years ago it was so present on my menus at my restaurant and at home, that the Rialto staff made up a song to the tune of the 1962, Gene Chandler hit “Duke of Earl:”

♪ ♪ “du, du, du, dukkah; du, du, du, dukkah; du, du, du, dukkah; duuuu…” ♪ ♪

Every time I introduced a new menu that featured dukkah on fish or with grilled vegetables, the staff would start singing along to their own dukkah song.

Claudia Roden, the food scholar and cook book writer, is probably responsible for bringing dukkah to us from Egypt where it originated. There, she says, bread dipped in olive oil and then dukkah, is eaten for breakfast, lunch and dinner. I can understand why. It’s a magical little mix that hooks you. I’ve put it on poached eggs, on salad, on shrimp, and even on ice cream. I first came across dukkah in Boston but I’ve found it on tables from Iceland to South Africa, and I’ve heard it’s big in Australia and New Zealand--each one different from the next. Some have herbs and pepper along with nuts and spices, and others are as simple as a combination of cumin and coriander with a little salt and perhaps some sesame seeds. Mine is quite luxurious with pistachios and coconut. Make some and you’ll wonder how you ever got by without it. Keep it in a sealed jar on the table next to the salt and pepper and use it often.

Du-du-du-Dukkah Du-du-du-Dukkah

LASTS 4 weeks

Makes about 8 cups

1 cup pistachio nuts

1 cup cashew nuts

1 cup blanched almonds

1 cup hazelnuts

1 cup unsweetened, untreated, shredded coconut

1 cup coriander seeds

6 tablespoons cumin seed

1 cup sesame seeds

1 teaspoon kosher salt

½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Preheat oven to 350° F.

Chop the pistachios, cashews, almonds and hazelnut coarsely, just enough that each whole nut is in 4 about pieces. Toast the chopped nuts, and the coconut in a single layer, in five separate pans until golden brown and aromatic, about 8 minutes. Each nut will take a slightly different length of time to toast, depending on its moisture content. You can do them all on the same pan by putting them in open foil packages. As each variety is toasted, remove from the sheet pan. Allow to cool. Toss them together in a bowl. Toast the coconut in a single layer on a separate pan until golden brown and aromatic, about 6 minutes. Cool and add to the bowl with the other nuts.

While the nuts are toasting, prepare the seeds. Spread the coriander, cumin, and sesame seeds on 4 separate sheet pans and toast until golden brown and aromatic, about 3 minutes. Watch the seeds carefully. Thirty seconds of neglect can transform perfectly toasted spice seeds into a burnt mess. Allow to cool, and then put the toasted coriander seeds in a food processor and pulse to chop coarsely. Add the whole cumin and the chopped coriander seeds to the bowl with the nuts.

Transfer the mixture to the food processor in small batches. If the batches are too big, some of the mixture will be ground into a paste. Process until the mix is a coarse crushed powder. Take care not to blend too finely or the nuts will release their oils and turn to a paste.

When you’ve completed the batches, add the sesame seeds and salt and pepper to the mixture and toss well. Dukkah will keep several weeks if stored in a tightly sealed container.