Fatteh of Chickpeas (Fattet Hummus)

La storia di questo piatto

Fatteh belongs to the Levant, where bread, chickpeas and yogurt have long shared a single bowl, and this version keeps that golden layering, honest and unhurried. It is a home cook's rendition of a beloved family of dishes, not a relic: made to be shared at the table.

Ingredienti

• 3 pieces Pita bread
• 400 g Cooked chickpeas (boiled and drained)
• 500 g Full-fat Greek yogurt
• 60 g Tahini
• 3 cloves Garlic
• 2 pieces Lemon
• 80 ml Extra virgin olive oil
• 5 g Salt
• 2 g Black pepper
• 1 piece Pomegranate
• 30 g Fresh parsley
• 40 g Pine nuts
• 60 ml Lukewarm water
• 2 g Ground cumin
• 100 ml Lukewarm water to moisten the bread (or chickpea aquafaba from the jar, if available)

Preparazione

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C. Cut the pita bread into triangles and arrange them on a baking sheet. Brush the bread with 30 ml of oil (about 2 tablespoons in total): a little is enough, otherwise the bread becomes greasy instead of crisp. Bake for 8-10 minutes, until the edges are golden and the surface breaks easily under your fingers. Remove and let cool on a wire rack.
2. While the bread bakes, toast the pine nuts in a dry pan over medium heat for 2-3 minutes, stirring constantly, until golden and fragrant. Transfer them immediately to a plate to prevent burning. Drain the cooked chickpeas: if they come from a jar, collect the aquafaba in a small bowl; if you boiled them yourself, keep a ladle of the cooking water. If you have neither liquid, simply use lukewarm water, which works perfectly for moistening the bread.
3. Peel 2 garlic cloves and mince them very finely. Squeeze the 2 lemons and strain the juice. In a medium bowl, whisk the 60 g of tahini with the juice of the 2 lemons, the garlic, 3 g of salt and 1 g of cumin. Gradually add the lukewarm water (60 ml), stirring, until you obtain a smooth, pale cream. Then fold in the yogurt and blend until a homogeneous sauce forms that slowly drips from the spoon; if it is too thick, add another spoon of water. Taste and adjust with the remaining gram of salt if needed.
4. Warm the chosen liquid (aquafaba, chickpea cooking water or plain water) until lukewarm. Arrange the bread triangles on a large serving platter in a single layer, but set aside 4-5 whole triangles to serve as the crunchy crest. Moisten the rest with the warm liquid using a spoon: they should dampen slightly without falling apart. Spread about half of the sauce over the bread in an even layer.
5. Only now warm the chickpeas, so they arrive hot at assembly. Heat 30 ml of oil (2 tablespoons) in a wide pan over medium heat. Add the drained chickpeas, 1 g of cumin, 1 g of salt and a grind of black pepper (about 1 g), and stir for 3 minutes. Peel and finely mince the last garlic clove (the third), add it and cook for another 1-2 minutes, until fragrant but not coloured. Turn off the heat.
6. Immediately spread the still-warm chickpeas over the sauce and cover with the remaining sauce, leaving some chickpeas uncovered here and there. Separate the pomegranate seeds and scatter them over the dish, add the toasted pine nuts and chopped parsley, the remaining ground black pepper (about 1 g) and 20 ml of extra virgin olive oil drizzled in a spiral. Stick the reserved toasted bread triangles on top and serve immediately: the triangles on top stay crunchy, while the bread underneath softens slowly, layer by layer.