These mix of spices is well known in Middle East, and parts of Turkey that is close to Middle East. Its name literally means “thyme” and thyme has the most dominant smell among many ingredients mixed.

Amon many uses of this mix, the one I am used to goes like that: take a piece of bread, dip it into olive oil and later dip into za’atar. In my childhood memories, we had za’atar on every breakfast table. It seems like in those days the only worry we had was to decide between the choice of olive oils to dip in; the green olives in lemon squeezed olive oil or the one in the black olive cup.

You can see some other recipes calling for za’atar every now and then. Nigella Lawson, in her “Forever Summer”, uses it in two different ways; sprinkling over olive oil drizzled pita bread or as a chicken coating. Both ways create a delicious result. Every Middle Eastern knows that..

This za’atar recipe is just to give you an idea of what goes in there (at least the way I know) and what the suggested proportions are. Once you start tasting it, you would know what to add into the mix and develop your own za-atar to enjoy. Below you see two versions in our kitchen: the one on the left is what I have made, the other one is made by my aunt. Both taste similar but very different in color. My only explanation for this is the color of watermelon seeds used.

• 2.5 oz (~75 gr) roasted chickpeas (available in Middle Eastern stores)
• 2 oz (~ 50 gr) watermelon seeds (again from Middle Eastern stores or your own watermelons. If not, you can omit this)
• 2 oz ( ~ 50 gr) unsalted roasted peanuts
• 4 Tbs thyme
• 1 tsp sesame seeds
• 2 tsp cumin
• 1 tsp red pepper flakes (or less!)
• 2 Tbs sumac

All you have to do is to mix these ingredients in a food processor and voila! If using the watermelon seeds, make sure to grind them well. You can also run the mix through a strainer if it comes to that. If you like, spoon in a tablespoon of sesame seeds and mix with a spoon — looks nicer :) Keeps in a dry, air tight container a long time.

In my previous post I mentioned the type of rolling pins that are quite common in Turkey. They, called oklava, are really skinny (~ 2cm or 0.80 inches in diameter) and perfect for the people who likes to touch the dough when the recipe allows for it. :)

Rolling a thin dough is quite a challenge but I think these type of rolling pins make the task easier as one can wrap the dough around it and when you press hard on it, many of the layers wrapped around would benefit from the power you put in.

I have never seen any rolling pins that small in diameter sold in the U.S. Most of the straight French rolling pins have thickier diameter. But if you are interested in getting one like I have at home, you can pay a visit to your local hardware store, buy a 0.80inch diameter dowel, sand it down to make sure it is smooth and have yourself a nice, thin rolling pin!

The one I own (actually given to me by my aunt) is 50cm (~ 20inches) long but these are known to be the shorties. I think the original is about a yard long.

I prefer my rolling pin with the handles for the pies or tarts as you do not want to transfer your hand’s heat to the dough. Similar to white wine, long stem glasses I suppose.

And the other one in the picture is what is known as a tapered French rolling pin. Since it is acquired recently I do not have too much experience with it. But I can tell you that it is not as easy to handle as my original Turkish one!