I love the chaos of a mezze spread. All those little bowls and plates covering every inch of the table, no real order to any of it, everyone just diving in wherever something catches their eye.
For me, a mezze dish has to be completely self-contained - fully flavoured and ready to go without needing anything else to make sense. More like a canapé in concept than a main or a side. It should work perfectly scooped up with bread, dipped into with whatever vegetables cut into smart batons, or just eaten straight from the bowl.
Colour matters as much as flavour. A proper mezze spread should look abundant and a bit chaotic - deep reds next to bright greens, creamy whites (my skordalia) against bright purples (the beetroot and fennel dip). You want people to be drawn in before they even start tasting.
It keeps on giving - you can carry on grazing for hours, and it's happy hot, cold or at room temperature. Nobody gets trapped by anything. You can try the intense, salty anchovy dish, decide it's not happening for you tonight, and wander off to something gentler.
Take today's two mezze. The charred peppers with anchovies are assertive, the artichoke and pea dip is the opposite: approachable and easy. Both work together on the table, and exactly how mezze should - complete in themselves, ready for whatever bread or vegetables you want to dip.
Put them both out with last week's beetroot dip and garlicky skordalia if you're feeding a crowd this weekend. I always underestimate how much bread people will demolish - learn from my mistakes!
Pea and artichoke dip with pickled onions
The pickled onions are the star here - sharp and sweet, cutting through the creamy pea and artichoke base. Make them the day before if you can; they only get better with time. The recipe makes more than you need, but they're brilliant in sandwiches. Add a sliced green chilli to the pickle if you want some heat.
You can make the dip a day ahead too. Just bring it back to room temperature before serving. Serve with plenty of pitta or lavosh.
Charred Romano peppers with anchovies and pearl onions
