Sumptuous Organic Veggie Tapas

By Chantal Payette, recipes & food styling: prop stylist, Paige Weir

Photos By Paula Wilson

Tapas are fresh from the cultural corners of the city and the organic farms that surround, these easy to prepare feasts for the summer months will delight every palate.

Tapas is a very popular part of Spanish cuisine. It’s a way of eating food and it basically means serving the meals in small portions. Tapas are traditional Spanish snacks or appetizers, usually served before the main course, but they can also be combined in order to create a full meal.

Spanish people usually go ‘bar hopping’ and they serve tapas sometime between lunch and dinner or during the weekends, as a snack. In the old times, tapas meant free, small portions of food that you would receive when you ordered something to drink, but over time it transformed into a famous way of serving appetizers.

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Recipes

Nut Cheese, Pistachio & Honey Stuffed Figs
  •  ½ cup macadamia nut cheese 1 tsp. extra virgin olive oil
  • 1/8 tsp. salt
  • 1/8 tsp. pepper
  • 8 figs
  • Date honey
  • 2 tbsp. chopped pistachios

 

INSTRUCTIONS

  1. In a bowl, combine cheese, olive oil, salt and pepper.
  2. Mix until soft and well blended.
  3. Fill piping bag with cheese mixture.
  4. Slice the top of the figs to make a cross.
  5. Ensure you keep the whole fig intact.
  6. Gently pipe the cheese mixture into the figs and place on serving platter.
spice olive tapas
Spicy Olives

INGREDIENTS

  • 1 lb. olives of your choice, such as Kalamata or Spanish olives
  • 2 tbsp. Harissa paste
  • ½ lemon sliced, thick zest reserved
Vegetable salad tapas

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Wild Rice & Sweet Potato Salad

INGREDIENTS

  • Measure 1 cup wild rice, and add to 3 cups boiling water. Simmer till tender.
  • ½ cup quinoa, cook to directions
  • 2 cups butternut squash, cubed
  • 1 red pepper, diced
  • 3 tbsp. olive oil
  • ½ red onion, sliced thin
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • ½ tsp. ground coriander
  • ½ tsp. ground cumin
  • ¼ tsp. ground black pepper
  • ¼ tsp. allspice
  • 1/8 tsp. ground cinnamon
  • 1 pint cherry tomatoes, sliced in half
  • 2 cups arugula
  • 2/3 cup pomegranate seeds

INSTRUCTIONS

  1. Preheat oven to 400F.
  2. In a large bowl, toss squash and red pepper.
  3. Roast for 15 minutes.
  4. Set aside. In a hot sauté pan, add 1 tbsp. olive oil.
  5. Cook red onion, garlic, coriander, cumin, pepper, allspice and cinnamon together until golden and fragrant.
  6. Set aside. In a large bowl, combine all the ingredients and mix.

Rice Salad Dressing

INGREDIENTS

  • 4 tbsp. olive oil
  • 1 tbsp. lemon juice
  • 1 ½ tbsp. Tahini

Vegetable Salad Dressing

INGREDIENTS

  • 5 tbsp. olive oil
  • 2 tbsp. lemon juice
  • 1/8 tsp. salt

Salad

INGREDIENTS

  • 4 mini cucumbers, chopped
  • 5 radishes, sliced thin
  • 1 lb. mixed grape tomatoes
  • 8 sprigs flat parsley, rough chopped

INSTRUCTIONS

  1. Combine all the ingredients in a bowl.
  2. Toss gently and serve.
roast carrot tapas

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Cumin & Honey Roasted Carrots

INGREDIENTS

  • 1 lb. peeled carrots, sliced lengthwise
  • ¼ cup avocado oil
  • ¼ tsp. cumin
  • 1 lemon, juiced
  • 2 tbsp. honey
  • 1/8 tsp. salt
  • 1/8 tsp. pepper
  • 2 tbsp. chopped mint
  • 1/3 cup crumbled feta (or vegan sub)

INSTRUCTIONS

  1. Preheat oven to 400F.
  2. In a large bowl, mix carrots, olive oil, cumin, lemon juice, honey, salt and pepper.
  3. Bake in medium sized pan for 20 minutes.
  4. Serve on a platter, and garnish with chopped mint and crumbled feta.

Orange tapas 

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Mint, Orange & Honey Tasters

INGREDIENTS

  • 2 sliced oranges
  • 1/3 cup honey
  • 1/3 cup chiffonade mint

INSTRUCTIONS

Arrange sliced oranges on a plate and drizzle with honey and mint.

stuffed date tapas

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Cashew, Cinnamon, Honey Stuffed Dates

INGREDIENTS

  • 16 pitted dates
  • 1/3 cup cashew cheese
  • 1/8 tsp. cinnamon
  • 1/8 tsp. allspice
  • 1/8 tsp. cardamom
  • 2 tbsp. chopped walnuts
  • 1 tbsp. honey

INSTRUCTIONS

  1. Slice dates in half. In a small bowl combine cashew cheese, cinnamon, allspice, and cardamom.
  2. Mix well, and put in piping bag.
  3. Pipe cashew cheese into dates, and top with chopped walnuts and drizzled honey.

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