Turkish Red Pepper Dip

(Kırmızı Biber Ezmesi)

1 red pepper, roasted, peeled and finely chopped with knife
1/2 cup Turkish yogurt
3/4 tbsp red pepper paste*
1/4 tbsp red pepper paste*, hot
1-2 garlic clove, mashed with salt
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
Salt
1 tbsp walnuts, crumbled, optional

Mix all the ingredients and place in a bowl. Sprinkle some crumbled walnuts over the top. Serve with toasted Turkish pide or bread slices.

*I would suggest you use Mis-Gaziantep Home Style Red Pepper Paste (Mis, Kırmızı Biber Salçası-Gaziantep Yoresi Vakumlu Ev Tipi). You can find it at tulumba.com which is on line Turkish store.

Roasted Red Pepper:

Cut off the tops of the red peppers. Discard the seeds. Cut each pepper in half. Set the oven to broil (grill), and heat it up. Place the red peppers on an oven tray (inside facing down) and place in the oven. Roast them for about 15 minutes. Leave them in a paper or plastic bag for about 10 minutes to peel off the skin easily. Alternatively, you can barbecue it until softened. Just place the red peppers out side facing down on the barbecue.