Croissants with Za'atar

Today I should be posting about yesterday's fabulous and inspiring first ever Boston Book Festival. And I will, but it needs to sink into my brain further and distill a bit longer.

Meanwhile, all I can think about is croissants with za'atar. Flash back to a trip to Saudi Arabia with photographer Nicole LeCorgne in 2006, while we were on assignment for Saudi Aramco World Magazine. We usually had breakfast in our hotel room so we could eat while getting ready and checking e-mail. We fell in love with the exquisite combination of croissants filled with za'atar that had been moistened with olive oil. It came as part of the 'oriental breakfast' - consisting of these croissants, sometimes mana'ish (za'atar on flat bread), as well as a salad of cucumber, tomatoes and olive oil. Of course very fresh orange juice and marvelous coffee.

Za'atar is a combination of wild thyme, sesame seeds, salt and sour ground sumac. You can buy it in Middle Eastern delis. It has a lemony and spicy taste that makes your tongue squirm with delight. And with the delicate pastry layers of a buttery croissant, it's pure heaven, especially if you wash it down with a sip of Arabic coffee.

To replicate the experience, buy the inexpensive Pillsbury croissants in the tube in the grocery store. Mix up some za'atar and olive oil in a bowl, probably three tablespoons each. Then put a generous dab of the mixure on the wide end of each croissant before rolling it up. Ten minutes later, voila, your taste buds are doing a riotous dabke dance. You can also add za'atar and olive oil to popovers.