Two summers ago, I was living in Chicago for a couple of months when a friend came to visit. Through some hard-core restaurant searching, we ended up going to Ema, a California-inspired Middle-Eastern restaurant, for brunch. It was great – everything tasted fresh and it was the perfect combination of doughy breakfast foods and light hummus and labneh served with fresh pita. (Not sure how this turned into a restaurant review, but here we are – if you’re in Chicago, the brunch is worth it.)

This recipe comes from Ema. I have to admit that the first time I made it I was disappointed. Although the recipe I found online calls for 4 teaspoons of salt (which has to be an error), I added only one – and even with that reduction I thought it was so salty it was on the verge of being inedible. However, the next day I tried it again and it miraculously tasted great. Here’s a slightly revised version, to be eaten with vegetables or on toast.