Lamb and Prune Tagine

In Morocco you will find two principle dishes, couscous and tagine. Tagines are slow cooked for at least two hours sometimes more. You will find them lined up outside of restaurants and cafes cooking away with delicious smells wafting into the air. The recipe I have included here is for a tagine sweetened by prunes and garnished with sesame seeds and almonds. In Morocco there is a special tagine pot used specifically for cooking these. Of course I do not expect you to own one, and it is not necessary. It is possible to cook it in a large pan or pot (cast iron works well). Be sure to check my learning from the locals section where you will find my story on cooking in Morocco.

(At home I cooked it in a cast iron pot in substitution of a tagine pot)

Ingredients
2 pounds lamb chops
1 large white onion (diced)
4 cloves garlic (minced)
1 teaspoon fresh ginger (minced)
1 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
2 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon cinnamon
One pinch saffron (about 5 threads)
One preserved lemon or one lemon juiced with 2 teaspoons of zest
1 ½ cups dried prunes
3 tablespoons olive oil
½ cup chopped coriander (cilantro)
Half a cup whole blanched almonds (or almond slices)
2 tablespoons sesame seeds

Method
In a large pot or pan, arrange the lamb chops so that each one is laying flat on the bottom. Add in the all the ingredients starting with the onion and up until the almonds. These ingredients do not need to be stirred, just simply arrange and sprinkle everything on top of the lamb. Leave the sesame seeds for garnish. Cover the pot with a lid and cook on a medium low heat for 2-3 hours. Make sure to cook it with the lid on and only remove it to check the progress. The finished product should be a juicy tender meat with a sweet soupy sauce. Serve with bread (preferably flat bread).

(This photo was taken at my cooking class in Morocco)

Savory summer pesto Crêpe

It’s hard not to like crêpes when really you can put anything inside of them. There are both sweet and savory crêpes and depending on which type you are making the batter should be made slightly different. In this recipe I made a savory crêpe and gave it a twist by adding Herbs of Provence to the batter. Traditionally savory crêpes are made with buckwheat flour, sadly I did not have any available so I substituted whole wheat flour. The result was a delicious crêpe.

Ingredients

2 large eggs

3/4 cup milk

1/2 cup water

1 cup flour (whole wheat or buckwheat)

3 tablespoons melted butter

2 teaspoons Herbs of Provence (Rosemary, thyme, dried basil, sage)

¼ teaspoon salt

Butter or oil, for coating the pan

Toppings

One slice of Swiss cheese

Two slices of turkey

Sautéed asparagus

Fresh baby spinach

Summer cherry tomatoes 

Pesto

Method

In a mixing bowl whisk together all the ingredients until completely smooth without any lumps.

Heat a medium/large sauce pan and grease with butter or oil. Pour in half a cup to three fourths a cup of batter (depending on the size of your pan). Use the handle to rotate the pan in a circular motion, evenly distributing the batter to leave a thin pancake for the crêpe.  On a medium heat cook the crêpe until bubbles begin to rise, at this point you will need to flip the crêpe by using a spatula. Once the crêpe is flipped you may add your desired toppings and let cook for a minute or so more.

Enjoy!

Homemade Pizza

Margarita  Pizza (Basil and Buffalo mozzarella cheese) 

This past May I went to Florence Italy where I took a cooking class on how to make Pizza and gelato. I had made quite a few pizzas before this trip but had never mastered the crust. I decided I needed some professional Italian help and found it at the cooking courses In Travola (www.intravola.org) .

How to make a good Crust

It is very important that you give yourself plenty of time for the dough to rise (at least 4 hours for the complete process).

Ingredients

4 cups flour

½ a teaspoon dry active yeast

1 ½ plus two tablespoons water

2 teaspoons salt

2 teaspoons sugar

2 tablespoons olive oil

Method

Begin by placing the flour into a large mixing bowl, create a well in the mound of flour and add the yeast and sugar with a few tablespoons of warm water into the well (by using warm water this helps to activate the yeast). Start to mix adding the water slowly (make sure the water is either slightly warm or at room temperature). Add the salt and oil towards the end because the salt will kill the yeast if added too early. Continue kneading the dough for ten minutes. You should have smooth dough at the end.

Form the dough into a ball and place it back into the bowl with a damp dish towel covering the top to retain heat and moisture. You should place this bowl in a warm place for at least three hours, I tend to heat my oven on the lowest temperature then switch it off and let the dough sit inside. My instructor in Italy told the class that his mom likes to put the pizza dough at the foot of the bed under all the covers to keep it warm, so really whatever works for you.

After about three hours your dough should have risen to at least twice its original size, take it out and punch it down. Leave the dough to rise one hour more after this.

If you make the dough the day before you would like to use it you may store it in the fridge overnight, just make sure it is wrapped well in plastic so it does not dry out.

Sauce

500g canned peeled whole tomatoes (drained slightly)

Two cloves garlic finely chopped

One tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

1 ½ teaspoons oregano

Salt and pepper to taste

Method

In a sauce pan sauté the garlic in the olive oil, then add the tomatoes, oregano and salt and pepper. Let the mix simmer for about ten minutes, then using a hand blender purée the mix to create a nice pizza sauce.

Putting it all together

Preheat your oven to 450F-500F depending on the thickness of your pizza crust (for thin crust a high temperature is fine, also if you have a pizza stone your pizza will cook faster).

Divide your pizza dough into two or three balls depending on your preferred thickness of crust. Gently using your hands work the pizza dough into a round. Oil the crust slightly to prevent burning. Then add the sauce and cheese and your preferred toppings. For an Amazing Italian style pizza, only use fresh buffalo mozzarella cheese and not the processed type. 

Caramelized red onions with buffalo mozzarella and blue cheese.

                                                                      Buon Appetito!