What's for Dinner #44 - 04/2019 - the April Flowers but no Showers Edition

Ah! Too bad. I misread that. Dinner did sound delicious!

I will! What dressing do you like?

Mmm yum! I like your style.

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Unfortunately, wasn’t.

In spite of the heavy dose of herbs and then ras el hanout, the flavour was just underwhelming. This is now two successive Claudia Roden new recipes that have failed to deliver.

There are leftovers which, with a bit of tarting up here and there, will by my lunch tomorrow. Probably feta as an addition and a good squeeze of lemon.

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Is it this recipe? Sounds like the very thing I ate a couple of times in Morocco. The broth is very rich and savoury which most probably provides all the flavour as couscous tends to be dry and bland.

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As for visiting Morocco, you can still do it but best with a tour company. It’s very common to go with tours (either in groups or private) and there are so many with different options to choose from. The main reason tours are popular is the lack of time and safety concerns.

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I misread that, too! Premature envy.

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I like them dressed like arugula, with lemon juice, olive oil, and Parmesan. I also sometimes use a sesame oil Asian-ish dressing. Snipping the leaves to separate layers makes it easier to eat raw.

Thanks for the reminder - I went to Chinatown and bought some today!

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Tonight’s dinner was fine, but I’ll probably tweak it a bit if I make it again. It was basically baked gnocchi in creamy vodka sauce with some added steamed baby spinach, basil, mozzarella and parm. It was tasty, but fairly rich. I did like the crunch on a few of the exposed gnocchi, and it makes me want to give a sheet pan gnocchi dish I saw recently a try. (on The Kitchn, I think?) We managed to pack quite a bit of it away, though, and there aren’t many leftovers.

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We have tulips, and plenty of rain, but missing the sunshine and warm part around here lately. And i am VERY ready for sunshine all the time!
I munched a few of these truly colossal olives while chopping- the garlic is fairly mild since it’s been pickled

More coleslaw practice! Added some cucumber, sunflower seeds and edamame so i could pretend it qualified as a real meal (dumb store was out of cilantro and I wasn’t going to stop at another )

Took a risk in a mini watermelon which was better than I expected!

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Rib steak cooked on cast iron skillet with medium low heat . Coarse salt and oregano tossed over it when finished cooking . I never understood the high heat sear. Comes out soft and tender. Wine to drink . Cheers . :wine_glass: The fat was fabulous.

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Yep, that’s the one. Agreed that you’d hope the broth would provide some oomph but it just didnt really.

I see a place for using an organised tour - we did that on our last trip to South Africa - but my concerns are about the general security situation in a number of countries, including Morocco, where tourists have been the target of terrorists. It’s not something I want to have at the back of my mind while I’m on holiday. And I say that as someone who lives in ametro area that has been bombed three times by terrorists (twice by the IRA and once by an Islamist)

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I stuffed the leftover smothered chicken and bourbon mushrooms into ww toasted pitas with Chang’s Ssam sauce mayo, kimchi, and spring mix. We split a pork belly bun plate out before.

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A friend of mind had a rough time while there as well

Christina M., those look like well-repurposed leftovers!

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Here’s the May thread for WFD:

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What brand are these dumplings and where did you buy them? I’d love to get some for my vegan daughter. Thanks!

I’ve been disappointed with Claudia Roden recipes more often than not. She was a real pioneer in bringing Middle Eastern recipes to English-speaking audiences decades ago, but in comparison to Ottolenghi, Paula Wolfert, and several others recently, her recipes to my taste are under seasoned and at “the lowest common denominator” for ingredients and methods.

They’re from this company, I’m in nyc so not sure where else they’re available… i get the not spicy dumplings since I’m wimpy. The noodles ones are fine, the buckwheat are tasty but i feel silly buying something so simple that i can make myself.
http://ecomealorganic.com/product/vegan-meal-gourmet-dumpling/

Nasoya started making vegan dumplings recently, the skin is a little thicker but they’re tasty and maybe easier to find
http://www.nasoya.com/healthy-tofu-products/dumplings/

And if all else fails the frozen veggie gyoza from trader joe’s are actually vegan and excellent.

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I am not well versed in her recipes, but we did like this one for meatballs in almond sauce: https://www.gastronomersguide.com/2012/02/meatballs-in-almond-sauce.html?m=1

Excellent with sour cream added for reheating.

I love these too, and I’m not vegan! I think they’re actually better than most of the meat and seafood ones.

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