Harters
(John Hartley - a culinary patriot, cooking and eating in northwest England)
543
Like Websters Dictionary, we’re Morocco bound this evening
A Claudia Roden recipe that is barely a recipe at all. Couscous with spring vegetables. Couscous warmed through in the “usual way” with oil drizzled through at the end. I’ll be adding a tabelspoon of ras el hanout (not in the recipe). Separately, a broth is made simply from bouillon powder. That cooks broad beans, spring onion, peas and tinned artichokes - easy peasy (open bags of veg in freezer, open tin of artichokes, chop onions). Veg are drained and go on top of the couscous. Broth has chopped coriander, parsley and mint added and is served alongside everything else. C’est tout.
Ah! Too bad. I misread that. Dinner did sound delicious!
ChristinaM
(Hungry in Asheville, NC (still plenty to offer tourists post Hurricane))
547
I will! What dressing do you like?
ChristinaM
(Hungry in Asheville, NC (still plenty to offer tourists post Hurricane))
548
Mmm yum! I like your style.
1 Like
Harters
(John Hartley - a culinary patriot, cooking and eating in northwest England)
549
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.
2 Likes
Presunto
(--> Back in Athens - Goat's/Sheep's Yoghurt every day ... [Fleeced Taxpayer :@)) :@)) ])
550
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.
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.
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!
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.
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 )
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 . The fat was fabulous.
4 Likes
Harters
(John Hartley - a culinary patriot, cooking and eating in northwest England)
556
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)
3 Likes
ChristinaM
(Hungry in Asheville, NC (still plenty to offer tourists post Hurricane))
557
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.
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.
The fat was fabulous.
