moghrabieh

Moghrabieh is technically Lebanese couscous.

All couscous are made from semolina flour although the most common form is tiny and fluffy, serving the same purpose as rice in North African cuisine.

Israeli couscous is a medium sized couscous that is eaten much like pasta and is added to stews or salads and moghrabieh is the gorgeous large couscous that is most commonly eaten like pasta. I adore it.

I highly recommend moghrabieh, and it can be eaten with vegetables, meat or cooked in soups. It’s very versatile and delicious.

Moghrabieh
 
Recipe from Taking Tea in the Medina by Julie Le Clerc. Serves 2-3 as main.

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 small onion, finely diced
1½ cups moghrabieh
4 cups stock (vegetable or chicken)
15g butter
2 cloves garlic, crushed
Zest of 1 lemon
Juice of 2 lemons
Salt & pepper to taste
¼ cup finely chopped fresh parsley
¼ cup finely chopped fresh coriander
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh mint

Method:
1. Heat olive oil in a large saucepan and sauté onions and garlic until soft but not browned.
2. Boil water in a large saucepan. Cook moghrabieh for 5 minutes then drain.
3. Add moghrabieh to onion mixture, add stock and bring to the boil.
4. Reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes, stirring regularly. The moghrabieh should become tender and most of the liquid should be absorbed.
5. Stir through butter, herbs, lemon zest and juice. Serve.

Variations:
I added 10-15 chilli threads.
You could add chunks of poached chicken or strips of grilled zucchini to bulk out the meal.

I added the pretty, vibrantly coloured chilli threads which are apparently the filaments of a chilli plant (the part of the stamen that supports the anther). Since I’m not very familiar with chilli plants I don’t know whether this is true or not but they look like dried stamens so it sounds plausible.

They are not very spicy, but they do add a very mild heat and at least a little chilli flavour.

This is my contribution to Presto Pasta Nights, hosted every Friday by the lovely Ruth of Once Upon A Feast.

Tags: morsels and musings food blog food and drink australia recipes main course moghrabieh pasta vegetarian recipes presto pasta nights moghrabieh recipes pasta recipes lebanese recipes lebanese food lebanese cuisine

omani spiced tuna

This is one of the most simplest and delicious dishes I have made in a long time.

It's got all the elements I crave: raw fish, fresh herbs, acidic citrus and spices.

You could serve it with rice, a fresh salad, spiced cous cous or even a few slices of avocado.

Hmmmm. I want some more right now!

Omani Spiced Tuna
Anna’s adaptation of a recipe from Julie le Clerc’s Taking Tea in the Medina. Serves 4.
Ingredients:
4 x 150g portions of tuna (preferably the thick, tail end)
½ teaspoon chilli flakes
½ teaspoon ground coriander seeds
1 teaspoon ground paprika
Juice of 2 limes
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons chopped fresh coriander
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
1 tablespoon chopped fresh mint
Salt & pepper
Methods:
1. Combine the spices, lime juice and olive oil. Whisk to combine
2. Coat tuna then marinate in a deep, flat, ceramic dish for 2 hours in the fridge.
3. Bring to room temperature and season with salt and pepper.
4. Sear tuna 2 minutes on each side so edges are pale but centre is still rare.
5. Roll in fresh coriander and serve with lime wedges.


It's a brilliant dish but it uses herbs I've covered off many times before, so no long explanation of origins, uses and etymologies I'm afraid.

This week herb blogging is being hosted by Susan from The Well Seasoned Cook, so why not head over to her blog and read over the recap instead.

Tags: morsels and musings food blog food and drink australia recipes weekend herb blogging whb main course entrée starter fish recipes seafood recipes tuna recipes middle eastern recipes middle eastern food middle eastern cuisine omani recipes omani food omani cuisine

walnut & pomegranate spatchcock

This will be my last WHB for a few weeks, since I’m headed overseas for work. Between all the hard sell I’m sure I’ll have some time for new culinary experiences and cultural exchanges in my two destinations: Frankfurt and Tel Aviv.

I’m hoping to visit some produce markets, try out some traditional cuisine and see the sights in amongst the work.

So I leave you with this WHB entry, which is one of the finest meals I have ever cooked: Khoresht-e Fesenjân.

It comes straight from Julie Le Clerc’s Taking Tea in the Medina, a beautifully photographed and wonderfully written cookbook containing dishes from North Africa and the Middle East and combining commentary on culture and cooking.

Le Clerc explains that fesenjân is an ancient Persian dish, still widely eaten in Iran today where it is served at all religious festivals. It can be made with duck, chicken, lamb or veal and even fish and ground meat.

The ground walnuts bring a richness to the gravy that makes you believe there is cream in the recipe and the pomegranate molasses adds a sweet-sour quality.

The ingredients and combination sounds incredibly exotic, and the flavour is very unique, however the recipe is remarkably simple. I would recommend this to anyone wanting wow factor for a dinner party, since it’s so easy to make and can be done so in advance and just reheated.

I served mine with wilted spinach dressed in olive oil and lemon juice and plain long grained rice. The spinach was delicious and cooking it involves merely boiling a kettle! For dessert I served my Muhallabiah Mousse with Pomegranate & Orange Blossom Syrup.

~~~

Le Clerc’s original recipe is for duck, however my butcher didn't have any and so I used a beautiful organic spatchcock instead (a spatchcock is a baby chicken or poussin). This changed the recipe somewhat, since a spatchcock contains considerably less fat than a duck and therefore needs a little oil added.

The below recipe is my ever-so-slightly amended version, which is pretty much the same as the original, so if you wanted to use duck just substitute 6 whole legs and omit the browning oil.

Khoresht-e Fesenjân
Recipe from Taking Tea in the Medina by Julie Le Clerc. Serves 6.
Ingredients:
3 spatchcocks, cut in half lengthwise
250g toasted walnut pieces
1 large onion, finely diced
1 tablespoon cinnamon
3 tablespoons soft brown sugar
¼ cup pomegranate molasses
2½ cups chicken stock
Seeds of 1 pomegranate to garnish
¼ cup finely chopped fresh mint to garnish
4 tablespoons olive oil
Method:
1. Finely grind walnuts in a food processor.
2. Season meat with salt and pepper.
3. Using a flameproof casserole dish with lid, heat olive oil then brown chicken skin side down for approximately 5 minutes on each side. Remove to one side.
4. Pour off excess fat and retain 2 tablespoons. Add onion and cook over a medium heat for 5-10 minutes until softened and golden brown.
5. Add cinnamon, sugar and ground walnuts and cook for 1 minute stirring continuously as the sugar melts.
6. Add pomegranate molasses and chicken stock and bring to the boil.
7. Add chicken and baste with sauce. turn down heat, cover and simmer gently for 1¼ hours (I actually simmer it for around 25-30 minutes then removed the chicken and cooked the sauce another 20 minutes).
8. Serve coated in sauce and garnished with pomegranate seeds and chopped mint.
Note: if you are cooking duck, be sure to skim off any excess fat that rises to the surface during cooking.


Wilted Spinach w Lemon & Olive Oil
Anna's very own recipe. Serves 2.
Ingredients:
200g baby spinach leaves
Juice of 1 lemon
1 tablespoon olive oil
Salt & Pepper
Method:
1. Boil kettle. Place spinach into a pot or heatproof bowl
2. Cover with boiled water. Leave 2 minutes to wilt.
3. Drain and squeeze out excess water with hands.
4. Loosen leaves and dress with olive oil, lemon juice, salt & pepper.

Pomegranates are wonderful fruits, and although I used the products in both sauce and garnish, I have already blogged about them so I decided to focus on mint instead.

Mint (Mentha) is a genus of the Lamiaceae family and is made up of around 30 species (7 from Australia, 1 from North America, the rest from Europe and Asia). The Lamiaceae family also includes other herbs like basil, rosemary, sage and oregano.

They are flowering, aromatic perennials with wide spreading roots and hardy abilities to withstand all kinds of conditions. They are also very vigoruous growers, so be careful when planting them in the ground as they can go nuts and take over your whole garden!

It’s interesting to note that mint oil can used as an insecticide and can kill wasps, hornets, ants and cockroaches. It can also relieve insect bites.

Mint is particularly useful in the treatment of digestive and breathing ailments. Menthol inhalants help to reduce sinus congestion and a nip of diluted peppermint oil can relieve heartburn symptoms.

In the Middle Ages people used mint to whiten their teeth and cigarette companies add it to their products to mask the bitter chemicals in the tobacco.

The week’s Weekend Herb Blogging is hosted by Sher from What Did You Eat? Be sure to visit her recap to read about the other herby offerings from this week.


References:
http://www.gardenguides.com/plants/info/herbs/mint.asp
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mint

Tags: morsels and musings food blog food and drink australia recipes weekend herb blogging whb main walnut sauce spatchcock poussin chicken walnuts pomegranate molasses mint khoresht-e fesenjân khoresht fesenjân persian recipes persian food persian cuisine iranian recipes iranian food iranian cuisine middle eastern recipes middle eastern food middle eastern cuisine spatchcock recipes poussin recipes chicken recipes poultry recipes lemon spinach side dish

muhallabiah mousse w pomegranate & orange blossom syrup

Hay! Hay! It’s Donna Day! has rolled around again and though I’ve only ever participated once before, I finally feel like my latest invention is worth contributing.

This month’s theme, hosted by Helene from Tartelette, is mousse.

On the weekend I was inspired by my wonderful new cookbook by Julie Le Clerc, Taking Tea in the Medina, and so invented my own little mousse: Muhallabiah Mousse w Pomegranate & Orange Blossom Syrup.

The mousse is flavoured with almonds and sweetened with white chocolate, then the finish product is topped with a refreshing salsa of pomegranate seeds, pistachios and pinenuts soaked in orange blossom syrup. The flavours are rich, heady and incredibly sensual, as any Middle Eastern dessert should be.

Muhallabiah Mousse (white chocolate and almond)
Anna’s very own recipe. Serve 6 in small portions.
Ingredients:
240g white chocolate
1½ cups milk
1 cup cream
½ cup sugar
1 cup ground almonds (almond meal)
1 tablespoon orgeat (almond syrup)
½ tablespoon gelatine
Method:
1. Bring milk, sugar, orgeat and almond meal to the boil. Remove from heat and allow to infuse for 20-30 minutes.
2. In a heatproof bowl, sprinkle gelatine over 3 tablespoons of cold water and allow to go spongy (about 5-10 minutes).
3. Melt chocolate.
4. Strain milk mixture over a fine sieve to remove almond meal.
5. Pour boiling water from an electric kettle into a saucepan, then place gelatine mixture over steam, stirring until gelatine has dissolved.
6. Stir gelatine, chocolate and milk mixtures together.
7. Whip cream until firm peaks form.
8. Fold milk and chocolate mixture into whipped cream.
9. Spoon into serving glasses and refrigerate overnight.
10. Serve with generous spoonfuls of Pomegranate & Orange Blossom Syrup.

Pomegranate & Orange Blossom Syrup
Amended from Taking Tea in the Medina by Julie Le Clerc. Serves 6.
Ingredients:
¼ cup slivered almonds
¼ cup slivered pistachio nuts
¼ cup pinenuts
1 pomegranate
2/3 cup sugar syrup
1-2 teaspoon orange blossom water
Method:
1. Place all nuts in a bowl and cover with cold water. Soak for 1 hour then drain well.
2. Halve pomegranate and remove seeds, being careful to discard the white pith.
3. Combine sugar syrup with orange blossom water, then mix with nuts and pomegranate seeds.
4. Chill well until serving.

Muhallabiah is a milk pudding served all over the Middle East, but most of the recipes flavoured with almond seem to be Iranian or Lebanese. Since I served this dessert after a main course of fesenjân, a Persian stew based on pomegranates, I have to lean towards the Iranian influence.

This month’s Donna Hay themed event should be very interesting and I look forward to reading the recap of all the other scrumptious mousses.

Tags: morsels and musings food blog food and drink australia recipes dessert mousse orange blossom syrup orange blossom waterpomegranate syrup muhallabiah mousse muhallabiah pinenut pistachio pomegranate orgeat almonds dessert recipes persian recipes persian food persian cuisine iranian recipes iranian food iranian cuisine middle eastern recipes middle eastern food middle eastern cuisine lebanese recipes lebanese food lebanese cuisine hay hay it’s donna day