Morocco Main Course

And now onto the main courses:

• Roast Chicken with Lemon and Olives
• Seared Lamb Kebabs Cooked in Butter (with Eggs)
• Winter Squash with Caramelized Onions
• Cailin's Saffron CousCous

Roast Chicken with Lemon and Olives

This recipe I definitely altered a lot. It called for preserved lemons, Oudi, and saffron water. It was also the FIRST chicken that I have EVER made (I know, hard to believe...but I usually leave the meat cooking to my parents, and I stick with everything vegan and vegetarian).

Chicken (about 3.5lbs)

lemons

4 garlic cloves

salt

1 teaspoon ground ginger

1 teaspoon ground white pepper

1 teapsoon ground turmeric

sprinkle of saffron

small handful of fresh flat leaf parsley

small handful of fresh cilantro

EVOO

butter (1/2 stick)

1 cup chicken stock

2 medium onions

a dozen or so green olives

Preheat the oven to 400. Stuff a quartered lemon and some cloves of garlic up the chickens bum. In a food processor blend a few tablespoons of EVOO with all of the seasonings (fresh herbs, garlic, turmeric, ginger, salt and white pepper). This creates a sort of paste that I rubbed all over the chicken. Pour the chicken stock into the roasting pan, add the butter in, and then sprinkle in the saffron. Quarter your onions and toss them in. Cover with tin foil and cook for the first hour with the tinfoil on. An hour to an hour and a half in, remove the tin foil and throw your olives into the pan. The chicken should be done in an hour. This was my first chicken ever - and my father, the KING of roasted chicken, said that it was "GODDAMN DELICIOUS"...going in for seconds and thirds, and then claiming any leftovers for the next days lunch. Before serving it sprinkle some fresh cilantro and parsley on top to make it look pretty :)

Seared Lamb Kebabs Cooked in Butter

This lamb was crack...and that's coming from someone who doesn't enjoy lamb. CRACK. Like, I couldn't get enough -- and neither could anyone else. I definitely used more lamb than was called for, so I adjusted the amounts of other ingredients with my eyes and palate. Plus, by this time I'd been prepping and cooking for about 14 hours - plus I was pretty buzzed, so any and all rules set by Paula Wolfert went out the window. It was frickin' delicious. Because I messed with the recipe so much and just went with my gut, I'll post her recipe so that you'll have something to follow. But I will say, I didn't sear the meat -- I just sauteed it in a pan for a minute. And I actually DID grate the onion, rinse it, strain it and then used it. Also, I think I tripled the amount of butter she calls for.... So here is Paula's recipe for the Lamb:

1 1/2 pounds of boneless leg of lamb, trimmed of fat and cut into 1-inch pieces

1 cup grated onion

salt and freshly ground pepper

3 garlic cloves, crushed

4 tablespoons unsalted butter

1/4 cup mixed chopped flat leaf parsley and cilantro

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 round teaspoon paprika

cayenne

1 cinnamon stick

juice of 1 lemon

4 - 6 large eggs

1. Toss the lab with half the grated onion, salt and pepper to taste and the crushed garlic. All to "ripen" for at least 1 hour. (**I DEFINITELY didn't do this....and it wasn't necessary).

2. Preheat the broiler to the highest setting. Arrange the lamb on an aluminum foil lined baking sheet and, when the broiler is very hot, sear quickly on both sides. The lamb will not be fully cooked. (**I didn't do this, I just sauteed it in a hot pan, browning the outsides).

3. Melt the butter in a tagine or cazuela set over a heat diffuser. Add the meat, remaining onion, the herbs, spices, and cinnamon stick, and cook briefly, then add enough water to almost cover the meat. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat, and simmer, partially covered, for 45 minutes, stirring from time to time and adding water if necessary to maintain about 1 cup of sauce. (**Okay, by this time in the evening I was definitely a bit drunk, so my memory is hazy. But I do know that I didn't use a tagine or a cazuela, I used a cast iron skillet. After browning my meat in it- step 2- I then added in the onion, herbs, spices, cinnamon stick and lots of butter. I think I added a bit of water too.... Anywho, I didn't add water throughout. There was enough sauce left at the end.)

4. Add the lemon juice (just a touch) and correct the seasoning with salt and pepper. Break in the eggs carefully, cover the tagine (or in my case, the skillet), and cook until the eggs are set. (**You want them a bit runny, so don't cook too long!)

5. Serve at once.

Winter Squash with Caramelized Onions (Cassolita)

I cooked this the night before, so I was definitely sober and remember the details! I Didn't follow her recipe word for word, so I'll give it to you from my perspective:

2 pounds butternut squash (thats just one medium sized butternut)

1/2 cup slivered almonds

2 pounds onions, thinly sliced

salt

small handful flat leaf parsley

honey

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 cup dark raisins

freshly ground pepper

Preheat the oven to 350. Cut the butternut squash in half and remove the seeds. Place it is a roasting pan, cut side down. Add just about 1/2 inch of water to the bottom of the pan, cover with tin foil and roast for about 30-40minutes (until the squash is very soft). I put it in the fridge and then this was the first thing that I started working on the morning of the dinner party. By then the squash was obviously cooled. I remove the pulp and set aside in a bowl. I thinly sliced the onions and caramelized them in a skillet for about 30 minutes. When they were almost finished I added a drizzle of honey, a sprinkle of cinnamon, a touch of salt and pepper and a handful for dark raisins. In a separate skillet I lightly toasted the slivered almonds (with just a touch of EVOO in the pan). Squash on the bottom of the serving platter, caramelized onions and raisins on top, toasted almonds on that and then some fresh flat leaf parsley for color. I heated this up in the oven about 20 minutes before serving it.

Cailin's Saffron Cous Cous

Paula only had fancy cous cous recipes, and I knew that I wanted something basic to compliment the meat dishes. SO, I just followed the instructions on the cous cous container - with a few exceptions. With cous cous you do equal parts liquid to grain. So I did 1 cup chicken stock, 2 cups water...brought it to a boil, tossed in a few saffron threads, turmeric and fresh garlic and then added in 3 cups of cous cous and about 3/4 cup of golden raisins. Take it off the heat and cover for 5 minutes and then FLUFF it with a fork. If you don't fluff it right after you've cooked it then it will never fluff. So, fluff fluff fluff. Enjoy underneath your meat dishes and their sauces, as well as with a big scoop of Harissa!!!

Morocco Round Two

Again, Wolferts recipes with my own twist are what I'm posting.... This was round 2:

• Riffian Split Pea Soup with Paprika Oil
• Potato Pancakes

Riffian Split Pea Soup with Paprika Oil

EVOO

1 large onion, chopped

salt and pepper

1 cup dried split green peas

3 cloves garlic

small handful fresh cilantro

1-2teaspoons ground cumin

2 teaspoons paprika

lemon juice

1/2 cup crumbled aged goat cheese

cayenne

Drizzle some olive oil into the bottom of a pot and brown your chopped onion. You want the onions gold and soft, so cook over a medium heat for about 15minutes. Add the split peas, garlic, cilantro, cumin and paprika. Let it cook for just about 2 minutes and then add 4 cups of water. Bring to a boil, then turn heat down to medium/med-low and let it cook for about an hour - stirring occasionally.

Add in the goat cheese and once the soup has cooled a bit puree it in batches. I made this the night before and then warmed it slowly on the stove for about a half hour before serving it. Before sending it out I added some more salt (you definitely want to be a bit heavy handed with the salt for this soup...if you taste it and think "what does this need?", it needs salt). I also added fresh lemon juice and drizzled it with olive oil and a sprinkle of paprika before sending it out. The recipe called for heavy cream, but this soup doesn't need it, so I left it out. This soup is taken to a whole other level by adding a scoop of HARISSA sauce (this is a Moroccan hot sauce paste that can be bought at any Middle Eastern supermarket, any speciality store, and can also be found at Williams Sonoma. This is absolutely essential for any Moroccan meal).

Potato Pancakes

2 pounds Red Bliss potatoes (or Yukon Gold)

3 garlic cloves

sea salt

2 teaspoons cumin

small handful fresh cilantro

small handful fresh parsley

pinch each of cayenne, ground turmeric, and white pepper

2 large eggs, whipped

EVOO

flour

lemon wedges

I made this the night before. I peeled and quartered the potatoes and then tossed them into a pot of boiling water. I boiled them for probably like 20minutes or so?? I cooked them about 5 minutes shy of them being able to be used for MASHED potatoes. I let the potatos cool a bit and then I used a potato smasher and smashed em, still leaving large chunks though. Then I cracked and whipped one egg, and tossed that in with the potatoes. I threw in all of the seasoning, zested garlic, and the fresh herbs. Then I made a bunch of small fist-sized pancakes. I made about 15 of em. I put them in the fridge and then the next night right before I was ready to serve them I dipped them in egg, coated them in flour and then lightly fried them in the skillet. Before serving them I hit em with a few more turns of sea salt, a touch of cumin and I garnished the dish with lemon wedges. LEMON is NECESSARY....you .must. put lemon juice on them. Also, dip em in HARISSA sauce (this is a Moroccan hot sauce paste that can be bought at any Middle Eastern supermarket, any speciality store, and can also be found at Williams Sonoma. This is absolutely essential for any Moroccan meal).

Morocco Round One

Here are recipes from the first round of food that was put out:

• Fresh Tomato and Caper Salad
• Orange and Olive Salad
• Grilled Red Pepper Salad
• Eggplant Zaalouk

The beauty of Moroccan feasts is that because there are many dishes served, there are certain things that are meant to be made and/or prepped a day ahead of time. All of this was made the day before, with the exception of the tomato salad. These are MY adaptations of Paula Wolferts recipes from her book "Food of Morocco". I've put my spin on them, so enjoy...

Fresh Tomato and Caper Salad

6 medium sized tomatoes (peeled, seeded and diced)

*the way that you peel a tomato...bring water to a boil, place the tomato in the boiling water. Remove in about a minute, once you notice that the skin has a crack in it. voila.

1 small red onion, finely diced

1 small green bell pepper, diced

1 large handful of medium to large capers (rinsed and drained)

sea salt

ground white pepper

3 tablespoons EVOO

Juice of 1 lemon and zest of one lemon

This was probably my most favorite thing of the whole evening -- and it was the EASIEST thing to make. This will definitely be a regular on our dinner table.

Orange and Olive Salad

6 navel oranges

24 oil cured black olives

dressing:

4 tablespoons EVOO

4 tablespoons orange juice (from the oranges youre peeling)

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon sweet paprika

pinch of cayenne

drizzle of honey

1/2 teaspoon salt

handful of chopped flat leaf parsley

Section the oranges but slicing the top and bottom off the orange. Then cut the peel off. Then slice the sections out. Easy. I made this the night before by sectioning the oranges and then making the dressing separate -- tossing it all together and throwing some parsley on just before serving.

Next up were the peppers. Again, I did things my way more so than Wolferts', but it tasted good and thats all that matters.....

Grilled Red Pepper Salad

3 large red bell peppers (peeled, seeded and quartered)

*an easy way to peel peppers....put them under the broiler and once the skin starts to bubble and char just peel them off.

sea salt

EVOO

1 medium sized tomato peeled, seeded, and diced

2 garlic cloves crushed ( i just use a zester and zest the garlic, creating a paste)

generous sprinkle of cumin

chopped flat leaf parsley

First I sprinkle the quartered and seeded peppers with salt. I rolled them in paper towels and pressed them, letting them sit for an hour. Once removing the excess moisture I put them under the broiler so that I could remove the skin. Wrapped em up and went to bed. The morning I sauteed them in a skillet with the tomato, olive oil and seasonings for several minutes. Refrigerate. Sprinkle with fresh cut parsley just before serving.

Mindy was in charge of the eggplant zaalouk...and it was delicious! She said that it sucked the day she made it, but luckily for her she followed the recipes instructions that you make this dish atleast 24 hours before consumption....

Eggplant Zaalouk

2 medium eggplants

1/3 cup EVOO

1 pound ripe tomatoes (peeled, seeded, and chopped - or 2 cups drained chopped canned tomatoes)

pinch of sugar

1 tablespoon crushed garlic

3/4 teaspoon ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon sweet paprika

1/4 teaspoon cayenne

salt

2 tablespoons finely chopped cilantro

fresh lemon juice

Halve the eggplant lengthwise, place cut side down on a foil-lined baking sheet, and broil until blackened and tender (20minutes approximately). Dump into a colander set in the sink. Peel while still hot and allow to drain until cool. Squeeze gently to remove any bitter juices. In a skillet pour 3 tablespoons EVOO, add in tomatoes, sugar, garlic, cumin, paprika, cayenne and salt. Cook, stirring, for about 20minutes. Crush the eggplant with a fork and add to the skillet. Stir in the chopped cilantro and continue cooking for another 10minutes. Add lemon juice and salt to taste. LET COOL AND THEN COVER AND REFRIGERATE OVERNIGHT. Toss with a bit more olive oil before serving.