Category Archives: Moroccan Inspired
Moroccan Vegetable Tagine
Recipe number two. I made this dish at a cooking class for a gentleman who wanted to learn vegetarian dishes so he could feed his family healthy food. I suggested a Moroccan dish called Tagine. It is typically made with meat and cooked in ‘Tagine‘, which is a special ceramic cooking pot with a cone like lid. It is nice to have one at home but it isn’t necessary to make a delicious tagine at home.
We started with a spice mix consisting of cumin, coriander, turmeric and cayenne pepper. We then sautéed some onions, garlic, tomato paste and harissa- a moroccan hot paste. We added potatoes, turnips, carrots and chickpeas to the mix including some broth.
This is a delicious dish for a crowd, especially with some whole wheat couscous. Try it next time you are entertaining…
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Cauliflower & Chickpea Stew with Olive, Raisin and Cilantro Gremolata
This is a fabulous dish to impress your vegetarian friends. I made this Moroccan style stew with delicious quinoa. I also topped the goodness with a mixture of green olives, raisins and cilantro.
- 1 cauliflower head, cut into florets
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 2 teaspoons roasted cumin seeds, crushed
- 1 cookie sheet, lined with aluminum foil
Preheat oven to broil.
Place the cauliflower florets onto the cookie sheet. Add the oil, salt and cumin. Mix well and roast for 30 minutes till the florets are golden brown. Keep aside.
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 large yellow onions, chopped
- 3 garlic cloves, chopped
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 1 cup tomato sauce
- 2 tablespoons flour
- 1 cup chicken broth
- Salt
- 2 cans chickpeas, washed and drained
Heat a large saucepan with olive oil. Add the onion and garlic. Saute on medium heat for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the tomato paste and sauté for a minute. Add the tomato sauce and bring to a boil. Add the flour and sauté for a minute. Add the chicken broth and chickpeas. Bring to a boil. Add the cauliflower and bring to a boil. Lower the heat to a simmer and cook for 20 minutes. Check for seasonings and add salt as necessary. Garnish with gremolata and serve with quinoa.
Olive Gremolata
- ½ cup green olive (I used the ones that are stuffed with garlic), chopped
- ¼ cup golden raisin, chopped
- ½ cup cilantro, chopped
Mix the olives, raisins and cilantro in a small bowl. Sprinkle on the stew and serve.
Memorial Day Recipes: Spicy Grilled Potatoes
You have to admit- this salad (like yesterdays) looks gorgeous. Like the carrot salad, this one has most spices used in Moroccan cuisine. I did use smoked paprika- which is more of a Spanish ingredient- but since I love this spice on potatoes- I decided to use it in this salad.
The good thing about this dish, besides the taste, is that it can be made in advance. In fact it tastes better as the potatoes bathe in the delicious dressing for a few hours. The main ingredient in the dressing is a lot of powdered cumin. I always have lots of cumin seeds at hand but never buy the powdered variety since powdered spices loose their flavor very quickly. I ground the cumin and added it to the oil, cilantro, parsley and lemon juice. The smoky dressing was a great compliment to the creamy potatoes.
I grilled the potatoes the same way I did the carrots. It was very easy to make and the dish went perfectly with the lamb burgers and the carrot salad. It was a delicious, simple and healthy barbecue to prepare.
We all had a wonderful time and washed the delicious food down with some fabulous pomegranate mojitos. How do you make them- you ask??? Stay tuned tomorrow and I will share my husband’s fabulous recipe.
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Memorial Day Recipes: Grilled Carrots with Orange Dressing
This dish is delicious and great looking. I love making dishes that look attractive since we eat with our eyes first.
This is a continuation to yesterday’s post. I made the lamb burgers with this carrot salad. Since my general theme was Moroccan inspired- I looked for sides and salads to serve with the burgers. The first thing to come up was carrot salad. I looked at a bunch of recipes and came up with this one.
I used baby carrots but regular sized will do just fine too. I sliced them really thin and grilled them. I have a grill pan that I use for grilling vegetables, fish or anything that is difficult to manage on the grates. Once the carrots were golden brown but still crunchy, I added the super yummy orange dressing. I reduced some freshly squeezed orange juice and added honey, cumin, lemon juice and some herbs. It resulted in an amazing, flavorful sauce.
The great thing about this salad is that you can make it in advance since it is served at room temperature. I had everything ready in advance and all I did once company came was grill the burgers.
It was simple, convenient and a crowd pleaser- exactly the ideas you want for a fabulous long weekend- enjoy!
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Memorial Day Recipes: Moroccan Style Lamb Burgers with Harissa Sauce
Well, we are a week away from the official start to the barbecue season. Although this past year I have been very good about grilling regardless of the weather- but there is something special about this time of year. Everyone dusts off the outside furniture and the grill getting ready for lazy summer days.
We recently cleaned out our grill- I actually was trying to convince my husband to buy a new one since this one is about nine years old. He was not convinced, since it had never given us trouble. After we changed the grates and cleaned the inside- really well- it was like new again.
I digress-as usual… the idea was to talk about these fabulous lamb burgers. I wanted to post something different for Memorial day and instead of beef or turkey burgers, I decided to use lamb- and lamb made me think of Moroccan food. So, I started doing some research and came up with this fabulous burger recipe. It has garlic, shallots, cilantro, cumin and harissa- which is a Moroccan hot sauce. It was a big hit- super flavorful. I paired it with a sun dried tomato and herb mayonnaise- it is a great combination. I also decided against the regular soft buns and bought a very crusty sour dough bread- a match made in heaven!
Definitely make these for the upcoming long weekend- your family and friends will love you.
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