Moroccan Chicken Kebabs with Apricots and Lemons

4-6 boneless skinless chicken thighs

6 tablespoons olive oil

Small bunch coriander

2 tablespoons sumac  

1 tablespoon cumin seeds

1 tablespoon fennel seeds

2 teaspoons chili flakes

2 garlic cloves

Zest and juice of 2 lemons

4 tablespoons pomegranate molasses

Salt and ground black pepper

12 dried apricots

2 lemons, cut into eighths

Cut the chicken thighs into approximately 1 1/2-inch cubes.

Put the olive oil, coriander, sumac, cumin, fennel, chili, garlic, lemon zest and juice, pomegranate molasses and some salt and ground black pepper, into a food processor or blender, and whizz to a paste.  Place paste in a large ziploc bag, add the chicken, then squeeze out the air and seal before giving everything a good squelch to coat thoroughly.  Marinate for 4-6 hours in the fridge, turning and squishing every so often.  

Soak 6 to 8 skewers in water. 

Heat oven to 400°F. 

Bring a saucepan of water to the boil.  Blanch the apricots and lemon pieces for a minute or two, then refresh them in cold water.  Drain.

Lift the chicken pieces out of the marinade.  Thread lemon pieces, apricots, and chicken pieces onto skewers.  Roast on a baking sheet in the oven for 15-18 minutes, until cooked through.

Serves 4.

From BBC Good Food, with changes

Creamy Phyllo, Raisin, and Nut Pudding (Om Ali, or Mother of Ali)

14 sheets fresh phyllo pastry, or frozen, thawed (about 1/2 pound)

1/2 cup whole blanched almonds (about 3 ounces)

1/2 cup raisins

3 cups milk (do not use low-fat or nonfat)

1 cup sugar

2 tablespoons (1/4 stick) unsalted butter

1 cup whipping cream

2 teaspoons orange flower water

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 cup coarsely chopped pistachios

Position racks in top and bottom thirds of oven and heat to 500°F. Stack 7 phyllo sheets on each of 2 large baking sheets. Bake until top pastry sheets are dry and crisp but not brown, about 45 seconds. Working quickly, transfer top pastry sheets to another large baking sheet and cool (pastry may break). Repeat baking and removing top sheets from each stack every 45 seconds. Reduce oven temperature to 350°F.

Arrange half of phyllo in bottom of 13 x 9 x 2-inch glass baking dish, breaking phyllo to fit into dish as necessary. Reserve 2 tablespoons almonds and 2 tablespoons raisins. Sprinkle remaining almonds and raisins over pastry. Cover with remaining pastry, breaking into pieces and pressing to fit into dish. Combine milk, sugar and butter in heavy medium saucepan. Stir over medium heat until sugar dissolves and butter melts. Remove pan from heat. Mix in cream and orange flower water. Pour milk mixture over phyllo (phyllo will shrink as it absorbs milk mixture). Sprinkle with cinnamon, then pistachios and reserved almonds and raisins.

Bake until pudding puffs and center is set, about 45 minutes or less.  Serve hot.

Serves 8.

From Bon Appetit via Epicurious

Pickled Jalapeños and Onions

8 (about 1/2 pound, or 230 grams) jalapeno peppers

1/2 red onion

1 cup (250 ml) unseasoned rice vinegar or white vinegar

1 cup (250 ml) water

2 tablespoons kosher or sea salt (not grey or iodized salt)

1 tablespoon sugar

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

10 black peppercorns, lightly crushed

1 bay leaf

Slice off the stems of the jalapeños and cut them into rounds slightly shy of 1/4-inch.   Peel the half onion and slice it into 1/4-inch slices.

Heat the vinegar in a nonreactive saucepan with the water, salt, sugar, oregano, peppercorns, and bay leaf until simmering and the salt and sugar are dissolved.

Add the jalapeños and onions. Let cook in the pan for 1 minute, then cover, remove from heat, and let stand 15 minutes.

Ladle the mixture into jars, close them, and refrigerate until ready to serve.

(Notes: When you transfer the mixture into the jars, you should have just enough brine so that they’re barely submerged. Press them down with a spoon, cover, and let them stand overnight as they will continue to pickle in the jars. The next day, if you should need more brine, simply heat together equal parts vinegar and water, and pour it over the mixture in the jars.  The pickles will keep for at least a month in the refrigerator, and will start to lose their oomph after that.)

Makes about 2 cups of pickles.

From David Lebovitz’s blog, with minor changes

Telera Rolls

2 teaspoons instant yeast

1 1/2 cups water

1 tablespoon lard, shortening, or butter, melted and cooled

1 tablespoon honey

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

3 1/2 to 4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water for glaze

In a large bowl or the pan of your bread machine set on the dough cycle, combine the yeast, water, melted fat, honey, salt, and 3 1/2 cups of the flour.  Mix until a soft dough forms.

Check the dough’s consistency; if the dough sticks to your finger when you touch it lightly, add 1/4 cup of the additional flour and mix for another minute.  Check the dough again, adding the remaining 1/4 cup of flour only if you need it; the dough should be soft, but not sticky.  Let the bread machine complete its cycle.  Alternatively, knead for 6 to 8 minutes at medium speed in a stand mixer, or 10 minutes by hand, until it's smooth and bouncy, then cover the bowl and let rise for 1 hour, until doubled.

Once the dough has risen, deflate it and divide into 10 pieces, roll into balls, and cover the pieces.  Let them rest for 5 minutes before shaping the rolls into a football shape, tapering toward the edges; the rolls should be 5 1/2" long and 2" around at the center.

Place the rolls onto a greased or parchment-lined baking sheet and cover with greased plastic.  Allow the rolls to rise while turning the oven on and heating it to 400°F. 

When the rolls are almost doubled in size, brush the tops and sides with egg wash.  Using a greased knife, slash the rolls twice parallel to each other.

Bake for 20 to 22 minutes, until golden brown and the centers read 190°F with an instant-read thermometer.  Remove from the oven and cool completely before slicing.

Makes 10 rolls.

From King Arthur Flour

M'smen

4 cups (500 grams) all-purpose flour
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons (100 grams) semolina, plus more for shaping
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 3/4 cups (400 grams) water
2 teaspoons, plus 6 tablespoons (95 grams) canola oil, plus more for shaping
6 tablespoons (85 grams) salted butter, melted

Put the flour, semolina, and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook.  Add the water and 2 teaspoons (10 grams) of the oil and, with the mixer on low, mix until everything is well-combined, about 2 minutes.  Increase the speed to medium and mix until the dough is smooth, shiny, elastic, and pulls away from the sides of the bowl, about 6 minutes.

Generously coat a rimmed baking sheet with oil.  Coat a large, smooth work surface with oil.  Transfer the dough to the oiled surface.  Divide into 12 equal balls (each should weigh about 3 ounces/85 grams).  Put the balls on the oiled baking sheet and roll them around so they are coated with oil, but keep the balls separate from one another.  Cover the tray loosely with plastic wrap and let the dough rest at room temperature for 30 minutes (or as long as 8 hours).

Meanwhile, put the remaining 6 tablespoons (85 grams) oil in a small bowl, add the melted butter, and stir to combine.

Re-oil the work surface.  Working with one piece of dough at a time, use the palm of your hand to flatten the ball and then continue to apply downward pressure with your palm to stretch it out into a rough circle about 10 inches across; it will be so thin that it's nearly translucent.  Using your hand, cover the surface of the dough with 1 tablespoon of the butter and oil mixture, then sprinkle with a dusting (about 1 teaspoon) of semolina.  Use a rubber spatula to lightly mark the midline.  Fold the top of the dough circle down so that the edge extends about 1/2 inch beyond the line.  Repeat that fold from the bottom so that the two edges overlap the center.  Then, fold in each of the other sides in the same way to form a 3-inch square.  Transfer the m'smen squares to the oiled baking sheet, seam side down, and let rest for at least 15 minutes.  Form the remaining breads in the same manner, warming the butter mixture if it begins to solidify.

Proceeding in the same order in which you formed the breads, put each square on a lightly oiled piece of parchment paper and stretch the dough with your palm until it has slightly more than doubled in size.  If the dough resists stretching, allow it to rest a bit more before proceeding.  Each finished m'smen should be a 7-inch square.  Cut the parchment so that it extends just slightly beyond the square.  Do not stack the breads as you stretch them; they will stick together.

Heat a large griddle over medium-high heat until a drop of water sizzles away almost immediately.  Lay the breads paper-side up on the griddle and then peel off the paper as soon as the bread begins to firm; it will come away easily.  Cook the m'smen until they turn first translucent and then brown in spots, 2 to 3 minutes per side.  Transfer to a wire rack while you continue cooking the rest.

Eat warm or store, once cooled, for up to 5 days in an airtight container in the refrigerator.  They freeze well for up to 3 months; reheat for 1 minute on each side on a hot, dry griddle before serving.

Makes 12 squares.

From The Hot Bread Kitchen Cookbook by Jessamyn Waldman Rodriguez

Moroccan Chickpea Soup

1 large onion, finely chopped

1/2 medium celery root, finely diced

3 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 teaspoon turmeric

1 teaspoon black pepper

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1 28-ounce can puréed tomatoes (or use canned whole tomatoes and purée)

1 1/2 cups canned chickpeas, rinsed and drained, or cooked dried chickpeas*

4 cups vegetable broth

1 cup red lentils

1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley or cilantro

Lemon wedges to serve

Cook onion and celery root in oil in a 4-quart heavy pot over moderately low heat, stirring occasionally, until softened. Add turmeric, pepper, and cinnamon and cook, stirring, 3 minutes.  Stir in tomato purée, chickpeas, vegetable broth, and lentils.  Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, until lentils are tender, about 20 minutes.  Stir in parsley or cilantro and salt to taste.  Serve with lemon wedges to season to taste.

*Cooked dried chickpeas:

Soak 1 1/2 cups dried chickpeas in water to cover by 2 inches for 8 to 12 hours.  Drain chickpeas and rinse well. Transfer to a large saucepan and add 8 cups water. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, until tender, 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 hours. Cool chickpeas and drain, reserving cooking liquid to add to soup.

Serves 6.

From Gourmet via Epicurious, with many changes

Asparagus and Mushroom Frittata

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 small white onion, thinly sliced
1 garlic clove, minced

1-2 jalapenos, finely chopped
2 cups thinly sliced white button, cremini, or baby bella mushrooms (from about 8 ounces of mushrooms)
1 bunch asparagus (about 10 spears), cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces
1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
6 large eggs
1/2 cup mozzarella or feta cheese, cubed
Salt and pepper

Preheat the oven to 400°F. Heat the olive oil in a 10-inch cast iron skillet over medium heat. Add the onions, and cook until fragrant and translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, jalapenos, and mushroom slices, and cook until soft, about 5 minutes. Toss in the asparagus and thyme leaves, cook for another 3 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

While the veggies are cooking, whisk the eggs, then fold in the cheese. When the veggies are ready, pour the egg-cheese mixture over top of the vegetables, making sure the eggs coat the vegetables evenly. Once the edges firm up, transfer the skillet into the preheated oven and bake for 8 to 10 minutes, or until the center is no longer wobbly and the top is golden.

Serves 4.

From TheKitchn website