These ceaseless gray and bitter days have finally drained my formerly abundant enthusiasm for root vegetables and roasts: no more sauerkraut, please! no matter how good it is for me. Left in place is an insistent craving for warm sun-drenched tastes that just won't be satisfied by anything except, well, warm sun-drenched flavors. So yesterday, dreaming of warm Mediterranean waters and the cerulean blue of a Moroccan sky, and sustained by astrological winds -- your creativity could use a nice workout, and the kitchen is the perfect place for it, advised my horoscope -- I did the best with what we had on hand:
I started with a brief saute, a sofrit of chopped onions, garlic, and red peppers in a generous amount of olive oil. When they were just beginning to get all wonderfully aromatic & the other members of the house were coming 'round to ask what smelled so good, I added a can of Muir's fire-roasted chopped tomatos, juice & all, a can of drained & rinsed garbanzo beans, a cup of water, a teaspoon or so of Better Than Bouillon - Chicken Flavor, some Spanish hot smoked paprika, a healthy pinch or two of saffron (crumbled), some fresh thyme, and red pepper flakes to taste, and then let it simmer uncovered for 15 minutes or so. Just long enough to warm the house & carry the scent to the furthest bedroom. That's ok. It's part of the experience.
While the stew was stewing, I turned my attention to making whole wheat couscous. This is easy: Just pour a quantity of couscous into a roughly equal quantity of salted boiling water (I used 1-1/2 cups of couscous to just over 2 cups of water). Remove from heat and let sit for 10-15 minutes. Fluff with a fork.
Then back to the stew: Near the end of the cooking time, when the stew was beginning to thicken, I added chopped artichoke hearts, chopped black olives, plenty of chopped parsley or cilantro, and a squeeze of lemon for good measure. It probably didn't need it, but I added a swirl of olive oil anyway. Serve with couscous.
Best accompanied by Stan Getz or Paco de Lucia; Gypsy Kings in a pinch. Stands up well to red wine, and is an excellent match for The Mambo Kings. Enjoy!
Thursday, January 29, 2009
A Midweek Gastronomic Antidote to Winter
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
14 comments:
I'd like to place my order sufficient to serve two. We have plenty of wine to accompany this feast. I stand waiting for the package to arrive! Post haste!
Oh, I'm smelling it and it smells fabulous -- I know it tastes even better than it looks. I love cooking in winter! No open windows to snatch those fragrances away too soon! Mmmmmmmm.
This sounds wonderful! Except my husband refuses to eat couscous, which I love. He says he doesn't like the texture. I would eat what you made.
Greg: Only if you'll promise to share some of that wine...
Jeanie: Thanks...and I agree with you about the benefits of those closed windows when cooking in the winter! Mmmmmmm
BonnieK I don't know if this helps at all, but I thought this was even better the next day for lunch. It's pretty easy to make, maybe even easy to justify making just for yourself?
Ummmm, can I come to dinner. You have such a way with words that I can smell it all the way to my little cabin in the woods.
I will share my wine with you....
Man! It's lunchtime and this post has my mouth watering! Did I see you mentions something about leftovers? YES, PLEASE!
Tammie, Betsy, ... Why, yes, there's plenty for everyone. Just come on by!
Knock, knock. Please open your door. I'm here with chocolate and a sprig of purple flowers, salivating for company, great food (ahh that couscous) and more. Those aromas are tantalizing my senses. Your table setting looks fab. So good to see you! Oh, and I will try to behave myself. ;)
BTW, I've awarded you the "Honest Scrap Blog Award." If you don't like to do memes (I prefer not to), please still accept the award in whatever manner you choose. Details are on my current post "Revelations."
-gel
A close cousin to this dish was a frequent visitor to my table in New Orleans. I think I also threw in zucchini and anchovy paste. Delectable!
Do you all have Sweet Rain in your Stan Getz collection? Mid 1960s album: he hooked up with a young Chick Corea for some sublime music.
I would completely love this. But you know that. ;-)
gel: Mmmmmm.... purple flowers & chocolate (and an award, too!)! Come on in, join the crowd. Sounds like everybody's ready for a feast.
paschal: Zucchini & anchovies sound like excellent additions, maybe especially those anchovies. I always like the mysterious depth they add to any dish.
As for the Stan Getz/Chick Corea combination, I'm not familiar with it. Maybe something I need to investigate?
jen: I kind of thought you might like this one...
If I only had all the ingredients at hand...
I've only attempted once to work with artichokes and it didn't please me very much.
No meat in your dish?
I know it's probably heresy to say it, and it's no doubt due in part to my own overplaying of the Getz / Gilberto(s) album, but Sweet Rain is probably my favorite Getz album. Chick's piano-ing is gorgeous.
Post a Comment