Persian feasts in my kitchen: The first courses

After the introduction to some fantastic Persian blogs, we’re continuing with our Persian journey. I now got our favourite Persian book from A., A Taste of Persia, lovingly called Batbook, which is the book we used most for our feast, so tonight, I’ll tell you about the dishes in more details.

Just to remind you, here’s the lovely Batbook:

A taste of Persia – by Najmieh Batmanglij

 

Right, and here’s the summary of the menu:

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FIRST COURSES

Yoghurt & Cucumber Salad (V)

Feat & walnut salad with herbs (V)

Stuffed peppers, aubergines and tomatoes (in a tangy tomato sauce )(V)

Fresh Herb Kuku – Iranian baked omelette (V)

Lamb fillet kebabs

MAINS

Saffron Rice (V)

Rice-stuffed chicken

Potato and lamb koresh with orange feel(Iranian stew)

Duck in walnut and pomegranate sauce

DESSERT

Iranian almond and rosewater baklava served with vanilla ice-cream

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And now the delicious details:

Yoghurt & Cucumber Salad (V)

Mast-o khiar, Batbook pg. 26

Yoghurt & Cucumber Salad – Photo by Samantha Twigg Johnson

The recipes for this salad, which can easily be turned into a soup, is availably on Batmanglij’s website, Najmieh’s Kitchen. Yoghurt is combined with cucumber, mint, spring onions, dill, oregano, thyme, tarragon, garlic and raisins for a refreshingly cooling summery salad. Garnished with radish, walnuts, herbs and rose petals, it is a beauty to behold.

Feat & walnut salad with herbs (V)

This isn’t an Iranian recipe, but my creation based on an Iranian cheese and walnut spread from Batbook (pg. 33). We didn’t have the time to puree it in the blender, plus I improvised a bit with the ingredients, but ths spirit is there: cheese, walnuts, herbs. And it’s fantastic! I love the combination of the salty feta and walnuts! I works really really well. Especially with the fresh herb kuku. I’ll post the recipe soon.

Stuffed peppers, aubergines and tomatoes (in a tangy tomato sauce) (V)

Dolmeh-ye felfel sabz-o badjeman-o gojeh farangi, Batbook pg. 36

We adapted this recipe to make it veggie friendly by omitting the meat completely, and increasing the quantities of rice and yellow split peas (or chana dhal in our case). These were mixed with herbs and advieh and then used to stuff the veg. The tangy tomato sauce has sugar, cinnamon, lime juice and saffron on it.

Fresh Herb Kuku – Iranian baked omelette (V)

Kuku-ye sabzi, Batbook pg. 49

Fresh Herb Kuku – Photos by Samantha Twigg Johnson

I was quite impressed by kuku, the wonderful Iranian omelette. This version is baked in the oven, and based on fresh herbs: parsley, coriander, spring onions (including the green bits), fresh fenugreek (methi). The original recipe calls for dill and chives, but we didn’t have any, so I substituted what we had. The herby egg mixture is seasoned with advieh, Iranian spice mixture, and given a slightly tart edge with the addition of barberries, sour little berries characteristic of Iranian cooking. We also threw in a small handful of walnuts for a bit of crunch, and it was delicious. Really good with the yoghurt salad, and the feta and walnut salad. Batmanglij’s recipe (without the walnuts) is available on Epicurious.com.

 

Lamb fillet kebabs

Kabab-e barg, Batmanglij pg. 76

If you have a chance, have a look at the picture of kebabs on pg. 76 in Batmanglij’s book. Ours looked nothing like it. I think we have a long way to go in perfecting our kebab skills. Oh well, at least we had fun. Have you ever tried juicing an onion? No? Oh you must. Actually you mustn’t. Still hilarious though!

 

Let me tell you about mains next…. 

 

Persian food blogs

Persian feast continues soon! In the meanwhile, let me share with you some great links for some excellent Persian food blogs!

 

Turmeric & Saffron by Azita

My Persian Kitchen by Chef

West of Persia by Bria

The Spice Spoon by Shayma (new blog including Pakistani, Afghani and Iranian recipes)

Pinch my Saffron by Yasamin

 

I discovered Turmeric & Saffron when Azita kindly left a message on my previous post about cooking Persian. This spurred me to look for more, and I discovered My Persian Kitchen and others.  Turmeric & Saffron and My Persian Kitchen are excellent sources of information on Persian food and delicious recipes! West of Persia and The Spice Spoon are new to blogging, but very promising.

Does anyone know of any more?

 

Persian feast in my kitchen 1

I mentioned earlier my culinary explorations: my friend A. and I get together and explore a cuisine of our choice. So far we cooked Sichuanese, Moroccan and Persian, just before my old kitchen went out. Tonight, I’ll tell you about our Persian adventures because – guess what – we have some photos from that! We exchanged some food for Sam’s photographic excellence – a great move – and voila!

 

Iranian yoghurt salad – Photo by Samantha Twigg Johnson

 

A. is very passionate about Persian cooking, which is an understatement, to tell you the truth. It was his fine idea to cook this feast.

It was a serious undertaking, mind you. Sometimes I think you must be mad to do it, which I suspect we were/are. It took us a week to plan it (decide on the recipes, devise the plan of action, etc.), a day to shop for it, and a day and a half to cook it. But it was all well worth it!

Take a look at the menu:

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FIRST COURSES

Yoghurt Salad (V)

Feat & walnut salad with herbs (V)

Stuffed peppers, aubergines and tomatoes in a tangy tomato sauce (V) –

Herb Kuku – Iranian baked omelette (V)

Lamb fillet kebabs

 

MAINS

Saffron Rice (V)

Rice-stuffed roast chicken

Potato and lamb koresh (Iranian stew)

Duck in walnut and pomegranate sauce

 

DESSERT

Iranian almond and rosewater baklava served with vanilla ice-cream

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We also made advieh, a Persian spice mixture:

 

Advieh – Photo by Samantha Twigg Johnson

 

Persian or Iranian cuisine has been, and still is, among the greatest in the world. With their sophisticated tastes and techniques, Persian cooks have influenced Indian and Middle-Eastern cooking. I chose this yoghurt salad for introduction because it gives indication of what Persian food is like: the use of yoghurt, walnuts, fresh herbs, attention to details in presentation. But more about this next time.

 Iranian yoghurt salad – Photos by Samantha Twigg Johnson

 

Now, before I leave for tonight, I want to share with your our bibliography:

 

A taste of Persia – by Najmieh Batmanglij

This is an excellent book, and we found most of our recipes were from it. Clearly presented, with pictures of all dishes, and a helpful list of ingredients at the end. Excellent introduction into Persian cooking.

 

New Food of Life: Ancient Persian and Modern Iranian Cooking and Ceremonies – by Najmieh Batmanglij

Interesting, and larger in scope than A taste of Persia, but I was slightly put off by the presentation of the recipes.

 

The legendary cuisine of Persia – by Margaret Shaida

This is a very informative, and beautifully written book on Persian cuisine. I bought it after our cooking session.

 

The Persian Kitchen: Home Cooking from the Middle East – by Neda Afrashi

Another lovely book on Persian food and customs.

 

This is to tickle your imagination until next time. I hope you enjoyed it, and I hope it has made you at least a little curious about Persian cooking.

 

 

Dry Coconut Lamb Curry

Here is a really special Indian dish that I wanted to share with you in a long time. I’m sharing it now, to celebrate my return! It’s like a kind of Indian-style rendang: moist morsels of lamb coated in thick meaty sauce and coconut. It is deeeelicious! So flavoursome, and such fun to eat. I love the lamb pieces wrapped in roti, or with some other nice bread. In any case, you’ve got to eat this with your hands!

This curry is based on a recipe by Anjum Anand from her Indian Food Made Easy BBC series. I changed (upped) the spicing to suit my tastes, and added a South-Indian touch with curry leaves, dried red chillies and mustard seeds. Basically, the lamb is cooked with spices until the meat is tender, and the sauce is well reduced. Then, you sprinkle toasted grated coconut in (fresh or desiccated), and coat the lamb. Yes, it takes time to cook it, but it requires little attention, and it’s really worth it. The first time I made it, I totally forgot about it and spent 2 hours on the phone to a friend, but miraculously, it didn’t burn, and it didn’t harm it all. Next time I was more careful, but it was equally good.

Our camera issues haven’t been resolved yet, so no pics this time, sorry. We’re in a long and slow process of choosing a new camera. Possibly, hopefully, a DSLR!

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Dry Coconut Lamb Curry

 

SOURCE:  Based on a recipe from Anjum Anad’s Indian Food Made Easy

PREPARATION TIME: about 5 min

COOKING TIME: about 40 min

CUISINE: Indian

SERVES: 4 as a side dish, or 2 – 3 as a main

INGREDIENTS:

50 g desiccated coconut

2 tbsp ghee

3 dried red chillies

2 – 3 sprigs of fresh curry leaves

a pinch of black mustard seeds

1 onion, peeled and finely chopped

2 cm ginger, grated

2 garlic cloves, crushed

1/3 tsp turmeric

1/2 tsp chilli powder

1/2 tin of chopped tomatoes

salt to taste

500 g boneless lamb, diced

200 g water

1/2 tsp garam masala

METHOD:

I. Toast the desiccated coconut in a non-stick pan until a little past golden, and set a side. This will take a minute or two, to watch it!

II. 1. Heat the oil in a wide pan (I love to use my wide and shallow Le Creuset pan, but any thick-bottomed pan will do, with good non-stick properties if possible.). You’ll know it’s hot enough when you put a spoon in it and it starts sizzling. Then add the dried chilies, mustard seeds and curry leaves. When the mustard seeds start to pop, put the lid on. When they stop, add the onions and cook them until they start going golden. Next, add the chilli and garlic, and then cook the mixture until onions are well browned.

2. Now add the chilli powder and turmeric. Stir, and add the tomatoes and salt. Cook this until the oil starts oozing out, separating from the tomato and onion mixture, glossy and beautiful.

3. Now you’re ready to add the meat. Brown for a few minutes, add water, and bring to boil. Then cover and simmer on a low heat for about 50 min, or until the lamb is tender. I love to cook it even longer, until it’s melt-in-the-mouth soft. Check the lamb occasionally and add more water if it starts sticking to the bottom of the pan. Once the lamb is done, uncover and continue cooking, stirring often, until any excess water has evaporated.

4. When there is only a bit of liquid left coating the lamb, sprinkle in the garam masala, check the seasoning, and then stir in the coconut. Serve with roti or some other nice bread, with a few veg side dishes if you want. Enjoy every morsel! And let me know how you get on.

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Good to be back

And so I return. I’m not entirely sure how to start this post. I’ve been away for so long, without intending to, really. Every time I thought of this blog, I thought I’d return soon, and so the time simply passed between my fingertips. Quite bit happened in the meanwhile. Importantly, I have a new kitchen to play in! Chosen by us, designed by us – a space of our own. Rather than the kitchen we inherited with the house. We are finally in the position to start shaping our home the way it suits us. And this is what we did: black cupboards down (wood-textured black, wrapped in stainless steel to accentuate the lines of the cupboards), white matte up, with a light grey engineered stone worktop – I love it! Completely functional, and a joy to work in, but not quite done yet. We’re having a glass splashback/backsplash (I can never remember which) instead of tiles on the wall, so we’re waiting for that to be installed. It’s going to be red, deep red. I can’t wait! When it’s all done, I’ll show you.

Other than the pause when the new kitchen was being built, it wasn’t like I didn’t do any cooking. In fact, a friend and I got together and embarked on some exciting culinary explorations. We did a Moroccan, an Sichuan and a Persian feast. All three involved crazy amounts of food, work and fun! I learnt a lot. I’ll write more about them in the future.

You know what, it’s good to be back. I feel my creativity awakening already.

Round-up for WHB #181

Welcome to the round up for Weekend Herb Blogging #181! Started by Kalyn, and now run by Haalo, this is the first blogging event I ever took part in, so I’m very excited to be hosting it again. Unfortunately, I haven’t been able to take part, but will hope to join you soon in one of the forthcoming WHBs. Many thanks to Haalo for giving me this opportunity, and many thanks to all of you who took part this week!

Herbs

Coriander

Coriander, cumin and chilli quiche ~ by mangocheeks from Allotment 2 Kitchen (Scotland)

This is a special quiche, with flavours reminisce of mangocheeks’s childhood. She explains it came about from memories of her limited vegetarian school dinner options, “which was mashed potatoes with peas, or chips with beans; or chips with cheese quiche; and then when I returned home, it was my mothers cooking which often included these three flavours cumin, coriander and chilli. So I decided to combine the two flavours into one dish and this is what we have.” Perfect with chips, she says. It sounds absolutely lovely to me!

Shrimp skewers with coriander/cilantro pesto ~ by Pam from Sidewalk Shoes (USA)

Pam celebrates the bbq season with these gorgeous looking shrimp skewers with cilantro/coriander pesto. The shrimps are marinated in olive oil, garlic, chilli flakes, paprika and lime, grilled and then served with this lovely coriander and lime pesto. This is a dish with a serious zing that just sings out spring/summer.

Marjoram

Potato Croquettes with Speck Ham and Marjoram  ~ by Graziana from Erbe in Cucina (Italy)

Graziana shares a recipe for stuffed potato croquettes made with marjoram from her garden. She loves this herb, which she says goes really well with walnuts, eggs, cheese and legumes. Here she pairs it with potato and ham to produce some delicious croquettes, worth every bit of effort that goes into making them.

Rosemary

Glazed Rosemary and Garlic Potatoes ~ by Soma from eCurry (Plano, Texas, USA)

Soma says:“The dried & fresh leaves of Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis L) are used to compliment a variety of dishes in the culinary world, whether it be salads, savory, grilled food or desserts. Rosemary is a perennial herb with a very fragrant needle like leaf, native to the Mediterranean Region. The name rosemary is derived from the Latin name rosmarinus, which is from “dew” (ros) and “sea” (marinus), or “dew of the sea” — probably because it is frequently found growing near the sea.” And here is an interesting tip: “Rosemary as  a herb works wonderfully with grilled or roasted food as the flavours of the leaves intensify when burned.”

Thyme

Polenta snacks with thyme in bloom ~ by Cinzia from Cindystar (Bardolino, Lago di Garda, Italy)

Cinzia’s polenta snack with thyme in bloom are not just breath-takingly beautiful, but also a great way of using any leftover polenta if you have it. Actually, I think I might be tempted making it from scratch anyway just to make these little beauties!

Mixed herbs

Mini strudel with herbs ~ Brii from Brii’s blog in English (Valsorda, Lago di Garda, Italy)

Brii shares with us a delightful strudel recipe made with ricotta, grapefruit and with the herbs picked from her garden: old man’s beard(clematis vitalba), nettles (ortica dioica), sald burnet (pimpinella o sanguisorba minor) and wall pellitory (parietaria diffusa).

Vegetables

Asparagus

Asparagus Risotto ~ by Jerry from Jerry’s Thoughts, Musings, and Rants (Ontario , Canada)

Seasonal asparagus star in this beautifully coloured, and subtle-flavoured risotto prepared by Jerry. He says he loved the fact that the risotto “had two shots of asparagus in it – tips and chunks are added near then end but a beautiful, green puree of asparagus is added to finish it.”

Baby Turnips

Brisket Stracotto ~ by Haalo from Cook (Almost) Anything At Least Once (Australia)

Baby turnips are quite tangy and full of flavour, says Haalo. Perfect for use in a very slowly cooked stracotto, the Italian version of stew or casserole. Hallo says the end result is very tender meat, “beautifully infused with the flavours of the vegetables and herbs, which in turn are also flavoured by the meat.”

Fava beans (and green almonds)

Braised Lamb with Fava Beans and Green Almonds ~ by Jude from Apple Pie, Patis, and Pâté (Chicago, USA)

Jude says that “this ancient Berber dish is prepared around March or April in Morocco, when both green almonds and fava beans are seasonally available. The lamb is slow-cooked with ground mace and finished with the almonds, the beans, and a generous helping of sauteed onions.” In case you’re wondering about the almonds, Jude says they tasted like crunchy green beans.

 

Jicama/Yam

Jicama salad ~ by Joanne from Eats Well With Others (USA)

Jicama is a root vegetable that is also known as a yam bean or Mexican turnip, that, says Joanne, tastes pretty much like a cross between apple and potato. As such, this C vitamin-rich vegetable is used mostly in fresh fruit salads because of its crisp texture and semi-sweet taste (and here’s a recipe for you!), “but like any good root vegetable, it can also be mashed, baked, or fried. It’s also a really good substitute for water chestnuts in stir fries.” Very interesting! Thanks, Joanne!

Lemon Cucumber

Lemon cucumber with lentils ~ Jai & Bee from Jugalbandi (North Western U.S.)

Lemon cucumber may be new to many of us, but this description from Jai & Bee makes it very enticing: “This cuke is sweet, lemony and juicy – like a tart honeydew melon – absolutely delicious just with salt and cayenne.” Or try it with this simple and flavourful dal! I’ll be on the look-out for it!

Mixed herbs and veg

Cannellini Bean and Lentil Stew with Ham ~ Kalyn from Kalyn’s Kitchen (Utah, USA)

Slow-cooked to perfection, this thick, comforting and warming soup is perfect for combating the cold weather that Utah has been suffering recently. The leguminous star of this dish are the cannellini beans, white kidney beans that “have great flavor and keep their shape better than most white beans.”

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Thank you all for taking part!

This week, Chris from Mele Cotte is hosting Weekend Herb Blogging #182.

 

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Music of the waves in Zadar

I promised some Croatia photos to the dear Soma, but had to disappoint when our camera unexpectedly left us. Still, I got lucky! A very dear friend from home agreed to share her photos of Zadar with us. Thank you, S!

My favourite place in Zadar is the riva or promenade (in Croatian), with its white stones dipped into the deep blue and green sea, with a long and thin evergreen park of pine trees and black oak in the background, the views of the islands of the coast of Zadar and amazing, achingly beautiful sunsets. The riva is a beautiful urban space in its own right, but there is something else there that makes it even more special. In 2005, a sea organ was built on the west side of the riva. Yes, an organ, an instrument. Played not by a human hand, but by the wind and ‘the sounding sea’ (You might have guessed that I owe this last phrase to Poe).

The sea organ (morske orgulje in Croatian) is  designed by the architect Nikola Bašić. Made from white marble, several stairs extend for about 70 meters along the riva. Under the stairs, at the lowest sea-tide level, there are 35 pipes of different length, diameter and tilts, placed vertically to the coast, with labiums (whistles), which play 7 chords of 5 tones. The stairs have little holes in them, through which the sound comes out as the air is pushed by the sea. Concealed under the stairs is a resonating cavity. This amazing creation produces random, but strangely harmonious sounds that go from slow whistles produced by the gentle ripples of bonaca (calm sea), to angry fortes directed by the wind and the storms. You can hear the Zadar sea organ on YouTube, or in the Odd Music Gallery.

We didn’t take photos specifically of the sea organ, so do have a look at the excellent collection of the sea organ photos on Flickr.

Here are the photos that my friend took. Enjoy.

Walking towards the sea organ

 

View from the sea organ to the Zadar University (the building on the edge of the coast)

Greeting to the Sun – another of Basic’s installations – in the day time. (I shall have to dedicate another post to this)

 

One of the many sailing boats in the Zadar Canal. You can see the islands in the background here.

So here you go! Here are some little snippets of my homeland. Oh how I miss those blue blue skies, and the smell of the sea…

Eating with the Seasons: Asparagus

Asparagus are one of my favourite vegetables. While in Croatia, we gorged on wild asparagus, darker in colour and thinner than the cultivated cousin, and with a more intense flavour. Here in Britain, I’m enjoying the afore-mentioned cultivated asparagus. British asparagus are usually in season from May till June, but this year, they’re appearing earlier in shops and markets. I urge you to seize the opportunity while they’re here and enjoy them! Due to lack of camera and time (this is an old photo), I’m re-posting some asparagus info and recipe as an entry for the Eating with the Seasons: April. The round-up is coming shortly.

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About asparagus

Native to Eastern Mediterranean, from where it spread around the world, asparagus plant is very thorny, with tiny, needle-like leaves. The edible part of the plant are it’s shoots.

According to Wikipedia, asparagus has been used from very early times as a vegetable and medicine, owing to its delicate flavour and diuretic properties. Interestingly, there is a recipe for cooking asparagus in the oldest surviving book of recipes, Apicius’s third century AD De re coquinaria, Book III.

For more information, visit Wikipedia and WHFoods pages on asparagus.

Storage and preparation

Asparagus is very perishable, so try not to keep it for too long. To prepare the shoots of wild asparagus, gently bend the shoot and then break it where it’s hard, and unbending. This part is very woody, and difficult to eat, but can be used to make asparagus stock.

How to cook asparagus

Asparagus cooks very quickly, in a few minutes really. It’s very versatile and can be steamed, boiled, stir-fried or fried or grilled until tender. Regular asparagus can even be grilled. I like it slightly al dente!

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And here are the recipes. The first two are everyday, home-style Croatian recipes, while the third one is my own creation. Enjoy!

 

ASPARAGUS WITH EGGS (SPAROGE S JAJIMA)

ISTRIAN FRITTATA (ISTARSKA FRITAJA)

ASPARAGUS AND FETA FRITATTA

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WHB & Updates

Hello everyone! Long time no see? Yeap, it’s been a while. As you know, I’ve been away. I went to Croatia for two weeks, to visit my family and friends, and had wonderful time.

Unfortunately, I have no photos, as sadly my camera died completely just before we left. So, I am cameraless and sad now… On the lookout for a new one.

But, blogging shall resume. Even without photos. I’ll try to think of something. Meanwhile, I have some event hosting to do. Round-up for Eating with the seasons: April is on its way, and this week I’m also hosting Weekend Herb Blogging! Started by Kalyn, and now run by Haalo, this is the first blogging event I ever took part in, so I’m very excited to be hosting it again. Many thanks to Haalo for giving me this opportunity!

So, please send me your entries featuring your favourite herbs, plants, veggies, or flowers of the week by:

3 pm Sunday – Utah Time
10 pm Sunday – London Time
9 am Monday – Melbourne (Aus) Time
You can use this converter to find out the corresponding time in your location.

My e-mail address is: maninas DOT wordpress AT yahoo DOT co DOT uk.

To send me your entry, please include the following in your email:

• Your Name
• Your Blog Name/URL
• Your Post URL
• Your Location
• Attach a photo (please check here for specific host requirements)

 

Here’s where you can find the rules if you’d like to take part, and here’s where you can find out who’s hosting the next WHB.

I look forward to receiving your entries!

 

Off to the sea!

I’m off to Dalmatia tomorrow! Can’t wait!

See you all when I get back.

 

Ginestra (Photo taken in the Channel Islands)