Moroccan Feast

(Image swiped from http://salobrena.wordpress.com/2007/10/16/the-market-in-tanger/)

This past week I focused on Moroccan food. The cuisine from Morocco and North Africa is one of my favorites because the flavors and ingredients are fresh and lively and colorful. And it's no wonder, since Morocco is a blend of various cultures, each offering their own style and ingredients. The indigenous Berbers have their tangines and couscous; the nomadic Bedouins brought in dates, milk, and grains; the Moors from Spain brought olives, paprika, and herbs. Add some French influence to tidy it all up and you have a grand landscape of flavors that is not heavy on meat but showcases vegetables and fruits.

For my first recipe, I present a simple dip similar to hummus, but instead of chickpeas it uses fava beans. It is called bissara.

Garlic Fava Bean Dip

Ingredients

12 oz dried fava beans, soaked in water overnight

4 garlic cloves

2 t cumin seeds

4 T olive oil

salt

pinch of paprika and thyme

Steps

1. Drain the beans, remove the outer brown skins, and drop them into a pressure cooker or pot. Add the garlic and the cumin seeds. Add enough water to cover. If using a pressure cooker, cook on high pressure for about 15 minutes. If using a pot, bring to a boil, then lower the heat, cover, and simmer for 1 hour.

2. Drain the beans and place in a food processor. Puree the beans and drizzle in the olive oil. Season to taste with salt, then sprinkle with paprika and thyme. Serve warm or at room temperature with bread.

Muhammara

Muhammara is a dip from Turkey and other areas of the Middle East. If you're tired of hummus and baba ganoush, this is an excellent change of pace. It is a simple dish that derives its flavor from walnuts, roasted red peppers, and pomegranate. Other variations add spices like cumin, but I have kept this one simple. This makes a great bread dip or can be spread on toast. Some also use it as a sauce for meat dishes. We used it as a dip for our gluten-free flatbread (see this recipe).

You can often find pomegranate molasses in Middle Eastern groceries, or you can purchase at Amazon here: Pomegranate Molasses 10fl.oz This stuff is delicious and is useful for other Middle Eastern dishes.

Muhammara

Makes about 1½ cups.

Ingredients

1 c walnuts
2 small red bell peppers
2 T olive oil, divided
2 cloves garlic, sliced
1 t salt
1 T pomegranate syrup or molasses

Steps

1. Preheat oven to 375°F. Spread walnuts on baking sheet, and toast 5 - 10 minutes until light brown and fragrant. Remove from the oven and let cool.

2. Roast red bell peppers on a grill until the skins are black all over. When they are cool, rub off the blackened skin, remove the seeds, and coarsely chop.

3. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in small skillet over medium heat. Add garlic and sauté 1 minute. Remove from heat, and allow garlic and oil to cool.

4. Purée bell peppers, walnuts, garlic, remaining olive oil, salt, and pomegranate molasses in a food processor until smooth. Season with pepper. Transfer to small serving bowl.

Coriander White Bean Dip

Beans are a good source of protein, something vegetarians should always be concerned with. Beans are also very versatile and there is a wide variety to choose from.

This is a white bean dip with a creamy texture and a hint of spices. Of course, any bean will do, but I prefer white beans here because of the lovely color it takes on from the spices. This dip is excellent with crackers, bread, or even vegetables.

Although the recipe calls for canned beans, this is merely for convenience. We prefer to cook dried beans in our pressure cooker. The consistency is so much better. Also, I love the taste of garlic, but don't like to burp it afterward, so we almost always cook our garlic first. You may omit the first step and toss the raw garlic right into the food processor.

Coriander White Bean Dip

Ingredients:

1 15 oz can white beans, drained and rinsed
1 T cider vinegar
2 T olive oil
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 t ground coriander
1/2 t paprika
1/8 t cayenne pepper
1/4 t salt

Steps:

1. In a small pan, saute garlic slightly in a little olive oil.

2. In a food processor, combine everything plus 2 tablespoons of water.

3. Process until mixture is very smooth, about 1 minute.

4. Transfer to a serving bowl, drizzle on some additional olive oil, and garnish with more paprika and black pepper.