International Food Nights

Just thought we'd update y'all on some of our most recent fantastic culinary creations. We try to do everything around here from scratch if at all possible because it's usually more economical and almost always more delicious. Plus it's just so fun. This time we even included our recipes!

Bon Appetit!

Moroccan Dinner Menu

• Chickpea Couscous
• Oven Roasted Sesame Potatoes
• Steamed Artichoke with Yogurt Sauce
• Pomegranate Ginger Mojitos
• Mantecados with ginger ice cream
• Mint tea

Chickpea Couscous

Ingredients:

14 ounces vegetable broth

1 tsp. ground coriander

1/2 tsp. ground cardamom

1/2 tsp. turmeric

1/2 tsp. harissa paste (hard to find in some places, so we've included our from scratch recipe below)

1/4 tsp. salt

1/8 tsp. ground cinnamon

15 ounces chickpeas, rinsed and drained

1 C quick cooking couscous

2 T chopped fresh mint leaves

• Combine vegetable broth, coriander, cardamom, turmeric, harissa, salt, and cinnamon in a large saucepan; bring to a boil over high heat; reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes
• Add chickpeas and return to simmer; simmer uncovered for 2 minutes.
• Stir in couscous, cover, and remove from heat.
• Let stand for 5 minutes or until liquid is absorbed.
• Sprinkle with mint as garnish.

Moroccan Oven Roasted Sesame Potatoes

Ingredients:

2 lb. russet potatoes

1 T harissa paste

2 T olive oil

1 1/2 tsp. coarse sea salt

1 T sesame seeds

1/4-1/2 of a lemon

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit
• Peel or scrub potatoes, depending on your preference
• Cut potatoes into 1" cubes
• Place in large bowl and toss with harissa until evenly coated
• Add olive oil and toss again
• Sprinkle with salt and sesame seeds and toss again
• Cover large baking sheet with foil and oil lightly
• Place seasoned potato chunks on baking sheet in a single layer
• Bake for 30 minutes, then turn potatoes with a spatula and cook for 15 additional minutes, or until potatoes are a deep golden color
• Squeeze lemon over potatoes before serving

Harissa Blend

Ingredients:

2 tsp. cumin

2 tsp. coriander

4 T dried red chillies, chopped

2 tsp. paprika

1 tsp. sea salt

1 tsp. mint, chopped

1 1/2 tsp. garlic powder

• Combine all ingredients and grind if desired
• To make a paste, mix the powder with an equal part water and add olive oil to your desired texture

Steamed Artichoke with Yogurt Sauce

Ingredients:

1 artichoke

salt

pepper

lemon

1/2 C plain yogurt

1/2 C mayonnaise

• Steam artichoke in a stock pot until tender (approx. 45 minutes)
• Cut in half lengthwise
• Season to taste with salt, pepper, and lemon
• The sauce is really easy, just mix together the yogurt and mayo and add a little salt

Mantecados (Moroccan Cinnamon Cookies)

-not pictured- We served these with ginger ice cream

Ingredients:

2 C all purpose flour, sifted

1 C oil

1 egg, beaten

1 C sugar

zest of 1/2 a lemon

ground cinnamon

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit
• Put flour in a large bowl and make a well in the center
• Add oil, egg, sugar and lemon zest and knead
• Grease baking sheet and sprinkle with flour
• Form small dough balls and flatten slightly
• Let stand on sheet for 20 minutes
• Sprinkle with cinnamon
• Bake for 20 minutes

Pomegranate Ginger Mojitos

Ingredients:

Mint leaves

Ginger syrup (recipe below)

Clear rum (vodka works well also)

Club soda

Pomegranate juice

Lemon juice

• Place about 5-7 mint leaves in a tall glass with one ounce ginger syrup and two ounces alcohol
• Fill glass with ice and muddle mixture
• Fill glass with club soda and top off with a splash of pomegranate juice and a squeeze of lemon
• To make a stronger (or weaker) drink, just remember to maintain the one to two ratio of syrup to alcohol

Ginger Syrup

Ingredients:

2 C sugar

1 C water

3 inches ginger, peeled and chopped into about 1/2 inch sections

• Heat sugar, water and ginger to a slight boil, reduce to a simmer for about 2 minutes, until the ginger is infused and the mixture thickens to syrup consistency
• After the mixture cools, strain into a container and keep refrigerated
• We also used this to sweeten our tea (good with chai, mint, chamomile, etc.)

Don't forget to have a nice hot cup of mint tea after your meal!

Indian Food Menu

• Paneer Makhani
• Naan style flatbread
• Salt lassi

Paneer Makhani

Ingredients:

1/2 tsp. sugar

1 T butter + 2 tsp. butter, separated

2 tsp. all purpose flour

1 C milk

approx. 20 cubed pieces of paneer (recipe for homemade paneer below)

1 onion, chopped

15 ounces diced tomatoes (we used one can of already diced tomatoes and drained a little bit of the tomato juice)

1 inch ginger, peeled and chopped

salt

2-3 cloves garlic, chopped

2 tsp. chilli powder

1 tsp. cumin powder

2 tsp. coriander powder

1 tsp. garam masala powder (this may not be readily available, but is pretty awesome if you can get your hands on this blend of 11 spices)

cilantro for garnish

• First make a white sauce by heating the 2 tsp. of butter in a small saucepan, incorporate flour, and add milk. Stir until smooth and set aside to cool
• Sautee onion in butter until tender, then add the ginger and garlic and sautee 1-2 minutes longer
• Add tomatoes and powders, bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer until the mixture is reduced to 3/4 the amount
• Add white sauce and combine; cook for another few minutes
• Add the paneer , garnish with cilantro, and serve over rice

Paneer

-thanks to Bryan's classmate Heidi for sharing her homemade cheese knowledge-

Ingredients:

1/2 gallon whole milk

6 T lemon juice

• In a large saucepan, bring milk to just under a boil and turn off heat. Stir continuously to prevent the bottom from burning
• Add lemon juice and continue to stir milk until it separates into curds and whey
• Allow the curds and whey to cool for about 1/2 an hour, or until cool enough to handle
• Strain through a strainer lined with cheese cloth
• Rinse the curds with fresh water
• Wrap the cheese cloth on itself and squeeze the moisture out (the more you squeeze, the more firm your paneer will be)
• Shape the paneer, still in the cheese cloth, into a block about 1/2-3/4 inch thick. Ensure that it is wrapped tightly
• Place something flat and heavy on top, like a cutting board or cooking pot and allow gravity to extract the remaining excess moisture
• Cube into desired size
• You may wish to save the whey for future batches of paneer and use it instead of lemon juice

Naan Style Flatbread

Ingredients:

3 C all purpose flour

1 C cold water

3 T olive oil

1 tsp. salt

2 tsp. baking powder

pinch of baking soda

1/2 tsp. cumin

2 T cilantro

• Combine all ingredients and form into a dough
• Cut into 4-5 equal pieces
• Roll out each piece into a thin circle or rectangle on a floured cutting board
• Prick surface of dough with a fork and cook on medium low heat on an oiled hot griddle or wide flat bottomed frying pan
• Turn with a spatula; watch these closely because they cook pretty fast, about 2-3 minutes per side depending on how thin you rolled them

Salt Lassi

Ingredients:

1/2 C plain yogurt for each

1 C water for each

1/8 tsp. ground cumin for each

salt to taste

• Place all ingredients in a bowl and blend with an egg beater and pour into a tall glass, or place all ingredients in a tall glass and use a handheld foaming/mixing device (I used my aerolatte battery powered whisk thing)

Alas, no room for dessert, but this rounds out nicely with a cup of hot chai