Three Cheers for Finding A Recipe for this Beloved Spice Blend: Ras El Hanout

Last fall while in London I wandered through the Borough Market.  If you have even one grain of "foodie" inside you and you find yourself in London, carve out some time on the weekend and spend some time here.  Open to the public on a limited basis it is truly a fantastic experience!  

One of my discoveries on this recent trip was a new (to me, anyway) spice blend:  Ras El Hanout.  Now I am obsessed!  I picked up several things at Spice Mountain, who I discovered is now able to ship internationally!  Here is what their website has to say about their particular mixture of this spice blend:  So the recipe below has a slightly different version of the blend.  

It’s all in the name!  Literally meaning ‘top of the shop’, this complex Moroccan blend of spices traditionally represents the best a spice merchant has to offer.  Amongst the 20+ spices included are saffron, rose petals and lavender.  This blend lends itself especially well to slow cooked dishes, as the individual flavour of each spice, from robust and spicy to sweet and floral, is perfectly balanced out as the dish cooks.

Ras El Hanout is also perfect for livening up such things as a simple lentil soup, a vegetable stew or to sprinkle on meat, chicken or fish before grilling

Ingredients: Cumin, Coriander, Cayenne, Black Pepper, White Pepper, Nutmeg, Cinnamon, Cloves, Turmeric, Ginger, Rose Petals.

The following is a recipe for Ras El Hanout as found on the Epicurious website.  Enjoy!

INGREDIENTS

1. • 1 teaspoon ground cumin
   • 1 teaspoon ground ginger
   • 1 teaspoon salt
   • 3/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
   • 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
   • 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander seeds
   • 1/2 teaspoon cayenne
   • 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
   • 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

PREPARATION

1. In a small bowl whisk together all ingredients until combined well. Spice blend keeps in an airtight container at cool room temperature 1 month.
2. And that, my friends, is the beauty of cooking:  we can all have a variation of a food or spice recipe and it is o-kay!

Moussaka

I have been doing some experimental cooking since the holidays using eggplants and some other less commonly used (for me) ingredients.  I got a one pound package of ground goat (!) at the farmer's market a couple weeks ago and decided it might be good as part of a moussaka casserole.  I haven't made moussaka in decades.  When looking online for ideas for using the ground goat, moussaka was recommended.  I spotted a Bobby Flay recipe for moussaka and was inspired by his recipe but took quite a number of liberties based on the ingredients I had available.  Here is a link to his recipe.  

First, some of these things can be assembled in advance. I would recommend mixing the cheese ingredients (except for the Manchego) in advance and refrigerate.  Also, I think you could cook the ground meat mixture in advance and refrigerate (or even freeze!) until the actual assembly of the dish.  There are a lot of ingredients, so be sure to look over the list before you dive in (unlike me).  

A note about spices:  if you haven't updated your spice shelf in a while, do it!  It makes all the difference.  I pulled out a container of ground allspice and opened it.  I couldn't even smell the spice.  Then I opened a package of whole allspice and ground them in my spice grinder.  Oh my goodness.  Night and day. It is worth updating them every 6 months.  You won't believe the difference it makes in the quality of your cooking.

Moussaka

One pount ground lamb, beef goat, or pork (or a combo)

Olive oil

½ tsp ginger

½ tsp cinnamon

2 tsp ground allspice

¼ tsp ground cardamom (optional)

¼ tsp cayenne pepper

½ onion thinly sliced

1 red pepper, chopped

5 garlic cloves finely minced

1 cup red wine

3 Tablespoons tomato paste

salt

1 eggplant, peeled & cut crosswise into ¼ inch slices and brushed with olive oil.

ricotta or similar cheese, about one cup

goat cheese, about 1/2 cup or use what you have..

fresh chopped flat-leaf parsley to taste and appearance

¼ cup pesto

2 or 3 egg yolks

1 cup of semi hard cheese such as manchego, or similar.

Combine the ricotta, goat cheese, chopped parsley, pesto, and egg yolks and set aside. 

Sautee the ground meat(s) in a pan with the various spices and salt. Remove from the pan and allow the juices to drip into a bowl.  Discard juices.

Add a bit more olive oil and sauté the onions until translucent.  Add garlic and continue cooking for one minute.  Add meat back into the pan, and add the wine and the tomato paste.  Cook until most of the fluid is evaporated.  Remove from pan into a bowl and cool.

In a skillet heated to medium-high add a bit more olive oil and sautee the  eggplant slices until golden brown on each side.  Remove to a paper towel to drain and allow to cool.

Coat the inside of a casserole with olive oil.  Layer half of the eggplant slices, then half of the meat mixture, then half of the cheese mixture.

Scatter half of the lemon zest over the top.  Repeat.

On the surface scatter the grated cheese.  Bake in a 375 degree oven for 45-50 minutes.  Allow to cool for 20 minutes before serving.

Eggplant slices are brushed with olive oil before browning in a skillet.

Here the meat is being mixed with the sautéed onions and garlic.

First layer of sautéed eggplant going into the casserole dish.

First meat layer.

Then the cheese-egg layer.

More eggplant and I put half of the lemon zest over it (because I forgot to do it on the cheese layer!)

Spreading the final cheese-egg layer

Now sprinkling the layer of Manchego cheese on the top.

I served it with a tossed green salad. 

It was delicious!  I was pleasantly surprised about the ground goat:  it was really good.

I think ground lamb or beef would have been very tasty in this dish, too.

FIsh Tacos with Mediterranean slaw and corn tortillas

This meal is super simple to construct, and it is VERY satisfying!
I'm not a "coleslaw" person.  At all.  I shiver every time I think about that old midwest-style slaw, drowning in that runny white "dressing".  Yech.  This is not your grandma's coleslaw.

First I want to put in a little pitch for my dry curry recipe.  It was previously published, but it is so good I'm going to post it again.  It is what makes this coleslaw recipe so darn delicious.

Make your own Curry spice mixture

Add caption

here is the mixture before grinding in a mini food-processor

Curry Powder:

2 tablespoons coriander seeds

1 tablespoon cumin seeds

1 teaspoon fennel seeds

1/2 teaspoon whole cloves

1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds

1 tablespoon cardamom seeds

1 tablespoon whole black peppercorns

2 dried red chiles, broken in pieces, seeds discarded

1 tablespoon turmeric

Toast the whole spices (coriander, cumin, fennel, cloves, mustard, cardamom and peppercorns) and the chiles in a small dry skillet over medium-low heat, shaking the pan often to prevent them from burning. Toast for a couple of minutes until the spices smell fragrant. In a clean coffee grinder, grind the toasted spices together to a fine powder. Add the turmeric and give it another quick buzz to combine. Use the spice blend immediately, or store in a sealed jar for as long as 1 month.

Yield: about 1/2 cup

* I made this about 6 months ago and it is still really good.

Fish Tacos

I bought a box of tortilla crusted tilapia filets at Costco.  They are delicious!  If you don't want to use these you can certainly sautee fresh fish, or use whatever else you have on hand.  I like to keep these fish filets in the freezer for times when I forget to thaw anything for dinner.  Cook as directed.

Tortillas

I live in San Antonio where the possibility of acquiring freshly prepared corn tortillas is very easy.  I have been told by a friend that Costco is now carrying corn tortillas that simply need to be pan-heated to finish, and they are quite delicious.  Wherever you get your tortillas, corn or flour, please PLEASE heat them in a pan, flipping at least once, to cook them.  DO NOT microwave them as this turns them into rubber discs.  Pan heating on high takes very little time, and they are 100% better this way.  If you can't get fresh tortillas, this is the next best option.  After heating, place them in a warm oven until ready to serve.

Coleslaw, or as my husband says, "Curslaw":

Ingredients:

one package of presliced slaw, found in any grocer case in the veggie aisle (don't use the liquid stuff!) Just get it for the veggies

5-6 thinly sliced radishes

curry mix

1/2 tsp turmeric (in addition to what is in the curry mix)

1/2 tsp smoked paprika

handful craisins

approx 1/4 cup mayo

salt and pepper to taste

I'm guessing on the amounts of these ingredients because I almost never measure.  I "eyeball" it.  You can do the same.

dump the vegetables into a bowl

thinly slice radishes, then cut the slices in half

scatter in the veggie mix.  

You might be wondering why I'm putting radishes in the mixture.  Trust me!

Even if you aren't a radish fan, you will love them in this recipe!  They don't significantly spice up the mixture, but they add color and a lovely crunchy texture.  Just do it!

add mayo and curry mix, paprika, and turmeric

toss in craisins (raisins would work, too)

here's what is left of my curry mix.

I guess it is time to make more!

Place the fish filet on the tortilla, then top with the "curslaw".

Serve.  Delicious!

I hope you try this slaw recipe with fish tacos.  It is so deliciously satisfying.  Let me know what you think of them!

Curry Dry Rub (good for everything)

here is the mixture before grinding in a mini food-processor

Curry Powder:

2 tablespoons coriander seeds

1 tablespoon cumin seeds

1 teaspoon fennel seeds

1/2 teaspoon whole cloves

1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds

1 tablespoon cardamom seeds

1 tablespoon whole black peppercorns

2 dried red chiles, broken in pieces, seeds discarded

1 tablespoon turmeric

Toast the whole spices (coriander, cumin, fennel, cloves, mustard, cardamom and peppercorns) and the chiles in a small dry skillet over medium-low heat, shaking the pan often to prevent them from burning. Toast for a couple of minutes until the spices smell fragrant. In a clean coffee grinder, grind the toasted spices together to a fine powder. Add the turmeric and give it another quick buzz to combine. Use the spice blend immediately, or store in a sealed jar for several months.

Yield: about 1/2 cup

Curry spice mixture is good on just about everything.  Once you savor the aroma of freshly-made curry, you'll never buy that "other" stuff again.  I love it for lamb, chicken, even as a dry rub for grilled steaks!  It is great on veggies for stir fry.  One of my favorite uses is in a vegetable egg casserole.  Try it!