Spice (4 page)

¼ teaspoon black pepper

8 dates, cut in half and pits removed

2 tablespoons olive oil

pound haloumi cheese, cut into 8 slices

1 pear, quartered, seeded, and sliced into 8 pieces

3 tablespoons ouzo

1.
Preheat the oven to 350°F.

2.
In a small sauté pan, big enough to hold the dates, mix the lemon juice, lemon zest, and brown sugar and cook over medium heat, stirring, until the brown sugar melts. Add the spices and dates and cook until the dates soften a little, about 5 minutes. Stir in 1 tablespoon of the olive oil and set the mixture aside.

3.
Heat a large nonstick pan over medium-high heat. Arrange the cheese slices in the skillet, being careful not to overlap or crowd them. Brown the cheese, about 2 minutes on each side, or until golden brown on each side. Transfer to a heavy gratin or baking dish, placing the haloumi slices side by side.

4.
Using the same sauté pan, heat the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil on medium-high heat and then add the pears. Brown the pears for 4 to 5 minutes on one side. Remove the pears from the pan and add them to the baking pan with the haloumi. Spoon a date onto each piece of haloumi and place the pan in the oven until it gets hot and the cheese gets a little softer, 6 to 8 minutes.

5.
Remove the pan from the oven, place it on the table, and without waiting, add the ouzo to the pan and carefully ignite it. Stand back when you light the dish, as the flames can reach 5 inches. The fire will burn off the alcohol, and after about a minute, it will leave the sweet flavor of the ouzo.

Red Lentil Köfte with Tomato, Cucumber, and Pomegranate

Köfte
is bulgur-based pâté or dough. It’s also known as
kibbeh
in Arabic. It is combined with lentils, meat, squash, potato, and so on and can be baked, fried, or eaten raw. You must use finely ground bulgur to make köfte; coarse bulgur will not bind. The bulgur as well as the Aleppo chilies and pomegranate molasses in this recipe can be found online at www.kalustyans.com. Pomegranate molasses can also be found at most Middle Eastern markets or online at www.zingermans.com.

My friend Ferda Erdinc, who owns Zencefil restaurant in Istanbul, inspired this recipe. Zencefil (see page 15), which means “ginger,” is a vegetarian restaurant in the Taxim neighborhood. The flavors in her menu are so rich, I never even missed the meat during a meal there.

Ferda makes a tangy salsa with finely chopped cucumber, pomegranate, and tomato to accompany her köfte. This dish is great as a salad course or accompanied by grilled fish.

M
AKES
8
MEDİUM KÖFTE TO SERVE
4
TO
8

For the Köfte

2 tablespoons butter

1 medium white onion, minced

1 carrot, peeled and finely chopped

1 tablespoon tomato paste

1 teaspoon ground cumin

2 teaspoons Aleppo chilies or medium-hot paprika

1 cup red lentils

4 cups water

1 cup finely ground bulgur

¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil

Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

For the Salsa

1 small red onion, finely chopped

1 medium European cucumber, peeled, halved, seeded, and finely diced

1 small green bell pepper, finely diced

1 pound tomatoes, seeded, finely diced, and drained of most of their water in a sieve for about 10 minutes

6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

1½ tablespoons fresh lemon juice

1 tablespoon pomegranate molasses

¼ cup pomegranate seeds (about ½ pomegranate)

Salt and pepper to taste

¼ cup minced fresh flat-leaf parsley or mint

8 romaine lettuce leaves, torn into large pieces

To Make the Köfte

1.
Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over moderate heat. Add the white onion and carrot and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5 minutes.

2.
Stir in the tomato paste, cumin, and Aleppo chilies, and then add the lentils and water and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer until the lentils are tender and have absorbed about ¾ of the liquid, about 8 minutes.

3.
Stir in the bulgur and olive oil and remove from the heat. Let this stand until the liquid is absorbed and the bulgur is softened, about 20 minutes.

4.
Season the mixture with salt and pepper, transfer it to a rimmed baking sheet, and spread in an even layer to cool.

To Make the Salsa

1.
Toss the red onion with the cucumber, bell pepper, and tomatoes.

2.
In a small bowl, make the dressing by whisking the olive oil with the lemon juice and pomegranate molasses and seeds.

3.
Pour all but 2 tablespoons of the dressing over the salsa, season with salt and pepper, and toss. Stir in the parsley.

To Assemble the Köfte

1.
When the lentil mixture is cool enough to handle, form it into patties by scooping up about 2 tablespoons at a time and rolling the patties between your palms to make a round ball, and then flatten them slightly. For a fancier presentation, you can also form them into quenelle shapes by using two spoons as a mold to press them into the shape of small footballs. Make a thumbprint in the center of each patty to catch the juice from the cucumber salsa.

2.
In a large bowl, toss the romaine with the remaining 2 tablespoons of dressing and arrange on a large platter. Set the köfte on the lettuce.

3.
Spoon the salsa on top, nestling most in the thumbprint, and serve.

ZENCEFIL

I met Ferda Erdinc in 1996 on my first visit to Turkey. She owns Zencefil, a small vegetarian restaurant in a very hip neighborhood called Taxim in Istanbul. Ferda was a teacher to me and became a dear friend. She took me to restaurants and into friends’ kitchens on my mission to study Turkish food. This first trip to Turkey changed my life. I initially knew nothing about the culture or cuisine, but came back wanting to know more. And I started to change the way I cooked and ate. Ferda introduced me to flavors I had never tasted before. I began to understand that food can be made rich and satisfying by carefully blending spices and ingredients and without using too many fats.

When I arrived at Zencefil, I walked into Ferda’s kitchen. The cooks were cleaning mallow, a wild weed that can be stewed and has a texture like okra. For dinner, we ate a composed salad of black-eyed peas, pickled beets, lettuce, and tomato, followed by some stewed mallow with garlic and olive oil that tasted to me like a cross between broccoli and artichokes. We also ate Ferda’s red lentil köfte and had sweet-sour soup with chickpeas, barley, and pomegranate molasses. We ate special greens from the Black Sea that were sautéed and sprinkled with a cheese that Ferda called “dried feta.” I do not think I’ve ever eaten such an exciting meal as that one at Zencefil. And it was so healthful. I would give up meat if only Ferda’s restaurant were around the corner.

Moroccan Ras el Hannout

I think the best way to describe this spice mixture is Moroccan curry.
Ras el hannout
means “head of the shop,” and there are as many variations on this blend of spices as there are shop owners in Morocco, some using more than the seven spices we use at Oleana. Ras el hannout has many uses, and it works well as a condiment for cooked chickpeas, fried squid, fish, and vegetables. However, I think it really shines with chicken, which takes on the reddish hue of the paprika and the slight sweetness of the ginger, saffron, and cinnamon.

M
AKES ABOUT
1
CUP

¼ cup cumin seeds

1/3 teaspoon saffron

1½ teaspoons ground cinnamon

1 tablespoon turmeric

1 teaspoon ground ginger

1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper

½ cup paprika

1.
In a small skillet over medium-low heat, toast the cumin seeds for 2 minutes, until fragrant. Place the seeds in a spice grinder and cool completely. Add the saffron to the spice grinder and grind with the cumin seeds.

2.
Remove the saffron and cumin mixture to a small mixing bowl and combine with the remaining spices.

Fried Squid with Avocado Hummus

Hummus
means chickpeas, but I make it from a variety of ingredients such as squash and parsnips (see page 188). But nothing is as creamy and unctuous as the avocado. Avocado hummus can be eaten on its own with bread or with raw vegetables for dipping.

It’s important to use a good brand of tahini when making hummus. Tohum brand is a dark-roasted organic tahini from Turkey (you can find it at www.tohum.com). Tohum also carries organic heirloom chickpeas and wonderful sun-dried red pepper paste. I love Tohum tahini because it’s not chalky, and it’s rich and oily instead of bitter and dry.