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Pois chiches grillés au Ras El Hanout… et des vacances

16 Mar

Un snack au goût du Maroc. Enfin les vacances!

C’est enfin ce soir que je décolle pour le Maroc! Je suis excitée et nerveuse à l’idée de découvrir ce pays si différent, si mystérieux. Les souks, les médinas, les tajines, les gens, la culture et surtout… le désert! Avez-vous déjà pensé à quoi ressemblent les étoiles dans la noirceur complète? Ce qu’est le silence total? Ou comment on se sent devant l’immensité de dunes de sable qui font 300 mètres? Moi, j’en rêve depuis des mois…

En attendant de pouvoir vous partager des photos et quelques recettes authentiques (j’ai réservé un cours de cuisine à Fès!), je vous laisse avec cette recette de pois chiches grillés au Ras El Hanout – un mélange d’épices marocain.

Dernièrement, j’ai vu une foule de recettes de pois chiches grillés et je me suis dit que ça ferait un excellent ajout à mes apéros habituels ou un snack santé. OK, je les mangerai sûrement avec une bonne bière froide, mais vous n’êtes pas obligés de tout faire comme moi :-) .

Alors, qu’est-ce que je dois absolument rapporter du Maroc? C’est certain que je vise les épices, mais lesquelles choisir? Et l’huile d’arganier, ça vaut la peine? Sinon, avez-vous des bonnes adresses ou activités à me suggérer? Ou peut-être quelques techniques de négociation…?

À très bientôt.

Recette pour pois chiches grillés

  • 1 boîte de pois chiches
  • 1 c. à table d’huile d’olive
  • 3 à 6 c. à thé de Ras El Hanout (ou les épices de votre choix – ça peut être aussi simple que du sel et du paprika!)

Ras El Hanout - mélange d'épices marocain.

Ras El Hanout Trouvée sur Epicurious Donne 6 c. à thé

  • 1 c. à thé de cumin
  • 1 c. à thé de gingembre
  • 1 c. à thé de sel
  • ¾ c. à thé de poivre moulu
  • ½ c. à thé de cannelle
  • ½ c. à thé de coriandre
  • ½ c. à thé de piment de Cayenne
  • ½ c. à thé de piment de la Jamaïque
  • ¼ c. à thé de clou de girofle

Préchauffez le four à 400 degrés F. Rincez les pois chiches et séchez-les au maximum avec des essuie-tout ou un linge propre. Mettez-les dans un bol avec l’huile et la quantité souhaitée de Ras El Hanout (attention, c’est piquant!). Enrobez bien les pois chiches et mettez-les au four pour environ 40 minutes jusqu’à ce qu’ils soient croustillants, mais pas brûlés.

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Muesli : petit-déj santé rapido presto

8 Mar

Cette recette de muesli me rappelle des souvenirs d’enfance, alors que je regardais ma mère préparer sa crème Budwig. Rien qu’à penser à la tête que je lui faisais quand elle me proposait d’y goûter me fait sourire. Jamais au monde n’aurais-je pensé échanger mes Cap’n Crunch contre un truc aussi santé et nature à cette époque. Mais les temps ont changé… Et mon métabolisme aussi! Aujourd’hui, je recherche des solutions de petit-déjeuner rapides à préparer (je suis systématiquement en retard le matin…) et qui me fournissent l’énergie nécessaire pour me rendre au dîner sans perdre de vapeur.

Depuis plusieurs mois, j’ai mis le granola maison sur mon menu du matin, mais j’avoue que je commence à m’en lasser. Le muesli me permet de varier en plus d’avoir l’avantage de ne contenir aucun sucre et de fournir un apport élevé en fibres et protéines. En plus, il n’y pas de préparation compliquée et aucune cuisson. On mesure et on mélange – c’est tout!

J’ai fait cette recette le weekend dernier et j’ai beaucoup aimé tout comme MJ, qui a un petit côté grano comme moi.

Recette
Adaptée et traduite de Super Natural Every Day
Donne environ 4 tasses

  • 3 tasses de flocons d’avoine
  • 1/4 de tasse de germe de blé (préférablement non grillé)
  • 1/4 tasse raisins secs dorés Sultana
  • 1/2 tasse d’amandes hachées grossièrement
    (Utilisez des amandes Marcona si possible. J’en ai trouvées des salées aux Douceurs du marché au Marché Atwater, mais il paraît qu’on en vend nature chez Loblaws et Costco.)
  • ¼ c. à thé de sel de mer fin (omettez le sel si vos amandes sont salées comme les miennes)

Rassembler tous les ingrédients dans un grand bol et mélanger. Conserver au frigo dans un contenant hermétique.

Pour chaque portion, mélanger ½ tasse de yogourt avec ¼ de tasse d’eau et ¼ de tasse de muesli. Laisser tremper au frigo au moins une heure ou toute la nuit. Au service, ajouter un filet de sirop d’érable ou de miel et des fruits frais (fraises, bleuets, bananes, etc.) si désiré.

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Quinoa cakes and some new cookbooks

28 Feb

Quinoa cakes are a quick, healthy, vegetarian meal anyone can whip up on a weeknight. AND they taste great. Who doesn't love quinoa anyways?

Lately, I’ve been trying to include healthier ingredients in my day-to-day cooking. But I was a little overwhelmed by it all: organic, natural, whole-grain, polyunsaturated, unbleached, stone-milled… Can someone just make it simple, PLEASE! I have no time to compare heat tolerances of various oils when I’m on the verge of caving in to honey-flavoured Shreddies (they’re amazing, BTW). So was I ever happy to come across a pair of cookbooks by blogger Heidi Swanson that sum it up like this: choose ingredients that are as close as possible to the way you would find them in nature: no chemicals and no modifications – genetic or mechanic. Ahhh… Now that makes sense!

But before I tell you more about my new favourite cookbooks (and you start to yawn), let me win you over with these babies: quinoa cakes. I came across a picture and recipe of them in one of the books that stopped me dead in my tracks. Making patties resembling meatballs or crab cakes with quinoa. AMAZING! Enough with the quinoa salad already, these little patties are a great new way to use the grain we’ve all come to love for its taste as much as its nutritional value. Quinoa is high in protein, so this mean two of these puppies will keep you going until your next meal, no problem. Plus, the recipe is quick and easy. Consider this: tonight, I made this recipe (with ingredients I had on hand, mind you), took pictured of it, ate my dinner in a civilized fashion, did a whole load of dishes, scrubbed my ceramic cook top (which I admittedly had not cleaned for quite some time) drove Mat to the metro, BBM’ed with my good friend AND wrote this post - all by 10:30 p.m. Not bad! So give it a shot, why don’t ya.

Super Natural Every Day, Heidi Swanson's second cookbook, is packed full of healthy recipes for the every day.

Recipe
Adapted from Super Natural Every Day by Heidi Swanson
 Yields 6 quinoa cakes

  • 1 cup quinoa, cooked and cooled (in 1.5 cups of simmering salted water for about 15 minutes)
  • 2 eggs, beaten
  • A pinch of salt
  • 1/3 cup of cheese, grated (Whatever you have on hand will do. I had parmesan and leftover Gruyère, which happen to be the recommended cheeses for this recipe.)
  • 1/2 an onion, finely chopped
  • 1 large clove of garlic, minced
  • Green parts of 4 shallots or small bunch of chives, chopped
  • 1/2 cup of breadcrumbs (I had Italian breadcrumbs and used that although the recipe calls for whole grain – no biggie.)
  • A splash of olive oil for browning the patties

Mix the cooked and cooled quinoa with the eggs and salt. Incorporate all other ingredients and let stand a few minutes for the breadcrumbs to absorb the moisture. Adjust the consistency with a little water if needed so that you can easily form patties with your hands. Heat the oil on medium heat and cook the patties, covered for about 5 minutes on each side.

Quick dipping sauce
This is a last-minute invention that I came up with when I realized the quinoa cakes might need a little sauce to call its buddy. It turned out great and I’m happy to share it with you, but be sure to taste it as you go and adjust it to your liking.

  • Big dollop of plain yoghurt
  • Small dollop of mayonnaise
  • Big spoonful of smoked paprika
  • Medium spoonful of regular paprika
  • Couple shakes of coriander
  • Couple splashes of Tabasco sauce
  • Salt

Mix it all together. Taste. Adjust. Repeat until satisfied :-)

So, back to the cookbooks. The one I cooked from tonight is Super Natural Every Day. It’s Heidi Swanson’s second book and includes a lot of great vegetarian recipes featuring natural ingredients. Although it has a solid introduction that shares some basic info about “natural cooking”, I would recommend her first book to anyone who wants to get educated on healthy eating.

Super Natural Cooking is the author's first cookbook. I recommend it to anyone who wants to get the basics on "natural cooking".

Super Natural Cooking (the first book) contains all the basic information you need to make better choices – which flours, oils, grains, sweeteners, etc. to favour and why, as well as those to avoid. The information is concise and the more technical explanations are explained simply. I read the 17-page chapter called “Build a Natural Foods Pantry” in less than an hour last night and feel like I’ve already gained a world of knowledge. The book contains quite a few recipes, but if that’s more what you’re after – either because you’re already up to speed on natural cooking or because it bores you – get her second book (mentioned above). Together, I think the pair of cookbooks works great: one sums up all the basic information you need to get you going and the second give you a wide repertoire of recipes to choose from.

Still not convinced? Check out Heidi’s award-winning food blog, 101cookbooks.com. There, you’ll even find a downloadable six recipe sampler in pdf format from her second book.

So, how do you go about incorporating healthier ingredients in your cooking? Is organic important to you? Should we stop eating meat? All questions that I haven’t dared pondering yet. I’m taking this one step at a time…

Full disclosure: I bought these books with my own dough. I have not been approached by anyone looking to promote them. I am just genuinely stoked and wanted to share :-)

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Roasted cauliflower with red harissa

8 Jan

I love my veggies. But like with most foods, it’s hard to find new recipes that are worthy of a spot on my weekly menu. I know you see a lot of restaurant reviews and higher calorie foods on this blog, but the truth is, on weekdays, we eat quite healthy around here and we don’t have hours to spend in the kitchen or running to the market to get obscure ingredients. And Ottolenghi’s veggie-centric recipes are amazing and all, but a tad too involved for the everyday… So “healthy”, “quick” and ”easy” are search terms I tend to google a lot. And when I stumble upon something that also provides a party in my mouth, it’s a winner.

Golden brown, fragrant, delicious roasted cauliflower is a sinch to make. And healthy to boot!

Roasted cauliflower is the bomb. It’s popping up everywhere – food blogs, cooking shows, magazines - in different variations. I favour indian spices and kick it up a notch with a red harissa sauce made with roasted red bell peppers (that I buy in a jar for weeknight cooking!), jalapeno peppers and garlic. Do it! This week. I promise you won’t be disappointed.

Recipe
Adapted from Food Network Canada, courtesy of Roger Mooking.
Makes about 4 portions

3 tablespoons of olive oil
2 cloves of garlic, chopped
1 tablespoon of cumin
1/2 tablespoon of turmeric
1 head of cauliflower, cut into large chunks
Salt and pepper to taste

See recipe for red harissa here.

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. In a bowl, combine all ingredients until cauliflower is well covered with spices. Cook 20 to 30 minutes. Serve with red harissa sauce. Voilà!

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Steel cut oats with apples and cinnamon

23 Oct

Discovering new foods is one of my favourite things about blogging. I first read about steel cut oats a few months back on a blog I love and have wanted to try them ever since. Essentially, steel cut oats are unprocessed which means they keep more of their vitamins and minerals. The regular rolled oats we all know have been steamed and flattened so they cooks faster. Although I was intrigued, I put this food trial on the back burner because I was convinced I’d need to go out and hunt for the oats. Wasn’t I surprised when I stumbled upon them at Maxi Super C (oups! made a mistake, sorry guys) of all places. Yup, right there on the shelf, next to the regular Quaker oatmeal.

This ain't your grandma's oatmeal.

The next morning, as I took out the carton and started prepping, the BF looked skeptical. My previous attempt at “fancy” oatmeal had been somewhat of a catastrophe and I’m sure he had his doubts about this. But he loved it just as much as I did.

Steel cut oats have a completely different texture than regular oatmeal. They’ve got more bite. In fact, they’re almost chewy. The flavour is so much better too – a little nutty. It’s the perfect healthy, hearty breakfast to start your day off right. They take a while to cook (30 minutes), but it’s totally worth it. Plus, you can jazz them up with just about anything you like: maple syrup, raisins, nuts, bananas – name it.

In this version, I cooked the oats in milk for extra creaminess and added cinnamon, a shredded apple and a big dollop of apple butter that I had just made. It was so good, I ate the cold leftovers later in the morning and liked it just as much.

I’d give you a recipe, but this is one of those dishes that you can easily improvise. Just follow the instructions on the carton and add whatever fruit and spices float your boat 10 minutes before it is done. If you’re a little “Type A” and really need precise instructions, check out the recipe that inspired me on the blog Annie’s eats.

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Baba Ghanoush – an alternative (or complement) to humus

14 Sep

Some leftover eggplant and a fun-to-pronounce name made me want to reproduce this delicious Mediterranean dip that I had sampled as a meze (Turkish equivalent to tapas) while travelling around Turkey last year. The recipe originated from Lebanon, where it is served as a starter. It’s also very popular in Egypt, but traditionally served as a side dish or “salad”.

Baba ghanoush, pita and olives: great snack!

When taken on its own, I find cooked eggplant can have a somewhat odd texture and a strong smell that can be overpowering. Maybe it’s the mushroom hater in me that’s doing all the trash talking, but I’m sure I’m not the only one out there who feels this way…

Well, let me tell you that baba ghanoush removes all these little “inconveniences”. Its smooth texture is packed with a rich flavour created by the combination of eggplant and tahini, and elevated by a hint of heat from the cayenne.

I find baba ghanoush to be a perfect alternative (or complement) to humus. It’s delicious, easy to make, healthy, and it disappears in minutes when you serve it with pita bread and olives.

Ingredients:

(yields about 300 ml)
1 large eggplant
¼ cup tahini (sesame paste, can be found in supermarkets)
Juice of 1 lemon
Extra-virgin olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp Italian parsley, finely chopped
1 tsp cumin
Pinch of cayenne (or more to taste)
Pinch of salt

Directions:

  1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. Cut the eggplant in half, lengthwise. Place eggplant on a baking sheet, flat side down, and bake for about 30-35 minutes or until the meat is tender. Let cool for 10 minutes.
  2. With a spoon, detach cooked eggplant from skin and place in a food processor or blender to create a puree. Do not blend for too long, traditional baba ghanoush is not perfectly smooth.
  3. Place eggplant puree in a bowl, and mix in all other ingredients. Add olive oil until desired texture is reached.
  4. Garnish with a few parsley leaves and drizzle of olive oil.

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Healthy cran-almond granola bars

11 Sep

Recently, I’ve been bent on finding healthier versions of my favourite breakfast foods. As everyone close to me knows, I’m a peanut butter addict. But I’ve decided to kick the habit and face the harsh truth: the stuff is full of saturated fat. A few days after I made healthier blueberry muffins, a colleague of mine came to work with these little gems: cranberry-almond granola bars chock-full of good grains and reduced in fat (thank you, applesauce!).

These healthy granola bars have a dirty secret: they're awesome! Chewy, crispy and tangy all rolled into one.

Even before tasting them, I was turned on. And once in my mouth, Whoa! The brown sugar makes them crispy on top while the applesauce and honey keeps the inside chewy and the cranberry and cinnamon give the granola some ‘tude! These bars make for great breakfast on the go or a hearty snack. Plus, they keep for a good two weeks in an airtight container and I’m sure they would freeze nicely. I’ll definitely be making more of these.

gra∙no∙la  girl / noun:
according to Urbandictionnary.com

Modern hippy woman minus the heroin and STD’s. Socially aware and active with a penchant for hemp and sodium-free soap. May eat tofu for breakfast and sweeten food with agave syrup. Is determined to save the world. You know you’re granola when you strap your five thousand dollar bike to your five hundred dollar car and vote for Ralph Nader.

Recipe
2 cups rolled oats
½ cup packed brown sugar
¼ cup wheat germ or wheat bran
¼ cup ground or whole flaxseed (I prefer whole for the extra bite)
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 cup whole wheat or white pastry flour (I used whole wheat)
½ cup dried cranberries
⅔ cup chopped roasted almonds
¾ tsp sea salt
¼ cup honey
1 egg, beaten
¼ cup canola oil
2 tsp vanilla extract
½ cup applesauce

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease 8 x 12 baking pan or line it with parchment paper (that’s what I did!).

In large bowl, combine the oats, brown sugar, wheat germ, flax, cinnamon, flour, cranberries, almonds and salt. In a smaller bowl, mix together the honey, egg, oil, applesauce and vanilla. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and mix well. Pat the mixture evenly into the pan.

Bake for about 30 minutes, but don’t overcook or they will be dry and crumbly. Cool for 5 minutes and cut into bars or squares. Don’t let the bars to cool completely or they will be too hard to cut.

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Healthier Blueberry muffins

31 Aug

We all like muffins in the morning. Let’s just get that out-of-the-way off the bat. Usually, what keeps me away from them is the fact that they are normally pretty high in calories and low in all things nutritious. Plus, I think they are a pointless expense at the coffee shop where I go to get my caffeine fix in the morning. I mean, really! Anyone can whip up a batch in a matter of minutes.

So, after Mat told me he buys maybe three of them a week, I decided to take things into my own hands. I have his health at heart and his heart health is important. I scoured the web to find and bake a healthy variation of his favourite variety: blueberry. And what luck! The tiny and tasty Lac-Saint-Jean blueberries are in season right now and perfect for this recipe.

Blueberry muffins with whole wheat flour, oat bran, wheat germ and oats (ok, and sugar... but virtually no oil!)

Recipe
From allrecipes.com, submitted by ZOPOOH

Makes 12 muffins

¾ cup all-purpose flour
¾ cup whole wheat flour
¾ cup white sugar
¼ cup oat bran
¼ quick cooking oats
¼ wheat germ
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon salt
1 cup blueberries (Feel free to add more. I certainly will next time.)
½ cup walnuts or pecans (optional)
1 very ripe banana, mashed
1 cup of buttermilk
1 egg
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line 12 cup muffin pan with paper muffin cups.

In a large bowl, stir together all-purpose flour, whole wheat flour, sugar, oat bran, oats, wheat germ, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Gently stir in blueberries and nuts (if using).

In a separate bowl, mix together the mashed banana, buttermilk, egg, oil and vanilla. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and mix just until blended.

Spoon into muffin cups, filling all the way to the top.

Bake for 15 to 18 minutes or until the tops spring back when pressed lightly.

The "batch" ready for a little cool down before freezing - a great way to always have fresh muffins ready to go.

The verdict was good: an “Mmmm! Tasty” text message. Healthier muffins for Mat, check done!

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Sugar snap salad with sumac dressing

27 Aug

Last summer, Mat and I spent two beautiful and eye-opening weeks in Turkey. Given we both enjoy cooking and love trying new things, the Grand Bazar was one of our highlights. OK, the constant haggling was intense and our bargaining technique most likely left the shopkeepers laughing… But once we got used to the overwhelming sights, sounds and smells, we were able to stock up on spices, dried fruit and tea. Since then, Mat has been inventing all kinds of ways to use the spice mixes he chose (he’s great at improvising that way), whereas I was just waiting to find a great recipe to use my sumac – the one spice I was adamant about getting from the Bazaar. Here it is kids!

Sugar snap peas, radishes, ricotta salata and mint with sumac dressing.

I found this sugar snap salad recipe in the July edition of Bon Appétit and was drawn to it even before knowing there was any sumac in there. Oh how happy it made me when I saw it was centre stage in the dressing! And wouldn’t you know it, just a few pages later, I found an 8-page spread on Turkish cuisine. I have to say, I ♥ my Bon Appétit.

Recipe:
From Bon Appétit, July 2011 issue
Makes 8 to 10 servings

1 ½ lb sugar snap peas, trimmed, stringed and cut on the diagonal
Kosher salt
3 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp lemon juice (or more if desired)
1 tsp white wine vinegar
1 tsp sumac (a lemony Mediterranean spice) plus more for garnish (in my case, it was lots more ;-) )
1 bunch of radishes, thinly sliced
4 oz. ricotta salata or feta, crumbled (ricotta salata is salted aged ricotta, which resembles feta but is firmer and less salty)
freshly ground black pepper
2 tbsp coarsely chopped mint

Blanch peas in boiling water about 2 minutes. Drain and transfer to a bowl filled with water and lots of ice to prevent the peas from cooking any more and preserve the bright green colour. Dry peas on kitchen towels.

To make the dressing, whisk together the oil, lemon juice and vinegar and half of the sumac. Toss the peas, radishes, cheese and mint together in a large bowl. Add the dressing and adjust seasoning. Sprinkle the rest of the sumac on top.

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Salade de haricots et salsa verde

3 Jul

Enfin, il fait soleil à Montréal! Après tous ces mois interminables de pluie et de temps gris, j’avais presqu’oublié qu’il faisait beau ici l’été. Quand arrivent les premiers “vrais” jours d’été, je me sens choyée d’être Montréalaise et de partager la joie collective de toute la ville qui semble se réveiller et se remettre à vivre. Si l’hiver est long et ardu, l’été est d’autant plus apprécié. Une des choses que j’aime le plus de l’été, ce sont les BBQ entre amis ou avec ma famille. Beaux, bons, pas compliqués et on peut se concentrer sur l’essentiel : la compagnie.

Salade de haricots, tomates raisins, olives kalamata, oignon rouge et salsa verde crémeuse.

Cette salade de haricots est un super accompagnement pour les viandes grillées et fait changement des classiques salades de pâtes ou de patates. Selon ma tante, les haricots se remplacent bien par des pois chiches pour un lunch plus consistant. Et cette variation sur le thème de la “salsa verde” mexicaine, qui contient fines herbes, avocat et yogourt, peut être apprêtée à toutes sortes de sauces (wow, quel jeux de mots ici!). Par exemple, vous pourriez mettre plus de yogourt, moins d’huile et passer le tout au robot pour transformer la salsa en trempette.

Recette
Source : www.Foodnetwork.com, Christine Cushing Live.
Donne 4 ou 5 portions.

1 lb. de haricots jaunes, blanchis quelques minutes (croquants, mais pas crus)
2 tasses de tomates raisins coupées en deux
1/2 tasse d’olives kalamata dénoyautées et tranchées
1/2 petit oignon rouge tranché finement

Salsa verde:
1 avocado mur, pelé et coupé en dés
5-6 échalottes, partie verte seulement, hachées
2 c. à table de coriandre fraîche hachée
2 c. à table de persil italien haché
6 feuilles de basilic hachées
jus de 2 limes
1/2 c. à thé de cumin
sel et poivre au goût
1/4 de tasse d’huile d’olive
1 c. à table de yogourt nature

Mélanger tous les ingrédients de la salsa verde dans un petit bol et réserver. Mettre les haricots, les tomates, les olives et les oignons dans un bol à salade. Verser la salsa verde sur la salade et mélanger pour bien enrober.

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