Hi Mom, It's Me

Why is Catty eating chick peas?

1-What can I say? My baby has a discriminating palate.

2- She thought the can said "chickseys". Never! She wouldn't eat chicks!

OR (drum roll)

Number 3.......

It's time for another Daring Cook's Challenge!

blog check in line:
The 2010 February Daring COOKs challenge was hosted by Michele of Veggie Num Nums. Michele chose to challenge everyone to make mezze based on various recipes from Claudia Roden, Jeffrey Alford and Naomi Dugid

Nom nom! Mmmm chick peas! She was convinced they were tuna. I opened the can and they *kind of* smelled like tuna. Catty came running and ate two. Crazy cat!

OK This was a really fun, tasty, mind-expanding, awesome, taste-expanding challenge!

It led me down a totally new cooking path to some great recipes.

In fact, because of this challenge I made the *BEST JAM EVER*, but I have to save that for a different post.

Different group - 'ya know the Can Jammers.

But back to the Daring Cook's.....

I used a lot of chick peas in these recipes.

Thank goodness Catty has a small appetite.

Also, as a side note before we get started, this whole meal only took me 1 1/2 or maybe 2 hours (tops) to make. From start (walking in the door with grocery bags) to finish (sitting down at my parent's house to eat it).

I made the meal at home and then transported everything (in a BLIZZARD) to my parent's house. We baked the pitas together.

They have a baking stone.

I don't.

And it was fun.

First I made hummus.

Chick peas, lemon juice, tahini, roasted garlic paste , salt.

Finished hummus.

Next I made baba ghanoush.

Roasted eggplant (from last year's garden- planting more this year-it was thaw, dump and whirr, easy!), tahini, more roasted garlic paste, lemon juice, cumin, salt.

I found the recipe here.

Food processor power!

Done.

Drizzled with olive oil and sprinkled with parsley. I added Turkish olives when I served it. The olives have thyme in the brine.

Next: Cucumber Raita.

Cucumber, mint, salt, greek yogurt, roasted garlic paste, cumin, cayenne pepper.

I didn't salt and drain my cucumber, so it was a little runny.

I added some feta cheese. Mmmm yum!

Next on the menu.

Falafels.

Chick peas, roasted onion, parsley, cilantro, salt, cayenne pepper, roasted garlic paste, baking powder, flour (and I added an egg to the recipe - everything needs an egg).

I baked them.

They were good. A little dry.

I love my Mom's flat cookie sheet. *hint, hint Mom*

Next: I roasted some more onions.

To add to Lentil Tagine. Recipe here.

I used dried apricots and walnuts. A bay leaf from my bay tree.

And some yellow tomato sauce I home canned last summer from my tomatoes.

Plus the other stuff in the recipe. It's a looooong recipe.

This is a great stew. It is sweet, but not in a gross way.

In a delicious, mmm-can-I-have-some-more? way.

I put raisins in there too and a little cooked bulghur.

I'm still using the bulghur I bought for this challenge.

Next: Pita Bread

This is the way I made the pita bread. Remember, I didn't have very much time to make this meal AND a few people were having trouble with the recipe SO I made them this way:
3 cups flour

2 tsp yeast

2 tsp baking powder (helps pitas puff)

2 tsp sugar

1 1/2 tsp salt

1 cup water

2 Tbs oil

Mix it up and let it rest for 1 hour. Heat oven to 500F degrees. Roll dough out into circles. Let each dough circle rest 15 minutes before baking. Bake for 5 mins.

The dough is gorgeous! So easy to work with!

Don't roll the circles out too thin.

I did a little experiment.

I rolled some out super, super thin.

Then I did a few thicker.

I baked a thick one and a thin one at the same time.

The thick one puffed waaaaay up.

And the thin one?

Just puffy.

It still tasted good, but it couldn't be used for a pita pocket sandwich.

Mezze Dinner

Roasted red peppers and mozzarella balls.

Lentil Tagine with grape tomatoes.

Closer. Closer. Eat me.

Falafels.

Cucumber Raita. This would make a wonderful salad dressing. It was so cool and creamy with a minty kick.

Hummus.

Yum.

Not too garlicy.

Just perfect.

Roasting the garlic makes such a difference.

Baba Ganoush.

This was good too.

The start of a pita sandwich.

Pita sandwich another way.

Mom's way.

My way.

Dad's way.

Big pita mouth.

Now for dessert.

First: Halvah.

I found this in the cheese case. It's ground up seasame seeds with chocolate pressed into a square. Tastes like solid grease to me, but it was interesting to try.