going moroccan...

Surprisingly, when I decided to do a Moroccan theme for tonight's dinner, the hubby liked it a lot! The idea popped into my head when I saw the bag of lentils that I had bought to try a recipe out. I've never tried making lentils before so this seemed like a good recipe to start with. I'm all for quick and simple. :)

Looking over the ingredients list, it kind of reminded me of something I made before. I really liked the flavors but I wasn't too sure if the hubby would. But I decided to say, "Fuck it!" and then thought of what to make with it. So googled "Moroccan" and saw this salmon recipe and decided to give it a go. Made a few changes along the way, but not too much. Pretty tasty and now I have spice to make some hummus! Yay!

Moroccan Baked Salmon
(adapted from SparkRecipes)

For the Spice:
1 tbsp ground coriander
1 tbsp cumin
1 tbsp paprika
1/2 tbsp smoked paprika
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp turmeric
1/2 tbsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp cayenne
2 tbsp brown sugar
1 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp crushed cardamom
1/2 tsp crushed anise
1/2 tsp fenugreek seeds

For the Salmon:
4 oz wild skin-on salmon fillet
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp Moroccan spice

Make the Moroccan Spice:
In a spice grinder or mortar, combine all the "spice mixture" ingredients, grinding well to a powder. Remove 1 tbsp of the mixture for the salmon and store remaining blend in a tightly covered container for later use.

Make the Baked Salmon:
Line a small baking sheet with foil. Combine olive oil and reserved Moroccan spice mixture then spread on flesh side of the salmon and place skin side down on lined sheet. Cover and refrigerate 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 450F and bake fish 10-13 minutes, to desired level of doneness. Drizzle with extra virgin olive oil before serving.

 

Lentils with Smoked Paprika and Coriander
(adapted from How To Become A Vegan Domestic Goddess)

3/4 cup dried lentils
2 cups water
1 bay leaf
olive oil
1 small onion, chopped
1/4 cup frozen peas
1 to 2 cloves garlic, minced
1 large tomato, diced
1/2 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp smoked paprika
1 tbsp butter
cayenne pepper
salt and pepper to taste
handful of parsley, chopped

Place the lentils in a sauce pan and add the water and the bay leaf. Bring to a boil on high then turn down to the lowest heat. Simmer for 20-25 minutes until al dente. Drain.

Heat some oil in a skillet on medium heat. Add in the onions, ground coriander, and cayenne pepper, cook until fairly translucent. Add in the garlic, cook for 2 minutes then add the tomatoes, salt and pepper. Cook until the tomatoes break down, about 5 minutes. Add in the drained lentils and frozen peas and mix. Throw in the smoked paprika and parsley and mix well. Taste, add in more salt and pepper if needed.

To serve, spoon the lentils in the serving dish and sprinkle more smoked paprika on top.

hummus say, haven't we met before?

oh hummus...my favorite dip evar. :D this time around, decided to make a slow-roasted red pepper version. i probably could've done the peppers faster but i didn't think about it and i was multi-tasking so it worked out. :) this was awesome with the second round of pita chips i made. enjoy!

 
Smokey Slow-Roasted Red Pepper Hummus
(makes about 2-3 cups)

2 cans garbanzo beans, rinsed with half can of the liquid reserved
1 can cannellini beans, rinsed
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 garlic cloves
1 medium red bell pepper
2-3 tbsp lime juice
2-3 tbsp tahini
2 tsp smoked paprika
a couple dashes of onion powder
a couple dashes of garlic powder
water
salt and pepper to taste
sumac and parsley for garnish (optional)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Take the bell pepper and cut in half. Remove core, stem, and seeds and place skin-side up on a foil lined baking sheet. Roast for 55 minutes then remove from the oven. Carefully, bring up the foil from the corners and make a sealed tent over the peppers and let sit for ten minutes. Afterwards, remove and discard the skin and then place peppers in the blender/food processor.

Add the rest of the ingredients in the blender/food processor and pulse to combine. If needed, adjust consistency with water. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Garnish with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil, sprinkle with a little sumac, and a little bit of chopped Italian parsley. Serve!

hummus say, sir...i'm in love!

more hummus love. must be going on a hummus shtick or something...can't get enough of the stuff especially since i know how easy it is to make it!! this time around i followed (very loosely) this recipe for sumac and smoked paprika hummus. well, since i like my hummus very bold in flavoring, the sumac and the paprika got upped a bit to get that taste that was floating around in my head. conclusion? this was very, very good. mmmmm.....

Sumac Paprika Hummus
(adapted from Frugal By Choice)

2 cans garbanzo beans/chickpeas
5 cloves of garlic or 2 tbs garlic minced to a paste
juice of 1 lemon or lime
1 tsp kosher salt
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup tahini (i like mid-east tahini)
2 tbs of smoked paprika, plus more for sprinkling on top
1/2 tsp of sumac, plus more for sprinkling on top
dried parsley

drain garbanzo beans a reserve half a cup of liquid. in a food processor or blender, add all the ingredients exept the olive oil and blend until mixed. after a minute or so, drizzle the olive oil in with the machine is still going. add a bit of the reserved liquid if needed. once the hummus is super smooth, stop the machine and adjust seasoning to taste. when done, put hummus in a tupperware container and drizzle with additional olive oil with a sprinkle of paprika, sumac, and dried parsley on top. place in fridge for about an hour to let the flavors develop and serve with pita chips or veggies!

makes about 1 1/2 to 2 cups of hummus.

hummus be joking!

hummus! so easy to do...took me less than five minutes to make and now i have two weeks worth out of two cans of beans. used this recipe as a base. i didn't really follow it though. considering i just used whatever i had in the pantry, i ended up mixing garbanzo and cannellini so it's a mixed bean hummus. not wanting it plain, i added some tuscany blend spice i bought from san francisco as well as hungarian smoked paprika. the result? deliciousness.

 
Smokey Tuscun Hummus
(adapted from Simply Recipes)

2 garlic cloves, mashed and then minced (used garlic paste, about 1 tsp)
1 (15.oz) can garbanzo beans (chickpeas), drained and rinsed with half can liquid reserved
1 (15.oz) can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
1/3 cup of tahini (roasted, not raw)
1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (or use lime juice instead)
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 tsp of salt or more to taste
1 1/2 tbsp tuscany blend spice
1 to 2 tsp hungarian smoked paprika
Pine nuts (toasted) and parsley (chopped) for garnish
water, if needed

1. In a food processor, combine the garlic, garbanzo beans, tahini, lemon juice, 1/2 cup water, and olive oil. Process until smooth. Add salt, starting at a half a teaspoon, to taste. (skipped this and used the blender method. use water to thin out the hummus if too thick while blending.)

2. Spoon into serving dish and sprinkle with toasted pine nuts and chopped parsley (and also additional smoked paprika).

Makes about 3 cups.