Sigh, she loved eating - her waistline was visible proof. And she poured over cooking blogs.....dreaming, dreaming. One of her favorites was Winos and Foodies, by the lovely Australian blogger, Barbara. So she asked, Please Barbara....would you, could you do a guest blog for me on some Moroccan dishes?
And look what arrived on her blog doorstep! Mmmmmmm......
All recipes on Barbara's delicious blog, right here.......
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If the blogging fairy came along and tapped you on the shoulder and said "you can choose to spend the day with any blogger in the world " - who would you choose? I'd choose to spend the day with Maryam in Morocco.
We'd sip mint tea and eat stuffed dates while she showed me all the pretty rugs and fabrics and glass jars she has collected on her travels.
Stuffed Dates
Remove seed from fresh dates and stuff with cheese and nuts of your choice. I like the salty feta cheese against the sweet date with the crunch of a pistachio nut. A soft brie with almonds also makes a tasty filling.
I'd ask Maryam to introduce me to her favourite couscous maker so I could I'd learn to make perfect couscous.
Plain Couscous
Add 400 ml of warm water to 350grams of couscous and 1/2 a teaspoon of salt. Rest for 10 minutes, then rub 2 tablespoons of olive oil into couscous to break up lumps and aerate the grains. Place in an ovenproof dish, dot with 20 grams butter, cover with foil and heat in 180C (350F) oven until the couscous is heated through, about 15 minutes. I often add brown flaked almonds. Pine nuts and dried fruits also go well with couscous.
Left over couscous is the perfect filling for stuffed vegetables.
Stuffed Tomatoes
Remove insides of tomatoes and cook to reduce to a sauce with onions, spices and preserved lemon. Mix with couscous and fill tomato cases. Bake in a 180C (350) for about 25 minutes.
Naturally we'd spend the afternoon shopping. When we returned to Peacock Pavilions we would enjoy a refreshing glass of pomegranate juice..................
Pomegranate Drink
Put some ice in a glass, add a dessert spoon of pomegranate syrup and top with soda water. For a sweeter drink replace soda water with lemonade. I'm sure a shot of vodka would work in this drink.
.................and some local olives.
Orange and Rosemary Olives
Crack olives with a meat mallet to split skins slightly. Marinade olives overnight in orange zest, rosemary spikes and olive oil.
In the evening we'd sit under the olive trees and eat platters of watermelon.
Citrus Watermelon
Remove skin and cube the watermelon. Sprinkle with freshly squeezed orange juice and scatter mint leaves over the platter.
Then just before midnight the blogging fairy would re-appear and it would be time to say goodbye to Maryam. I think I'd need some help to get all my shopping home.
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See full recipes right here. And Shoukran, Barbara!
