Mujadara with Leeks and Greens

Mujadara is wonderful Middle Eastern comfort food.  Lentils and rice (or bulgur) are cooked with fragrant spices and crispy onions, then greens are added for additional flavor and nutrition.  If you think it sounds boring, it's not at all - the spices add depth of flavor and the crispy leeks add both flavor and texture to a dish that's perfect for a chilly evening or when you're tired after a long day.
I'm not a vegetarian, but I do try to eat quite a few vegetarian meals throughout the week and this fit the bill while being very satisfying and comforting.

A couple of notes - the recipe as printed in the New York Times calls for rice, but a number of reviewers stated that in their household growing up it was always made with bulgur.  One reviewer said he felt bulgur had a superior texture so that's what I used, but I can see where rice would be just as good.  Your choice.  Another note is to use the amount of salt that's called for even if you try to cut down on salt normally.  Both lentils and beans really need salt to bring out their flavor, otherwise they taste like cardboard.

And finally, the leeks need to be sauteed probably a little darker than you'd normally be comfortable with, or they won't get crisp.  You're looking for dark golden brown, just this side of burnt.  Watch them closely while they cook so you can take them out at just the right minute.

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Mujadara with Leeks and Greens

Serves 4

Notes:  Bulgur and rice have different textures but both are common in mujadara – choose your favorite.  And don’t be tempted to reduce the amount of salt – it’s necessary to give the lentils flavor.

1 cup brown or green lentils

2 leeks, white and light green parts only, roots trimmed

2 ¼ teaspoons salt

¼ cup olive oil

2 garlic cloves, minced

¾ cup long-grain rice or bulgur

1 ½ teaspoons ground cumin

½ teaspoon ground allspice

¼ teaspoon cayenne

1 bay leaf

1 cinnamon stick

4 cups trimmed and sliced greens (chard, spinach, or kale)

Plain Greek yogurt, for garnish

Place the lentils in a bowl and add warm tap water to cover by 1 inch.  Let soak while you prep the other ingredients.

Halve the leeks lengthwise, then thinly slice crosswise.  Rinse and drain.

Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat.  Add the leeks and cook, stirring occasionally, until dark golden brown and crispy, 5-10 minutes.  Transfer half of the leeks to a small bowl to use for garnish and sprinkle with ¼ teaspoon salt.

Stir garlic into the pot with the remaining leeks and cook for 15 seconds until fragrant.  Stir in rice or bulgur and sauté 2 minutes.  Stir in cumin, allspice and cayenne and sauté 30 seconds.

Drain lentils and stir in the pot.  Add 4 cups water, 2 teaspoon salt, bay leaf and cinnamon stick.  Bring to a simmer, then cover and cook on low for 15 minutes. 

Rinse greens in a colander and spread the damp greens over the lentil mixture.  Cover and cook 5-7 minutes more (depending on how sturdy your greens are), until the rice (or bulgur) and lentils are tender and the greens have wilted.  Remove from heat and let stand, covered, 5 minutes. 

Serve sprinkled with reserved crispy leeks and dollop with yogurt.

Crispy Roasted Chickpeas

Last Year's Post: Salmon Orzo Salad with Lemon and Pea Pods
Two Years Ago:  Manchego Cheese Quesadilla with Pepper Jam

Just because there aren't enough controversies going on in the world at the moment, allow me to add another: how to roast chickpeas.  I recently realized that there are a bunch of recipes out there with the goal of producing a nice, crisp snack, but they all vary - add olive oil before or after roasting?  how long to roast?  add spices before or after roasting?  etc. etc.

For my initial attempt which was to be a garnish on a middle eastern salad, I used the compromise approach of putting the olive oil and spices on the chickpeas midway through roasting, and I roasted them for 50 minutes as specified in the recipe.  The result was hard, crunchy chickpeas with burnt spices.  Yum.

So, I decided to get scientific and compared roasting with and without oil and for various time periods (both without spices, I learned that lesson already).  I also wanted to check on how crisp they were the next day, because one recipe suggested they lose crispness within hours.  I divided one can of chickpeas (which contained 240 chickpeas, by the way) into two camps:  add oil before roasting, and add oil after.

 For each of those two groups, I roasted equal amounts for 20, 30, 40 and 50 minutes respectively.  The results are shown below - the chickpeas roasted with oil are on the bottom, and the ones roasted without are on the top.  From left to right, you can see the results after 20, 30 40 and 50 minutes.

Surprisingly, the addition of oil or not before roasting made no discernible difference in taste or texture.  The chickpeas roasted for 20 minutes changed texture slightly, but I wouldn't call them crisp.  And the ones roasted for 50 minutes were too dark and had a slightly burnt taste.  Both groups roasted for 30 and 40 minutes were crisp, although my personal preference leaned more toward the 30 minute batch.

So, then I added olive and salt to the 30 and 40 minute batches even if they had olive oil before roasting, because it's necessary to make spices stick.  All four tasted great.  And finally, I left them out overnight to test their texture in the morning, and all four remained crisp.  Success!

Having said all that, these crispy chickpeas are a great and healthy snack, and a wonderful garnish for all sorts of other dishes - salads and soups in particular.  You can change the flavor profile by changing the spices to suit any type of cuisine.  Have fun!

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Crispy Roasted Chickpeas

Makes about 1 cup

1 (15 ounce) can chickpeas

1 tablespoon olive oil

Salt and pepper

1-2 teaspoons spices or finely chopped herbs such as chili powder, cumin, smoked paprika, rosemary, thyme, curry powder, etc.

Preheat oven to 400d.

Thoroughly rinse and drain the chickpeas, then spread out on a clean dishtowel and pat dry.  Remove any loose chickpea skins.  Spread the chickpeas in a single layer on a baking sheet.  Roast in the oven for approximately 30-35 minutes until light golden, stirring the chickpeas or shaking the pan every 10 minutes.  Remove from the oven and drizzle with the olive oil, then add salt, pepper and your desired seasonings to taste.  Stir with a spoon to coat evenly, then let cool in a single layer.  When completely cool, store in an airtight container. 

Chicken with Caramelized Onion and Cardamom Rice

Last Year's Post:  Mustard Swordfish Kebobs

Two Years Ago:   Spaghetti with Chicken, Herbs and Cherry Tomatoes

I found this recipe on the New York Times website and was intrigued by the fact that it came from a cookbook of food from Jerusalem ("Jerusalem: A Cookbook" by Yotam Ottolenghi and Sami Tamimi).  I looked the book up to see if there was a defining characteristic to the food of the city, and found (not surprisingly) that it's been influenced by Muslims, Jews, and the diverse ethnic make-up of the region - I think of it as sort of a unique Middle-Eastern blend.

In any event, the most surprising part of the recipe to me was that it was at once familiar and comforting (it is chicken and rice, after all) while also being mysterious and exotic (when was the last time you cooked with green cardamom pods?).  The deeply caramelized onions make the house smell great, and the spices add their fragrance as the rice and chicken cook.  The low-and-slow cooking method results in very tender and moist chicken and perfectly cooked rice, and the herbs are the final bright touch.  The fact that it's a one-pot recipe doesn't hurt, either.

I adapted the recipe, which you can see here (including a video), because I prefer boneless skinless chicken thighs and also because it seemed to contain way too much rice for four people.  I'd suggest warning people about the whole spices when you serve it - the cinnamon sticks are pretty obvious but the green cardamom pods tend to blend in (they aren't really all that green) and the cloves are the same color as the currants. No one wants to break a tooth.  I guess in theory you could try to fish out all the whole spices before serving, but you'll still probably miss one or two so I'd warn everyone anyway.  Plus they look cool on the plate. 

Speaking of currants, I tried to find barberries but was unsuccessful even with the local upscale grocer, Trader Joes and Whole Foods.  I might have made the trek to a Middle Eastern market but I already had currants in my pantry and I don't think it would have made much of a difference anyway.

You can never have too many chicken recipes, right?  This is a great and very healthy alternative to get you out of the same old rut.

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Chicken with Caramelized Onion and Cardamom Rice

Serves 4

2 tablespoons sugar

1 ½ tablespoons barberries, or currants

4 tablespoons olive oil

1 medium yellow onion, thinly sliced

1 ½ pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs

Salt and freshly ground pepper

6 green cardamom pods

Scant ¼ teaspoon whole cloves

 1 ½ cinnamon sticks, broken in two

1 ¼ cups basmati rice

1 ¾ cups boiling water

1 tablespoon flat-leaf parsley leaves, chopped

1/3 cup dill leaves, chopped

¼ cup cilantro leaves, chopped

½ cup plain Greek yogurt, optional

Put the sugar and 2 tablespoons water in a small saucepan and heat until the sugar dissolves.  Remove from the heat, add the barberries, and set aside to soak.  If using currants, skip this step.

Heat half the olive oil in a large sauté pan for which you have a lid over medium heat.   Add the onion and cook for 10 to 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until deep golden brown.  Transfer to a small bowl and wipe the pan clean.

Place the chicken in a mixing bowl and season with 1 teaspoon each salt and black pepper.  Add the remaining olive oil, cardamom, cloves and cinnamon and use your hands to mix everything together well.  Heat the sauté pan again and place the chicken and spices in it.  Sear the chicken until golden brown on each side and remove from the pan.  The spices can stay in the pan, but don’t worry if they stick to the chicken.  Add the rice, caramelized onions, ½ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper.  Drain the barberries and add them (or the currants) also.  Stir well and return the seared chicken to the pan, pushing it into the rice.

Pour the boiling water over the rice and chicken, making sure the rice is submerged.  Cover the pan and cook over very low heat for 30 minutes (check at about 20 minutes to see if a little more water is needed to prevent burning).  Take the pan off the heat, remove the lid, quickly place a clean tea towel over the pan, and seal again with the lid.  Let stand for another 10 minutes.  Finally, add the herbs and use a fork to stir them in and fluff up the rice.  Taste and add more salt and pepper if needed.  Serve hot with optional yogurt on the side.

Note:  warn guests that the dish contains whole spices that should be picked out and not eaten.

Chicken with Lemon Pomegranate Sauce and Pistachio Rice

Last Year's Post:  Spinach, Squash and Apple Salad

Two Years Ago:   Wild Mushroom and Gruyere Quiche

I've had pomegranates before, as well as pomegranate juice, but not pomegranate sauce.  When I encountered this recipe, I thought the sauce would be bright red, relatively thick and sweet-tart, much like pomegranate seeds.  The reality, however, is something quite different - the recipe uses pomegranate molasses (a new ingredient for me) and lemon juice without any sugar at all to create a very bright, puckery sauce that's more like a vinaigrette.  I was a little concerned that it might need a touch of honey when I tasted it on it's own, but it was perfect when paired with the chicken - a very bright and interesting balance of flavors.

Who doesn't need another chicken recipe?  This one is healthy but also somewhat exotic with Middle Eastern flavors of pomegranate, cardamom, pistachios and dried fruits to get you out of your chicken rut.  And it's very fast to make - around 30 minutes all told - so it works for a weekday meal.

You can find pomegranate molasses in some upscale grocers (I found mine at Whole Foods), natural food stores, and of course Middle Eastern markets.

The sauce would also make a be great with pork or shrimp, and I can even see it as a salad dressing (it might need a touch of honey as a dressing but that's up to you).

Chicken with Pomegranate Lemon Sauce and Pistachio Rice

Serves 4

For the Sauce:

3 tablespoons pomegranate molasses

½ teaspoon lemon zest

3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

3 tablespoons olive oil

¼ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon black pepper

For the Chicken:

2 large chicken breasts or 4 chicken cutlets

Salt and pepper

1 tablespoon olive oil

For the Rice:

½ cup finely chopped onion

½ teaspoon turmeric

¼ teaspoon ground cardamom

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

2/3 cup long-grain white rice

1 1/3 cups chicken broth

4 tablespoons pistachios nuts, toasted lightly and chopped

4 tablespoons golden raisins, currants, dried cranberries (or a combination)

4 tablespoons thinly sliced green onions

Salt and pepper

To make the sauce, whisk all ingredients together in a bowl to combine; set aside.

Next start the rice:  in a small heavy saucepan cook the onion with the turmeric and cardamom in the butter over moderately low heat, stirring, until the onion is softened.  Add the rice and cook, stirring, until coated with butter.  Add the broth, bring the liquid to a boil, cover, then reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes until the liquid is absorbed.  Stir in the pistachios, dried fruit, green onions, and salt and pepper to taste.

While the rice is cooking, cook the chicken: cut the chicken breasts in half horizontally to form four cutlets (skip this step if you already have cutlets).  Salt and pepper both sides.  Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat, then add the chicken and sauté for 2-3 minutes per side until golden brown and cooked through.

To serve, divide the rice between plates and top each with a chicken cutlet.  Spoon the sauce over the chicken and serve.

Couscous with Turkey or Chicken

Last Year's Post: Grilled Sweet Potatoes
Two Years Ago:  Rum Cake

This is an interesting take on leftover turkey, chicken or duck with a Middle Eastern feel.  The couscous, pomegranate seeds, mint and pistachios make it a little exotic while keeping it very healthy.  The original recipe called for pomegranate molasses in keeping with the Middle Eastern theme, which most people will not have on hand although I did for some reason (don't ask) so I tried it both ways - with the molasses and then with balsamic vinegar - and actually like the vinegar better because it balance the sweetness of the dried fruits and pomegranate seeds.

You could substitute any dried fruit for the cranberries and golden raisins - dried apricots would be particularly good - and could substitute other nuts for the pistachios and pumpkin seeds.  What I really liked about this recipe besides the great taste is that it's so fast and easy after all the holiday cooking and baking.  The couscous takes just ten minutes and everything else is just thrown in the bowl.  Make sure you keep your turkey or chicken in big, juicy pieces.  And by the way, this recipe works really well with smoked chicken or turkey as well.

Regarding pomegranates: you can sometimes buy just the seeds in your produce aisle, or they're easy to seed yourself.  Cut the pomegranate in half, spread each half slightly, turn over, and whack it with a wooden spoon over a bowl of water.  The seeds will come out along with a little bit of the white stuff, but the white stuff floats and is easy to remove from the water.  Drain the seeds and you're ready to go.  They add a jewel tone and sweet pop that's like no other.

Don't skip the yogurt because it adds an interesting dimension of creaminess and tang. Greek or regular plain yogurt will both work.  I couldn't find a small container of regular plain yogurt, so I used plain Greek yogurt and thinned it slightly with a little milk because it was really thick.  It was a very delicious, quick and healthy way to use up leftover roast poultry.

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Couscous with Turkey or Chicken

Serves 4

Note:  You can also use leftover cooked duck instead of turkey or chicken.

1 cup of couscous

1.25 pounds cooked turkey or chicken, shredded into large pieces

The seeds of one pomegranate

3 tablespoons roasted pumpkin seeds

3 tablespoons dried cranberries or cherries

3 tablespoons golden raisins

3 tablespoons shelled pistachios

1 tablespoon chopped fresh mint, plus more small leaves for garnish

Salt and pepper

4 heaping tablespoons plain yogurt

2 tablespoons pomegranate molasses or balsamic vinegar

Cook the couscous according to package directions, then fluff with a fork.  Add the turkey or chicken, pomegranate seeds, pumpkin seeds, cranberries, raisins, pistachios, and chopped mint.  Season generously with salt and pepper and toss to combine.

Serve, topping each serving with a heaping tablespoon of yogurt, a drizzle of pomegranate molasses or balsamic vinegar, and additional mint leaves.

Lavash Chips, Za'atar, Hummus and Green Harissa

Last Year's Post:  Apple, Bacon and Fontina Stuffed Acorn Squash
Two Years Ago:   The Best Way to Cook Bacon

Middle Eastern food is delicious and tastes exotic with all those complex spice combinations, plus it's really healthy.  (OK, I know falafel is fried, but at least it's vegetarian which somehow makes it healthy anyway.)  Most people are familiar with pita bread and hummus, but the recipes in this post are an opportunity to broaden your horizons a little more and impress your friends by making your own chips, hummus, and condiments.

There are four different recipes:  lavash chips, za'atar, hummus and green harissa.  You can make each alone or all in combination.  I'll talk a little about each in turn.

Lavash is a soft, thin Middle Eastern flatbread.  Lucky for us, you can find packaged lavash in the deli aisle of most grocery stores.

This particular lavash is marketed primarily as a sandwich wrap, but it makes the best chips ever. Thin and crisp, they're perfect sprinkled with any type of seasoning and served with any type of dip.  They have just 3 calories per chip and are good for you with flax, oat bran and whole wheat.

Next is za'atar (zah-tahr), which is a very common Middle Eastern spice blend typically served with olive oil as a dipping sauce for soft pita or naan bread.  There are numerous variations of za'atar in different regions of the Middle East and families often have their own blend, but it typically includes several herbs mixed with toasted sesame seeds and salt.  In addition to using it in a dipping sauce, za'atar would be excellent sprinkled on roast chicken or anything grilled.  Stored in a tightly covered container, leftover spice mix will keep for at least a month or two. You can occasionally find a za'atar spice blend in a world market, but making your own allows you to customize and it's fresher.

You'll need several spices to make za'atar, the most unusual of which is sumac.  Since sumac is important to the flavor I urge you not to skip it.  You could either make an adventure out of finding your local Middle Eastern market (one of my favorite things is checking out ethnic markets) or you could buy it and every other spice you need at your local Penzeys store.  If you don't live near a Penzeys store, you can buy spices here.

The third recipe is for hummus.  Why make hummus when it's easier to peel the plastic off a tub from the store?  Freshness, the ability to customize, cost, curiosity, and pride.  It's easy with a food processor.  In addition to using hummus as a dip, it makes a great sandwich spread or breakfast spread on an English Muffin.

The final recipe is for green harissa.  You may be familiar with red harissa, a fiery hot condiment that's very trendy right now, but green harissa is entirely different.  Bright with fresh herbs, cumin and lemon, green harissa has big flavor but is not hot despite the addition of two jalapenos. You can certainly make it hotter by leaving in the seeds or adding more jalapeno if you want.

The main herbs in the harissa recipe are flat-leaf parsley and cilantro.  If you're one of those people who dislike cilantro you can substitute fresh spinach instead.  Although it's often served with couscous, I thought of using it on salmon, chicken, or lamb as a sauce when I first tasted it.  We had the leftover sauce on grilled salmon the next night and it was great.  It's kind of like a Middle Eastern version of pesto.

So, here's the way I put them all together.  First, I made lavash chips and sprinkled them with za'atar prior to baking.  The only hard part is figuring out how to cut the rectangular lavash into 32 triangular chips.  First you brush the lavash with olive oil and sprinkle with za'atar.

Next, you cut the lavash in half vertically, then cut each half vertically again to form four long strips.  Stack the strips, then cut them in half horizontally.  Cut each stack in half horizontally again so you have four stacks.  Finally, cut each stack diagonally to form 32 triangular chips.  

I would suggest serving the baked chips with separate bowls of hummus and harissa so people can decide whether they want one or both condiments.  I personally like to eat them together.  All those different herbs, spices and textures go very well together and taste very exotic.

These recipes would be great as an appetizer for your next get-together, football game, or book club meeting.  They're much more sophisticated than plain old chips and dip.  "What's that?", people will say.  "Oh", you'll reply airily, "Just some harissa, hummus and lavash chips with za'atar that I made this morning."  They'll look at you with that impressed look.

printable recipes

Lavash Chips

Makes 64 chips

Two 9-by-12-inch whole wheat lavash breads

2 tablespoons olive oil

Za’atar spice blend (below), grated Parmesan, or other spice blend of your choice

Place an oven rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350d.  Brush the breads with olive oil and sprinkle with the seasoning of your choice.  With the long side nearest you, cut each bread in half vertically and then cut each half vertically again to make 4 rectangular strips.  Stack the strips on top of each other, then cut the stack in half horizontally.  Cut each stack in half horizontally again to make four square-ish stacks.  Cut each stack in half diagonally to make 32 triangular chips.  Place the chips on two baking sheets in a single layer and bake until light golden, 10 to 12 minutes.  Cool.

  

Za’atar

Note:  Za’atar spice blend is traditionally served with olive oil as a dipping sauce for pita or naan bread; it’s also excellent on grilled or roasted meats, on lavash chips, or sprinkled on hummus.

2 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds                    1 teaspoon dried oregano

2 tablespoons ground sumac                                ½ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon dried thyme                                       1 teaspoon coarse black pepper

1 teaspoon ground cumin                                    1 teaspoon smoked paprika

Combine all ingredients well, rubbing the dried thyme and oregano between your fingers as you add them.

  

Hummus

Makes approximately 2 cups

One 15-oz can chickpeas, drained and rinsed         ½ teaspoon kosher salt

¼ cup fresh lemon juice, about 1 large lemon         ½ teaspoon ground cumin

¼ cup tahini                                                           2 to 3 tablespoons water

1 small garlic clove, minced                                    Paprika for garnish

2 tablespoons olive oil

Combine the tahini and lemon juice in a food processor and process for 1 minute.  Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl then process 30 additional seconds to help whip the tahini.  Add the olive oil, garlic, cumin and salt and process for 30 seconds.  Scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl and process for another 30 seconds.  Add half of the chickpeas to the processor and process for 1 minute.  Scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl, add the remaining chickpeas and process for 1 minute until thick and smooth.  Most likely the hummus will be too thick at this point.  With the food processor running, slowly add 2 to 3 tablespoons of water until it reaches your desired consistency.  Garnish with a few dashes of paprika and some additional olive oil (if desired) when served.

Green Harissa

Makes approximately 1 ½ cups

Note:  Green harissa is excellent as a condiment with chicken, lamb, salmon, grilled vegetables, hummus, pita, or couscous.

2 tablespoons cumin seeds                                       ½ cup extra-virgin olive oil

1 tablespoon coriander seeds                                    ½ cup flat-leaf parsley leaves

2 jalapenos, seeded and sliced                                  ½ cup fresh cilantro leaves

2 green onions, sliced                                               ¼ cup fresh lemon juice

1 small garlic clove, smashed                                    ½ teaspoon salt

Lightly toast cumin and coriander seeds in a small skillet over medium heat, stirring often until fragrant, 2-3 minutes; let cool.  Puree the seeds with all the remaining ingredients in a blender or food processor until smooth. 

Harissa can be made a day or two ahead.  Press a piece of plastic wrap directly onto the surface of the harissa to prevent browning.  Cover and chill.