Pasta and Broccoli in Olive Oil with Anchovies and Almonds

This recipe comes with a story. About a year ago an Australian Chef was cooking on a television cooking show. He was making Pasta with Broccoli in Olive Oil. What caught my eye was the fact that he added a few anchovies to the olive oil and sort of let them melt into the oil. He swore the anchovies would not overpower the taste of the sauce but would add richness and depth to the Broccoli and Olive Oil. To make a long story short – my oldest daughter and her boyfriend were joining us for dinner and that seemed to be a perfect time to try this recipe. Needless to say it was a great success, served it with garlic bread and a simple green salad and it has been a favorite meal ever since. By the way, the original recipe had zucchini and additional herbs. This recipe is quick and simple. 

HINT: up until about 2 months ago I always discarded the thick broccoli stems, found out one day that my youngest daughter and my youngest sister both loved the stems – so now they are peeled, sliced or chopped and used.

[Rating - easy]
[Servings: 4 servings as a main course or 6 servings as a side dish]
Preparation time:
15 minutes to cut and chop. 20 minutes to cook.

Ingredients:

Half package of spaghetti or any long pasta [of course, you can use any type of pasta you prefer, I like to stab a piece of broccoli and then wind the pasta around my fork]

1 medium size head of broccoli (about 2½ cups of florets and about 1 cup stem, peeled, and cut into small pieces)

2½ cups of Broccoli florets

1 cup broccoli of stems - trimmed and chopped 

4-6 cloves of garlic - sliced

4-6 tablespoons Olive oil

1 tablespoon of Chili flavored oil (optional)

2-4 small anchovies

2-3 tablespoons of almonds slivers

Fresh Ground Black Pepper

Kosher salt

Grated Parmesan Reggio or Peccorino Cheese

(top) salt and black pepper; olive oil; anchovies and chili oil; sliced garlic(bottom) Pasta

Preparation:

·  Cook the pasta as directed [cook until al dente]

·  Gently melt the anchovies in the oil [see below]

Olive Oil - anchovies just added

Olive Oil with melting anchovies

· Add the garlic and the broccoli stems

· Stir occasionally for about 5 to 8 minutes until they begin to soften

·  Add the broccoli florets

·  When broccoli starts to soften
·  Add the black pepper and the slivered almonds 

Almonds slivers

·   Stir together for about 10 minutes 
  [or until the broccoli florets start to soften]

·   Add the pasta into the pan with the broccoli mixture – mix well

·   Place on serving dish

Almost ready

 ·  Generously add grated cheese and sprinkle with kosher salt to taste

Grate this over the Pasta and Broccoli for the finishing touch
{Thank you Peter and Loredana for this thoughtful gift}

Pasta and Broccoli in Olive Oil with Anchovies and Almonds

Serve with a simple green salad and garlic bread.

Note: a few grains of kosher salt enhances the flavors without making this dish too salty; the almonds give the recipe a bit of a crunch; the chili flavored oil adds a whisper of a tang while the anchovies add depth to the sauce – without overpowering the flavor of the Broccoli. If you are lactose intolerant then leave out the cheese and add a few more grains of kosher salt.

Nava's Moroccan Soup (Harira)

This soup is my sister-in-laws take on Harira, a Moroccan soup basically made with tomatoes and lentils. The soup is mild in seasoning but thick, filling and most of all delicious. Don't let the number of ingredients or cooking time put you off - it is really worth the effort. The soup is simple to make - and is usually eaten to break the fast. There are many variations, some include meat. One note of caution - don't add too many noodles as they tend to expand and overtake the rest of the ingredients. We consider this a meal in bowl and eat it with fresh bread. 

  

[Rating – easy]

[Servings: 8 to 10 hardy bowls of soup]

Preparation time: 

20 minutes to cut and assemble the ingredients

Cooking time: 

Approximately 2 hours from start to eating!

(clockwise - Chopped tomatoes, chopped fresh coriander, diced onions,
diced carrots, black lentils, short flat egg noodles,
diced celery and (ctr) chickpeas

 Ingredients:

¾ cup fresh chickpeas (soaked overnight) or ¾ cup canned chickpeas

¾ cup black lentils (soaked for an hour)

4 tablespoon oil

2 large onions - chopped

2 large tomatoes - peeled and chopped

1 carrot - peeled and diced

4 celery stems - diced

½ cup rice

1 large handful of fresh coriander - chopped

Spices:

1 teaspoon salt, 2 teaspoons black pepper, 1 tablespoon turmeric, 1 tablespoon soup mix or 2 cubes, 1 tablespoon of sweet paprika; 

Optional spices: ½ teaspoon of cayenne pepper and/or ginger and or cinnamon 

1 large tablespoon regular flour (dissolved in ½ cup of cold water)

½ cup angel hair pasta/short egg noodles

Juice of ½ lemon (substitute about ¼ cup of bottled lemon juice)

Preparation:

·       Cook the chickpeas in a separate pot for ½ hour – cool and peel off the skin. (I usually substitute canned chickpeas, you will still need to peel off the skin) (see photo)

Skinless chickpeas (skins on right)

·  Fry the onions in the oil and add the tomatoes, carrot and celery

Onions, tomatoes, carrots and celery frying

 · Add the chickpeas, lentils and 8 cups of water. 

Chickpeas and lentils added

Mix Chickpeas and lentils 

· Cook for 1 hour (add water if needed)  

Short flat egg noodles (add last), chopped fresh coriander, 
rice, spices, lemon (add last)

      · Add the rice, coriander and spices. Mix well and cook for 15 minutes.

Soup with fresh coriander and rice added

Vegetables, lentils, rice, carrots
 and celery  cooking

·       Mix the flour in ½ cup of cold water & add to the soup.
·       Mix well.

flour and water mix

·       Add noodles and juice from ½ lemon or ¼ cup of bottled lemon juice.

·       Close the heat and let rest of 30 minutes.

 Nava's Moroccan Soup (Harira)

Shredded Chicken with Cucumbers, Almonds and Sweet Chili Sauce

This recipe is my take of one of the most surprisingly delicious chicken dishes I ever ate in a restaurant. There were two surprises in this recipe, the addition of fresh coriander leaves and Sweet Chili sauce from a jar which I had never used before. The original dish had peanuts in it, we don't use peanuts because my favorite brother-in-law is allergic.

All I can say is give this recipe a try – the results are worth the effort.

Shredded Chicken, Sweet Chili Sauce, Chopped Almonds,
Fresh Coriander,  Cucumbers

[Rating – easy]

[Servings: 4-6 main courses or 6-8 appetizers]

Preparation time: 

20 minutes to poach, cool and shred the chicken

20 minutes to cut and mix the remainder of ingredients

Ingredients: 

4 whole chicken breasts

Unpoached Chicken Breasts

2 whole cloves of garlic peeled and cut in half

1 – chunk of fresh ginger (about an inch) - peeled

Garlic and Ginger

100 grams or 3/4 cup almonds chopped or diced

1 large handful of fresh coriander – chopped

6 large cucumbers – sliced (see picture – I used a simple mandolin)

1 small bottle (250 grams) of ready-made Sweet Chili Sauce

Chopped Almonds, Cucumbers, Sweet Chili Sauce,  Fresh Coriander

Preparation: 

POACHING THE CHICKEN

• In a medium size pot - fill with water and add the whole garlic cloves and ginger
• Start heating the water and immediately add the chicken breasts
• The water will begin to heat up and the chicken will begin to turn whitish
• When the water starts to boil the chicken will begin to float
• Give it about 5 more minutes to poach and - it should be fully cooked
• Remove it from the pot – rinse under cold water

Poached Chicken Breasts

• Start shredding the chicken by hand (see photo) into a large bowl                         [to shred pull small strips from the breast]

Shredded Poached Chicken Breasts

 CUCUMBERS

• Slice the cucumbers in thin strips or use a mandolin type cutter (see picture of an example of one) 

Simple Mandolin 

Cut Cucumbers

CORIANDER

• Chop the coriander

COMBINE – large bowl

• Shredded Chicken
• Diced Almonds
• Chopped Coriander (and some ground black pepper)
• MIX together
• ADD – Sweet Chili Sauce – a whole small bottle (~250 grams)

Shredded Chicken with Cucumbers, Almonds and Sweet Chili Sauce

Shredded Chicken served on a lettuce leaf

Shredded Chicken served on a lettuce leaf -
just roll it up and eat it by hand!!!

You can store this dish in a closed container in the refrigerator – if you do there will be some liquid on the bottom –gently spill that out before you serve it (the excess liquid is from the cucumbers).

Options and Substitutions

Chopped peanuts instead of almonds

Plain Homemade Pancakes

Every so often someone asks for an old favorite, last week it was homemade pancakes.  Why not use a commercial pancake mix you are asking yourself? 

Years ago there was no really good “pancake mixes” available here so I frantically called my good friend and she gave me this simple mix. 

I still use this pancake mix today basically because it is easy to put together, it is economical and it can be doubled and tripled without causing any damage to the quality of the pancake which actually makes it almost foolproof.

[The batter can be prepared the night before and stored in the refrigerator - just remember take it out of the frig about 15 minutes before you want to use it and give it a stir, you may need to add a dollop of milk to thin the batter.]

[Rating – easy]

Preparation time: 

10 minutes to combine ingredients

Makes about 12-15 medium sized pancakes

Ingredients: 

1 ½ cups of plain flour

1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking powder

3 tablespoons sugar

2 eggs

3 tablespoons of canola oil

1 cup of milk (or milk substitute)

(honestly that’s it)

Milk, oil, sugar, eggs and flour

Preparation: 

• Place all the dry ingredients in a bowl and mix together
• Add the remaining ingredients (eggs, oil, milk)

(if you are making it ahead you can use a large plastic container with a cover or cover your bowl with plastic wrap to keep the batter from picking up any other food  odors)

Stir with a spoon

• Stir until all ingredients are mixed together - not too much or the pancakes will be tough tasting instead of light and airy

[the batter should be sort of lumpy]

and bubbly and shiny

Batter should be thick and lumpy . . .

• Pour the batter by the spoonful into a lightly oiled frying pan or grill [wipe the pan with a paper towel to remove any excess oil]

You can make your pancakes as big or as small as you want.

• Pancakes should be turned over when they start to look like this.

Ready for turning

Turning

Our Favorite Combination
Stack of pancakes with Canadian Maple Syrup

Serve with maple syrup, cinnamon and sugar or honey.


Additions or Substitutions:

*Add fresh or frozen berries to the batter

*Use milk substitute instead of cow milk
*Try and use real Canadian Maple Syrup  
*Pancakes can be frozen in ziplock bags and reheated in the microwave for a couple of seconds.


Enjoy!!!

Basil Pesto

Basil, basil everywhere – my window box is just loaded with basil so what better time to make pesto and freeze it for quick pasta dinners in the months to come.

Fresh Basil

Actually I made Basil Pesto  three times this week because my plants are just flourishing. My measurements are “more or less” because it is just that kind of recipe. I put everything in my food processor and use the standard cutting blade.

[Rating – easy]

Preparation time: 

10 minutes to combine ingredients and freeze

Basil (center)
Olive Oil, Pine Nuts and Walnuts, Whole Garlic Cloves,
Parmigiano-Reggiano Cheese cubed

Ingredients: 

2 cups of fresh basil leaves (washed and air dried)

½ cup of pine nuts or 100 grams more or less

½ cup of walnuts or 100 grams more or less

8-10 cloves of garlic

½ cup to ¾ cup of hard cheese (Pecorino or Parmigiano-Reggiano)

Coarsely ground black pepper – about ¼ to ½ teaspoon

1 cup Olive Oil more or less

Preparation: 

• Place the pine nuts and walnuts in the food processor
• Process until they are coarsely ground (they should look sort of lumpy)

Coarsely ground pine nuts and walnuts

• Add the basil leaves and the garlic
• Pulse the processor the basil and garlic will begin to blend with the nuts
• Add the cheese

Large Chunk of Parmigiano-Reggiano Cheese with fresh Basil leaves

• Continue to pulse until the ingredients look combined - but not smooth!!!
• Slowly add the Olive Oil while processing
• The mixture will begin to turn one color
• Scrape down the sides, test the consistency
• Add pepper to taste
• And pulse for a few more seconds

Basil Pesto in Food Processor

A close look at Basil Pesto - it should be a bit grainy 

Storage:
I usually place the Pesto in a silicon cupcake form and cover it with saran wrap.
When the Pesto is frozen it is easy to remove, you just peel the Pesto pelts out of the form and then you can store the individual portions in a container in the freezer; the portions stay separate and you will have Basil Pesto available whenever you want to put together a quick meal.
Enjoy, this is really easy and the results can be enjoyed for a very long time.
Looking forward to your feedback at capricorncooks@gmail.com.

Basil Pesto in silicon cupcake form - great for freezing.