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| Lordy, I could just go a chunk of this RIGHT NOW |
Quite how I reconcile that imaginary life with the one that I lead here in darkest Scotland is entirely down to Yotam Ottolenghi and his partner in culinary crime, Sami Tamimi. I've already written about their divine cauliflower fritters here.
It's not that I can actually COOK what they write about - Middle Eastern spices are not easily acquired here on the island, but Joy of JOYS, the Ottolenghi chaps have now opened an on-line shop!
No more shall I stand in Tescos trying to remember whether I'm looking for Sumac or Za'atar...only to bring the Za'atar home to discover that I've already bought it. Twice.
No sireee! I'll be able to order directly from the Ottolenghi shop!
Here's the link: http://webstore.ottolenghi.co.uk/
Of course, the first thing that I bought wasn't herbs, spices or even the damned tasty looking lollipops but ANOTHER COOKERY BOOK
This time it's 'Jerusalem', home of the artichokes. That's a joke by the way. A cookery and vegetable-themed joke. I'm trying to move up from the usual toilet humour, you'll notice.
Aaaanyway, I ordered Jerusalem YESTERDAY from the on-line shop and lo! it arrived on my doorstep TODAY! Hats off to the boys and girls who handle the on-line orders at Ottolenghi as well as the Royal Mail!
Jerusalem arrived signed by both Yotam Ottolenghi and Sami Tamimi along with a neat little bag that will allow me to advertise their new book all over the island - look!
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| Cannot WAIT to get started!! |
The book is a fusion of the Muslim and Jewish food traditions that Ottolenghi and Tamimi grew up with in their respective quarters of the city. From dishes where pulses and grains are the star attractions, right through to sweets and desserts, Jerusalem is bursting with exotic recipes and gorgeous photography.
Now, while I say that the recipes are exotic, the test of this book, as with so many others, is whether it passes the Random Ingredients Test..... you don't know what that is? Why you can check it out here.
So let's give it a try.....
Conchiglie with yoghurt, peas and chilli ......greek yoghurt, fresh or frozen peas, conchiglie pasta.....chilli flakes.... feta. Yes, this one gets a big tick, I can lay my hands on ALL of this stuff.
What about Stuffed Aubergine with lamb and pine nuts? Aubergines, cumin, paprika, cinnamon, onions lamb, pine nts, tomato puree, tamarind paste. The tamarind paste might be tricky to get - but hey, I can just buy it from THEM on-line!!!
Last try at the Random Ingredients Test....Turkey and courgette burgers with spring onion and cumin...... minced turkey, courgette, spring onions, coriander, cumin....YES!
I honestly cannot WAIT to get started cooking from this book. And furst up will be the stuffed aubergines because I've got three in the fridge.
Why?
I told you. Inside my head, I live another life on a hot hillside in the Lebanon.....
Sounds fablas - look forward to reading about your results :)
ReplyDeleteI'm on one of my intermittent fast days today, so cannot cook anything today. But tomorrow, those aubergines are GETTING it.
DeleteLOL poor Sonshine ;-)
ReplyDeleteHe needs his fibre intake upped :-D
DeleteOh I'm a big Ottolenghi fan. I keep giving Mr TNMA his books as gifts so that he can cook gorgeous food for me (he's the chef in our house), I'm thinking Jerusalem makes a pretty nifty Christmas present.
ReplyDeleteBuy direct from them and get it signed, Mrs TNMA!
DeleteAli x
OOOOH you had me at hummus. I love it. And the burgers sound delicious. Go forth and cook delicious things!
ReplyDeleteLooking forward to it enormously! How are you enjoying your new Leisure Time?
DeleteAli x
yum. i just wish they didn't put damned sultanas in nearly every single thing. of course that's MY problem, not theirs. enjoy!
ReplyDeleteI luff a sultana, so it's a win win situation for me!
DeleteLovely post Ali, although as you said, it's a bit of a struggle switching from darkest Argyle to the Lebanon hills.
ReplyDeleteAgree with the polish chick, why so many bloody sultanas?
The stuffed aubergine sounds great, maybe you could deep-fry it to keep within the Scottish cooking guidelines?
*bwhahahahha* by the time you actualy DO fry off an aubergine, it sucks up sooooo much oil that it practically IS deep fried!
DeleteSurely you're aware that 72 sultanas is heaven ;D
DeleteIs that not virgins?! I'd rather have the sultanas, mind you :-D
DeleteI do know that Sultanas soaked in Gin is a recognised therapy for the treatment of Arthritis.
DeleteOh WOW! WOW. I now think I need this book and I certainly do NOT need any more cook books. Darn!
ReplyDeleteBuy direct from them, Siobhan, and get it signed AND a neat little shoulder bag with the book's cover on it. I used m'bag yesterday to go to butchers to buy mince for their meatballs recipe. Damned tasty, although cut my onions too big so they were more like sputniks than meatballs!
Deletewow....I always think the books too complicated although I have torn the odd recipe out of I think its the sat. guardian and successfully executed it........even got the son to eat crispy polenta and spicy tomato sauce!! But I am lucky enough to quite literally live behind one of their uber-delicious emporiums so can press my nose against the steamy-glass and droole everyday......the baked goods maybe be prohibitivly expensive but they are the best...did you hear them on radio 4 a month or so ago talking hummous? Quite brilliant ...x
ReplyDeleteI am so jealous that you live near an emporium! I am a Radio 2 person, although sometimes when Jeremy Vine's callers start talking over each other, I just tune into something else! Except when I'M ON IT!!!!
DeleteThe book talks a lot about hummous and how it has the potential to bring Jerusalemites together as a unifying force. Well, it's better than religion!
It's my favourite food region round there--I like how it's easy for a veggie to be veggie in teh Middle East. I sometimes find his Guardian recipes a bit fussy (like YAH above) and could do with simplifying, but still, all mouth-watering stuff, and very colourful to present in North Lancashire with its eternal rain and grey skies.
ReplyDeleteThis is true, I never thought about the issues of being a veggie in other countries. I did have a friend who was veggie who was holidaying in Germany. Now, THAT's tricky!
DeleteYes, the colour is marvellous for the dark days ahead!
Ali x
That all sounds delicious! I'm thinking Chrissie pressie for my mum, who is a cookery book slut ;) Getting it signed will deffo be a nice touch.
ReplyDeleteYay! More power to your mother's slutty elbow!!!! It's got a lot of unusual recipes in it, but they seem more achievable than many of their others. It feels as though they come out of someone's kitchen, rather than a restaurant, yanno?
DeleteAli x