Tagged With: Vegetarian
Coriander Roasted Beets
Roasting beets concentrates their flavor, and the complement of coriander is delicious. We like to roast a whole pan-full and serve them alone as a side dish or atop a dark leafy green salad of chard, kale and spinach. Choose beets of a similar size so they cook at about the same rate, and both the gold and red varieties can be used alone or in combination. The spice mix of coriander, sesame, marjoram and urfa is bright and pleasing with just a hint of mild heat. Inspired by our love of Dukkah and Israeli Za’atar, this blend is a variation on those themes with coriander taking center stage.
Ingredients
- 8-10 medium beets, golden or red
- 2 teaspoons avocado oil
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon white sesame seeds
- 2 teaspoons Indian coriander
- 2 teaspoons European coriander
- 1 teaspoon marjoram
- 1/2 teaspoon urfa biber
- 1 teaspoon Murray River flake salt
- 2 teaspoons avocado oil
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
- Scrub the beets clean and arrange them in a cast iron skillet or Dutch oven. Coat with avocado oil and sprinkle with salt. Cover the pan tightly and roast the beets for 45-60 minutes, until they can easily be pierced with a fork.
- While the beets are roasting, prepare the spices. In a heavy dry pan over medium heat, toast the sesame and coriander seeds until they are lightly browned. Remove to a plate to cool.
- Crush the toasted sesame and coriander seeds in a mortar and pestle, or pulse in an electric mill, to a medium-fine consistency. Then add the marjoram and urfa and crush or pulse gently to combine. Add the Murray River flake salt.
- Remove the beets from the oven and increase the oven temperature to 400 degrees.
- Allow the beets to cool to the touch. Slice off the tops and the peel the beets. The skins should slip off easily.
- Chop the beets into quarters or eighths and place them in a large bowl. Drizzle with the avocado oil and toss to coat. Sprinkle the spice mixture over the beets and spread them on a grill pan.
- Roast 10 minutes more to fuse the spice flavors with the beets.
This spice mixture goes well with other roasted vegetables too- like carrots or parsnips and can be used as a crust on meat and seafood. You can vary the consistency to go with your dish- we like it medium-fine to sprinkle on vegetables and a more coarse to use as a crust. For another variation, grind the coriander seeds, but leave the sesame seeds whole for additional crunch.
Out of the oven, these beets have heavenly, and healthy flavor. Enjoy.
Heavenly Hawaij Soup
Soup shots are the perfect starter for a long holiday feast, and this Heavenly Hawaij Soup is the ideal choice. Combining aromatic spices, earthy mushrooms and velvety cream, it is as decadent as holiday fare should be. If you start with this, what could be next? Cardamom, turmeric and saffron are the essential spice elements of the Yemenese blend Hawaij, and they play wonderfully in this exotic mushroom soup. It’s a leftover that will have you sneaking back to the kitchen at four am.
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 5 large garlic cloves, chopped
- 1 small sweet onion, chopped
- 2 tablespoons flour
- 1 ounce (about 1 cup) dried porcinis, broken into smaller pieces
- 2 pounds chopped crimini mushrooms
- 4 cups vegetable or chicken stock
- 1 cup white wine
- 2 tablespoons ground Hawaij
- 1-1/2 cups heavy cream
- 1/2 lemon, juiced
- Salt to taste
Instructions
- In a Dutch oven, melt the butter on medium heat. Saute the garlic and onions until slightly browned. Add the flour, and mix well (it will be thick).
- Add in the porcinis, criminis, stock, wine and Hawaij. Mix well. Bring to a boil, then turn down the heat to medium low, and let simmer for about 20 minutes.
- Working in batches, puree the soup in a blender or food processor until smooth. Once the soup is pureed, return it to the pot and add the heavy cream.
- Simmer for about 10 minutes, to reduce the cream a bit. Add the juice of 1/2 of a lemon, then taste for salt and add what you need. If you feel the soup is too thick, add more stock. If you feel it needs to be thicker, continue to reduce it on low until it’s at the consistency you prefer.
- Serve with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil.
Rooster Grilled Artichokes with Spicy Garlic Mayonaise
Seattle’s local farmers have been showcasing artichokes for a few weeks now, so what better produce to highlight one of our newest blends, Rooster Spice! Inspired by everyone’s favorite Vietnamese hot sauce, Rooster Spice packs a wallop of heat, but boasts a delicious complexity that will keep you coming back. It’s the perfect accompaniment to these artichokes, or really anything else your market basket can throw at it.
Ingredients
- 2 lemons
- 1 California bay leaf
- 4 large artichokes
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 tablespoons Rooster Spice
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- Rooster Spice, to taste
- Murray River flake salt
Instructions
- Fill a Dutch oven with water, add the juice of 1 lemon and the bay leaf.
- Trim leaves from the top of artichoke, remove outer layers of leaves from the stem end and snip all remaining spiky tips from the outer leaves. Trim an inch off the bottom of the stem and use a vegetable peeler to remove the fibrous outer layer.
- As each artichoke is prepared in this way, drop it into the lemon water to prevent from turning brown.
- When artichokes are prepared, cover the pan and bring to a boil. Boil until the base of the stem can be pierced with a fork, about 12-15 minutes. Transfer to a cutting board and let stand until cool enough to handle, about 10 minutes.
- Meanwhile, combine garlic, lemon juice, and Rooster Spice with the mayonnaise. Mix well. Transfer to a serving dish and chill until needed.
- Preheat grill to medium.
- Slice the artichoke in half lengthwise. Scoop out the choke and first few inner layers in the center until the bottom is revealed. Brush each half with olive oil and sprinkle with Murray River Flake Salt and Rooster Spice.
- Grill the artichokes until tender and lightly charred, about 5 minutes per side. Transfer to a serving platter, squeeze half a lemon over them and garnish with remaining lemon wedges.
- Serve warm, at room temperature or chilled alongside Spicy Garlic Mayonnaise.
Continental Curry Biryani
It’s almost Buddha’s birthday! Buddha’s birthday is celebrated on the eighth day of the fourth month of the Chinese lunar calendar in nearly all east-Asian countries, and this year it falls on Friday May 17th in the Western calendar. Because it is customary to eat rice on Buddha’s birthday, we developed this heavily spiced vegetarian biryani to honor the Buddha and many of the exotic lands from which our spices come. Our Continental Curry is the perfect blend for this occasion, as it combines the best elements of several varieties of yellow curry. While we can’t promise a permanent Nirvana as a result of this dish, we guarantee at least a transient one!
Ingredients
- 1 cup basmati rice, well rinsed
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 red onion, thinly sliced
- 1 big pinch of saffron
- 2 tablespoons golden raisins
- 2 tablespoons chopped cashews
- 1/4 teaspoon whole cloves
- 1/2 teaspoon whole cumin seed
- 1/2 teaspoon whole Indian coriander seed
- 3 whole green cardamom pods
- 2 Indonesia cassia sticks
- 2 cups water
- 1 teaspoon Murray River flake salt
- 6 large cloves garlic, chopped
- 3 inch piece of ginger, chopped
- 2 tablespoons ground Continental Curry
- 2 medium onions, chopped
- 7 mint leaves
- 1 jalapeno, chopped
- 2 roma tomatoes, seeded and chopped
- 1/2 teaspoon Murray River flake salt
- 1 tablesoon olive oil
- 1/2 cup broccoli florets
- 1/2 cup cauliflower florets
- 1/2 cup green beans, cut into 1 inch pieces
- 1/2 cup peas
- 1 medium sweet potato, cut into 1 inch pieces
- 1/2 cup water
- 1/2 cup chopped cilantro
- 1/2 cup warm milk
- 1 pinch saffron
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 large red onion, thinly sliced
- 2 tablespoons cashews, chopped
- Pan spray
- Greek yogurt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- In a medium-sized pan over medium heat, add the oil. When hot, add the onion and cook until softened. Add raisins, cashews, cloves, cumin, Indian coriander, green cardamom and cassia sticks and saute until fragrant and the seeds start to "pop", about 3 minutes.
- Add salt, water and saffron and bring to a boil. Add rice and turn heat down to simmer. Cover and cook for about 10 minutes. Rice will be 3/4 of the way cooked. Spread in a shallow pan to cool.
- While rice is cooking, par-cook the vegetables. In a shallow pan over medium-high heat, add the vegetables and water. Cover and steam for about 5 minutes.
- In a food processor, puree the garlic, ginger, onions, mint leaves, Continental Curry, jalapeno, salt and tomato.
- In a medium saute pan, heat 1 tablespoon oil. Add puree and saute for 5 minutes. Add par cooked vegetables, stirring well to combine. Taste for seasoning and salt.
- In a small saucepan, warm a pinch of saffron and the milk. Remove from heat.
- Spray a large ovenproof casserole dish with pan spray. Layer in half of the rice and sprinkle with half of the cilantro. Evenly spread the vegetable curry paste mixture over the rice, top with remaining rice, and sprinkle with remainder of cilantro.
- Drizzle with the saffron-infused milk, cover the casserole dish and bake for 15 minutes, until the rice is cooked through. Turn the oven off and let the biryani stay in the hot oven for another 10 minutes.
- While the biryani is baking, heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a large saute pan over medium-high heat.
- Add the sliced onions and fry until golden. Drain on paper towels. Next, add chopped cashews and fry until golden. Drain on paper towels.
- Remove the biryani for the oven. Top with fried onions and cashews and serve with Greek yogurt on the side.
Rooster Spice Asparagus
Songkran (สงกรานต์) is the traditional Thai New Year water festival which starts on April 13 every year. Traditionally, the throwing of water is said to be a symbol of luck to bring good rain for the crops. Well, we are swimming in good luck with a bountiful asparagus harvest this year and a brand new spice blend, Rooster Spice! We designed this spicy chili powder drawing inspiration from Indonesian sambal, Thai nam phrik, and Vietnamese tuong ot toi. Rooster Spice has limitless possibilities, but here we combine the seasonality of asparagus with the celebration of Thai New Year. Enjoy!
Ingredients
- Oil for frying, vegetable, peanut or canola
- 1 bunch asparagus, touch ends removed
- 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 1/4 cup very cold, full bodied beer
- 2 eggs, separated
- Sel de Mer
- Rooster Spice
Instructions
- In a deep saute pan, gently heat oil to 375 degrees.
- In a separate pot, bring 4 quarts of heavily salted water to a rolling boil. Add asparagus, cook for 50 seconds, and transfer to a bowl of ice water to shock, then dry thoroughly.
- In a medium bowl, mix egg yolks with flour, cornstarch, Rooster Spice and beer, taking care not to over-mix. In a separate bowl, beat eggs whites to soft peaks, then fold egg whites, very gently, into egg yolk mixture. (Again, do not over mix or allowed batter to sit too long!)
- Toss asparagus with a few tablespoons of flour, shaking to remove excess. Dredge in batter and fry in oil, until golden and crisp.
- Season with Sel de Mer, a squeeze of lemon, or a generous dousing of malt vinegar and serve in newspaper cones
Le Quebecois Mini Pies
We were recently asked by another spice company to change the name of our Montreal Steak Spice because they owned the rights to the name. Well, okay….
While we were busy brainstorming a new name, taking the labels off of jars in gift sets, redoing the store displays, and adjusting our website, I recalled a quote by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe:
‘We must always change, renew, rejuvenate ourselves; otherwise we harden.’
Change can be good, our store displays are fresh and new our website got a nice update, we have a fantastic new name for one of our earliest blends and an outstanding recipe to go with it. Introducing…… Le Quebecois Steak Spice!
Paying homage to the Canadian Provence were the blend originated, Le Quebecois Steak Spice showcases both the French flair for deft seasoning, and the British love of beef. While usually associated with steak, we tried it in these vegetarian mini pies with great success – you know how how we love to play with our food! Bon appétit.
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for brushing pastry
- 1 pound Swiss chard, stems and leaves thinly shredded and separated
- 1 large onion, diced
- 2 stalks celery, thinly sliced
- 2 scallions, chopped
- 2 ounces arugula
- 1/2 bunch fresh parsley
- 1 ounce chopped fresh mint
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill
- 4 ounces ricotta, drained
- 3.5 ounces aged white cheddar
- 2 ounces feta, crumbled
- Grated zest of one lemon
- 2 eggs
- 1/4 cup Le Quebecois Steak Spice
- 1/3 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon granulated sugar
- 9 ounces filo pastry, thawed but still cold
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a deep skillet over medium heat. Add onion to pan and saute until translucent, about 8 minutes, then add chard stems and celery, cook about 4 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Add chard leaves to the skillet, raise heat to medium high and cook, stirring, until wilted, about 4 minutes. Add scallions, arugula and herbs. Cook for two minutes more and transfer to a colander.
- Once cool enough to handle, squeeze out as much liquid as you can. Transfer to a bowl and mix in cheese, zest, eggs, salt, sugar and Le Quebecois Steak Spice.
- Lay out a sheet of filo, cut into 12 squares and brush with olive oil. Lay the oiled squares into the cups of a muffin tin. Repeat, alternating the angles of the squares so that they cover the sides of each muffin cup, until you have 5 layers of filo.
- Fill each cup with herb mixture and fold excess filo over the edges of the filling. To top each cup, make another 5 layer filo piece, cut in a round, and place atop of each cup.
- Brush lightly with olive oil and bake for 40 minutes until the filo turns golden brown. Serve warm or at room temperature as an an appetizer or an accompaniment to roast lamb or beef
Notes
We used and highly recommend Beechers Flagship for this recipe.
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