ROMANESQUE CAULIFLOWER AFGHAN STYLE - ALMOST GULPEA

By Humaira

Growing up in a low income suburb of San Jose, I was mostly exposed to fruit and vegetables my Afghan refugee parents could find on sale, in Food4Less—red mushy apples, seeded green grapes, cauliflower, iceberg lettuce—organic heirloom tomatoes were not to be found in our shopping cart.

After living in San Francisco for the past twenty years, my shopping cart contents have gone organic, exotic and seasonal. Despite my expanded palette, it wasn't until a couple of year ago that I first laid eyes on a Romanesque cauliflower (a.k.a. Romanesco broccoli). There it was, in my organic veggie box—cone shaped creature with pokey green florets nestled among familiar cucumber, tomato and berries. I shoved the genetically mutated creature in the back of my fridge's vegetable container and forgot about it.

Since our first meeting, I've grown to love this delicate and nutty vegetable. I often toss the florets in olive oil and roast it. Sometimes I saute' or mash it, but my masterpiece was when I cooked it Afghan style—simmered in a thick sauce of onions, garlic, turmeric, cumin and tomatoes.

This recipe is similar to my traditional Afghan Gulpea/cauliflower recipe. If Romanesco cauliflower was available in Afghanistan, they would make it this way and I hope this summer you'll give this recipe a try.

Romansque Cauliflower Afghan Style

Qorma e Gulpea

3 tbsp. olive oil

1 large onion, pureed in a food processor or finely chopped

4 cloves garlic, pureed in a food processor or finely chopped

1 teaspoon. ground coriander

1 teaspoon ground turmeric

1 teaspoon cumin

1 tsp. salt

2 tomatoes diced

1/4 cup vegetable 

1/2 tsp. ground black pepper

1 1/2 head Romasque cauliflower, washed, stem removed, cut into large pieces

Heat the olive oil over medium-high heat in a large, heavy-bottom pot. Add the onion and brown for about 10 minutes until golden brown. Add the garlic cook, for an additional 2 minutes.  Add all the remaining ingredients except for the Romanesque. Stir well and simmer for about 8 minutes until the liquid reduces and you have a thick, oniony sauce.

Add the Romasque and stir to cover all pieces with sauce.  If you feel you don't have enough sauce to coat the cauliflower, add another 1/4 cup of the broth.

Put the lid on the pot, cook on low for 20 minutes (stirring every five minutes) or until the Romasque can be easily pierced by a fork. Remove the lid and cook uncovered for another 5 minutes to allow the sauce to reduce. The cooking time will vary but you want the result to be fork-tender, but not mushy.

Serve with nan, pit bread, or challaw, the Afghan white rice. A dollop of plain yogurt makes a heavenly addition.

CHICKPEA STEW WITH MOROCCAN SPICES - VEGETARIAN AND GLUTEN FREE

By Humaira

I became gluten free two weeks ago. After years of resisting my doctor's recommendations and ignoring various positive gluten intolerance tests, I finally succumbed to becoming one of those annoying people who interrogates waiters about gluten free dishes.

My search for gluten free recipes took me to the New York Times food page where I found Melissa Clark's Chickpea Stew with Moroccan Spices. Considering legumes are a big part of Afghan cuisine and most of the Moroccan spices in this recipe are also Afghan spices, I thought you would enjoy this hearty stew as much as I have. You may watch Melissa demonstrate this dish in this two minute video.

Please share your comments on this and other recipes in the comment section of my blog.

New York Times FOOD

Chickpea Stew with Moroccan Spices

Almost Afghan

4 tablespoons olive oil

2 Spanish onions, chopped

1 large jalapeño pepper, seeded if desired, chopped

4 garlic cloves, minced

1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger root

2 ½ teaspoons kosher salt, more to taste

1 teaspoon ground turmeric

1 teaspoon sweet paprika

¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon

½ teaspoon ground cumin

½ teaspoon ground black pepper

 Pinch of cayenne

2 tablespoons tomato paste

1 fennel bulb, diced (save fronds for garnish)

1 very large bunch chard, stems sliced 1/2-inch thick, leaves torn into bite-size pieces

2 carrots, peeled and diced

1 large turnip, peeled and diced

1 pound dried chickpeas, soaked overnight in water to cover or quick-soaked (see note)

⅓ cup diced dried apricots

2 tablespoons chopped preserved lemon, more to taste

½ cup chopped cilantro, more for garnish

Heat oil in a large pot over high heat. Add onion and jalapeño and sauté until limp, 3 minutes. Add garlic, ginger, salt, turmeric, paprika, cinnamon, cumin, black pepper and cayenne and sauté until they release their fragrance, about 2 minutes. Add tomato paste and sauté for another minute, until darkened but not burned. (If tomato paste looks too dark too quickly, lower heat.)

Add fennel, chard stems, carrot and turnip and continue to sauté until vegetables start to soften, about 10 minutes. Add chickpeas and water to barely cover.

Return heat to high if you lowered it and bring to a simmer. Partly cover pot, lower heat to medium low, and simmer for about 1 1/2 to 2 hours, until chickpeas are softened. Add more water if needed (this should be like a stew).

Add chard leaves, apricots and preserved lemon to pot and continue simmering until chard is tender, about 5 minutes longer. Season with more salt if desired, and serve garnished with cilantro and reserved fennel fronds. 

To quick-soak chickpeas, bring them to a boil in water to cover by 1 inch. Turn off the heat and let soak for 1 hour. Drain.

Recipes by Melissa Clark in The New York Times FOOD Section on February 13, 2015

LUSCIOUS LAYERED AFGHAN EGGPLANT - BORANI BANJAN

By Katie

Happy Ramazan to Muslims around the world who will be fasting to observe the Holy Month of Ramazan.

It occurred to me how fully indoctrinated I am into Afghan cookery when I went to look “eggplant” up in the index of a food reference the other day and flipped instinctively to the B’s.  When I couldn’t find “banjan”, the Afghan word for eggplant, it hit me that I was in deep.  My intention was to get back up for my belief that salting and draining eggplant before cooking is unnecessary.   I’m always looking for shortcuts.  The Los Angeles Times Food Editor Russ Parsons says not necessary unless you are planning to fry it.  Alice Waters of Chez Panisse fame suggests salting only if the eggplant is overripe. 

This points to the notion that there are always two ways to skin a cat, or in this case, an eggplant.  Borani Banjan, this Afghan eggplant dish, is case in point.  Most folks fry the eggplant before baking it.   Some versions are very spicy, some are heavily sauced, others barely so.  Humaira and I have been messing around with Borani Banjan for a while.  This version is adapted from a recipe Humaira’s sister Zohra gave to us.  It’s a keeper.  

Zohra likes to use the long, slender Chinese variety of eggplant.  She finds them more reliably good than other types.  You can use any variety you like, just look for eggplants that are firm and use them right away, or store them someplace cool, not cold.   According to Alice Waters, long storage at cold temperatures can lead to bitterness.  And I believe everything Alice says.

This is a luscious, rustic dish using summer’s best ingredients.  As the eggplant and tomato bake all the flavors and textures melt together.  When it’s done, the whole thing is covered with garlic-spiked yogurt and served with flat bread for scooping up all the last bits of deliciousness.  Next time I plan to turn the elegance factor up a notch by baking these in individual crocks and setting them out as single-serving side dishes.    Enjoy.

Luscious Layered Afghan Eggplant

Borani Banjan

4 medium size Chinese eggplants (or 2 medium Italian eggplants)

2 tbsp. olive oil, divided

1 1/2 tsp. Kosher salt , divided

3 medium tomatoes, cut in 1/3-inch thick slices

8 medium cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp. ground turmeric

1 tsp. ground curry powder

1 tsp. paprika

½ tsp. ground black pepper

2 1/2 tablespoons tomato paste

1 ½ cup chicken broth

1 cup chopped fresh cilantro

1 cup Greek-style yogurt

1 tsp. garlic salt

Set the oven to broil.

Slice off the ends of the eggplants and cut them in half lengthwise.  Cut each halve crosswise in 1/3-inch thick slices.  Arrange the eggplant slices on two baking sheets, drizzle with 1 tbsp. of the olive oil and sprinkle with ½ tsp. of the salt.  Set the baking sheets under the broiler and cook for a few minutes on each side until they brown lightly.  Remove from oven and turn the heat down to 375 degrees.

Heat the remaining tablespoon of olive oil in a medium pan and sauté the garlic over medium heat for about 2 minutes.  Don’t let it brown.  Add the remaining 1 tsp. salt, turmeric, curry, paprika, pepper, and tomato paste.  Stir this mixture together and cook for another minute.  Add the chicken broth to the pan, stir, and turn the heat to high.  When the liquid boils, turn it down and let it simmer for 5 minutes, stirring regularly. 

Pour 1/3 of the liquid into a 9x12-inch baking dish (a little smaller is fine too) and spread it across the bottom.  Arrange half the eggplant on top of the sauce.  Sprinkle half the cilantro over the eggplant and then layer half the tomato slices evenly on the eggplant.  Pour on another third of the sauce.  Repeat the layering with the remaining eggplant, cilantro, and tomatoes.  Finish the dish by drizzling the last of the sauce over the vegetables, making sure to coat all  of the pieces.

Cover the dish tightly with aluminum foil and place it in the oven for 40 minutes.   Remove the foil and cook another 5 minutes

Mix together the Greek yogurt and garlic salt.  Pour the yogurt sauce over the eggplant and serve with pita or nan bread.

Serves four to six.

Adapted from a recipe by Zohra Ghilzai

Except where otherwise noted, all content on this blog is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported license.

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