Moroccan Inspired Muffins

Moroccan brioche or "Krashel" are one of my favorite Moroccan bakeries. They remind me of childhood and my grand parents home. The original recipe may take some time, as the raising time is relatively long. I thought I could get inspired from the original recipe and take the Moroccan brioche to another new level. So I decided to mix the traditional muffins recipe with Moroccan brioche basic ingredients and come with muffins "à la marocaine"; the result was really amazing. I loved them, my family loved them, and we all agreed that these muffins have the same taste and almost the same texture of Moroccan "Krashel"! This recipe has become one of my favorites. I hope you will try it out and enjoy the great Moroccan aromas of orange flower water, sesame, and fennel seeds.

Ingredients

- 2 cups sifter flour

- 3 tbsp sugar

- 2 tsp baking powder

- 1/2 tsp salt

- 1 cup milk

- 1/3 cup melted butter

- 3 tbsp orange flower water

- 1 beaten egg

- 1 tbsp sesame seeds

- 1 tbsp fennel seeds

Process

1- Preheat your oven to 200°C and  and lay a muffin tray with paper muffin cases.
    In a small bowl, mix all the wet ingredients together.

2- In a mixing bowl, mix all the dry ingredients together. Make a hole in the mixture and pour the wet batter. Mix until combined. Be careful not to over mix.

3- Fill  muffin cases and bake for about 25  minutes. (cooking time may deffer so watch out)   

 Happy Baking!

 

 

Chicken & Onion Tajin

Today's recipe is a pure Moroccan dish; chicken Tajin. In fact, there are many varieties of the dish, but I chose to present onion and chicken Tajin as it is one of my favorites. You can cook it in no time and it is perfect for lunch or dinner. Moreover, this recipe is light, delicious, and healthy. I hope you enjoy it!

Tips: - for a better taste, soak your chicken in water + salt + vinegar or lemon for at least 
          30 min. Clean and soak it again in water + salt + ginger + vinegar or lemon for at 
          least 15 min. Rinse and let drain. 

Ingredients
       

- Half a chicken, cut (500g)
- 1 bunch of small onions, sliced
- 3 tbsp coriander and parsley, chopped
- 1 onion, cut
- 4 gloves garlic, cut
- 1 quarter pickled lemon
- Some green & red olives
- 4 tbsp olive oil
- Salt, pepper, ginger, turmeric, dried safran.  
- Water

Process

1- In your Tajin, put the chicken, cut onion, half of the herbs, half of the seasonings, and olive oil. Cook for 5 to 10 min and toss from time to time.

2- Place the sliced onions, the other half of herbs, seasonings, pickled lemon, and olives. Add 1/2 to 1 cup of water. Cover and cook in low heat for 30 min or until the onions are well cooked.

 Served with bread while still warm. Enjoy your meal!

Moroccan Carrots Salad

Time files! It's been a long while since my last post. However, I am back again and I will try to post new recipes as often as I can.

Today's recipe is Moroccan carrots salad; a spicy side dish to be served alongside any main course. It can be served warm or cold, and it can even be preserved in the fridge for a day or two. As usual, this is an easy, fast, and healthy recipe to try. 

Tips: 1- Carrots maybe substituted with turnips or potatoes. 
        2- Try not to overcook your vegetables while boiling. 
        3- Usually, the veggies are to be diced small, I suggest to use a food processor or a    
            hand chopper to speed up the process.

Ingredients

-  500g carrots, peeled and boiled.

- a bunch of parsley and coriander.

- 4 to 6 gloves of garlic.

- 3 tbsp lemon juice.

- A quarter of pickled lemon.

- 3 to 5 tbsp olive oil.

- Salt, paprika, cumin, chilli flakes, and some dried chillies.

Process

1- Chop your carrots until you reach the small dices form.

2- Chop the remaining ingredients separately, except olive oil, lemon juice and chillies.

3- In a bowl, add diced carrots and the other mixture, then lemon juice and olive oil. Mix until everything is combined together.

4- In a pan, add the mixture, and add the chillies. Toss for 15 to 20 min in low heat. 

Enjoy!

Moroccan Fava Beans

     It's fava beans season, so I thought of posting this delicious recipe today. It is one of my favorite Moroccan side dishes. It is always better to use fresh beans, but you may also use frozen ones. In this recipe, I like to use garlic and some chopped onions, but a lot of Moroccans use only garlic. However, it is delicious both ways, so you may try my recipe as presented or just omit onions! I hope you like this recipe.

 

Ingredients

- 500g fava beans
- 2 tomatoes, crushed
- 1 small onion, crushed
- 3 tbsp parsley and coriander, finely chopped
- 1 tbsp garlic, crushed
- 1 quarter preserved lemon
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 2 tbsp vegetarian oil
- 1 hot pepper
- Salt, paprika, and a pinch of cumin
- 1 cup water

Process

1- In a hot pan, or a pressure cooker, add all ingredients except fava beans and water. Cook for 2 to 5 minutes on low heat.

2-  Add water and fava beans if you are using fresh beans. Add water and bring to a boil then add fava beans if you are using frozen beans. Cook covered for 10 min if using a pressure cooker, 20 to 30 min if using a regular pan. Simmer until water evaporates. Served warm.

 Enjoy!

Moroccan Fish Tajin

     It's a new day, it's a new month, and it's a new recipe! 

     I want to share with you a famous Moroccan recipe; Fish Tajin. Actually, there are a lot of seaside areas in Morocco where you may find Fish tajin restaurants. So, a lot of people may have heard about it. It's delicious, spicy, and healthy. You may use almost any type of fish in this recipe. Personally, I prefer white fish. However, there are a lot of Moroccans who favor oily fish, such as sardines, to prepare their tajins.

     Besides, I am presenting the Moroccan Chermoula, which is a marinade used mainly with fish recipes, but it may be used in some other recipes as well. I hope you enjoy my recipe!

Ingredients

Chermoula

- 7 to 10 gloves Garlic
- A small bunch of Parsley and Coriander
- 3 tbsp vegetable oil
- 2 tbsp vinegar
- Salt, cumin, and a tbsp of paprika.

Tajin

- 1 or 2 medium size fish of your preference
- 2 potatoes, sliced
- 1 big tomato, sliced
- 1 green pepper, sliced
- 1 hot perpper
- 2 to 3 lemon slices
- Chermoula (already prepared)
- Additional seasonings: salt, cumin, paprika and some oil if needed.
- 1/2 cup Water

Process

1- To prepare your Chermoula: Except oil and vinegar, process all the other ingredients in a food processor, or blend with a hand blender until smooth. Add oil and vinegar and mix with a spoon.

2- In a separate bowl, use half of your Chermola to coat the fish.
3- In a tajin, layer potatoes slices, coated fish, tomatoes, pepper, then place the hot pepper and lemon slices on top.

4- Add water to the remaining marinade, add additional seasonings and oil if needed, then pour over the tajin. Cook for 30 to 45 min on low heat. 

Enjoy your meal!!

 

Tuna Rice Salad

     I have known different recipes of tuna rice salad. However, I found that the recipe my mother taught me is actually the best. It consists of many ingredients, but the result is really good. This salad is easy, healthy, delicious, and colorful too. It is my family's favorite rice salad. I hope you enjoy it!

Ingredients

- 300g Rice, boiled and well drained
- 100g Canned Corn
- 100g Canned Tuna
- 1 Red pepper, roasted and diced
- 1 Green pepper, roasted and diced
- 2 tbs Cornichon, cut
- 2 tbs Parsley, chopped
- 3 tbs Vegetable oil
- 2 to 3 tbsp Lemon juice
- Salt, pepper, and cumin 

 

 * For roasted pepper tip check my recipe  http://safaa-inthekitchen.blogspot.com/2013/02/sauteed-potatoes-with-red-pepper.html

 Process

1- In a bowl, add all the ingredients except rice, mix well.

2- Add rice and toss until combined. Taste it if it needs more seasonings. Refrigerate until cold and serve. 

It's done! It looks delicious, right?

Moroccan Eggplant Salad (Zaaluk)

     As promised, I am presenting today another eggplant recipe. It is a traditional Moroccan salad actually, and it is called Zaaluk. Well, there are many Zaaluk recipes. However, the one I am showing you today is the easiest, it does not require any roasting or frying, you only need to put all ingredients in a pressure cooker or a regular saucepan to cook and that's it. It may be served warm or cold. Moreover, It may be preserved in the refrigerator up to 3 days. I hope you like my recipe! 

Ingredients

- 4 Eggplants (medium-sized) cut into cubes
- 1 Tomato, cut into cubes
- 1 Green pepper (small), chopped
- 1 Red pepper (small), chopped        *You may use only 1 big green or red pepper.
- 2 tbsp Garlic, minced
- 2 tbsp Parsley, minced
- 3 to 4 tbsp olive oil
- 2 tbsp Tomato sauce (optional)
- 1 Hot pepper (optional)
- 1 quarter Preserved lemon
- Salt, cumin, and paprika (1 tbsp)
- Water, about 1/2 cup

Process

1- In a pressure cooker, or a sauce pan, and in medium heat, add tomatoes, pepper, garlic, oil, salt, and paprika. Cook for 2-3 minutes or until tomato is tender, stir occasionally.

2- Add parsley, tomato sauce, and hot pepper, mix until combined and then add eggplants. Toss to coat.

3- If you are using a pressure cooker, add about 1/2 cup of water or until veggies are 2/3 covered, and cook for 10 min. If you are using a regular sauce pan add 1 and 1/2 cups of water or until they are submerged by 1/3. Cook for about 20-30 min. 

4- Using a wooden paddle, mash your eggplants until soft. You may remove the hot pepper before that. 

5- Add cumin and simmer while stirring for 3-5 min or until water is completely evaporated. 

That's it!