Happy Passover to “the chosen people”! Although, one might argue having to eat matzo, basically non-stop, for eight days, might fly-in-the-face with the concept of being God’s favorite. Maybe the payoff is endless matzo ball soup, babka, brisket, and challah in the afterlife.
Speaking of matzo ball soup, I was requested to make it again for Passover, but it’s already up on the blog, so I had to select something new. I flipped through a cookbook at my fiancé’s parents’ house and found a lot of great recipes from all over the world. I will have to consult this book in the future, as I was trying to be polite to our hosts; quickly skimming while maintaining small talk at the dinner table. More than just your standard “Jewish recipes”...you know, the ones on the sites that limit the entire cuisine to 10-20 items. Since I like to celebrate what the entire world has to offer, choosing something from this book just seemed filik.
The recipe, from Joan Nathan’s Jewish Holiday Cookbook, is an adaptation of a recipe from Joyce Goldstein, formerly of Square One in San Francisco. Joan Nathan was actually featured on this morning’s CBS Sunday Morning, a show my fiancé has gotten the girls and me into, talking about “Jewish penicillin” (matzo ball soup). Serendipity! Since this dish is from Morocco, I figured I’d pair it with some jeweled couscous, kissed with some lemon zest and mint. This meal was fantastic and a great welcome to the dawning spring.
Moroccan Hen Stew adapted from Joan Nathan's Jewish Holiday Cookbook, Cornish Hens with Apricots, Tomatoes, and Spices, Joan Nathan
My local store didn't have schmaltz in stock, so I used duck fat instead.
1.25 cups dried apricots
2 Cornish game hens
1.25 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 cup schmaltz, divided
Onion, large dice
1/4 tsp ground cloves
15 oz canned whole plum tomatoes, chopped, sauce reserved
2/3 cups chicken stock, divided
1 tsp brown sugar
Jeweled Couscous (see recipe below)
Rehydrate the apricots in hot water for 30 minutes to an hour. Place half of the apricots in a mini-prep with some of the water and process until pureed. Drain the remaining apricots, thinly slice and reserve.
Preheat the oven to 400. Split the hens in half with a chef’s knife or kitchen shears. Dry and season with kosher salt, black pepper, and 1/4 tsp of the cinnamon.
Melt the 2 tbsp of the schmaltz, over medium-high heat, in a skillet and brown the hens. Reserve.
Meanwhile, in a saucepan, melt the remaining schmaltz, over medium-low heat, and sauté the onion with a pinch of salt, until translucent. Sprinkle on the remaining cinnamon, along with the ground cloves, until the spices are toasted and fragrant, stirring occasionally.
Add in the reserved, pureed apricots, along with the tomatoes and its sauce, and 1/3 cup of the stock; simmer for a few minutes. Transfer half of the pan sauce to the mini-prep and process until smooth. Return it to the saucepan, adding in the remaining stock, reserved sliced apricots, and brown sugar; reducing slightly until the sauce has started to thicken. You will probably need to add another 1/3 cup, or so, of chicken stock to slightly loosen up the sauce.
Pour half of the sauce into a casserole, or other baking dish. Add the reserved hens and stir any residual juices into the saucepan and pour over the hens. Cover and bake in the oven for about 30 minutes.
Jeweled Couscous
1/4 cup sliced almonds
Lemon
Mint
2.5 cups chicken stock
Bay leaf
1 tbsp ginger, peeled, smashed, and minced
2 tsp cumin
2 tsp paprika
1/4 tsp saffron threads
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp turmeric
1/4 cup dried apricots, minced
1/4 cup currants
1/4 cup golden raisins
2 tbsp butter
1 large shallot, halved and thinly sliced
2 cups couscous
Parsley
Lightly toast the almonds and reserve.
Zest your lemon and place in a small bowl with 2 tbsp of thinly sliced mint leaves and a pinch of flaky sea salt. Mix together with a fork and reserve.
In a medium saucepan, combine the stock, bay leaf, ginger, spices, apricots, currants, raisins, juice from half a lemon, a pinch of salt and pepper, and bring to a boil. Stir to combine.
Cover the pot and turn off the heat. Let steep for 30 minutes, or longer.
When ready to serve, melt the butter over medium heat, in a sauté pan. Stir in the shallot with a pinch of salt, cooking until translucent. Meanwhile, remove the bay leaf and bring the stock just back to a boil. Chop a large fistful of parsley.
Stir the couscous into the butter and shallot to lightly toast. Then, stir the couscous into the boiling stock, along with the parsley, until combined. Cover the pot, turn off the heat, and let sit for 10 minutes.
Add lemon zest and mint and fluff with a fork. Cover the pot and let sit for another 5 minutes. Taste for any seasoning needs. Sprinkle in the reserved toasted almonds and serve.
______________________________ Copyright 2021, Brendan McCann, All Rights Reserved.
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