Wednesday, February 1, 2017

Black-eyed Pea Salad - Saladu Ñebbe #FoodieExtravaganza

This hearty black-eyed pea salad is full of good stuff but what makes it so tasty is the fresh lime juice and the hit of heat from the habanero pepper. I cautiously only put one pepper in this time. Next time I’m adding more!



Last weekend my husband and I did a massive clear out of all three of our freezers. The normal-size kitchen one, the even smaller one on top the beer fridge and the more capacious deep freezer. We hauled everything out and put it back in some sort of order. Frozen homemade sauces together. Poultry and beef on another shelf. Seafood on one side and the bottom drawer? It’s filled with pork products. The Great Freezer Cleaning also revealed a bag of dried black-eyes peas. It seemed like an omen.

This month my Foodie Extravaganza group is sharing heart healthy recipes. Beans and vegetables are probably two of the most heart healthy things you can eat, unless you are cooking those beans with smoked sausage. (My favorite way!) Even so, I like to think that the fiber and nutrition in beans outweighs the fat in the sausage. After all, sausage is also seasoning and you wouldn’t necessarily get a piece in each bite.

But beans are also great in salad, like this one of Senegalese origin, called Saladu Ñebbe or Salatu Ñebbe in the original language. There are several recipes in English online but they all seem to come from the same source, an article in Saveur magazine. Switching to French for my search, salade niébé, did turn up a few more. Whatever you call it, I’ll be making it again. I served it with seared tuna steaks, a delicious accompaniment.

Depending on which website or cookbook you consult black-eyed peas either don’t need to be soaked or they do. I treat them as I do all other beans. If I am not cooking them in a pressure cooker, I soak them overnight, if I have the time, or I quick soak them in boiling water for one hour, before cooking. Whichever method you choose, you are going to need about 2 1/2 cups or 400g cooked black-eyed peas for this recipe. One cup of dried peas should yield about that right amount.

Ingredients
2 1/2 cups or 400g cooked black-eyed peas (1 cup or 200g dried black-eyed peas, boiled and drained – you can substitute canned peas. Rinse and drain them well.)
1 habanero or Scotch bonnet chile
3 large green onions
2 small cloves garlic
3 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1 yellow bell pepper
250g cherry or grape tomatoes
1 medium cucumber
1 small bunch parsley
6 tablespoons olive oil
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Optional for serving: salad greens

Method
Mince your habanero pepper and the garlic. Trim off the roots and slice the white part of your onion tops. In a large bowl, mix the three with the lime juice and set aside to marinate, with about a half teaspoon of salt.

This has a two-fold effect. First of all, it takes mellows the flavors of the raw garlic, onion and the habanero. Secondly, it makes sure that those flavors will be infused in the dressing.

Cut your cherry tomatoes into quarters. Seed, stem and chop the bell pepper.

Chop the green part of the onion tops and the parsley.

Cut the cucumber in half lengthwise then in half again. Use a sharp knife to remove the seeds, then cut the cucumber into small pieces.



Add the olive oil into the salad bowl and mix well with a fork.



Pile in the black-eyed peas. Stir well to coat.



Add in the chopped vegetables and herbs. Mix well.



Season with salt and pepper to taste. This salad can, of course, be eaten immediately but, unlike most salads, it gets better and better as it hangs out in the refrigerator.



If not serving right away cover with cling film and refrigerate. Remove from the fridge about 20 minutes before you are ready to serve to it’s not super chilled. Stir well.

Enjoy!


Many thanks to our Foodie Extravaganza host this month, Wendy of A Day in the Life on the Farm. Do check out the link list of all of our other heart-healthy recipes!



Foodie Extravaganza celebrates obscure food holidays or shares recipes with the same ingredient or theme every month.

Posting day is always the first Wednesday of each month. If you are a blogger and would like to join our group and blog along with us, come join our Facebook group Foodie Extravaganza. We would love to have you!

If you're a reader looking for delicious recipes, check out our Foodie Extravaganza Pinterest Board! Looking for our previous parties? Check them out here.

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Monday, January 30, 2017

Baba Ganoush Muffins #MuffinMonday

Roasted eggplant, tahini, garlic and a little cumin give these baba ganoush muffins all the flavor of that wonderful dip, in small portable packages. They are perfect with a cold beer, red wine or even something sparkling.



I am a firm believer that you can make pretty much anything into a muffin. It just requires some imagination and the creation of a fusion recipe, taking the ingredients of one dish and turning it into something completely different, but just as delicious.

As we munched on these with a glass of Prosecco the other evening, I share my theory with my husband. He’s learned over the years not to doubt me on matters of the kitchen, but he cocked his head to one side and gave me that little smile where he turns up just one corner of his mouth. “How about banana cream pie?”

If you’ve been reading along here for a while, or follow me on social media, you might know that banana cream pie is his favorite dessert, his special request on his birthday or Father’s Day. Interesting idea. Banana cream pie muffins. I’m not even going to google it because, in all likelihood, someone’s already done one.

But check back next month to see if I succeed. Meanwhile, roast youself an eggplant and make some savory Baba Ganoush Muffins. They are really rather special too.

Ingredients
Butter, oil or baking spray for greasing muffin pan
1 small eggplant about 8 1/2 oz or 240g
1 1/2 cups or 190g flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
Black pepper
1/2 cup or 130g tahini
1/2 cup or 120ml milk
1 egg
1 clove garlic, minced or crushed in a garlic press
Parsley for garnish, if desired

Method
Preheat your oven to 375°F or 190°C and grease a 12-cup muffin pan with a little butter or oil.

Poke the eggplant all over with the tines of a fork. Using a carving fork, hold the eggplant closely over the flame of your gas stove, turning it until it’s charred all over, about 5-7 minutes. (If you don’t have a gas stove, you can just to all the roasting in the oven - it may take up to 25-30 minutes.)



Put the charred eggplant on a baking sheet and put it into the oven for about 20-25 minutes or until it’s completely cooked through.

Remove the eggplant from the oven and set it aside to cool.

Meanwhile, you can be getting the rest of the muffin ingredients ready.

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together your flour, salt, baking powder, cumin and a few generous grinds of fresh black pepper.

In another bowl, measure out your tahini and milk and add in the egg.

When the eggplant is cool enough to handle, remove the peelings and discard.

Mash the flesh with a fork.

 Add it to the wet ingredient bowl along with the garlic. Stir well to combine.



Fold the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients until just mixed. Divide the thick batter between the 12 muffin cups. Top with a little chopped parsley for color, if desired.



Bake in your preheated oven about 20-23 minutes or until the tops and sides are golden.



Remove from the oven and leave to cool for a few minutes in the pan. Then removed them from the pan and leave to cool on a wire rack.



Enjoy!

Check out all the lovely muffins my Muffin Monday bakers have created for you:


#MuffinMonday is a group of muffin loving bakers who get together once a month to bake muffins. You can see all our of lovely muffins by following our Pinterest board.

Updated links for all of our past events and more information about Muffin Monday, can be found on our home page.

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Baba Ganoush Muffins - Roasted eggplant, tahini, garlic and a little cumin give these baba ganoush muffins all the flavor of that wonderful dip, in small portable packages.
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Friday, January 20, 2017

Cheesy Shrimp Spinach Filo Pie #FishFridayFoodies

Crispy outside and savory inside, a slice of this rich cheesy shrimp spinach filo pie makes a great main course or addition to a brunch table.



Traditional fish pie with a creamy sauce, topped with mashed potatoes or puff pastry is one of our favorite things to eat, especially in a cozy pub on a chilly day. So when our organizer, Wendy of A Day in the Life on a Farm asked for host volunteers, I stepped forward thinking January would be the perfect time for a rich fish pie.

And, indeed, we are experiencing a bit of a chill here in Dubai. But, I’ll be honest, it’s not that cold. Also, from another project, I had some leftover filo pastry in the freezer that needed using up. If you’ve ever worked with filo, you know it can crack and break. But what I’ve figured out is that if you use the relatively whole pieces to make the bottom of the crust, you can just keep layering the small pieces and brushing them with butter and they come together nicely to complete a crunchy top.

Note: Keep the filo pastry covered with a damp cloth, removing one piece at a time as you layer the crust.

Ingredients
Olive oil for pan
Filo (sometimes spelled phyllo) pastry sheets – about 4 oz or 113g
2-3 large handfuls baby leaf spinach - don’t get hung up on weight. Just toss it in.
Sea salt - I use the fine stuff
Black pepper
12 oz or 350g shrimp, already peeled and cleaned
5 eggs
7 oz or 200g feta, crumbled
2 oz or 57g extra sharp cheddar, grated
1/4 cup or 60g butter, melted and cooled
Zest 1 lemon
1 teaspoon dried herbs - I like a mix of thyme and marjoram
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper - optional

Method
Preheat your oven to 350°F or 180°C.

In a medium saucepan, heat a drizzle of olive oil and add in your spinach with a sprinkle of salt and a good couple of grinds of black pepper.

Cook for a few minutes, or until the spinach has wilted. Remove from the pan and drain in a colander.

Add another drizzle of oil to the pan and cook the shrimp until pink, again adding a sprinkle of salt and a good couple of grinds of black pepper. Remove from the heat and leave to cool.

In a large mixing bowl, add your eggs, feta, cheddar cheese, lemon zest, herbs and some black pepper. Whisk to combine.



Fold in the drained spinach and the shrimp and add some more black pepper and cayenne, if desired.



Brush the bottom of your baking pan with butter. Layer your filo sheets one at a time, into the pan, brushing them with the melted butter before adding the next sheet. I had about 3 relatively intact sheets and lots of bits. Leave the ends hanging over the sides.



Pour in the filling and smooth out the top. Start laying the bits of filo on top, brushing with butter as you go.

Just keep adding filo and buttering until the top is a few layers thick.

Finally fold the overhanging filo sheets over the filling, covering the top as best you can. Brush the top and around the sides with more butter and use any broken pieces of filo to cover any holes in the top.



Use a sharp knife to make a vent hole in the middle of the pie so steam can get out and your filo will get crispy.



Bake in your preheated oven for 35-40 minutes or until the top is golden brown. If it’s browning too quickly, you can cover the top with foil.

Remove from the oven and leave to rest for about 15-20 minutes before attempting to slice it.



Enjoy!



Are you a fan of fish or seafood pies too? Then you are going to love this linky list! Click on the photos to see the recipes.



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