Spicy Harissa Lentils with Lemon Tahini and Sweet Onions
A friend of ours gave us a large bottle of tahini which he brought back to Berlin from his latest trip to Israel. Guy knows how much we love this oily sesame paste and it wasn't the first time that he brought some for us from one of his trips to the Middle East. This time, he announced solemnly that this Blue Dove Tahina is the best tahini ever. Unfortunately, I can't read anything that's written on it, apart from Quality Since 1921, the rest is in Arabic and Hebrew, but Guy told me that it's not actually from Israel but from Palestine. If only people could forget about borders as easily as food does when it travels.
So, our special Tahina deserved some special recipes. Hummus came first, enjoyed only with some soft chunks of a white loaf of bread dipped into the velvety creaminess. We sprinkled a few pieces of the bread with the pure tahini paste and agreed that it's so good that it doesn't really need any addition, pure on bread - that's perfection! However I couldn't stop myself from coming up with another delicious way of making use of it: I whisked together a thick, oily sauce made of tahini, garlic roasted in olive oil and lemon juice - it's divine. Then, I cooked red lentils in my homemade vegetable broth and mixed it with spicy harissa, I drizzled the tahini sauce all over it and finished it off with onions, cooked until they were juicy, golden brown and almost as sweet as candy.
This recipe has been featured by Food52!
Spicy Harissa Lentils with Tahini and Sweet Onions
Serves 2
For the lentils
red lentils 200g / 7 ounces
vegetable broth (unsalted) 1/2l / 2 cups plus 1 tablespoon
harissa
fine sea salt
ground pepper
olive oil 1 tablespoon
For the topping
olive oil
onions, cut in half and thinly sliced, 2
a pinch of sugar
black peppercorns, crushed in a mortar
fresh parsley leaves 12
For the tahini sauce
olive oil 3 tablespoons
garlic, cut into tiny cubes, 2 large cloves
tahini 1 1/2 tablespoons
freshly squeezed lemon juice 1-2 teaspoons
a pinch of fine sea salt
In a large heavy pan, bring the lentils and broth to a boil and simmer on medium heat for about 8 minutes or until the lentils are al dente. Stir in 1 teaspoon of harissa and 1 tablespoon of olive oil, season with salt and pepper.
While the lentils are cooking, heat a splash of olive oil in a heavy pan and cook the onions on medium heat for a few minutes until golden brown and soft, stir in a pinch of sugar.
For the tahini sauce, heat the olive oil and garlic in a small saucepan and cook on medium heat for about 1 minute or until the garlic is golden but not dark. Take the saucepan off the heat and pour the garlic oil into a bowl. Whisk in the tahini, 1 teaspoon of lemon juice and salt, season to taste.
Divide the lentils between plates, sprinkle with the tahini sauce, a little more harissa (optional), crushed pepper and parsley. Enjoy!
A Greedy New Year's Sandwich
Happy New Year!
The timing couldn't be better: it's eat in my kitchen's Sandwich Wednesday and I really need one. There is no better food after a long night with Champagne and wine than a sandwich. My body wants some real food, hearty and rich! When I lived in Whitby in England a few years ago I used to go to a takeaway called "The Greedy Pig". The food was amazing, fresh and soft buns stuffed with slices of roast pork, apples and gravy. I miss this place!
This week's sandwich is dedicated to "The Greedy Pig". You just need a soft bun or thick slices of white bread (I warm up my mountain buns which were still in the freezer) and stuff it with a few slices of roast pork from the butcher. Fry thin slices of an onion in butter until golden brown. Peel and cut an apple in thick slices. Heat 2 tablespoons of butter in a pan and add a tablespoon of sugar, let it get golden brown. Lay your apple slices in the sugary butter, fry from both sides until golden and deglaze with brandy. Cut your bun in half, put a few slices of roast pork on one side, add the onion and apple with the brandy sirup. Sprinkle with fresh rosemary, close the bun and enjoy your Greedy New Year's Sandwich!
