Chicken Roll-ups with Mashed Potatoes

We have been battling some severe bugs in our house as of late. My mom was recently in the hospital for three days with pnemonia - a side effect from acquiring H1N1 and all the rest of us have had runny noses, fever bugs and been run down. We are really hoping that the worst has gone and are busy disinfecting the house and getting rid of the traces of virus.

Last night I decided that we needed something that would be very healthy, filling and warming. In Morocco I often bought turkey breasts from the deli case. They came much in the same way that our boneless, skinless chicken breasts are sold. In fact there is a funny story to go with this!

When I first went to the Asswak Asalaam (like Marjane - or for my American friends like any large grocery store you would find in the states) I was looking for chicken breasts. I was going to make a chicken stir-fry for my husbands family and certainly didn't want to have to manhandle a whole chicken - at the time I was not so experienced in dealing with a whole bird. When we got to the store and I found these well I couldn't believe it! I asked my husband if it was chicken and he said yes. Keep in mind my husband barely spoke English at this time and didn't really know there was a difference between the words chicken and turkey. My eyes bulged and I kept thinking what in the world are they feeding these chickens?? A turkey breast was at least double if not triple the size of a large chicken breast in the states and was actually really cheap. Once I cooked and tasted the meat I realized that it was turkey and then I was not in such awe but nonetheless I thought I had stumbled on a chicken freak of nature!

Back to my recipe - I really wanted to find raw turkey breasts like this in the states for this recipe but I haven't had luck. Maybe closer to Thanksgiving I might find some popping up in the stores but for now I had to just use flattened chicken breasts.

Ingredients:

4 large chicken breasts, pounded flat (about 1/4 inch)

2 cups of cooked stuffing

1/2 cup of craisins or any sweet, dried chopped fruit

salt, pepper and garlic to taste

olive oil for drizzling

Directions

This is a very simple recipe. I simply pound out the chicken breasts and sprinkle liberally with seasonings and then place a layer of stuffing on the breast. I roll this up and place on a baking sheet with the open seam down. I sprinkle more seasoning on top and drizzle with olive oil. I then bake in the oven for 45 minutes on 375F until the chicken is cooked through the top is golden. I serve this with mashed potatoes - any recipe you like works. I make them homemade with about 8 small to medium potatoes, cooked until tender, mix with half a stick of butter and 1/4-1/2 c of heavy cream, salt, pepper and garlic to taste. I also made a quick chicken gravy with a rouex of butter and flour and chicken broth combined. We happened to also have fresh steamed green beans (a random grocery store surprise for WI in November) and a loaf of asiago cheese bread.

Very simple but tasty!

Tajine of Venison with Vegetables

This recipe is not all together traditional. There is some venison in Morocco from desert gazelles however it is rare to find and expensive. In northern Wisconsin deer are plentiful and this time of year they often scatter the side of roads as unfortunate bi-products of car accidents. Hunting was a big part of my growing up. I learned how to shoot a shotgun at the age of 10. I only went hunting one season and didn't shoot a deer and it's not really my kind of sport, and in actuality I don't like the meat that much. My husband has been wanting to try venison for a long time now and last night I figured I would make a tajine out of some meat in my parent's freezer and see what he thought. You may want to adjust the seasoning to your taste (I happen to have a nasty cold still so my taste buds are not spot on.)

Ingredients:

1/2 lb vension (I used small stew like pieces because that's what we had)

1/2 onion chopped finely

1/2 leek chopped finely

1 tbsp garlic chopped finely

1/4 c vegetable oil

2 tsp cumin

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp red pepper flakes

2 medium potatoes peeled, and quartered

2 large carrots peeled and quartered

Directions:

In a pressure cooker add the oil, onion, leeks and garlic and saute for 3-4 minutes until they soften. Add the venison and brown for 1-2 minutes. Remove from heat and add the remaining spices and vegetables. Cover with water (2-3 cups). Cover pressure cooker and cook on medium-low heat for about 45 minutes. Remove from heat, vent, and remove cover. Carefully remove meat and vegetables and continue cooking liquid until a thick sauce is formed. Arrange meat and vegetables on a platter and pour sauce around it. Eat with a crusty bread.

If you do not have a pressure cooker, follow the same steps but use a large pot with a lid. You will most likely need to cook longer - closer to 1.5-2 hours.

*This may seem like a lot of flavor - but venison can have a very gamey taste. I tried to counter that with the other spices. If you particularly like the natural taste of venison cut back the amount of spices.

Taktouka - Green Pepper and Tomato Salad

I am happy to announce that it appears the flu bug that swept our house has retreated, but has been replaced by a sniffly little cold bug. My boys are both sniffly little creatures and I too have not been spared. Luckily the husband is doing better - probably because he's out of the house most days! I managed to make a chicken tajine last night albeit a bit heavy on garlic (I admit that did help to clear out my sinuses though!)

I am thinking to spend the next few posts focusing on Moroccan salads - of which there are many. I wish I could say that I ALWAYS make these but more often than not I'm lucky get the main dish on the table and whip together a little green salad for the side. These are easy enough to make a few ahead of time. This one specifically will keep in the fridge for several days. (My mother in law would be aghast at the prospect of that!) Typically a meal is started with several small plates of salads, a mezze of salads for those familiar with Middle Eastern tables. Taktouka is a very popular and traditional salad that often can be seen accompanying a main dish of chicken. I am sure that there are salads that go with specific meat dishes, however I have not spent enough time analyzing the specifics of this although it is something I'd love to do.

These salads always alluded me at first. Mostly because they were served cool, and for several they just didn't seem like they would be all that good cold. I must admit I still think that for many of them, they would be better served warm but maybe that's just personal preference.

Ingredients

• 4 tomatoes - skins removed and chopped up

• 2 large green peppers (roasted - will describe in directions)

• 1 large clove of garlic, finely chopped or pressed

• 1 teaspoon salt (or more to taste)

• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper

• 1 tablespoon paprika

• 2 teaspoons cumin

1/4 tsp tumeric

• ⅓ cup olive oil

To Roast Green Peppers:

Traditionally these are roasted over an open gas flame until the outside is completely black. My mother in law then tosses them into a plastic bag that is sealed until the steam inside loosens the skins and it can easily be pulled away from the flesh. On gas stoves in the US this works great. and this is how I generally roast these peppers. You could also do them under the broiler of an oven on a cookie sheet but make sure to watch carefully and turn them often so that they do not catch on fire.

To Remove Tomato Skin:

If you are good at peeling these with a paring knife go ahead, unfortunately I am not so good. Instead place a pot of water on high until boiling and score each tomato with an X. Once water is boiling put the tomatoes in and cook for 2-3 minutes. The skins will become loose and peel right off.

Once the skin of the vegetables is removed, chop both the tomatoes and peppers into small pieces. In a large pan pour 2/3 of the olive oil and bring to medium heat. Saute the garlic for 1-2 minutes and then add the green peppers and tomatoes. Begin to saute and add the spices. Continue to cook on medium high stirring occassionally until the the tomatoes are very soft and can easily be mashed. This may take less time depending on whether or not the tomatoes were soft from removing the skins. Mash the tomatoes with a fork or spoon and continue cooking until the liquid is reduced. If it becomes too dry add the leftover oil.

This can be served warm or cold - but more often than not is served lukewarm to cold. It is eaten by scooping up the salad with a good crusty bread. Also this can easily be doubled or tripled depending on the number of guests you have or if you plan to reserve some for later.

Happy Fall!

I am happy to report that we are getting much better and it looks like the little one will be back at school tomorrow if his fever stays gone the rest of the day/night. Both kids decided 5am was a good time to get up this morning and so I am running on very low batteries right now!

Just thought I would take a few minutes to add some pictures from our holiday fun!

P.S. Start watching because I have a big project that I am planning - involving old takschitas from Morocco. I won't reveal it yet but soon inshallah!

From top: 1. Superman and a ninja - notice they look pretty puffy - we live in WI and it was cold, those are winter jackets underneath their costumes - at least they didn't need snowpants and boots. 2. Gutting out a pumpkin - it was a weird pumpkin the insides shredded like a spaghetti squash but they had fun doing it. 3.Daddy cleaning out the inside - believe it or not this was the first pumpkin he had ever cleaned and carved - I should have gotten him his own pumpkin! 4. Daddy with the boys giving some superhero poses. Boys! 5. Grandma and the boys plotting out the design for the pumpkins face. Turned out very cute!

We got it....

...the flu that is. I've been sick for the last two days and now my little one was sick this morning. I sure hope that it starts to go away and my husband and oldest son can avoid getting sick. We are planning to move out of my mom's house and into our own place in the next week or two and I would really rather do that well than ill!

I promise I'll be back soon, well just as soon as I can get up enough energy to really write something!