Meatless Monday: Spicy Chickpea and Carrot Tagine

We've had a tagine for a few months now and had yet to use it. Until today. While browsing various vegetarian-themed recipe sites, the word "tagine" kept popping up, and it was a welcome reminder of that cone-shaped earthen-ware vessel atop our cabinets. What a perfect tool for Meatless Monday, especially with some spicy ingredients to give our boring, stressed-out weeknight some pizzazz!

Although only told politely asked to bring some carrots home for our tagine, being the good husband that he is, Chris also bought some fluffy naan and a pair of pretty tongs etched with flowers to go with our Middle-Eastern meal. We cooked everything inside the tagine on the stovetop. It was very easy and quick - even the cleanup! The aromatic spices we chose gave the dish a lot of warmth and layers of flavor, and perfumed our kitchen with an enticing scent. A touch of honey at the very end played up the natural sweetness in the raisins and carrots. It was a deliciously exotic experiment, and we would definitely make it again, perhaps over some couscous or basmati rice.

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 small onion, diced

1 garlic clove, minced

2 star anise pods

2 piece dehydrated galangal* (see note)

1 teaspoon ground turmeric

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon zataar

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 15.5-ounce can chickpeas, drained

1/4 cup raisins

2 carrots, peeled and julienned

2/3 cup water

salt and black pepper to taste

1 tablespoon honey

*note: we used the galangal because we didn't have any ginger...otherwise we would have used a teaspoon of fresh chopped ginger

In your tagine (or if you don't have a tagine, you could just make this in a large saucepan) heat the oil over medium heat. Saute the onions and garlic until they are soft, about 4 minutes. Stir in all the spices and continue to cook, stirring, for 2-3 minutes to allow the spices to open up. Add the chickpeas, raisins and carrots, stirring gently to incorporate all the ingredients. Pour in the water and season with salt and pepper to taste. Cover and cook over medium-low heat for 25 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in the honey a couple of minutes before it is ready to be served.

Sauteing the onions, garlic and spices in the base of the tagine

After adding the carrots, raisins, chickpeas and water,

it's ready to be covered and cooked over medium-low heat

Sumac-Seasoned Game Hens with Carrot-Pistachio Rice

Sumac (not the poisonous tree!) is a spice often found in Middle-Eastern cooking. It was, according to The Spice House, used for its tart, citrusy flavor before the Romans introduced the lemon to the region.

We used ground sumac to season a couple of Cornish game hens the other night for dinner (we just love having our own individual chickens!). A bit of white wine, salt, pepper, and two small lemons were the only other ingredients needed to roast the delicious hens which we served with a side of steamed white rice mixed with shredded carrots and chopped pistachios. Exotically delicious!

Ingredients:

2 Cornish game hens

1/4 cup ground sumac

salt and pepper to taste

2 small lemons, halved

1 cup white wine

Sprinkle the hens with sumac, salt and pepper. Insert the halved lemons into the cavity of the hens and place in a roasting pan. Pour the wine into the bottom of the roasting pan. Roast at 350 degrees for 45 minutes, then increase heat to 400. Continue to roast another 15 minutes at 400 to brown the skin. Sprinkle with a pinch of additional sumac if desired.