Tag Archives: cinnamon

Cauliflower Tagine

This healthy little dish is just that–healthy! Good for you! And wonderfully light on the stomach. It’s tasty and satisfying, and though it won’t blow the gourmet world away (no vapors of crawfish or fumes of foie-gras here), I would totally make it again, especially if I’m feeling heavy and bloated and need something that isn’t going to weigh me down. You feel good just looking at it, and with its lightly spiced tomato broth, topped with fresh cilantro and crunchy almonds, it’s a winner. Your taste buds may not dance the tango, but they will at least bust a couple decent moves, like the sprinkler. Or the shopping cart.

Originally from this recipe, here it is with my humble modifications:

Ingredients

(Serves 4)

2 TBS olive oil
1 large yellow onion
4 cloves garlic
2 bay leaves
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
2 slices lemon
1 3/4 cups vegetable broth
2 14 oz cans fire roasted tomatoes
1 head cauliflower
3 carrots
1 15 oz can chickpeas
1/2 cup raisins
1/2 cup golden raisins
1 cinnamon stick
2 medium to large zucchini
Slivered almonds, to garnish
Fresh minced cilantro to garnish
Cooked couscous, quinoa, or rice to serve

Slice the onion and heat the oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. When hot, add the onion . . .

. . . and sauté for 6-8 minutes, until starting to brown. Toss in the lemon slices.

Mince the garlic, and add it to the onions along with the cumin, ginger, bay leaves, salt and pepper.

 

Stir everything for a minute or two, then pour in the vegetable broth and tomatoes.

Break up or chop the cauliflower into florets, and chop the carrot into 3-inch lengths. Add the cauliflower, carrots, chickpeas (rinsed! Get that grody bean juice outta there!), raisins and cinnamon stick to the pot.

Bring it all to a boil, then lower the heat and cover the pot. Simmer for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Cut the zucchini into thick rounds, and add it to the pot. Continue to simmer (covered) for 10 more minutes.

And it’s done!

Isn’t it so beautifully colorful?

Toss the cinnamon stick into the garbage (pronounced gah-baaaaj by the way), and serve over rice, couscous, or quinoa, garnished with cilantro and almonds.

It tastes . . . simple. In a good way. Unpretentious, light, straightforward.

It’s not devoid of flavor, but lets the vegetables shine through in all their vegetable naturalness instead of covering them up with heavy doses of spice.

This tagine has no hidden agenda.

Make it! Or something.

Click here for printer-friendly version: Cauliflower Tagine

Pumpkin Spice Latte Syrup

I love coffee, and I’d always wondered about making my own creamers or syrups. But I never felt quite motivated enough to spring into action until I saw Tracy’s post about this pumpkin spice syrup. It looked ridiculously easy. Why not give it a whirl? I asked myself.

So I tossed everything in a pot and simmered it for a bit. Once the syrup had cooled down, I brewed a fresh cup of coffee. I foamed some half and half, added the syrup, and took a few pictures–then I took a sip.

“OH!” I exlcaimed loudly.

“What’s wrong!?” piped up my husaband, rushing to my side.

“Nothing’s wrong! THIS IS JUST SO GOOD!”

I make a lot of things that are delicious. But this one made me shout. The amount of deliciousness just caught me offguard–I wasn’t expecting it to be so incredible. But it was. Please make this. You can start readying your soul immediately.

I doubled the recipe and used whole spices as much as possible to eliminate the need for straining the liquid and to get rid of any grittiness. And it’s perfect.

I do have to add that the deliciousness of the cup of pumpkin java is directly related to the quality of the java itself. I brewed a meanly delicious cup on that first day, and the syrup just made it sing. But in subsequent tastings of the syrup, when paired with weak and blah-hey coffee, of course the syrup did not cause me to shout. So do a good deed and make sure the coffee is strong and wonderful on its own. Then you may just be moved to shout as well.

Ingredients

2 cups water
1 1/2 cups sugar
3 TBS pumpkin puree
3 cinnamon sticks
1 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
10 whole cloves

Combine all the ingredients in a small saucepan.

I love waterfalls of sugar.

Simmer over medium-low to low heat for 15 minutes and stir occasionally. Don’t let it boil!

Let the syrup cool (until it’s lukewarm) and discard the cinnamon sticks and whole cloves. Pour the syrup into a bottle or jar . . .

. . . and store it in the fridge for up to 1 month.

You may have to shake it up before using it, because with time the heavier elements sink to the bottom.

And that’s it!

Unbelievably easy, eh?

When you’re ready to make your coffee, brew up a fresh cup. You can do an American-style drip coffee or make an espresso–but make it strong. In fact, if you can make it strizzong, even better.

Just add your usual amount of coffee and half and half to a mug, and pour in a little syrup.

Give it a little taste–since the syrup has sugar, you probably won’t need to add any more sweetness. And if you want to pile on foam or whipped cream, well, that will just be the icing on the cake. I also sprinkled on a little extra nutmeg, as you can see.

It’s fabulous. And I didn’t miss the pumpkin season window, did I? Well, maybe I did. But anyway. One more pumpkin recipe will be up on Thursday regardless! Over and out.

Click here for printer-friendly version: Pumpkin Spice Latte Syrup