Harissa
I got this recipe from The Vegetarian Table: France by Georganne Brennan, and I swear to you, it's brilliant. Harissa is a spicy chili-garlic paste that's North African in origin, but apparently popular in France. This version is modified slightly based on what I had available (couldn't find dried Anaheim chilis, and I added a couple of things), but it's really good.
You don't need much of this to make your food good and spicy, but it typically goes with couscous, and even went well with the Endive Au Gratin that I made for tonight's dinner.
Ingredients:
3-4 dried Chipotle peppers
1 tsp brown mustard seeds
8 cloves of garlic
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground turmeric
1 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp salt
4 tbsp good olive oil
1/4 cup vegetable broth
Start by removing the stems and seeds from the Chipotles. Cut into smallish pieces and grind along with mustard seeds in a coffee/spice grinder.
In a small chopper, add garlic, spices and turmeric and pulse until garlic is well-chopped. Add oil and continue pulsing until combined - then add broth and do the same.
This will store in a tightly covered container in your refrigerator for up to 5 days. Use it on couscous, in tomato dishes, and soups. Be warned, it's spicy - so you don't need a lot unless you really like your food hot. It's also great in hummus.
You don't need much of this to make your food good and spicy, but it typically goes with couscous, and even went well with the Endive Au Gratin that I made for tonight's dinner.
Ingredients:
3-4 dried Chipotle peppers
1 tsp brown mustard seeds
8 cloves of garlic
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground turmeric
1 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp salt
4 tbsp good olive oil
1/4 cup vegetable broth
Start by removing the stems and seeds from the Chipotles. Cut into smallish pieces and grind along with mustard seeds in a coffee/spice grinder.
In a small chopper, add garlic, spices and turmeric and pulse until garlic is well-chopped. Add oil and continue pulsing until combined - then add broth and do the same.
This will store in a tightly covered container in your refrigerator for up to 5 days. Use it on couscous, in tomato dishes, and soups. Be warned, it's spicy - so you don't need a lot unless you really like your food hot. It's also great in hummus.