This week we continue our fabulous journey with the equally fabulous Yotam Ottolenghi, and we're turning our attention to those veritable crowd pleasers ... fritters, latkes, vegetable pancakes, patties, burgers, fishcakes, etc.
Whatever, you like to call them, Yotam has a pattycake to please every palate. So pick any Ottolenghi recipe, and post your pattie by Sunday 2 June.
Don't forget to link your dish, as well as a thumbnail image, below. Please remember to leave a comment after you link so that we don't miss out on your dish.
New to IHCC? Need help linking up? Check out our Welcome page. If you have any questions please leave a comment below and we will get back with you.
If you missed our Potluck theme last week, be sure to click on the links and check out all the fabulous dishes everyone made.
*** Don't forget to check out the Optional Monthly Community Recipe - there's still a week to get your entries done, and you can post them using the linky at the end of this post. This month we're making Preserved Lemons, and you'll also find a round-up of all the Shakshuka dishes everyone posted last month. This fun new IHCC feature is a great way to join in cooking one recipe as a group, to share your experiences and connect with other members of the group. ***
It's time again for that happy week each month where we can pick ANYYotam Ottolenghi recipe we like OR choose a recipe from ANY of the seven previous I Heart Cooking Club featured chefs:
Nigella Lawson Mark Bittman Giada De Laurentiis Jamie Oliver Tessa Kiros Rick Bayless Madhur Jaffrey
That's EIGHTfabulous chefs to chose from in total! Oh, the POTLUCK possibilities! Choose any recipe from one of the many cookbooks of our IHCC chefs or find one online.
What you make and which IHCC chef (or chefs) you choose is entirely up to you!
Post and link
your MayPOTLUCK dish by Sunday, May 26. Please remember to link a thumbnail image and leave a comment after you link so that we don't miss out on your dish.
New to IHCC? Need help linking up? Please see our Welcome page. If you have any questions, please leave a comment below and we will get back with you.
If you missed out on our Use Your Noodle! theme, then please head over now to check out all delicious pasta dishes that everyone shared.
Special Notes:
In case you didn't notice them, the Ottolenghi themes for June and July have been posted on the side bar.
Check out the details for our Optional Monthly Community Recipe. For May we are making preserved lemons and using them to make delicious Ottolenghi dishes. (There's even a quick version if you haven't planned ahead!) ;-)
This week it's all about the noodle! Long, short, thick, thin, stuffed, filled, etc. Noodles come in every shape or size. Everything from little bitty couscous to long wide strips of lasagna noodles. How will you USE YOUR NOODLE?
Please make and post your Use Your Noodledish by Sunday, May 19th. Don't forget to link your dish, as well as a thumbnail image, below.
Please remember to leave a comment after you link so that we don't miss
out on your dish.
New to IHCC? Need help linking up? Check out ourWelcome page.If you have any questions please leave a comment below and we will get back with you.
*** Don't forget to check out the Optional Monthly Community Recipe - this month we're making Preserved Lemons, and you'll also find a round-up of all theShakshuka
dishes everyone posted last month. This fun new IHCC feature is a
great way to join in cooking one recipe as a group, to share your
experiences and connect with other members of the group. ***
It's time to put the squeeze on your favourite squash this week.
A Squash is a Squash, Of Course, Of Course ... Pick any squash you like - summer squash, winter squash, the choice is yours.
Squash are endlessly versatile vegetables - use them in soups, salads, risottos, frittatas, roasted or souffled. The possibilities are limitless and, no matter what your favourite squash or how you like to eat it, you'll find Ottolenghi has all bases covered.
So pick any Yotam Ottolenghi recipe from one of his books or online, and post your Squash recipe by Sunday May 12th.
Don't forget to link your dish, as well as a thumbnail image, below. Please remember to leave a comment after you link so that we don't miss out on your dish.
New to IHCC? Need help linking up? Check out our Welcome page. If you have any questions please leave a comment below and we will get back with you.
If you missed our Going With the Grain theme last week, be sure to click on the links and check out all the fabulous "grainy" dishes everyone made.
*** Don't forget to check out the Optional Monthly Community Recipe - this month we're making Preserved Lemons, and you'll also find a round-up of all the Shakshuka dishes everyone posted last month. This fun new IHCC feature is a great way to join in cooking one recipe as a group, to share your experiences and connect with other members of the group. ***
Here at I Heart Cooking Clubs we believe that cooking and sharing the same recipe is a very fun and exciting way to build our cooking community and share our kitchen adventures while learning a little bit more about each other. It is with this in mind that we created the Optional Monthly Community Recipe. This is our way of getting in the kitchen with you and sharing in the fun. We encourage you to let your personality shine by adding your own personal touch to the dish. Feel free to shake things up a bit!
Yotam Ottolenghi's vibrant and inviting Shakshuka is our very first Optional Monthly Community Recipe. In case you're wondering, Shakshuka is a beautifully presented breakfast or brunch dish that can be served family-style or individually. It is essentially a sauce made from bell peppers, onions, tomatoes, and spices. After the sauce has been cooked down and reaches the right consistency the eggs are nestled in and poached right in the sauce. This makes for a very welcoming dish.
It was very interesting to read about all the similarities and differences between each participant's dish. One thing we all had in common was reducing the olive oil. The recipe called for a hefty dose (3/4 cup) olive oil and we all felt that was an excessive amount. We all agree that the oil can be reduced by half. Another common theme was to replace the spicy heat of the cayenne with other forms of heat (such as Mexican chile powder, harissa, and in some cases even doubling the spices). So, if you like things nice and spicy, go ahead and spice this one up with your favorite form of heat! And lastly, Sue's version of Shakshuka showcases the differences best of all. Sue took the basic concept of the Shakshuka and turned it up a notch. She used Ottolenghi's recipe as a base and added all her own flavors. After reading about Sue's version I think the rest of us are filled with ideas for creating our own personal Shakshuka.
Joyce from Kitchen Flavours shared her Shakshuka with her son and says they loved it so much they finished all of it! Joyce followed Ottolenghi's recipe rather closely but she did make a few adjustments of her own. She substituted Mexican Chile Powder in place of cayenne, reduced the oil (a very common theme among our group), and omitted the water because she felt her tomatoes produced plenty of juice. If Joyce makes the dish again she would consider omitting the saffron, but only because she was unable to taste it's flavor in the final dish. We don't blame you, Joyce! Saffron is like liquid gold.
Sue, of Couscous & Consciousness, is no stranger to Ottolenghi's Shakshuka. Sue discovered shakshuka awhile back when she first received her copy of Ottolenghi's Plenty. It was love at first bite and has been a regular staple in her home ever since. In fact, she's made the shakshuka so many times that her cookbook automatically opens up to the recipe. I'd say that's definitely a sign of a well-loved recipe! Sue added a lot of personal touches to her shakshuka. She favors the look of a vibrant red base so she uses only red bell peppers (no yellow). She also added chorizo (brilliant) and pomegranate molasses, omitted the onions, and substituted harissa for the cayenne pepper. I know our readers will enjoy the changes she made. Thanks for sharing your experience with this dish, Sue!
Deb, my flavor-loving friend from Kahakai Kitchen, made a half batch of Ottolenghi's Shakshuka but accidentally added the full amount of spices. This little kitchen mishap actually worked in Deb's favor because she is a fan of big, bold, intense flavors. Deb enjoyed all the layers of flavor in her spiced up version and would definitely make shakshuka again. It's also worth noting that Deb decreased the oil by more than half. The original recipe calls for quite a bit of oil (about 3/4 cup) so this is a huge improvement!
Over at Stirring the Pot I shared my version of Ottolenghi's Shakshuka and was very impressed. I think this would be a wonderful dish to entertain with since the dish presents so well. I made two small changes to the recipe. The first thing I did was reduce the oil. Since it isn't exactly tomato season I went ahead and subbed canned tomatoes. I would, however, make this dish again at the height of tomato season when tomatoes are at their best. Also, next time around I would definitely add more spices like Deb (a great little mishap if you ask me). I'd also like to try this with some chorizo, like Sue.
OPTIONAL MONTHLY COMMUNITY RECIPE FOR MAY
PRESERVED LEMON
That's right! May's Optional Monthly Community Recipe is Preserved Lemons! Feel free to chose from any of Ottolenghi's preserved lemon recipes. Please note that preserved lemons take about 4 weeks before they are ready to be used. However, there is also a quick pickle version for those of you who are interested in saving a little time. The quick pickle version takes only 24 hours and is described as being similar but not as perfumed. Make and post your preserved lemons anytime during the month of May in place of any theme or as a bonus recipe, if you wish. As an added challenge we'd love it if you show off your preserved lemons in a final dish. As you can see from the short clip above, Ottolenghi adores lemons so you will find all sorts of ways to enjoy your preserved lemons!
If you are unable to find a recipe for preserved lemons, please leave a comment below and one of us will email you the recipe.
*There will be no linky on this post. Please link your preserved lemons to our weekly themed posts.
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