DEAR READERS
I’m still cooking Gaza but in my own non-apologetic way: meaning with a generous amount of freedom. The ingredient they need most. I believe the only way out is by showing our humanity in full force. And we have our voice to do so. Speak out for justice! And that should never be controversial in any way: no division between people. We are all equal and we all deserve a life with equal rights. No one is better than any one else.
Now back to my kitchen. It’s warm and cosy and there are many stories about people to tell, hiding in recipes. The kitchen is my comfort zone, where we can find each other, listen, be touched, soften our hearts, connect. It’s the comfort time of the year in any case. I need to balance rainy, gloomy days with comfort food!
And since we have the new ritual pasta-lunch-on-sunday in our home, i got into pasta again. Because i was out of pasta for a while….i thought maybe i should tell a bit about that.
LOW ON CARBS AND A WISE LADY
People who know me well, know that i have been low, very low on pasta and carbs for the last 2 years, after researching and following the great (and logical!) advice of Sarah Gottfried She’s a wise grand lady slightly obsessed with her topic, who knows about how women’s bodies change at a certain age and how to adapt and not gain weight, or in my case even loose weight. I lost 13 kg with her protocol, and it became my new lifestyle. Don’t get me wrong: i don’t believe in diets, and neither does she. Diets are boring. That’s why she calls it a protocol, a way of life. And to be honest even without carbs there is so much to enjoy. But now i do sometimes allow myself some spoonfuls of pasta, or an occasional piece of really good bread. Sarah would certainly not do that, but thank god i’m way less religious**, so i’m taking my chances from time to time! But if you happen to be in desperate need of some guidance in your hormonal life, i highly recommend her books you can find them here and here (no spon!) I will not try to explain, as her books do a far better job than i can do!
**(actually food is my religion, because with food everybody sits at the table, VERY recommended as a new religion)
PASTA IN THE MIDDLE EAST
Yes, Italy might be the country of pasta, it’s not the only one in the Mediterranean. There is a lot of pasta in the Middle Eastern and Arab countries, and the combinations in flavours are completely different from the Italian flavour profile. As Palestinian American foodwriter Reem Kassis pointed out in Milk Street Radio’s podcast pasta with warm yoghurt is what she grew up with. For a quick easy pasta to prepare for dinner it’s yoghurt with garlic and maybe some dried mint stirred into the pasta for a creamy light sauce. So easy and fulfilling. In my book Cafe Mazahar i did this bucatini with yoghurt, garlic, dried mint, pul biber and spring onion. We shot the dish in my friend’s house in Sicily and it felt quite strange to cook a Middle Eastern pasta with yoghurt in Italy! But my friend Roberta loved it.
THE THING WITH YOGHURT
There is one major important thing to know when using yoghurt in warm dishes: there is always the danger of curdling lurking around the corner. Yikes, we don’t want that. To avoid this you just heat the yoghurt on a very very low fire and you could add 1 small spoon of maizena/corn flour stirred loose with a bit of water to it. The maizena makes the yoghurt stable and slightly thickens it. Although with pasta, the starch of the pasta will do.
FLAVOURS
Yoghurt matches with many flavours but some of my favorites that are also very common is of course garlic, the absolute number one. Dried mint is another one with a crush on yoghurt, so is aleppo pepper or chili flakes, lemon and orange zest, fresh herbs like parsley and dill and saffron. So if there is a tub of yoghurt in the fridge lying around and pasta in your cupboard there is always a delicious creamy pasta to make, flavoured with whatever you have.
THE GAZAN LOVE FOR DILL
You might associate dill with nordic flavours and with salmon, but dill is often present in Turkish dishes (so is yoghurt) and also very present in the Gaza cuisine. Where it is combined with dill seeds and fiery red or green peppers. In that way it’s really unique. Dill seeds are not easy to find everywhere, in The Netherlands you can find them here.
TODAY’S PASTA
Today i’m making a pasta that turns out to be a beautiful light green colour as you can see. Because of a lemony garlicky yoghurt and a green oil with dill. For some crunch: there is roasted sesame and aleppo pepper. It is absolutely surprising and very very delicious. Before you know it your plate is clean. So satisfying. Very kids friendly as Reem pointed out: Anaroz who is 7 years old finished this plate in 10 minutes.
GREENS & POMEGRANATE MOLASSES
Next to it some beautiful Swiss chard that i bought on the farmers market, dark green leaves and bright red stalks. I just stir fried them with some chopped garlic, olive oil and after 10 minutes a splash of water to quick steam it with lid on. Finished it off with more olive oil and generous pomegranate molasses. Nice sweet and tart, great with the creamy pasta.
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