This weekend, my sister Erin texted me that they tried something new: Afghan takeout. My nephew was pleased to report that he didn't like it... he LOVED it. It's always fun to discover new foods. In a small world coincidence, we had its near neighbor, Pakistan, on the menu this week. We were looking forward to this meal, so reserved it as an end to Monday.
Lentil tacos for lunch, avocado on sourdough for breakfast.
Lentil tacos for lunch, avocado on sourdough for breakfast.
Seekh Kebab and Afghan Sabzi
Oven Seekh Kebab is in regular rotation here; we love the spicy and herb-filled meat and the tangy yogurt sauce, spiked with chili, cilantro, and mint. I follow the recipe as written for ingredients, but with a few process changes that we think makes it perfect.
- I like these best after the flavors have melded for a day or even two. Yesterday, we mixed everything together and set it in the fridge for easy going tonight.
- The second note is about texture. I ignore the instruction to not overwork the meat, and suggest that you shouldn't be afraid to really emulsify it. I usually massage with my hands for 3-5 full minutes, depending on how finely ground the beef was on its own, until all the herbs, spices, and onion are really kind of a thick paste. That will make the final product uniform and smooth, which means you don't need a skewer and is also closer to how I've had Seekh kebab in restaurants.
- Finally, I make sure to cook these on a rack (we have one that flattens down, and fits perfectly on a foil-covered sheet pan) so that the liquid can drip off. After baking for 20 minutes at 450, I switch to the broiler on high and crisp up both sides, so that it's slightly charred. Delicious!
New recipe Monday involved Afghan spinach, or Sabzi, which I also made yesterday. It simmered along as we puttered around the kitchen working on other things. I've used other Afghan spinach recipes in the past, but I really like the dill in this one. I threw in a handful of mint, too, since I chopped a little too much when making the kebab. I didn't read the recipe closely enough, and used only 20 oz of frozen spinach, rather than 2 pounds. It was richly flavored, and other than a little overly salty, we liked it that way.
Our favorite Afghan restaurant serves kebabs and spinach with a rice pilaf, and the closest we had on hand was chicken flavored Rice a Roni. Delicious! The meal was rounded out with some sumac onions and halved cherry tomatoes. A hit!
Lemon Poppyseed Loaf
I got a wonderful new loaf pan from my neighborhood cooking store, Hill's Kitchen. Our walkable little main street has a small town vibe with all kinds of little specialty stores: puzzles and games, book store, pet store, and cooking supplies. All these places are closed to customer traffic under the lockdown, but some of them have banded together to serve folks via phone or email, with pick up at Mr. Henry's, a mainstay neighborhood restaurant and music venue. We were in the market for a new loaf pan, and Leah at Hill's hooked me up with one from USA Pan, which she promised produced "nice, sharp corners."
Its maiden voyage was with a lemon poppyseed poundcake. Following the theme for the past few days, I didn't read the recipe right in a couple of ways. While I commented out loud to Jeff while mixing that "3 Tablespoons plus 4 teaspoons lemon juice" was a weird amount, I didn't read further down in the recipe to see that that was meant to be divided between the cake (3 Tbsp) and the icing (4 tsp). So, in to the batter all the lemon juice went. Second, I was scrambling to get this done before a coffee date with my friend Nicol yesterday morning, and I misread the amount of time it needed. Instead of 1 hour, I set the timer for 25 minutes! At 25, I shook it around and realized it was still quite liquidy in the center, so I put it back in for 10 more minutes. At that point, the center had collapsed (woops!), but it pulled away from the sides and a toothpick came out clean, so I removed it from the oven. Only later did I realize that I was still 25 minutes under the target!
It tasted great--and look at those square corners, just as promised. But it definitely was underbaked in the center. We salvaged probably 2/3 of it, and I enjoyed a big slice for an afternoon snack today. I guess we'll have to try the pan again soon. What a shame... or not!
Its maiden voyage was with a lemon poppyseed poundcake. Following the theme for the past few days, I didn't read the recipe right in a couple of ways. While I commented out loud to Jeff while mixing that "3 Tablespoons plus 4 teaspoons lemon juice" was a weird amount, I didn't read further down in the recipe to see that that was meant to be divided between the cake (3 Tbsp) and the icing (4 tsp). So, in to the batter all the lemon juice went. Second, I was scrambling to get this done before a coffee date with my friend Nicol yesterday morning, and I misread the amount of time it needed. Instead of 1 hour, I set the timer for 25 minutes! At 25, I shook it around and realized it was still quite liquidy in the center, so I put it back in for 10 more minutes. At that point, the center had collapsed (woops!), but it pulled away from the sides and a toothpick came out clean, so I removed it from the oven. Only later did I realize that I was still 25 minutes under the target!
It tasted great--and look at those square corners, just as promised. But it definitely was underbaked in the center. We salvaged probably 2/3 of it, and I enjoyed a big slice for an afternoon snack today. I guess we'll have to try the pan again soon. What a shame... or not!
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