Chicken Tagine in a Clay Baker

Happy December, Yummies! Don't you just crave stews and soups in this weather? Dank days, chilly nights, biting wind, they all seem to call out for something warm and comforting. Something nutritious but super flavorful.

In cooking class a couple of weeks ago, we made a tagine so delicious that, excluding one, the entire class of Yummies devoured it. That is a world Yummy record, I think. There really is something for everyone in this dish: carrots, chickpeas, pumpkin or squash, and the chicken.

This recipe also has the advantage of being highly adaptable. For years I have made a vegetarian version of this dish, adding sweet potatoes to the mix and playing up the spices a bit to balance out the flavor. And, if you do not own a clay baker like this one, you can substitute an oven-proof pot with a lid. Just make sure that you also adjust the temperature (375 degrees F should be about right) and the cooking time. The clay does make the flavor of the tagine both richer and more authentic, but it will still taste amazing made in any sort of pot that will hold it all and fit in the oven.

Chicken Tagine in a Clay Baker

*a whole chicken (4-6 lbs)

*2 lbs. butternut squash or pumpkin, peeled, seeds scooped out, and cut into 1-inch chunks

*2 medium carrots, scrubbed and sliced coarsely

*2 cups cooked chickpeas

*1 T. cumin

*2 cinnamon sticks

*1 t. ground ginger

*1/2 t. coriander

*2 bay leaves

*1 c. shallots, chopped

*2 c. onions, chopped

*4 cloves garlic, peeled and thinly sliced

*3 mini-chef handfuls each of golden raisins, cranberries, and brown raisins

*2 c. chicken or veggie stock

Soak your clay baker in cool clean water for at least 15 minutes.

With your mini-chef, place all of the ingredients into the base of your baker. Make sure that you spread everything out so that each bite will be tasty: a bay leaf over here, a bay leaf over there. A handful of cranberries over in that corner, a handful right beside the chicken leg, etc.

Put the lid on the baker and place the whole thing in a COLD oven. Turn the oven on to 480 degrees F. Bake for about 2 hours, or until a thermometer placed into the chicken breast registers 180 F.

Cool a few minutes outside the oven. Discard the bay leaves and the cinnamon sticks. Serve over rice or cous-cous.

Gratitude

One of the sweetest things about having our first Thanksgiving here in our new home is how much everyone in our family helped to make it happen. My daughter, who was in charge of the dessert we collectively chose (carrot cake), buttered, traced, measured, and frosted. My husband acted as the most fabulous sous chef and official kitchen beautifier, and my two year old son made two different cranberry sauces for our feast. He proudly announced this to us at least twenty times an hour. It gave me a flashback.

Around the time of my first Thanksgiving in New York, having come for university, I had such a hard time just being here. Coming from Georgia, with its warmish weather and lush trees, I felt homesick for a home that no longer existed. My family had up and moved to California three days after I graduated from high school. It felt as though the ground was constantly shifting underneath me. And the ground was hard. It was concrete. It was cold and dirty.

A kind soul gave me a practice at this time to try and find the beauty in everything. Everything. Even, as he said, the dog poop on the sidewalk. At first, trying to find the beauty was impossible. My heart kept rebelling, kicking its little feet and throwing mini-tantrums, but slowly a new sight started to emerge. Over time and thirteen years later, I can see it, the beauty in everything around me. And, as it turns out, the dog poop was easy compared to some other things and people.

Yesterday, as the children and my husband were taking a pre-meal nap, I was left alone to iron the linens and set the table. As I pushed that iron back and forth, I was thinking about my ancestors, both the Native American and the Europeans, contemplating what happened when that blood mixed in them, in my grandparents, in my parents, in me, in my children. The heartbreak of a people leaving their home, of whole people brutally losing their home, and the way that they had to pick up and keep living.

I hope that I am bringing something through for them, healing something that rifted long ago. Coming out on the other side of all that pain and learning to heal what my ancestors passed to me, there has emerged something so precious: gratitude.

Preparations For the Big Day

We have spent all day preparing our menu, setting our table, and stealing a little time here and there to enjoy just hanging as a family. Sending delicious and hearty wishes to you and all the Yummies! Happy Thanksgiving!

Easy No-Bake Thanksgiving Appetizer: Dates Stuffed with Parmesan and Asiago

Need a little something to make with your kids to keep them busy while you run frantically around the kitchen doing all the grazillion things to get ready for the big feast? These dates are that little-delicious-something. Two-year-old hands can even be kept busy with this one. And what a lovely thing to have on hand to greet your guests.

Dates Stuffed with Parmesan and Asiago

*20 dates

*1/4 pound of parmesan cheese, crumbled or chopped to the size of (possibly shaggy) 1/2 matchsticks

*1/4 pound of Asiago cheese, crumbled or chopped to the size of 1/2 matchsticks

Big Person: Prepare the dates by cutting them in half length-wise. Your mini-chef might be able to help you with the pitting, or you might have to do it yourself.

Together: Pull out a pretty serving platter. To assemble, stick a piece of each cheese into the date halve until the date will stand up on the platter. Place the date, flat (sticky) side down on the serving dish. Serve at room temperature.

Thanksgiving Helpers

The Tribeca Yummy Mummy kitchen got a whole lot fuller last yesterday when all the kids from my daughter's pre-K class came over to help me make sweet potato pie. We used the filling for my sweet potato casserole and, instead of marshmallows on top, we cut out puff pastry shapes and sprinkled crumbled amaretti over the top. It was lush.

If you find it hard to bring your children into the kitchen with you to help at feast times and during the holidays, consider starting a tradition by making a single dish together with which they can truly lend a hand. All my mini-chefs are so proud when their dish comes out of the oven and they are able to say that they helped to make it.

Their expressions alone make me give thanks for the time we set aside to cook something with one another, finding a recipe that will quickly become an heirloom.

(Check out the Thanksgiving category on this blog and brainstorm what might make it on your family's make-it-together list.)

The R's

Guess who we saw this weekend? Can you spot some familiar silhouettes? What traditions are you starting or maintaining this year?

Need more inspiration taken from cell phones around the world? First check out Jane to read about the theme. Then take a look at these:

jane, ladybug-zen, ian, bonnie, esti, sophie, cele, modsquad,

caitlin, joyce, ani, kim, natsumi, epe, kaylovesvintage, trinsch, c.t., jeannette, outi, ritva, francesca, state of bliss, jennifer, dana, denise, cabrizette, bohemia girl, isabelle, amber, a girl in the yellow shoes, mister e, janis, kari, jgy, skymring, elizabeth, allison, lise, cate, crescent moon, erin, otli, ida, caroline, lisa, dorte, kimmie, la lune dans le ciel, nicola, malo, vanessa, britta, april, b, kyndale samantha, karen, kristina, goldensunfamily, sophie, janet, mcgillicutty, aimee, sunnymama, jenell, britta, juanita, pamela, inna, daan, myrtille, cris, ibb, jodi, gillian, travelingmama

athena, pienduzz, latisha, clairette, kelleyn, iris, demara, mus, ninja, guusje, di, sammi, theresa, cherry b, victoria, kathryn , lisa, liza, juliette, braja, mulot, anne, lucy, leonor, elizabeth, helene, dominique, shokoofeh, cole, jenna, podane, grey-lemon, line, nihal, urbaNiche, inner toddler, puna, lucylaine, adrienne, emily, lynn, skywriting, eliane, the wanderer´s daughter, carole, anna, dorit, kenza, sherry, conny, susan

Basmati Rice with Apple, Bacon, and Sage

Yes, more bacon. What? You didn't think I was done with it just because I ate up a pound of it all by myself five years ago did you?

Mmm, this little side is something I could eat for breakfast or lunch or dinner. The smoky, the sweet, the salty all come together so that the gestalt is warm and satisfying in chilly weather. Fall comfort food, don't you know.

There are other grains to use for the base. Standing with me in the checkout line on Sunday, my friend S began to talk lovingly about farro. Oh yes, that would be so good and perfectly earthy in this recipe. For class, though, we stuck with basmati because, well, there has never been a kid who walked into my class yet and proclaimed that they hated rice. (Notice the little sneaks of it in the picture above). Plus, rice sops up all of the lovely flavors.

I promise that I will try and back off of the pork for a bit. I do not know what has come over me of late with all the bacon this, pork that. Hmmm?

Basmati Rice with Apple, Bacon, and Sage

*2 c. basmati rice

*1 t. salt

*1/2 lb. uncured bacon

*2 1/2 lbs. apples, a mixture of sweet and tart works best, diced

*3 shallots, chopped

*1 1/2 c. apple cider

*2 t. apple cider vinegar

*1 t. maple syrup

*1 T. fresh sage leaves, chopped

Together: Place 3 paper towels on a dinner plate in preparation for the bacon. Measure out all of the wet ingredients together; weigh the apples.

Wash the basmati rice in a bowl or large measuring cup with a pouring spout. Pour off the water and wash again. Repeat till the water is mostly clear.

Place the rice, the salt, 3 cups of water and 1/2 c. of the apple cider in a heavy pot with a lid.

Big Person: Bring everything to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and cook for 25 minutes. Take the pot off of the heat with the top still on. Let the rice steam, covered, for another 10 minutes before you lift off the lid.

In a saute pan, cook the bacon over medium heat till it has browned on both sides. Remove the bacon from the pan to the plate with the paper towels. Clean all but about a tablespoon of the bacon grease from the pan.

Add the shallots, apples, apple cider, maple syrup and vinegar to the pan and cook, stirring, for a few minutes, till the apples and shallots are completely soft. Let cool.

Back Together Again: In a big bowl, place the rice and the cooled apple mixture. Crumble in the bacon. Sprinkle in the sage. Carefully, mix everything together. Taste for seasoning. You might find you need some black pepper, a little more vinegar, or a pinch of nutmeg.

Serve garnished with a few small sage leaves.