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Chicken Shawarma

Jenny

This mildly spiced chicken shawarma makes an excellent addition to a mezze meal. Serve with Israeli Salad, and hummus and pita on the side.

Prep time: about 20 min
Refrigeration time before serving: 2-12 hours 
Yield: serves 6

Adapted from a Nigella Lawson recipe

Ingredients:

12 skinless, boneless chicken thigh fillets
2 lemons
4 garlic cloves
3 bay leaves
2 tsp cumin
2 tsp paprika
2 tsp sea salt
1 tsp chili flakes
A good grind of black pepper
Approximately 100 ml olive oil
1 head of iceberg lettuce

Method: 

Put the chicken thighs in a medium-sized mixing bowl. Grate the lemon zest into the bowl, using a box grater or microplane grater. Then cut the lemons in half, juice them using a juicer or squeezing in your hand, and add the juice to the bowl. Crush the garlic cloves using a garlic press and add to the bowl. Add the bay leaves and all of the spices. Pour in enough olive oil to cover the chicken, approximately 100 ml. Mix well, cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours and up to 12 hours, stirring from time to time. 

When you are ready to cook, take the chicken out of the refrigerator. Preheat the oven to 220 C. Transfer the chicken and marinade to a roasting tin, ensuring the chicken fillets lie flat in the tin and do not overlap.

Cook for 30 minutes, turning the chicken fillets over halfway through. 

While the chicken is cooking, prepare the iceberg lettuce. Rince under the tap, then remove and discard the outermost layer of leaves. Slice the lettuce into fine shreds, and place in the serving dish to form a bed for the chicken. 

When the chicken is done, serve on top of the lettuce, either whole or sliced into strips. 

Dips and spreads

Tahini Bean Dip

Jenny

This quick and easy Tahini Bean Dip is a lighter version of everyone’s favorite, hummus. It’s great for those who finds chickpeas hard to digest. Try this as a snack with some raw vegetables, as a sandwich spread, or as part of a mezze feast alongside our Chicken Shawarma and Middle Eastern Salad.

Prep time: about 15 min
Yield: serves at least 6 people as a dip

Ingredients:

1 x 400g tin cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
2 tablespoons tahini
2 tablespoons lemon juice (or the juice of ½ lemon)
2 tablespoons water
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 clove of garlic, crushed
Large pinch of salt

Method: 

Place all ingredients in the food processor and blend well. 

Transfer to a bowl, and enjoy as a snack, spread or side dish!

Breakfast

Granola

Jenny

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I have finally banished cereal boxes from my kitchen! After years of experimenting, I have finally landed on a healthy breakfast that all three of my lovely children are happy to eat. Low in sugar and featuring a range of nutritious nuts and seeds, this is a filling breakfast to keep busy children and adults going all morning.

The recipe is infinitely customizable, but I am sharing how I make it to cater to my family’s tastes, with a few notes to help you customize it to your own tastes. We eat this with yogurt and fresh berries in the summer, or a homemade berry compote in the winter. A sliced banana on top is nice too.

Oh, and major bonus: your house will smell amazing as this cooks…

Granola

400 g gluten-free rolled oats

100 g flaked almonds

100 g chopped hazelnuts

100 g pistachio nut kernels

100 g mixed seeds (pumpkin, sunflower, sesame, linseed)

150 ml maple syrup

3 tablespoons olive oil

optional extras:

  • other nuts such as walnuts or pecans
  • dessicated coconut or coconut chips (add for last 10 minutes of cooking)
  • dried fruit such as raisins, dried cranberries etc (add for last 10 minutes of cooking)

Makes 12-15 servings

Preheat oven to 180 C.

In a large bowl, combine all ingredients except pistachios and mix well. Pour into a large roasting tin or rimmed baking sheet and spread out to form as thin a layer as possible. Bake for 30 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes. Add the pistachios and bake for 5-10 minutes more, until golden brown.

Cool and transfer to an airtight container. Serve with milk or yogurt and fruit.

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Soup

Red Lentil Soup

Jenny

redlentilsoupIs anyone else very excited that Masterchef is starting up again tonight? It’s definitely one of my guilty pleasures…I love watching along and thinking at each stage what I would do if I were in the Masterchef kitchen (probably panic blindly, but maybe also come up with an interesting way to cook mackerel for the invention test?). There are the epic cooking disasters (chocolate fondant anyone?), Greg’s bad jokes and the way he pronounces chorizo, and then occasionally a contestant who really stands out from the crowd.

One of my all-time favorites was Emma Spitzer, a runner-up a few years ago whose Middle-Eastern inspired food left a lasting impression. Emma recently published her first cookbook, Fress: Bold, Fresh Flavours from a Jewish Kitchen

I’ve been enjoying cooking my way through this book, but the one recipe I keep coming back to is “Debbie’s Cherry Tomato, Red Lentil and Chickpea Soup” (the recipe originates with Emma’s sister Debbie). I love coming home to this soup after a wintery walk on Hampstead Heath, but it also makes a great starter. I’ve made a few changes to the original recipe – my soup is thicker and spicier, which is really just personal preference.

Red Lentil Soup (slightly adapted from Fress)

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 medium onions, peeled and diced

4 carrots, peeled and diced

2 celery sticks, finely chopped

3 cloves of garlic, peeled and finely chopped

250 g dried red lentils, rinsed

2 x 400g tins of cherry tomatoes, with the juices

1 litre chicken stock (or vegetable stock for vegetarians)

3 bay leaves

2 tablespoons ras-el-hanout

a pinch of dried chilli flakes

1 x 400g tin of chickpeas, drained and rinsed

the juice of 1 lemon

a pinch of sumac

optional: greek yogurt/creme fraiche/soured cream to serve

Serves 6

Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium heat, then add the onion, carrot, celery and garlic. Cook gently for about 10 minutes, stirring regularly, until vegetables are soft. Add the lentils and continue stirring for a few more minutes. Add the tinned tomatoes and stock, and bring to the boil. Add the bay leaves, ras-el-hanot, chilli flakes and season well. Cover the pot, and simmer for 45 minutes.

When the soup is done, blend to your desired consistency using an immersion blender (I like mine a bit chunky). Add the chickpeas and heat the soup until the chickpeas have warmed through. Add the lemon juice and mix well. Check the seasoning, then serve. Add a sprinkle of sumac to each serving, and bring a bowl of yogurt/creme fraiche/soured cream to the table.