The demands of my stomach to try authentic cuisine from around the world often dictates holiday destinations so it was with no surprise that Mr W. and I travelled to Morocco to sample many of the culinary delights this country has to offer. Cinnamon, cardamon, cumin, ginger, apricots, dates, chermoula, mint tea, rosewater, saffron, ras el hanout, pastilla, tagine … the list of delicious ingredients, flavour combinations and dishes goes on and in my opinion – what is not to love! I wish I could say the same for the treatment of animals, the vast gap between rich and poor, and the almost aggressive insistence of some hawkers.
The aromatic scents that hit you at every turn are almost intoxicating and it is very difficult not to dine well (though a bout of two of food poisoning at some point is sadly to be expected). In the safety of my own kitchen Moroccan influenced flavours often appear in my cookery and no doubt, over time this influence will be felt in the content of this blog.
A traditional Moroccan meal begins with a delicious array of hot and cold salads, often accompanied with or followed by briouats, little triangular or cylindrical parcels of meat, seafood or cheese wrapped in warqa, a paper-thin Moroccan dough. Whenever I have a dinner party with a Moroccan influence I like to serve some of these little parcels. Favourites include butternut squash, spinach, pinenuts and cinnamon but it is this filling that is always the surprise success of the evening. I caution now that this version is not authentic, I use filo pastry for starters rather than warqa, spring wrappers would be another alternative. This particular recipe uses smoked mackerel and I’m not sure you would find this particular combination in a traditional Moroccan restaurant or kitchen. The combination of Moroccan spices, sultanas, pinenuts and corriander create a delicious and moreish snack that have so far had my guests coming back for more, I’ve yet to find someone who doesn’t like them.
Adapted from a recipe in a Waitrose magazine.
makes 10
150g smoked peppered mackerel, skinned and flaked
1/2 red onion, finely chopped
25g sultanas
15g pinenuts
2tsp Ras el Hanout
1 clove garlic, crushed
zest of 1 lemon
1 tbsp chopped coriander
5 sheets of filo pastry
2-3tbsp olive oil
Heat the oven to 200 degrees.
Heat 1/2 tablespoon of olive oil in a frying pan and saute the onion until soft. Add the flaked mackerel, garlic, sultanas, pinenuts and Ras el Hanout and continue cooking for 1 minute. Transfer the mixture to a bowl and stir in the coriander and lemon zest.
Lay 5 sheets of filo pastry on the worktop and cut into 4 strips widthways. Take one strip and brush it with a little olive oil. Lay another strip on top. Place 1-11/2 teaspoons of the mackerel mixture in the top left corner of the strip and fold over to form a triangle. Continue folding in a triangle shape until you reach the end of the sheet. Repeat to make 10 parcels.
Place the parcels on a non stick baking tray and brush with a little oil. Bake for 20 minutes or until golden and crisp. Leave to cool on a wire rack for a few minutes before serving.
These parcels can be made in advance and reheated in the oven for 5 minutes, or they can be frozen for up to a month and baked from frozen for about 25 minutes.
Eliza Do Cook More 