EGYPTIAN CHICKEN WITH APRICOTS + FIGS

Spring has arrived in London. It's such a different experience from the change in season back home which is much gentler and less noticeable. All the trees down our street are either in bloom or already covered in new leaves. I know I'm meant to be craving salads and crunchy, fresh things now that the warm weather is upon us, but a couple weeks ago there was still enough of a chill in the air to remind me of the snow and icy wind we'd recently escaped. I wasn't quite ready to give up the warming, hearty dishes of winter.

A tagine sounded just about right. Perfect for a chilly day but so full of the flavours of summer that you can hardly call it winter fare. Whenever I want to cook something from the Middle East, I always turn to recipes from my favourite New Zealand chef/cook, Julie Le Clerc.





Inspired by the heritage of her Lebanese great grandfather, Julie traveled to Morocco, Lebanon, Turkey, Azerbaijan, Egypt, Jordan and Iran; a journey culminating in two beautiful cook books on the food and culinary traditions of the Middle East. I have given both of these books to Chris' mother Barbara. Everything either of us has made from their pages has turned out wonderfully and several of the recipes have even become regular favourites.

The dish I chose to cook last Sunday night was from the second of the two, 'Taking Tea in the Medina'. ('Made in Morocco' is the first.) I've made this recipe a few times, and every time I do, I remember why. Because it's so delicious. It's fragrant yet simple, enticing yet honest. The kind of food I love.













Every step in this recipe is easy. There are no exclusive or hard-to-find ingredients and, as long as you take your time and don't try to rush it, it will turn out exactly the way it's meant to.









You can serve it as it comes or with a dollop of thick, plain yoghurt on the side. I also made a quick salad of sliced cucumber and fennel, sprinkled with fresh mint leaves and dressed with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil and the juice of half a lemon.





I can't wait to start traveling through this part of the world and experience first hand what I have only seen in the pages of a book or on a screen.

In the mean time, my kitchen is an adequate substitute – clouds of cinnamon and cumin laced steam rising from my cook top. Halving dried figs and apricots, the sugary, concentrated juice coating my fingers. Filling a cast-iron pot with layers of ingredients and covering and baking until meltingly soft. The heavily spiced aroma of cooking in the air.

A worthy send-off to our first winter in London!


Egyptian Chicken with Apricots + Figs
(slightly adapted from Taking Tea in the Medina by Julie Le Clerc)

12 chicken thighs (with bone in)
sea salt + freshly ground black pepper
olive oil
1 cup dried apricots
1/2 cup dried figs, halved
1/4 cup raisins or sultanas
2 onions, finely sliced
2 teaspoons each ground cinnamon + coriander
2 1/2 cups chicken stock
1 1/2 cups long grain rice

1. Preheat oven to 190°C. Season chicken with salt and pepper. Heat a frying pan, add a little oil and brown chicken pieces for 5-6 minutes on each side until golden brown. Remove to a roasting pan or dish and scatter with apricots, figs and raisins.

2. In the same frying pan, cook onions over a gentle heat in a little more oil for 10 minutes until softened but not coloured. Add spices and fry for 1 minute. Add stock and bring to the boil, then pour this sauce over the chicken. Bake uncovered for 45 minutes.

3. Cook rice in boiling water for 10 minutes, then drain well. Season with salt and pepper and place in a buttered ovenproof dish. Spoon chicken and sauce on top. Cover with foil (and a lid if you have one to go with your oven dish) and bake for a further 30 minutes or until chicken tests cooked - when a sharp knife is inserted to the bone and the juices run clear.

4. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper if necessary before serving.

Serves 6

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CHICKEN BAKED WITH LENTILS

Well, here it is. My first post!

I hadn't known exactly how or when to start; or that I would use this recipe as the very first. But somehow it seemed right. I had the kitchen to myself last Sunday afternoon. It was a grey, quiet day. Chris was out, braving the London cold, trying to find me a couple of heads of elusive radicchio; which had on first inspection seemed unacceptably bedraggled but, after an hour of searching for a more sprightly offerings, were determined 'better than nothing'. I had spent the last hour reading and sitting by our lounge windows, enjoying the last of the daylight and thinking I should get into the kitchen and start cooking.

Chris's sister and her husband were coming over for a Sunday night family dinner. It was cold and bleak outside and I felt like making something warming and filling. No-nonsense comfort food. The Wednesday Chef had posted a great dish called 'Florence Fabricant's Chicken Baked with Lentils' which ticked all the boxes and which I knew would be easy to prepare without too much fuss. This kind of still Sunday could only handle something simple and effortless to put together.

I began by finely slicing the celery into rows of half moons, chopping the onions, slicing the garlic. Chris arrived home with the radicchio which were surprisingly lovely, and while slightly tired-looking round the edges, introduced a welcome burst of colour into the kitchen.










After frying the lardons until golden and crumbly crisp, all the chopped vegetables were added to the cast-iron Fontignac cocotte my mother brought me over from France. (Which by the way is amazing; just as good and almost half the price of a Le Creuset! I say this even though I do love Le Creuset far more than is normal for a girl my age....)

A couple of spoons of cumin stirred in at the right moment. The shredded radicchio and minced sage next, and a good glug of red wine vinegar to deglaze the pan.



I have to admit that sage always confuses me somehow. I can't quite understand how such a pungent, musty smelling herb can add such an incredible depth of flavour to a dish without smothering all others. And yet, somehow, it does.

The stock, lentils and cooked lardons, followed by the browned chicken are then added to the dish, lid on and into the oven for an hour. Easy as pie.






When I read The Wednesday Chef/Luisa's comments about the chicken's delicate lace-like skin, I was slightly skeptical. How can chicken skin which has been fried in oil and then baked in bubbling stock ever turn out 'lace-like'? To be honest I was imagining something less delicate. But low and behold, I removed the lid and.... papery 'lace-like' skin! Light and translucent, that crinkled as it cooled. I know this sounds weird, but it's delicious and looks lovely. Chicken skin? Lovely? Trust me. Try it and you'll see for yourself.



The meal was declared a success. The chicken was tasty and meltingly soft of course, as chicken which has been covered and baked in an oven will always be. A salad of crisp leaves and finely sliced fennel dressed with a sweetened red-wine vinaigrette brightened up the table and contrasted nicely with the other earthy flavours.

But the real star of the show were the lentils. There were layers of flavour hidden within each forkful and the more you ate the better they tasted. These lentils are good - really good.

Make them when you're in need of warmth, want some comfort, are tired, cold, sad or just hungry for something tasty and satisfying.

I think this will become a regular favourite in our little house. Something to look forward to at the start of winter.

Chicken Baked with Lentils
(slightly adapted from Florence Fabricant and The Wednesday Chef)
Serves 4 to 6

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
200 grams pork lardons or a piece of thick bacon, sliced
8 pieces chicken thighs/legs, bone in and patted dry
salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 cups finely chopped onions, about 2 medium onions
1/2 cup finely chopped celery, about 2 ribs
4-6 cloves garlic, sliced
2 teaspoons ground cumin
2-3 cups finely sliced radicchio, about 1 head, cored
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
3 tablespoons minced fresh sage
2 cups brown lentils
3 cups chicken stock, more if needed

1. Heat oil in a large ovenproof casserole. Add lardons or bacon and cook on medium until golden. Remove. Season chicken with salt and pepper and add, skin side down. Sear until golden on medium-high heat, working in two shifts if necessary. Remove from pan. Heat oven to 160ºC. Pour off all but 2-3 tablespoons fat from pan.

2. Add onions, celery and garlic, cook on medium until soft and translucent. Stir in cumin. Add radicchio, vinegar and sage; sauté briefly. Add lentils, stock and cooked lardons or bacon.

3. Return chicken to pan, bring to a simmer, cover and place in oven. Cook about an hour, until lentils are tender and most, but not all, of the liquid has been absorbed. Lentils should be thick and saucelike but not soupy. Add a little stock if needed. Check seasoning, adding more salt and pepper if needed, then serve.

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