Onion

A favorite joint for a family roast in Morocco is a shoulder of lamb, and honeyed onions are a specially delicious accompaniment. The lamb is cooked very slowly for a long time, until it is so tender that the meat can be pulled away from the bone with the fingers. In the past, the lamb was cooked on the spit in the family courtyard or taken to the public oven. A shoulder roast of young spring lamb is always fatty, but most of the fat melts away during the long cooking, keeping the meat moist and succulent. If an older lamb is too fatty, carefully remove some of the fat with a sharp knife before cooking. Use the smaller amount of honey to begin with, and add more, to taste.

Ask your butcher to saw the knuckle of veal into rounds, retaining the marrow in the center of the bone (as for Italian osso buco). You can buy very good frozen artichokes, which come from Egypt, from Middle Eastern stores. They come in packages weighing 14 ounces and containing about 9 small artichoke bottoms. If you want to use fresh artichoke hearts or bottoms, see page 8. Use young fresh peas or frozen petits pois.

I have used the ingredients of a chicken tagine as a relish to accompany duck (which is not a Moroccan bird) because the combination of fatty duck with sharp apricots is great.

This is the best-known Moroccan chicken dish. It was the only one, apart from appetizers, served during an evening of Arab poetry and storytelling, accompanied by musicians, that I attended in a Paris restaurant. The olives do not have to be pitted. If you find them too salty, soak them in 2 changes of water for up to an hour.

There are some excellent varieties of vacuum-packed or frozen chestnuts now available, making this dish very easy.

Morocco is a country of dates and there are several varieties. Use 3/4 cup dates of a soft, moist variety such as the Tunisian Deglet Nour or Californian ones that you can find in supermarkets. Remove the stones, replacing each one with a blanched almond.

This is one of the classics of Moroccan cooking and this version, with shallots or baby onions, is sensational. The art is to reduce the sauce at the end until it is rich and caramelized. It is important to taste it in order to get the right balance between sweet and savory.

Other large white fish such as sea bream and turbot can be cooked in this way. When you buy the fish, ask the fishmonger to scale and clean the fish but to keep the head on.

This thick omelette can be made in advance. Served hot or cold, and cut into big or small wedges, it makes a substantial first course or vegetarian main dish.

This is a “poor man’s” version of the famous pigeon pie called bstilla (or pastilla), which is such a favorite at weddings and festive occasions, and which Moroccans say was brought back by the Moors from Andalusia. I have to admit that this pie, which comes from Fez, is very much more to my taste than the grander version. Don’t be put off by what might seem like a difficult recipe; it is truly scrumptious and you must try it. In Morocco, the pie is made with trid, an oily puff pastry made by pulling an elastic dough until it is paper-thin and layering it. Since trid is not available in this country, use fillo, which is a perfect substitute. It comes in various commercial sizes. It is best to use the large-size sheets, which are available frozen in packages from Middle Eastern and other specialty stores. The sheets I use for this pie (from a popular brand) measure about 19 inches × 12 inches. If you can find only smaller sheets, you can have more of them overlapping. Wrap any sheets that are left over in plastic wrap and keep in the refrigerator for future use.

Sweet potatoes are very popular in Morocco. In this recipe, their sweet, delicate flavor marries well with the mixture of aromatics.

Peppers and tomatoes are often partnered around the Mediterranean, but the surprise of finding sweet apples and chili peppers makes this a very special first course to serve with bread. The peppers can also be fried with the onion, but I like to roast them.

Bitter oranges—Seville oranges—are commonly used in Morocco, but this salad is also good with sweet ones. Argan oil (see page 31) gives it a nutty flavor.

This is fantastic on fresh pumpernickel or rye bread for lunch; or spread it on fresh Italian bread to serve with light pasta dishes.

Store-bought salsas are generally quite good (I always have some on hand, both for using as a dip and as a shortcut to great flavor in recipes). However, for an occasional treat, nothing equals homemade salsa, especially one made with fresh tomatoes. Serve with tortilla chips or as a condiment with Mexican-style dishes.

Here’s a nourishing dip for whole-grain crackers or pita bread.

I consider spaghetti squash a “fun” vegetable and enjoy serving it to anyone who has never tried it. Everyone seems delighted by this unique squash and its spaghetti-like flesh. This is delicious accompanied by Long-Grain and Wild Rice Salad (page 50).

An appetizing preparation, this will invigorate the winter-worn palate.