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Sunday, January 24, 2010

Lamb Tagine Bento


This bento for Monday contains leftovers from an exotic feast we made for friends on Sunday afternoon. I used several recipes from the capitvating cookbook Moroccan Modern by Hassan M'Souli. The vibrant, healthy, flavor-rich recipes in this book are amazing, including Sweet Lamb Tajine with fresh ginger, prunes, cinnamon and honey. Here is part of the preparation of this dish; we used free-range Icelandic lamb:

A recently opened deli in Herndon, Hi-Buy Tehran Mart, features wonderful home-cooked Persian specialties. This green vegetable and herb custard, or "kuku" was a melting, buttery treat--the kind of taste and texture perfection that haunts until you can indulge again:

A bouquet of soft magenta blooms brightened our living room:

Lemons featured in many of Sunday's recipes:

Also from Moroccan Modern, a delightful recipe for asparagus in a walnut-yogurt-lemon dressing:

From Tehran Mart, truly the most luscious, cardamom-rich baklava I've ever tasted:

Monday's bento with asparagus, kuku, lamb tagine, blood orange slices, baklava, pita heart, eggplant dip with black olive garnish:

Wishing you a great start to the week, bento friends!

16 comments:

hapa bento said...

A beautiful and inspiring "trip" to the casbah. I admire your interests in all the world's cultures and I wait patiently for your blog updates to see what corner of our earth we will be visiting.
I'm loving the lemons in the blue and white bowl.

megan said...

agree with hapa completely -- i truly delight in your global culinary adventures. and you manage to turn any kind of food into an amazing, inspired bento. bravah!!

Lia Chen said...

You always managed to capture the beauty and how delicious the foods are. And I always love to reading so many kinds of different foods from your blog.

Token said...

I agree with you all! Fantastic, interesting and very professional photos btw.!

Jacqueline said...

That's so wonderful! Looking again like a colorful garden, coming directly from the orient ^-^

Lexi said...

Looks lovely! Especially the asparagus - one of my favourites.

Bentobird said...

Hi Debra,
Your comments are delightful--thanks! I love that as bentoists, we are free to range about the globe and celebrate the creativity of world cultures via food!

Hello Megan :)
Glowing from your compliment and looking forward to your new, awesome bentos this week!

Hi Lia!
So glad you enjoyed this post...yours are such a visual and culinary treat!

Hi Token!
Thanks for coming by and gracing my blog with your lovely comments. Wonder what you'll be cooking up this week?

Hi Lil'chan :)
Thank you! Hey, its almost February--March and early spring will be coming into view soon!

Hi Lexi!
Yes indeed--asparagus are a favorite of mine, too!

Susan Yuen said...

Beautiful Moroccan bento!!! I know I keep saying this, but this bento box is my favorite. I love it's shape and the natural finish. BTW, got any of that baklava left over? :D

tata | bonitafood said...

Love to get new "knowledge" of different food from your blog, thanks for sharing it :D. Wow, it seems to me that you have a wonderful adventure with world cuisine :D

Bentobird said...

Hi Susan!
Thank you, dear! Your kind comments are much appreciated :) This may be my favorite box in a growing collection--I always come back to it for easy, fresh arrangements...Hopping over to your blog for some bright bento inspiration!

Bentobird said...

Hello tatabonita!
Yes, in the adventurous spirit of your delightful blog, let's travel the world together in search of fun and exciting new foods!

Melanie said...

That looks so beautiful! Thank you for sharing it. I absolutely LOVE the fusion of middle eastern cuisine in a bento box fashion. Fantastic.

Bentobird said...

Hello Melanie!
Thanks for stopping by and leaving such nice comments! This was one of the yummiest bentos I've made, as the lamb tagine and roasted eggplant flavors intensified in the fridge overnight! Hooray for middle eastern bentos--hope to see one made by you soon :)

Anonymous said...

Great post. But I still haven't figured out whether you made the baba ghanoush yourself or not? There are multiple recipes on the web but I'd like a recommendation of someone I trust :)

Bentobird said...

Hi gnoegnoe!
Yes indeed--it's from a recipe in the awesome Morrocan cookbook I mention in the post. I want to cook everything in this book!
Here's the recipe:

Hassan M'Souli's Eggplant Dip (serves 4-6)
1 large eggplant
2 tablespoons tahini
2 garlic cloves, peeled
1 medium onion, chopped
1/4 cup fresh breadcrumbs
1/4 cup plain yogurt
juice of 1 lemon
3 tablespoons flat leaf parsely, chopped
1/2 cup olive oil
salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
flat-leaf parsley, black olives to garnish
flat bread, to serve

Pre-heat the oven to 375 degrees F. Pierce the eggplant with a skewer and bake for 45 minutes, until soft. Cut the eggplant in half lengthwise and drain off any liquid.
Scoop out the flesh and place in food processor with the tahini; process for one minute.
Add the garlic, onion, breadcrumbs, yogurt, lemon juice, and parsley, and process to combine.
While food processor is running, gradually add the olive oil. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Transfer to serving bowl and garnish with parsley (I used lack olives, too) Enjoy!

Anonymous said...

Thanks, you are The Best! :)