Annalena's army knows she has absolutely no problem with stealing a recipe if she likes it. And that's what happened here. She saw a picture that her bud Darren Carbone posted, and she said "Hmmm. I can do that." But she also said "I don't want to do it THAT way." See, Chef Carbone used cardamom yogurt. Now, Annalena loves cardamom, but this is a tricky spice to pull off. Let's see a show of hands: how many like it? How many hate it? How many have never heard of it?
Were you watching? Do you see what Annalena means. So , we'll get back to how you can play with this in a bit.
The dish also intrigued her because, well.. Annalena CANNOT get on the rainbow carrot bandwagon. She's tried: she's really tried. But give her the orange ones, at least for out of hand eating. Annalena finds the other colors, especially the white and yellow ones, to lack taste. when baked or roasted, however, the flavors all seem to develop that lovely sweetness you associate with baked fall vegetables. But the color remains. So while they taste the same, they don't look it. Let's get to work.
You will need the pips of a large pomegranate. you know pomegranates, don't you?
Chances are, you've had the juice. If you haven't had fresh ones, get with the program. There are a million ways of getting the seeds out. Maybe the best way is to cut the thing in half, then put each half in a bowl of water, one half at a time, upside down and push the seeds out. The seeds fall to the bottom, the pulp rises, and you can skim the stuff off. It's easier than it sounds, and just google "how to seed a pomegranate."
You will also need about half a cup of pistachios, for two good sized bunches of carrots. If you like pistachios, use more. Annalena's were unsalted, but you can use the salted ones.
So put your pips (and Gladys) and your nuts to the side, and turn the oven to 500. While it's heating, trim your carrots, but don't peel them. Not necessary. Rub them with olive oil, and sprinkle them with salt, all of this on a baking sheet.
When the oven comes to temperature, put the baking sheet in the oven, and roast until the carrots are "al dente." You should be able to insert a knife into the center, but get a little resistance.
While they're baking, let's turn to the yogurt element. Fat free Greek yogurt is all the rage these days. Annalena suggests you use full fat here. You're sharing the dish with people, so who cares?
Now, let's turn to the flavorings. Think about what else you're eating. What sounds good: TO YOU? You're the chef, so be bold. Think about what you like and what you have. Annalena kept on coming back to black pepper and sea salt. She was right. You may be right with lemon peel, or something else. Just stir it up in the yogurt, and put that down on a plate. Then spread out the carrots. And finally, sprinkle the reserved pips and nuts. And there you are:
Now that did not sound like a lot of work, did it? It's not. And think about how people are going to react when they have this put in front of them?
Guess you'll just have to make it and find out, huh?
OMG ragazzi, we're coming up on post 1000. What shall we do?
No comments:
Post a Comment