Moroccan Spiced Olives

Posted by marocmama on Aug 19, 2011 in Moroccan Food, Ramadan | 5 comments

 One of my favorite snacks in Morocco are spiced olives with a fresh loaf of bread and some cheese.  I’ve never really cared to figure out how to make said olives because I thought they might lose some of their appeal.  Wrong.  With a little direction from MarocBaba and my mother-in-law I figured out how to make them.  I think that these will become a staple in my fridge and on most every party table.  I think you’ll agree once you give them a try.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 lb green cracked olives with pits
• 1 tbsp chopped flat-leaf parsley
• 1 tbsp chopped cilantro
• 1/2 onion chopped finely
• 1 tsp crushed garlic
• 1/2 tsp hot paprika
• 1 tsp cumin
• 2-3 tbsp olive oil

Directions

In a saute pan add the olive oil, onions and garlic and cook on medium heat for about 5 minutes.  Add the olives, paprika, and cumin.  Cook for 8 minutes longer.  Finally add the cilantro and parsley, mix well and finish cooking for about 2 minutes longer.  *Note: if your olives are very salty, boil in water for 10 minutes before making this dish.  Drain the water before using – it will help remove some of the salt.

Menu Plan for tomorrow:

Suhoor: I love breads (if you haven’t been able to tell yet).  When I saw this recipe for a peanut butter banana bread on Sweet Pea’s Kitchen I was hooked!

Iftar: I can’t believe that I haven’t posted this recipe yet but since tomorrow is Saturday and most likely we’ll all have a little more time, b’stilla is a must for me during Ramadan.   I promise to take better pictures this time too!

Dinner: I love this recipe for Chicken Tikka that I adapted from Bobby Flay.  My kids love it and I think you will too.

Olive Summer Review & Meals for Monday

Posted by marocmama on Aug 7, 2011 in Ramadan | 0 comments

Two weeks ago  I shared several different olive recipes using Lindsay Olives.  I hope that you liked them as much as I did.  When I sat down to write this post I remembered something I had written a long time ago that I titled A Train and a Tale of Olives.  It’s hard to imagine now but only a few years ago a regular ‘ole black olive was the only kind I was going to try.  Now olives are a staple in my kitchen.  Some of my very favorite are Lindsay Naturals because they have the great flavor of olives but are not nearly as salty as many of  the Mediterranean/Middle Eastern olives.   In case you missed my week of olive posts here’s a recap;

• Cheesy Olive Crostini
• Slow Cooker Mediterranean Beef with Olives
• MarocBaba’s Mediterranean Turkey and Olive Burger
• The Settlement Pizza
• Planning Your Summer Party & Crabby Olives

I also created a Pinterest board for all kinds of olive recipes of mine as well as other friends.  If you have a favorite olive recipe to add please leave me a link in the comments!  Not sure what Pinterest is – consider it a virtual catalog.  Users pin items they like to boards to have a visual bookmarking system of favorite things.  Be careful – it can become addicting!

For tomorrow’s meal plan;

Suhoor: Make a big batch of your favorite muffins.  Keep some in the refrigerator and freeze the rest.  To do this, line them up on a baking sheet and flash freeze for 30-45 minutes.  Then toss into a ziploc.  Defrost when ready to use. I think cheese slices are great to eat with muffins.  If you’re looking for a little bit more a boiled egg will round out this meal.

Iftar:  I am not a fan of eating hot soups when the temperature outside is above 60F.  Today how about a cool Gazpacho from Simply Bites for iftar.  Serve it with some crusty bread and the famous Spanish tapas dish of Camerones de Ajo (shrimp with garlic).

Dinner: Put together some Adobo Buttermilk Chicken from Mango & Tomato with Roast Potatoes for dinner.  Seriously satisfying.

Come back tomorrow for a new giveaway!  You’ve got until midnight tonight to get your name in the running for the Kusmi tea!  

Planning your Summer Party

Posted by marocmama on Jul 29, 2011 in American Food | 0 comments

Now that you’re loaded up with new recipe ideas (and even more after Monday’s chat) it’s time to start planning the fun part of the party – the decorations!  I love the idea of simple, chic design that’s easy to set up and even easier to clean up.  I put together this little picture collage of ideas.

 My top tips:

• Keep the colors simple, red and blue are always great colors for day or night
• Multi-purpose functionality; you can always use a fabulous drink dispenser and a basic simple table cloth can be used several times in multiple ways (saving you money!)
• Lights and flowers are some of the cheapest and easiest ways to change the atmosphere without shelling out a lot of money.
• For a day time party break up the area with a table for adult but a space for kids too, a blanket for a picnic setting and a few fun toys will keep your younger kids happy.
• A fun and interesting serving tray is elegant and unique.
• Don’t have enough matching dishes and don’t want to use paper plates – mix up your dishes!  Having a variety of plates adds an eclectic twist and interesting dimension.

I’ve got one more bonus recipe for you too – Crabby Olives

Here’s a healthy twist on a traditional crab salad.

Ingredients

• Lindsay Black Colossal Pitted Olives
• 1 can of lump crab meat
• 1/2 lemon – juice only squeezed
• 1/4 of a red pepper diced finely
• 1/2 tsp each salt and pepper

The Settlement Pizza

Posted by marocmama on Jul 28, 2011 in American Food | 3 comments

I live in Wisconsin, the dairy state.  Perhaps you’ve heard that we are known as the dairy state.  However there are some disturbing TV commercials that try to claim that happy cows are in California, ergo California should be the new dairy state.  It’s a bit of a controversy.  So I’m calling this pizza the settlement pizza because it’s the marriage of California and Wisconsin.  Featuring Lindsay’s California Green Natural olives and Wisconsin-made Queso Fresco cheese, this thin crust pizza makes a great appetizer pizza or main dish when served with a green salad.

Sauce:

• 1 tomato skin removed
• 4-5 garlic scapes trimmed (or 5 garlic cloves)
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tsp each salt and pepper

• 1 can Lindsay Olives Green Naturals sliced
• 3-4 oz Wisconsin Queso Fresco crumbled
• store-bought pizza dough (or your favorite homemade version)

 Directions

To make the pizza sauce put all of the sauce ingredients into a food processor.  It is a thin sauce so don’t be afraid if it’s not thick like a traditional sauce.

I used a stone baking pan but you can use what you have.  If baking in the oven a cookie sheet will do the trick.  If you’re going to grill it I recommend using  a stone baking pan or pizza pan.

Next chop up your olives.  I used only green but you can use a combination of green and black.  You’ll want to use plenty of them!

Crumble the queso fresco all over the top of it.  The amount of cheese you use is really up to you.  I like lots, you might not – that’s ok too.

Then put in a preheated 375F oven until the crust is baked and the cheese is bubbly and browned on top (should take about 20-25 minutes).  If you’re grilling, I recommend doing it on a charcoal grill that is still hot.  It will take longer on the grill but the pizza will have an added smoky flavor.  Make sure before putting in the grill that your pan will fit (guilty of not doing this). Again you’re looking for a baked crust with a bubbly cheese top.

Taa daa!!!  There it is!  Cut into slices and serve while still hot.  You won’t even miss not having meat on it.

Are you enjoying these olive-licios recipes?  I’d love to hear some of your favorites!!  I hope that you’ll join me on Monday August 1st at 8 Central time for a twitter chat talking about your favorite summer entertaining recipes using olives.  I’ll have some great questions and trivia planned.   Please leave a comment and let me know if you’ll be able to make it!  We’ll be tweeting under the hashtag #olivesummer

Slow Cooker Mediterranean Shredded Beef with Olives

Posted by marocmama on Jul 26, 2011 in American Food | 14 comments

Slow cookers are a great tool to have in the kitchen especially during the hot summer months.  Using one makes it possible to have warm food without having a hot kitchen.  It is a one pot wonder!  For this recipe I used my trusty slow cooker along with some Lindsay Manzanilla Olives.  These olives are grown in Spain and California and are often stuffed with pimentos.  They are firm and have a slightly tart taste.  At only 25 calories for 5 olives I think they dispel the notion of olives as a calorie laden food!

If you’ve got a potluck or a summer get together coming your way, this recipe comes highly recommended from the greatest of taste testers – my mom.

Ingredients

• 2-3 lb arm roast of beef (I use organic free-range)
• 1 cup of Italian dressing
• at least 1 cup of Lindsay Manzanilla Olives – use as many as you would like!

Mandatory Entry: What is your favorite summer recipe using olives?  You can share a link, leave a recipe name or type out the recipe.

Additional Entries

• Follow Lindsay Olives on Twitter
• Follow MarocMama on Twitter
• Tweet about this giveaway (see the little Twitter icon below – go ahead and click and the tweet will pop up automatically.)
• Follow Lindsay Olives on Facebook
• Follow MarocMama on Facebook
• Share this giveaway on Facebook (just like Twitter, clicking the Facebook icon below will auto-populate a message to share with your friends).

Good luck! The winner will be selected on August 2, 2011 at random and notified via email.  If the winner does not respond within 48 hours a new winner will be selected.  This giveaway is open to US residents only (sorry international friends!)

*Disclaimer: I was compensated by Lindsay Olives for doing this series of posts. However all opinions and recipes are my own creations and done so exclusively for this event.

Lindsay Olives Summer Party

Posted by marocmama on Jul 25, 2011 in American Food | 3 comments

This is an exciting week for me and MarocMama, it’s a full week of olive love!  It should come as no surprise to many that we eat a lot of olives. Morocco is well known for their olives and olive oil.  I always come home with kilos of them in my suitcase.  But they only last so long.  My go-to olives have always been the Lindsay brand, just like they were for my mom and grandma.  I didn’t even realize until I was a grown-up and doing my own shopping that there was another brand of olives!  So when  I headed to Washington DC a few months ago for Eat, Write, Retreat and learned Lindsay was one of the sponsors I was so excited.  After gushing about my love affair to the lovely Lindsay ladies we put together a great idea for posts featuring olives and summer parties.  So get your party hats on because I’ve got some great ideas for your summer parties.

Olives are great for summer or winter but I think they are an obvious choice for summer entertaining.  All of the recipes I’ve created can be made without turning on your oven or range (but you certainly can use your oven if needed).  But you will need your grill and a slow-cooker.  (Who wants to be inside in summer?  Not me!)  They also are all recipes that can be done quickly and made for a large crowd.

I’ve used a variety of Lindsay Olive products that I got in my local grocery store.  So if I can find them in my rural Midwestern grocery you’ll be able to find them in your local stores as well.

So let’s get the party started! Today’s recipe is for a Cheesy Olive Spread Crostini.  You can make the spread ahead of time and store until ready to put together.

Ingredients

• 1/2 can Lindsay Black Olive Naturals
• 3 oz cream cheese
• 3 oz ricotta cheese
• 1 tsp crushed garlic
• pinch of salt and pepper
• French Baguette
• melted butter or olive oil for brushing bread