Chicken & Preserved Lemon Tagine

With green olives ... Stunning

This cooking school was a bit too high Tec. for me but had great flavours, I did pick up some tips but the whole atmosphere was just to structured.

But got on the telly... up the front with the teacher to show the rest of the class how to make a traditional Moroccan bread ... I'm just so all over the bread thing, was like a real pro.

So not my favourite class, but had a great lunch ... well I cooked it myself so if it was bad it was my fault.

 

 

 

Preserved Lemons

The real ones preserved in salt for several weeks a darker colour

Like we used today.

  

and the copy ... really they do copy's of Preserved Lemons,

well as I have said it is Morocco!

These are boiled in baking soda and covered with cheap oil.

They look so pretty for the tourist.

 

 

 

 

Some of the street kids

today was just so cute

But real late last night just outside our Riad we were approached by 1/2 a dozen kids doing card tricks and they were good real good.

got back to our room my rolex, backpack, skirt, undies and one socks all gone....

Not really but these kids were learning a new trade and were like little whirl winds.

But lots of fun.

Moroccan Cooking Classes @ The Retreat

The days are fast coming to an end for us in exotic Morocco but for me in "blogland" I'm still a few days behind so a few recipes will have to be blogged later. Yesterday we had another day here in the kitchen of Raid Jona fin tuning our bread skills and today was our last cooking class doing a Chicken & Preserved Lemon Tagine.

What amazing experience's we have both had cooking in Morocco the people that have opened their homes and kitchen to us have be fabulous. this is where we have learned and honed most of our skills so looking forward to Moroccan cooking classes back at The Retreat when we get home.  

This afternoon after school we wandered the markets for a new waiters uniform for ME luck me.

God! look at those bags, has been a busy month.

 

 

Always fun as once you are in the store of a cousin and a cousins, cousin will have one shirt that is right for you and they just keep coming until the deal is done. They tried to convince Sandy to try on some cloths and their winning line was they have clothes for may a Samantha Fox's, and if ever you have clothed shopped with Sandy you know that that is not a winning line. So then it was jewels, watches, lights, vases, spices well anything really....

We got out with my one shirt and "no magic flying Arabic carpets", which they told us that they could personally fly them to Australia, well for that price they probably could.

 

 

 Saw this dress for you Ruth thought you would love it, just need a little more bedazzling.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lamb & Prune Tagine

 

So today we made our way to the roundabout at the entrance to the old medina to await our driver to take us out into the country to do today spices adventure and to cook a

Lamb & Prune Tagine.

 

 

  To start we got to do a blind tasting on Moroccan spices, with my sense of smell after our time here I went to the top of the class and was even able to get the Smen correct, hey it smells like blue cheese and as we had tasted it ... that smell stays with you.

The teacher was impressed but when I said that we have been here for 2 and 1/2 weeks and have cooked most days he was more impressed that we were so committed to Moroccan cuisine.
Nope just a piglet and love food.

 

 

The offending table of spices and the trendy blackened out copy Ray Ban glasses in purple!
 

  

Got to learn how to identify a true saffron and not a copy!, really a copy ... well after all we are in Morocco and they even
copy, copies. Nothing is as it seams here.... 

All you need is a glass of warm water when shopping in the local markets, drop in a couple of grains in and if it does what it should do buy it!.

Water turns yellow and the fibres start to float.
The Argo Oil copies are a bit harder to do, one needs to carry their own little freezer into the local markets and sit with the oil in it for 4 hours and if the oil does not separate than its ok to buy.
Watch that bottle as they are so good at the old switch-a-roo tricks.
Pete you are becoming so syndical ... after nearly 3 weeks with the locals I have seen most of the tricksters and then their is another one working there magic on you.
You start to feel very handled.
Got one guy back as when I bought some perfumed wax bar (paying full price ... was not a barterer THEN) on the first week in Marrakesh. The little man never thought that he would see me Aussie face again as we blessed each other as I left, so what ended in the bag was a perfumed "sprayed" bar and not a perfumed infused bar. Really why would they bother but he had too bother when I reappeared in his shop with my Aussie chest puffed up the size of a African elephant.
Oh sir ... I'm so sorry sometimes this happens that an inferior one somehow passes through the system and these things happen hmmmmm.
Anyway with my real perfumed bar in hand and not in a bag I leave the shop with the threat that I'm still here in Morocco for another month (little fib) and I will come back and string you up like a thief if you do me wrong ... again!!!!!
Karma I said to him ... then we blessed each other with a smile.
Got back to Raid Jona and what I now have is the real deal, and it smell so nice in the suitcases. 
So back to the cooking class
 

  

To our Tagine work stations.

 

 

Checking out how to build one of these work stations back at The Retreat. Will have to install real gas bottle and not copies ones or dodgy ones!!

 

Start with onion, no oil just some water to start the cooking process

 

 

Add some spices

 

and some lamb

 

 Cook
 

 
add prunes that are stuffed almonds and sesame seeds and a dressing of reduces prune juices

Make 3 traditional Moroccan salads and more bread
Cucumber and orange cold soup
Spiced Eggplant
Tomato and Cucumber

 

   Remind me later about this one with green peppers, had it as a starter with some bread hot and spicy delish.

than sat under the oranges trees and well you can imagine the ending.
Wonderfull

 

Moroccan Pastries

As easy as 1 2 3 and then plus 100 more little steps.

1 enlist the help of a Moroccan Pastry specialist

 

 

  and a translator

 

  

 or 2

 

 

2 Take lots of notes and many pictures

 

 

some vital ingredient

 

  

have your forceful way with them

  

and make them succumb to be a crumb

 

 Get Sandy to make a dough

 

 

Now add one to another

 

 

go to the markets and buy a new little tool box for the new little tools that Sandy will be getting later

 

create some fun shapes

 

  

Multi task and have some oil treatments done on your hands at the same time.

 

 repeat with other shapes, wack in the oven

 

 Douse with honey and drain

  

remove another 300grams cookbook from our luggage ( well have to loose KG's as we are flying Ryan Air out of Marrakesh )

 Give to wonderful Moroccan Pastry Chef and spread the love

 

 

3

Last but not least ask translator 1 to make mint tea

 

 

sit back, suck in the Moroccan atmosphere and eat pastries

 

 

Love your work Sand's