roasted butternut squash, caramelized lemon and berbere houmous

I love houmous.  It's perfect for a quick snack on fresh bread, or as part of a larger mezze meal or BBQ accompaniment.  This recipe is packed with flavour and has influences from Africa with the traditional Ethiopian spice mix berbere.  This would be great with some warmed flat bread and smokey BBQ-ed lamb or falafel.  Check out this great falafel recipe on how to eat properly - by the brilliant Yotam Ottolenghi and Sami Tamimi from their book Jerusalem

preparation time:  10 minutes
cooking time:  20-30 minutes

ingredients:

400g tin cooked chickpeas 

1 medium sized butternut squash

1 head of garlic

1 lemon (I used fresh lemon but a preserved one would be lovely too)

8 tbs olive oil

4 tbs plain yogurt 

2 tbs cumin seeds

1 heaped tsp berbere spice mix 

small bunch coriander/parsley chopped (keep a little back for garnishing)

salt and pepper to taste

method:

1. preheat the oven to 200C.
2. wash and roughly chop your squash - you can peel it if you want but I didn't bother as it softens down in the cooking process.  
3. add your squash to a roasting pan with the head of garlic.  Leave this unpeeled as it helps protect the garlic inside and produces wonderfully sweet and soft roasted cloves.  Add the cumin seeds and toss the squash and garlic in about 4tbs of your olive oil.  Roast for 20-30 minutes.  It's done when the squash is slightly caramelized and a knife pierces it easily.  
4. about 10 minutes before the end of the cooking time add the roughly chopped lemon - so it can soften and caramelize too.
5. when it's cooked and slightly cooled remove the skins from the garlic cloves then add to a food processor with the squash, lemon, chickpeas, yogurt, remaining olive oil, chopped herbs, berbere spice and salt and pepper.  You may need to whizz this up in a few lots depending on how big your processor is.  This would also work well with a hand held blender.  
6. serve garnished with more herbs and a drizzle of olive oil. Enjoy!

I am also entering this recipe onto: Four Seasons Food hosted by Delicieux and Chezfoti to go with their BBQ and BBQ sides theme.

July's entry hosted by Karen at Lavender and Lovage

cumin roast lamb with za'atar spiced chickpeas & rocket

Sunday roast lamb with a twist.  I love this combination of cumin roast lamb and za'atar spiced chickpeas with rocket.  A mixture of Middle Eastern and North African flavours that I love to experiment with.

A great alternative to the traditional Sunday roast and ready in half the time.  Full of punchy, strong, earthy flavours and perfect for these warmer Spring days (OK - I am being hopeful as there is a bit of sun in the sky and I didn't wear my waterproof jacket when going out today!).

My za'atar spiced chickpeas are inspired by a recipe for garbanzos con espinacas (chickpeas with spinach) from the fabulous Moro Cookbook by Sam and Sam Clark.  They go great with this roast lamb but would work equally well as a side dish to any roast or as a tapas with other dishes.

The lamb would also work well with my za'atar roast potatoes or easy flat breads

I hope you enjoy - let me know how you get on......

serves 4-6 people

ingredients:

cumin roast lamb

1.5-2kg lamb shoulder
2 tbs cumin seeds
1 lemon
2 bay leaves
1 head garlic
salt and pepper

za'atar spiced chickpeas & rocket

150g rocket (spinach and watercress would work well too)
2x400g tins cooked chickpeas
400ml water
1 tsp chilli flakes
6 cloves garlic chopped
1 tbs za'atar
150g breadcrumbs (I made mine by giving some stale white bread a whizz in the food processor)
2 tbs red wine/sherry vinegar
2 tbs olive oil

to serve
fresh mint and coriander chopped
lemon wedges

instructions:

cumin roast lamb

• preheat the oven to 220C 
• squeeze the juice of the lemon over the lamb, then rub in the cumin seeds and salt and pepper.
• place the lamb in a roasting pan with the head of garlic (separated into cloves), bay leaves, and lemon (leftover from juice)
• roast the lamb for 20 mins per 450g plus an extra 20 mins. Cook at 220C for the first 20 mins and then 190C for the remaining time.  
• remove from the oven when done and leave to stand for at least 20 minutes which gives the meat a chance to relax and for the flavours to develop.  

za'atar spiced chickpeas & rocket

• heat a frying pan with the oil, when hot add the breadcrumbs and chopped garlic - fry until lightly golden brown.
• add the drained chickpeas, za'atar, vinegar and chilli flakes and stir-fry for a few minutes before adding the water.  
• cook for a few more minutes until well mixed and heated through.   
• Take off the heat and stir in the rocket to wilt.  
• This dish is best served at room temperature which gives the flavours a chance to mingle - I leave to stand for about 20 minutes before serving.  

and finally....

• carve the lamb into large chunky slices and serve with the za'atar spiced chickpeas.
• garnish with chopped mint and coriander and serve with lemon wedges.
• Enjoy :-)