“Free for All”! This week’s challenge opened up a lot of opportunities to prepare and cook whatever one really enjoy. I had a lot of things in mind. Recipes that I had never tried before. Recipes that I’ve seen on different cooking website. Recipes that were challenging and exciting. I also wanted to get in earlier this week. Having worked through a public holiday here in Melbourne, my husband has managed to score a long weekend. So we thought about enjoying the long weekend in family. The plan was to have everything done and ready by Friday.
As I sit down to write this entry, I’ve just returned from a walk at the beach with my daughter. Today is not too hot and not too cold either. The long walk on the beach allowed me to clear my mind and reflect on many things. One of them being life as it is. I woke up Thursday morning to the news of a mass shooting in the US. For a second, I felt sad for all those young souls lost. And then I started thinking about how lucky I was to live in a safe area as Melbourne. We don’t have regular mass shootings. It made me think of the different challenges I’ve faced since my 18th birthday making it from Poland to Melbourne, a place I now call home.
I started preparing my dish for the @cookwithus challenge shortly after 3pm on Friday. I was happy and exalted by the opportunity of trying a new recipe. I’ve read a lot about Harissa in the past and I was glad to have found the perfect recipe to try it out. I’ve also been perfecting my crepes skills lately, and I was happy of the opportunity to make crepes using chickpeas. By the time I was finished, all tv networks in Melbourne were breaking the news of a terror attack on Bourke St. Coincidence or not, during the day, the court heard from the witnesses and victims of another terror incident that occurred 2 years prior in the same area.
Melbourne has always been a safe space for me. I know most streets and shortcuts. I also know by name a lot of the cafe owners as I’ve been active in the hospitality industry during my study years. I would finish work in the early hours of the morning and would walk back home without any worry. Now I’m not so sure about that. Things have changed. You don’t know who to trust and what people’s intention really are. Melbourne is still a beautiful place to live but some people have decided to make it a little less safe. And that is sad. As I bend down to remove sands from my daughter’s hands I can’t help but think “why”. In my view, nothing justifies taking another person’s life. Friday’s events cost the life of one innocent bystander and two others are now in hospital.
For the crepes recipe, I’ve challenged myself into using lamb again. Since my terrible encounter I’ve never been game enough to try it. It was a huge step for me. I was scared, I had nightmares just thinking about what I saw in the slow cooker last time. But I was determined to get over this fear. The whole process was amazing, especially making the chickpea crepes. I had to try it a few times as the mixture is pretty watery. But after a couple of try I’ve managed to get the hang of things, not burning or breaking. The taste was amazing and the combination with the lamb worked well and the addition of the Tzatziki sauce just balanced things out really well. As for my pictures this week I did a combination using both my normal camera and my Samsung phone. It was right about the time the terror drama was enfolding on the streets of Melbourne.
I hope you enjoy it.
Bon appétit!
And good luck to everyone.
INGREDIENTS
- 1 Tablespoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Plus Extra For Brushing
- 750G Lamb Mince
- 2 Cloves Garlic, Crushed
- 2 Tablespoons Harissa Paste
- 2 Tablespoons Tomato Paste
- Sea Salt And Cracked Black Pepper
- 200G Rainbow Chard, Trimmed And Shredded
- 100G Store-Bought Marinated Feta
- Store-Bought Dukkah, To Serve
- Baby (Micro) Mint Leaves (Optional), To Serve
- 2 Red Peppers, roasted, peeled, deseeded and chopped
- ½ Teaspoon Coriander seeds, dry-fried
- 25g fresh red chillies, chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, chopped
- 2 Teaspoon caraway seeds
- Olive Oil
CHICKPEA PANCAKES
- 1 Cup (145G) Chickpea (Garbanzo Bean) Flour+, Sifted
- 1½ Cups (375Ml) Water
- 2 Tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- ½ Teaspoon Sea Salt Flakes
METHOD
- To make the chickpea pancakes, place the flour, water, oil and salt in a large bowl and whisk until smooth. Cover with plastic wrap and allow to stand at room temperature for 1 hour or until the flour dissolves. 
- For the Harissa, process the peppers, coriander seeds, chillies, garlic and caraway seeds in a food processor. With the motor running, add enough oil to make a paste. Add salt to taste. 
- While the batter is standing, heat the oil in a large non-stick frying pan over high heat. Add the mince and cook, breaking up any lumps with a wooden spoon, for 6–8 minutes or until golden brown. 
- Add the garlic, harissa, tomato paste, salt and pepper and cook for a further 4–6 minutes. Set aside and keep warm.  
- To cook the pancakes, place a medium frying pan over high heat and brush with the extra oil. Pour ¾ cup (185ml) of the batter into the pan, swirling to coat, and cook for 1–2 minutes each side.  
- Remove from the pan and cover to keep warm. Repeat with the remaining batter. Top each pancake with the lamb mixture, rainbow chard and feta.Prepare and add some Tzatziki sauce to go with the crepes.
