i made this up. i just opened up my fridge and started grabbing jars and after the 4th i stopped. i suppose i’d call this dish moroccan. i mean, i could really call it anything i pleased – as long as i didn’t call it late for dinner… hee.
i just grabbed some organic roasted peanut butter, harissa, preserved lemons and some honey – and that was the sauce. is this a sauce? well it is now. cause i made it up. honestly we really liked this. it wasn’t too much of any one thing and it kind of transformed the 4 ingredients into an entity unto itself – "ceF’s moroccan’ish sauce". the carrots and chickpeas were sauteed in blood orange juice, freshly ground cumin, with a touch of sugar and salt. the fish was pan fried tilapia, served over brown rice pasta with chopped green onions.
all in all, it was really freakin’ good. i’ve got a small jelly jar full, and i’m thinking its next appearance will be with a roasted chicken. or seared scallops. or a grilled flank steak.
hey, did i tell you that i made it up?
29 responses so far ↓
1 Chris // Apr 14, 2008 at 10:41 pm
Man I love the colors. That’s some serious red and green. kudos
Cheers
2 amy @ minimally invasive // Apr 15, 2008 at 4:27 am
At times like this, I really wished I liked peanut butter. The rest of it sounds delicious and I am loving the colors.
3 Mary Coleman // Apr 15, 2008 at 7:48 am
Don’t you love to just amaze yourself with your creativity?
4 mari // Apr 15, 2008 at 8:28 am
Lady, that looks damn tasty! Don’t you just love it when you have a stroke of creative genius in the kitchen?
5 Lesley // Apr 15, 2008 at 8:33 am
The carrots and chickpeas in blood orange juice–yum. And the sauce sounds delicious.
I’ve had a glaze bumping around in my head for a few days that I think I’m going to try out Thursday night on the Momster. Stay tuned. All’s I know is that there will be citrus and honey involved.
6 evil chef mom // Apr 15, 2008 at 9:02 am
I love it when I cook and things just come together like that.
7 Kim // Apr 15, 2008 at 12:41 pm
Looks pretty good, I’m impressed with your creativity. I am afraid that if I started grabbing jars in my refrigerator, I might end up with a bottle of ketchup or two. The odds are about 3 to 1 right now. Enjoyed….
8 cookiecrumb // Apr 15, 2008 at 1:21 pm
Oh, yeah, that’s sauce.
Wow.
9 melissa // Apr 15, 2008 at 2:46 pm
“hey, did i tell you that i made it up?”
yes. and I already TOLD you how cool you are. sheesh.
hee.
nice work! I vote for putting it on chicken next.
10 We Are Never Full // Apr 15, 2008 at 4:04 pm
nice one, making your own sauce and all. wait, did you tell us that you made it up? i can’t remember? what i really can’t get over is the commenter above wishing she loved peanut butter!!!! The HORRORS… I seriously would die w/ o it in my life.
11 Laura @ Hungry and Frozen // Apr 15, 2008 at 5:32 pm
I love making stuff up! Very liberating! Organic Roasted Peanut Butter sounds amaaazing, and that whole meal looks all gorgeous and vibrant and delish
12 Em // Apr 15, 2008 at 5:33 pm
Wow, your meals are so pretty!! 1st time visitor and you have me drooling! The mexican fiesta also looks especially delish! love the photos!
13 Vincent // Apr 15, 2008 at 6:32 pm
Okay – this is very interesting. I want the ratios for this sauce…I’m gonna shmear it all over an organic chicken (from my buddies farm) and cook it on a pit over indirect. I’ts gonna be wicked!
14 robin // Apr 15, 2008 at 6:35 pm
Awesome— kinda Moroccan-Thai maybe? No matter what it is, it sounds yummy. I would never think to do PB with harissa, cheers for being bold and trying it–with good results!!
15 Peter // Apr 15, 2008 at 7:28 pm
A friend of mine who plays very Moroccan-flavored music refers to live improvisations as “crazy make-em-ups.” I think this qualifies.
16 Robert // Apr 15, 2008 at 9:49 pm
Fret,
From the mouths of babes, a fair approximation of this sauce, smeared on his Mcnuggets has been renamed “rockin” sauce. I’ll bet I can sell about any food once so coated……..
17 Kitt // Apr 16, 2008 at 2:05 am
Clever! Sounds like a great match for the fish. Don’t you love it when random food experiments deliver something delicious instead of DisposAll-worthy?
18 lifeinrecipes // Apr 16, 2008 at 9:17 am
I have one or two of those “ish” recipes up my sleeve.
Whatever it is, it looks might tasty.
19 Nicole // Apr 16, 2008 at 9:27 am
Yum. I love it when you can just throw things together and get a great dish.
20 Lynn // Apr 16, 2008 at 9:30 am
It looks heavenly! Scootch over, I want a bite!
21 Lynn // Apr 16, 2008 at 9:34 am
Wow, I feel like I just fell into a Nashville Rabbit Hole of fabulous recipes!
I’m off to thieve some of them now.
22 democommie // Apr 16, 2008 at 11:42 am
Claudia:
That looks way better than what I had last night.
I , too, opened four jars. Three of them went in the trashcan, but the pickles were very good with a sprightly but educated cabernet. I was still hungry, but fortunately I found the bag of mini marshmallows–they went great with the brandy!!
23 The Urban Eater // Apr 16, 2008 at 12:18 pm
I love exploritory cooking and yes, that sauce would be very Moroccan.
Where as you need to make stock, I need to make some more preserved lemons.
24 Michelle @ What Does Your Body Good? // Apr 16, 2008 at 12:51 pm
Preserved lemons…tell me more! I’ve considered making these but am not sure how I’d use them. As for creating meals on the fly, I’m a huge fan. Nice work.
25 michelle @ TNS // Apr 16, 2008 at 9:30 pm
wait, did you make this up?
26 Meg // Apr 16, 2008 at 9:31 pm
mmm. I like the idea of using blood orange juice with the carrots and chickpeas… but I admit, although I find other uses appealing, I almost always just drink every bit of it. So… is there a little more to how you went about this? It’s pretty as can be, but… tell us more, please.
27 Pam // Apr 17, 2008 at 10:55 am
I love your site! I have tagged you for a six word memoir. Check out my site for details.
Pam
28 Donald // Apr 17, 2008 at 4:56 pm
I like the orange with the carrots and chickpeas. I may have to try that.
Don’t you just love it when you can improvise and come up with something really tasty. I do that when I’m going through the clean-out-the-fridge phase. Use all the leftovers, stuff that has to be used up or go bad, and create an excellent dish. I think these are called original recipes, no?
29 Neen // Apr 18, 2008 at 2:25 pm
*Chuckles.* I’m so amused at your exuberant creativity!
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