Strange Encounter

I was back at the library yesterday, this time for more books. As I’ve written before, I tend to check out four at a time since inevitably one or two aren’t what I’d hoped for. Two of the last batch proved to be in one case a banal cozy mystery (yes, I know that’s what my books are, but there’s a limit to how much cozy I can stand) and the second had Queen Elizabeth II solving mysteries. Nope.

          A moment of oddness while I was there – I was in the stacks, face in a book, when this gnome-like person suddenly materialized at my elbow:

          “It’s a nice day, isn’t it?”

          Me: “Um. . . yes, it is.”

          “Going to be nice again tomorrow.”

          Me – cheerily dismissive, I hope: “Yup! Sure is.”

          “What’s your name?”

          Me: “ I’m just going to read now.”

          Pause – “Okay.”

          And he faded away to another row. Except every time I switched rows, there he was, on the other side. I finally found my books and zipped right out of there.

 

          And by request from River at Drifting Through Life here’s the tagine recipe (The Complete Mediterranean Cookbook, America’s Test Kitchen)  from the previous post:

 

Artichoke, Pepper, and Chickpea Tagine

 

Extra-virgin olive oil

3 cups canned artichoke hearts, quartered & patted dry

2 red or yellow peppers, in ½ inch strips

1 onion, halved & sliced ¼ inch thick

4 (2-inch) strips lemon zest plus 1 tsp grated zest

8 garlic cloves, minced

1 Tbs paprika

½ tsp cumin

¼ tsp cumin

¼ tsp ginger

¼ tsp coriander

¼ tsp cinnamon

1/8 tsp cayenne

2 Tbs flour

3 cups vegetable broth

2 (15 ounce) cans chickpeas, drained

½ cup Kalamata olives, halved

½ cup golden raisins

2 Tbs honey

½ cup plain whole-milk Greek yogurt

½ cup minced cilantro

Salt & pepper

 

Heat 1 Tbs oil in Dutch oven over medium heat. Add artichokes and cook till golden brown. 3 to 5 minutes. Transfer to bowl.

Add 1 Tbs oil, then bell peppers, onion, lemon zest strips. Cook till vegetables are softened and lightly browned, 5 to 7 minutes. Stir in garlic, spices, and cook till fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in flour and cook for 1 minute.

Slowly whisk in broth, smoothing out any lumps. Stir in artichoke hearts, chickpeas, olives, raisins, ad honey and bring to simmer. Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer gently till vegetables are tender, about 15 minutes.

Off heat, discard lemon strips (good luck – I never found mine). Combine ¼ cup hot liquid and yogurt in a bowl to temper, then stir mixture into pot. Stir in cilantro and grated lemon zest. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Could serve on couscous.