A Subtle Spice at Oleana

In September we spent some time in Cambridge and Boston and had the great pleasure of eating at Oleana , an Eastern Mediterranean restaurant in Cambridge. Ana Sortun is the Executive Chef here and has thoroughly mastered the spices that mark the Arabic food from the Mediterranean and Middle East.

Before we left for this trip,I started reading her book Spice and discovered that she had cooked at Casablanca for five years before opening her own restaurant. Now, Casablanca was one of my all-time favorite places to eat when I lived in Cambridge and nothing would do but to have a meal at Oleana. A reservation wasn't easy to come by, but we did manage and enjoyed a memorable meal.

Sultan's Delight-Tamarind Beef, Smokey Eggplant Puree

This was an amazingly delicious dish and an added bonus is that recipes for both of these are in her cookbook. I think these will make an appearance at our next dinner party.

Here is Sortun's description of her dish,"These ribs are like a decadent pot roast: they're soft, sweet and tart from the tamarind, a Middle Eastern and Asian fruit that brightens a slowly braised dish."

BRAISED BEEF SHORT RIBS

(serves 8)

1. 8 beef short ribs, weighing 6 to 8 pounds
2. 4 tablespoons kosher salt
3. 1 large onion, peeled and roughly chopped
4. 1 whole carrot, peeled and roughly chopped
5. 1 bay leaf
6. 1 cup balsamic vinegar
7. 1 cup medium-bodied, non-oaky white wine, such as a dry Riesling
8. 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
9. 1 tablespoon chopped garlic
10. 2 tablespoons tamarind paste

 

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Season each of the short ribs generously with the kosher salt. Lay them side by side in a large, heavy roasting pan.

Scatter the onion, chopped carrot and the bay leaf over the ribs.

Combine the vinegar, wine, brown sugar and garlic in a small mixing bowl and pour the mixture over the short ribs. Place the tamarind in the same bowl and add 1 cup of hot water to dissolve it a little. Whisk the tamarind to loosen it and then add it and the liquid to the short ribs.

The liquid should come 3/4 up the sides of the short ribs. Add more water if necessary.

Cover the pan tightly with foil and then again with a second layer of foil.

Place the pan in the oven and braise the short ribs for 3 to 3 1/2 hours. Remove the foil and check that the short ribs fall apart when poked with a fork.

Remove the ribs carefully with tongs, place them onto a serving dish, cover and set aside at room temperature.

Strain the liquid (you should catch any tamarind seeds or bits of garlic, onion and carot) through a fine strainer into a large container.

Chill the pitcher of liquid for at least 1 hour so the fat rises to the top. Remove the fat; it should form a large, solid chunk at the top when cold.

In a large, deep-sided saute pan bring the skimed braising liquid to a boil over high heat and add the short ribs. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer the short ribs for 20 to 25 minutes, until they start to glaze in the sauce. The sauce will thicken after 15 minutes. Keep warm.

Roll the short ribs around in their sauce, using a pair of tongs, to make them a little more glazed and stickyl Place each short rib on a plate and spoon on a little extra sauce. Serve with the eggplant puree.

SMOKY EGGPLANT PUREE WITH PINE NUTS AND URFA PEPPER

1.  2 eggplants (about 2 pounds) peeled and cut into 2-inch chunks
2. 1 tablespoon salt plus more to taste
3. 1/4 cup whole-milk plain yogurt
4. 1 teaspoon smoked salt
5. 1 teaspoon finely minced garlic
6. 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
7. 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
8. 1/2 cup toasted pine nuts
9. 2 teaspoons urfa chiles plus a pinch for garnish
10. Pepper to taste

Bring a large saucepan (big enough to hold the chunks of peeled eggplant) of water to a boil, and cook the eggplant in the boiling water with the tablespoon of salt. Lower the heat to medium and continue on a brisk simmer. Cook for 15 to 20 minutes, until the eggplant is soft and translucent. Check by squeezing the eggplant with a pair of tongs. Drain well in a colander.

In a food processor fitted with a metal blade, puree the eggplant with the yogurt, smoked salt, garlic, lemon juice ad olive oil.

Place the eggplant mixture in a medium mixing bowl and stir in the pine nuts and urfa chilies. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Serve at room temperature or warm in small serving bowls, sprinkled with a pinch of urfa chiles to show them off.

 

Another amazing mezze on the menu was Sortun's take on falafel. A perfect dish for the vegetarians in your life.

Spinach Falafel, Tahini Sauce, Beet Yogurt and Cress

Spinach Falafel with Tahini Sauce

(Makes 16 to serve 4 to 6)

1. 1/2 to 3/4 cup onion, peeled and finely chopped
2. 4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
3. 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
4. 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
5. ice cubes
6. 3/4 teaspoon salt plus more to taste
7. 1 pound spinach leaves
8. 1 cup milk
9. 1/2 teaspoon black pepper plus more to taste
10. 3/4 cup chickpea flour
11. 1/4 cup canned chicpeas, drained
12. 2 teaspoons lemon juice
13. 4 to 6 cups oil for frying ( I prefer grapeseed)
14. 1/4 cup flour for dredging
15. 2 rectangles lavash bread, cut into halves
16. 1/2 cup tahini sauce
17. Salad greens for garnish

In a small pan over medium-high heat, saute the onion in 1 tablespoon olive oil. Add the cumin and allspice. Cook, stirring from time to time,for about 6 minutes, until the onions are soft and translucent. Reduce the heat to medium if the onions cook too quickly;they should not brown. Remove the onions from the heat and set aside.

Prepare a medium bowl of ice water.

Bring a medium saucepan of water to a boil and add salt to taste. Drop the spinach in and cook for 1 minute, until it becomes limp and dark green. Drain and drop the spinach in the ice water. Let the spinach sit in the ice water for a couple of minutes or until completely chilled.

Remove the spinach from the ice water, little by little, squeezing it dry in small amounts. Squeeze as much water as possible from the leaves. You should have about 2 cups of blanched spinach.

Chop the spinach into small pieces and set aside.

In a medium saucepan bring the milk to a boil on high heat. Reduce the heat to medium and whisk in 3/4 teaspoon of the salt and 1/3 teaspoon of the pepper. Taste the milk to make sure that it is seasoned well and add more salt and pepper to taste.

Slowly whisk in the chickpea flour, little by little, until it is so thick that you can't whisk it anymore. Switch to a wooden spoon and stir in the remaining 3 tablespoons of olive oil and keep stirring for another minute, until it is incorporated. Reduce the heat to very low and cook, for about 12 minutes, stirring occasionally.  When done, the edges should pull away from the sides of the pan and the mixture should be very thick.

In a large bowl combine, the chickpeas, lemon juice, onion mixture, chickpea mixture and chopped spinach. Stir until the ingredients are incorporated into the chickpea mixture, which is the binder for all the vegetables. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Scrape the mixture into a baking sheet or shallow roasting dish and chill for at least 2 hours or overnight.

Form the falafel into 15 or 16 ballls, about 1 1/2-inches in diameter.

Place the oil in a large, heavy saucepan and heat to 350 degrees F.

Dredge each falafel ball in flour and carefully drop them, one by one, into the hot oil. Cook for about 4 inutes, until golden brown and hot inside. Remove the falafel from the oil and drain them on paper towels. Sprinkle the falafel lightly with salt.

Line a platter with the lavash bread and top them with the hot falafel. Spoon a couple of teaspoons of tahini sauce over the tope of each falafel and garnish with a few salad greens. Serve immediately.

 

TAHINI SAUCE

1. 1/4 cup tahini
2. 1/4 cup extra-virgin oilive oil
3. 3/4 teaspoon ground cumin
4. 1 clove chopped garlic
5. 1 teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
6. salt and pepper to taste

 

Place all the ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth. Season with salt and pepper. The sauce will last for 3-5 days in the refrigerator.

 

If you don't want to cook these dishes yourself, then make a reservation at Oleana and taste the Middle East. (Tricia, this means you and Alan.)