Spice (73 page)

For the Crust

1½ sticks cold unsalted butter

1¼ cups plus 2 tablespoons flour

½ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon sugar

3 tablespoons heavy cream

For the Filling

1½ cups heavy cream

2 tablespoons dried lavender

½ cup sugar

1/3 cup flour

5 cups strawberries, washed, hulled, dried, and halved

For the Lavender Syrup

1 cup sugar

½ cup dried lavender

2 cups water

¾ cup honey

2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice (about ¼ lemon)

For the Whipped Cream

2 cups heavy cream

2 tablespoons lavender syrup

To Make the Crust

1.
Cut the butter into ½-inch cubes and freeze them for 20 to 30 minutes.

2.
Combine the flour, salt, butter, and sugar in the work bowl of an electric mixer. Using the paddle attachment, mix on low speed, until the butter is the size of small peas.

3.
Pour in the cream and continue to mix on low speed, just until the dough appears moist but still loose and crumbly.

4.
Put the dough mixture on a lightly floured work surface and work it together with your hands to form a smooth ball. Don’t work it any further than this, or the gluten will develop and it will become tough. You should be able to see little pieces of butter in the dough.

5.
Press the dough into a flat disc and wrap it tightly with plastic wrap. Place the dough in the refrigerator to chill for at least 2 hours.

6.
After the dough has chilled, let it sit at room temperature for about 5 minutes. Then, on a lightly floured work surface, begin rolling the disc, lifting and turning as you roll to prevent sticking and to achieve a circular shape. Roll the dough out to a ½-inch-thick circle that is 2 to 3 inches larger in diameter than your tart pan.

7.
Lightly butter or oil the tart pan. Roll the dough over the rolling pin or fold it in half so that you can lift it and place it into the tart pan. Ease the dough into the pan, pressing it down to seal it into the bottom edge and against the sides. Trim the dough evenly with the top of the tart pan edges by rolling the pin over the top. Place the tart uncovered in the freezer to rest for at least 30 minutes to 1 hour before baking.

8.
Preheat the oven to 350°F.

9.
Completely line the bottom and sides of the tart shell with parchment paper or aluminum foil. Fill the lining up to the rim with dried beans or rice. These can be saved for your next tart. Make sure the beans or rice cover the entire tart pan from edge to edge. The weight will keep the pastry intact as it bakes.

10.
Bake the tart shell for 30 minutes. Remove the pie weights and cook for 5 minutes longer or until the crust on the bottom is no longer moist. Let the tart cool for at least 20 minutes.

To Make the Filling

1.
Meanwhile, heat the cream with the lavender in a medium saucepan over medium heat, until just boiling. Remove from the heat. Cover the pan and let the lavender steep and infuse with the cream for at least 1 hour at room temperature.

2.
Strain the lavender cream through a fine sieve into a large mixing bowl. Discard the herbs.

3.
Whisk the sugar and flour into the cream, being sure to whisk away any lumps.

4.
Add the berries and stir to coat all the berries with the cream mixture. Let them sit for about 10 minutes to absorb as much cream as possible.

5.
Using a slotted spoon or your hands, scoop up the berries, letting some of the excess cream drain through the spoon or your fingers. Place the berries into the baked tart shell. Arrange them evenly and discard the excess cream mixture. You may have ¼ to ½ cup of cream left at the bottom of the bowl.

6.
Place the tart on a heavy baking sheet and reduce the oven temperature to 325°F.

7.
Bake the tart for 40 to 45 minutes. The tart will still appear moist.

To Make the Lavender Syrup

1.
Meanwhile, make the syrup by combining the sugar, lavender, water, and honey in medium saucepan. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring once to dissolve the sugar, and reduce the heat to medium. Briskly simmer until the syrup reaches 235°F on a candy thermometer, 30 to 35 minutes.

2.
Cool the syrup completely for about 30 minutes at room temperature and strain it through a fine sieve. Stir in the lemon juice. You will have about 1 cup of syrup, which is more than you need. It freezes very well and makes an excellent sweetener for homemade lemonade or iced tea.

To Make the Whipped Cream

1.
Make the whipped cream by whipping the cream with a wire whip or an electric mixer on high speed until it forms soft peaks. Add 2 tablespoons of lavender syrup and continue to whip until combined.

2.
When the tart has cooled completely, after about 30 minutes, serve each slice with a few spoons of lavender syrup drizzled over it. Top with whipped cream and serve.

Dunia’s Iced Tea

My mother lives in New Orleans and frequents a Lebanese restaurant there called Mona’s that serves a delicious Lebanese iced tea. My mother loves Mona’s tea, and she implored me to figure out how to re-create it.

Tea is only served hot in Arabic countries—iced tea is an American invention. So with a little playfulness, I set out to experiment. I spoke to my friends Diala Ezzediene and Hashim Sarkis from Beirut, and they told me about jallab syrup, which is made from dates, raisins, and rosewater and has a natural caramel flavor similar to cola. The syrup sweetens the tea perfectly. You can find it at Middle Eastern stores and at www.kalustyans.com.

I named this delicious iced tea after Diala and Hashim’s daughter, Dunia.
Dunya
means “the world” in ten different languages, including Arabic and Turkish.

Dunia’s iced tea is refreshing and addictive year-round.

M
AKES
8 S
ERVİNGS

8 cups brewed black tea

1 cup jallab syrup

2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice (about ½ lemon)

Ice

8 mint sprigs, washed and dried well for garnish

4 tablespoons lightly toasted pine nuts (see page 91)

1.
Allow the tea to set at room temperature for at least 1 hour after it has steeped.

2.
Stir in the jallab syrup and lemon juice and taste. Add more jallab syrup depending on your preference for sweetness.

3.
Fill 8 glasses halfway with ice. Drop a mint sprig into each and pour the tea over the tops, filling each glass.

4.
Sprinkle the top of each glass with ½ tablespoon of pine nuts and serve.

12

RICH, CREAMY FLAVOR

N
UTS
, Y
OGURT, AND
C
HEESE

I include nuts, yogurt, and cheese in this book because, like spices, they play an important role in enriching foods throughout the Mediterranean. Pesto is a well-known example of a sauce that is thickened by nuts and enriched by cheese, but there are endless other examples waiting for you to discover.

Especially in the eastern Mediterranean region, nuts, yogurt, and cheese give depth, richness, and texture to sauces, pilafs, vegetable dishes, pastas, and soups without adding heaviness.

N
UTS

Nuts play a crucial role in Mediterranean cooking: they add a layer of rich flavor to foods—much like cream and butter—but without all the heavy fat. I love butter and cream, but only in small amounts. Too much can ruin a meal, making me feel too full, too quickly.