Friday Food

Ok, so I don't need it to be Friday to enjoy or share recipes with you, but it happens to be Friday and I happen to have tried out a new recipe that was so easy and delicious I had to share it with you!

Two days ago, I found this wonderful Tunisian recipe in Williams-Sonoma's Essentials of Mediterranean Cooking, which I checked out from our local library (a wonderful way to try new cookbooks before you think about buying them).
Spiced Carrot Salad

3/4 lb carrots, peeled and cut on the diagonal into slices 1/4 inch thick

3/4 teaspoon caraway seeds

1 clove garlic, minced

1/2 - 1 teaspoon harissa (I made my own, but you can buy it prepared at Middle Eastern grocery stores - it's a past of dried chiles, garlic, cumin and oil)

1 tablespoon red wine vinegar

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

sea salt and freshly ground pepper

1 to 2 large eggs, hard-cooked, peeled, and quartered lengthwise

8 oil-cured black olives

1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro (fresh coriander)

Bring small saucepan three-fourths full of salted water to a boil over medium-high heat. Add the carrots and cook until almost tender, about 2 1/2 minutes. Drain and transfer the carrots to a bowl.

Using a mortar and pestle, crush the caraway seeds until they are finely ground. Alternatively, place them on a plate and use the bottom of a small cast-iron frying pan to press and grind them. Add the caraway seeds to the carrots. Add the garlic, harissa, and vinegar to the warm carrots and, using a fork, toss to mix well. Add the olive oil and continue tossing until the carrots are evenly coated.

Transfer the carrot salad to a serving platter. Arrange the eggs and olives over and around the carrots. Garnish with the cilantro and serve at once.

Served with some toasted whole-wheat pita bread - simply delicious!!

P.S. Last night, I made the bean soup found on Kary's wonderful blog My Farmhouse Kitchen. Click here to find the recipe - tasty, warming and comforting. Thank you, Kary!!