A SHRIMP BY ANY OTHER NAME--

Rather than sheepishly apologize for cooking with frozen, imported shrimp (oh, gosh, the pre-Christmas oferta was too good to pass up), I’m using my crustacean stash to make  a dish that’s traditional, but not very common—garbanzos con langostinos—chickpeas with shrimp.

Made with shrimp, this potaje with chickpeas is not as heavy as with pork and sausage. Squash and chard are optional vegetables.

This is a typical potaje, much like the cold-weather soup-stews with legumes and laden with pork and sausages. With shrimp in place of meat, this potaje is suitable for Lenten meals (Lent begins February 14). In ports where fresh shrimp once was plentiful and cheap, it used to be a common dish made by fishermen’s families to use up the catch that didn’t sell.

I do buy fresh, wild, local shrimp (gambas) for making sizzled shrimp al ajillo, for adding to paella, for my favorite creole gumbo. Rarely do I buy Spanish langostinos (big shrimp) because they are so expensive. The most famous are those of Sanlucar de Barrameda (Cádiz), where the Guadalquivir River flows into the Atlantic, and Vinaròs (Castellón), near the delta of the River Ebro where it flows into the Mediterranean.

Langostinos in the market at Sanlucar de Barrameda (Cádiz). These are exquisite cooked a la plancha, on a hot griddle.

Part of my cache of frozen langostinos, these imported from fish farms in Venezuela. I couldn't resist the price---

I call them “shrimp;” but maybe you say “prawn.” The restaurant menu calls them “scampi.”  When is it a gamba and when is it a langostino? Does it matter?

The Brits tend to call any of the species (which belongs to the decapoda, or 10-legged family) “prawns.” Americans call them “shrimp. But sometimes the English call tiny ones “shrimp,” and, on the Pacific coast of the US, Americans have taken to calling one variety of shrimp, “prawn.”

In Spanish, gamba refers to the smallish common pink or white shrimp. Langostinos (which are not the same thing that the French call “langoustine”) are big prawns or jumbo shrimp, measuring up to 8 inches (22 cm). Stripy ones are “tiger shrimp.” 

True scampi are not shrimp. (Cigala in Spanish.)

Scampi is the plural of scampo, which in Italian refers to a Dublin Bay prawn, which is not a prawn or a shrimp. It’s also called “Norway lobster,” “sea crayfish,” “cigala” in Spanish, “langoustine” in French. It looks like a miniature lobster with pink-tipped claws. When you find scampi on a restaurant menu, it usually refers to a dish made with big shrimp, not real scampi.

Use any shrimp, prawn or scampi in this recipe.

This potaje with shrimp reminds me so much of one of my favorites, berza, a sturdy  Andalusian stew with chickpeas, vegetables, pork, chorizo and blood sausage. So, on a whim, I decided to make a black seafood sausage to add to the shrimp. I used frozen cuttlefish ink to make the white fish sausage look like black blood sausage.

A traditional dish of chickpeas and shrimp, with the addition of non-traditional black seafood sausage.

Chickpeas with Shrimp
Garbanzos con Langostinos

Put the chickpeas to soak a day before cooking the stew. If your tap water is hard, add a pinch of baking soda to the soaking water or use low-mineral bottled water. (Hard water prevents chickpeas from cooking up soft.)

Heads and shells for flavor.

A simple stock made with shrimp heads and shells gives the chickpea stew a lot of flavor. Notice the coral roe in the heads--huge flavor. The shrimp stock can be made in advance. Refrigerate the peeled shrimp until ready to use. If using peeled shrimp instead of whole ones, either allow an extra ¼ pound to make stock or else substitute prepared fish stock or clam broth.

Serves 4.

2 cups dry chickpeas
Warm water
1 pound whole shrimp (with heads)
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 ½ cups chopped onion
1/3 cup white wine or dry Sherry
8 cups water
3 cups hot water
1 bay leaf
Salt
3 cloves garlic
2 teaspoons pimentón (paprika, not smoked)
¾ cup grated tomato pulp or crushed tomatoes
1 cup diced butternut squash (optional)
1 cup (or more) chopped chard (optional)
Black seafood sausage, optional
¼ cup chopped parsley
½ teaspoon grated lemon zest
1 tablespoon toasted pine nuts

Soak the chickpeas in warm water to cover for at least 8 hours.

Peel the shrimp. Refrigerate the bodies until ready to cook them. Use the heads and shells to make shrimp stock.

Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a soup pot. Add the shrimp shells and heads and ½ cup of the chopped onion. Sauté on medium-high heat until the shells turn pink. Add the bay leaf and wine. When alcohol is cooked off, add 6 cups of water. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and cook 30 minutes. Don’t add salt to the stock.

Strain the stock, pressing on the solids to extract flavor. Discard shells.

Drain the soaked chickpeas. Put them in a soup pot or cazuela with the 3 cups of hot water. Bring to a boil, Skim off any froth that rises to the top. Cook the chickpeas 15 minutes.

Add 4 cups of the strained shrimp stock to the chickpeas. Bring again to a boil and cook, covered, 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, prepare a sofrito. In a skillet with remaining 2 tablespoons of oil, sauté the remaining 1 cup of chopped onion with 2 cloves of chopped garlic for 5 minutes. Don’t let the onions brown. Stir in the pimentón and immediately add the tomato pulp. Fry on medium-high until tomatoes lose their juice.

Puré the sofrito in a blender with ½ cup liquid from the chickpeas. (Add some of the chickpeas too to slightly thicken the stew.) Stir the purée mixture into the soup pot with the chickpeas. Add 1 teaspoon salt. Cook until the chickpeas are nearly tender, about 45 minutes more.

Add the squash and chard, if using. Taste again for salt. Cook just until chickpeas and vegetables are tender.

Add the shrimp to the chickpeas and cook until they turn pink and begin to curl, about 5 minutes. Add sliced seafood sausage, if using.

Chop the remaining 1 clove of garlic finely. Combine it with the parsley, lemon zest and pine nuts. Either stir this mixture into the chickpeas immediately  before serving or sprinkle it on top of individual servings.

Add chopped parsley, garlic and pine nuts to the finished dish.

Add caption

Black Seafood Sausage
“Morcilla” de Pescado

Black fish sausage resembles blood sausage used in other potajes with meat.

Little packets of frozen squid or cuttlefish ink can be purchased from some fish sellers and in frozen foods sections of specialty markets. 

Use any white fish for this sausage--cod, hake, whiting, sole. I used corvina.

Use a food processor to make the sausage mix. Chill the bowl and blade before starting. The sausages are then rolled in plastic wrap instead of sausage casings.

The black fish paste can be prepared in advance and refrigerated. Then roll the sausages and poach them immediately. Let them cool slightly before unwrapping and slicing. Reheat the sausages in the stew or in a skillet with a little oil.

Makes 6 (3-inch) sausages.

10 ounces white fish fillets
2 egg whites
1 tablespoon chopped scallions
1 tablespoon fine, dry breadcrumbs
1 tablespoon chopped parsley
1/8 teaspoon allspice
1/8 teaspoon smoked pimentón (paprika)
1 teaspoon salt
½ cup chilled cream
2 (4-gram) sachets frozen squid or cuttlefish  ink

Cut the fish into pieces and place in a food processor with the egg whites. Process until fairly smooth. Add the scallions, breadcrumbs, parsley, allspice, pimentón and salt. Process again. Add the cream and process to make a smooth paste. Squeeze the contents of the sachets of squid ink into the paste and process until combined.

Cover the fish paste and refrigerate at least two hours.

Log of black fish paste on plastic wrap.

Lay a 12-inch piece of plastic wrap on a work surface. Spoon 1/3 of the fish paste across one end. With wet hands, quickly mold it into a compact log about 1 ¼ inch in diameter. Roll the log up in the plastic wrap. Twist the ends and tie them with kitchen twine. Tie the roll again in the middle, making two sausages. Repeat with remaining fish paste. 

Rolled in plastic wrap, these fish sausages are ready to be poached.

 

Poach the sausages in simmering water (180ºF) until they are firm, 12 minutes. Remove the sausages with a slotted spoon and allow them to cool slightly before unwrapping them from the plastic and slicing.

Unwrap the sausage links and slice.

More recipes for potaje soup-stews with legumes:

Andalusian Vegetable and Sausage Stew (Berza).

Chickpeas with Spinach and Salt Cod Dumplings.

Potage with Kale and Beans.

Fennel Soup with Chickpeas, Wheat and Sausage.

Canary Islands Vegetable Pot with Corn.

More recipes with shrimp:

Shrimp Sizzled with Garlic (al Ajillo).

Pasta with Sizzling Shrimp.

Zucchini Tubs with Shrimp Stuffing.

Rice with Shrimp and Mango.

Sauté of Asparagus, Morels and Shrimp.

THE SPICE THAT’S CUMIN IN

On a Moroccan table, not salt and pepper, but salt and cumin.

“Pass the salt and pepper, please” said one of my tablemates at our first meal in Morocco. I passed him two small ramekins, one a salt cellar and the other, presumably, containing pepper.

“Not pepper!” he exclaimed. “What is it? Sort of like curry.” I tasted. Cumin, comino, in Spanish. After salt, cumin is the most prevalent seasoning in Moroccan food. It’s added to many dishes during cooking and it’s placed on the table for each person to add according to taste.

Whole cumin seeds and ground cumin. Toast the whole seeds and add, sparingly, to potatoes, beans, legumes.

Cumin is the whole or ground seeds of a plant belonging to the same family as parsley, dill and caraway. Its aroma is pungent, nutty. Its taste, slightly bitter, warm and earthy. A native of south Asia and the Middle East, the spice has found its way into cuisines right around the world, especially in spice blends such as Moroccan ras el hanout; Indian garum masala and curry; Tex-Mex chili powder, and Latin American adobo. It’s often a cohort of hot chile.

I’m always exploring connections between cooking styles and cultures. So, of course I noted that cumin is a spice also used in Andalusia, the region of Spain just across the Mediterranean from Morocco. (So close that, on a clear day, I can see the mountains of North Africa from my kitchen window.)

For instance, the tapa bar favorite, pinchitos, spicy mini-kebabs, is spiced almost identically to the brochettes grilled by street vendors in Morocco, heavy on the cumin, with a little heat from chile. In Málaga and Cádiz, pinchitos are usually made with pork, while in Tangier, just across the narrow Straits of Gibraltar, they are made with lamb or beef.

Cumin even turns up in some versions of gazpacho. It’s used in that favorite Sevilla dish, espinacas con garbanzos, spinach with chickpeas, as well as with lentils and black-eyed peas. Surprisingly, a hint of cumin appears in Andalusian braised vegetables, such as asparagus, artichokes, fava beans and pumpkin.

The Andalusia-North Africa connection is more than just proximity. The “Moors” who ruled Al-Andaluz for seven centuries were Arabs and Berbers from North Africa. They left an indelible mark on the cuisine, customs and language of southern Spain. (Spanish words such as almendras, almonds; albóndigas, meatballs, and aceite, oil, all derive from Arabic.)

This Andalusian vegetable dish seasoned with cumin is a little like Moroccan tagine.

I’ve been cooking a lot of Moroccan food since I returned from a week’s travels there (see the previous four blog posts for recipes). But this week I’m looking for cumin connections in Andalusian food. This is a village recipe—calabaza guisada, or stewed pumpkin—that reminds me a little of tagine, the Moroccan stew of vegetables and meat.

Brown rice makes this vegetable melange a vegetarian main dish.

A dollop of yogurt is a good addition to rice with butternut squash.

Butternut squash in my garden.

The Spanish recipe calls for pumpkin, peppers, onion and tomatoes to be layered in a pan and simmered or baked until tender. I’ve turned the dish into a vegetarian main course, by baking all the veggies on top of a layer of brown rice. I’ve used butternut squash from the garden instead of the more traditional pumpkin.

Baked Squash with Rice
Calabaza Guisada con Arroz

1 ½ cups brown rice
6 cups water
Salt
2 pounds butternut squash
3 plum tomatoes, sliced
1 onion, sliced
2 green peppers, cut in strips
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 bay leaf
1 tablespoon chopped parsley
½ teaspoon cumin
Freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon Sherry vinegar
¼ cup olive oil
1 cup boiling water
Greek yogurt to serve (optional)

Cook the rice in 6 cups of boiling water with 1 teaspoon salt for 8 minutes. Drain. (Rice can be par-boiled in advance of assembling the casserole.)

Preheat oven to 375ºF. 

Cut the squash in half, remove seeds and peel. Slice it crosswise ½ inch thick. Spread the drained rice in the bottom of a lightly oiled cazuela or oven casserole. Layer the sliced squash, tomatoes, onion, green peppers and garlic on top of the rice. Break the bay leaf into pieces and tuck them among the vegetables. Sprinkle with parsley, cumin, salt to taste and pepper. Drizzle over the vinegar and oil. Pour over the boiling water.

Cover the casserole with a lid or foil and bake until squash is tender, about 75 minutes.

Serve hot or room temperature with a dollop of yogurt, if desired.

Some more Andalusian dishes spiced with cumin:

Spinach with Chickpeas.

Fish Broth with Clams.

Mini-Kebabs with Moorish Spices (Pinchitos)

Sofrito Tomato Sauce.

Vegetarian Lentils.

Black-Eyed Peas with Pork. 

Mojo Green Chile Sauce. 

THE YEAR OF THE PUMPKINS

Last year we had a bumper crop of small pumpkins and butternut squashes. I’ve only just finished the last of the frozen puree from that harvest. This year we didn’t plant pumpkin at all.

A friend gave me a giant pumpkin from her garden, the kind with deeply ridged green skin and pale orange flesh. Once broached, it needs to be kept refrigerated and cooked promptly. I had just about finished it off (see below for links to other pumpkin recipes), when another one landed in my kitchen!

With such abundance, it seems only fitting that that New World squash make an appearance for the Thanksgiving feast. But, instead of the usual pumpkin pie, I’m making an easy pastry with a pumpkin filling. 

Squares of flaky pastry are filled with spiced pumpkin custard.

Pastry squares are easy to serve on a buffet table.

Serve the pastries with ice cream, if you like.

“Little Mickeys” 

(Pastry Squares with Pumpkin Custard Filling)

Miguelitos con Crema de Calabaza

The little town of La Roda (Albacete province in La Mancha) is renowned for these delectable flaky pastry squares with a custard filling. They were invented by a local baker who named them after his appreciative friend, Miguelito, a name that translates as “little Mickey”. The original puff pastry is made, not with butter, but with lard, which produces a wonderfully flaky pastry. Easier is frozen puff pastry. I’ve changed the custard filling for one with spiced pumpkin.

You will need 2 ½ to 3 pounds of pumpkin or butternut squash to make 2 cups of puree. Steam, microwave or roast the pumpkin until tender, drain,  then puree it in a blender. Or, substitute a 29-ounce can of unsweetened pumpkin puree.

The usual flavoring for Spanish custards and creams is lemon zest and cinnamon, certainly good with pumpkin. Or you could use pumpkin pie spice. But, I’m on a cardamom kick, so I’ve used ground cardamom and powdered ginger.

 

Unfold the pastry dough, but don't roll it out.

The frozen puff pastry I’m using here is rectangular, so I cut each sheet into 8 rectangular pieces. In the US, you may find square sheets, which can be cut in 3-inch squares, making 9 pieces.

The pumpkin custard filling can be prepared a day or two in advance. The flaky pastry can be baked a day in advance. Split them and fill them only a few hours before serving.

Makes 16 to 18 pastry squares.

½ cup milk

¼ cup cornstarch

2 egg yolks

2 cups pumpkin puree

½ cup sugar

½ teaspoon ground cardamom

¼ teaspoon powdered ginger

1 teaspoon grated lemon zest

1 (17-ounce) package frozen puff pastry, thawed (2 sheets)

2 tablespoons powdered sugar

Make the pumpkin custard filling. Combine ¼ cup milk with cornstarch in a small bowl and stir until smooth. Stir egg yolks in a bowl. Add milk and cornstarch mixture to the yolks.

Combine remaining ¼ cup milk, pumpkin puree, and sugar in a saucepan. Heat, stirring, until the mixture begins to bubble.

Stir some of the hot pumpkin mixture into the egg and cornstarch mixture, then whisk the egg into the pan with pumpkin.

Place the pan over boiling water and cook, stirring, until the custard thickens and is smooth, 5 minutes. Add the cardamom, ginger and lemon zest.

Thick pumpkin custard.

Cool to room temperature. (The cream can be prepared up to a day in advance and kept, covered and refrigerated. Bring to room temperature before spreading.)

Prepare the pastry squares. Preheat oven to 425ºF.

Use a sharp knife or pastry cutter to cut each sheet of puff pastry into 9 (3-inch) squares. Place them 1-inch apart on baking sheet and bake 5 minutes. Lower heat to 375ºF and bake until pastry is golden, 25 to 30 minutes.

Remove pastries to a rack to cool.

Split pastries, spread filling, close sandwiches.

When cool, split the pastries in half, using the tip of a knife to separate layers. Spread bottoms thickly with pumpkin cream and press tops lightly to sandwich the cream.

Sift powdered sugar over the tops of the pastries.

Need more pumpkin recipes? Follow these links for both sweet and savory ways with pumpkin.

http://mykitcheninspain.blogspot.com.es/2015/11/seasonal-color-on-table.html 

http://mykitcheninspain.blogspot.com.es/2011/10/pumpkin-season-big-time.html 

http://mykitcheninspain.blogspot.com.es/2013/11/pumpkin-soup-fit-for-marques.html 

http://mykitcheninspain.blogspot.com.es/2014/10/spain-gourmetour-cant-let-them-go.html 

And, if you’re making a more-or-less traditional pumpkin pie, try this recipe for an olive oil pie crust. http://mykitcheninspain.blogspot.com.es/2014/03/vegetarian-options.html 

Happy Thanksgiving to all!