L ifestyle /C ulture
The Book and the Cook Lives on
F OO D
KERI WHITE | JE FOOD COLUMNIST
THOSE OF YOU who have
lived in Philly for years and
were active on the culinary
scene may fondly recall The
Book and the Cook food fest
from the early 1990s.

It was a weeks-long celebra-
tion of restaurants and cuisine,
which partnered local food
professionals with chefs
from near and far. Together
they would craft a menu,
and patrons would enjoy a
sumptuous meal showcasing
two culinary talents.

I hadn’t thought of this
for years, but I had the good
fortune to be invited to
dinner at my friend K’s house
on Saturday night, and she
prepared a meal based on one
of those long-ago events.

“I went on a date to one
of the events — the guy is
long gone — we did not hit
it off,” she said. “But I still
have the cookbook! The focus
of the book is Mediterranean,
and doesn’t always conform
to kosher cooking, but I’ve
adapted some of the recipes to
accommodate a kosher diet.”
I thumbed through “Matt-
hew Kenney’s Mediterranean
Cooking: Great Flavors for
the American Kitchen” book
while K cooked; it was funny
to see how ingredients that are
commonplace today required a
footnote — there was a lengthy
explanation of panko, which
can practically be bought at a
convenience store these days.

The dish below is adapted
from a Moroccan crab cake
recipe. K used raw cod that she
chopped finely, but cooked cod,
or any fish, can be used, and
it is a great way to repurpose
leftovers. If you use cooked fish,
you can reduce the time in the
saute pan by a minute or two.

The sauces is a revelation. I
plan to make it regularly with
or without the fish cakes. It
JEWISHEXPONENT.COM would be divine on grilled
fish or chicken, stirred into
tuna or chicken salad, or even
drizzled over grilled or roasted
vegetables. The carrots are a fantastic
side dish — plenty going on so
that they can jazz up a plain
main dish, with wonderfully
complex flavors marrying sweet
and salty.

For dessert, K served some
plain cookies with a dish of
strawberry ice cream. Perfection.

MOROCCAN FISH CAKES
Makes 12 fish cakes, or about 6
servings 1½ cups panko
1¼ cups flour
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 small red pepper, finely
chopped 2 ribs celery, finely chopped
2 tablespoons ginger, grated
2 cloves garlic, crushed
6 scallions, white part only,
thinly sliced
1 teaspoon ground
cardamom 1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon turmeric
1 cup heavy cream
1 pound cod filet or other
fish, chopped
2 tablespoons chopped
fresh parsley
2 tablespoons chopped
fresh chives
Grated zest of 2 lemons
Pinch cayenne
Salt to taste (about ½ teaspoon)
¼ cup canola or other mild
cooking oil
Cilantro dressing (see below)
Mix the panko and flour; set
it aside.

In a large skillet, heat the
olive oil over medium, and sauté
the pepper and celery. When
the pepper and celery begin to
soften, add the scallions, ginger
and garlic. Continue cooking
until fragrant.

Add the cardamom, cumin
and turmeric, and sauté for
another minute. Add the heavy
cream, bring it to a boil and
lower the heat to reduce it by
half, about 5 minutes.

Add the fish and cook it a
few minutes until it is done and
opaque throughout. Remove
it from the heat, and add
two-thirds of the panko mixture
along with the parsley, chives,
lemon zest, salt and cayenne.

Allow it to cool.

Using your hands, form
the mixture into cakes and
dip them into the remaining
panko mixture to coat. Place
the cakes on a parchment or
wax paper-lined cooking tray
and refrigerate them until you
are ready to cook.

Heat the canola oil in a large
skillet over medium high, and
sauté the fish cakes until they
are crispy and brown on the
outside. Drain them on paper
towels and serve with the
cilantro dressing.

Moroccan fish cakes
Photos by Keri White
CILANTRO DRESSING
Makes 1 cup
This is so amazingly delicious
that I could practically eat it with
a spoon. K recommends making
a double batch so you have extra
for tomorrow. Note: The original
recipe requires toasting and
grinding the cumin seeds, but
I am perfectly happy to use the
ground version. If you want to
take that step, I won’t stop you.

1 cup fresh orange juice
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 cup cilantro
½ cup canola oil
1 tablespoon fresh lemon
juice Salt and cayenne to taste
In a small saucepan, heat the
orange juice to a boil and reduce
it to about ¼ cup. This will
take about 12 minutes. Let the
reduced juice cool slightly, and
add it to the blender with the
See Food, Page 20
JEWISH EXPONENT
Moroccan spiced carrots
JUNE 17, 2021
19