Blog Party #25- Minty Goodness

Algerian Mint and Lemon Marinated Kebabs with Salsa Tomatish
Video podcast here

Algerian Lemonade with Mint and Lemon Zest Sugar

Recipe for lemonade made with home made lemon syrup

The Happy Sorceress of Dispensing Happiness is the host of blog party # 25- Minty Goodness. The theme ingredient is mint and the requirement to participate is make two recipes with mint: one beverage and one appetizer.

Algerian Mint and Lemon Marinated Kebabs with Salsa Tomatish

Serves 4

The metal kebab skewers I used can be purchased at Middle Eastern and North African stores. They cost between $1.25-$1.75 in Los Angeles. I prefer them to bamboo skewers for several reasons: metal is a better conductor of heat than wood is, they are easier to use for keema kebabs because the meat has a larger surface to adhere too and they are reusable.

If you are using bamboo skewers soak them in cold water for at least 30 minutes before skewering the meat onto the them. The tips of amboo skewers also have a tendency to burn on the grill, if you don't like this for aesthetic reasons than cover the tips with a little bit of foil.

Ingredients:
5-6 spearmint leaves, finely chopped
2 pounds boneless chicken thigh and leg meat, cut into 2 1/2" pieces
1/2 medium onion, grated
1/3 teaspoon ground turmeric
1/2 teaspoon Aleppo pepper (substitute sweet or hot paprika to taste)
Juice of half lemon
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Method:

    1. Combine all the ingredients in a bowl, mix to thoroughly coat the chicken with the seasonings. Cover and let marinate in the refrigerator for 2 hours.

    2. Prepare your grill and get it really hot. It's important to place the meat on a hot grill, this is will sear the meat and also prevent sticking.

    3. Thread the chicken pieces onto the skewer as shown in the video, leaving about 3" of space at the base and the tip. Cook for about 7-8 minutes on each side or until cooked through, depending how your grill transmits heat and the temps it reaches you may have to turn your kebabs more than once or move them to a lower temp part of the grill to prevent burning.

Algerian Lemonade with Mint and Lemon Zest Sugar

4-6 large glasses

Ingredients:
1 dozen spearmint leaves
Zest of one lemon
1 1/2 cups sugar (or more to taste)
4 cups sparkling water
3 cups lemon juice

Method:

    1. Combine the sugar, mint leaves and lemon zest in a mortar and pestle and gently crush the leaves and zest to release their oils. I call this the "perfume" or "fragrance"*. Add 1 cup of warm water to the sugar mixture and let it steep until the sugar dissolves. Strain the sugar syrup through a cheesecloth lined sieve.

    2. Place the sugar syrup in a pitcher add lemon juice and sparkling water. Add more sugar if desired. Garnish with lemon slices, whole spearmint leaves and cinnamon sticks if desired.

Cook's note: If you have some of my lemon syrup made you can add 1/4 cup to the pitcher. I suggest reducing the amount of sugar if you do this. That's right a lemonade with lemon zest, fresh lemon juice and lemon syrup.

*In Algerian cooking spices, herbs and citrus are sometimes used to emphasize their aromas more so than their flavor because we consider eating with all our senses. The way dishes look, smell and taste are all important

Comments

The lemonade looks refreshing and Algerian Mint and Lemon Marinated Kebabs with Salsa Tomatish looks delicious I'm exited with this recipes.

[Sarah]

I recently came across your blog and have been reading along. I thought I would leave my first comment. I don't know what to say except that I have enjoyed reading. Nice blog. I will keep visiting this blog very often.

Sarah

http://grillsblog.com