Serves two

 

• 250 g boned leg of lamb, diced
• 1 level tablespoon plain flour
• pepper, salt
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 red onion, chopped
• 1 clove garlic, chopped
• 250 g peeled carrots, diced
• 1 tsp cumin seed
• 1 tbsp tomato purée
• 400 ml lamb stock
• 3 tbsp lime juice
• 10 pitted dried dates
• parsley
• lime wedges to garnish

To serve

 

• 100 g burghul
• boiling water

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Maraq tamer, an Iraqi dish. Long ago orange carrots and tomato purée were still not to be found in Iraq. But dates were there in abundance. According to the Hadith (tradition) the Prophet Muhammad would have said dat the date tree originated in Paradise. A revealed truth! The fact is that recent investigations have demonstrated that ‘the tree of knowledge’ on the earliest depictions of Paradise in the Middle East was a date palm.

In Iraq – ancient Babylonia – date palms were pollinated by hand as early as 3000 BCE, as it is still done today in modern commercial plantations in the Middle East and North Africa. Sad to hear that the current production in Iraq has collapsed due to all the disasters that happen there. In his time Saddam Hussein could become jovial and peaceful when somebody stated that Iraqi dates were the best in the world.

The best are still grown around date town Basra. The beautifully shaped leaves qualify the surroundings to such an extent that a Basrani poet compared the long eyelashes of his sweetheart to them.

Serves two:

 

Stew:

• 30 g butter
• 300 g boned leg of lamb, diced
• 1 onion, sliced
• piece of leek, sliced
• 1 small green bell pepper,
• finely diced
• ½ clove garlic
• 1 tsp. chili powder
• pinch allspice
• black pepper, salt
• 200 ml water
• 70 g tomato puree
• 200 g green beans
• marjoram

 

Garnish:

• 1 aubergine
• 1 tsp crushed cumin
• ½ tbsp olive oil
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• garlic to taste
• 1 tbsp tahina, salt
• beefsteak tomato
• basil leaves
• paprika

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On festive occasions beautiful damask cloth decorated the tables of our Dutch great-grandmothers, but authentic dishes from Damascene regions were hardly ever served. In the seventeenth century French chefs – followed by their docile Dutch colleagues – had sworn off  spices from the East. Silly! Culinary art of the Middle East has been recorded in Babylonian texts dating from 1500 BCE and even so long ago herbs and spices were common ingredients. Compared to that ancient tradition European cuisine is still wet behind the ears! An example: Ghanum ma’a lubi with Baba gannudj.

Baba gannudj, ‘spoiled daddy’ is the name of an aubergine dip in the Middle East. Whoever that pampered gentleman was is wrapped in mystery. Fact is that among family Arabs prefer to call it Mutabbal (spiced): father does not like to be joked at. Formerly you had to make a real effort to spoil the master of the house with this treat. The aubergines should be placed onto a charcoal fire (preferably with pine apples in it) until the outside is crumpled black and the fruit has shrunken a great deal. This lends the baba  a smoked, lightly resinous taste. Excellent for the barbecue. Otherwise you have to put them for at least 40 minutes in a hot oven to get them quite done. Today there is still another method which you will find below.

Serves two:

 

• 2 slices boned leg of lamb
• 2 peeled garlic cloves
• 4  tbsp lemon juice
• 1 tbsp dried oregano
• pepper, salt
• 2 tbsp concentrated butter
• 250 ml water
• peeled waxy potatoes

 

Garnish:

• 1 small fennel bulb
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tbsp lemon juice
• ½  tbsp mustard
• lamb’s lettuce
• lemon slices with rind

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Arni lemonato from Greece. For Greek people the lemon is what the tomato is for Italians. But all Europeans like to eat a sour dish now and then. Sweet food easily bores.

About the origin of  the Citrus limon opinions do not differ: the fruit comes from Assam and North-Burma.

More difficult is to determine the point in time when the lemon turned up around the Mediterranean Sea. On frescos in Pompeï fruit somewhat resembling lemons is found, but it is more likely the fruit of the citron tree (C. medica). Probably Arabs have exported the lemon to the countries of the old world, as far as China. They planted lemon orchards on Sicily as early as  the 10^th century. In the 17^th century the fruit remained the privilege of rich English and Dutch merchants who liked to show off the exotic fruit on their costly paintings. Hence the saying from that time: ‘to sell somebody turnips for lemons’ (= pull the wool over one’s eyes) because simple folk did not yet know the fruit. It is sad that the seamen who transported the fruit had the medicine for scurvy on board without knowing it. For that was discovered by ship’s doctor James Lind only as late as the middle of the 18^th century.

Serves two:

• 50 g concentrated butter
• approx. 400 g rack of lamb
• coarsely ground black pepper, salt
• some squeezed garlic
• 2 tbsp chopped leek
• 2 level tbsp French mustard
• 1 tsp vinegar
• 100 ml of water
• 1 ½- 2 tsp corn flour (= 3-4 g)
• 200 g peeled waxy potatoes, sliced
• 3 tbsp whipping cream, salt
• 2 tbsp grated young cheese
• 2 Roma tomatoes
• 200 g broad beans (frozen)
• little gem leaves
• basil

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What does that mean: Carré d’agneau? We ask the Belgian waitress. “That is a piece of rib of lamb with 7 or 8 scraped bones and we give it with a mustard sauce”, she answers while she is leaning charmingly with her hip on the arm of my table mate. Of course he immediately agrees with everything. Also with the monkfish cheeks as a starter – this lapsed monk.

Soon delightful smells rise from the open kitchen and in the meantime we are edified with Flemish radio messages such as: “Eleven o’clock Eucharistic Celebration, followed by aperitif”. Then a table bell rings and the cook shouts that our table may march. As a matter of fact it marched so well that I’d like to share it with you.