Levant meets the Mediterranean: In “Pomegranate & Artichoke” Saghar Setareh takes us on a culinary journey from Iran to Italy.
Between saffron, cumin and cinnamon and oregano, basil and thyme: the spice worlds of Iran and Italy could hardly be more different. Nevertheless, the cuisine of the Levant and the Mediterranean share many similarities: the preference for fresh and high-quality food, the hospitality and the joy of sharing meals with loved ones.
Cookbook author Saghar Setareh knows these two worlds well. Born and raised in Iran, she moved to Italy at the age of 22. There she discovered: Common ingredients run like a common thread through the cuisine of both regions. She has now written a cookbook in which she combines the flavors of the two countries. Three recipes from “Pomegranate & Artichoke” (ars vivendi Verlag) can be found here.
Imam bayildi: Eggplant in tomato sauce
Ingredients: 6 narrow or 3 large round eggplants, salt, 80 ml olive oil for frying, freshly chopped flat-leaf parsley
For the filling: 4 tbsp olive oil, 3 onions (sliced), 3 cloves of garlic (finely chopped), 1 ½ tsp tomato paste, 4-5 tomatoes (about 400 g, diced), 2 tsp salt, 1 ½ tsp sugar, 1 tsp sweet paprika powder, 1 pinch of ground black pepper.
For the sauce: 1 ½ teaspoons tomato paste, 1 teaspoon salt
Preparation: To garnish, peel a few strips from each eggplant, but the eggplants can also be prepared completely with the peel on. Halve large round eggplants lengthwise.
Cut a long slit lengthways into each half without cutting through. This will later serve as a bag. Rub the eggplants generously all over with salt. Then let it steep in a sieve for 30 to 60 minutes to remove the bitter substances.
In the meantime, for the filling, heat the oil in a large pot and sauté the onions at a high temperature for five to seven minutes. Add the garlic and sauté for two to three minutes. Stir in the tomato paste and diced tomatoes and cook for a minute or two, then season with salt, sugar, paprika and black pepper. Stir in 125 ml of boiling hot water and let everything simmer gently on a low level for 15 minutes.
Wash and dry the eggplants. Heat the olive oil in a large pan and lightly fry the eggplants on all sides over a medium-high heat. You don’t want them to cook through, you just want them to soften a little and take on some flavor. If the eggplants are fried in batches, you will probably need a little more oil.
Place the eggplants in a large pot. Now pull the slits apart and put 2-3 tablespoons of the filling into each pocket. Drizzle in the remaining liquid as well.
Mix the ingredients for the sauce with 125 ml of boiling hot water, then pour into the side of the pot. Cook on medium heat with the lid closed for about 30 minutes, remove the lid and continue cooking uncovered for 15-25 minutes until the liquid has boiled down and the eggplants are soft. If they need longer to cook, add a little more water if necessary. (Instead of cooking them on the stove in this final phase, you can also cook the eggplants in an oven preheated to 180 ° C for about an hour.)
Serve at room temperature, garnished with parsley if desired. Serve with flatbread or Iranian rice.
Carciofi ripieni alla siciliana: Sicilian-style stuffed artichokes
Ingredients: 8 large round artichokes, juice of 1 lemon, chopped flat-leaf parsley for garnish.
For the filling: 100 g butter, 5-6 anchovy fillets (chopped), 200 g breadcrumbs, zest from 1 untreated organic lemon, 1 large garlic clove, finely chopped or grated, 1 tbsp olive oil, ½ tsp salt, 40 g pine nuts, 50 g raisins
For the cooking liquid for steaming: 1 ½ teaspoons salt, 250 ml white wine (or water), 2 tablespoons olive oil
Preparation: First, peel off the hard, woody outer leaves of the artichoke until you get to the more tender, soft leaves. Cut off the stems. Cut about 2-3 cm off the tip of the artichokes. Press the artichokes onto a cutting board so that the “flowers” open a little, then pull them apart further with your fingers. Squeeze the lemon juice into a bowl of water and place the cleaned artichokes in it until cooked so that they do not brown.
To make the filling, mash the butter and anchovies in a bowl to form a soft paste. Mix in the breadcrumbs, lemon zest and garlic as well as olive oil, salt, pine nuts and raisins.
Prepare a heavy-bottomed pot or Dutch oven that will fit all the artichokes close together. Remove the artichokes from the lemon water, pat dry a little and carefully push the leaves apart slightly without letting them come loose. Sprinkle the inside with salt and add some of the filling, not only in the middle but also between some of the leaves. Gently squeeze the artichokes between your palms to close them slightly.
Place the artichokes upright in the dish provided. If there is space in between, a small peeled potato can fill it so that the artichokes really stand upright.
For the cooking liquid, dissolve the salt in 250 ml of cold water in a bowl. Add wine and olive oil. Now pour this liquid very carefully from the side.
Put the lid on and bring everything to the boil. Then simmer gently at reduced temperature for 45-60 minutes until the artichokes are very soft.
Serve at room temperature, garnished with parsley if desired.
Pears stewed in wine with mascarpone cream
Ingredients: 4 large imperial pears or any other variety suitable for cooking, 250 ml red wine, 120 g sugar, 2 bay leaves, 1 cinnamon stick
For the mascarpone cream: 400 g mascarpone, 2 tablespoons sugar, 4 tablespoons marsala
Preparation: Peel the pears and cut them in half lengthwise. Using a teaspoon, scrape the core out of the halves so that a nice round hollow remains.
In a sufficiently large pot, heat the wine with the sugar, bay leaves and the cinnamon stick while stirring until the sugar has dissolved. When it starts to boil, add the pears and toss them in the wine so that they are coated all over.
Simmer on medium heat for 10 minutes with the lid closed. Remove the lid and simmer uncovered for another 20-30 minutes until the wine has reduced to a slightly syrupy consistency. Let cool down.
Before serving, place the ingredients for the mascarpone cream in a bowl and whisk well.
Drizzle the pears with plenty of wine sauce and serve with a generous dollop of mascarpone cream.