All Roads Lead to the Kitchen: Za'atar

Okay. I have a question for you. Have you ever purchased wine in a box? Have you ever enjoyed it? A show of hands, please.

I'm gonna go ahead and raise add my hand to those raised high (or raised low). I have. I don't do it regularly, but that's not because I haven't found a good one. Back in the day, wine-in-a-box was a cheap way to get a lot of wine. Or an easy way to drink without your parents knowing. If they weren't home. I mean, you can't actually see the level of the alcohol, let alone mark it.

I know there's some wine snobs out there who have probably already cursed me and stopped reading. Their loss. Bag-in-box wines have really evolved over the past 5-8 years, in my opinion and they're used more often to save on costs - both for the manufacturers and the consumers. But I digress...I'm not actually here to talk about wine-in-a-box. I want to talk about its cousin, olive-oil-in-a-box. The Village Press Olive Oil in a box to be precise.

Much like wine, olive oil in a box is a wonderful way to reduce costs for food service establishments and those who use a decent amount of olive oil in their everyday life (like you and me...food bloggers, foodies, and people who spend a lot of time in their home kitchens, too).

The Village Press bag-in-box Olive Oil has a tap for easy use and is very easy to store. I have a ridiculous amount of glass bottles (that I'll never give up completely) lining my shelves and often I'm playing catch-that-bottle while searching for something that has found its way to the back of the shelf. I love the idea of being able to eliminate one bottle. It may seem insignificant, but that bottle could be the one that slipped by me and is now oozing all over the floor. Making me sad and annoyed all at the same time. The bag-in-box stores easily, is at the ready when I am, and it helps to retain the integrity of both the flavor and the nutrients present in the oil by blocking out harmful ultra-violet rays.

Sold!

product:  The Village Press Bag 'n Box Olive Oil (The Village Press Extra Virgin New Zealand Barnea Olive Oil)

category:  food

packaging:  sleek, easy-to-store bag-in-box with tap that holds 1 litre (32 oz.)

appearance:   greenish-yellow

taste:  grassy and (oddly enough) somewhat spicy

about:  The Village Press Olive Oil is made from the most widely grown variety of olive in New Zealand, the Barnea. Their grove sits in the golden wine triangle of Hawke's Bay (olives do well in the same conditions that grapes do). Due to the fact that they do not filter their olive oil in order to retain the most natural flavor and nutritional value from the olives, the appearance will be slightly cloudy.

Since olive oil is best stored out of direct sunlight and in a cool, dark place, The Village Press olive oil is packaged in dark bottles (or bag-in-box) to help deflect ultra-violet rays that can break down the oil and destroy its health-giving properties. The bag-in-box is perfect for bulk and restaurant sales.

The Village Press Olive Oil making process:

The trees are shaken at harvest time and ripe fruit collected in a blanket under the tree.
The olives are washed to remove leaves.
They are then put in a mill which crushes and grinds them into a paste.
A chamber holds the paste while it is gently paddled to release the oil molecules.
The olives are then pressed in either the old style or a modern centrifugal press system.
After pressing, the oil is decanted or separated and stored in stainless steel tanks until bottling.
The oil is bottled using an automated bottling and labelling line (in house).
In the centrifugal press, olives are crushed. A maximum water heat of 28°C is used to assist oil extraction earning its acclaimed status of "cold pressed". This means The Village Press olive oil retains all the nutritional values highly prized with olive oil of this calibre.
Every bottle is stamped with a pressing date.

further info: purchase in the US | website | facebook | twitter | "On Olives & Extra Virgin Olive Oil"

my thoughts: This is a great olive oil for drizzling over bruschetta, breads, and salads. It has an assertive flavor adds depth to any dish. It's great when mixed with herbs and a freshly baked loaf of bread for dipping. Add some cured meats, farmer's cheese, and a bottle of wine for one of my favorite types of meals. Oh yeah, and it was the perfect compliment to this meal of whole wheat couscous combined with hot-smoked salmon, baby kale, and za'atar. The spicy, grassy notes were very present in each bite...especially when drizzled over the top before serving.

verdict: Thumbs up. I will spend money on this.

Whole Wheat Couscous w/ Smoked Salmon, Baby Kale, & Za'atar

by Heather Schmitt-González

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 5 minutes

Keywords: entree salad salmon fish couscous kale

Ingredients (serves 2-4)

1 c. vegetable broth (or water)
2 tsp. olive oil + more to finish
~¼ tsp. sea salt
⅔ c. whole wheat couscous
2 handfuls baby kale
2 green onions, chopped
4 oz. (hot-) smoked salmon fillet, skinned & flaked
freshly ground black pepper
~1½ tsp. Za'atar
pinch crushed red chile flakes

Instructions

Bring vegetable broth, olive oil, and salt to a boil. Stir in couscous, cover and turn off heat. Let sit 5 minutes. Fluff with a fork.

Stir in remaining ingredients, then taste and adjust seasoning.

Give the whole thing a good drizzle and sprinkle with a pinch more Za'atar. Enjoy warm, at room temperature, or cold.

Store any leftover in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 day.

*I received one free box (1 Litre) at no charge to test, try, and review. All opinions stated in this post are 100% my own.

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I'm still in catch-up mode in cooking through Flatbreads & Flavors, but I'm happy to say that I'm only 2 days late this time...as opposed to 2 weeks. A notable improvement. And actually, I was really looking forward to baking these sesame rings for one major reason (aside from the freshly baked bread factor which is always tops). That reason? Oddly enough, it was the recommended accompaniment to these tempting, oval rings. Za'atar. Or roasted thyme and sesame blend.

You see, my favorite local market has a pretty impressive aisle housing "international" items. I find many of the imported items that I can't find anywhere else locally. From treacle and English biscuits to golden syrup and "exotic" spices. For months now, I've been eyeing a 16 ounce bag of Green Za'atar. It wasn't expensive or anything...I just wasn't sure how I would use it. I was intrigued by the look and the ingredients of roasted wheat, roasted thyme, and ground sumac (along with sesame seeds and salt). Ground sumac. What in the world is it? Sure, I'd heard of sumac. I knew the word. But what in the heck was it. Really? In the back of Flatbreads & Flavors I found my answer. Sumac is a reddish spice that looks sort of like chile powder and made from dried, ground sumac berries. It gives a pleasant acid taste to spice blends and dishes. Huh.

Well, when Za'atar was listed as a suggested accompaniment, I made a beeline to the international aisle and giddily placed that bag of spice in my cart. While I've included the recipe for making Za'atar at home, if you're unable to source sumac (like me...and no I didn't look online...I wanted it NOW), this is a fantastic option.

This sesame ring dough is simple and very easy to work with. My recommendations are to make sure you have a big, clear work surface for rolling the long ropes - it'll make your life so much easier. And to use a parchment or silpat lined sheet tray to lay said ropes on. The original recipe calls for them to be oiled, but I found that the dough kept sliding and shrinking back when I tried this. The lining gives the dough something to hold onto and lets the rings keep their long, brilliant shape. My rolls weren't perfectly even from top to bottom on this first try - why I'm recommending you give yourself a nice, clear, BIG work surface. I'll follow my advice next time. It didn't affect their baking or taste, though. Merely the aesthetics.

I will definitely be making these again - they are wonderful while warm. Good and chewy and perfection when ripped and dipped into olive oil and touched to the Za'atar. My kind of snackin' food. Or a meal (I've mentioned that I can make a meal out of bread once or twice before, no?).

Savory Sesame Bread Rings (Ka'kat)

by Heather Schmitt-González

Prep Time: 2 hours

Cook Time: 15-17 minutes

Keywords: bake bread vegetarian sesame seeds Israeli

Ingredients (4 oval rings - ~12" long)

1 tsp. dry yeast
1½ c. warm water
2 c. bread flour
1-2 c. white whole wheat flour
1 tsp. salt
1 egg whisked with 1 Tbs. water, for egg wash
4-5 tsp. sesame seeds

accompaniments:

extra-virgin olive oil
Za'atar (Roasted Thyme & Sesame Blend)- recipe follows or pre-made (I like Ziyad)

Instructions

Dissolve yeast in warm water in a medium to large bowl. Combine bread flour and salt in a small bowl and add to the yeast, one cup at a time, stirring in one direction with a wooden spoon to help activate gluten. In the same manner, stir in one cup of the whole wheat flour. Now, stir in the remaining cup of whole wheat flour a little at a time until the dough will no longer hold any flour (you may have some flour left over).

Turn dough out onto a floured work surface and knead for 7-8 minutes, or until smooth and elastic. If dough seems sticky when you're trying to knead, add in a bit more of the flour that you haven't used yet.

Place in a lightly oiled bowl and cover with plastic wrap or a clean kitchen towel and allow to rise until doubled in bulk, ~1 hour.

Punch down the dough and divide into 4 fairly equal pieces. On your work surface, roll each piece under your palms into a long rope, 24"-36" long. Pinch the ends of each rope together to make a loop. Place the rings on two trays that have been lined with parchment paper or a silpat. Cover and let rise 20-30 minutes. Preheat oven to 400° F during last 15 minutes or so of rise time.

Brush each bread liberally with egg wash and sprinkle with about a quarter of the sesame seeds. Bake for 15-17 minutes or until golden. If both sheets don't fit on the same rack, switch them halfway through baking. Cool slightly on a rack before serving.

Serve with olive oil and a little cone of Za'atar for dipping (dip bread in oil, then touch to the herb...or simply let the herb cling to the moist crumb of the bread if you don't want to use the oil).

Za'atar (Roasted Thyme & Sesame Blend) yield: ¼ cup

2 Tbs. sesame seeds

3 Tbs. fresh thyme leaves or 2 Tbs. dried thyme

½ tsp. salt

½-1 tsp. ground sumac, to taste

Place a small skillet over medium-high heat. Add sesame seeds and toaste, stirring or shaking constantly until they start to give off an aroma. Remove from heat and transfer to a bowl.

Grind thyme leaves to a coarse powder in a spice grinder or mortar. Add sesame seeds and salt and grind to a powder. Add the sumac. Store in a tightly sealed spice jar or glass container.

adapted from Flatbreads & Flavors

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