I feel like I’m slowly getting better. I guess if I gauged recovery by full meals prepared and eaten – then I’m doing just fine.
I’m sleeping a lot, more than I expected but I’m also able to spend time reading
And my appetite for snacks is now well and truly back
I’m hoping that another week of rest and mindful self care will get me to a better place of health. I have been starting to think about how I am going to approach work, when I get back. I’ll have a great deal of catching up to do but I guess I’m going to have to set boundaries as I’ll end up I the same place. I remember that the last day that I worked, I was so stressed about getting reports and other things done that I just kept working through the pain, until I could not longer stand or sit. At the end of that day I was in accident and emergency. I guess it will be a lesson to be to never let work take over my life so much that I ignore my own needs.
Today after having a refreshing snooze on the sofa, I was scrolling through my Instagram feed and I came across this video from Ottolenghi for his Gigli pasta with za’atar. I have made this recipe a few times now.
https://cantaloupe.press/2020/08/25/gigli-with-chickpeas-and-zatar/
https://cantaloupe.press/2021/03/28/mafalda-corta-with-chickpeas-and-zaatar/
Watching this video made me crave this dish once again. However I did not have any of the ingredients and it was just too hot 🥵 to go out and shop. So I ‘shopped’ from home and made up my own recipe from what I had left in the fridge and the pantry.
Orecchiette replaced the Gigli. Chorizo replaced the anchovies. I used nutmeg and paprika instead of cumin. I used vegetable stock instead of chicken stock.
Ingredients
2 tablespoons of coconut oil
2 small onions 🧅 (one red and one white) peeled and finely chopped
3 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
A thumb sized piece of ginger chopped into fine pieces
1 tsp salt 🧂
1 tsp ground nutmeg
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp dried thyme leaves
50g chorizo finely chopped
1 tin of cooked chickpeas, drained
1 tsp demarra sugar
400ml vegetable stock
1 cup of orecchiette pasta
Method
1. Put the coconut oil into a large pan. Add the onion, garlic, and ginger and salt and sauté until the onion is soft and translucent
2. Mix together the nutmeg, paprika, thyme, chorizo in a small bowl and add to the pan. Fry for about 5 minutes, stirring often.
3. Add the chickpeas and sugar and fry for 8 minutes, stirring occasionally.
4. Add the chicken stock and and simmer until the sauce has reduced slightly.
5. Cook the orecchiette pasta according to the packet instructions. When cooked, drain and add to the pan of chickpeas and stir to combine. Divide among two bowls.
The final result was very very tasty. I managed to control myself and eat only one bowl 🥣 (the leftovers will make for a quick snack tomorrow before I go shopping).
It actually felt nice to adapt this recipe. As much as I love following other people it is satisfying to make up one’s own thing and follow one’s own culinary flow. I guess now that I’m not currently at work, I have more time and I’m a bit more rested, this is easier to do. When I’ve finished work – it’s rare that I want to have to think too hard about what I am going to cook for dinner. And it’s also probably not that common that I share recipes that I have created myself. I hope to do more of that. That for me is the best part of all of this, the ability to be creative, have fun and get some nourishment for the body and the soul.
Dessert was a very simple offering of frozen orange segments. Very cooling on this hot evening!
Just Bunmi 