Welcome to Cyprus! This looks like a fun place to visit - maybe one day! It has some history with Greek mythology, has some beautiful mountains, beaches and trees (at least from the pictures...). According to Google, the population of Cyprus is 1.3 million people and the capital is Nicosia. Their national dish is...
Magarına Bulli!
It is a chicken and pasta dish with cheese. I didn't think there was much to this meal, and there really wasn't. To go with the magarina bulli, we made Monugra, which is a fermented cauliflower. Believe me, I had my doubts. We had to start a week and a half ahead while making this meal, since the cauliflower needed time to ferment. When making the magarina bulli, the recipe made me laugh - you have to go read it - he did a great job! Here's what I did:
2 lemons
1/2 block of halloumi, grated
1 box gluten-free penne pasta
A handful of fresh mint, roughly chopped
1 onion, quartered
2 cloves of garlic
2 springs fresh rosemary
Salt, pepper, paprika, to taste
Glug of olive oil
- Roughly chop a whole onion and two cloves of garlic.
- Place half of this into the cavity of the bird, filling it firmly.
- Slice the lemon in half and use that as a cork for the large hole.
- Place the remainder of the onion and garlic in the bottom of the roasting pan.
- Oil your bird then season with salt, pepper and paprika.
- Tuck the rosemary springs down by his legs or into the neck cavity.
- Put the chicken in an oven heated to 356 degrees for about an hour and fifteen minutes or until the juices run clear when you test the meat.
- Allow the chicken to rest once it is taken out of the oven.
- Bring the chicken broth to a boil and add pasta.
- Cook the pasta until tender, but not too soft.
- Dish up your pasta, retaining the stock-infused cooking water, of which you should add a splash to each dish for flavor.
- Sprinkle the grated halloumi across the pasta and top with your carved chicken.
- Pile on your fresh mint and parsley and dress with olive oil and a squeeze of lemon.
- Enjoy!
(Source: Magarına Bulli)
1 C warm water
1 1/2 C all-purpose flour
1 cauliflower
3 tbsp white mustard seeds
Salt
- Dissolve yeast in 1/4 cup of warm water.
- Add remaining water, flour and 1 tsp of salt in a large glass mixing bowl.
- Stir until combined and smooth.
- Cover bowl with plastic wrap and leave for 3 days to ferment.
- Cut cauliflower into florets.
- Half fill a large pot with water and add 1 tablespoon salt and bring to a boil.
- Add the cauliflower, return to a boil then take cauliflower out with a slotted spoon.
- Place immediately into a bowl of cold water and drain in colander.
- Separately, bring 8 cups of water to a boil.
- Let the water cool a little then gradually pour in the fermented dough, stirring well to form a thin milky liquid.
- Add red wine vinegar to liquid and stir.
- Pound mustard seeds in a mortar just enough to crack them.
- Sprinkle a little in the base of a large sterilized glass jar.
- Place some cauliflower florets in the jar and sprinkle more mustard seeds.
- Repeat till all the cauliflower and mustard seeds are used.
- Pour milky liquid over contents, covering cauliflower completely.
- Cover with lid or plastic wrap.
- Each day for 8 days, turn cauliflower with your hand while stirring the milky liquid.
- When you serve, drizzle good quality olive oil and a dash of salt.
(Source: Monugra)
The verdict? There really wasn't anything special about this dish. We enjoyed the mint in the pasta, but other than that, it was just pasta and chicken. The penne were hard to eat as a whole - I think a smaller pasta would be better for this meal. I was not a fan (at all) of the monugra. It did not taste good at all. Handsome Husband said he would eat it, but I would not recommend making it. Not a hard dish to make, but nothing super about it either.
