Pomegranate

Recipes

Historical Recipes

Sausage on a Bed of Pomegranate and Grilled Plums

In the hilarious Roman mock epic the Satyricon (Chapter 31), we are told of a wealthy freedman named Trimalchio who arranges an extravagant banquet for guests at his home. One of the courses described is ‘hot sausages, on a silver grill with sliced damson plums and pomegranate seeds underneath’. The effect of the fruit bears the likeness to flames, beneath the sausages. This is our only source for this dish, from which I have created a simple recipe based on the description. A beautiful mix of colours and flavours, it would work well as an entrée.

1 cup (1 fruit) pomegranate arils

6 plums, cut in halves

4 pork sausages (if you want to be really authentic, you can make your own ancient Roman Lucanian sausages, via the recipe provided in Dalby and Grainger’s The Classical Cookbook)

melted butter or vegetable oil

Coat the plum halves in butter and grill on a barbecue until soft. Remove from heat and place in an oven to keep warm. Cook the sausages on a grill for about five to ten minutes until brown. When done, arrange the plums in rows on a platter. Scatter the pomegranate arils over the top. Cut the sausages into slices on the diagonal, and fan these over the top of the plums and pomegranate arils. Sprinkle with your choice of herbs and spices if desired.

Queen’s Pottage

From John Nott’s The Cooks and Confectioners Dictionary (London, 1723), recipe courtesy of Ivan Day at www.historicfood.com

This almond-flavoured soup, garnished with pomegranate, originates from medieval France, and can be found in La Varenne’s 1651 cookbook Le Cuisinier françois. The dish came to enjoy popularity in England, and thus appears in an eighteenth-century English cookbook by John Nott. Alternate names for the dish include ‘white soup’ (the one frequently consumed by Jane Austen characters) and ‘hedgehog soup’ (it was sometimes served with small rolls spiked with almonds, giving the appearance of the animal). The earliest recipe, La Varenne’s, instructs the chef to toast the surface of the soup with a red-hot fire shovel.

Beat Almonds, and boil them in good Broth, a few Crums of Bread, the Inside of a Lemon, and a Bunch of sweet Herbs, stir them often, strain them, then soak Bread in the best Broth, which is to be thus made; Bone a Capon or Partridge, pownd the Bones in a Mortar, then boil them in strong Broth, with Mushrooms, then strain them through a Linnencloth; with this Broth soak your Bread; as it soaks, sprinkle it with the Almond-broth. Then put a little minced Meat to it, either of Partridge or Capon, and still as it is soaking, put in more Almond-broth, until it be full, then hold a red-hot iron over it; garnish the Dish with Pomegranates, Pistaches, and Cocks-combs.

Royal Salad

From Antonio Latini, Lo scalco moderna (Naples, 1692 and 1694), recipe courtesy of Ivan Day at www.historicfood.com

Crunchy and fruity, the pomegranate does well in any salad. The popularity the pomegranate enjoys in the salad today is not a new phenomenon, however. A salad recipe from the seventh-century cookbook Le Cuisinier méthodique consisted simply of pomegranate arils, lemon slices and pistachios, sprinkled with sugar.

Take endive, or scarola (another species of endive or chicory), mince it finely and put it to one side, until you have prepared a large basin, at the bottom of which are eight or ten biscottini, friselle or taralli (all three are types of hard breads), soaked in water and vinegar, with a little white salt. Put the said chopped endive on top, intermix with other salad stuff, albeit minced finely, make the body of the said salad on top at your discretion, intermix with radishes cut into pieces lengthways, filling in the gaps in the said basin with the ingredients listed below, all arranged in order. Pine nuts four ounces, stoned olives six ounces, capers four ounces, one pomegranate, white and black grapes ten ounces, twelve anchovies, tarantello (salted belly of tuna) four ounces, botargo three ounces, comfits, six ounces, preserved citron (and) preserved pumpkin twelve ounces, four hard-boiled eggs, whole pistachios four ounces, four ounces of raisins, other black olives six ounces. Caviar, four ounces, minced flesh of white fish, six ounces, little radishes, salt, oil and vinegar to taste, garnish the plate with slices of citrons, and citron flowers round about in order, take heed not to add salt or seasonings, until it goes to the table, and is about to be eaten.

Granada Salad

From Los Angeles Times Cook Book, No. 21 (1905), submitted by S. Miller of 454 North Fair Oaks Avenue, Pasadena, California. A digital version of this cookbook is accessible online at http://digital.lib.msu.edu

Place the fruit (pomegranate) in the ice box until cold. Cut open with a sharp knife across the fruit division. Scrape out the red particles with a silver spoon. Place on shredded lettuce hearts and serve with the following salad dressing: Yolks of six eggs, one teaspoon mustard, one teaspoon salt, six teaspoons sugar, half cup of vinegar, half cup rich milk, one tablespoon butter and dash of cayenne pepper. Beat yolks, mustard, salt and sugar together; add vinegar and milk; then remaining ingredients. Cook in double boiler until thick. A cup of whipped cream added just before serving improves this dressing.

Modern Recipes

Güllaç

Recipe courtesy of Zerrin Gunaydin at www.giverecipe.com

The pomegranate plays an important role in Middle Eastern sweets. The Turkish confection güllaç is considered the forerunner from which baklava originates. It consists of thin layers of white pastry soaked in sweetened milk and rosewater. Between the layers are placed chopped walnuts, and a garnish of pistachio and pomegranate arils on top adds colour to the dessert. The dish originates from the Ottoman period, dating as far back as the fourteenth century, and is described in the Chinese food and health manual the Yinshan Zhenyao. It is especially popular during Ramadan, as it is light on the stomach after a full day’s fasting. This dish relies on access to güllaç wafers, which may be difficult to access in Western countries but should be available in Middle Eastern grocers.

10 güllaç sheets

6 cups (1½ litres) milk

1¾ cup (350 g) sugar

1 cup (150 g) finely chopped walnuts rosewater (optional)

pomegranate arils and finely chopped pistachio for garnishing

Put milk and sugar (and 1 tablespoon rosewater if you like) in a saucepan and apply heat until the sugar dissolves. Stir it occasionally and make sure it does not boil. Allow to cool; if you use the milk hot, your dessert will become mushy.

Lay your first güllaç sheet in a square dish. Wet it with the warm milk. Repeat this with five sheets. Spread the crumbled walnut on the fifth. Then, lay another five sheets on top one by one, wetting each of them with milk. When you finish with the tenth one, pour the rest of the milk over the top. As the layers will combine when they are wet with the milk, they don’t need to be perfectly arranged. After pouring the milk, the sheets will rise, but do not touch them. Cover the dish with plastic wrap and put it in the refrigerator for at least two hours. Leave the garnishing to just before you serve the dish, otherwise pomegranates and pistachio may change its colour. When you are ready to eat your güllaç, remove it from the refrigerator, cut it into squares, garnish and serve.

Pomegranate Cobbler

The cobbler was created early on by settlers in American colonies. Depending on the region, the crust can be the consistency either of crisp biscuit or soft cake, and may be placed either above or below the fruit. Almost any fruit can be used as the base for this popular dessert, and the pomegranate is no exception.

3 cups (2–3 fruit) pomegranate arils

½ cup (100 g) caster sugar for fruit, and ¾ cup (150 g)

caster sugar for batter

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 cup (115 g) plain flour

1 egg

½ cup (125 ml) milk

1 tsp vanilla extract

¼ cup (60 ml) melted butter

Sift flour, baking powder and ¾ cup (150 g) of the sugar into a bowl. Add the vanilla, milk, egg and melted butter, and beat the mixture on high for about 5 minutes until a smooth consistency is achieved. In a baking dish, stir pomegranate arils and the ½ cup (100 g) sugar together. Pour the batter in an even layer over the fruit. Bake for 45 minutes at 180°C (360°F) or until the top is golden brown and springs back. Serve hot with vanilla ice cream.

Grenadine

Grenadine, a syrup made from the pomegranate, is very simple to make and is very useful. Today, most store-bought grenadine is artificially produced and contains no pomegranate. Grenadine is a common finishing ingredient in many classic cocktails including the Singapore Sling, Shirley Temple, Roy Rogers, Tequila Sunrise, Mimosa and Purple Rain. In mixology, the syrup is fairly interchangeable with fresh pomegranate juice or pomegranate liqueur, all three of which make an effective addition to a glass of champagne. Pomegranate is becoming a common addition in creating new takes on cocktail classics like Martinis, Cosmopolitans and Daiquiris. A much thicker version of grenadine, known in Middle Eastern cuisine as nasharab, is served as a sauce on fish and meat.

juice of 2 pomegranates (500 ml)

1 cup (200 g) sugar

Pour pomegranate juice and sugar into a small saucepan. Place on a medium heat on your stovetop. Allow sugar to dissolve and liquid to boil for about 10 minutes (or longer if you want a thicker sauce). A dash of lemon may be added for additional tartness if desired. Refrigerate in container before use.

Chocolate Pomegranate Drops

1 200-g (8-oz) bar milk or dark chocolate

1 cup (1 fruit) pomegranate arils

Melt the chocolate and stir in the pomegranate arils. Spoon portions onto baking paper or into patty pans, and allow to set in a refrigerator. A very simple yet delicious treat. Nuts, coconut and marshmallow can be added to create a pomegranate Rocky Road.

Kolliva

Recipe courtesy of Maria Benardis, from her book My Greek Family Table (Sydney, 2009).

This traditional Greek dish, prepared following the death of a loved one, preserves the antique notion of the pomegranate as a memorial food item.

4 cups (500 g) wheat kernels

2 tsp ground cinnamon, plus extra, for decorating

1 ⅔ cup (250 g) walnuts, chopped

½ cup (75 g) raisins

2 cups (250 g) sesame seeds, toasted and crushed

½ cup (60 g) icing sugar, sifted

½ cup (75 g) blanched almonds, halved

arils of 1 pomegranate

Cover the wheat kernels with water and soak overnight. Drain and rinse well.

Fill saucepan with water, add the soaked wheat and bring to a rapid boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for two hours until the wheat is tender and begins to split open. Stir frequently to prevent sticking, and add more water as required. When the wheat is cooked, remove the pan from the heat and leave to stand for about thirty minutes. Drain the wheat and rinse thoroughly in a colander. Spread it out on a clean tea towel and leave for about two hours, shaking occasionally. Place in a bowl, add the cinnamon, walnuts, raisins and half the sesame seeds and mix gently. Press the mixture down hard on a serving platter and spread the remaining sesame seeds evenly over the top. Dust with a thin layer of icing sugar. Sprinkle the cinnamon to form a cross on the kolliva, then place the almonds on either side of the cinnamon to cross the cross. Place the pomegranate seeds over the exposed icing sugar to form a colourful design. To serve, simply spoon some of the mixture into small bowls. Serve at room temperature.

Pomegranate Macarons

The star of the pomegranate macaron lies in the fruity ganache filling, sandwiched between two almond macarons.

This recipe is contributed by blogger Barbara Chung of www.themacarondiaries.tumblr.com

For the pomegranate ganache filling:

¼ cup (60 ml) thickened cream

juice of 1 pomegranate (yields about ¼ cup (50 ml))

1 cup (130 g) white chocolate, chopped

Chop up the white chocolate and put aside. Cut the pomegranate in half and, with great force, squeeze the juice out into a bowl. Allow the seeds to fall into the bowl as well. Pick out the extra seeds that don’t easily fall in with a spoon and add them to the bowl. Pour the squeezed juice through a strainer into another bowl. Using a spoon, push the seeds into the strainer to extract as much juice as you can. Set aside.

In a small saucepan, on low heat, bring the cream to boil and remove from heat. Pour the hot cream over the chopped chocolate and mix until the chocolate has completely blended with the cream. Once the white chocolate and cream mixture has cooled, stir through the freshly squeezed pomegranate juice. Keep the mixture covered and refrigerate overnight.

For the macarons:

1¼ cups (135 g) almond meal (ground almonds)

1½ cups (180 g) confectioners’ (icing) sugar

3 large egg whites aged at room temperature for a minimum of 24 hours

5 tablespoons (65 g) caster sugar

½ tablespoon red powdered food colouring

Combine the ground almonds with the icing sugar and red powdered macaron colouring and sift three times (or process the almonds and sugar in a food processor if you have one). Set aside. Beat the egg whites until foamy and then add the caster sugar one tablespoon at a time until mixture is thick, shiny and stiff. Fold in half of the dry mixture with the egg whites until combined. Then add about 80 per cent of the rest of the mixture (this is to make sure that the batter doesn’t end up being too dry) and mix lightly in a circular motion. Commence folding the macaron mixture until it moves slowly when the bowl is rocked from side to side. A good way to check is by scooping a spoonful of batter and let it drop back into the bowl. If it slowly drops back into the bowl, lands on the rest of the batter in a small mound and slowly sinks back into the batter, then the process is complete. Do not over-fold your batter as this may cause your macaron batter to become overly runny and, consequently, have no feet.

Line trays with double layers of baking paper. The double layer helps to prevent heat from passing through too quickly. Scoop the macaron mixture into a piping bag and pipe small mounds of macaron batter (about 2–2.5 cm or 1 inch diameter) onto the lined trays. Once you are done, tap the tray firmly against the counter or other flat surface to release any trapped air from the piped shells. This will help the macarons hold their round shape and enables the pieds or little ‘feet’ to form. Set aside the trays to dry at room temperature. In order for macarons to form a smooth, shiny dome, the batter must not stick to your finger when touched.

Once the batter is dried, you may place them into the oven. Bake at 120–130°C (250–265°F) for 15–20 minutes; it is best to keep your eye on the macarons as each oven differs. Once you take them out of the oven, place the tray on a cooling rack and allow the shells to cool. Once the macarons have cooled, you may sandwich the shells with the pomegranate ganache filling to complete your macaron. Rest the macarons in the fridge overnight in order for the shells to absorb the moisture from the filling. Serve the completed macarons at room temperature.