Ethiopia | I Can Cook That

Note: I was sent a copy of 30 Breads to Bake Before You Die by Allyson Reedy in order to write this post on Teff Biscuits. Opinions are mine alone.

You may have noticed that I don’t do much breadmaking on this blog. It’s been a goal of mine to learn how to bake different breads but I have yet to really dive in. So when I was contacted to check out Allyson Reedy’s cookbook 30 Breads to Bake Before You Die (paid link), it seemed like my time had come!

“This book is written for anyone who is intimidated by the word ‘starter,’ and who think levain is just a bakery that makes really good cookies,” author Allyson Reedy says. “People who really love bread, but who may not know exactly where to start when it comes to baking it themselves. People like me.”

The cookbook is filled with recipes from famous bakers, chefs, and food bloggers who have put in the hours to perfect an awesome range of breads. Recipes range from a traditional baguette to Chocolate Babka King Cake and everything in between.

I can honestly see myself baking through this entire cookbook (the chapters are broken into Loaves, Smaller Carbs, Flats, and Sweets) but a recipe for Teff Biscuits from Marcus Samuelsson caught my eye immediately, so that is where we begin!

Teff is a gluten free grain that originates in Ethiopia that is higher in fiber than other grains and is a good source of iron. When added to a traditional southern-style biscuit, you end up with a slightly nutty take on the classic.

Note that you’ll need a kitchen scale (paid link) to make these Teff Biscuits. Weighing out your ingredients in baking ensures a more consistent result.

Ingredients:

6 grams teff grains (paid link)
25 grams teff flour (paid link)
244 grams all-purpose flour
275 grams cake flour, plus more to roll out dough
19 grams baking powder
9 grams salt
65 grams granulated sugar
1/4 pound (1 stick) unsalted butter, cold
350 grams (about 1 1/2 cups) buttermilk, cold
1/4 quart (1 cup) heavy cream, cold

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One of my favorite new-ish shows is PBS’s No Passport Required with Marcus Samuelsson. Each episode explores the immigrant communities and food within different U.S. cities. There have only been 6 shows, but I’m hooked. Each episode includes Chef Samuelsson meeting, hanging out, and eating with members of the different immigrant communities in Detroit, New Orleans, Chicago, Queens, Miami, and Washington, D.C.

Not only is the show really interesting and informative, it’s difficult to not get hungry while watching,! PBS luckily includes some recipes on their website. But there was one I was hoping they’d post and at least as of this post, it’s not there: Ful Medames from the Washington, D.C. episode which highlighted the Ethiopian community in our nation’s capital.

Ful Medames is a breakfast dish of mashed fava beans, topped with hard boiled eggs, feta cheese, tomato, and jalapeno. I’ve had a bag of dried fava beans sent to me from Bob’s Red Mill in my pantry for a while now, and I knew they were destined for this recipe. Not only does Ful Medames sound fantastic, but my husband is currently training for a marathon, and this sounded like the perfect fuel after a long training run.

Ful Medames gets a lot of its flavor from a spice blend called berbere. Berbere is an Ethiopian spice mixture that usually includes chilies, garlic, ginger, basil, fenugreek, coriander, and cardamom. It is spicy, but I adjusted so this version doesn’t have too much heat. Feel free to add more for spiciness. For my local Philadelphians, I found berbere in The Head Nut in Reading Terminal, but there are recipes online to make your own at home if you don’t live near a spice shop. Penzey’s also has a version of berbere.

My version isn’t terribly authentic, but the general idea is there. I used soft boiled eggs instead, solely because I don’t love hard boiled eggs. Feel free to substitute in hard-boiled.

Note: Before cooking with the fava beans, be sure to soak them overnight.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups dried fava beans, soaked overnight
5 cups water, plus more as needed
4 tablespoons olive oil, divided, plus more for serving
1 medium sized onion, finely chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/2 teaspoons berbere, divided
3/4 teaspoon cumin, divided
Salt and pepper, to taste
4 eggs (omit for vegan)
1 tomato (or ~4 oz cherry tomatoes), finely chopped
1 jalapeno, seeds and membranes removed, finely chopped
2 oz feta cheese (omit for vegan)
2 green onions, thinly sliced
the juice of 1 lemon
Pita bread, for serving (omit for gluten free)

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