My Latest Food Obsession...

Have you heard of Dukkah? Well, me,neither, until Christmas. My son and daughter in law gave me an amazing cookbook from America's Test Kitchen called "DIY- Can It, Cure It, Churn It, Brew It". As I was going through all the great recipes for things I need to make fresh at home instead of buying pre-prepared (think- ketchup, worstershire sauce, bacon jam, ricotta cheese, oreos, and more!) I found one recipe for an interesting mix called, "Dukkah". It is a seed, nut and spice blend from North Africa that is served as a crunchy topping or crust for meat or fish, blended into hummus or yogurt, or stirred into olive oil as a dip for bread. It's primarily made from pistachios, almonds, sesame seeds, cumin and coriander, but there are many versions.
This past weekend, we went on a wonderful weekend getaway to the beautiful King Estates Winery in Eugene, Oregon for their annual 'All you can eat Crabfest and All you can drink Pinot Gris" Event. That whole story is for another post :)
On the way home, we decided to take the 1-5 to Medford to the 140 to the 97, instead of taking the 58 to the 97--which was a good call, since the 58 was loaded with snow and a winter weather advisory. We only encountered about 10 miles of heavy snow on the 58 and the roads were clear. Anyhow, in Medford, I begged our friends to stop at Trader Joe's- since it recently (December 2012) opened and I haven't had a TJ run since October 2012.
While wandering up and down the aisles, I encountered a container of "Dukkah" in the spice aisle. Since I'd never actually tasted it, I picked up a jar. It's delicious!
Last night, we weren't very hungry, so I baked up a small spaghetti squash and tossed it with my 'fake alfredo' sauce- some half and half and chicken stock blended with a package of Boursin cheese. Yes, I know, it's cheating, but it's soooo good!
Tonight, we wanted something a little more substantial, so I made some garlic lemon sauce with shrimp and peas and added a couple of dollops of the 'fake alfredo' from last night. I tossed it with some eggs noodles and topped it with chives and parsley from my herb pot, and sprinkled some Trader Joe's Dukkah on top.
OMG.
Here's the finished product...

 It was so delicious!
Enjoy!