Rose Petal Harissa #MoviesandMunchies
I am posting this after watching Practical Magic for our October Movies & Munchies group. It seemed an appropriate pick ahead of Halloween and especially since the sequel has been recently released.
On the Screen
Hmmm...what to say? I don't know if I have ever seen this movie though I think I have read the book on which it was based. This movie was released in 1998 and its sequel just came out nearly three decades later. I watched it twice just because I haven't been able to put my finger on its genre. Is it a rom-com? Is it horror lite? Or is it a family drama? Regardless, I think we can all agree it's witchy and kitschy and not a waste of time.
Nicole Kidman and Sandra Bullock play two Owens sisters, Gilly and Sally, respectively; they were raised by their aunts played by Dianne Wiest and Stockard Channing. Cursed by an ancestor, all of the Owens women are doomed to have the man they love die once the death beetle scratches on their floor.
Gilly is unfazed and falls in love - or lust - over and over while Sally decides to cast a spell for a man who - in her childhood mind - can't possibly exist. The spell is called Amas Veritas, true love. She declares about her true love: He can flip pancakes in the air. He'll be marvelously kind. And his favorite shape will be a star. And he'll have one green eye and one blue.
When her sister asks why she is casting a true love spell when she doesn't want to fall in love, Sally retorts, "That's the point. The guy I dreamed of doesn't exist. And if he doesn't exist I'll never die of a broken heart.” Well, you can guess what happens.
Spoilers here. So, if you haven't seen it, skip on to the recipe now! Gilly and Sally accidentally kill Gilly's boyfriend who was abusing her. They bury him under the rose bushes and then law enforcement officer Gary Hallet, played by Aidan Quinn, shows up looking for him. Gary carries a star badge, can flip pancakes, and has one green eye and one blue eye!
Plot holes and silliness aside, I think this definitely deserves a place on my Halloween classics list. My boys will likely disagree.
Rose Petal Harissa
I was inspired to do something with roses as they are the flower Sally uses to cast her true love spell and it's under a rose bush that Sally and Gilly bury the man they killed.
I put out a call to my mom and a few of my gardener friends, asking for fresh organic roses, though this completely the wrong season for it, I know. Most asked if I could wait till May. Ummmm...no, I need it for an event this month. Then my mom said "Well, I have a few." I'll take 'em! So, I drove over to my mom's house and I took every last bloom on her bushes.
I started with two different homemade harissa recipes, then, as expected, I did some swapping and swerving to come up with this - my own version of rose harissa.
A Throwback
When roses were in season, I had R pick a bunch and attempted to make Gulkand, an Indian rose petal jam. It didn't work. I will try again next season.
So, with my scant few roses from my mom's yard, I made this instead...
Ingredients
Harissa
4 cups roasted red peppers, skinned and deseeded
1 teaspoon ground guajillo chile
2 teaspoons crushed garlic
1/2 cup dried, organic, food-grade rose petals
1 cup organic, food-grade rose petals
peel from 1 organic clementine or orange
pinch of saffron
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
2 teaspoons organic brown sugar
1 Tablespoon rose water
1 teaspoon orange blossom water
2 Tablespoons sesame seed oil
2 Tablespoons olive oil (I used a robust olive oil)
For Toasting
8 whole cloves
2 star anise
1/4 teaspoon brown mustard seeds
1/4 teaspoon caraway seeds
1/4 teaspoon cumin seeds
4 cardamom pods
For Toasting
In a dry skillet, toast the above ingredients until they are aromatic and releasing their essential oils. Let cool, slightly, and grind in a spice or clean coffee grinder.
Harissa
In a blender, in two batches, blend all of the ingredients to form a smooth paste or sauce. Spoon the harissa into clean jars and top with a layer of olive oil. I garnished my jars with a few dried rose petals. Store in the refrigerator and use within a month.
That's a wrap on my offering for Practical Magic. I will post one more recipe when I round-up all the other posts at the end of this month. Stay tuned!
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