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Рецепт Chicken with Preserved Lemon and Olives; it won't be me...
by Katie Zeller

The voting is in; the people have made their wishes known.

FoodBuzz's Project Food Blog Challenge #1 is over.

And I didn't make the cut.

Which comes as no surprise.

I didn't spend the last 3 days tweeting or blogging for votes. (Not my style.)

I realized, when I wrote my post, that it was likely not to win.

I'd written another earlier, nice one, talking about my love of cooking; how I carefully crafted each recipe and perfected each photo. (Not my style, either.)

Then I went back and read the instructions and they said something about 'using your own voice'.

I reread my post.

Not a voice I recognized.

My voice tends to be opinionated, sarcastic and, occasionally, snarky....

My voice is likely not the voice of the next Food Blog Star.

So I redid the post.

The new post was more like me....

But I was pretty sure it wouldn't win any prizes.

I was happy with that.

I signed up early on to compete. I think it's a wonderful contest and some lucky blogger will get a wonderful prize and a fantastic opportunity.

Once the challenges were outlined, with dates, I realized I wouldn't be able to finish, even if I managed to advance through every level. There were 2 challenges that, either do to travel commitments or technology, I wouldn't be able to participate in.

So it would hardly be fair for me to take a spot that could be used by someone else.

I just wanted to help promote the fun!

But, as I am a good scout, and always prepared (sic) I made this wonderful, classic Moroccan dish last week.... Just in case I managed to advance despite my efforts.

I mean, after all..... It's about the food!

I mentioned, a few weeks ago, that the fairy godparents at Amazon delivered two wonderful new cookbooks to my door.

Let me digress a moment: These were not free. I have never, ever received anything free to talk about in my blog. I have been offered free stuff: books, food, whatever; but, as soon as it's discovered that I live in France..... Well, even the people who promise to send it, never do. So let me assure you... Anything I promote I have paid for and am not being paid for.

Back to the book:

This is easily the best cook book I have seen in a long, long time. The photos are wonderful, the information great and the recipes.....

Ahhh, the recipes.....

I haven't found a single one that I don't want to jump up and make immediately.

I even bought myself a wee present - a tagine.

This is my first ever foray into Moroccan cuisine....

It's a classic Moroccan dish, popular for feasts, festivals and holidays....

And it doesn't use a tagine...

Based on the recipe from 'the food or morocco, a journey for food lover's'. (Slightly modified)

Rinse the preserved lemon in cool water. Remove and discard the pulp. Cut the rind into strips.

Heat oil in a large skillet. Add onion, garlic and sauté until tender, about 5 minutes. Add the chicken stock, herbs, spices, olives and lemon. Stir well to combine.

Place chicken in a deep baking dish. Pour contents of skillet over chicken. Roast, 350F (180C) for 90 minutes, or until done, basting every 15 minutes.

When chicken is done, remove from dish and cover to keep warm. Pour the sauce from the baking dish into a large skillet and bring to a boil.

Add the chicken livers and cook through. Remove and very finely chop. (The recipe says to mash them into the sauce.... Mash chicken livers? I tried. I failed. I chopped.) Reduce the sauce slightly.

Cut the chicken into pieces, pour the reduced sauce over and serve.

This was good.

Really, really good.

The chicken was falling of the bones, incredibly moist and the sauce was wonderful. I thought the cinnamon might be a bit overpowering, but it wasn't at all.

And the kitchen smelled heavenly.

Do try this.....

And the best of luck to all the FoodBuzz bloggers who advanced to Challenge #2.