Rob and Sophia Palmer are the the couple behind Colour of Maroc, a book billed as a celebration of food and life in Morocco. It's a delicious combination of food and travel, made richer by Sophia's Moroccan roots and Rob's photography. As Sophia explains, no self respecting Moroccan cook works from a recipe, so they spent many hours watching her mother and friends cooking to capture the spice combinations of these dishes, and learned much more about Moroccan life on the way. We picked two salads and a pilaf to share here – just add your own meat or fish dish for a Moroccan feast. 



Roasted cauliflower salad with saffron & currant dressing
My aunty Cherifa is a painter. She loves mixing colours and textures and, as it turns out, she is creative in the kitchen too. We were already impressed by her spiced cauliflower gratin but then she decided to compose from scratch a salad based on the same ingredients and ended up creating this wonderful saffron currant dressing. That's how it works here – no recipe, just inspiration and creativity.

Ingredients (serves 6)
700g/1lb9oz cauliflower, broken into small florets
2 tbsp olive oil
sea salt flakes and black pepper, to season
1 red onion, finely chopped
1/2 cup flat-leaf parsley leaves
1/2 cup unsalted almonds, roasted and chopped

Saffron currant dressing
1/2 tsp saffron thread
1 tbsp boiling water
3 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp red wine vinegar
2 tbsp currants
Sea salt flakes and black pepper, to season

Preparation
For the saffron currant dressing, place the saffron and boiling water in a small bowl and stand for 5 minutes. Whisk in the oil and vinegar until well combined, then stir in the currants. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside. Stir well before using.

Preheat an overn to 190C/375F/Gas 5. Place the cauliflower and oil in a large bowl, toss well to combine. Transfer the cauliflower mixture to a baking tray and spread to a single layer. Bake in oven for 15-20 minute or until tender and golden.

Place the warm cauliflower in a shallow serving dish, pour over the saffron currant dressing and toss gently to combine. Sprinkle with the onion, parsley and almonds. Serve immediately, drizzled with more olive oil.



Pickled beetroot salad with feta & walnuts
Overlooking Volubilis and the surrounding Moroccan plains, we'd eaten with a local family perched high in Moulay Idriss, the hillside holy town named after the man who in the 8th century brought Islam and established Morocco's first dynasty. Assia welcomed us into her home and produced a picked beetroot salad that Rob talked about for days afterwards, inspiring us to create this twist on the same recipe.

Ingredients (serves 4)
3 cups.750ml/26fl oz water
1 cup/250ml/9fl oz malt vinegar
1 cup white sugar
2 cinnamon sticks
1 tbsp coriander (cilantro) seeds
2 whole star anise
500g/1lb 2oz baby beetroot (beets), trimmed
1/2 cup/50g/1 3/4oz walnut halves, toasted
1/3 cup/65g/2 1/2oz feta, crumbled

Honey mustard dressing 
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tbsp red wine vinegar
2 tsp honey
1 tsp wholegrain mustard
Sea salt flakes and black pepper, to season

Preparation
Place the water, vinegar, sugar and spices in a medium saucepan over a low heat. Cook, stirring, until the sugar dissolved. Add the beetroot and cook, partially covered, for 1 hour or until the beetroot is tender when tested with a skewer. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the beetroot to a heatproof bowl and reserve the pickling liquid. Cool the beetroot to room temperature, then peel and discard the skins. Return the beetroot to the reserved pickling liquid. You can serve the pickled beetroot immediately or store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.

For the honey mustard dressing, whisk all of the ingredients together in a small bowl until well combined. Season with salt and pepper.

Remove the beetroot from the pickling liquid and halve them lengthways. Transfer the beetroot to a serving plate and drizzle with the honey mustard dressing, tossing gently to coat. Sprinkle over the walnuts and the feta. Serve immediately.



Barley & vegetable pilaf with cumin dressing
Moroccans love pumpkins as Australians do so we thought we'd use it along with chickpeas and herbs to create this earthy yet refreshing pilaf, which can either be served with roasted or grilled meats, or as a vegetarian dish on its own.

Ingredients (serves 6 as an accompaniment)
1/2 cup/100g/3 1/2oz dried chickpeas, soaked overnight
1 1/2 cups/300g/10 1/2oz pearl barley, rinsed and drained
1 cup/50g/1 3/4pz flat leaf parsley leaves
3 spring onions (scallions), thinly sliced
4 red capsicums (peppers), cut into 2cm/3/4in wide strips
800g/1lb 12oz butternut pumpkin (squash), skin removed and cut into 2cm/3/4in pieces
1/4 cup/60ml/2fl oz olive oil
sea salt flakes and black pepper, to season

Cumin dressing
1 tbsp finely grated lemon zest
1/2 cup/12kml/4fl oz lemon juice
1/2 cup/12kml/4fl oz olive oil
2 tsp ground cumin
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 tsp sea salt flakes

Preparation
For the cumin dressing, whisk all the ingredients together in a small bowl. Set aside and whisk again before using.

Drain the soaked chickpeas and rinse well under cold running water. Discard any skins that have fallen off or are loose. Cook the chickpeas in a large saucepan of boiling salted water for 50-55 minutes or until tender. Set aside.

Cook the barley in a large saucepan of boiling salted water for 30 minutes or until tender. Drain, then while still hot combine with the chickpeas and half of the cumin dressing. Toss together to combine. Set aside to cool to room temperature and allow flavours to develop. Once cooled, toss through the parsley and spring onion.

Preheat oven to 190C/375F/Gas 5. Place the capsicum, pumpkin and oil together in a large bowl. Season with salt and peper. Toss well to coat then transfer to a large baking tray lined with non-stick baking paper. Bake in oven for 35-40 minutes or until vegetables are tender and golden. Remove tray from oven and add the remaining cumin dressing, toss gently to coat.

Spoon the chickpea mixture into a large shallow bowl and top with the vegetables. Serve immediately.


Recipes from Colour of Maroc by Rob & Sophie Palmer.