Becoming chefs in Marrakech

Our morning began with a twist. Instead of only eating the delicious Moroccan cuisine we were going to make some! We woke up on our last day in Marrakech excited for this new experience and had a quick breakfast at the riad before heading out into the busy streets and souks. Dodging our way around donkeys, carriages, motorcycles, and cars we finally make it to Cafe Clock featuring not only an intercultural cafe but a Moroccan cooking school. Our goal was to make our own three course lunch. We started out by washing and cutting up veggies for the couscous and tagine. We used a variety of vegetables including cabbage, crushed tomato, carrots, turnips, eggplant onions, squash, and garlic.

Once we had warmed up our cooking skills we moved onto the chicken, which was our main course and would also make up the tagine. We first added turmeric, curry, and cumin spices. With a splash of olive oil, we mixed the delicious rub we had just created onto the chicken and set it on the stove to cook. After this we prepared our couscous by adding cool water to the grain and placing it in a steamer on top of the vegetables. Next, we just added the remaining veggies to make a Biesara soup which is made of fava and lentil beans along with sautéed onions and garlic.

While the food was cooking we sat down on the second floor of the cafe and ordered a couple of their specialty drinks. I got the banana smoothie while others had avocado with orange juice or an almond milkshake. Soon the food we had helped to cook was ready to be eaten. We started off with some cooked carrots in lettuce shells with the Biesara soup. For our main courses we enjoyed mouthwatering chicken tagine and heaping plates of vegetable couscous. To finish off the 5 star meal we had pastries made with semolina flour, rose water, and apricot jam. They were like an explosion in our mouth and had a crunchy outside with a soft cake like feel inside. Sadly, after spending most of the morning cooking we had to head back to our riad and say goodbye to Marrakech. We were heading for the beach!

Our three hour ride to Essouira flew by with singing and laughter the whole ride. We also made a short detour to an Argon Oil farm, which is one of the four main exports of Morocco. There we saw the process of turning argon nuts to oil. First the outer shell is cracked off and is fed to goats. And the remaining nut is then crushed into a paste using a rock with an attached handle which is turned clock-wise. The paste is then used in peanut butter, as an oil, or in cosmetic oils.

We arrived in Essouira in the late afternoon and after settling into our spacious rooms at the Aljazira (“the island”) Hotel we decided to go explore the beach. We quickly stepped onto miles and miles of sand and beach in every direction. I have never been to a beach where I could not see either end of it. The sand was fine and soft and there were small waves breaking. We started our walk to the water and were treated by a surprise, camels! There were horses and camels and all sort of animals on the beach all wanting with owners trying to entice us to take a ride.