Casablanca
“With the coming of the Second World War, many eyes in imprisoned Europe turned hopefully, or desperately, toward the freedom of the Americas. Lisbon became the great embarkation point. But, not everybody could get to Lisbon directly, and so a tortuous, roundabout refugee trail sprang up – Paris to Marseilles… across the Mediterranean to Oran… then by train, or auto, or foot across the rim of Africa, to Casablanca in French Morocco. Here, the fortunate ones through money, or influence, or luck, might obtain exit visas and scurry to Lisbon; and from Lisbon, to the New World. But the others wait in Casablanca… and wait… and wait… and wait…”
And thus, viewers are introduced to Casablanca– one of the most lauded films of all time. Made on a tight budget and with no real expectation of success, Casablanca relied on excellent cinematography, sharp (sometimes hilariously so) dialogue, and an epic romance framed by the clashing ideologies of a World War. Humphrey Bogart as antihero bar owner Rick Blaine is classic Bogie– dry af, cynical, and really pissed that he was left high and dry by his lady love Ilsa a couple of years prior.
As my favorite French Captain Louis Renault says, “Rick is the kind of man that… well, if I were a woman, and I were not around, I should be in love with Rick”. Ilsa Lund, played by Ingrid Bergman, is caught between her still strong feelings for Rick and her sense of loyalty to the actual war hero she had married before meeting Rick, and who she thought had died in a concentration camp. She’s the kind of woman who says things like “Was that cannon fire, or is it my heart pounding?” and “Oh, I don’t know what’s right any longer. You have to think for both of us.” Not to mention “Kiss me. Kiss me as if it were the last time!” (there’s a reason I’m a bigger fan of Lauren Bacall).
I don’t want to give too much away if you haven’t seen the film, but if you care enough about movies to read this blog, I’d be surprised if you hadn’t. And, since today is the 80th anniversary of Casablanca’s theatrical release, it’s a great time to revisit and eat a feast of Moroccan themed bar snacks and couscous. Add in some liquid courage in the form of French 75’s (because we’ll always have Paris) and some romantic NYC black and whites for Bogie, and you’ll be set. Just note that I cheated/provided suggestions on how to cheat in some of these recipes. But that’s ok because [spoiler alert] this movie is chock full of cheating.
Here’s looking at you, kid.
The Movie
The Menu
Of all the gin joints, in all the towns, in all the world, she walks into mine... Add in some of the champagne that never seems to stop flowing in Casablanca and you have the key ingredients for a French '75. Cue the "Marseillaise"! In a shaker filled with ice, mix the gin, lemon juice and simple syrup-- shake until well-chilled. Strain into two Champagne coupes and top off with the champagne and lemon twists. If you can afford Veuve Cliquot champers, go for it. And then invite me over/lend me some money. Because Rick's is the hottest saloon in town! Time to round up the usual suspects-- cocktail olives, trail mix, and chips and dip... but with a Moroccan twist. Start by collecting your olives, olive oil, herbs, harissa and lemon zest. Toss together and cover tightlly-- refrigerate for at least an hour before serving, and up to a few days. Onto your other super easy bar snack. Preheat the oven to 400, and collect your nuts and dried nuts-- separately, melt your butter in a small bowl and mix in your spices, sugar, and salt. On a parchment lined cookie sheet, toss your almonds with your spiced butter, making sure that the nuts aren't overcrowded on the pan. Bake in the oven for roughly 8-9 mins, making sure they don't burn. Remove quickly from the oven in order to toss in your dates, and continue to toast for another couple of minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool before serving or storing in an airtight container. Time to tackle your "chips and dip"-- ie, your flatbread and zaalouk. Commence with your flatbread. Mix flour and salt in a medium bowl and create a small well in the center with your fingers. Add your yeast, and pour in your water. Allow to sit for a minute to allow the yeast time to bloom. Mix the dough together and add either a) more flour if it's too sticky, or b) a sprinkle of water if too dry. It should be tacky to the touch at first, but after a few minutes of kneading, the dough should sprink back slightly to the touch. Cover, and allow to rest for 5-10 mins. Divide the dough into 3 equal portions and flatten each to roughly 6-7 inches in diameter and about 1/4 inch thick (think thin pizza crust). Heat a skillet over medium, and add your first flatbread-- cook for about a minute, then flip and cook for a few more. You'll likely see the dough just begin to char, and big bubbles puff up the dough as it heats. Repeat with the remaining two flatbreads. Serve warm with your zaalouk (but these can also be stored in a ziploc and reheated in the oven). On to your dip! See ingredients below. Wipe any residual flour from the same skillet and add the olive oil for your zaalouk. Heat on medium, and add the eggplant, tomatoes, tomato paste, garlic, parsley, cilantro, smoked paprika, cumin, and cayenne. Add in 1/2 cup of water, toss to coat, then cover. Simmer, stirring periodically, for about 10 minutes until your veggies begin to soften. If you think the mix is getting too dry and is starting to burn, add a bit more water and continue to cook. Once the eggplant has sufficiently softened, mash the mixture to a smoother consistency. Stir in some fresh lemon juice additional salt, to taste. Garnish with olive oil and maybe some flaky maldon salt (if you have it). Et Voilà! If you can't find prepped ras el hanout, I have a recipe here in my On the Side collection. Instead of making flatbread, feel free to cheat and cut up some of your favorite pita, naan, or a crusty baguette. I almost made a tagine. But as it turns out, couscous is the national dish of Morocco (patriotism!), and is traditionally served with meats and seven vegetables (ie bidaoui style) in Casablanca-- NOT as a side dish for tagine stews. Also I don't own a tagine and didn't want to buy one. 🙂 So here is a large couscous dish for all three members of the Casablanca love triangle (because poor Victor Laszlo deserves something for being such a stand up guy). Plus some leftovers for Louis. Slice and peel all the stuff tat needs slicing and peeling, and prep your spices. In a large, deep skillet, heat 1 tbsp olive oil on high and, while you wait for it to heat, sprinkle your chicken thighs with salt and pepper. Sear, skin side down first, for about one minute. Flip, and sear the other side for another minute before moving the poultry to a plate. Add the onions, carrots, parsnip, and sweet potato to the pan and toss to coat in the residual oil. Reduce heat to medium and continue to sautee for five or so minutes, until the onions just begin to caramalize and your root veggies start to soften at the edges. Add zucchini and garlic, followed by the spices, 1 tsp salt, 1 tsp pepper, grated tomato, half of your parsley, and half of your cilantro. Toss to coat. Pour in your chicken broth, and nestle your chicken thighs skin up among the vegetables. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer, covered, until vegetables are "al dente" and the meat has been mostly cooked through-- this should take about 20-25 minutes. Lastly, add in the garbanzo beans and continue to cook just until they are warm (5-10 mins). While you wait, make your couscous in a medium pot according to directions on the package. but substitute chicken broth for water. Bring the broth to a boil in the pot with the olive oil before adding the couscous--move off the burner, and cover. Allow to sit and steam for five minutes before fluffing with a fork and setting aside Dish out the couscous in a large mound-- make a well in the center, into which you will put your three chicken thigs. Top carefully with vegetables in a vertically alternating pattern, followed by chickpeas and a generous pour of broth. Garnish with additional cilantro, parsley, and serve with extra bowls of broth. If you were really going authentic with this, you'd buy a couscoussier and steam the couscous three times. But I cheated and used instant stovetop couscous instead. It's what Bogie would have done... Da-dy-da-dy-da-dum, da-dy-da-dee-da-dum... Still not spoiling the ending, but I did want to pay tribute to the romantical fantasy of Rick and Ilsa ending up together in NYC. AND it's a black and white film. BUT love and war isn't always black and white... It's a deep, deep recipe you guys. Begin by preheating your oven to 350, and lining a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Whisk together the flour, baking powder and baking soda in a medium bowl, and gather the rest of your ingredients-- note, your butter will need a little time to soften if you are getting it straight from the fridge. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the softened butter and sugar together on medium-high speed until creamy, about a minute. Add the egg and vanilla extract next, and beat on high speed until combined and smooth, about 1 minute. Reduce the speed to low, and then add 1/3 of your dry ingredients. Alternate that with your sour cream in 2 more batches each, continuing to beat everything on low until fully combined. The batter should be pretty thick Return to your cookie sheets and spoon your cookie dough into heart shapes-- you can use a heart shapped cookie cutter (greased) to help guide you. Bake for 18-20 minutes or until the edges are lightly browned-- if you notice that the cookies are spreading and losing their shape, feel free to VERY quickly mold them back into place with a butter knife. Once the cookies are done, cool on the baking sheets for roughly 5 minutes, then remove the cookies to a wire rack and refrigerate until you are ready to apply icing. Speaking of: thoroguhly combine the confectioners’ sugar, milk, the corn syrup, vanilla extract, and salt together equally into 2 medium bowls. In one of the bowls, add a splash more milk and the cocoa powder. Whisk until combined Spread vanilla icing onto half of the cookies. Refrigerate for at least 15 minutes to allow icings time to set a bit. Spread chocolate icing onto other side and allow the icing to set completely, about 1 hour, before serving. 
French 75's
Ingredients
French 75
Instructions
Notes
Bar Snacks at Rick's
Ingredients
Harissa Marinated Olives
Moroccan "Trail Mix"
Flatbread and Zaalouk **See note
Instructions
Notes
Couscous Bidaoui
Ingredients
Instructions
Notes
Black and White Loooooove Cookies
Ingredients
Instructions
Epilogue
Could I have ended a post for Casablanca any other way? Best last line of a movie, ever. Harry Burns agrees.
For more menus, check out my movie directory here!