COOK

Moroccan cheese & wine tasting (approx 2 hours)

This course introduces you to two rather unexpected aspects of the modern Moroccan culinary culture. Organic farmhouse cheeses (sheeps and goats) and boutique Moroccan wines from nearby Meknes and more far flung Essaouira. The course pairs 5 distinct cheeses with 5 of the country’s most interesting wines.

Cost: €125 per person incl all taxes, based on 2 pax (min 2 pax); €85 per person incl all taxes, 3-4 pax; €60 per person incl all taxes, 5-6 pax.

1/2 day modern Moroccan tapas (3 hours): 

An easy access, hands-on class, which introduces you to the flavours of Morocco in delectable bite-sized chunks. Discover how to make classic herb based sauces and marinades like chermoula, combine sweet and savory into irresistible snacks, and learn what key ingredients make Moroccan dishes taste so, well, Moroccan. *Please note there is no market visit on this course.

  • chermoula sardines
  • artichoke, pea and preserved lemon dip
  • black olive and fig tapenade
  • smoky aubergine salad (zalouk)
  • chicken, preserved lemon, olive briouats

Cost: €150 one pax; €95 per person up to 6 pax. 

Secrets of sourdough (2.5 hours)

  • how to make your starter and how to care for it (guests take a starter batch home)
  • preparation and baking of one loaf (guests take a loaf home)
  • prep of ‘Berber’ pizza using sourdough crust + ingredients from souks for toppings for lunch

Cost: €95 per person 2 pax; €65 per person 3-4 pax; €45 per person 5-6 pax

Pickles, preserves and ferments (2.5 hours)

  • preserved lemons and pickled plums in the Fez style
  • sauerkraut / kimchi with souk spices
  • traditional tomato jam (equally beautiful for breakfast as it is with cheeses and charcuterie)

Cost: €95 per person 2 pax; €65 per person 3-4 pax; €45 per person 5-6 pax

1 day introduction to modern Moroccan cooking (10am-4pm)

Immerse yourself in the exotic flavours of Moroccan cuisine while learning to put together a show-stopping lunch or dinner party. This day long class is built on seasonal ingredients, so I’ll agree the menu with you in advance and starts with a visit to the local market to select produce. Back at the Courtyard Kitchen after an introduction to the cuisine’s key herbs, spices and aromatics we’ll prepare 5 different dishes to be paired with 2 boutique Moroccan wines over a late lunch.

Cost: €350 one pax; €175 per person, 2 pax; €125 per person, 3-4 pax; €95 per person, 5-6 pax

1 day farm to fork (10am-4pm)

Escape to the country and discover the rural way of life among Berber communities in the foothills of the Middle Atlas. We’ll take you out by private transfer to an organic goats farm (approx one hour from Fez), where we’ll prepare food in an outdoor kitchen followed by an al fresco lunch among the apple orchards.

Here we make traditional Berber bread with Bouchra (a charming home cook who lives on the farm) in a wood-fired clay oven, b’sarra (a fava bean soup typically served for breakfast, but equally good for lunch, served with my special sweet pickled roots), goats cheese tagine (think of it as my Moroccan spin on a fondue) together with a cheese board so you can taste the rest of the wares.

All of this is done in an outdoor kitchen and afterwards we’ll settle down for a leisurely lunch in an apple orchard paired with chilled white wine served from a silver teapot in ceramic beakers (for cultural reasons we cannot overtly serve alcohol here, but this is a discreet way around it). It’s quite magical in the spring.

Cost (incl. private transfer): €195 per person, 2 pax; €125 per person, 3-4 pax; €105 per person, 5-6 pax

2 day immersion course in Morocco’s culinary culture

It is recommended you arrive the night before to get settled in before embarking on this course. A welcome dinner is served at Dar Namir paired with Moroccan wines to get you in the mood for what is to come.

Day 1 kicks off with a hearty breakfast followed by a visit to the local market to shop for ingredients for the next couple of days. Back at the house we’ll prepare traditional khobz (Morocco’s daily bread) infused with wild oregano and black olives, preserved lemons (which you can take home with you), chocolate olive oil cake and rosewater and cardamom labne (for tonights dinner). Next it’s time for a stroll to the honey souk (there are 17 different types to try so I do recommend checking in luggage so you can take some home) and my local spice trader to stock up on freshly ground spices. Afterwards we’ll stop in to a local street food market for a slap up lunch. The rest of the afternoon is yours to do what you want with. Go to the local hammam for a spice scrub, read on the terrace, or head back into the souks for a spot of shopping. Sunset drinks are served at Dar Namir before a traditional Moroccan dinner around 7.30pm.

Day 2 we’ll take all we’ve seen and leaned from yesterday and turn it into 5 modern Moroccan dishes (we’ll agree the menu together in advance) that we’ll cook together before settling down to a leisurely late lunch paired with Moroccan wines. You may feel ready for a siesta afterwards, but late afternoon is also a great time to roam the medina and take in some of the sights. A guide is recommended for this, which I’m happy to organise for you (please give plenty of notice, and be aware this will incur an additional cost depending on how long you want to be out for). Dinner is yours to enjoy alone, and I’m happy to make recommendations from Contemporary Moroccan fine dining, to Franco-Moroccan fusion, to fast food with a Fassi twist. Please help yourselves to a nightcap on returning home.

Cost: €550 per person, based on 2 pax (includes: 3 nights accommodation with breakfast, 1 x welcome dinner with wine, 1 x market tour, 1 x street food lunch, 1 x food shopping tour, 2 x cooking classes. It does not include: transfers, guide services for non-specified tours, hammam treatments, external meals etc)