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(If you are cooking dried garbanzos, go ahead and prepare the peppers and onions while they are cooking.) To roast the bell peppers: Place the peppers directly on the open flame of a gas burner or a grill, and roast until the skins are charred, using tongs to turn the peppers so that they char evenly. Once they are blackened all over, place the peppers in a bowl, cover tightly with plastic wrap, and allow the peppers to steam for 5 minutes. Then peel off the skins (they should come off easily), remove the stems and seeds, and slice the peppers into 1/3-inch-wide strips.

Next, prepare the onions: Heat a large sauté pan over medium-high heat and drizzle 2 tablespoons of the oil into it. Add 1 tablespoon of the butter and the onions. Season them lightly with salt and pepper, and sauté until brown, about 5 to 7 minutes. Deglaze the sauté pan with 1/3 cup water, scraping any brown bits from the bottom with a wooden spoon. Cook until all the liquid evaporates. Deglaze the pan again with another 1/3 cup water, and cook until the liquid evaporates. (The extra round of deglazing will deepen the flavor.) Set the onions aside.

To put the stew together, heat a large saucepan over medium-high heat and drizzle the remaining 1 tablespoon oil into it. Add the remaining tablespoon of butter and the potatoes, cut side down. Cook until golden, about 2 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium. Add the peppers and onions and sauté slightly, about 1 minute. Add the garbanzo beans and their cooking liquid; cook until the stew is slightly thickened, 8 to 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste, stir in the minced parsley, and serve. Like most stews, this one will taste even better the next day.

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Honey and Chamomile Ice Cream Terrine

Chamomile is one of Michelle’s favorite teas, especially with honey and milk. She loves to have it after a meal or before she leaves the restaurant for the evening. This ice cream recipe produces a creamy terrine that is great served with sliced peaches. Buy dried chamomile flowers in bulk for the best flavor.

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INGREDIENTS

10 raw hazelnuts

Unsalted butter, for the loaf pan

2 cups heavy cream

2 cups whole milk

1 ½ cups honey

1 cup loose chamomile tea (flowers)

12 egg yolks

2 ripe peaches

1 tablespoon sugar

Makes 1 terrine; serves 8 to 10

Adjust the oven rack to the middle position and preheat the oven to 350ºF.

Scatter the hazelnuts on a cookie sheet and toast in the oven until they’re golden through the center, about 10 minutes. (To check if they’re done, cut one open and inspect the color inside.) Chop them roughly.

Butter an 8 ½ by 4 ½ by 2 ¾-inch loaf pan and line it with plastic wrap, leaving the excess flaps hanging over the sides of the pan. Place the pan in the freezer until ready to use.

Combine the cream, milk, and honey in a medium nonreactive saucepan and bring to a boil. Remove the pan from the heat, add the chamomile tea, and let it steep for 10 minutes. Then pour the mixture through a fine-mesh sieve into a bowl. Discard the tea leaves. Return the strained mixture to the saucepan.

Whisk the egg yolks in a large bowl until smooth. Bring the cream mixture back to a boil, and temper the hot liquid into the yolks by adding it, a ladle at a time, while whisking vigorously. Return the mixture to the pan and cook over very low heat, stirring with a wooden spoon, until the liquid is thick enough to coat the back of the spoon. Strain the liquid through a fine-mesh sieve one more time, and refrigerate until it’s cold. Freeze the mixture in an ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s directions.

Pull the loaf pan from the freezer and fill it one third of the way with the chamomile ice cream. Sprinkle a third of the hazelnuts over the ice cream, and fill the pan another third of the way with ice cream. Sprinkle with a third of the nuts, and top with enough ice cream to fill the pan completely. (Reserve the leftover ice cream in the freezer for a later use.) Sprinkle the remaining