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No mention of the cuisine of the Maghreb (the region comprised and Morocco) would be complete without a recipe for this famous soup, which is eaten to break the fast each evening throughout the Muslim month of Ramadan. Although I wouldn't go as far as my friend Daudik,  who says that harira “is without question the single greatest soup in the world possibly the universe," well, this is one wondrous potage. With flavorings drawn from an entire casbah's worth of spice stalls and vegetable markets, made hearty by round chickpeas and plump lentils and skinny little noodles and sparkling with fresh herbs, it's sweet and hot, optionally tart, gentle and hearty, sustaining. intriguing, and improbably floral. Most often it's made with lamb, but I've given a vegetarian base recipe, followed by a lamb variation. This soup can be either a starter or the main course. If you serve it as a main course, couscous is the traditional accompaniment. But it's also satisfying served over steamed brown basmati rice. Vegans: Use all olive oil instead of half-oil, half-butter, and skip the optional ege thickening, and this soup will make you one wonderfully satisfying exotic bowl.

Harira

Vegetable oil cooking spray

chickpeas, picked over, rinsed, and

soaked overnight (see page 346)

lentils, picked over and rinsed

(6 cups) vegetable stock

butter

olive oil

large onion, chopped

stalks celery, with leaves, chopped

minced fresh parsley

minced fresh cilantro

very finely minced fresh ginger

ground turmeric

ground cinnamon

can (14.5 ounces) diced fire-roasted tomatoes, with their liquid

Small pinch of saffron threads

Salt

freshly ground black pepper

About 4 ounces very fine noodles, such as vermicelli or angel hair

Thickener for Harira (optional; see page 68)

Spray a large, heavy soup pot with oil. Drain and rinse the chickpeas. Place them in the pot, add 1 quart (4 cups) water, and bring to a full boil over high heat. Turn down to a simmer, cover, and cook until the chickpeas are barely tender, about 1/2 hours.

Add the lentils and simmer until the chickpeas and lentils are soft, another 45 minutes or so. Add the vegetable stock, bring the mixture back up to a boil, and turn down to a simmer again. Cook, half-covered, for 30 minutes.

During the last 30 minutes of simmer, spray a 10-to 12-inch skillet with oil and place it over medium heat. Add the butter and olive oil. When the butter has melted, add the onion and cook, stirring, until the onion is translucent and well on the way to softening, about 7 minutes. Add the celery and cook, stirring, for another 3 minutes. Add the parsley, cilantro, and ginger and cook, stirring, for 3 minutes more. Turn the heat down very low and add the turmeric and cinnamon. Cook, stirring often, until the kitchen is fragrant and the spices have deepened in color, about 10 minutes. Don't let this mixture burn; watch and stir it.

Add the onion mixture to the now-tender lentils and chickpeas, along with the tomatoes, saffron, salt, and pepper. Let the whole pot simmer gently, about 15 minutes. (If making this ahead of time, stop here; let the soup cool to room temperature, then cover it, and refrigerate until ready to reheat it. Pick up at this point the next day.)

Shortly before serving, cook the noodles in boiling salted water according to the package directions until they are barely tender. Drain the noodles into a colander and keep them hot by loosely tenting the colander with foil.

Five minutes before serving, thicken the soup, if you like, following the directions for the thickener of your choice.

If you plan on serving all of the soup at once, stir the noodles into the pot. Otherwise, put a scoop of noodles into each bowl and ladle the soup over them.