Mar 4, 2012

Tabboule

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Tabboule is our Lebanese pride, along with hummus. Lebanon is the record holder in the Guinness Book of World Records when 250 of our Lebanese Chef’s made the biggest plate of Tabboule in the whole world. We Lebanese can and will eat tabboule any place, any time: for breakfast, lunch, as a snack or even at dinner. It is THAT Delicious. The best thing about it is that tabboule is made just from vegetables and bulgur, so anybody can enjoy it and it goes well with most anything!

Ingredients:

  • 2 cups of finely  chopped fresh parsley
  •  few leaves of fresh mint chopped with the parsley, or else they will turn black
  • 1 small onion filnely diced
  • 3 red tomatoes, finely chopped
  • 1 tablespoon of bulgur, fine and dark brown color
  • juice of 2 lemons
  • salt, seven spices, olive oil

Preparation:

  • Wash the chopped parsley with mint and put in a strainer
  • Add the chopped tomatoes to the parsley
  • Mix the chopped onion with a dash of salt and a little seven spices and add it to the mixture of parsley, tomatoes and onion
  • Wash the bulgur and drain it, then add one tablespoon of lemon juice to it
  • Now the Tabboule is ready, season it to your taste with salt, allspice, lemon juice and olive oil
  • Mix it well and put it on a serving plate garnish with lettuce or cabbage

ET VOILA..C’EST TOUT:)

Filed Under: Lebanese food, Lent, Main dish, Salad, Side dish · Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Mar 3, 2012

Pumpkin Soup

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The Pumpkin soup is very easy to prepare and doesn’t require a lot of time. It’s also my daughter’s favorite, especially on a cold winter day like today. The ingredients also are simple and easy to find all year round.

Ingredients:

  • 500 grams of pumpkin
  • 1 medium onion
  • 1 carrot
  • 50 grams butter
  • 1 stock of vegetables (or chicken if you prefer)
  • salt and seven spices
  • fresh cream (optional)

Preparation:

  • Peel all the vegetables and cut them into medium size cubes
  • Fry the vegetables in butter until slightly golden
  • Dissolve the stock in water according to the instructions
  • Add this stock to the vegetables; add more water if needed to cover the vegetables
  • Boil the vegetables for about 25 minutes or until it is soft
  • Place the cooked vegetables in a blender and mix until completely pureed
  • Put the liquid back in the pot and heat a bit, season to taste
  • You can garnish the plate with fresh cream if you desired
  • Serve with toasted square bread

ET VOILA C’EST TOUT! 🙂

Today I reached 1000 views. Thank you all for your support. 🙂

Filed Under: Lent, Soups, Starters · Tagged: , , , , , , , , , ,
Mar 2, 2012

Fun with Zucchini, Part Two: Heart of the Zucchini (Lib el Koussa)

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Today I’m gonna teach you what do you with the zucchini insides that you put aside in yesterday’s post.

During the World War II, people in the Lebanese countryside did their best to use everything they had when cooking and leave nothing to waste because they were running out of ingredients to make food. This is the reason why there is a large variety of vegetarian plates in Lebanese cuisine. When people used to make stuffed zucchini, they kept the removed core and found a way to cook it and make it delicious.

There are various recipes for the zucchini innards, the one I made today among them. This is a favorite of mine and I’m sure it will be one of yours when you try it 🙂

Ingredients:

  • The inner part of the zucchini (about one cup and a half)
  • 1 medium onion
  • 3 cloves of garlic
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon grenadine molasses
  • 1 teaspoon of dried mint

Preparation:

  • Chop the onion and the cloves of garlic finely
  • In a small saucepan, heat the oil and fry the onion with garlic until slightly golden
  • Add the zucchini and fry with the onion and garlic for 2 minutes
  • Cover the casserole and on a very low heat cook for about 5 minutes
  • Add now the grenadine molasses and stir well for few seconds
  • Put the fire off and sprinkle the dried mint
  • Put it on a plate, serve with bread (Lebanese pita is recommended) and enjoy

ET VOILA..C’EST TOUT:)

Filed Under: Lebanese food, Lent, Side dish, Starters · Tagged: , , , , , , , , ,
Mar 1, 2012

Fun with Zucchini, Part One: Koussa Mehchi (Stuffed Zucchini)

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It’s funny… Every time I cook this meal, a different childhood memory comes to my mind. My mother’s cousin had 14 children, can you imagine? When she wanted to make the stuffed zucchini for her family, she would buy about 12 kilos of it and she asked my mother to come and help her. I sat with them a couple of times while they would drink coffee and core the zucchini. It took them a good while of time to prepare them, to cook them later in that huge pot that could fit a whole lamb!

This dish is a staple in the Arab countries, and each country has its own variation on it. Mostly however, the changes are superficial and the taste remains mostly the same. Today, I will be showing you the Lebanese recipe of course. You’re going to enjoy getting your hands dirty 🙂

Ingredients:

  • 1 kilo of small Zucchini
  • 100 gs minced meat
  • 1 cup of rice (preferably Egyptian orItalian rice)
  • 2 tablespoon tomato puree
  • 1 tablespoon cooking oil
  • salt and seven spices

Preparation:

  • Fry the meat in oil for about 4 minutes, until it becomes light brown
  • Wash the zucchini and cut the head. Then with a vegetable corer, remove the insides (but don’t throw them away! Tomorrow, I will show you how to make a delicious dish using them.)  When done, wash and drain them
  • Wash the uncooked rice and mix it with the cooked meat, add salt and seven spices
  • Fill the zucchini with the meat and rice mixture, until 3/4 full only; leave some space for the rice to expand when cooked
  • Place the stuffed zucchini in a pot, cover with water, add the tomato paste and season
  • Cook on high heat until it starts boiling then lower the heat with the pot covered and let it simmer for about 25 minutes
  • You know it is cooked when the rice is tender

If you have any remaining rice from the stuffing, don’t worry: put them in a small casserole with double volume of water and let it cook until the rice becomes dry. Then serve the Koussa Mehchi with the rice on the side.

ET VOILA.. C’EST TOUT! 🙂

Filed Under: Lebanese food, Main dish · Tagged: , , , , , , , , ,
Feb 29, 2012

Chicken Stew with Potato

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The traditional Lebanese potato stew is made with meat and tomato sauce. My mother use to cook it the that way, but at some point my father started to get a stomach pain due to the tomato sauce, according to his doctor, and had to stop eating things cooked in it. Since he used to like the potato stew a lot, my mother had to make a few changes to the recipe: she replaced the meat with chicken and the tomato sauce with garlic and coriander. It was an instant hit with me, my brothers and sister. These days, I am making it for my children and they seem to like it too. Try it! 🙂

Ingredients:

  • 500 gs potatoes
  • 500 gs chicken fillet
  • 1 tablespoon ground coriander
  • 3 clove of garlic
  • 1/2 cup fresh coriander chopped
  • salt, seven spices, 2 bay leaves, 1 cinnamon stick
  • one lemon’s worth of juice
  • 1 tablespoon of flour
  • frying oil

Preparation:

  • Boil the chicken in a pot of water, add salt, allspice, cinnamon stick and  bay leaves
  • When the chicken tender, drain from water and put the chicken aside. Keep the water for the stew
  • Cut the potatoes into cubes and fry them until golden
  • Put a little oil in a casserole and put the chicken with potatoes, cover with the water used to boil the chicken
  • Dissolve the flour with 1 cup of cold water and add it to the casserole of chicken and potatoes
  • Crush the garlic with 1/2 teaspoon salt, then mix with the fresh and dried coriander
  • In a small saucepan, fry the mixture of garlic and coriander until the garlic starts taking color
  • Add the garlic to the chicken and potato stew, lower the fire and cover the pot; let the food simmer for 15 minutes
  • Finally put the lemon juice and season with salt and allspice

This dish is best served with rice. You can enhance the flavor of the rice by adding a cup of the water used to boil chicken when cooking the rice.

ET VOILA..C’EST TOUT! 🙂

Filed Under: Lebanese food, Main dish · Tagged: , , , , , , , , , ,
Feb 28, 2012

Mashed Potato Baked with Chicory

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This is another recipe that is Lent-friendly, as it contains chicory and no meats or fats. I got this recipe from a friend who grew up in a distant village in mountains of South Lebanon. During the 40-day fast, her mother would like to get creative and try to make something new in her cuisine to make the fast more playful. I took the recipe from her and tried it, and it turned out to be delicious!

If you enjoy the taste of chicory, take at a look at this recipe I posted a few days ago 🙂

Ingredients:

  • 1 kg potatoes
  • 1/2 kg chicory
  • 2 onions chopped into long strips
  • 1 teaspoon sumac
  • salt, seven spices
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil, 1 tablespoon cooking oil

Preparation:

  • Boil the potatoes in salted water, when they’re cooked mash them properly
  • Boil the chicory in another pot with salted water, drain them after
  • heat the olive oil and fry the strips of onion, then add the boiled chicory and season with salt, seven spices and sumac
  • preheat the oven to 200C
  • Grease an oven tray with cooking oil and place one layer of mashed potatoes
  • Cover the potatoes with the chicory/onion mixture
  • Place the remaining mashed potatoes over the chicory to cover it all
  • Sprinkle a bit of olive oil on the top, and place the tray in the oven for about 30 minutes, until the top becomes slightly golden

Note: this dish is usually served warm, but I secretly enjoy it cold as leftovers at night. Try it and let me know if you do too 🙂

ET VOILA..C’EST TOUT.

Filed Under: Lebanese food, Lent, Main dish, Side dish · Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , ,
Feb 27, 2012

Melon Jam

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Melon Jam is not very popular. For me however, eating it reminds me of fond memories from my childhood. When I was young, I used to go to my grand parents home often; one time, when I had arrived at their house, I could smell something very special cooking… but I couldn’t recognize it. Curious, I went to the kitchen and saw my grand mother peeling melon with the help of my mother and aunts, preparing sugar and other ingredients. That was the first time I saw anyone making Melon Jam.

Now, I make it for my own children and I feel the same way I felt when I saw how they made it for the first time. Today I am sharing this recipe with you. Trust me, you will love the nice aroma it makes.

A serving suggestion: Enjoy it with toast (as seen in the picture) or with croissant, crepes… Everything tastes better with this jam.

Ingredients:

  • 1 kg melon peeled and seeds removed
  • 700 gs granulated sugar
  • 100 ml red vinegar
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 vanilla pod
  • 1 teaspoon butter

Preparation:

  • Cut the melon into small cubes
  • In a casserole, mix the melon with sugar and vinegar and bring it to a boil, stirring constantly
  • Add the butter, the ground cinnamon and the half vanilla pod, cut lengthwise
  • Let it boil for 15 mins
  • Lower the heat and let the jam cook for about 25 mins, stirring often
  • Remove the vanilla pod
  • To check if the jam is ready, place a drop of jam in a cup of cold water; if it forms a ball then the jam is ready
  • Place the jam in jars, close them and place them upside down for 10 mins

ET VOILA.. CES’T TOUT! 🙂

Filed Under: Breakfast, Dessert, Jam, Lent · Tagged: , , , , ,
Feb 26, 2012

Hindba in Oil (Chicory in Oil)

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In this time of the year, chicory (or hindba as it’s known in Arabic)  is always available in Lebanon. Chicory is well known for the wealth of minerals and nutrients that it contains, just like spinach. Today I prepared it in the old-fashioned Lebanese way. It is very popular during lent because it is cooked without any meat or fat. I hope you will like it.

Ingredients:

  • 1 kilo of chicory
  • 1 onion finely diced
  • 3 garlic clove crushed
  • juice of 1 lemon
  • salt, seven spices
  • 2 tablespoon olive oil
  • 2 large onions chopped into long strips
  • frying oil

Preparation:

  • Cut the chicory in small pieces and wash thoroughly
  • Boil in salted water until the chicory is nearly, but not fully, cooked. It should feel softer than before, but not limp. Drain the water
  • Heat the olive oil and fry the finely diced onion until softened then add the crushed garlic
  • Place the chicory over the onion, mix all the ingredients and season with salt and seven spices
  • Put the fire on its lowest setting, cover the pot and let it boil gently until the chicory is fully cooked. Now it should feel super soft
  • Add lemon juice
  • Place the chicory in a serving plate
  • Fry the long onion strips until brown and put it on the top of chicory plate for decoration and taste

ET VOILA.. C’EST TOUT:)

Filed Under: Lent, Main dish, Side dish · Tagged: , , , , , , ,
Feb 25, 2012

Eggplant Bolognese Bake

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This recipe is a variation of an Italian classic. If you’re on the SCD (Specific Carbohydrate Diet) and have been craving pasta then this recipe will definitely hit all the right spots.

Ingredients:

  • 1 medium onion finely diced
  • 1 garlic clove crushed
  • 3 large tomatoes
  • 100gs minced beef
  • 1 large eggplant
  • 5 tbsp olive oil
  • 50 gs of emmenthal and parmesan ( or your choice of cheese)
  • 1 tbsp dried provence herbs
  • salt and pepper

Preparation:

  • Peel the tomatoes and place in a blender with a splash of water, blend until you have a nice frothy juice
  • Fry the onion in 1 tbsp of oil until softened
  •  add the garlic clove and the minced beef
  • Keep on medium high heat until cooked through
  • Add the blended tomatoes and stir
  • Put now salt, pepper and provence herbs
  • Bring to boil then lower the heat and simmer gently for about 20mins
  • Meanwhile peel and cut the eggplants into 5mm thick long slices
  • Brush the eggplants with a little olive oil and place on a hot griddle pan, cook for 5-7 mins until browned and cooked through
  • You are ready now to assemble the dish
  • Start by lining a small baking dish with the cooked eggplant, season then spoon over some of the bolognese sauce
  • Add a little grated parmesan
  • Place another layer of eggplants and repeat the process until you finish the eggplants and sauce
  • Top with the emmenthal cheese and remaining parmesan
  • Bake in the oven for about 20 mins, until the top is golden brown and bubbling

ET VOILA.. C’EST TOUT!

Filed Under: Main dish · Tagged: , , , , , ,
Feb 24, 2012

Kafta with Potatoes + New Blogger Award Nomination

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Do you know Kafta? It is minced meat mixed with parsley and onion with salt and some spices. I remember when I was young, when my mother made kafta for lunch, everybody would rejoice. I should mention that besides my parents, we were 6 children: 4 boys and two girls. My mother used to make 3 main dishes for lunch to please us all. But when she decided to make Kafta with Potatoes, she would have to make a very large tray, bigger then our oven at home! My father had to take it to the bakery to cook it, after preparation at home it took 5 minutes to cook. Today I made a medium size tray and I cooked it at home but it took about half an hour to get cooked in the oven.

Ingredients: 

  • 500 g minced meat
  • 1 cup of chopped parsley
  • 1 onion, finely chopped
  • 4 potatoes
  • 2 large tomatoes sliced,
  • 1 onion sliced
  • 1 tbsp  tomato paste
  • salt, seven spices
  • frying oil, cooking oil

Preparation:

  • Mix the minced meat with chopped parsley and chopped onion in a food processor (or you can take it ready from the butcher if he knows how)
  • Season with 1 small tsp salt and 1/2 tsp seven spices
  • Mix the meat by hand very well, take a small hand full and make a ball shape with it and flatten it then place it on a slightly greased oven tray
  • Preheat the oven to 200C
  • When all the meat is ready, place the tray in the oven for about twenty minutes, making sure to turn it over halfway through
  • In the meantime, peel the potatoes and cut them into slices then place into frying pan with oil; remove and drain when golden
  • Place the potatoes over the meat, then sliced onions and tomatoes on top
  • In a small bowl mix the tomato paste with about 2 cups of water, and season with salt and seven spices then place it over the meat and the potatoes in the tray
  • Cover the tray with aluminium foil and place it in hot oven for 20 minutes
  • Remove the foil and keep it in the oven for 10 minutes until the sauce thickens
  • Serve with rice

 

ET VOILA.. C’EST TOUT!

By the way, I’ve been nominated for the New Blogger Award by this really interesting blog called Creative Noshings. Check it out and thank you all for your support 🙂

BON APPETIT

Filed Under: Arabic, Main dish · Tagged: , , , , , ,
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