Mar 21, 2012

Moussaka and Versatile Blog Award

By · 13 Comments

The first time I taste this Greek plate was in a nice restaurant in Cyprus, where I spend the summer 25 years ago. I loved it, and the moment I came back home when I still have the taste in my mouth I tried to make it. Since me and my children love the “gratin food” with cheese melting with white sauce, we all loved it. Today I felt nostalgic about Greece and her lovely food, which is, with many dishes, is similar to our Lebanese Cuisine. So, I prepare the ingredients, potatoes, eggplant, tomatoes, minced meat, went to the kitchen and prepare it. Maybe the recipe is not the traditional Greek way, but I assure you it is delicious.

Ingredients:

  • 1 large eggplant or 2 medium size, about 500 grams
  • 5 potatoes, about 500 grams
  • 200 grams minced beef
  • 5 tomatoes
  • 1 onion finely chopped
  • 2 clove of garlic crushed
  • 1 tablespoon tomato paste
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon seven spices
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon vegetable oil

Ingredients for the white sauce:

  • 100 grams butter
  • 5 tablespoons all purpose flour
  • 5 cups mils
  • 2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon of freshly ground nutmeg
  • 1/2 cup of grated Gruyere cheese (or any other kind you like)

Preparation:

  • Heat the oven to 180C
  • Peel and slice the eggplant and the potatoes
  • Put the olive oil in a baking tray, place the eggplant an the potatoes in the tray and place the tray in the oven for 40 minutes, turning the vegetables in the midway of cooking. I use to fry them but I found that this way it is less oily
  • In the meantime prepare the meat sauce, heat the vegetable oil in a small pot, fry the onion until nice golden color, add the meat to the onion and cook gently, add the crushed garlic, season with salt and seven spices
  • Peel and dice 1 tomato and add it to the mixture of onion and meat, let it cook gently on low fire, then add to tomato paste with 1/2 cup of water, cover and let it simmer on a very low fire
  • Prepare now the white sauce: in another small pot heat the butter, add the flour and mix well together, add slowly the milk stirring constantly with a whisk until it thickens, season with 1 teaspoon of salt and the nutmeg
  • In an tray place one layer of eggplant, then potatoes
  • Slice the remaining tomatoes and place one layer of tomatoes over the potatoes
  • Place now half of the meat mixture, then half of the white sauce
  • Repeat the process with one layer of eggplant, one layer of potatoes, tomatoes, the meat ssauce and the white sauce, and at the end put the grated cheese
  • Bake in the oven for about 25 minutes, until the cheese turn nice golden.

ET VOILA..C’EST TOUT 🙂

Also, I had another pleasant surprise few days ago being nominated for the Versatile Blogger Award by dutchgoesitalian; it was especially nice for me because I admire her blog a lot! Please check it out.

Filed Under: Main dish · Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Mar 20, 2012

Fondant Au Chocolat

By · 8 Comments

Have you ever tried a Fondant Au Chocolat in a nice restaurant or coffee shop with a scoop of ice cream? The hot chocolate melting in your mouth, contrasting the cold of the ice cream and wished you can eat it any time you want at home? I did. I love the texture of this creamy chocolate and cannot stop myself from eating it even after a heavy dinner. I’ve tried so many recipes to find the perfect one that can satisfy my craving, until a few years back, I found a nice one in an old french magazine and I’ve tried it and I said “that’s the one I am looking for”!! It was perfectly delicious. My children also love it. I made it again today to share this lovely recipe with you. By the way you should be very careful about the cooking time, if you leave it one minute extra in the oven, you will not have the melting chocolate oozing out from inside the cake.

Ingredients:

  • 1/2 cup of flour minus 1 tablespoon
  • 2 eggs+2 egg yolks
  • 1 cup of icing sugar minus 1 tablespoon
  • 100 grams butter
  • 100 black chocolate
  • pinch of salt

Preparation:

  • Preheat the oven to 210C
  • In a saucepanPlace the chocolate with the butter and the pinch of salt and let it melt on water bath for 5 minutes stirring continuously
  • In a bowl whisk the eggs with egg yolks until pale yellow
  • Add the flour to the eggs and mix well
  • Add the icing sugar now
  • Pour the mixture of chocolate-butter over the eggs and flour
  • Grease 6 small molds ( the cup cake ones will be perfect) and divide the mixture into them
  • Bake in the oven for 9 minutes,( you now it is done when the top of the cake is  not soft anymore
  • Eat while it is still warm. Or you can reheat them on the microwave for few seconds only

ET VOILA..C’EST TOUT. BON APPETIT!

Filed Under: Dessert · Tagged: , , , , ,
Mar 14, 2012

Biscuit With Anise

By · 5 Comments

Few days ago, I had a mild flu. I felt like eating something sweet but nothing too sweet. I remembered that when I was young, my aunt used to tell me that anise is very good when you have cold. Boil the seeds in water then remove them with a spoon and add some honey, you will feel better. She was telling me this while making these biscuits with anise and until now I remember that wonderful aroma that wafted to me from the oven. I brought my notebook, which I have been filling until this day with recipes I collect from my mother and her sisters since I was 17 years old, and wrote down that which I’m going to share with you.

In my flu-ridden state, I turned to this biscuit recipe in my notebook; thankfully I had all the ingredients ready and didn’t need to go do grocery shopping. The best thing about this recipe it is quick to prepare, and the rest is left to the oven.

Ingredients:

  • 3 cups all purpose flour
  • 1 cup icing sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 1 cup of butter softened
  • 1 tablespoon of anise seeds
  • 1/3 cup of corn oil
  • 1/4 cup of water
  • sesame (optional but recommended)

Preparation:

  • Preheat the oven to 180 C (or 300 F)
  • Mix all the ingredients by hand. Add water to the dough if you feel it’s hard
  • Take a small piece from the dough and shape it to your liking by hand. Dip the circle in some sesame seeds if you have some ready
  • Place these biscuit in a baking tray and cook in the oven for 30 minutes until they are a nice golden color from the top
  • Enjoy the aroma while it cools. Have it with some tea if you’re feeling under the weather like I was, it’s a real treat

ET VOILA..C’EST TOUT:)

Filed Under: Dessert, Lebanese food · Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , ,
Feb 29, 2012

Chicken Stew with Potato

By · 2 Comments

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 22, 2012

Chocolate Chip Cookies

By · Leave a Comment

 

 

Cookies are always fun to make. The recipe for these cookies I have from my mother, and I’ve been making it since 20 years and let me tell you, it is  a big hit! The feeling of these soft cookies melting in one’s mouth will make anyone’s mood shift quickly into a blissful state, problems will dissolve as the cookies crumble, and the day will seem brighter.

I know there’s a plethora of stores showing off their latest cookie recipes, but today I’d like to show you how you can make these fluffy delicious mouth adventures on your own. And believe me you cannot go wrong with it!

Ingredients:

  • 3/4 cup granulated sugar
  • 3/4 cup brown sugar
  • 1/2 butter softened
  • 1/2 cup vegetable shortening
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 2 1/4  all purpose flour
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1 tsp cream of tartar
  • pinch of salt
  • 2 cups chocolate chips

Preparation:

  • Preheat the oven to 200 C. Grease lightly few cooking sheet
  • Cream the sugars with the butter and shortening until light and fluffy
  • Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each one, stir in the vanilla
  • Sift together, the flour, baking soda, cream of tartar and the salt, add to the sugar mixture, beating well
  • Fold the chocolate chips
  • Make from the dough small ball, place it on the cooking sheet and press it with fingertips
  • Bake for about 12 minutes.
  • Cool it on the tray before removing to a rack to cool completely.

ET VOILA.. C’EST TOUT:)

Filed Under: Breakfast, Dessert · Tagged: , , , , , ,
«Previous Page