Baba Ghanoush

From Nia's dad, Clive

Baba Ghanoush is a Lebanese dip made from eggplant - it can be used as a dip for bread or veggies or as a tasty base for a sandwich. I love this stuff but was always mystified as to how it was prepared, until last summer when I was schooled in the ways of roasting eggplant by my friend Nia's dad. It's so easy and fresh tasting, I couldn't believe it took me so long to try it!

Serves about 6

1 large eggplant
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/4 cup tahini
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 tsp olive oil
1/8 tsp paprika
1/4 tsp parsley
salt and pepper to taste

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees (200 C) Lightly grease a baking sheet.

Place eggplant on the baking sheet, and pierce the skin with a fork. Roast for 30-40 minutes, turning occasionally until soft. Remove and let cool. Once completely cool, peel skin off.

Place eggplant, lemon juice, tahini, and garlic in a blender and puree. Season with salt and pepper to taste and slowly mix in olive oil. Sprinkle on paprika as a garnish. Enjoy!

Sundried Tomato Hummus

I love hummus - it's so cheap and easy and delicious. And there are so many variations in the flavor - literally endless combinations of ingredients. Anyway, I read about adding sundried tomatoes and couldn't wait to try it. They add such a great punch of flavor and color, it really was great.

makes 3-4 servings

1 can garbanzo beans (about 1 cup)
1 jar sundried tomatoes (about 1 cup)
1-2 Tbsp olive oil (I used the oil from the sun dried tomatoes for extra flavor!)
1 Tbsp lemon juice
1 large garlic clove
1 tsp paprika
salt to taste
parsley

Using a blender, blend beans, oil, lemon juice, garlic clove, and paprika in a bowl. Chop up the tomatoes and mix them in the mix, adding salt and fresh chopped parsley until you are satisfied with the taste.

Great with vegetables, bread or on sandwiches.

Baklava Bites

from Baking Bites

I fell in love with Baklava last year. It's a Middle Eastern Pastry that is made with layers of Phyllo dough, soaked in honey and filled with nuts. Amazing. We had gotten an apartment in Vienna for a week or so while Ben worked on some projects and there was a tiny Turkish shop down the street with this AMAZING Baklava that I would buy on my way to the park every day. 

Since then I have wanted to try making it, but only until Easter felt up to the challenge. Unfortunately I went to the regular grocery store and even though I felt confident they would have Phyllo dough, they didn't. In vain, I tried to explain to the sales clerk that I needed this special dough that is Greek and very thin and you make pastries out of it (try THAT in broken German) and she lit up and showed me the regular puff pastry for making strudel, which is totally not what I needed. BOO. So I picked up a puff pastry, smiled politely and thought that I was going to figure out a way to make Baklava with puff pastry, come hell or high water.

Luckily, the internet came to the rescue and there are a million different ways of making Baklava, although this is not the traditional way of doing it.

I KNOW they must have Phyllo dough around here someplace, but I will have to try the different Middle Eastern speciality shops until I find them. And then there will be a Baklava round two!

1 package puff pastry (16 oz), room temperature
1 cup walnuts, finely chopped
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp cloves
1/4 tsp cardamom
1/4 tsp allspice
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 cup honey
2 Tbsp butter, melted

Preheat the oven to 375F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
In a small bowl, stir together nuts, sugar , spices and salt until well mixed. In another bowl, melt the butter and then add the honey and mix it well, then pour honey mixture into the nut mixture.

Roll out the puff pastry. Using a sharp knife, cut the pastry into 2x4 inch (5x10 cm) strips. Place a Tbsp of filling in each strip, then fold the pastry onto itself to make a pocket. You may need to wet your fingers with water to help seal the edges. Also, feel free to stuff these babies full. I had a few with less filling that weren't as good.

Place the bites on the baking sheet, and bake for 20 minutes, or until the pastries are puffed and golden. Cool for at least 10 minutes before serving. Store in an airtight container.

White Bean Hummus

adapted from Cooking for Mr. Picky

I love hummus, but it is difficult to find here in Austria. So when I saw this recipe on my sister's site, I knew I had to try it. First of all, it was ridiculously easy. You literally just blend it all together and it's ready to go. It has great flavor and is a really healthy and filling snack. Hummus is traditionally made with garbanzo beans (chickpeas) but those are also difficult to find here, so I used white beans and it turned out great. So feel free to experiment.

Serves 4

1 clove garlic

1 can white beans

1 Tbsp lemon juice

1 1/2 Tbsp tahini

3/4 tsp ground cumin

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp cayenne pepper

1/2 tsp black pepper

1/2 tsp paprika

olive oil

Put all ingredients in a blender and blend away. Garnish with olive oil and serve with pita bread, carrot sticks or other vegetables.

Calories: 1/2 cup = 225 calories

Mujaddara (Middle Eastern Pilaf)

adapted from Avocado Bravado

In an effort to diversify my cooking repertoire, I took a baby step with this Middle Eastern rice pilaf and was pleasantly surprised. Served with a side of greens, it was a great easy dinner that was healthy and easy on the wallet. The caramelized onions are cooked slowly to give a sweet and spicy kick to the rice and lentils.

Serves 2-3

4 onions, sliced

3/4 cup lentils

3/4 cup rice

olive oil

1/2 Tbsp sugar

salt and pepper to taste

1/2 tsp cardamom

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp cumin

Heat oil and a dash of salt in a large non-stick skillet on medium low heat. Add onions, sugar and spices and stir every few minutes for half of an hour. At this point, the onions should be softening and turning a nice golden brown. Turn up the heat and cook the onions for an additional 15 minutes, being careful not to let them burn. Once done, set aside.

In the meantime, prepare the lentils and rice according to their package directions. (You can cook them together if you want, just add the lentils a little after the rice so they don't become too soft)

Mix together lentils, rice, most of the onions, salt and pepper to taste. Serve warm, garnished with remaining onions.

Apricot Lamb Tangine

Adapted from Closet Cooking

For Easter this year, I decided to try out a lamb recipe. I saw this one from Morocco and wanted to try it, but was a bit intimidated by the ingredients. Nevertheless, I kept going and was wonderfully surprised at how good it was. First bite was a huge burst of sweet and spicy flavors, and the lamb itself just melted in your mouth.



Ingredients:
1 lb lamb, cut into bite sized pieces
2 tsp paprika
1 tsp ground turmeric
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground cardamom
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1 pinch saffron (I omitted this because I didn't have any, and it tasted fine)
1 tsp lemon (zest)
2 Tbsp oil
1 onion (chopped)
1 Tbsp garlic (finely minced)
1 Tbsp ginger (grated)
2 Tbsp tomato paste (I also added a few chopped sun dried tomatoes)
Enough beef stock to cover meat (I used about 4 cups)
3/4 cup dried apricots
1/2 cup raisins
1 Tbsp honey
2 Tbsp harissa (I couldn't find this in Finland, so I just used 1/2 tsp chili pepper)
Parsley (garnish)

Directions:
1. Mix together the paprika, turmeric, cumin, coriander, cinnamon, cardamom, salt, cayenne pepper, lemon zest and oil. Place in a ziplock bag along with the lamb chunks and marinate in the fridge for a few hours to overnight.

2. Heat 1 Tbsp oil in a large pan and when it is hot, add the lamb searing until the sides are all brown. Take off the heat and set aside.

3. In a large pot, heat 1 Tbsp oil and add the onion and saute for about 5 minutes, add the garlic and ginger and saute about one minute more. Add the lamb, tomato paste, and cover with beef stock. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer until the lamb is fall apart tender (about 2-3 hours)

4. After 2-3 hours, add apricots, raisins, and extra beef stock if it isn't covered. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer 20 more minutes. Then add the honey and harissa. Serve on couscous and garnish.

Feta Stuffed Bread

adapted from Arabic Bites

I love to try different breads when I make soup, and this recipe just was too tempting to resist! Although the photo doesn't reveal much, inside the bread is gooey with melted cheese and packed with flavor.

Dough:

3 cups flour

1 cup warm water

1 Tbsp oil

1/2 Tbsp sugar

1 tsp yeast

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

oil, for shallow frying

Filling:

8 oz Feta, crumbled

8 oz Cheddar (I used Edam), grated

3 scallions, diced

fresh coriander (cilantro), chopped

*I also added a handful of diced sun-dried tomato... mmmm...

Place all dough ingredients in a bowl and knead until dough is soft (about 5 minutes for a mixer, 10 by hand). Cover dough and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size (1-2 hours).

While the bread is rising, combine all filling ingredients and set aside.

Preheat a pan to medium heat and 1 Tbsp oil. Once risen, take the dough out and divide it into 8 balls. One at a time, flatten each ball into a round. Then plop 1-2 tablespoons of the filling in the middle and gather up the edges of the dough and pinch them together, creating a dough ball filled with cheesy goodness. Gently flatten the dough ball with your hands or a roller until it makes a thinner pancake. It will be a bit lumpy because of the filling, but take care not to puncture the dough.

Then place the stuffed bread on the frying pan and cook until golden brown on both sides (1-2 minutes each side).

Serve warm!

Zainab's Eggless Challah

from Arabic Bites

Challah bread is a special braided bread traditionally eaten during Jewish holidays.  When I first saw it I was struck with how beautiful it is and wanted to try it out.  

Makes 1 Loaf

3 cups flour

1/8 cup sugar

1/4 Tbsp salt

3/4 Tbsp yeast

1/8 cup olive oil

1 1/4 cup warm water

Mix all ingredients in a bowl, knead for 10 minutes until soft and pliable.  Cover and let rise for one hour.  If you know how to braid with 6 strands, divide the dough into 6 equal lumps.  If you feel more comfortable braiding with 3, divide the dough into 3 lumps.  Roll the lumps into slender ropes and braid them together.

If you want to see some great photos and video on how this is done, click here and scroll down to the bottom of the page.  

Once the braiding is done, cover and let rise in a warm spot for 30 minutes.  Then bake at 350 for 30 minutes.  

Flat Bread

from Arabic Bites

This is a perfect complement to any meal. The bread is chewy and soft and would go well with anything. Ok, to be honest they are supposed to look much prettier and symmetrical than mine turned out. But if you could get past the freaky bumps, the bread was quite good.

2 cup warm Water

2 Tbsp Yeast

4 Tbsp Sugar

5 cups Flour (any kind)

1/4 cup Oil

2 tsp Salt

Preheat the oven to 550 (287 C). Mix the yeast, sugar and water. Once combined, slowly add in 2 cups of flour. Cover the bowl and let it rise for 10 minutes.

Then add in the remaining 3 cups of flour, oil and salt and knead for about 10 minutes. Divide the dough into 8 pieces, roll into little balls and flatten them into round discs. Place the dough onto a cookie sheet and bake for 2-3 minutes.

I kept getting distracted and so every other flat bread was a little over done. But they were still good, and this was a very simple recipe!

Makes 8 pieces of flat bread