Kefta Z's Way

Kefta is one of my fav middle eastern dishes, and so much simpler than you think! It is actually the arabic version of the traditional "meatball" and actually easier to make! I have fond memories of this dish, which my ta ta has passed down to my family for years.

 

 1 pound ground beef

1 pound ground lamb

1 cup chopped parsley

1 cup chopped onion

1 tablespoon allspice

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 tablespoon salt and pepper

4 tomatoes sliced

3 potatoes sliced

1 small can of tomato sauce

Mix the meat with spices. Line of on 9x13 greased tray of olive oil. top the tomatoes and onion sliced. Bake at 450 for 45 minutes-1 hour. Sahtein!

Eggplant Dip "Baba Ghanoush"

Baba Ghanoush is another Middle Eastern dip, similar to Hummus, that is so healthy and delicious. If you are an eggplant lover, this is your soul mate:) I usually don't make it that often since I always prefer Hummus, but I tend to forget how much I love it! Basically, it is the same technique of making Hummus, but you use eggplant instead of chickpeas.

Ingredients:

2 large eggplants

1 cup tahini (sesame paste)

4 lemons, juiced

2 cloves garlic, chopped

3 tablespoons olive oil

Salt to taste

Pita bread/Veggies/Garlic Toast

Preheat the oven to 500 degrees.

Cut 1 inch slits into the eggplants, and place on baking sheet. Bake in oven for 20 minutes until tender. Cool for about 10 minutes before peeling.

In food processor, mix the tahini, lemon, garlic and olive oil. Pulse a couple times to incorporate. Peel the eggplant skin, and scoop the insides into processor. Pulse a couple times until creamy and smooth. Taste, and add salt to your taste.

Serve with toasted pita bread and veggies.

SAHTEIN!

Majadara "Lentils"

Majadara is such a hearty, wonderul dish, especially for those vegetarians out there.  I make this once every couple weeks since it makes a huge portion that lasts for about a week in the refrigerator.  It is also one of the cheapest dinners you can make that is so healthy and good for you. You can eat this with yogurt, pickles, or my personal favorite, salad!

Ingredients:

                                2-3 tablespoons olive oil

4 cups lentils or one bag of lentils, washed

9 cups water

3 onions, chopped

1 cup burgal (cracked wheat), soaked in water

2 tablespoons cumin

2 tablespoons salt

Heat the oil in a large pot, add onions. This has to be the most important part of this dish because you want to cook the onions until they are dark brown, ALMOST burned. See the first picture above. Stir occasionally on medium high-high heat, this will take about 20 minutes. When they are turning brown, heat water in a separate pot. I use my tea kettle, and that works great. When that has come to a boil, and the onions are almost burned, add the boiling water to the onions. Add the lentils and stir. Have this come to a boil, and then turn on medium heat. Cook until the water has almost absorbed the lentils. Lastly, add the burgal last and change to low heat. Keep stirring or the burgal will stick to the bottom and burn. Add the spices. Serve hot or cold with yogurt, onions, and pickles. A salad is delicious on top as well.

Falafel "Fried Bean Cakes"

Falafel has got to be one of the best creations, and I'm so happy to say that they are super easy to make. I am still on a mission to find the best falafel out there, but I think this recipe is so delicious that I might not have to anymore!

Ingredients:

4 cups of dried chickpeas (soaked in water overnight)

2 large onions, chopped

1 whole head garlic

2 bunches of parsley

1 jalapeno pepper

2 tablespoons cumin powder

1 teaspoon of salt and pepper

1 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. baking soda

2-3 cups of olive oil or vegetable oil for frying

Combine the beans, onions, garlic, parsley and hot pepper in a food processor. This is a lot, so you can put it in batches. Grind until well incorporated. Add the salt,  pepper, cumin and baking powder. At this point, you can freeze the batter you don't want to use without the baking soda added. When ready to fry, add the baking soda.

Heat a large deep skillet with oil on medium high. Use a tablespoon to form balls and fry until golden brown and then flip to the other side until golden brown.

Searve with tomato slices, pickles and tahini sauce in a pita pocket. The tahini sauce can be made very quick. Mix 2 tablespoons of tahini with a whole lemon and 2 tablespoons of chopped parsley. Add salt and pepper to taste. ENJOY!

Tabouli!

Tabouli is one of the most popular Middle Eastern salads out there. You can now buy this pre-made at some local grocery stores, and I now am starting to see them in salad bars! To make this from scratch is a process, but so easy! If you take the time, I promise you it will be worth it! The combination with this and hummus is spectacular, and the sandwich possibilities are endless.

                                                   

Ingredients:

3 bunches of parsley

2 tomatoes, finely chopped

1 bunch of green onions, finely chopped

3 lemons, squeezed

½ cup of burgal, fine cracked wheat

1 tablespoon of salt, or more to taste

This whole process starts with the parsley. This is when you want to get your friends involved to help! This salad only requires the parsley leaf, not the stem, and you do not want to waste any by chopping off the bunch. This means you have to hand pick each leaf off. Don’t be scarred! Just pop in a movie, have a glass of wine and get it done. After picking the 3 bunches, wash in a large bowl. Then spread on a towel to air dry for a couple hours (if you can, overnight). OR you can spin dry in batches. After they are dry, hand chop or throw in a food processor until the parsley very fine. When this is done, we are ready to make the salad. Combine the parsley, tomatoes, onions in a large bowl. In a small separate bowl, add the burgal. Rinse with warm water, and drain out. Throw that in the salad. Add the lemon and salt, mix well. Taste at this point and add in what you prefer, if it’s more lemon or salt. You can also add in garlic if you like. This is really great to eat with lettuce as well. Use the lettuce as you would pita, and scoop the tablouli. It is so delicious and refreshing!

  Laying out the parsley to dry overnight, longer process way to do it!

Hand chop the parsley fine.

Eggplant Dish

This is a new favorite middle eastern dish of mine. "BaitnJan" meaning eggplant in arabic. I discovered it through my husband Rani, since it is his favorite dish. His mom makes it in a way I have never seen, and everyone does it different and I absolutely love the way she does it! I love this recipe, it reminds me of lasagna, but much easier and a lot healthier!

Ingredients:

2 eggplants

1 pound of ground lamb/beef

1 cup of pine nuts

1 can of crushed tomato

1 can of diced tomato

1 onion, chopped

Rice, make to how many servings you would like

2 tablespoons olive oil (for frying onions and meat)

2 tablespoons olive oil (for eggplant)

Salt & Pepper

2 tablespoons of allspice

Preheat oven to low broiler. Line 2 baking sheets with parchement paper.

Heat a large skillet. Toast the pine nuts until golden brown. Set aside on plate when finished. Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil in same pan and add the chopped onions. Sautee for about 10 minutes until cooked through.

While the onions are cooking, slice the eggplant into 1 inch slices. Spread the eggplant between both baking sheets. Spread the oil on both sides of the eggplant, and season both sides with salt and pepper. Place in oven for 10 minutes, then flip the eggplant and cook for another 10 minutes. In my oven, I could only fit one pan at a time to broil.

Remove onions and set asided on top of pine nuts on same plate. Add the last tablespoon to the same pan again, and add the meat. After 10 minutes, add the allspice, and salt and pepper to your taste. Add in the dish with the onions and pine nuts and mix well.

Now pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.

Place eggplant in 9x13 until bottom of dish is covered. Add the meat mixture on top of the eggplant in the 9x13. Then add the remaining eggplant on top of the mixture. Top with the 2 cans of tomatoes. Cover this with foil and bake in oven for 35-40 minutes until bubbling. Serve with rice. SAHTEIN!

Lentil Soup

This has got to be one of my favorite soups out there, it is a comfort food that I grew up with. In arabic, it is called "Shorabot Addas"...as a child, I just remember calling it the yummy lemon soup:) I guess you can say it is the middle eastern version of chicken lemon rice soup, minus the chicken! The lentils really take the lead in this dish, and keep it hearty and you reaching for seconds.

2 cups washed lentils (orange ones work best)

7 cups water

1 large onion, chopped

2 cubes of chicken bouillon

2-3 lemons (squeezed)

1/4 cup olive oil

1 tablespoon of flour

1 tablespoon of cumin

1 teaspoon of Salt and Pepper

Get water in a large pot and heat while prepping. After water is almost boiling, add lentils and chopped onions. When boiling, lower to simmer and cover for 30 minutes. Add the 2 boullion cubes in pot. Mix oil, flour, and spices in a small bowl. Add 1/4 of soup to the mixture in the small bowl and mix, to incorporate the flour with the soup and make a thick paste texture. Pour in the mixture, and make sure to whisk in the soup and stir well. Add the juice of 2 lemons and simmer for a minute.

Ready to eat! I always have add an extra lemon since I squeeze it directly into the soup when I serve in a bowl, and sprinkle pepper on top! This makes even better leftovers for about a week.

Z's Hummus

This is the easiest, healthiest, and most delicious hummus you will ever have! Hummus basically consists of chickpeas, tahini (a sesame paste) and FRESH ingredients. Not only is it easy, but such a great snack and you can do so many awesome things with hummus. My personal favorite is eating it with Taboli (a middle eastern salad) and pita bread. Here are some other tips that you can creatively use hummus:

• Hummus Sandwich- 2 slices of wheat bread, 3 tablespoons hummus, 2 tablespoons of feta, 1 tablespoon of kalamata olive, 4 slices of cucumber and 2 slices of tomatoes...heaven.
• This goes great with any choice of meat, grilled chicken and steak, just divine. Try to spice up your chicken/steak fajitas with a dap of hummus, so delicious with salsa too you would be surprised!
• Serve with veggies! Carrots, broccoli and celery are great!

So here it is, this serves as an appetizer for about 4-6 people:

1 can of garbanzo beans/chickpeas drained and washed (OR you can use about 1.5 cups fresh dried chickpeas, soak them overnight, and then boil under soft)

3 Tablespoons of Tahini

2 lemons

2 cloves of garlic

1 tablespoon of white pepper

1 tablespoon of salt

 1/2 cup of water

Combine all of the ingredients except water in a food processer. You will notice how chunky it is, so then you add in water gradually. This will thin it out, you can add more water, garlic and lemon depending on your taste! This can easily be doubled, tripled as well:)

To garnish, I love to give some color to the dish. Curly parsley in the middle, a dash of paprika and some assorted veggies and you are ready to go!