More recipes

[averygoodun42]

Mussels
2 lbs mussels
1 onion diced
6 cloves garlic
1 can diced tomato
saffron
white wine
lemon wedges for garnish


Curried Couscous Chicken Salad (4 -6 servings)

3/4 lb (about 3 halves) chicken breasts (boned and skined)
2 cups regular chicken broth
1 cup couscous
1/4 cup currants or raisins
1 tbsp curry powder
1/2 tsp dry thyme leaves
1/4 cup chopped parsley
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
1 carrot, shredded
1 9-oz pkg frozen atichoke hearts, thawed and drained
1 small red pepper, diced
1/4 cup chopped red onion
1 hot pepper, minced
Optional:
4-6 lettuce leaves, rinsed and crisped
2 cups cherry tomatoes
1 medium cantaloup, cut in wedges
1 lemon, cut in wedges


Method:
Put chicken in broth over high heat. Bring to boil; cover pan and remove from heat. Let stand until breasts are opaque in center, about 16 - 18 minutes. Lift out chicken.

Bring broth to boilig over high heat. Add couscous, currants, curry powder and thyme. Cover, remove from heat and let stand until couscous completely absorbs liquid, about 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, cut chicken diagonally into thin strips (or chunks). With a fork, stir chicken etc into couscous. Serve or cool, cover and chill for up to 2 days.

To serve hot: Mound on shallow bowl, garnish with tomatoes and or cucumbers and lemon wedges.

To serve cold: Mound on lettuce leaves on chilled plates. Arrange tomatoes and melon wedges and accompany with yogurt honey dressing and lemon wedges.

Honey yogurt dressing
Whisk 3/4 cup plain yogurt with 1 tbsp honey

Variation:Quinoa

After lifting out chicken breasts, add to chicken broth 1 heaping cup quinoa, well rinsed and drained, along with curry powder, thyme, salt, hot chili pepper and currants. Bring to boil, cover and cook 20 to 25 minutes, until quinoa has absorbed liquid. Stir with fork, as for rice, and let stand 5 miutes. Add remaining ingredients and proceed as above.


Freezer Jam

4 cups crushed fruit
1 pkg certo crystals (pectin)

Combine. Let stand at least 30 minutes.

4 cups sugar or Splenda

Stir it over low heat just until sugar dissolves. Add 1/2 cup lemon juice (optional).

Freeze in small jars/ Keeps in fridge 2 weeks.

Low sugar recipe o light certo package. Blackberries, put through mouli. Apricots definitely need lemon juice.


Patty's Cake
7 oz unsweetened chocolate
3/4 cup butter
1 1/2 cup strong coffee
1/4 cup bourbon
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
2 cups cake flour
1 1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt

grease and flour 2 8 1/2 x 4 1/2" loaf pan.

Put chocolate, butter and coffee in 4 1/2 quart saucepan. Place over low heat, stirring constantly, till chocolate is melted, then stir vigorously till mix is smooth and throughly blended. Set aside to cool at least 10 minutes. Beat in bourbon, eggs and vanilla. Sift dry ingredients together and beat into chocolate mix. Divide batter between pans. bake in 275 oven 45 - 55 minutes. Cool in pans 15 minutes then turn out.


Spoonbread Tamale Pie (from Sunset Favorites)

1 1/2 pounds ground beef or chuck
1 large onion, chopped
1 small green pepper, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced or crushed
3/4 cup shortening or salad oil
1 can (15 oz) pear-shaped tomatoes
1 can whole kernal corn
2 tsp salt
4 - 6 tsp chile powder
1/4 tsp pepper
1/2 cup yellow cornmeal
1 cup water
1 cup pitted black olive
Cornmeal topping (directions follow)

Saute the meat, onion, green pepper, and garlic together in heated shortening until onions are golden, about 10 minutes. Stir in tomatoes, corn, salt, chile powder and pepper; cover and simmer 5 minutes. Stir in cornmeal blended with the water; simmer 10 minutes more. Add olives and turn into a 9 x 13" baking dish.

Spread topping mixture over meat. bake, uncovered, in a 375 oven for 40 minutes. Makes about 8 servigs.

Cornmeal Topping: Scald 1 1/2 cups milk with 1/2 tsp salt and 2 tbsp butter. Gradually add 1/2 cup cornmeal; cook, stirring, until thickened. Remove from heat; stir in 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese and 2 beaten eggs.


Haricot Bean Soup Fassoulatha

2 cups dried haricot beans
1 tbsp olive oil
2 medium onions, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, crushed
2 large carrots, fiely chopped
2 sticks celery, finely chopped
1.5 kg tomatoes, peeled, seeded, chopped
2 vegetable stock cubes
1/3 cup tomato paste
10 cups hot water
1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leafed parsley
salt, pepper

Place beans in bowl, cover well with water, cover, stand overnight. Drain beans, rinse well.

Heat oil in pan, add onions and garlic, cook, stirring, until soft. Add carrots and celery, cook over low heat, stirring mixture occasionally, 10 minutes. Stir in tomatoes, crumbled stock cubes and paste.

Add beans and hot water; simmer, covered, about 1 1/2 hours or until beans are tender. Stir in about two-thirds of the parsley; add salt and pepper to taste. Sprinkle soup with remaining parsley.

From: Pita the Great

Fresh ogurt Cheese Labani

1 tsp salt, or more to taste
2 quarts plain yogurt, preferably homemade

At least one day before serving, gently stir the salt into the yogurt.

Line a colander with 4 single layers of cheesecloth. Pour the yogurt into the cheescloth. Gather the corners into a bag and tie them together securely with a cord. hang the bag over the kitchen faucet high enough to drain into the sink or suspend over a deep bowl. (You may leve the yogurt to drain in the collander, however suspending it allows a better drain and results in a firmer, creamier curd.) Let it drain overnight or until yogurt curd is firm. the texture should be that of softened cream cheese.

Remove from the bag and place in a container. To store, refrigerate, covered, for up to 1 week.

Makes about 1 quart (low fat yogurt yeilds less due to its high water content).


Hummus Bi Tahini Chickpea Puree

1/4 cup tahini (sesame seed paste)
1/3 cup fresh lemon juice
1/3 to 1/2 cup warm water
1 clove garlic, chopped
3/4 cup dried chickpeas (garbazo beans), cooked and drained or 2 cups ckickpeas, draied and rinsed
1/2 tsp salt
freshly ground black pepper, to taste
olive oil (garnish)
chopped fresh parsley (garnish)

Put tahini, lemon juice, water and garlic into a blender or food processor fitted with the metal blade. Cover and process until smooth.

With the machine running, gradually add the chickpeas, salt and pepper, processing until the miture is the consistency of a very thick paste. If necessary, stop the machine and scrape down the sides with a spatula. The mixture will thicken when it is refrigerated, so if it seems to thick when you've finished processing it, add up to 1/2 cup more water and process again. Taste to correct seasonings.

Put the hummus into a bowl and refrigerate, covered, to chill. Before serving, drizzle with olive oil and garnish with the chopped parsley. Serve with pita wedges.

to store, refrigerate, covered, for up to 1 week, or freeze up to 3 months. Makes 2 cups.


Homemade Tahini

4 cups sesame seeds
1/4 to 1/2 cup vegetable oil

Preheat the oven to 350 .

Spread the sesame seeds oa shallow baking tray and bake, shaking frequently, until fragrant, 8 to 10 minutes. Do not brown. Cool.

Put the sesame seeds ina blender or food processor fitted with a metal blade. Add the vegetable oil. Process to a smooth paste, about 5 minutes. Add more oil if necessary, to bring the paste to a thick pouring consistency. Tahini will keep stored ina tightly covered jar in the fridge for several months.

Makes 3 cups.


Kibbeh Middle-Eastern Meatballs

2/3 cup fine grade bulgur
1 pound ground lean lamb (all fat removed)
1 small onion, grated
1/4 tsp ground allspice
1/4 tsp cinnamon
sal and pepper to taste
vegetable oil, for frying

Rinse the bulgur and place it in a medium bowl. Cover with cool water and let it soak until it is tender to the bite, 20 to 30 minutes. Drain thoroughly and squuze out any excess water. fluf to separate the grains.

Combine the lamb, onio, allspice, cinnamon, salt and pepper in a large bowl. Mix thoroughly.

Prepare a bowl of ice water. Keeping your hands cold and moist by dipping them into the ice water, gradually add the bulgur to the lamb mixture, kneadig thoroughly after each addition. Knead the mixture for another minute after all the bulgur has been added. Taste to correct seasonings (EW!!!)

Divide the kibbeh into 36 portions and shape into smooth balls. Refrigerate the balls, covered, in a large bowl until firm, 30 minutes to 1 hour.

Pour the oil to a depth of 1/2" in a large skillet and heat until hot but not smoking. Working in small batches, add the meatballs in a single layer and cook over medium-high heat, turning often until evenly browned and cooked through, 5 to 8 minutes. Drain on paper towles. Add more oil to the skillet, if necessary, to cook remaining meatballs.

Serve warm with pita wedges and a bowl of yogurt-garlic sauce for dipping.


Baked Meat Diamonds Kibbeh Sinayee

1 recipe Kibbeh, prepared through step 3
2 tbsp butter
1 medium onion, chopped
1/2 lb ground lamb
2 tbsp pine nuts
1/2 tsp cinnamon
salt, pepper to taste
2 tbsp yogurt cheese
1/3 cup clarified butter (see note)

Refrigerate the kibbeh, covered, until ready to bake.

To prepare the filling, melt the butter in a medium skillet. add the onions and saute over medium heat until tender and transparent, about 5 minutes. Add the lamb, pine nuts, cinamon, salt and pepper. Cook, stirrig costantly, until the meat is crumbled and lightly browned, about 15 minutes.

Remove from the heat and stir in the yogurt cheese. Blend until well mixed. Cool in the skillet at room temperature.

Preheat oven to 400 .

Thoroughly grease bottom and sides of an 8 or 9 inch square or round baking pan with 2 tbsp of the melted clarified butter. Prepare a bowl of ice and water. Place half the kibbeh in the pan, spreading it evenly. Pat the surface smooth. Dip your hands in the ice water to prevent the kibbeh from sticking to your fingers. Cover with the filling, spreading it evenly. Spread the remaining kibbeh to cover the filling and pat the surface smooth.

With your forefinger, press a hole in the center and each corner of the pan to help to help disperse the butter during baking. With a sharp knife, score into diamond squares. Score completely through the mixture diagonally at 1 1/2" intervals across the pan. Diagonally crisscross scores over these to make the diamond shapes. Drizzle the kibbeh with the remaining clarified butter.

Bake until browned and firm, 30 to 45 minutes. remove and llet cool to lukewarm.

Yogurt-Garlic Sauce (tzatziki)

1 cup plain yogurt
1 clove garlic, crushed
1/2 cup finely grated seeded and peeled cucumber
1 tsp fresh lemon juice
1 tbsp finely chopped parsley (optional)
salt, pepper to taste
approx. 1/3 cup olive oil

Drain yogurt 1 to 3 hours as described for yogurt cheese. Combine all ingredients except olive oil; mix well. Whisk in olive oil until correct consistency taste.


Chard and Lentil Soup

1 1/2 cups lentils
2 1/2 quarts water
1 tbsp salt
1/4 cup olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, crushed
2 medium potatoes, scrubbed ad diced with the skins left on
10 oz. fresh chard, well rinsed, patted dry, stems trimmed off and chopped, and leaves torn into bite sized pieces.
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice, or to taste
1 tsp ground coriander
freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Wash and drain the lentils. Put them in a large kettle and add the water. Bring to boil ad add the salt. Reduce the heat and simmer, covered, until the lentils are almost tender, 45 miutes to 1 hour.

Heat the oil in a large skillet. Add the onion and garlic and saute over medium heat until soft and translucent, about 5 minutes.

Add the onion mixture to the lentils. Add the potatoes, chard leaves and stems, 1 tbsp lemon juice, coriander and pepper. Stir thoroughly. Simmer covered, until the potatoes are tender, about 15 to 20 minutes. If the soup seems too thick, add a little boiling water.

Just before serving, add the remaining juice. Taste to correct seasonings.

Comments

[zalena.livejournal.com]

The recipe for mussels made me drool. It's more of a poem than a recipe.

I have everything I need to make hummus and will give it a try this week.

And I will be trying the chard soup. I love chard, but it often confounds me in the kitchen. I'm trying to get to know my greens.

[(Anonymous)]

My mum was telling me about chard rolls she made with meat (ground lamb, I believe) and quinoa all rolled up in chard leaves and cooked like cabbage rolls. That made me drool. I love chard as well. I like it oh-so-much more than spinach (which is what the soup recipe originally called for), and find it's a good replacement for anything that calls for spinach. Mostly. I also like it simply wilted served with a dash of lemon juice. Mmmmm...

As for the mussels... I'm glad you like the sound of it. I'm not big on mollusks myself, but since it was in my mum's book I felt honor bound to copy it. ;-)

[averygoodun.livejournal.com]

I am so looking forward to being at home on my own machine where I don't have to remember to log in before posting or replying, btw.

If you haven't read it, Pita the Great is a good cookbook for mediterrenean food. Good tips, as well. :-)