Tahina Breakfast Bites

I found a recipe for tahina breakfast "cookies" online and tried them, and they were fine, but had we thought of them as cookies we would have been sorely disappointed. After modifying them a bit (date syrup with tahina seemed more appropriate than maple syrup, and was less expensive), and fiddling with the proportions and baking times, I think I have a great breakfast bite, that also makes a wonderful snack on the go. You can use a stand mixer to speed up your process, or just use a large bowl and wooden spoon.

1 1/2 cups tahina
1 cup date syrup (or honey, molasses, or maple syrup)
1 tablespoon vanilla paste or extract
2 cups rolled oats
1 1/2 chopped walnutes (or almonds)
3/4 cup dried cherries, golden raisins (sultanas), dried cranberries or a mix of them (I like the berry medley that Trader Joe's has - see the picture below)
2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

Preheat oven to 350˚F and line two baking sheets with parchment. Set aside.

Beat tahina, date syrup, and vanilla paste or extract together in a bowl until smooth. Add rolled oats and chopped walnuts and mix evenly. Stir in dried fruit, cinnamon, nutmeg and clove. Mix until well blended.

Using a small cookie scoop or a tablespoon, make balls of dough and place 2 inches apart on the prepared pans. Flatten slightly with your scrupulously clean palms. Don't compress it into toughness, though.

Bake 8 - 10 minutes. You do not want to see browning on the edges, these will brown from the bottom. Remove from oven and cool on baking sheet 5 minutes. Place breakfast bites on a rack to cool completely. Yields about six dozen bites.

Đuveč

This vegetable rice dish is common to all of the Balkan states. It is pronounced Dju'-vetch, and it is quick to put together and delicious. It is wonderful with meat, fish, or just on its own. We have tried to make it the way they do in Croatia, or at least as close as we can get here. Because of Jerome's dietary restrictions, we have been making it recently with green chickpeas, rather than garden peas, and it is quite tasty that way, as well. The peas, however, are more authentic. You can cut this recipe in half, if you like, but it is good the next day, so you may wish to make the full amount. This is enough for our family with one or two servings left over.

4 tablespoons sunflower oil (or other light oil)
1 small onion, peeled and finely diced
2 medium carrots, peeled and finely diced
1 bell pepper, seeded and finely diced
6 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
2 cups uncooked rice (we use Egyptian or Turkish rice, arborio or carnaroli, or even sushi rice would work)
2 tomatoes, finely diced, or a 14-ounce can of diced tomatoes with their juices
4 cups water or vegetable broth
2 teaspoons paprika
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon hot, smoked paprika
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 cups peas (frozen or fresh)
1 bunch parsley, finely chopped

Heat a rice pot over medium-high heat. Add the sunflower oil, then the onion and cook until the onion turns transparent. Add the carrots and peppers, and cook to soften them and evaporate any liquid that precipitates. Add the garlic and stir for about a minute or two.

Pour the rice in and mix well with the vegetables, cooking until the rice is fragrant. Add the tomatoes, and cook until the liquid evaporates a little. Then add the water or vegetable broth, paprika, salt, hot paprika, and black pepper. Increase heat to high and bring to a boil. Cover and reduce heat to low. Cook, covered and undisturbed, for 15 minutes.

Remove cover and pour in peas. Replace cover and cook five minutes.

Remove pan from heat, sprinkle with chopped parsley and fluff with a fork. Taste to adjust seasoning. Serve.

Persian Love Cake

We first made this cake for Valentine's Day. Since the recipe gave an option for making it gluten-free, we took it a step further and made it without milk products. I will give you the recipe, with our modifications, and with options for making it gluten and milk free. It does include eggs, so it is not strictly Lenten, but we saved it to make for our Annunciation and birthday feast. This is a super easy and quick cake to make, and it is delicious. I used our stand mixer to make this go even more quickly, and it comes together in just a few minutes, and can be in the oven in that time. The syrup in made while the cake bakes, and you are set. We actually haven't tried it the regular way, so we may need to do that after Lent, when Jerome has all dairy back.

6 tablespoons ghee, butter (we substituted safflower oil)
6 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup sugar
5 large eggs
1 cup whole milk yogurt (we used almond milk yogurt)
2 tablespoons rose water
2 tablespoons orange flower water
1 cup almond flour
3/4 cup pastry flour (we substituted a gluten-free all-purpose flour that was safe for Jerome)
1/2 cup semolina flour (we substituted more almond flour)
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons ground cardamom
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup sliced almonds for topping

syrup:
1/2 cup honey
1/3 cup freshly squeezed and strained orange juice
2 tablespoons rose water
1/2 teaspoon saffron
2 tablespoons chopped pistachios (optional)

3 tablespoons food grade rose petals for garnish
1/4 cup chopped pistachios (optional)

Preheat oven to 350˚F. Spray the bottom of a 10 inch springform pan with coconut oil or avocado oil spray, line with parchment, and set aside.

In a stand mixer or bowl, whisk together butter, olive oil and sugar, until the mixture is very thick. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Whisk in the yogurt, rose water, and orange flower water. Whip until very frothy and thick.

In another bowl, whisk together almond flour, pastry flour, semolina flour, baking powder, cardamom, and salt. Add to the liquid mixture and mix in thoroughly.

Pour into prepared springform pan and sprinkle the top with the sliced almonds. Bake for 45 - 55 minutes, until the center springs back and a skewer inserted in the center comes back with a few crumbs.

While the cake bakes, prepare the syrup. Bring honey and orange juice to boil in a saucepan over medium heat, stirring to dissolve and keep from overflowing or burning. When it comes to a boil, reduce heat to low, and let simmer for five minutes. Stir in rose water and saffron. Remove from heat and stir in pistachios.

When cake is baked, remove from oven, and use a skewer to poke fine holes all over the cake. Pour the warm syrup over the warm cake and allow to sok several hours or overnight.

Decorate with the food grade rose petals, and the optional chopped pistachios. Slice and serve. Serves at least 16 people.

Advieh

This is a Persian spice mixture for which there are many variations. I understand that this particular variation is more often used for rice dishes, but we have used it in a paste with olive oil on chicken and found it quite delicious.

4 tablespoons food grade dried rose petals
2 tablespoons ground Ceylon cinnamon (you can substitute cassia easily, but I think the true cinnamon is better)
2 tablespoons ground cumin
1 tablespoon ground cardamom
1 teaspoon ground cloves

Mix all ingredients and put in a labeled jar. That is it!

Labels: Homemaking, Recipes, Special Diet, Tales from the Kitchen