This is a big, long list of recipes, because I have such a backlog to share. I know it isn't convenient for folks who want to print recipes, but my recipes here are primarily a record for my kids, so they can make the food I made them when they move out or when I am gone. This is not a professional recipe blog or website.

Arabic Style Braised Beef

This is really just a variation on my slow baked chuck roast. It is delicious and simple. I like it best with chuck roast, but any tough cut of beef will work (a lamb or mutton shoulder would work beautifully). You don't need to sear the meat or anything. It comes out perfectly and takes almost no hands on time.

8 garlic cloves, peeled
5 pounds boneless chuck roast (or other tough roast)
1 1/2 tablespoons flake salt
1 tablespoon garlic granules
1 tablespoon ground allspice
2 teaspoons sumac
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon Aleppo pepper flakes
1 teaspoon turmeric
1/2 teaspoon Ceylon cinnamon

Place garlic cloves in the bottom of a slow cooker or roasting pan. Evenly coat the meat in all the spices and salt, rubbing in to the meat well. Place on top of the garlic.

In a slow cooker: Cook on low for 8 hours, or until it shreds and is tender. Shred it with forks and serve with rice or Arabic bread.

In the oven: Cover tightly with foil and bake at 325˚F for 3 - 4 hours, then treat the same as above.

Jeddo's Tuna Sandwiches

On a cooking group I follow, someone said that everyone's dad has a special tuna salad/tuna sandwich recipe. I don't know if that is universally true, but it is true of my father. This is how he taught us to make tuna sandwiches when he visited us when we were first married. We still make a more "American" style with mayonnaise, dill, finely chopped onions, dill pickles and capers, and pepper, which is what we use for tuna melts, too, but this is really lovely, and holds a soft spot for me.

10 - 12 ounces canned solid white tuna, drained
2 8-ounce packages of cream cheese, softened
1 small or 1/2 large red onion, finely minced
2 packages fresh dill, minced
salt and black pepper, to taste
olive oil, to thin
khoubz Araby, to serve

Mix together tuna, cream cheese, minced onion and dill, and blend thoroughly. Season with salt and pepper, to taste, and add olive oil until the mixture is soft and easily spreadable.

Warm Arabic bread, and split to fill. Fill generously, but not over full. Serve.

Biftek ou Battatas

I normally don't use spice or herb mixtures I don't make myself. There are a few exceptions. My "lemon pepper" is one of them. It isn't the regular lemon pepper at the store. I buy Parisian shallot salt free blend and Florida citrus pepper salt free blend from The Spice House and mix them equally by volume. This means, I buy two of the Parisian blend to every one of the Florida blend and mix them together in a jar at home. This is what I use in this recipe. The Parisian blend has dried, minced shallots, chives, scallions, green peppercorns, dill weed, basil, parsley, tarragon, and bay leaves in it, and the Florida blend has dried, coarsely ground black pepper, citric acid, lemon peel, garlic, orange peel, and onion in it. You can make your own mixture of this, or as close as you can with spices and herbs you have at home, use a more general lemon pepper blend, or you can buy them like I do, and use them in eggs, vegetable sautées, season chicken and fish with it, etc. This is a really comforting, warm, homey dish for a family dinner. Using tougher cuts makes it less expensive, and with beef prices beign what they are, that is a bonus.

6 tough beef steaks, thinly sliced
generous amount of flake salt and freshly ground pepper, to season
1 teaspoon Aleppo pepper flakes
1 teaspoon special citrus, allium, herb and pepper blend (see note)
1 teaspoon Saudi Seven Spice Blend
3 tablespoons olive oil
6 tablespoons butter
1 large medium onion, sliced
10 garlic cloves, coarsely crushed
2 tablespoons flour
2 cups hot water
zest of 2 - 3 lemons (zest before you juice and use the zest from those lemons)
1/4 cup lemon juice
fried potatoes (French fries), preferably homemade
chopped parsley, to serve

Snip around the edges of each steak around 4 times with kitchen scissors or a sharp knife. Season with salt, pepper, Aleppo pepper, citrus herb pepper blend and seven spice.

Heat a skillet over medium high heat. Add olive oil and 1 tablespoon of butter amd swirl in the pan. Sear the beef in three batches, adding 1 tablespoon butter with each batch, cooking until golden on both sides. Remove to a plate and reserve all the pan juices.

Reduce heat to medium and add a little more oil if needed. Add the sliced onions and crushed garlic and sauté until softened and golden. Add the additional butter and let it melt, then stir in the flour to coat the onions and form a paste. Add the water, stirring continuously until smooth. Stir through the lemon zest, then return the seared beef along with all the resting juices.

Stir to coat the beef in the sauce, cover and reduce heat to low. Cook for 45 minutes to 1 1/2 until tender, adding warm water if needed to keep the sauce going (depends on the cut of beef) stir in the lemon juice, taste and adjust.

Serve beef and sauce topped with hot, crisp fried potatoes, and sprinkled with parsley.

Arugula with Red Onion and Sumac

This is so simple and delicious. It can be made with any green you like. We prefer it with arugula or chard. You may have to cook it a little longer if it is a tougher green. It is also tasty with a little sprinkle of lemon or lime juice, or even a drizzle of pomegranate molasses. If you have a garden full of greens, this can be a great way to use them during the week.

1/4 cup (or more) good olive oil
2 medium red onions, peeled and thinly sliced
8 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
1 1/2 tablespoon Aleppo pepper flakes
2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
flake salt, to taste
12 - 16 ounces arugula
2 tablespoons ground sumac
1 bunch cilantro, trimmed and minced
1 bunch flat leaf parsley, trimmed and minced

Heat a skillet over medium high heat. Add the olive oil, then the red onions to soften and slightly brown. Add the garlic, Aleppo pepper, black pepper, and salt, and toss for a minute or two.

Add the baby arugula (or other greens) and toss with onion and garlic mixture, allow to wilt and heat.

Remove from heat and toss with sumac. Taste for seasoning and add salt, if necessary. Toss in minced cilantro and parsley, and serve with as a side dish or as a light meal with warm bread.

Ghraibeh

These are a traditional and common cookie throughout the Arab world. It is like a shortbread, but made with almond flour, as well. These are super easy to make and are delicious. Every family makes theirs a little differently. Some put orange blossom water instead of the cardamom, some use both. Some use different nuts to decorate. There is room for variation, to a certain degree. These are crisp, buttery, and melt in your mouth. They are not super sweet, and are perfect with a cup of strong tea or coffee. (My example in the picture is a little too dry, because we made them without the full amount of butter - sorry)!

2 cups pastry flour
1 cup almond flour (either with or without the skins, but traditionally made with the skins)
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 teaspoon cardamom
2 1/2 sticks (1 1/4 cup) unsalted butter, softened
pine nuts (or unsalted pistachio halves, or slivered almonds), to decorate (optional)

Pre-heat the oven to 325˚F. Prepare a cookie sheet and set aside.

Whisk together pastry flour, almond flour, powdered sugar, and cardamom. Add the butter and mix into it to coat and blend the entire mixture. I use my stand mixer, so my hands don't get too sticky.

Roll them into approximately 1 inch balls and place on prepared pan, 1 1/2 inches apart. Press a pine nut (or another nut) into the top of each cookie. Bake for 10 - 15 minutes. They should not be brown at the edges.

Lemonade Concentrate and Arabic Style Lemonade

This will keep in the refrigerator for about a month, sealed in a jar. I like to do a bigger batch in the summer, and keep it around to serve real lemonade more quickly. You can leave out the rose water and orange blossom water, but most of us really like it with them in there.

1 1/2 cups sugar
1 1/2 cups water
1 1/2 cups fresh lemon juice
2 tablepoons rose water
2 tablespoons orange blossom water

Place both the sugar and water into a saucepan. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium high heat, stirring to dissolve, and boil for 5 minutes. Remove the saucepan from the heat and allow to cool slightly.

Add the freshly squeezed lemon juice, rose water, and orange blossom water to the sugar syrup. Cool completely. Pour the lemonade syrup into a quart jar. Cover tightly with the lid and store in the refrigerator. For serving:
ice cubes
cold water or sparkling water
fresh mint

When you’re ready to serve the lemonade, place a few sprigs of fresh mint in the bottom of a pitcher, fill the rest of the way with ice cubes. Pour 1 part of the lemonade concentrate and 3 parts of the cold or sparkling water in to fill the pitcher. Serve.

Labels: Homemaking, Recipes, Tales from the Kitchen