These pita chips are perfect for adding to your fattoush salad, but you may have to hide them from the rest of your family as they’ll likely be gone before your salad is made. These are great for dips as well, or just to snack on. You’ll probably want to double (or even triple) the…
Cauliflower is having a moment. Maybe it’s thanks to the low carb diets that are so popular right now, but even if you aren’t watching carbs cauliflower is an inexpensive versatile vegetable that should find its way on to your table. While I adore a whole roasted cauliflower, I also love cauliflower pickled – especially…
Ashta is a pastry cream common throughout the Middle East and the Levant, similar to English clotted cream; it’s usually used to fill qatayef, or added into other pastries, but in summer it’s lovely just with a simple fruit tray, or topped with a little orange blossom syrup and some chopped nuts (like a pudding)….
Traditional tabbouleh is made with bulgur, a wheat product. While I’m definitely not gluten free (as evidenced by the bread recipes I post here) I tend to always have quinoa on hand, whereas I only buy bulgur occasionally from my local Middle Eastern supermarket. Quinoa also has relatively high protein content for a grain, and…
The fruit bowl in our house is nearly always piled sky high with lemons, particularly at this time of year when every salad needs a good squeeze of bright, fresh lemon juice. If you find yourself with extras, however – I highly recommend making this quick and super simple lemonade. I’d been intrigued by the…
This is one of those condiments that have become ubiquitous in our home, so much so that friends will notice when it’s not out on the dinner table and open the fridge in search of it. My husband and I are definitely fans of all things spicy, and after becoming acquainted with zhug during travel…
Namoura (or basbousa, as it is known in Egypt) is a traditional dessert made from semolina (the flour one typically thinks of for making pasta). It’s a relatively simple dessert with only a few ingredients, but it’s soaked in syrup fragranced with orange blossom water, and includes a little bit of shredded coconut, which gives…
Toum is perhaps the most versatile Lebanese condiment; it consists only of fresh garlic, salt, oil, and lemon juice. When made correctly, it is light and fluffy – the consistency of a light mayonnaise – but packed with garlic flavour. It is good on meat, vegetables, in sandwiches – or even to dip French fries…
No holiday is ever complete in our family without a bowl of pickles and olives. While you can certainly buy these pickles at the store, there’s something truly special about opening a jar of your own homemade pickles, not to mention it tends to be far less expensive – and it allows you the fun…
We’ve all had the homemade hummus at parties (or the stuff from the grocery store) that’s flavourless and thick or worse still: gritty. I used to struggle with making hummus that could compete with the stuff I’d eaten in the Middle East, and Colorado (at the time I moved here) had very few good quality…
