Fig Newtons.

Hello everybody.

Cold rainy day with expected snow this evening, since I have leftovers and only made lentil soup to go along with weather conditions I made this new healthy recipe.

Fig Newtons are traditional Italian cookies made from dried figs, they’re a very good source of fibers and nutrients specially during Winter times.

Ingredients and method :

Dough:

* 3/4 cup butter.
* 1/4 cup sugar.
* 1 egg.
* 1 tablespoon orange zest.
* 1 3/4 to 2 cups flour.
* 1 tsp vanilla.
* 1 tablespoon cold water.
* pinch of salt.

Filing :
* 1 cup dried figs chopped to medium sized chunks.
* 1 cup water.
* 1 cup apple or orange juice.
* 1/2 cup crushed walnuts.

* mix and knead dough ingredients till you get a firm soft ball.
* keep wrapped with nylon in the fridge.
* meanwhile boil figs with water and juice then leave to simmer for one hour, figs will sticky and tender.
* may figs till they’re like a paste then add walnuts.
* cool completely.
* on a floured surface roll dough then cut into similar shaped rectangles.
* fill each piece with the filling then close it all over.
* cut to small pieces then line all cookies on a floured pan.
* bake in a medium heated oven for 20-25 minutes or till golden from sides.

excellent in this weather.

Italian Lentil Soup.

Hello everybody.

Last night my cousin who lives in Rome made this soup,recipe sounded easy and delicious, I even realized from the comments that many people here do it as well,called “Sahiha” meaning lentils stay as is, not mashed.

Ingredients and method :
# 1 cup brown lentils.
# 1 carrot, celery stick, garlic clove and chili pepper.
# 1 tablespoon tomato paste or big chopped tomato.
#olive oil, salt, pepper and Maggi cube or vegetable stock.

# boil lentils in 4 cups of water till done.
# saute garlic, celery stick, carrot and pepper in olive oil.
# when tender add lentils with water on them.
# leave to simmer till done then remove vegetables.
# add tomato paste, salt, pepper and Maggi cube.
# Serve with a slice of lemon.

Cousin’s Lunch Gathering.

Hello everybody.
Had a warm loving lunch for my cousin and her cute daughters visiting Jordan from Rome, it was really a pleasure.
Menu was Banan’s rice, Fava beans with cooked yogurt and steaks, a pesto pasta and salad.Dessert was plain cake with chocolate Ganache on top and fruits.

pesto pasta. baba ghanouj.

dessert.

Eggplant Salad with Ricotta Cheese.

Hello everybody.

Had a big dinner yesterday so I have too much food left.

A small side dish was the same eggplant salad I did once before but I added some Ricotta Cheese from the ones my cousin brought me from Rome on top, yummy yummy.

I also did fresh mushroom soup from the pack of dried ones, again yummy.

eggplant salad.

typical Mediterranean dish.

Spinach Gnocchi.

Hello everybody.

Warm sunny day,I just love these days, though chilli at night but at least you can enjoy a beautiful day.
Lunch was Italian style except the rice which was the Iranian recipe, it’s becoming our kind of rice these days.

Did meatballs the way my cousin Rita always do them, with parmesan,breadcrumbs, eggs,nutmeg, salt and pepper then after cooling them in the fridge they’re dipped directly in boiling tomato sauce, really yummy.

Another new side dish was Spinach Gnocchi, and tasty different kind of appetizer. To tell you the truth is did once maybe a couple of years ago but it was a failure then, today I did it with patience and it turned out just perfect.

Ingredients and method :
* 4 cups of spinach, cut washed and squeezed till all excess water is out.
* 1 1/2 cups ricotta or white cheese.
* 1/2 cup parmesan cheese.
* 1 egg.
* 1/2 tsp nutmeg.
* 1 tsp salt and pepper.
* 2 big tablespoons flour.
* some butter and one clove garlic.

* squeeze spinach very well then add all ingredients except butter.
* roll mixture into egg shape.
* roll gnocchi in flour and leave in fridge for a while.
* cook gnocchi in boiling water uncovered till they float on top.
* remove slowly then arrange in an ovenproof pan with butter and garlic then sprinkle with parmesan and mazorella cheese, cook for few minutes till cheese melts.
Buon Apatito as they say in Italian.

perfect end result.

I used our white cheese instead of ricotta.

gnocchi before adding the cheese.

meatballs and Iranian rice.

photo in cook book.

and these are mine!

Homemade Pasta !

Hello everybody.

After a chit chat with my cousin living in Rome last night discussing how fresh homemade pasta is much more tastier than commercial ones and since I do have a pasta making instrument stashed away in my kitchen cabinet,I decided to start rolling it while we’re already stuck indoors in the cold weather.

Basic egg pasta recipes are all similar ,only 2 ingredients but secret to a successful dough is to let it rest and flour surfaces and roller so as pasta won’t stick to each other.

Ingredients and method:

* 2 cups flour.

* 1/2 tsp salt.

* 3 eggs.

* on a clean surface or in a bowl mix flour and salt then make a well in the middle and crack eggs in it.

* start whisking eggs into flour with a fork gradually.

* continue working with your hands or in a food processor till you get a firm dough.

* cover with cling film and leave to rest for 30-50 minutes.

* divide to 4 pieces then roll in the thickest number in roller.

* keep dusting with flour so as layers won’t stick.

* roll again to a thinner layer and so on till you have very thin ones.

* last thing roll in pasta shape and dust them with flour when done ( an extra helping hand during this process is not a bad idea:) )

* cook in salted boiling water for 4-5 minutes only.

* remove and cook the way you want,today I made it with mined meat,mushrooms,onions with herbs and tomato paste .

* sprinkle with cheese when served.

Hope you try it if you have this magical machine ,really worth it, totally different taste !

flour eggs mix.

final result.

Voila !!

Eggplant Rolls and Mushroom Soup.

Hello everybody.

Extremely cold today,bet most moms made a soup in this weather, I did a super mushroom soup from the ones my cousin sent me from Rome,I also used the mushroom cubes which made a big difference in taste,really rich aroma and flavor I didn’t even add any spices. Big evidence is it’s all gone !

Lunch was Kebabs in tomato sauce(كباب هندي) ,kept some of the kebabs and wrapped them in thinly sliced fried eggplant then cooked wraps in tomato,onion and garlic sauce then sprinkled some chopped parsley on top. Really good and well stewed ,eggplants gave it a nice twist !

Oh and I made a fresh pesto sauce to keep in my new pistol and mortar all from scratch!

mushroom soup in a bun.

eggplant rolls.

homemade pesto.

Up to Hometown Huwwara :)

Hello everybody.

Had a marvelous day, me and mom headed up North this morning and visited many relatives and as usual ate lots of food 😉

First stop was at my new fb friend and cousin for breakfast and a cup of coffee,all delicious and we had such a great time catching up and knowing each other face to face,a real pleasure. Visit ended with a superb piece of Teramisu since my cousin lives in Rome so she’s an expert,really yummy.

Thank you dear Rita for your hospitality,hope to see you soon before you leave.

Then next visit was to my lovely colleagues and best cousins for lunch,we had rice with fava beans with salad and Irbid yogurt of course. Ha great time as usual 🙂

Trip ended by paying condolences for a relative then a must buying labaneh and yogurt on our way back from Husson.

Very nice day indeed <3

Broad Green Beans Salad.

Hello everybody.

Grocery day again,ended up buying lots of fruits and vegetables,so fresh and tempting,couldn’t resist the red cherries and seedless grapes, don’t you just love Summer with all its colors and varieties?

I got some broad green beans and cherry tomatoes to make this salad that my cousin who lives in Rome posted in my Facebook group, turned out absolutely delicious,even kids loved it 🙂

As for lunch it was fresh mloukhieh with chicken,really good as always,dessert was a big bowl of fruits !!

Ingredients and method:

* broad green beans cut and boiled in salted water till a tender but not overcooked.

* cherry tomato.

* lemon zest.

* sauteed garlic cloves.

* salt,pepper,lemon juice,pomegranate sauce or balsamic vinegar and olive oil.

* just mix all ingredients and toss with dressing .

very easy healthy dish.

Enjoy <3

What to cook today?

day by day cooking ideas

Rome

Fig Newtons.

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Italian Lentil Soup.

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Cousin’s Lunch Gathering.

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Eggplant Salad with Ricotta Cheese.

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Spinach Gnocchi.

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Homemade Pasta !

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Eggplant Rolls and Mushroom Soup.

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Up to Hometown Huwwara :)

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Broad Green Beans Salad.

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