Best Birthday Party.

Hello everybody.

Yesterday we celebrated my nephew’s first birthday, our bundle of joy is one now.

Theme of the party was teddy bears, cake, cupcakes and all ornaments were brown and yellow. All done by my talented sister in-law, very elegant and cheerful.

I did the catering,menu was as follows :
# falafel rolls.

# mini kibbeh.

# mini burgers and baked potatoes.

# salmon sandwiches.
# turkey and cheese sandwiches.

# mini baked corn dogs.

# Italian cream cake.

My sister in-law did quesadillas ,lasagna and cheesecake pots and my sister made pasta salad.

All was really delicious, we had great fun.

Stuffed Turkey.

Hello everybody.

Today we had a big festive lunch, stuffed turkey with all accompanying dishes.

Recipe from my sister which turned out very good, turkey was very moist and well done, I soaked it yesterday in brine containing salt,pepper corns, cinnamon stick, cardamom, rosemary and vinegar.

This morning I dried it very well then stuffed it with sauteed onions and bread ( whole loaf of toast without crust edges) then I added lots of butter between skin and flesh with spices and salt.

spices,butter and bread stuffing.
Wrap the turkey very well with foil paper and bake for 4 hours, begin with very high heat for the first half hour then lower it to medium or a bit less for remaining time. Remove foil last half hour so that it’ll be roasted and golden.

golden and done.

Along with it, I made potato gratin, rice with spices and meat on top, veggies, corn salad, butter sautéed red cabbage with cloves and rocca apple cranberry salad.

potato gratin.

sauteed red cabbage.

rocca apple cranberry salad.

A big success thank God.

Manti.

Hello everybody.

Very hot and dry today,no cooking or heavy dishes are desirable at all.

This turkish recipe crossed my mind this morning, it’s a very famous one all over Turkey and women do it so quickly in a highly professional way.

Well today I made it with our shushbarak, same principle of the dumpling though mantis are much smaller but taste is the same.
I also made some potatoes with oregano,garlic and cheese my favorite dish ever.

Ingredients and method of Manti :
# small meat dumpings or shushbarak. (I made 50 pieces)
# 3 cups chicken broth.
# for the sauce :
2 cups yogurt.
2 minced garlic
1 tsp dry mint.

# for the hot oil:
Heat some olive oil then add dry mints and chili flakes till all sizzle.

# heat broth till it boils then add the dumplings.
# leave to boil for 10 min.
# remove and line them in a wide oven pan.
# add some butter on top and bake in the oven till crispy and golden.
# mix yogurt with garlic and mints.

# before serving and while dumplings are hot add the yogurt sauce then drizzle hot oil on top.

Excellent choice today, boys loved it.

yummy stuff.

Suborek (Turkish Borek).

Hello everybody.

Just got back from a gathering at Mom’s in the honor of my cousin coming for vacation.

Mom made super delicious stuffed vine leaves and I made this Turkish style borek, very easy to do and extremely yummy,secret is lots of butter used for sure,everything tastes good with butter.
Ingredients and method :
* 2 packs thin phyllo pastry (رقائق الهنا)
*melted butter.
* white and yellow cheese ( I used white cheese, kashcaval and kraft).
* bunch of parsley finely chopped.
* some dry mint.

I also made spinach and feta cheese mix with black pepper and a bit of chili powder.

* grease and deep dish or pan with butter then start adding the pastry layers adding butter between all layers.
* after layering one pack add the stuffing then continue with the other pack.

Note: today I used four packs and made a big pan,half with cheese and half with spinach.

* cut into squares and tuck sides well.
* before putting in the oven beat one egg in 1- 1 1/2 cups milk and add all over.
* bake in a well heated oven for 20 minutes.
* toast surface till golden.

A super yummy dish, felt myself part of a Turkish series while doing it.

use the endings to make decoration.

Walnut Caramel Truffles.

Hello everybody.

It was a pleasure to welcome my old university colleagues this morning for breakfast,though we don’t meet much but it’s always a pleasure to see them, good memories and lots of laughter 🙂

Food was simple and delicious or is it the company that makes it enjoyable? cheeses,labaneh,cream cheese and jam from yesterday and a selection of croissants filled with salmon and turkey.

Dessert was these chewy walnut caramel truffles I made last night and a dish of fruits , found the recipe on Pinterest but made few changes, taste is just perfect.

Ingredients and method:

* 1 cup crushed walnuts.

* 2 cups crushed plain biscuits.

* 1/4 cup brown sugar.

* 1/4 cup maple syrup.

* 2 tablespoons cream.

* melted chocolate.

* Mix all ingredients together except chocolate then form it into small balls.

* line in wax paper and cool in fridge for 30 minutes.

* dip in melted chocolate and cool again,you can decorate top with walnuts while still hot.

These will be excellent for Christmas by the way,can be done and stored a week ahead.

Turkish Pie.

Hello everybody.

Needed something to back up yesterday’s lunch so this pie would be great, since many of my cousins and aunties been doing it and posting its photos on my Facebook page so I think it’s time for me to try it. A success for sure, boys loved it.

Ingredients and method :
Dough :
* 2 1/2 cups flour.
* 1 cup warm milk.
* 2 tsp instant yeast.
* 2 tsp sugar.
* 2 tsp salt.

Filling :
* 1/2 kg minced beef meat.
* 1 small chopped onion.
* 1/2 cup sweet corn.
* some chopped green peppers.
* grated mazorella or kashcaval.
* some sesame and black seeds.

* Mix all dough ingredients together, knead well for 5 minutes then leave in a warm place to rest and rise.

* sauté meat and onions with some oil till done.
* add the corn and spices,I added salt, pepper, all spice and some chili powder.

* grease and pie pan the spread 3/4 of the dough to the edges.
* add the filling then half of the cheese.
* cover with the rest of the dough then cover top with remaining cheese,sesame and black seeds.
* bake in a medium heated oven for 40-50 minutes..

Serve with green salad or sautéed vegetables.

Yalanji ( vegetarian stuffed vine leaves)

Hello everybody.

Though I’m suffering from a bad back pain,but I bought fresh vine leaves and tiny courgettes Saturday to make yalanji and It’s a shame to leave them uncooked or freeze them,so I prepared stuffing and God bless my Mom came by to help,actually stuffed them all . Thank you precious Um Khaled <3<3.

This dish is famous in Eastern Mediterranean countries,Turkey, Greece and Cyprus,usually as appetizer or side dish with Lebanese mezzeh ,today I cooked it as main dish for lunch,kids asked for it so yalanji it is. I also made baba ghanouj with it ( roasted eggplant with veggies).

Ingredients and method:(

* Hollowed courgettes ( scoop out pulp with special knife,كوسا محفور ).you can stuff small eggplants also.

* fresh vine leaves.

* 2 ripe tomatoes,peeled and finely chopped.

* bunch of parsley and mint leaves.

* 1 small onion finely chopped.

* salt, pepper and 1 tsp coffee ( don’t know why coffee is added but many people use it ,they say it gives a nice taste,no harm to add it anyway).

* 1/2 cup lemon juice.

* olive oil.

* some sliced potatoes sliced ,placed at bottom of pan.

* prepare stuffing by mixing washed rise,chopped tomatoes,onion,parsley and mint.

* add salt,pepper,coffee,lemon juice and oil.

* soak vine leaves in boiling water and cover till color changes then drain all water.

* stuff courgettes and vine leaves.

* line potatoes and sliced tomatoes in the bottom of pan or pressure cooker.

* arrange courgettes and vine leaves then cover with a plate covered in foil paper so as to stay compressed.

* add lemon juice,salt,olive oil and enough water to cover all by one inch.

* cook on high heat till water is bubbling for 10 minutes then lower heat to minimum and leave to cook for an hour and half or till done ( time depends on quantity you did)

* leave to cool completely then arrange in a large dish and serve.

Baba Ghanouj :

* roast eggplant on stove or in the oven, when done cut half way, remove pulp and chop.

* chop tomato,onion,pepper,parsley . p.s. you can add 1 clove garlic if you like

* add lemon juice,salt then mix all together.

* drizzle olive oil on top.

Note: I apologize for not posting exact quantities cause it all depends on how many leaves and courgettes you’re stuffing.

Unfortunately seems I either added too much water or overcooked it, first time this happens with me ,leaves turned out sloppy (بالعربي فرط اليلنجي 🙁 ) I tried to save few good looking pieces to show you !!! we ate the courgettes and baba ghanouj .

Stuffed Cabbage

Hello everybody
Today I made stuffed cabbage. .though I posted this recipe before but it was a side dish from mom, today I have clearer pictures.
This dish is very popular in all middle eastern countries plus Turkey, Greece and many more I’m sure.
Ingredients:
* minced meat.
* rice.
* ghee and vegetable oil.
* salt, pepper, all spices, dried mint.
* cabbage, boiled and stems removed.
* garlic as much as you like.
* lemon juice.
Method:
* Wash the rice then add the meat. I usually cook it before a bit.
* add spices, salt, mint.
* stuff the cabbages and line them with garlic in between.
* add lemon juice, a bit of oil and enough water to cover all cabbage. I have this heavy pottery lid I use as weight or you can put a heavy plate.
* cook for 10 minutes over high heat then lower it and cook it for another hour or till rice inside is done.

Shushbarak (شيشبرك )

Hello everybody.

Lunch today is Shushbarak. I’m sure western people never heard of it.
This dish is very famous in the Middle East and Turkey as well. It’s simply a dough without yeast filled with minced meat and cooked in thickened yoghurt.
To be honest I usually buy them ready made. A plate with 50 pieces. Much more easier and quick to cook. But today I called the place I usually buy from it, they told we have non till tomorrow. So I decided to make them at home , it’s not difficult but takes some time.

For the dough you need :
* 2 cups flour.
* 1 spoon salt.
* 1 cup water or enough to make a firm dough.
* mix and knead then leave to rest a while.
* cook minced meat add salt, pepper, all spice and some chopped parsley if you like.
* For the yoghurt you need 1 kilo Ewe yoghurt (لبن نعاج ), a small bottle shaninah or buttermilk. Mix them together then add one litre water.
* Add 2 big spoons corn flower, 1 big spoon ghee or butter, salt and pepper.
* Mix well with hand mixer then heat till it boils and thickens.take care while you do it, keep stirring so that it won’t stick or clott.
* Simmer on low heat.
* Now cut the dough to small balls
* sprinkle with flour .
* spread till very thin by using pasta machine or roller.
* fill with meat then close and form it like a hat or ravioli.
* I usually bake them in the oven a bit or freeze if not cooked right away.
* Now dip the shushbarak in the yoghurt one by one and leave to cook for 30-40 minutes. Don’t stir too much or else they’ll open.
* In a bit of oil toast some crushed garlic and freshly chopped coriander leaves.
* Sprinkle on top of shushbarak when served.

Note: if you cook it earlier than lunch or dinner keep the lid of the pan half closed.
Hope you make it and enjoy a very delicious meal.

Turkey:)

Hello everybody…well last night’s dinner was a big success. …as a matter of fact my uncle’s wife is a great cook.
Food was dellliiiiciiiooouusss!!!
Table was full of various dishes…main dish was roasted turkey..stuffed with oranges, green peppers, celery sticks ,all spices and butter.
Other dishes were.,stuffed vine leaves..lasagne..spiced rice with peas and carrots covered with nuts..2 kinds of salads..pickles…all yummmyyyy….thank you dear auntie♡♥.
As for the cake I took …frankly it wasn’t as expected…I will try to contact some people who did it before so as to figure out where I went wrong.
It did look great..but custard layer was very dry and needed sugar. ..from my experience I think either I overbaked it or too much flour…also I think it needs lemon or orange zest so that egg flavor won’t be strong…..promise i’ll search for failure cause and tell you.

Here are pictures of last night dinner……wait for today’s dish in couple of hours Inshallah♡♥

Have a nice day.

What to cook today?

day by day cooking ideas

turkey

Best Birthday Party.

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Manti.

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Suborek (Turkish Borek).

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Walnut Caramel Truffles.

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Turkish Pie.

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Yalanji ( vegetarian stuffed vine leaves)

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Stuffed Cabbage

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Shushbarak (شيشبرك )

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Turkey:)

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