Hummus is one of my favorite spreads to make because of the fact that it’s very versatile. It’s not just meat for dipping or scooping with different breads, but makes a great sandwich spread.

I have made quite a lot of hummus in the last 3 years – since discovering it, and I have learned that the secret to the silkiest and smoothest hummus is in the chick pea peel. By removing the peel, you remove a layer of roughness from the chick pea and pave the way for silky hummus.

Now, there is no easy or quick way to remove the peel from cooked chick peas – you just have to slip it off – one chick pea at t time. But, it’s well worth the effort. It takes me just under 10 minutes to “peel” a 400 gram can of chick peas. And, as is with most foods, although the quick way is tasty and edible – opting to take the long way has its rewards.

Ingredients:
2 small cloves Garlic
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1/4 Cup Tahini
1/4 Cup fresh Lemon Juice
400 grams can Chick Peas, drained – liquid reserved, peeled
Olive Oil, Paprika, Mint Sprig – to garnish

Directions:
Place the garlic and salt in a food processor and pulse until garlic is finely chopped. Add the tahini and lemon juice, and process until the tahini has lightened (almost whitened) in color. Add the chick peas, and process into a smooth paste. If the hummus is too thick, add some of the reserved chick pea liquid, one tablespoon at a time, and continue to process until smooth.

To sever, spread on 1 large plate, or a series of smaller plates. Drizzle with some olive oil, sprinkle with paprika, and garnish with a sprig of mint.

Makes about 2 cups.

And, now for the final dish in my Luxurious Iraqi Dinner Party series: velvety smooth, fragrant, and delicious saffron and rose petal labaneh.

This was the crowning moment of my evening. Not only was it stunningly beautiful, it was so delicious! In all my research on how to host a luxurious dinner party, one important piece of advice is that your first dish should be stunning – both in appearance and taste – to really impress your guests. And, while this is true and important, I find it just as necessary to end the meal with an equally stunning dish…you don’t want them to think you ran out of energy at the end!

However uncomplicated it is to make this dish, it does take some planning and time – as well as access to organically grown/pesticide-free fragrant roses. I happen to grow some in my garden. Unfortunately, mine bloom and are most fragrant in early summer. By the time September rolls around, they are on their way out. Luckily, one of my fellow gardeners, and author or Naturlich Fürth, had plenty still left growing on her garden plot that were a million times more fragrant than mine…and she was happy to share!

Now, the part that requires time is “making” the rose honey. The longer it sits, the more fragrant it becomes. I let mine sit for a week before using, but I’m sure it can be used as early as 2 days after making – it will just be less fragrant.

Just remember that when it comes to the fragrant roses for this dish that you pick some with a sweet smell. I have some beautiful, very very fragrant, red roses growing on my garden plot, and they smell like a nice, clean rose soap…not exactly a flavor that I would enjoy in a dish.

The original recipe can be found here. This is originally called a panna cotta, but labaneh is yogurt that has been strained to give it a much thicker consistency which is a major component of this recipe. So, I just renamed it.

Rose Petal Honey
Ingredients:
1 Cup mild clear Honey – such as Acacia Honey
1/2 Cup fragrant Rose Petals

Directions:
Remove about 1/2 a cup of honey from the jar and set aside. Mix in the rose petals and then pour the 1/2 cup of honey back – this is to prevent spillage. Cover with original lid.

Let stand for a couple of weeks.

Saffron and Rose Petal Labaneh
Ingredients:
680 grams Yogurt
3 pinches of ground Saffron
3 Tablespoons Water
1 1/2 teaspoons unflavored Gelatin granules
18 Tablespoons Milk
6 Tablespoons Rose Petal Honey
3 Tablespoons chopped red/pink Rose Petals
Vegetable Oil
1 Cup Whole Rose Petals

Directions:
Place the yogurt in a cheese cloth-lined colander and let it drain for 24 hours.

Whisk the yogurt in an electric mixer to cream it. Blend in the saffron and let it stand for 2 hours.

Place the water in a small bowl and sprinkle the gelatin on top. Let it stand for 1 minute. In the mean time heat the milk in your microwave for 40 seconds, and then combine the gelatin water and milk together.

Add the gelatin/milk mixture, honey, and chopped roses to the yogurt and whisk in your electric mixer until fluffy.

In the mean time, lightly oil small jars (something about the size of a cupcake wrapper) and line the jars with some rose petals*.

Fill each jar and cover with a tight fitting lid. Refrigerate until set (at least a few hours).

To serve:
Tape the labaneh out onto the center of a plate and drizzle with about 1 teaspoon of extra rose petal honey. Garnish with some rose petals, and serve with a nice hot cup or coffee.

Serves 6-8. (depends on jar size used)

*my husband preferred that I skip this step because he didn’t like having larger chunks of rose petals in his food. I have to agree with him on this one, and in the future will just garnish with some rose petals and skip lining with them.

For this month’s Taste&Create event, I have been paired with Corina from Searching for Spice. She has many delicious-looking recipe, and I came across one that really peeked my interest: roasted chickpeas.

I love chickpeas. In my humble opinion, they go well with every meal and can even enhance a meal. Now, I’d never heard of roasted chickpeas, so this sounded like a lot of fun, and I had no idea what the outcome would be.

I was pleasantly surprised to find out that roasting chickpeas turns them into a delicious crunchy snack – like a croûton or that crunchy roasted corn that you can find at many convenience stores in Texas. Corina used hers in a salad – which sounds delicious, I, on the other hand, just used it as a sort of party food or snack food and set it out on my table in a little bowl during one of my garden meetings. The flavors were very delicious – with a hint of spice – but I believe the roasting dulls them down, so don’t be alarmed by the high amounts.

I plan on bringing a bowl of this to our garden’s Halloween party this weekend. I think that everyone with get a kick out of them!

Ingredients:
400 g can Chickpeas, drained
2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
1 teaspoon Cumin powder
1 teaspoon Chili powder

Directions:
Preheat oven to 200°C.

Place all of the ingredients in a bowl and combine, making sure that the chickpeas are all well and evenly coated.

Place on a roasting pan or rimmed cookie sheet, and bake for 10-15 minutes, or until the chickpeas and crisp and crunchy.

Makes about 1 1/2 cups.

The original recipe can be found here.

For the luxurious dinner party I held a few weeks ago I wanted to serve a salad that reached into the heart of the middle east and was quite different than the typical Fattoush or Tabbouleh salads.

After many days of searching, I came across a sandwich called Sabich a few times, and decided to leave out the bread and let it be an interesting salad.

The components of the salad really harmonized well together, and the salad was light, but hearty and filling. I can see why it is loved as a sandwich/wrap filling.

You can find the original recipe here.

Tea Eggs
Ingredients:
8 Cups Water
2 bags Black Tea
peel of 1 large Yellow Onion
4 Hard Boiled Eggs

Directions:
Place the water, tea bags, and onion peel in a pot and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to the lowest setting, add the eggs and let them steep for 1 hour.

Remove and let cool. Remove shell and slice into rounds. Set aside.

Eggplant Rounds
Ingredients:
7 Tablespoons Sunflower Seed Oil
1 large round Italian Eggplant, sliced into at least 6 rounds
Salt

Directions:
Heat the oil in a cast iron skillet until it shimmers.

In the mean time, sprinkle salt on each side of each eggplant slice.

Place a couple rounds in the oil and fry for about 1.5 minutes per side. The rounds should be a nice golden color. Remove to a towel-lined plate and set aside.

Salad
Ingredients:
2 Kirby Cucumbers, finely chopped
1 Tablespoon Lemon Juice
1 Red Onion, diced
1 Tomato, cored, finely chopped
Salt and Pepper to taste

Directions:
Combine all ingredients in a bowl and set aside.

Tahini Dressing
Ingredients:
1 clove Garlic
1/2 teaspoon Salt
2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
freshly ground Pepper to taste
5 Tablespoons Tahini
1/4 Cup minced flat leafed Parsley
2 Tablespoons Lemon Juice
5 Tablespoons Cold Water

Directions:
With a mortar and pestle, mash together the garlic and salt until you have a fine paste.

Mix together all the ingredients in a bowl and set aside.

Assembly:
In a serving bowl, layer 1 eggplant round, 3 slices of egg, and about 1/4 a cup of Salad. Drizzle the tahini dressing around the bowl.

Makes about 6 servings.

Most of them figured I slaved over this dish for hours, others could not believe how creamy it came out. This is my favorite part about cooking for guests – watching someone’s face light up when they eat my food. What I love even more is telling them how easy it was to prepare and encouraging them to try to make it at home as well…hence my love for blogging!

The recipe technically takes roughly 3 hours to finish, but you only have to take port in the preparation process for about 5 or so minutes of that time. This recipe practically makes itself.

Feel free to make this well ahead of time. I made mine 1 week before my party and it was deliciously creamy – and didn’t freeze into a block of ice – until the last scoop!

The original recipe can be found here.

Ingredients:
2 Cups Water
1 Cup dry Hibiscus Flowers
1 Cup Sugar
1 pinch Salt
1 Tablespoon Lemon Juice
1 Tablespoon Lime Juice
Mint Sprigs for garnish

Directions:
Bring the water to boil in a small sauce pan, and remove from heat. Add the hibiscus flowers, let them steep for 15 minutes, and strain the tea and return it to the sauce pan.

Stir in the sugar and salt and bring to a boil – stirring until all the sugar has dissolved. Cool over and ice bath for 10-15 minutes.*

Stir in the lemon and lime juices and freeze in an ice cream maker – takes about 20 minutes on medium speed. Remove to a large tupperware and freeze for no less than 2 hours before serving.

Scoop out and garnish with mint sprigs if desired.

Makes about 1 liter.

*I skipped this step and just let mine cool on its own. However, this will take longer.

Now, many of you may have heard of Tzatziki. It’s a delicious thick yogurty sauce usually containing cucumber and a combination of other ingredients. Jajeek is it’s more fluid counterpart.

Jajeek is fairly easy to make, what I find makes or breaks it is good yogurt. Please try to find one that is nice and creamy. It doesn’t have to be a thick Greek yogurt, just not a clumpy one.

And, what can you do with jajeek besides dipping your lamb in it or eating it straight from the container?? Well, it goes great mixed with rice, spread on bread, on gyros, with grilled meats, on a burger, with falaffel or meatballs …I could go one and one. It’s very versatile, and you can add as many other ingredients as you like such as bell pepper, mint, lemon juice, etc. The best part is that my children love it so very much. The baby shakes with excitement when he sees it, and I once watched my older son climb over the table, grab the bowl, and drink it all before we even sat down to eat. What can I say, it’s yummy!

You can find the original recipe here.

Ingredients:
1 clove Garlic
1/2 teaspoon Salt
2 Cups creamy Yogurt
1 English Cucumber, peeled and grated
1 2cm piece of Ginger, grated
2 Tablespoons minced Dill

Directions:
With a mortar and pestle, grind together the garlic and salt (trust me this makes a difference in flavor) until the garlic is mashed into a paste.

Mix together all ingredients in a bowl or tupperware and use immediately or the next day.

Makes about 3 cups.

I am so excited to share with you that I have made it to Round 6 in the Project Foodblog competition! I’m so thrilled that I think I may just blog the whole night long! Thank you all for your votes!

In challenge 3 we had to hold a luxurious dinner party, and, as I promised in that post, I would post all the recipes from that evening. Well, somewhere along the way a few weeks ago I left you at the main course. Now, it’s time to pick-up with the rest of the main course with the Cardamom Rice.

I searched for quite a while before I found this recipe, but when I found it, I knew it would be great. And, it was fantastic. Prior to this dish I had never used cardamom, and I was pleasantry surprised that it has a delicious, yet mild aroma. So many spices that I well loved in the middle east are quite intense and can be overwhelming to the unfamiliar palate. Cardamom is not one of these spices.

The dish is quite easy to prepare, and involves little prep work for such a fragrant dish. I goes well with lamb, but I imagine it would even go well with beef or pork roasts.

Just a word of warning! The grains in bastmati rice and very lose and it takes some practice with presentation.

The original recipe can be found here.

Ingredients:
2 Cups Bastmati Rice
3 Tablespoons Olive Oil
1 8cm long Cinnamon Stick
5 whole Cardamom Pods
2 Bay Leaves
85 grams Onion, sliced in rings
small bunch of Dill, chopped
650 mL Chicken Stock
1 teaspoon Salt (is Stock is unsalted)

Directions:
Rise the rice in a pot of water,swirling around with your hand, and draining off the water multiple times until the water runs clear. Then, soak the rice in water enough to cover it for 30 minutes and then drain.

Heat the olive oil in a cast iron skillet and add the cinnamon sick, cardamom pods, and bay leaves and stir for 5 seconds. Stir in the onions and cook until reddish brown. Add the dill and the rice and stir until the rice grains start to look transparent (about 2-4 minutes).

Add the chicken stock and salt, if necessary, and bring to a boil.
Cover tightly and reduce the heat to low and cook for 25 minutes. Remove from heat and keep covered until ready to eat.

Serves 6.

Today we are moving onto the main course of my Iraqi dinner party. I will be breaking the dish up over three days so that each piece of the dish can have it’s time in the lime-light.

This post is all about the lamb – succulent, melt off the bone, is there more? lamb. The key to making such deliciously soft lamb is patience and cooking them in a rack. When you cook them individually, as I often enjoy doing, they come out a bit tougher – although still very flavorful.

When all my guests asked if they could use their hands to finish the little pieces of lamb left on the bone, I knew it was a hit. One of my friends commented on how it would be such a shame to let even the smallest piece go to waste, and I have to agree.

The daylight pictures are from the day after, and as you can see it looks a bit drier. And, while it was still soft ans delicious, it was no comparison to the night before. My husband was really able to pull this dish off perfectly. This, for your information, is the only dish that he actually cooked in the entire evening. The other dishes I had pre-prepared prior to the meals and he tastefully arranged them on our plates and served them to us. Oh, it was such a lovely evening – I wish you all could have been there.

Ok, back to the lamb. Bellow is the recipe, courtesy of bon apétit. To change the flavor up slightly, I left out the garlic and let the rack of lamb marinate for 2 days instead of just overnight:

Ingredients:
1 Tablespoon chopped fresh Rosemary
4 teaspoons chopped fresh Thyme
4 teaspoons chopped fresh Marjoram
1 rack of Lamb with 8 cutlets
2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
freshly ground salt and pepper

Directions:
Combine the rosemary, thyme, and marjoram in a small bowl.

Rub the lamb with 2 tablespoons of olive oil, and then pat the herbs onto the meat. Place in a seal able bag or tuperware and let marinate in the refrigerator overnight or for 2 days.

When ready to cook:
Pre-heat oven to 218°C (424°F).

Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium-high heat in a griddle or other flat/wide pan.

Sprinkle the lamb with freshly ground salt and pepper*.

Sear the rack of lamb on both sides until brown – no more than 5 minutes total. Transfer to a large-rimmed baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes.

Remove to a cutting board and cover with and aluminum foil tent. Let the rack stand for 10 minutes before cutting individual cutlets. Serve immediately.

Serves 8 as part of a large multi-course meal, or 4 as part of a traditional one-plate meal.

*do not salt the lamb in advance, for example, while marinating, because the salt will leach the juices out of the meat and yo uwill end up with a drier finished product. Remember, you want to season you meat, not turn it into jerky!

In the spirit of trying new foods for my Iraqi dinner party that I held last weekend, I made shorbat rumman (pomegranate soup).

This was the only course that left people saving the word “interesting” too many times to have it seem enjoyable. To be honest, I was quite disappointed by this soup. It ended up being over spiced, but not flavorful enough. I would definitely make some changes to this soup to have it fit my flavor palate.

Now, I’m not a big fan of cilantro (coriander), but I wanted to try the recipe in it’s entirety…although I had to leave the mint out because mint will dry up your milk if you are breast feeding. So, I left it as it was – the recipe called for 2 cups of chopped cilantro. It just sends chills down my spine to think of eating so much cilantro in one dish. Next time, I will just leave it out completely. If you are a cilantro-lover – like my mom – just leave it in and you will be happy. Also, in the second round of adding liquid – at the very end when the pomegranate juice comes into play, the original recipe calls for adding another 8 cups of water. I think this really ruined my soup’s flavor and made it taste so watery that I couldn’t save it by adding my of anything else. I would also add more salt to the meatballs.

Here is the original recipe. Has anyone ever made this or had it somewhere? What is it supposed to taste like?

Soup
Ingredients:
2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
3 Onions, thinly sliced
3 Garlic Cloves, crushed
1/2 Cup Yellow Split Peas
8 Cups Water
1 teaspoon Salt
1/4 teaspoon Pepper
1 teaspoon Turmeric
2 Cups chopped Parsley
2 Cups chopped Cilantro (optional)
2 Cups chopped Mint
2 Cups chopped Green Onions, green part only
1 Beet, peeled, chopped
1 Cup Bastmati Rice
1/4 Cup Sugar
2 Tablepsoons Angelica Powder
4 1/2 Cups Pomegranate Juice

Directions:
Heat the oil in a really large soup pot over medium-high heat. Add the onions and brown until golden in color. Add the garlic and brown until golden. Stir in the split peas and sauté for 2 minutes. Cover with 8 cups of water, bring to a boil, and reduce the temperature to low with the lid on and only partially covering the pot. Simmer for 20 minutes.

Add the salt, pepper, turmeric, parsley, cilantro, mint, green onions, and beet. Continue to simmer with the lid partially on for another 20 minutes. Make the meatballs at this point while you’re waiting (see recipe bellow).

Add the rice and meatballs (add the meatballs to the soup carefully to make sure they don’t lose form), and simmer, partially covered, for another 30 minutes.

Add the sugar, angelica powder, and pomegranate juice – if it’s too acidic, add some water at this point. Simmer another 15 minutes with the lid partially on.

Adjust salt and serve warm. Top each bowl off with some pomegranate seeds and some of the garlic-mint mixture (see recipe bellow).

Makes 12 servings.

Meatballs
Ingredients:
250 grams Ground Beef
1 Onion, grated
1/4 teaspoon Salt
1/4 teaspoon Pepper
2 Tablespoons chopped Parsley
1/4 Cup warm Milk
1 slice Sandwich Bread, crust removed

Directions:
Mix together the ground beef, grated onion, salt, pepper, and parsley.

In a wide bowl that you can place your piece of bread in flat, pour over the warmed milk (40 minutes in the microwave should do) and let it soak up all the milk.

Place the soaked piece of bread onto the meat mixture and press it in with a fork until it is completely incorporated, and shape into chestnut-sized balls (wet your hands to keep the mixture from sticking to them).

Garlic-Mint topping
Ingredients:
1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
5 Garlic Cloves, crushed
2 Tablespoons Dried Mint
1/2 teaspoon Turmeric
2 Tablespoons Pomegranate Seeds

Directions:
Heat oil in a skillet over medium heat. Sauté the garlic until golden and then remove from heat. Stir in the dried mint and the turmeric.

Use as a topping to the soup

This is the dish I served as entrée for the luxurious Iraqi dinner party that I held this weekend.

I used my favorite bulgur salad recipe and found this delicious shrimp recipe on Taste Buddies. The shrimp were out of this world. The harissa really gave it a nice spicy flavor without leaving my mouth burning. And, the cooling flavors in the salad help to off set the spiciness of the shrimp. This is definitely a dish worth making again.

My guests were all thrilled about the bulgur salad. They all thought this was such a complicated dish to make, but I reassured them that there was nothing more than a bit of chopping.

The servings in this dish are meant as a side dish. To serve as a main course double the amount of shrimp – 2 large shrimp per person, and double the salad recipe.

Sumac Shrimp
Ingredients:
6 large raw Shrimp, de-veined, shelled, tail on
2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
1 teaspoon Paprika
1 teaspoon Harissa
1 teaspoon Sumac
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1 pinch ground Pepper
1 pinch All Spice
2 Tablespoons Olive Oil

Directions:
Rise off the shrimp in cold tap water and pat dry – this will ensure that the marinade sticks.

In a tuperware large enough to fit your shrimp, mix together the olive oil, paprika, harissa, sumac, salt, pepper, and all spice.

Place one shrimp at a time in the marinade and make sure that shrimp is equally coated in every nook and cranny. Repeat this with each shrimp and then leave to marinate in the refrigerator over night. I marinated them for 2 days.

When ready to cook:
Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a griddle over medium-high heat. Place each shrimp on the griddle and cook for 1.5 minutes on each side. Remove from heat and let cool. Once the shrimp are cool add a decorative skewer if you wish. Place one atop each salad when ready to serve. Keep the shrimp at room temperature for serving.

Bulgur Salad
Ingredients:
1/2 Cup Instant Bulgar
3/4 Cup Boiling Water
Zest of 1/2 a Lemon
1.5 Tablespoons Lemon Juice
1.5 Tablespoons Olive Oil
1 teaspoons minced Garlic
Salt and Pepper, to taste
1/2 Cup diced fresh Parsley
1 Green Onion, sliced
1.5 Cups quartered Cherry Tomatoes
1/2 English Cucumber, peeled, diced
1/2 Cup cooked Chick Peas (no liquid)
1/2 Tablespoon Pomegranate Syrup

Directions:
Place the bulgar into a really large bowl, pour the boiling water over it, and let sit until the water has been fully absorbed (about 3 minutes). Fluff the bulgar with a fork.

In a small bowl whisk together the lemon zest, lemon juice, olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper. Pour the dressing over the bulgar and mix well.

Add the parsley, cherry tomatoes, cucumber, and chick peas and mix well until everything is evenly distributed. Drizzle the pomegranate syrup over the top and mix very well.

Adjust salt amount at this point and serve with extra pomegranate syrup and/or lemon if desired (let everyone adjust to their own liking after serving).

Top each serving with a piece of shrimp.

Makes 6 side dish servings.