FETA AND LAMB STUFFED GRAPE LEAVES

[Feta and Lamb Stuffed Grape Leaves] Make these savory appetizer bundles of lamb and feta up to a day ahead, then cook in the microwave oven in minutes.     * 3/4 pound ground lamb or beef * 2 tablespoons finely chopped onion * 1 clove garlic, minced * 1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese (2 ounces) * 1 tablespoon snipped fresh mint or oregano or 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano,crushed * 1/4 teaspoon pepper * 1/2 of a 16-ounce jar grape leaves (20 leaves), drained and well rinsed * Olive oil * Lemon wedges 1. In a medium skillet cook ground lamb or beef, onion, and garlic over medium heat until lamb is no longer pink. Remove from heat; drain off fat. Stir in feta cheese, mint or oregano, and pepper. Set aside. 2. Place a grape leaf on a clean work surface, shiny side down and stem end toward you. Place 1 level tablespoon of filling about 1/2 inch from the bottom edge of each leaf. Fold the sides of the leaf over the filling, overlapping slightly. Starting at the bottom edge, roll up the leaf and place, seam side down, in a 2-quart square microwave-safe baking dish. Repeat with remaining leaves and filling. Cover the baking dish and chill until needed or heat and serve immediately. 3. To heat, add 1 tablespoon water to the baking dish. Brush grape leaf bundles lightly with olive oil. Cover and micro-cook on 100% power for 4 to 5 minutes or until heated through, turning dish once. (For a low-wattage oven, micro-cook bundles on high power for 5 to 6 minutes, rearranging once.) Serve immediately with lemon wedges. Makes 20 bundles (2 per serving). Make-Ahead Tip: Prepare bundles as directed. Cover the baking dish and chill up to 24 hours. To serve, micro-cook as directed.

PASTRY WITH GROUND MEAT

FETEER BEL ASAAG (PASTRY WITH GROUND MEAT)

Method 1. Saute the onion in the oil until it changes color to dark yellow. 2. Add the meat and brown it then add the water, salt and pepper and let it cook until all the water has evaporated. If you decide to use nuts add them at this time. This is called asaag and it is used in makaronah felforn bilbashamel (pasta casserole).   3. Open the Fillo dough package and divide the sheets in half (they are usually sheets of 10X20" rectangles, you want to end up with 2 stacks of 10X10 sheets.   4. In a greased 9x12x3" baking dish layer 2 to 3 sheets at a time and sprinkle them with a few drops of the melted butter, and so on until you finish the first half of the sheets.   5. Spread the meat and nut mixture on it and start doing the same thing with the other half of the sheets. Don't worry about spreading the butter on the sheets.   6. When you finish with all the dough cut the feteer in 2X1" squares with a sharp knife.   7. Mix together the left-over melted butter, the egg and the milk and a pinch of salt (not much) beat it with fork.   8. At this point, if you want, you can wrap the dish in plastic wrap and refrigerate until 1/2 hr before it is time to eat.   9. Pour the egg mixture gently over the feteer and bake, uncovered, in a 375o oven for about 20 minutes or until the milk is absorbed and the feteer turns gold yellow.   When I make this, it lasts for a week and can be used for suhur (mid-night meal) by those people who wake up hating to fix something or finding nothing to their liking to eat.

KEBAB HALLA

KEBAB HALLA STEWED MEAT

Ingredient:   * 1 kg beef * 2 onions, chopped finely * 1 teaspoon cinnamon * 2 tablespoons flour * 5-7 garlic cloves, crushed * cooking oil * salt and pepper   Cut beef into bite-sized cubes. Mix flour, cinnamon and seasoning and roll meat in this mixture.  Cook meat, onion, and pinch of salt over very slow flame.  When the juice is re-absorbed, add garlic and cooking oil and fry lightly.  Add water to barely cover and cook over low heat for one hour, adding more hot water, along the side of the pot, whenever the level of the juice is too low.  Serve with the juice, which should be fairly concentrated.

MEAT FINGERS FLAVORED WITH CHARCOAL

KUFTA BI-L-FAHMA  MEAT FINGERS FLAVORED WITH CHARCOAL

INGREDIENTS   * 1 kg beef * 3 onions * 1 dablespoon lemon juice * 2 tablespoons parsely * cooking fat * salt and pepper * 1 piece charcoal     INSTRUCTIONS   Mince twice beef, onions and 1 tablespoon parsley, then add lemon juice, and seasoning and knead well. Shape into fingers about 5 to 7 cms long and 2 cms thick.  Grease cooking pot and arrange kufta neatly side by side.  Brush kufta fingers very lightly with cooking oil and repeat with other layers of kufta, brushing with fat until all the kufta is used. Cook over very slow flame until the meat loses all its juice, then increase heat to maximum to reduce juice further. Shake the pot gently several times to check that the meat fingers are all well fried and do not stick to bottom of pot. have ready a piece of burning-red charcoal.  Make a well in the middle of pot, toss in the charcoal, cover and allow to simmer for 3 to 5 minutes. Remove charcoal and serve on a bed of parsley.

APRICOT RICE PUDDING

Apricots are used throughout the Middle East as is rice. This is a tasty and unique dessert.

 
Ingredients:

1/4          cup uncooked brown rice

3           tablespoons cornstarch

3/8           cup water

2 (1            lbs) cans apricot halves in juice, drained

2           cups milk (approx.)

3/8           cup sugar

1           tablespoon vanilla extract

1           teaspoon almond extract

 
Directions:

 

1.     Have a 1qt. shallow bowl handy.
2.     Put the rice in blender, blending until fine.
3.     Pour into small bowl, add cornstarch & water, stir to dissolve the cornstarch.
4.     Pour the drained apricots in blender, and blend until smooth.
5.     Add just enough milk to total 4 cups (approximately 2 cups milk.).
6.     Pour into a small saucepan & add sugar & to the rice mixture.
7.     Over medium heat, stir constantly until the mixture begins to a boil.
8.     Cook and stir for 5 minutes.
9.     Remove from heat & stir in extracts.
10.     Stir to blend.
11.     Pour pudding into a bowl and allow to cool at room temperature for 1/2 hour, then chill.
12.     When pudding is cold, serve.

BIRAM RUZ

1 cup(s) long grain rice.
1 cup(s) of whole milk (skim milk for the die conscious).
2 cup(s) of heavy cream.
2 tsp. of salt.
15 tblsp of butter.

 

 

Method

 

1.Heat the milk to scalding temperature.

2.Put the rice in the beram, pour the hot milk over it, stir in the salt and stick the beram in the oven at °400 for about 30-40 minutes

3.Just before all the milk is absorbed, make a little indentation in the center of the rice and drop the butter in it.

4.while the butter is melting take some of it and sprinkle on top of the rice.

5.Let it cook for 20-30 minutes more, until the rice is brown on top.

CARAMEL STUFFED WALNUTS

Legend has it that this recipe has been deciphered from a hieroglyphic. These sweets were served at wedding banquets and given their high energy value, we imagine that Cleopatra offered them to her lovers to restore their spirits.

Makes 6 or 7 servings, or about 15 candies
Preparation time is about 35 minutes, including five minutes for cooking

Ingredient:

 

50           g almond flour

50           g sugar

1–2           tablespoon orange essence

30           walnut halves

50           g sugar

 
Instructions:

 

1.     Mix the almond flour (milled almonds, grind your own in a food processor or blender if you like) with the sugar and enough orange essence to form a paste.

2.     Place a little of this paste between two walnut halves and press.

3.     Melt the sugar in a pan with a few drops of water and when it starts to turn to caramel, remove it from the heat source and dip the nuts inside to coat them with caramel.

4.     Set them out on grease proof paper to dry.