Falafel Salad

This salad recipe was shared by my friend, Neethu in Kuwait. A classic Arabic salad and a party pleaser too.... You can prepare falafel ahead of time and fry them just before preparing the salad. For healthier options you can even bake or grill the falafel.... you can add any leafy vegetable like spinach, cabbage etc to the salad.... 

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Arabic Stuffed Zucchini in Tomato Sauce / Kousa Mihshi Recipe

Kousa Mihshi (Stuffed Zucchini) is an Arabic main dish and widely popular in this region. Minced beef / lamb is mixed with raw rice and spices and then stuffed inside the cored Kousa / koosa (marrow squash / Arabic zucchini) and cooked in tomato paste. I used minced chicken instead of red meat.... I got the basic recipe from my maid and then I searched on the net and made this dish to suit our taste buds.... While searching the net I remember reading on one site that you can make a vegetarian version of this dish by replacing the meat with chopped mushrooms, I never tried it though.... If you like zucchini you will enjoy this mildly spiced dish. Serve as a main dish along with some nice salad.... 

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Mango Cheese Cake Recipe

This recipe was shared by Neethu, a friend of mine in Kuwait. You can make this in a spring form pan and cut it into wedges before serving or you can make it in individual dessert glasses. This time I made it using my small cake rings and it came out looking very pretty :).... For the first layer I baked the sponge cake in a jelly roll pan  as I was planning to assemble it using  small cake rings.  Alternatively, you can bake it in a square or spring form pan.... For the cake base you are free to use store bought sponge cake, eggless cake or ready to make cake mix.... For cream cheese I used Kiri cream cheese but you can use any brand you prefer.... Substitute mango with fresh strawberry jelly and pulp and you will get a beautiful pink cheese cake.... Do try this easy Mango Cheese Cake this Valentine’s Day and let me know how you like it.....

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Armenian Kabab Recipe

A great Appetizer / Snack for a cocktail party which can be made ahead of time and fried just before serving. I used minced chicken but you can use any minced meat. Try this with your choice of meat when you plan a party next time.....

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Nazook / Armenian Pastry ~ Daring Bakers Challenge Part -1

The Daring Bakers’ April 2012 challenge, hosted by Jason at Daily Candor, were two Armenian standards: nazook and nutmeg cake. Nazook is a layered yeasted dough pastry with a sweet filling, and nutmeg cake is a fragrant, nutty coffee-style cake.

Nazook is a flaky pastry, with a sweet filling, that is very common in Armenia, Russia, Iran, Ukraine and many other places around the world. It is a delicious snack with afternoon tea or coffee. I only made a quarter amount of the pastry and got 12 pieces of Nazook. I really enjoyed making this super easy sweet pastry.

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Chicken Seekh Kebab

Kebab (or kaabaaab, kabob, kebap) is a wide variety of meat dishes. Kebab includes grilled, roasted, and stewed dishes of large or small cuts of meat, or even ground meat. The traditional meat for kebab is lamb, but depending on local tastes, it may be beef, goat, chicken, pork; fish and seafood; or even vegetarian foods like falafel or tofu. (wiki)
These kebabs can be served as an appetizer along with a dip / Chutney or as a side dish with Indian breads. It can be served as a wrap too…. You can either grill or bake these kebabs; I grilled using a toaster grill ……

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Falafel with Hummus

Falafel is very popular in the Middle East as a fast food. Falafel is a ball or patty made from ground chickpeas and/or fava beans. Falafel is usually served in a pita, which acts as a pocket, or wrapped in a flatbread. The falafel balls are topped with salads, pickled vegetables, hot sauce, and drizzled with tahini-based sauces. Falafel balls may also be eaten alone as a snack or served as part of a meze. Generally accepted to have first been made in Egypt, where the dish is widely known as Ta'amiya, falafel has become a dish eaten throughout the Middle East. Falafel is also often considered a national dish of Israel. The Egyptian Christians claim to have first made the dish as a replacement for meat during Lent. (Source: Wikipedia)

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Peynirli Poğaça (Turkish Feta And Herb Filled Savoury Buns)

I feel the best part of blogging is you get introduced to a lot of new dishes / cuisines every day. When Aparna posted these Peynirli Poğaça (Turkish Feta and Herb Filled Savoury Buns) I made it the same day itself. Check out Aparna’s place as she has explained very well about “Poğaça” (pronounced POH-gah-cha). We love feta cheese and I already made these buns twice…. Try these if you like feta cheese and I don’t know if feta is available in India….I am sure these buns will equally taste good if you substitute feta cheese with paneer / Indian cottage cheese….

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Chicken Fatayer

Fatayer is an Arabic Pie stuffed with spinach, cheese, chicken, lamb or za'atar and like Shawarma it is a commonly available street food across the Arab world. Here at a walking distance from our flat there is an Arabic restaurant from where we regularly buy fatayer and shawarma. Chicken and cheese fatayer are our favorite filling. I actually do not know what paste they mix with the boiled and shredded chicken, if it is feta cheese or labneh or white sauce….. I usually use white sauce but mixing the chicken with lebneh is equally good. My little one loves fatayer so I sometimes make these at home. Here’s how...

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Tabbouleh / Cracked Wheat & Herb Salad

Ingredients:

1 bunch Parsley, finely chopped (stems discarded)

1 Small Onion, finely chopped

1 medium Tomato, finely chopped, seeded

1/2 teaspoons Salt

1/4 teaspoon Black Pepper powder

Juice of 1 lemon

25gm fine Bulgur (Cracked Wheat)

60ml boiling water

1 tsp mint, finely chopped

1 tsp Olive Oil

Method:

• Place cracked wheat in a bowl, add boiling water and set aside to soak for 15 minutes.
• Place chopped parsley, mint, onion and tomato in a large bowl then add the salt and pepper.
• Mix all the ingredients thoroughly.
• Drain the cracked wheat, squeeze out excess water and add to the bowl and combine. Finally add lemon juice, olive oil and mix all ingredients.
• Serve chilled or at room temperature.
  

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