Arabic salad

Ingredients
¼ medium iceberg lettuce sliced
2 medium tomatoes diced
2 medium cucumbers diced
½ small red onion diced
¼ cup Parsley leaves sliced
½ teaspoon sumac
Arabic salad dressing
½ teaspoon dried mint or 2 tablespoons sliced mint leaves
½ medium lemon juiced
1 tablespoon olive oil extra virgin, see notes
½ teaspoon salt or to taste
¼ teaspoon cracked black pepper or to taste

Instructions
In a large bowl, combine the lettuce, tomatoes, cucumber,
onion and parsley.
¼ medium iceberg lettuce,2 medium tomatoes,2 medium
cucumbers,½ small red onion,¼ cup Parsley leaves
In a small bowl, whisk together the salad dressing
ingredients. Pour the dressing over the salad and toss to
combine. Serve cold.
 Hummus
Ingredients
1½ cups cooked chickpeas, drained and rinsed
⅓ cup smooth tahini
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, more to taste
1 garlic clove
½ teaspoon sea salt
5 tablespoons water, or as needed to blend
paprika, red pepper flakes, or parsley, for garnish
warm pita bread , and/or veggies, for serving
Instructions
In a high-speed blender, place the chickpeas, tahini, olive oil,
lemon juice, garlic, and salt. Use the blender baton to blend
until very smooth, adding water as needed to blend, and/or
to reach your desired consistency.
Transfer to a serving plate, top with desired garnishes and
serve with warm pita and veggies, as desired.
 Mutabal
INGREDIENTS
2 eggplants about 1 ½ pounds
¼ cup tahini
¼ cup yogurt
2 cloves garlic minced
1 lemon juice of
1 tsp kosher salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground pepper

INSTRUCTIONS

Wash and dry the eggplants. Using a fork, pierce them a few times. Turn on
the gas stove to medium high and place the eggplant directly on the range
(you can have 2 ranges on at the same time to make the process quicker).
Char the eggplant for about 5 minutes on each side, flipping every 5 minutes
for all parts to cook evenly. This would take about 20 minutes, depending on
the size of the eggplant and your heat.

Once the eggplants are fully cooked and tender, place them in a bowl and
cover with a plastic wrap. Set the bowl aside for the eggplants to sweat, about
30 minutes, this would make the peeling process easier.

When the eggplants are cool enough to handle, peel then using wet hands, or
simply keep them under running water while peeling.

Chop the eggplant finely and add it to a bowl with the tahini, yogurt, minced
garlic, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Mix all the ingredients using a fork or a
spoon.

Top with olive oil and chopped parsley. Serve with pita, lavash or pita chips.
 Chicken Kabsa

Ingredients
4 tbsp butter or ghee
3 lbs bone-in chicken (See Note 1)
1 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
1 large onion finely chopped
6 cloves garlic minced
1/4 cup tomato puree
14 oz chopped tomatoes canned with liquid or fresh
3 carrots grated
1/2 tsp crushed saffron
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp ground coriander
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground allspice
1/4 tsp grated nutmeg
1/4 tsp ground cardamom
1/8 tsp ground cloves
4 cups hot water
1 chicken broth
2 cups basmati rice
1 dried lime poke several holes in it with tip of knife
GARNISH
2 tbsp fresh parsley chopped
1 tbsp butter or ghee
1/4 cup raisins
1/4 cup slivered almonds
CONDIMENT
shatta sauce (or any chile paste)

Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Salt and pepper the chicken pieces. Rinse the basmati rice
in a sieve until water runs clear, this is optional, but I feel helps to keep the rice
fluffy.
2. Melt butter in a large roasting pan, large stock pot, or dutch oven over medium heat.
3. Brown the chicken, skin side first, for 3 to 4 minutes. Turn chicken over and then scatter
the onion and garlic all around chicken and sauté. Cook until onion is tender and chicken
is browned on both sides. Remove chicken from pan, cover and keep warm.
4. Stir in tomato puree, tomatoes, carrots, all the spices, water, chicken bullion cube and rice.
5. Top with browned chicken (skin side up), add dried lime and cover tightly with foil. Bake
for 45 minutes.
6. Remove foil, lift chicken pieces out to stir rice mixture and then place chicken back on top.
Bake another 15 minutes uncovered until rice is tender and chicken has browned more and
reaches an internal temp of 165°F.
7. In a small saute pan, melt the butter and cook the almonds and raisins until golden brown
(several minutes). Set aside.
8. Place the rice on a large serving dish, top with chicken pieces and garnish with chopped
parsley, raisins and almonds.
9. Serve with pita and Shatta Sauce.

Basbussa
Ingredients

DRY INGREDIENTS

1 2/3 cup semolina (or farina for finer texture)

SYRUP

1 cup sugar
1 cup water
1 tsp lemon juice
2 tbsp honey
1/2 tsp orange water (See Note 2)
1 tsp grated orange zest
GARNISH
16 blanched almonds (See Note 3)

Instructions

Heat oven to 350F. In a deep bowl, combine dry ingredients and mix well.

Melt the ghee and transfer to a small bowl. Mix with the yogurt, honey and tahini to incorporate.

Add the wet mixture to the dry ingredients and mix again to combine thoroughly.

Spread the basbousa mixture evenly in a greased (See Note 4) round 10" baking pan (See Note 5).

OPTIONAL: Cut a design as pictured (See Note 6) or cut into diagonal diamond shapes.

Distribute nuts as pictured on top of the basbousa batter or a design of choice.

Bake for 20 minutes on the middle shelf, top will be a golden brown.

In a small saucepan over medium heat, bring the syrup ingredients to a boil. Reduce heat and
simmer for 10 minutes.

Remove basbousa from oven and pour the syrup evenly over the top and allow to soak and rest for
an hour before serving.
 Pita Bread

Ingredients
1 teaspoon instant yeast or 1.5 teaspoon dry active yeast
1 pinch raw sugar or white sugar
1 to 1.25 cups water or add as required
3 cups or 360 grams whole wheat flour
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon salt
Instructions
1. Preparing Dough

2. Firstly take the instant yeast and sugar in a stand mixer bowl or in any bowl in which you will knead
the dough. Pour 1 to 1.25 cups water and mix very well with a spoon.
3. added water and mixed with spoon

4. Add 3 cups whole wheat flour, 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil and 1 teaspoon salt. Mix everything
with wooden spoon.
5. mixing everything with a wooden spoon

6. Then using the hook attachment of the stand mixer and begin to knead. Initially you will find the
dough sticky, but continue to knead and you will see the extra water will be absorbed by the flour.
Knead to a smooth and soft dough.
7. well kneaded, soft and smooth dough

8. Rub or brush some water or olive oil all over the dough. Keep it in the same bowl covered loosely
with a kitchen towel for 45 minutes or 1 hour until the dough has doubled in volume and size.
9. pita bread dough doubled after leavening
10. Assembling, Shaping And Rolling Dough
11. Deflate the dough gently and knead lightly. Make into a log shape and cut equal portions from the
dough. Keep these covered again for 10 minutes. Keep the dough balls covered all the time so that
they don't dry out. You can even pinch portions from the dough and roll them into balls.
12. pita bread dough log sliced in equal portions
13. Meanwhile place a baking tray in the oven. Then preheat oven at 230 degrees celsius for 20 minutes.
14. baking tray placed in the oven and getting preheated in the oven
15. Take each dough portion and shape into a ball. Keep it on the work surface and sprinkle some flour
on it as well as on the dough ball. Roll evenly into a 5 or 6 inches round shape. You can also make
them oval shaped if you want. Keep the bread a little thick while rolling.
16. pita bread dough rolled to a 5 to 6 inches disc
17. Keep these rolled discs covered loosely for 10 minutes more.
18. covered rolled disc with kitchen napkin
19. Oven Method To Make Pita Bread
20. Carefully remove the tray with oven mittens. Sprinkle some flour and place the rolled discs on it. Use
oven mittens when removing and placing the baking tray from the oven.
21. two rolled discs placed in the hot baking tray with some flour already sprinkled on the tray
22. Using oven mittens, place the tray back in the oven. Bake at 230 degrees C for 7 to 10 minutes. If
using a convection oven, then preheat as well as bake at 200 or 210 degrees celsius. Note that the
baking time will vary from oven to oven.
23. pita breads baking and puffing in the oven
24. The pita bread will nicely puff up in the oven. Once they are puffed up and have a pale golden color,
remove the tray. With a spatula remove the pita bread and place on a wired rack.
25. puffed up oven baked pita breads