This soup is so easy to put together and delivers the kind of homey flavor that is the hallmark of a great winter soup.

The ingredients are thrown in the pot and left to simmer slowly; right before serving, a burst of flavor is added (garlic, olive oil and fresh lemon juice).

Done!

Recipe courtesy of Mireille H. Doniguian La Cuisine du Moyen-Orient (adapted)

INGREDIENTS:  8 servings

• 2 cups of red lentils
• 4 large carrots
• 1 1/2 pound of swiss chard
• 1 tbsp of mashed garlic (chop the garlic and mash in a mortar with salt till pasty)
• 1/4 cup of extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 large lemons, juiced

METHOD:

1. Place the lentils in a bowl and rinse under running tap water for a few seconds until clean. Transfer to a large pot, add 6 cups of water and bring to a simmer.
2. Peel the carrots and slice; add to the lentils. Cook the lentils and carrots for 40 minutes or so. Meanwhile, wash the chard and separate the stalks from the leaves. Stack the leaves and slice them into 1/4 inch ribbons and throw them in the soup pot. Simmer the soup another 20 minutes until the chard is cooked.
3. Right before serving, start heating the soup;  juice the lemons and set aside. Heat the olive oil in a small skillet, add the mashed garlic and stir-fry briefly for a few seconds without letting the garlic change color. Pour the garlic and olive oil in the soup and add the lemon juice.  Serve.

Will not speak for other expats, but this is the one dish that beckons after arrival. Something about that  lemony, silky, garlicky, smokey eggplant cream is all that one needs to feel acclimated once again.

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 large shiny eggplant, about 1 pound
• 1 lemon
• 2 cloves of garlic
• salt
• 1 tbsp of tahini
• olive oil

METHOD:

1. Char the eggplant over an open flame, either on a gas stove or on a BBQ grill; once the skin is blackened all over, dip into a bowl of cold water to cool it and peel it; place the eggplant on a colander and let it drain.
2. Mash it with a meat mallet and add the juice of a lemon, a teaspoon of garlic (mashed in a mortar with a dash of salt) and just a touch of tahini (You don’t want the taste of tahini to be noticeable).
3. Taste, drizzle with a filet of olive oil  and serve with pita.

NOTE: m’tabbal is a word meaning seasoned or spiced.

This eggplant dish is meatless however it will leave you totally satiated. The walnuts and bulgur do the trick: Paired  with fresh pomegranate juice, pomegranate molasses,  garlic and a touch of cinnamon, they deliver depth of flavor and a sweet/tart taste.

I came up with this last summer but go back to it whenever it is pomegranate season; the stuffing can include rice or breadcrumbs or other grains instead of bulgur. Yogurt is a topping that my daughter thought of and it worked very well.

INGREDIENTS:

• 4 to 6 eggplants, preferably the long and skinny ones
• 1/2  cup of fine bulgur (#1)
• 1 cup of walnuts, chopped coarsely
• 3 cloves of garlic, mashed in a mortar with a teaspoon of salt
• 3 tbsp of pomegranate molasses
• 1/4 tsp of cinnamon or allspice
• 1/4 cup of brown sugar
• 1 tsp of Aleppo pepper or 1 red chili pepper depending on taste
• 8 oz (1 cup) of fresh pomegranate juice (or bottled)
• olive oil, as needed
• yogurt if desired

METHOD:

1. Peel the eggplants with a vegetable peeler; sprinkle with salt and let them drain some juice for a while (30 minutes or longer). To make pomegranate juice, place pomegranate arils  in a food processor, pulse a few seconds and drain through a sieve collecting the juice and pressing on the seeds with a meat mallet. Mix the juice with the pomegranate molasses and the brown sugar.
2. Mash the garlic, chop the walnuts. Soak the bulgur in a cup of hot water for 10 minutes and drain, squeezing the excess water out. Mix the bulgur, walnuts, garlic, cinnamon and Aleppo pepper in a small bowl.
3. Dry the eggplants and fry in hot oil until browned on all sides, about 12 minutes or so. Drain on paper towels and with a knife, score the eggplants in the middle lengthwise; insert the stuffing with a spoon.
4. Place the eggplants in a skillet, add the pomegranate juice and cover. If you have stuffing leftover, add it to the pomegranate sauce (it will give the sauce some body); simmer over gentle heat for 40 minutes or until the eggplants are extra tender and soft. Serve warm or at room temperature with some yogurt if desired.

Do you know what distinguishes a Lebanese home kitchen?

The whiff of fried garlic and cilantro, that’s what. Chicken wings get the garlic and cilantro treatment with the addition of a squeeze of fresh lemon juice the last couple of minutes of cooking.

INGREDIENTS: 2 to 4 servings

• 1 pound of chicken wings (not deboned)
• 2 lemons or more
• 1 teaspoon of salt, 1/2 teaspoon of white pepper
• 1 bunch of cilantro (fresh coriander)
• 8 cloves of garlic (or less depending on your tolerance)
• Olive oil, as needed, mixed with corn oil (for frying the wings)

METHOD:

1. Clean the wings under running water and by rubbing them with a cut lemon; dry them and sprinkle salt and white pepper on them; heat a generous amount of oil in a large (cast-iron if possible) skillet and brown the wings on all sides for about 40 minutes until browned.
2. Meanwhile, chop the garlic and mash with a dash of salt in a mortar. Mince the cilantro (leaves, not the stems); juice a lemon. Add the garlic to the wings then the cilantro. Add the lemon juice and stir the wings to get them coated with the mixture evenly if possible. This final operation should take place the last 2 minutes (or less) of cooking, so as to keep the garlic and cilantro tasting fresh and  to coat them with the oil.  Serve with additional lemon quarters.

This is a great mayo, minus the eggs, that can be prepared several days ahead for a BBQ. It consists of garlic, potato, oil and a dash of salt.

If you like mayo, but hate the thought of  raw eggs, this is for you; it has exactly the same texture as mayo, with the added garlicky flavor.

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 bulb of garlic or 10-12 cloves
• 1 teaspoon of salt (or more to taste)
• 1 baking potato (8 ounces or 250 g.)
• 3/4 cup of corn oil (200 ml.)
• Juice of one small lemon (1 ounce or 25 ml.)

METHOD:

1. Peel the garlic cloves and place them with the salt in a mortar and chop the garlic  with the salt until the mixture is pasty; alternatively, you could place them in a mini-processor and use the machine. (I am old-fashioned about the garlic believing a mortar is best!).
2. Cook the potato (boil or cook in the microwave for 6 minutes) until tender; cool, peel, and cut in chunks.
3. Place the mashed garlic in the bowl of a food processor or mixer and add the potatoes. Puree the mixture thoroughly, then add the oil in a very thin stream. Finally add the lemon juice. Run the machine until the mixture looks like mayonnaise.
4. Serve with anything, meat, chicken, more potatoes, fries, etc. Keep covered in the fridge for several days.

NOTE: If the oil separates from the mixture, add more potato  and mix again in the processor until the texture is restored.

Recipe is adapted from In’am Atallah’s Lebanese cuisine.

This should conclude my hummus week (unless I feel the urge to make yet another hummus mañana); this is a classic potato with tarator (tahini) sauce, except I used (organic) sweet potatoes.

The lamb chops are marinated briefly in lemon juice, olive oil, garlic paste, Aleppo pepper and  wild zaatar or thyme.

INGREDIENTS: Per potato (weight about 12 ounces)

• 1 sweet potato, per serving
• 3 tablespoons of tahini
• 1/4 cup of fresh lemon juice
• 3 cloves of garlic, mashed with a dash of salt
• water, as needed (one or more tablespoons)

METHOD:

1. Bake the potato in the microwave for 6 minutes (or in the oven for a lot longer).
2. Scoop out the flesh and mash briefly with the tahini, lemon juice, garlic and salt. If the potato is too dry and crumbly, but the taste is perfect, add a tablespoon of water (or more) to get it moister. Serve at room temperature or warm.

So many varieties of squash are out there for us to enjoy; I like the so-called turban or Turkish turban squash for their interesting shape and colorful orange and green hues.

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 1/2 pound (or 3 pound) squash
• 1/2 cup of tahini
• 1/2 cup of lemon or orange or citrus juice (fresh)
• 2 cloves of garlic, chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon of salt
• Dash of nutmeg (optional)

METHOD:

1. Make horizontal slits in the squash with a knife and set it in the microwave for 10 minutes at full power or until soft.
2. Cool a bit and cut in half, removing seeds and fibrous parts. Cut the squash in chunks and mash as for mashed potatoes.
3. Pound the garlic with the salt in a mortar till pasty. Pour the tahini in a small bowl and stir the lemon or orange juice into the tahini; it will curdle at first. Add enough water to smooth it out, about 1/4 cup, in order to get a loose sauce. Add the garlic and taste to adjust seasoning.
4. Combine the tahini sauce with the squash. Serve with pita chips or triangles at room temperature.

NOTE: Recipe can be prepared with other types of winter squash, such as pumpkin, kabocha, acorn or  butternut.

Hatch chiles are in season now, and some stores will even roast them and seed them to save us the trouble;  I bought a container and set out to make  hummus.

Pick hot or mild chiles depending on your preference. If you have no access to the hatch chiles (produced in the town of Hatch, New Mexico) then any other green chile pepper would be a fine substitute. You can also use canned peppers.

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 15-ounce can of garbanzo beans or chickpeas
• 1/3 cup of tahini
• 1 small lemon, juiced (about 3 to 4 tablespoons or to taste)
• 3 cloves of garlic
• 1/2 teaspoon of salt
• 3 hatch chiles, roasted, peeled and seeded (or more, to taste); can substitute canned ones.
• 1/2 teaspoon of ground cumin
• 1 bag of pita bread
• Olive oil (optional)

METHOD:

1. Drain and rinse the chickpeas and if you wish, you can cook them for about 30 minutes with several cups of water and a dash of baking soda, to soften them. This step is optional.
2. Place the chickpeas, hatch chiles, lemon juice and tahini in the bowl of a food processor. Mash the garlic in a mortar with the salt and when it is pasty add it to the other ingredients. Puree the mixture and taste to adjust seasoning. Pour into a serving platter, garnish with a few beans and chiles if desired and a drizzle of olive oil.
3. Serve with pita triangles or chips.

Ramadan Kareeem 2011!

Spaghetti squash is a fun vegetable; you bake it and then split it open and carve out all these spaghetti-like strands; here the spaghetti squash is combined with some angel hair pasta and a labneh and basil sauce.

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 Spaghetti squash
• 4 ounces of angel hair pasta or cappellini
• 1 ounce of basil leaves (about 1 cup)
• 1 1/2 cup of labneh or whipping cream
• 2 or 3 garlic cloves
• Olive oil, as needed
• 1/4 cup of pine nuts, toasted with a dab of butter in a skillet
• 1/4 cup of pepitas (optional)

METHOD:

1. Poke the squash in a few places and bake in a 375F oven for 25 minutes or so, until tender. Split it open and remove the seeds and fibrous middle part and with a fork, separate all the strands and transfer to a large bowl.
2. Make the sauce: Place the labneh or cream in a food processor, add the basil and garlic and process till creamy. Add some olive oil if using labneh. The idea is to taste and adjust the sauce to your liking.
3. Boil the cappellini in lots of salted water; drain and combine the pasta with the squash and the sauce; sprinkle with the toasted pine nuts and pepitas and serve.

NOTE: To make labneh:

Place a sieve (about 8 inches in width or wider) over a bowl and line it with paper towels or a large coffee filter. Pour 3 cups of yogurt on the coffee filter and let the yogurt drain for several hours, preferably overnight. The next day, plop the labneh into a bowl, add a pinch of salt, mix to combine and serve or use in this recipe.

The challenge with these fritters is to infuse them with flavor as they tend to be bland on their own; so go ahead and add all the spices that your little heart desires and you will be rewarded with a delicious appetizer. Squeeze some citrus juice on the fritters before inhaling them, it will enhance their flavor and help with the absorption of the iron in the lentils.

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 cup of red lentils, cooked in 2 cups of water for 30 minutes till soft.
• 1/2 cup of bulgur (#1), soaked in water 10 minutes, then drained and squeezed of the extra water.
• 3/4 cup of rice, cooked.
• 1 large egg
• 1/2 cup of flour
• 1 teaspoon of ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon of ground coriander
• 1 teaspoon of sumac (optional)
• 2 tablespoon of harissa (can substitute red pepper paste of your choice or chili paste)
• 4 cloves of garlic, mashed with salt in a mortar till pasty
• 2 scallions, minced (can substitute shallot) (optional)
• Rind of an orange or a lemon or a lime
• 1/2 cup of minced cilantro
• 1 cup of minced Italian parsley
• 2 Tablespoons of powdered dried mint
• 1/4 teaspoon of white pepper, 1 teaspoon of salt (to taste)
• 1 cup of  sesame seeds (can substitute pistachios, pecans or walnuts, chopped fine)
• 1 or 2 lemons, quartered
• oil for frying, as needed

These are served with a quick salad of diced tomatoes, diced feta and minced parsley dressed in lemon juice and olive oil, with a touch of sumac if desired.

NOTE: I made the effort to buy a feta with a Greek origin and was rewarded with a creamy smooth-tasting cheese, far superior to the other varieties I used to buy. I soaked the feta in water to make it a bit less salty.

For extra flavor, fry the minced herbs and garlic in a little olive oil for no more than 10 seconds, then add to the lentil mixture.

METHOD:

1. Place the cooked (and drained) lentils in a large bowl. Add the drained bulgur, rice, egg, flour, minced scallions, harissa and other spices, rind of a citrus and toss well to combine. Heat a little olive oil in a small skillet, throw the minced herbs and mashed garlic and stir to combine the mixture for no more than 10 seconds. Remove and add to the lentil mixture and toss.
2. Shape the fritters with  an ice-cream scoop and dip in the sesame seeds or other nuts.
3. Heat some oil in a pan (about one inch) and when hot (at 350F to 375F), drop the fritters and cook about 3 minutes on one side and one minute on the other. Place on a plate lined with paper towels.
4. Serve with the salad and some quartered lemon or limes.