Middle Eastern Cooking . . .

[cbd2cai 0]

Now that we are covering some different topics like dancing and recommended books, I thought I'd get us talking about food . . . we have been interspersing it within different topics, but I thought it would be nice to have a place to talk about just FOOD. I think there was a topic before the crash, but here goes again.

A couple of weeks ago, I took some books to Half-Price books to sell, then managed to spend part of the monies received on a new ME cookbook . . . well, NOT really new, just new for me! It was published in 1974 in the paperback format (I loooooooooove finding old cookbooks, LOL).

"A Book Of Middle Eastern Food" - Claudia Roden.

This cookbook covers Syria, Lebanon, Egypt, Iran, Turkey, Greece, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Yeman, Sudan, Algeria, Tunisia, Morocco and Israel. Wow, so ambitious, but a lot of the same foods appear in many of these countries . . . or variations thereof.

It includes a lot of Moroccan recipes so I might actually be up to experimenting on a tangine. I bought some eggplants to try out the recipe for moussaka that is included. I have one from a Greek cookbook I have had for many years, but I thought I'd try something different because it looks a bit easier. This book is nice because it does try to explain some things about various aspects of the different countries cooking.

I have a few more cookbooks as I have been collecting them but my two most used so far are:

"Can The Greeks Cook" by Fannie Venos and Lillian Prichard published in 1950 (lol, and cost all of $2 back then)

"Lebanese Cuisine" by Madelain Farah published in 1972

Both of the above have been well used and have the stains to prove it.

Of course, now that I am trying to be healthy, I don't plan to use as much of the fat and oil that some of the recipes use . . . but some foods will just have to be done for special occassions and not as regular fare!

Ok, everyone, let's start talking about food!

Catherine

[Together4ever 1]

Are you looking for cookbook suggestions, or recipes some of us used while living in the ME/NA?

[Jenn! 918]

I'd love a good recipe for bstilla (sp.?) if someone has one...

[cbd2cai 0]

Are you looking for cookbook suggestions, or recipes some of us used while living in the ME/NA?

Well, I don't really need any cookbook suggestions as I have a few, but maybe some other ppl would like more suggestions. If you have a favorite one that you use, tell us about it. I am open to getting more cookbooks if it will expand my repertoire in the kitchen. So I am crazy . . . I like to read cookbooks!

I am just trying to get ppl to talk about what they like to use . . . cookbooks, favorite recipes and foods, what they like to make all the time, what they want to attempt to cook/prepare.

I'd love a good recipe for bstilla (sp.?) if someone has one...

"Food for the Gods" as described in my cookbook, pronounced "pastilla", made with filo dough/pastry sheets.

Wow, this is ambitious. I can type it all in if you want. Or I can scan the recipe and send you the scanned doc. Anyone else?

[Jenn! 918]

I'd love a good recipe for bstilla (sp.?) if someone has one...

"Food for the Gods" as described in my cookbook, pronounced "pastilla", made with filo dough/pastry sheets.

Wow, this is ambitious. I can type it all in if you want. Or I can scan the recipe and send you the scanned doc. Anyone else?

I'd love it if you can scan it!

[cbd2cai 0]

I'd love a good recipe for bstilla (sp.?) if someone has one...

"Food for the Gods" as described in my cookbook, pronounced "pastilla", made with filo dough/pastry sheets.

Wow, this is ambitious. I can type it all in if you want. Or I can scan the recipe and send you the scanned doc. Anyone else?

I'd love it if you can scan it!

OK, I will scan it . . . where do you want me to email it? Or I guess I can try to post the jpg somewhere for you to retrieve. Now I am off to my garden for a change of pace.

[Jenn! 918]

I'd love a good recipe for bstilla (sp.?) if someone has one...

"Food for the Gods" as described in my cookbook, pronounced "pastilla", made with filo dough/pastry sheets.

Wow, this is ambitious. I can type it all in if you want. Or I can scan the recipe and send you the scanned doc. Anyone else?

I'd love it if you can scan it!

OK, I will scan it . . . where do you want me to email it? Or I guess I can try to post the jpg somewhere for you to retrieve. Now I am off to my garden for a change of pace.

You can post it right to this thread, right?

[cbd2cai 0]

I'd love a good recipe for bstilla (sp.?) if someone has one...

"Food for the Gods" as described in my cookbook, pronounced "pastilla", made with filo dough/pastry sheets.

Wow, this is ambitious. I can type it all in if you want. Or I can scan the recipe and send you the scanned doc. Anyone else?

I'd love it if you can scan it!

OK, I will scan it . . . where do you want me to email it? Or I guess I can try to post the jpg somewhere for you to retrieve. Now I am off to my garden for a change of pace.

You can post it right to this thread, right?

I will scan it and attempt to post when I get back from getting my hair highlighted, LOL. Now I must go jump in the shower to wash off dirt from the garden and get moving to my appt.

[Together4ever 1]

I would LOVE a recipe for mashi made with cabbage or grape leaves and rice. I LOVE that stuff but have no idea how to make it. Mohammed says he "thinks" he knows and will show me when he comes, but I think I better have a better idea what is happening.

[UmmSqueakster 54]

I would LOVE a recipe for mashi made with cabbage or grape leaves and rice. I LOVE that stuff but have no idea how to make it. Mohammed says he "thinks" he knows and will show me when he comes, but I think I better have a better idea what is happening.

This recipe looks pretty good - http://members.cox.net/ahmedheissa/recmahsh.htm

When my friend taught me how to make it, we didn't cook the onions and whatnot before mixing it in with the rice. We also made it with grape leaves instead of the cabbage. The big secret to making the pretty rolls, I've heard, is to only put a dollop of the filling in and lots and lots of practice. I stuffed mine too much and they exploded while cooking.

Actually, this guy's entire recipe page looks pretty good - http://members.cox.net/ahmedheissa/Recipnew.html

[Together4ever 1]

I would LOVE a recipe for mashi made with cabbage or grape leaves and rice. I LOVE that stuff but have no idea how to make it. Mohammed says he "thinks" he knows and will show me when he comes, but I think I better have a better idea what is happening.

This recipe looks pretty good - http://members.cox.net/ahmedheissa/recmahsh.htm

When my friend taught me how to make it, we didn't cook the onions and whatnot before mixing it in with the rice. We also made it with grape leaves instead of the cabbage. The big secret to making the pretty rolls, I've heard, is to only put a dollop of the filling in and lots and lots of practice. I stuffed mine too much and they exploded while cooking.

Actually, this guy's entire recipe page looks pretty good - http://members.cox.net/ahmedheissa/Recipnew.html

OH OH OH OH That is it!!! Perfect! Thank you!. I watched my mother and sisters-in-law make this and it takes the better part of the day to accomplish, but it's sooooo good. And its a good excuse to go for a nice long walk after dinner to let it settle.

[UmmSqueakster 54]

Found a very helpful page for those of us with Egyptian SOs

http://members.cox.net/ahmedheissa/recspice.htm

It has common spices used in Egyptian cooking with their arabic and english names. Anyone who speaks a different form of colloquial arabic want to look the list over and see if the names are similar?

[jordanianprincess 0]

Found a very helpful page for those of us with Egyptian SOs

http://members.cox.net/ahmedheissa/recspice.htm

It has common spices used in Egyptian cooking with their arabic and english names. Anyone who speaks a different form of colloquial arabic want to look the list over and see if the names are similar?

I speak the jordanian dialect of arabic and the names are almost exactly the same. They might prounounce them differently or there could be a difference in one letter.

[cbd2cai 0]

OK, I finally figured out how to get this to work, LOL!! So here it is, Jenn!

Bstilla recipe:

Edited April 15, 2006 by cbarrosmostafa

[tnh9479 1]

I'd love a good recipe for bstilla (sp.?) if someone has one...

Jenn,

We just made some tonight. Our first go at it. It comes out of the oven in 5 minutes. I'll let you know how it is. We got the recipe from Paula Wolfert's Cookbook, "Couscous and other...." One of my students bought it for me for Christmas and it is awesome. Just to let you know, pastilla is a couple hour event (between cooking, deboning, and shredding the chicken; blanching, sauting and grinding the almonds; and working with the phyllo dough -- that stuff is enough to drive anyone mad). Anyway, it was a special treat for Hicham since I had the day off!

Twila