FoodMan

Riz w’ Bazilla (Rice and Peas) 1 c diced onions 1/2 lb (225g) ground beef 1 c frozen peas 1 c diced carrots (or use ½ lb (225g) whole baby carrots) 2 T tomato paste Salt and pepper Heat 2-3 Tbsp of olive oil in a pot with a lid and sauté the onions till soft. Add the beef and cook till browned. Add the peas and carrots with salt and pepper and stir well. Add water to barely cover the mixture. Bring to a slow boil and add the tomato paste and stir it until dissolved. Cover and simmer for about 30 minutes or until everything is cooked and the mixture has thickened slightly. Taste, adjust seasoning and serve hot over rice. Keywords: Side, Vegetables, Rice, Lebanese, Middle Eastern, eGCI ( RG710 )

Eggplant Stew 1/2 lb (450g) Stew beef cut into cubes 1-1/2 lb (670g) eggplant 1 large onion, diced 2 T finely chopped garlic 1/2 lb fresh tomatoes, diced Peel and cut the eggplant into 1 inch dice. Season the beef with salt and pepper. In a large heavy pot, heat some olive oil and brown the beef. Add the onions and garlic. Cook till soft then add the eggplant. Cook for a few more minutes until the eggplant is covered with the aromatics and oil and meat drippings. Add the tomatoes and season with more salt and pepper. Stir everything together, add water to barely cover everything and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, covered, for about one hour or until the eggplant is cooked through and very soft. Correct the seasoning if necessary. Serve over rice or burghul Keywords: Middle Eastern, Lebanese, eGCI ( RG709 )

Eggplant Stew 1/2 lb (450g) Stew beef cut into cubes 1-1/2 lb (670g) eggplant 1 large onion, diced 2 T finely chopped garlic 1/2 lb fresh tomatoes, diced Peel and cut the eggplant into 1 inch dice. Season the beef with salt and pepper. In a large heavy pot, heat some olive oil and brown the beef. Add the onions and garlic. Cook till soft then add the eggplant. Cook for a few more minutes until the eggplant is covered with the aromatics and oil and meat drippings. Add the tomatoes and season with more salt and pepper. Stir everything together, add water to barely cover everything and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, covered, for about one hour or until the eggplant is cooked through and very soft. Correct the seasoning if necessary. Serve over rice or burghul Keywords: Middle Eastern, Lebanese, eGCI ( RG709 )

Shaikh El Mahshi (stuffed eggplant) Traditionally Shaikh el Mahshi refers to the stuffed eggplant portion of this recipe. However my mom once had some extra tomatoes and she decided to use them as well. It was a big hit and since then she never makes this recipe without the stuffed tomatoes. The traditional method of prepping the eggplant is to fry it. However, brushing with olive oil and broiling also works great and produces less oily eggplant. 12 Thin slices of eggplant (~1/4 inch) Oil for frying 4 firm, small, round or plum Tomatoes 1 recipe Meat Stuffing Preheat the oven to 375F. Heat 1 inch (2.5cm) of oil in a deep pot to about 350F (190C). Fry the eggplant slices a few at a time until browned on both sides. Move to a rack to drain and season with salt and pepper. Cut the stem end from the tomatoes and, using a spoon, remove all seeds and pulp to create a hollow bowl (reserve seeds and juices and the cut “caps”). Slice a piece from the bottom of the tomatoes to form a flat surface on which to stand straight (take care not to make any holes in them though). Season with salt and pepper In an oven-proof baking dish, make 4 eggplant stacks by placing one slice in the dish and topping with about 2 Tbsp of the stuffing. Top with another slice, then stuffing and then a third slice. Repeat three more times and you should end up with 4 stacks. Stuff the tomatoes with the meat stuffing (pack them real good) and place in the dish as well. Put the stem end “caps” back on them . Spread the reserved Tomato seed and pulp and juices all over the eggplant and tomato Place in the oven and bake for 30-40 minutes or until the tomatoes are soft but not mushy Serve immediately with rice Keywords: Vegetables, Lebanese, Middle Eastern, eGCI ( RG708 )

Shaikh El Mahshi (stuffed eggplant) Traditionally Shaikh el Mahshi refers to the stuffed eggplant portion of this recipe. However my mom once had some extra tomatoes and she decided to use them as well. It was a big hit and since then she never makes this recipe without the stuffed tomatoes. The traditional method of prepping the eggplant is to fry it. However, brushing with olive oil and broiling also works great and produces less oily eggplant. 12 Thin slices of eggplant (~1/4 inch) Oil for frying 4 firm, small, round or plum Tomatoes 1 recipe Meat Stuffing Preheat the oven to 375F. Heat 1 inch (2.5cm) of oil in a deep pot to about 350F (190C). Fry the eggplant slices a few at a time until browned on both sides. Move to a rack to drain and season with salt and pepper. Cut the stem end from the tomatoes and, using a spoon, remove all seeds and pulp to create a hollow bowl (reserve seeds and juices and the cut “caps”). Slice a piece from the bottom of the tomatoes to form a flat surface on which to stand straight (take care not to make any holes in them though). Season with salt and pepper In an oven-proof baking dish, make 4 eggplant stacks by placing one slice in the dish and topping with about 2 Tbsp of the stuffing. Top with another slice, then stuffing and then a third slice. Repeat three more times and you should end up with 4 stacks. Stuff the tomatoes with the meat stuffing (pack them real good) and place in the dish as well. Put the stem end “caps” back on them . Spread the reserved Tomato seed and pulp and juices all over the eggplant and tomato Place in the oven and bake for 30-40 minutes or until the tomatoes are soft but not mushy Serve immediately with rice Keywords: Vegetables, Lebanese, Middle Eastern, eGCI ( RG708 )

Pita Bread (Khobz Arabi) 3 c Bread flour or All Purpose flour 1/2 tsp Instant yeast (or 1 tsp Active Dry yeast combined with a Tbsp sugar and ¼ cup warm water till foamy) 1/2 tsp salt 1 c warm water (reduce the water by ¼ Cup if using Active Dry yeast) Mix the flour and salt in a bowl, then add the yeast (or yeast/water mixture) and add the water slowly while stirring with a plastic or wooden spoon until everything is combined into a ball. You might need more or less water than the 1 cup. Once the dough comes together, transfer it to a floured surface and knead for a good ten minutes until it is soft and elastic. Roll the dough into a log and cut it into five equal parts (cut into fewer pieces if you want bigger loaves). Form each piece into a ball and put them all on a floured baking sheet. Cover with a damp towel and let them rise in a warm place for about an hour or until almost double in size Preheat your oven to 500F (270C). If you have a baking stone, place it in the oven to pre-heat thoroughly. Flatten each dough ball and with a rolling pin form it into 1/8 inch (3mm) thick round about 6 inches (15cm) in diameter. After rolling all the dough, cover and let them rest on a floured surface for 15-30 minutes. If you have a baking stone then bake them on the stone by sliding the dough rounds onto the stone and baking till they puff up like balloons (about 2-3 minutes). Leave them in the oven no more than one minute after they puff up even though they might not have much color on them. This will insure that the bread will be soft and pliable once cooled. If you do not have a baking stone in your oven, place the rounds on a baking sheet (making sure they are not touching) and bake in the oven until they puff up As soon as you remove the baked bread from the oven, place in a container, flatten gently and then cover with a damp towel. Keep stacking the flattened baked bread on top of each other and covering them. Store the baked bread in a well sealed plastic bag. Never let the baked bread cool uncovered or it will harden Keywords: Bread, Lebanese, Middle Eastern, eGCI ( RG707 )

Pita Bread (Khobz Arabi) 3 c Bread flour or All Purpose flour 1/2 tsp Instant yeast (or 1 tsp Active Dry yeast combined with a Tbsp sugar and ¼ cup warm water till foamy) 1/2 tsp salt 1 c warm water (reduce the water by ¼ Cup if using Active Dry yeast) Mix the flour and salt in a bowl, then add the yeast (or yeast/water mixture) and add the water slowly while stirring with a plastic or wooden spoon until everything is combined into a ball. You might need more or less water than the 1 cup. Once the dough comes together, transfer it to a floured surface and knead for a good ten minutes until it is soft and elastic. Roll the dough into a log and cut it into five equal parts (cut into fewer pieces if you want bigger loaves). Form each piece into a ball and put them all on a floured baking sheet. Cover with a damp towel and let them rise in a warm place for about an hour or until almost double in size Preheat your oven to 500F (270C). If you have a baking stone, place it in the oven to pre-heat thoroughly. Flatten each dough ball and with a rolling pin form it into 1/8 inch (3mm) thick round about 6 inches (15cm) in diameter. After rolling all the dough, cover and let them rest on a floured surface for 15-30 minutes. If you have a baking stone then bake them on the stone by sliding the dough rounds onto the stone and baking till they puff up like balloons (about 2-3 minutes). Leave them in the oven no more than one minute after they puff up even though they might not have much color on them. This will insure that the bread will be soft and pliable once cooled. If you do not have a baking stone in your oven, place the rounds on a baking sheet (making sure they are not touching) and bake in the oven until they puff up As soon as you remove the baked bread from the oven, place in a container, flatten gently and then cover with a damp towel. Keep stacking the flattened baked bread on top of each other and covering them. Store the baked bread in a well sealed plastic bag. Never let the baked bread cool uncovered or it will harden Keywords: Bread, Lebanese, Middle Eastern, eGCI ( RG707 )

Cucumber and Yogurt salad This is a tasty and refreshing accompaniment to most dishes, especially grilled items. 3 c Yogurt 1 10 inch long cucumber 2 tsp mashed garlic 1 T dried mint Salt to taste Peel and seed the cucumber then dice into ½ inch pieces. Mix the cucumber with all the remaining ingredients and serve cold. Keywords: Lebanese, eGCI, Middle Eastern ( RG706 )

Cucumber and Yogurt salad This is a tasty and refreshing accompaniment to most dishes, especially grilled items. 3 c Yogurt 1 10 inch long cucumber 2 tsp mashed garlic 1 T dried mint Salt to taste Peel and seed the cucumber then dice into ½ inch pieces. Mix the cucumber with all the remaining ingredients and serve cold. Keywords: Lebanese, eGCI, Middle Eastern ( RG706 )

Tahine Sauce (Taratoor) One of the most frequently used sauces in Lebanese cuisine. It is used for fish, Falafel, Kibbeh, grilled lamb or Kafta, to name a few. 1 c Tahine ¼ cup Lemon juice (or more if you like) 1 tsp mashed garlic 2 tsp ground Cumin Salt Mix all the ingredients together with enough water (about 1/2 cup) to make a nice and creamy (NOT PASTY) mixture. The Tahine sauce might seem as if it is going to turn pasty at first but with enough water it will loosen up. Variation: A very tasty variation on this is to use half the amount of Tahine and substitute a ½ cup yogurt for it. Finish with some fresh chopped parsley if you like. This goes great with Kibbeh. Keywords: Sauce, Lebanese, eGCI, Middle Eastern ( RG705 )

Tahine Sauce (Taratoor) One of the most frequently used sauces in Lebanese cuisine. It is used for fish, Falafel, Kibbeh, grilled lamb or Kafta, to name a few. 1 c Tahine ¼ cup Lemon juice (or more if you like) 1 tsp mashed garlic 2 tsp ground Cumin Salt Mix all the ingredients together with enough water (about 1/2 cup) to make a nice and creamy (NOT PASTY) mixture. The Tahine sauce might seem as if it is going to turn pasty at first but with enough water it will loosen up. Variation: A very tasty variation on this is to use half the amount of Tahine and substitute a ½ cup yogurt for it. Finish with some fresh chopped parsley if you like. This goes great with Kibbeh. Keywords: Sauce, Lebanese, eGCI, Middle Eastern ( RG705 )

Meat Stuffing Olive Oil 1 lb (450g) Ground Beef or Lamb 1 Medium Onion diced 1/3 c Pine nuts 2 T Pomegranate Molasses (or to taste) In a pot, heat 2 Tbsp of oil and sauté the pine nuts until lightly colored. Add the onions and cook till soft. Add the beef and cook till browned. Season with salt and pepper and add the pomegranate molasses. Taste and adjust to desired flavor. Let it cool. It is now ready to be used. Keywords: Beef, Lamb, Middle Eastern, eGCI, Lebanese ( RG704 )

Meat Stuffing Olive Oil 1 lb (450g) Ground Beef or Lamb 1 Medium Onion diced 1/3 c Pine nuts 2 T Pomegranate Molasses (or to taste) In a pot, heat 2 Tbsp of oil and sauté the pine nuts until lightly colored. Add the onions and cook till soft. Add the beef and cook till browned. Season with salt and pepper and add the pomegranate molasses. Taste and adjust to desired flavor. Let it cool. It is now ready to be used. Keywords: Beef, Lamb, Middle Eastern, eGCI, Lebanese ( RG704 )

Rice with Vermicelli (Riz Mfalfal) 1 T Samen 1/4 c very fine vermicelli crumbled into ½ inch pieces 1 c white rice Salt 2 c water Heat clarified butter in a pan and add the crumbled vermicelli. Cook until it turns light brown in color. Add the rice and salt and cook for two minutes making sure everything is coated with the butter and the rice is turning a little opaque. Add the water and bring to a boil over medium heat. Let it cook uncovered until the liquid is a little reduced and you can barely see the rice under the water. Cover the pot and reduce the heat to low and cook for another 20 minutes or until the rice is tender. Fluff and serve. Keywords: Rice, Middle Eastern, eGCI, Lebanese ( RG703 )

Rice with Vermicelli (Riz Mfalfal) 1 T Samen 1/4 c very fine vermicelli crumbled into ½ inch pieces 1 c white rice Salt 2 c water Heat clarified butter in a pan and add the crumbled vermicelli. Cook until it turns light brown in color. Add the rice and salt and cook for two minutes making sure everything is coated with the butter and the rice is turning a little opaque. Add the water and bring to a boil over medium heat. Let it cook uncovered until the liquid is a little reduced and you can barely see the rice under the water. Cover the pot and reduce the heat to low and cook for another 20 minutes or until the rice is tender. Fluff and serve. Keywords: Rice, Middle Eastern, eGCI, Lebanese ( RG703 )

Labneh (Yogurt Cheese/Drained Yogurt) 1 qt (1L) Yogurt You can really use as much yogurt as you want provided that you have a colander large enough to accommodate it. Place a large colander inside a slightly deeper bowl with the colander’s handles resting on the edges of the bowl. The colander’s bottom should be a few inches higher than the bottom of the bowl. Place three layers of cheesecloth inside the colander. Put the yogurt in the cheesecloth, cover with a plate or plastic wrap or more cheesecloth then place in the refrigerator overnight. Check it after 8 to 10 hours:- the Yogurt should be set and it should have the consistency of whipped cream or soft cheese depending on your yogurt and on how long you let it drain. Remove it from the colander, and store in a sealed container in the fridge. Discard the whey that is left in the bowl Keywords: Middle Eastern, eGCI, Lebanese ( RG702 )

Laban (yogurt) 2 qt (1.9L) Milk (usually 2% or whole) 1/4 c Starter (plain yogurt with active cultures, either store bought or saved from the previous yogurt batch.) If using frozen yogurt as a starter: Remove it from the freezer and allow to defrost in the fridge for a few hours or put the container in a hot water bath for about one hour (that’s what I do) but NEVER microwave it. Heat up the milk until almost boiling, then let it cool slightly. I know when it is ready by administering the "index-finger test": The milk is ready if it is cool enough for me to keep my CLEAN finger in it for no more than 10 seconds (it should still be quite hot and not lukewarm). Pour the milk into a glass container with a lid, stir in the starter and wrap the whole thing with a wool shawl or a thick sweater and leave it overnight (or about 10 hrs) on your kitchen counter. The longer you leave it wrapped, the more the sour taste will develop. I prefer a sweeter tasting yogurt, so 8-10 hours is enough. The yogurt produced is sweet with a slight tang and a soft custard-like texture—absolutely fantastic. Remove a quarter cup of the fresh yogurt to freeze in a small plastic container for use next time as a starter and refrigerate the rest. Keywords: Middle Eastern, eGCI, Lebanese ( RG701 )

That is all I was asking for Fifi I have to try that jaz brunch sometime, love that Turtle soup too. FM

Sheesh...for a second there I thought it is some concoction comprising of a Taco with wasabi Last night a quick pasta dinner. Linguine tossed with fresh toamtoes, basil and sauteed Halumi cheese. drizzled with some excellent evoo. Dessert: Bride's fingers stuffed with nuts. FM

Thanks Tommy. Sorry to see you step down Suvir, but very happy for you. Good luck. FM

Am I missing something, where is Suvir going? I know he is opening AMMA but is he not going to be available to post on e-gullet anymore? Please explain. Suvir- best of luck on AMMA and I will make sure to visit when in NYC and waiting patiently for the book. FM

What an interesting article and a tasty sounding recipe. There is always a link between food and memories especially when one is far away from home, be it overseas or across a few hundred miles. A meal that one has as a child in mom's kitchen or on grandmother's bakcyard is very hard to duplicate in a different land. It just lacks that special something, the "homeliness" if that is a word. What I mean is that it lacks the same visuals, sorroundings, smells and sounds of that particular place. When I make my grilled chciken with garlic sauce in my Houston home, no matter how hard I try it just is not the same. It always tastes good but I keep yearning for the hustle and bustle of my grandma's house, the smells of the orange trees in her small garden nearby, the company of my brothers and friends, the sounds of vendors from down the small street selling anything from fresh milk to cucumbers from their Toyota pickup trucks or even their donkey's load. This simpliy cannot be re-created. So what do we do?? We make our own new memories with our loved ones who are present, and enjoy what we have in hopes that on our next visit home we will re-live a small fragment of that childhood memory again. EN

Here goes my long anticipated review of Aires. We dined there this past Saturday. Dngovy, We are still waitting for yours. ARIES: FINE FOOD, CASUAL DINING No question about it, food at Aries is excellent and chef Tycer sure knows what he is doing in the kitchen. With that said two things were a little disappointing, the wine list and the service. Let’s start with the wine list, it is very pricy. We were looking for a decent red to have with our meal but the cheapest strong red was $50, and the one the sommelier recommended to complement our food was $90. I am a firm believer that any restaurant no matter how fine the food is should have bottles in the upper 20s low 30s. This has been the case at all fine dining establishments we’ve been to, including Mark’s and Zula in Houston. With that in mind we decided to go the by-the-glass route and picked a Shiraz that was adequate. Service at Aries got both myself and my wife confused. Maybe we just had too high of expectations for this place. We expected a level of service to match that we’ve seen at other fine dining establishments (again Mark’s comes to mind in Houston). To elaborate, I would expect the waiter(s) to be very knowledgeable, very attentive, “on the ball” sort to speak. Instead our waitress made us feel we were eating at a “Houston’s” or “Cheesecake Factory”, meaning she was a good waitress but certainly not a fine dining establishment caliber and certainly not on the same level as the food or the wine list price tags. To illustrate further, our waitress asked us what we would like to drink even before we saw a menu!!! “Hello my name is ----, what can I get you to drink?” What’s up with that?? This might work at Bennigan’s but certainly not here. She took about ten minutes from the time we got our menus till the time she came back to our table and ask “Would you like to hear about our Caviar special?” When asked if she prefers the duck or quail on the menu, rather than giving an informed professional answer, she simply suggested that the duck is “much better” with an “excellent Madeira sauce”. Again this is not the type of tailored answer I was looking for. I did actually order the duck she recommended but when my entrée arrived, yeap it was the quail. I understand that this is a mistake that could happen anywhere but it really added to my feelings that the service is a little spacey. We actually had a total of 2 waiters who in between them had about 10 tables or so. Now that is a lot of tables and it might be the reason the service is so casual. To be fair the manager did stop by to apologize and offer to replace the quail with the duck which was going to take another 20-30 minutes and a remake of my wife’s dish as well. I declined, thanked him and told him I will enjoy the quail with no problem. When the bill arrived my entrée was taken off the check which pleased me. By the end of the dinner we concluded that maybe that is how Aries is, a casual fine dining establishment. Next time we will lower our expectations down a notch and enjoy the food. I do not have detailed explanations for what we ordered because our waitress forgot to give me the copy I requested. The tasting menu was what I had in mind, but taking a quick look at it made it clear that I am better of picking several things off the menu. It simply was not that interesting, the vegetarian tasting menu actually seemed a much better option but I wanted some meat. So, after being served two delectable amuse of halibut mousse on top of wafer like crackers from the chef we started with two appetizers. A very rich and delicious tasting veal sweetbread dish with coffee glaze and green onions on top of potato rounds, the texture and taste were perfect. Another app was tortellini stuffed with goat cheese and served with a brown butter, traditional and well executed. The entrees were my aforementioned quail dish, two roasted quails stuffed with bread pudding on top of roasted zucchini. This dish was fantastic even though I was expecting a Peking duck!! My wife ordered the braised pork with mustard greens, A piece of loin and a piece of pork shoulder (I think) braised and very succulent. It was served with perfect mustard greens and a nice brothy sauce. This dish was remarkably homey and quiet large, very good as well. For a dessert we had two coffees and Chocolate Profiteroles. The Profiteroles were not the traditional Pate a Choux puffs stuffed with chocolate mousse but rather the puffs were made with dark chocolate in the batter and were a little crispy. They were stuffed with a smooth and light custard and drizzled with chocolate sauce, they were both a surprise and a delight. Along with the check we were given small dessert amuse (cheesecake cubes, raspberry chocolate tart cubes and small molasses cookies). Aries also provides the guests with mini pecan cakes neatly wrapped to take home in lieu of mints—a nice touch. Would I be back?? Yes, the food was great. I will simply enjoy good food prepared right and tip the busboys extra, they made sure our water glasses were always filled up. Elie

I nabbed mine for 89 cents a pound... USDA Choice. (Must have been a loss leader.) What I found at Kroger was less than $2/lb but nothing close to 89 cents!!! Where did you get that from?? I think Kroger's was $1.70/lb. Elie

I forgot to mention, there are 2 Droubi's on Hillcroft. If possible go to the bigger original Droubi which is located on Hillcroft between Bellair and Bissonett rather than the smaller one on Hillcroft and Westheimer. Let me know how it goes or if you have any questions. Elie