FoodMan

Huh...I wish I have co-workers who bring Paves to work . Well, Herme has two variations, do one of each. Elie

Can you please elaborate on your comment above? How serious is too serious? What restaurants come to mind in Dallas, Houston, or the country where the ““Alice Waters” approach” is done and done right? This brings up another point, shall we say the opposite end of the spectrum, “avant garde” cuisine pioneered by El Bulli's Ferran Adria in Spain and by the likes of Chef Grant Achatz of Chicago’s Alinea (and previously Trio). What are your thoughts about their approach? Too serious or gimmicky? Or is it good food taken to the next level? Elie

I thought a Lassi is always sweet. In the summer I always make mango lassi with fresh ripe mangoes. Elie

Lannie, I am soooooo jealous. This looks awsome. I've been wanting to try it for some time as well!! Elie

what a nice bathc of bagels. This is another recipe that I never tried yet, but I certainly mean to. I have not baked from the BBA recently, I'm baking from other publication. Maybe some pane de campagne is due soon though... Elie

I like the LEBANESE made Cortas or Al Rabih brands over here, because the Lebanese do make the best version . Seriously though, whenever I can I try to get the stuff straight from my grandma's stash. she has wonderful rose bushes and uses the fragrant roses to distill her own "ma ward". The smell of the stuff cooking is unforgetable. Unfortunatly, and obviously, only a small quantity is produced from several kilos of roses so supply is limited. Elie ← I also use the same brands (for the same reason Elie stated above ). I would love to know what is the basic method behind preparing rose water. It is just one of those things that I always took for granted. Provided that it requires as you said a serious amount of roses, I don't know why I never thought it could be made at home from scratch, what is generally used to make ma' ward the petals only? the buds? ← Making it at home is not a simple matter. The end product is actually distilled through a setup not unlike that used for distilling spirits. As far as I know, only the petals are used, and you have to have the not-so-pretty but VERY fragrant pink rose known in Lebanon as "Ward Joory". I doubt that your typical organic long stem rose will make a fragrant "Ma Ward". Elie

I make mana'ish at my house a couple of times a month for breakfast. I use the same recipe I have for pita bread, but I add a little more olive oil to the dough. Just roll it as thin or as thick as you like, keeping in mind that it will puff a little in the hot oven. Spread the za'atar mixture on top and bake. Everyone likes their man'oochi (mana'ish is plural) different. I like mine a little thick, and slightly underbaked. This results in a chewy, fluffy pie that can be spread with labneh, chopped tomatoes, olives aned mint and rolled up. This has to be one of my favorite meals. Others, like my dear grandma, like theirs crispy and overbaked. The baker (one of them) in our town used to always ask if I am taking any for grandma so she can bake a couple of pies for a longer time. Another variation is the amount of topping. SOme like a bare trace of za'atar, others a thick layer of the stuff!! I'm sort of in between and like zeitoun mentioned, I like to add extra oil so it is runny. Whenever I make these I always make sure to make a couple with cheese topping, not za'atar, my wife loves those. These are usually called "fatayer bil jibn" or "mana'ish bil jibn". Try also making one pie with half cheese and half za'atar and fold in half once baked so you'll have both flavors in every bite, this is just awsome. Elie

Hi Nancy, we are very glad you joined us for this chat. It is clear that you do not agree with Romano's (and others') claims that food critics should have some sort of training and I agree with you, but I also think that in order to write about something you have to know what you are talking about. So, what should be the minimum requirement(s) for a food critic? What charactaristics make a good restaurant critic? Thanks again, Elie

I like the LEBANESE made Cortas or Al Rabih brands over here, because the Lebanese do make the best version . Seriously though, whenever I can I try to get the stuff straight from my grandma's stash. she has wonderful rose bushes and uses the fragrant roses to distill her own "ma ward". The smell of the stuff cooking is unforgetable. Unfortunatly, and obviously, only a small quantity is produced from several kilos of roses so supply is limited. Elie

I like my ayran like chef Zadi's, minus the lemon juice. I like it on the salty side and sometimes I add cayenne for some kick. The funny thing is whenever I order it at a middle eastern restaurant I get funny looks from my lunch partners whose idea of a yogurt beverage involves ice cream, vanilla or "fruit on the bottom". On the otherhand, I was raised thinking of yogurt as a savory beverage/dish. Elie

How is it called in arabic? ← At my home we called it "Rub El Har"

This relish is served with Kafta in Lebanon as well. I always make it when I make kafta over here. Another wonderful hot sauce is the Armenian chili paste that is so ubiquitous in Lebanon. It is consumed by those of Armenian decent and Arabs as well. My grandmother always has a stash of the stuff and adds it to lots of things including the Lahm Bi Ajeen filling. It is easy to make, basically frying red bell peppers and spicy red peppers in oil and cooking it down to a loose paste consistency. It is sometimes dried on the roofs in the sun resulting in an even firmer result. In the late summer months in Beirut you can count on seeing several roofs covered with trays of the drying paste.... Elie

From today’s TX Digest: The article has a lot of info delivered Walsh style with humor, smarts and style. He starts of in Houston’s T’afia, chats with the man himself Ferran Adria, then off to NY and Gramercy Tavern and back to the south to New Orleans and Houston. With more Avant Garde cuisine influences the lines between chef and pastry chef and Garde Manger have all but gone. Looks like the line between bartender and chef is becoming more and more blurred as well! What did you think about the article? Do you drink cocktails with food? I do drink a margarita with Tex-Mex food but wine or beer with everything else. After reading this account, I might actually try more cocktails with my meals especially at places like Noe and T’afia. Elie

Houston Press' Cover Story Mixing It Up Robb Walsh writes this enjoyable piece about the cocktail, why we love it in Houston, where it came from and where it fits on a dinner menu in the 21st century. Houston Press' Dining Section Fire-Breathing Burger Ever had a Pakistani Burger? Robb Walsh claims that everyone should at Himalaya restaurant. They seem to have very good goat dishes as well . Houston Chronicle's Dining Guide Lunch is now in session Lana Berkowitz tells us where to eat if we are ever on a jury panel. Options seem scarce though. Elie

Patrick, I am pretty sure upthread you can find suppliers for both the copper and tin. I bought mine (tin ones) on sale at Williams Sonoma. edit: JB Prince has both of them, click here. Elie

If I had to guess I would say using Arisha is not the standard in Lebanon. It is probably a northern variation and the way it is done at my house. I would imagine blue cheese would make and amazing pie! I forgot to mention sumac. I do add some as well to my spinach filling. Elie

You can defintily buy fresh whole briskets at most major grocery stores like HEB where I buy mine and divide it up for smoking or braising. I've never seen them corned though. Elie

Zeitoun- We can discuss all manner of "sambousek" or "Fatayer", hence the subtitle. For the cheese ones, ideally and that's what my grandmother uses exclusively, I like to use the fresh curd cheese known as Arisha. However, you really cannot buy this here easily and you might not want to make your own. An excellent substitute is crumbly Feta cheese mixed with a little Kashkaval or Greek Kesari (sp?) cheese or any other sharp melting cheese. I thought about trying a good dry ricotta or even cottage cheese but have not gotten to it yet. I mix in some cayenne, chopped onions, pepper, salt (unless the cheese is salty) and chopped parsley into the filling as well. These like I mentioned before I prefer fried, but baked is also good. For the Spinach ones, I like chopped spinach (duh! ), chopped walnuts or pecans, pinenuts, a good doze of pomegranate molasses, salt, and plenty of black pepper. These are usually formed into traingular shapes, which I am sure you know, and baked. What do you prefer? Elie edit: typo

Sure you can! Better yet, freeze on a baking sheet unbaked. Then remove and store in Ziplock batgs in the freezer sort of like raviolis. Then all you have to do is bake them staright from the freezer. They will work out great. Shiewie - Thanks for the camera work compliments Behemoth- The fried ones are great but like all fried things they do not keep well and have to be eaten fresh. These are much better than the fried ones over time. Also I usually fry the cheese stuffed ones instead of baking. Different prep for different items I guess. Elie

These are not that obscure or unknown. We would normally find them at our local Lebanese American joint, usually fried, dry and brittle. Here is my version of these addictive little turovers that everyone loves. The filling recipe and the dough recipe can be found here, in my EGCI class. However, some variation is needed: -The meat filling: Once it is cooked and still warm, mix in a handful of finely chopped Italian parsley, one medioum chopped tomato and a couple large tablespoons of Labneh (drained yogurt cheese aka Greek yogurt). These additions make the differnece between a good filling and a great juicy flavorful one. -The dough: add 2 tablespoons of olive oil to the dough. Instructions: Heat oven to 375 roll the dough to a thickness of about 1/8 inch. Using a cookie cutter cut 3 inch circles of dough. Fill the pies by putting one teaspoon of the filling in the center of each. Seal the pies by folding into half moon shapes and pressing the edges with a fork (hopefully the picture will help ). Lay the pies on a parchement or wax paper covered baking sheet. Using a knife or scissors, cut tiny slits in the top of the pies or else the steam might force them open. Bake until golden brown and delicious. Serve hot or warm, on their own or accompanied by a nice yogurt sauce. The sauce in the picture is made with drained yogurt, garlic, chives, cilantro and lemon juice. Alternativly the pies can be fried instead of baked. Elie

Loper, that does look insanly good!! and that burger upthread is awsome. Sunday: - Spice rubbed Oven roasted brisket with yogurt sauce - Cauliflower, blanched and tossed with green herb oil (basil, parsley, chives, garlic) -Steamed buttery rice Dessert- A heavenly Tuxedo cake Monday: cauliflower and chopped brisket "risotto", aka leftovers. Dessert: Tart tatin with sweet whipped cream. Elie

Room temp to fridge cold , preferably room temp though. Elie

This sounds great. Can you provide additional details? Do you cook the bulghur first, moisten it with hot water, or just use it dry? I suspect the second. And, as for the onions, to you cook/fry them first? Thanks, rien ← rien- The bulgur is the fine grind one, and it is soaked to get a little soft. The onions and parsley are chopped very fine but not cooked, although I am sure you can. Just add enough flour to make a coarse dough, you should not need much and season to taste. You should not need to add any water to the "dough" or Kibbeh since the bulgur should be kind of wet, but if it is not coming togehter then add some water. From the dough make small marble size balls and poach them in the soup during the last thirty minutes or so. Keep in mind that they do expand during cooking so don't make too much of them, they should not be the center of attention, just another element of the soup. Elie

Houston Chronicle's Dining Guide: A Culinary Romance Another review of Bistro Moderne following last week's Walsh. Alison Cook seems very impressed by this third and hopefully final -three times' a charm?- incarnation of the restaurant at Hotel Derek. Houston Press Dining Section: The Silver Tower Meets The Shining No, it is not the latest hollywood blockbuster. It is rather the third -hmmm..the word third and final shows up again- and final isntallment of Robb Walsh's French restaurant reviews. Walsh finds La Tour D'argent serves up good French food in a somewhat acquired ambience that teeters on skanky and creepy . Elie

Did anyone complain about the fries? What did they have to say? Elie