Jump to content

shain

participating member
  • Posts

    3,075
  • Joined

  • Last visited

Everything posted by shain

  1. shain

    Dinner 2021

    Hummus, topped with chickpeas and tender scrambled eggs, flavored with spices bloomed in ghee (coriander seeds, cumin, curry leaves, turmeric, fenugreek, chili). Raw tomato sauce with schug and garlic - hot and spiced. Pitas, and pickles. Hummus with boiled eggs is a common combination, and so the use of scrambled eggs makes sense - the texture also pairs well with the tender chickpeas.
  2. Aranygaluska. Hungarian for "golden crumbs". Last part of the babka dough, rolled into balls, dipped in butter, rolled in a mixture of walnuts brown sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg. Some plum preserves spooned in between. Served warm of creme anglaise.
  3. The amounts are in grams, but definitely don't need to be exact, I often eyeball it. It's just how I work (I don't like volume measurements nor calling for "large"/"small" ingredients). 110 g whole or coarse bulgur 180 g tender parsley, stems removed, very finely chopped 60 g mint, stems removed, very finely chopped 150 g (1 large) tomato, finely diced 150 g (2 small) cucumber, finely diced 2 scallions, sliced thin 4 tsp sumac 1/6 tsp cinnamon 1/2 tsp nutritional yeast (optional) Apx 6 tbsp olive oil - a bold and peppery one 3-4 tbsp lemon pulp and juice (cut the lemon in half and scoop it out over a bowl) Salt and pepper to taste Cook bulgur, drain well and chill. Mix everything, let it mingle for 15 minutes. Adjust to taste.
  4. I mentioned "other herbs" since recipes vary. I usually add a hefty amount of mint, but not a lot in relation but the parsley. I also often add some scallions, and sometimes other herbs - depending on what I have and what the tabbouleh will be eaten with.
  5. I'll start by noting that bulgur comes at various sizes - i.e. intact, coarsely cracked, medium or fine. I use only whole bulgur for everything other than tabbouleh, which needs fine or medium. Talking about tabbouleh - I recognize two styles. The first is made mostly of parsley and other herbs, with fine bulgur used only to absorb moisture and keep the "salad" cohesive and juicy, rather than have the juices collect at the bottom. It should contain plenty of lemon and olive oil, maybe a hint of spice. It is quite common if not very traditional to add a small amount of tomatoes. This is eaten a condiment or spread - you can scoop it with a lettuce leaf or pita, or place it in one along with kebabs or other meats, or even falafel. The other style is an actual salad, less traditional. It's still made with lots of parsley and herbs, but with a larger portion of bulgur which can be more coarse, tomatoes and cucumbers are welcome addition (in moderation) and so can be some pomegranate seeds. It's to be eaten as is, not in a bread. It's also works great in many other salads. I use it often as a side with saucy dishes, as one would use rice. I usually prefer it with Levantine and north African dishes. For example "bi zayt" dishes (lit. "in olive oil") which are Palestinian style dishes of vegetables (e.g. okra, green beans, zucchini) cooked with tomatoes, garlic and olive oil. Iraqi Kichri (קיצ'רי) is another favorite. In the version popular here it's a pilaf style dish made of bulgur and red lentils, tomatoes and "warm-sweet" spices, often served with egg. "Zaq'arreet" زقاريط is a sort of bulgur dumplings in flavorful yogurt sauce/soup. There's the Gaza version of knuffeh which is made with bulgur, butter and nuts, darkly toasted and soaked with syrup and warm spices.
  6. Actually it's not great at thickening, since it's already cooked so the starch is not very viable. Cracked wheat will do better at that. But it does cook faster, and you can just throw in an additional teaspoon of flour starch if you want a silkier texture.
  7. shain

    Breakfast 2021

    Brunch. Sort of a Stracciatella with pasta, but a bit porridgy (less water, and thickened from the pasta and eggs). Quick vegetable stock, carrots, wilted spinach, egg drop, capellini, lemon, parsley, parmesan, pepper.
  8. Used the 2nd third of the dough I made for another babka. This one is filled with tvorog cheese (farmers cheese), as well as lightly cooked apples, raisins, vanilla, nutmeg, a bit of cinnamon and rose water. Tisane of rose geranium and lemon verbena.
  9. shain

    Lentils

    That's my recipe as I wrote it down, though I rarely follow it exactly. Note that this is not the classic French version, just inspired by it. 180g black lentils, soaked, cooked and drained 5-6 young celery stalks, diced 1 shallot, finely diced 150g tomato, finely diced (optional) a handful of arugula leaves, torn (optional) 80g potent Roquefort or another blue cheese, not too soft, crumbled a tsp fresh thyme leaves 1/3 tsp Dijon mustard 2 tbsp olive oil 2 tbsp red wine vinegar pepper Mix everything but the arugula together. Add arugula before serving. Serve at room temp, it is not tasty when chilled.
  10. shain

    Dinner 2021

    Roasted acorn squash, sunchokes and garlic cloves. Lentils in butter with some wine, garlic, thyme, tarragon, pepper. Topping of toasted seeds (pumpkin, sunflower, poppy).
  11. shain

    Lentils

    Mujadara is great. There are two main styles, the older one being made with bulgur wheat and this is the version I prefer by far. The rice version is newer in relative terms is also tasty but not one I ever crave. Lots of caramelized onions, spices and butter (in my version, some use oil), thick yogurt and pine nuts to serve.
  12. shain

    Lentils

    IMO, French lentil salad really is the best showcase for this type of lentils.
  13. shain

    Sweet bones

    I don't think it'll damage the marzipan, since broiled marzipan is quite delicious, but it might change it's texture. Maybe form the sugar into thin rods, lay them over a thin sheet of marzipan and roll it together?
  14. Thanks! They need to be fresh, that's why I divide the dough and make a few small ones over a week. I use butter and sour cream, plenty but not lots - it's not quite at a brioche level of richness (because of the inclusions, IMO it could be too much).
  15. shain

    Breakfast 2021

    We still have matzo from Passover, and so I made matzo fatoot. It's pretty similar to the scrambled style of matzo brei. Matzo are soaked in milk and eggs, then fried in butter. I added caramelized onions, and to some, I also added nigella seeds, turmeric and fenugreek. Since my brother was staying over, I also made him some sans-spices, with cheese and bacon (matzo and bacon with cheese... 😬). Served with strained buttermilk, salad, olives and zchug. Fatoot is also made from other breads outside of Passover, often lachuch, saloof and malawach. It can be served savory, or sweet with yogurt and honey. It is also often made soaked in Yemani soup.
  16. shain

    Dinner 2021

    Hortobagyi plachinta, vegetarian version. Plachintas filled with a ragu of mushrooms, walnuts, onion, spices and herbs. Topped with a warm sauce of sour cream with tomatoes and Hungarian paprika, thickened with a roux. Served with salad, Polish semi-sweet pickles and a doppelbock.
  17. shain

    Dinner 2021

    We use 'chazeret' in Hebrew for both plant and spread. But afaik horseradish in English only refers to the plant.
  18. shain

    Dinner 2021

    Matzo, beetroot and cheese muffins-things. Cheeses are feta and some smoked Gouda. Nutmeg, pepper. Peas with butter, dill, scallions, garlic. Chrain, sour cream.
  19. I dislike green bells as well, but they definitely don't fall under "high quality ripe peppers". I never noticed much difference between reds and yellows.
  20. Bummer I love ajvar - great stuff with salty cheese and/or eggs.
  21. Interesting, I can understand the dislike of both by people who may be sensitive to some specific tastes of both, but I wouldn't say those flavors are similar - peppers can be offensive since they have bitter medicinal notes, and corn has this buttery/corny/foxy flavor (beyond the general grain and starch flavors which I doubt are offensive). Also, using (mild) fresh or dried chilies is a great alternative to bell peppers.
  22. I don't understand the hate of bell peppers... Good quality ripe bell peppers are sweet and flavorful with only hints of herbal-bitterness which you find in most of chilies... One of my shakshuka recipes uses about equal portions of tomatoes and peppers (that's the version I make when tomatoes are off season, which happens to be when peppers are at their best here). Compared to many dishes, I think that at least here in Israel shakshuka can have plenty of variation - some add onions, some peppers, long cooked and thick vs briefly cooked and fresh tasting, spics, toppings (anything from feta, sausages, tahini). I think the only thing which is expected is bread - it has to have a fluffy enough crumb to absorb the eggs and sauce, I like to toast it whole so that the crust crisps but the interior doesn't. Serving from the pan is also almost expected at restaurants, I think this was originally done in sake of convenience and time saving, but it's also helps keep things hot and helps avoid breaking the eggs when transferring. Also, the part that sticks to the pan is usually the best.
  23. shain

    Breakfast 2021

    Matzo brie. I used to make mine like my parents did, which is pan fried with a frittata-like shape. Over time, I upped the water content and added baking powder, as well as opted to bake it, since it's less involved and works better with the high hydration (which requires longer cooking). Recipe below. I liked it best served with charoset, but we also have it simply with salted butter, with cottage cheese - with and without honey and with date syrup (BTW, the cottage cheese in Israel is really good, much better than those I sampled in Europe and the US). The charoset is made with dates, apple, raisins, walnuts, red wine, cinnamon, nutmeg, pepper and rose water.
  24. Pastina with butter is pretty nice to really highlight the butter. So are baked potatoes. Once you had enough of "raw" butter on plain starch and are ready to let it cook some and have competing flavors, there many more options: With scrambled eggs or omelette. Various types of dumplings (e.g. gnocchi, spinachknodel, ravioli) fried in butter. Brioche.
×
×
  • Create New...