shain

Toast with white beans cooked in tomato sauce (onion, celery, garlic, allspice, bay leaves, a hint of cloves).

@blue_dolphin That dish looks lovely! @HungryChris Aye, as said, you can't use already cooked chickpeas - the proteins are already denatured and it won't hold - just like trying to make bread with cooked flour or breadcrumbs. I don't make falafel very often (not a fan deep frying and luckily has many of good places to get it everywhere). Do soak the chickpeas in water mixed with salt and baking powder (it will help it get soft while frying) One thing I can easily tell by your photo is that the chickpeas were ground to fine, you want to pulse them only until you get coarse-salt sized grains. The putty should end up really craggy - surface area = crispness. lavoring wise, I'm a lover of what's called green falafel in Israel - one made with lots of herbs (cilantro and parsley), but obviously flavor it too your liking. Also, don't forget plenty of cumin, coriander seeds, chili and garlic. Even better if you toast the dry spices. You can add a little soaked (and drained) bulgur in order to add more texture. Add breadcrumbs if it seems to moist. If you feel fancy, you can roll the falafel in sesame seeds before frying. I must admit to liking falafel better as a side dish, preferably with hummus, but as a sandwich, my additions will be: Tahini sauce, not to thick, with plenty of lemon, a little garlic and don't skimp on salt. Very finely chopped cucumber, tomatoes and onions. A little cabbage is also nice. Finely chopped pickles Zchug (I like the red kind best), or another hot sauce. Harissa and filfel chuma both works well.

Phyllo sheets, brushed with olive oil and sprinkled with sugar. Shaped into a cup and baked until crisp. Filled with lightly sweetened ricotta and minced strawberries, vanilla and a little pepper. Topped with chopped pistachios and served warm.

Couscous with vegetable stew. This is quite likely the most common way to serve couscous in israel. The stew is most often made of pumpkin/butternut, zucchini, carrots, potatoes, onion, chickpeas. Sweet potato and cabbage are also common I always include them. Spices vary, I use mostly paprika, turmeric, cumin and cinnamon. The soup can be made vegetarian or with chicken stock. The amount of liquid should be just enough to flavor and moisten the couscous.

@Thanks for the Crepes You are correct in describing how the kadaif is made - here is a video worth watching. I googled shredded phyllo, and it seems it's referring to real kadaif, it is not really shredded. That said, I think hand-shredded phyllo sheets will be an acceptable substitute. You are also correct in that my knafeh differs from tradition, I use much less syrup, hence many of the kadaif stays crisp, and less sweet. I usually keep more hot syrup on the table for those who seek the more common sticky and soft texture (and those with a sweet tooth). Since it is crisp, it doesn't cut as neatly. I often also include sliced fresh fruits, like figs and strawberries. BTW, some knafeh is made with semolina rather than kadaif (pic). And there are other sweets made with kadaif (pic).

Knafeh - Layers of crisp and buttery kadaif "noodles", between them warm, chewy and slightly salty cheese, syrup with lemon, rose extract and cinnamon, pistachio.

Baked macaroni and cheese, with a topping of lightly buttered cornflakes. The cheese mixer is composed mostly of cheddar, with some parmesan and some smoked gouda, enough to be noticed, but not distinctively smoky, it comes more as a savory note. (No milk BTW, I find milk to override the cheese flavors).

@Ann_T Wow!

@Anna N I'm very glad that you enjoyed the sweet potatoes. Kenji at Serious Eats does a great work explaining the science behind cooking and I do enjoy his writing a lot. I do however need to credit Harold McGee, it took me a long while, but I'm finally getting close to the end of On Food and Cooking. This book is full of interesting facts that can be utilized when cooking. By the way, I'm obviously late, but I usually don't peel the sweet potatoes. I slice them and then place directly in the water. They float a little, but stay submerged. The key is the temrature, so it doesn't really matter. I think your description of their texture is spot on - tender and creamy yet intact.

I decided to try tackling puff pastry for the first time. Burekas where the pastry of choice, as I assumed they will be tasty even if the dough will turn out a flop. Burekas are very popular in Israel, mostly filled with cheese or potatoes. Sadly most are made with margarine and served cold and old My filling of choice for those burekas was kashkaval and goat-milk feta, with an egg to hold itself. I am quite happy with the result, I think they puffed nicely and definitely taste better with butter (what doesn't?). I need to practice my folding some more and try to make croissants some day. However, I was apparently too generous with the filling, as I had some overflow. All for the better, as the browned and slightly crisp cheese made a great cook's treat! Served with boiled egg, pickles, tomatoes and home made zchug (of the red kind).

Light breakfast to keep stomach space free for hefty lunch-time dinner. Banana, quickly upgraded with a scatter of coconut, peanuts and a few anise seeds, which were quickly crushed in a morter. Oh, and mint leaves.

It's just customary, I guess. I think it works, sort of a palate refreshment. I'll forgive you if you pass on it

Jerusalem style kugel. Egg noodles coated in caramel, flavored with black pepper, cinnamon and a little ginger. Baked all night and served warm, with pickles.

Today I made some masabaha, which is a variant of hummus, where the chickpeas are cooked until buttery-soft and left whole, then mixed with tahini and lemon using a fork, then served hot. I also bought some wonderful thick and fluffy whole grain pita breads. I consider myself very lucky to live near this bakery, which makes the best pitas I had in Israel (They make only pita - one type from white flour and the other from whole wheat and rye).

Hungarian beans and peppers stew. Sour cream. Cheaty quick nokedli (aka spaetzle) - scrambled in a non stick pan.

Oatmeal bran porridge bread with toasted seeds (flax, sesame, sunflower, poppy, caraway, pumpkin). Baked in a dutch oven with glass lid, placed over baking steel (230dC, ~50 minutes), partly chilled and baked a second time (about 10 minutes) to crisp up even more (I'm not a fan of chewy crust, I peffer crunchiness). I could have added a little more water, the bran absorbs more than I accounted for. Very tasty and moist. This morning I had a few slices buttered and toasted. The poppy seeds were much more notable, and very tasty.

Lasagna, homemade dough, mushrooms, spinach, ricotta, kashkaval, mozzarella, lemon peel, thyme.

Here are a few of my favorites: Pasta with grilled or stir fried zucchini, lemon peel and zaatar (optional mint). Zucchini with a short cooked tomato sauce, onion, garlic, zaatar. Serve with rice or bulgur. Roasted butternut and onion with tahini and zaatar (by Ottolenghi) Fava beans (dried) / chickpeas / lentils (I like a mix), cooked and served with labneh and topped with grated hard boiled egg, zaatar. Also add some fresh diced tomato, onion and chili. No pic ): Eggplants, make a slice, drizzle oil, salt and zaatar into their inside, then bake or grill until tender. I might also suggest you try my quick zaatar flatbread recipe. Add it to scrambled or fried eggs. As you mentioned, pita bread with zaatar and olive oil is classic (and extra tasty if you bake it yourself, you can use store bought pizza dough). Another option I like is a thick tomato sauce with zaatar and optional feta. If using a bought pita, you might try to grill it for extra flavor.

No super bowl around here (or any football at all), but that doesn't mean I can't join the tex-mex party

I find the the roasting caramelizes the sugars, and reduces (or maybe counters) some of the sweetness, and adds a lot of flavor that won't be there otherwise (indicated by the black ring of caramel that you can see in my photo). I would skip this method if they are not roasted.

At the range of about 150-158 dF, the enzymes in the sweet potato gets active and break starch into sugar. They are destroyed slightly above this range. So for maximum sweetness, one should keep the tuber in this temprature range for about an hour. Lacking a circulator, I bring a pot of water to 158 degrees, add the sweet potatoes, cover and let it sit (heat off, as to not pass 158). Then just roast it with tiny bit of butter at 430f. The finishing with tahini adds a lovely nuttiness and a little sticky-fatty mouth feel.

Super sweet roasted sweet-potatoes (no added sugar, rather a long soak in 155dF water), with tahini paste (raw, no lemon/water/garlic). Black beans with coconut milk, grated coconut and a little mint.

It's a cold Saturday, perfect for a large pot of cholent

Hefty grilled vegetables sandwich for lunch (eggplant, peppers, mushrooms, onions, feta, tahini, thyme, sumac, cumin, pepper). Buns were brushed with a little oil and baked until crisp from outside.

I found this youtube channel to be quite amusing: You Suck at Cooking.