Dawoud Pasha: داوود باشا Meatballs in tomato sauce

Minced lamb 500g

1 tin chopped tomatoes

One large onion

1 cup chopped coriander leaves

Tomato paste 1tbsp (adjust to taste)

Chickpeas 1 can

1tsp allspice

1tsp cinnamon

Salt

Pepper

Olive oil

Chicken stock 2cups (water instead)

1. Start by making the meat balls. Add salt and allspice, cinnamon and coriander leaves to the meat. Mix well and make into walnut size balls. Put aside.
2. You can grill them or dry fry them to get rid of most of the fat.
3. In a heavy bottom pan heat some olive oil and fry the chopped onion, cook on low heat until it becomes soft, add the chopped tomatoes (blend until smooth before) and the tomato paste. Season with salt and pepper, add 1 to 2 cups of water and cook for 20 to30 minute.
4. Add the meat balls and cook for another 15 minutes. Five minutes from the end drain and add the chickpeas.
5. Serve next to vermicelli rice or cooked Bulgar wheat.

Imam Bayildi (Stuffed aubergines in olive oil)

 

 

 

 

Imam bayildi (down)
Stuffed peppers and courgettes (up)

This is a Turkish speciality called Imam bayildi, meaning ‘the imam fainted’, as it is believed that the quantity of olive oil used in this tender and delicious dish caused him to faint. There are two versions for him fainting, the first one is because of delight and the second one is because he liked it so much that he kept enjoying this dish day after day until he became ill (or may be died). It is up to you to choose your favourite version.

I am going to keep experimenting cooking this dish with as little oil as possible (I am thinking about steaming the aubergines instead of frying them) and I will update you on that.


Ingredients: serves 4-6
1 large onion, finely sliced
3 large tomatoes, skinned and chopped
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
A bunch of fresh parsley and dill, chopped
1 teaspoon salt
½ cup olive oil
2-3 long aubergines, partially peeled in zebra-stripes and soaked in salted water for 5 minutes
5 tbsp water
1 lemon, cut into wedges, to serve


Steps:

1.      In a bowl, mix the onion, tomatoes, garlic and herbs with the salt and a little of the olive oil

2.      In a frying pan, heat up enough oil to just cover the base. Pat the aubergines dry and pop them into the pan to soften them quickly on all sides.

3.      Place the aubergines on a board and, carefully, slit them open from top to bottom, making sure you create a deep pocket to fill. Pack the onion and tomato filling into the pockets and place the aubergines, side by side, in a deep pan.

4.      Mix together the remaining olive oil and water and pour it over the filled aubergines. Cover with the lid.

5.      Cook the aubergines (on the hob or in the oven) gently for about 1 hour, basting them from time to time, until they are soft and tender and only the olive oil is left in the bottom of the pan. Leave them to cool and serve cold with a little of the oil spooned over them and lemon wedges to squeeze.

Aubergines cooking beside the pappers and the courgettes
just ou of practicality

Dolma Felfel (Stuffed green peppers)



Stuffed peppers and courgettes (left), served beside iimam bayildi (right)



Dolmas in Algeria are vegetables stuffed with minced meat filling and cooked either in a meaty broth or a tomatoes sauce. Vegetables used in dolmas include peppers, courgettes, aubergines, tomatoes, onions and even potatoes. Dolmas make a hot hearty dish with one or a selection of the above mentioned vegetables.

In the Middle East, the same vegetables (except potatoes) are stuffed with aromatic rice and served cold as a mezze dish.

I have to say that I hesitated to use raisins in the filling, but I can assure you that the result is really nice. The addition of grated carrots is my own twist.

Ingredients: serves 4

6-8 small green peppers
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped
3 tablespoons pine nuts
2 tablespoons currants
1-2 teaspoons dried mint
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground allspice
1 cup short-grain rice, washed and drained
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2-3 tomatoes
Juice of a lemon mixed with 3 tbsp olive oil
2 lemons cut into wedges

Steps:

1.      Cut the stalks off the green peppers and remove any seeds and pith from inside the bell. Wash them inside and out and put aside.

2.      In a heavy-based pan, heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil and stir in the onion . As the onion begins to colour, stir in the pine nuts and currants. When the currants plump up and the nuts begin to brown, stir in the mint.

3.      Add the spices, followed by the rice, and pour in enough water to just cover. Stir in the seasoning, bring the water to boil, and simmer until the water has been absorbed.

4.      Cut the sides off the tomatoes to make lids for the peppers. Spoon some of the rice mixture into each pepper, fit them with the tomato lids, and place them upright, side by side, in a heavy-based pan.

5.      Mix together roughly 1cup water with the olive oil and lemon juice mixture and pour over the peppers. Sprinkle with a little sugar, cover the pan and cook gently for approximately 30 minutes, until the peppers are tender.

6.      Leave to cool in the pan. Serve cold with wedges of lemon to squeeze over them.

Coring courgettes using a teaspoon

Ready to receive fragrant rice filling

Peppers and courgettes cooking beside the aubergines (see imam bayildi)
just out of practicality

Mediterranean vegetables and meatballs gratin

My boys like meatballs and potatoes, oven cooked dishes but they still didn’t develop my liking for courgettes and aubergines. I had no time to cook two separate dishes and just a tiny bit of mince in the back of the freezer, hence the creation of this dish.
If you do not have to survive such dilemmas on an everyday basis, just layer one veggie at a time, or use only one as it appears in my mum’s recipe.
See, she dealt with things in a firmer way. That’s dinner, eat it or ….no other choices really, as starving wasn’t really an option.
That’s why I am not a fussy eater!!!

Ingredients:
2 Aubergines
2 medium courgettes
2 potatoes
½ tin of chopped tomatoes or 4 fresh tomatoes
3 cloves garlic
Dried oregano
250 g mince meat
½ cup coriander leaves
1 onion finely chopped
3 tbsp olive oil
Salt
Pepper

Steps:

1.     Mix the mince meat with chopped onions and garlic and coriander leaves. Season with salt and black pepper (1tsp each)

2.     Make ball of the size of a walnut and put aside

3.     Mix tomatoes with ½ cup of water, 1 tsp of salt, 1tsp of black pepper and put on a side

4.     slice the potatoes into fine discs and put aside

Now the layering stage:

5.     Layer half the potatoes in the baking tin (it should take the 1/3 of the surface)

6.     Cover the other two thirds with grilled courgette slices and grilled aubergine slices (again use half the quantity)

7.     Place the meat patties on top of the vegetables layer, than cover again with the second quantity of the vegetables

8.     Pour the tomatoes mixture on top, sprinkle the oregano on top, a drizzle of olive oil

9.     Bake for 30 to 45 minutes in a hot oven until cooked and dry

Thrida ثريدة

Ingredients:
6 pieces chicken
3 finely chopped onions
½ tin cooked chickpeas
6 pieces of turnip
3 boiled eggs to decorate
4 cups dried Trida pasta
4 tbsp olive oil
Salt
Black pepper
Rass el hanout

Steps:
Cooking triad pasta

1.      Add 1 olive oil to the triad pasta and mix thoroughly. Steam for 15 to 20 minutes

2.      Empty the steamed pasta in a big mixing bowl. Slowly add 2 cups of water and mix using a spoon until pasta absorbs the water. At this stage pasta started to soften but not completely cooked.

3.      Steam pasta for the second time until cooked (mix from time to time to make steam reach all the pasta)

4.      When cooked, add another drizzle of olive oil to the pasta and mix.

Preparing the sauce

1.      Heat 2 tbsp of olive oil in your cooking pot, add pieces of chicken, onions, salt and other spices and cook on low heat until onions soft and cooked.

2.      Add 1 ½ litre of hot water and cook until chicken nearly cooked (20 minutes).

3.      Add cooked chickpeas and the parsnip chunks and cook again until parsnip is cooked but still holding itself.

Assembling the two

1.      lift the chicken, the parsnip and most of the chickpeas from the sauce and keep them warm

2.      Over very low heat, add the cooked pasta to the sauce (the sauce should be no more than 1 cm higher than the pasta). Stir carefully and cook for another few minutes than switch off the heat, cover and let the pasta absorb the sauce.

3.      serve the pasta in a big dish and top up with the chicken, parsnip and chick peas and decorate with boiled eggs as in the picture.



Tajine of chicken and Spring vegetables