Lentil salad with eggplant
“I need a little peace and quiet“, I said to my daughter as I drove the 30 kilometers into the Chouf mountains and the village of Deir el Qamar. Enough of the high voltage hustle and bustle of Beirut.Enough of traffic and cars and noise 24/7. I am not...
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Hawthorn Berries (Zaaroor)
Here is a lovely fruit that appears in Lebanon around the month of August; in North America there are apparently more than 800 varieties of this tree (aubépine in French) and yet I have never seen anybody eat the fruit! The hawthorn tree gives out pretty white flowers around May;...
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Wines of Lebanon by Michael Karam
I am a wine ignoramus; it just so happened that I had lunch with Kamal and his guests atTawlet recently; a man with a British accent sitting on my left was introduced to me as Michael Karam, author of a book on Lebanese wines. In the course of the...
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Radish greens salad
This post was originally published on June 7, 2009. Marie-Therese, who was French and married to a Lebanese, told me one day (that was probably 35 years ago) that she was helping their family cook, Amira, who was so poor that she had to eat radish greens. I remember...
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Risotto with tomatoes and cream
This afternoon was earmarked for some shopping in Beirut‘s new and glistening souks, a mall reminiscent of the most upscale ones in the US. Unfortunately, as soon as we got to the garage, a surprise was in store for us: a vehicle was parked in front of the garage...
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L’Atelier in Beirut
When my friend Jacqueline mentioned L’Atelier as being the best place to eat in Beirut, I thought to myself “Yeah, whatever...” I had secretly sworn off most eateries as being either too expensive or too disappointing. Well, serendipitously, I was invited there a couple of days later by a...
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Carrot cake
No question carrot cake is a great American classic now popular all over the globe. I wanted to make an over–the-top carrot cake for my dad’s milestone eighty-years-young birthday tomorrow. Here is what I came up with: This cake is extra moist. INGREDIENTS: One 12-inch round cake pan, lined...
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Gazpacho with roasted green wheat
Hot muggy weather and people are swearing that this summer has been the worst ever; as a result, the streets of Beirut are deserted on the weekend, with Beirutis fleeing en masse to the beach or the mountains for a brief respite. Well I am happy I get to...
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Couscous salad with dates, oranges, zaatar and chick peas
Daily routine when I want to get the car and go out in Beirut. First, if my daughter is with me, I ask her to kindly swivel the outside mirrors inwards in order to give me one and a half inch extra space on each side of the car. Then...
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