Chili labneh (Labneh harra)
If you happen to like a bit of heat, you will love this version of labneh. At Souk el-Tayeb it is served slathered on a markouk bread baked on the spot. Since labneh is simply drained yogurt it is very easy to make this at home with a jar of hot...
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Orange/chocolate cake
You may feel the same way: When the weather gets cold and dreary, nothing beats a nice fragrant cake with a pot of steaming tea or coffee. Especially if the cake in question is fairly easy to put together. Once the ingredients are rounded up, this one takes minutes...
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Cauliflower quiche
Christine Ferber is a famous French pastry chef in France (and internationally) who was named the jam fairy; she also specialized in tarts and quiches inspired by her native Alsace. I had one of her paperback books Mes Tartes sucrées et salées (Sweet and Savory tarts) laying around and this...
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Roastbeef and polenta
The butcher in Lebanon is a trusted friend and partner in the kitchen; certain dishes are prepared by him and all one has to do is cook them. This is a rib-eye roast (called shahbayeh) that comes already tied in string. It only requires browning then braising for one...
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Chocolate buttons
Happy New Year 2012~ Wishing you good health, prosperity and lots of joy! A tiny sugar cookie shaped like a button is flavored with chocolate, coated with ganache and dabbed with a whisper of gold leaf. INGREDIENTS: 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 1 tsp of baking powder 1...
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Cabbage rolls (Mehshi malfouf)
What tourist brochures fail to mention when advertising the many advantages of Lebanon is that this is the place where self-expression rules. Nowhere is this more evident than on the road. Lebanese drivers favor honking as their favorite method of self-expression; to be awakened at 3:00AM by a honking...
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Mysterious kitchen tool
Found this in a Beirut supermarket; it is a rolling pin with stationary blades (one inch or so apart). Can anybody guess what it is used for?
Christmas cookies
Happy Holidays!
Keshek soup
Keshek is a very traditional food made every year by Lebanese villagers with bulgur and milk (either cow’s or goat’s) at the end of summer as part of winter’s provisions. Coarse bulgur is rubbed with milk and left to ferment a few days; it is then placed on the...
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