584. Raspberry Tiramisu

I would sometimes replace the coffee in my tiramisu for chocolate to make it more kid-friendly, such as in my tiramisu cake.
Scouring the internet gave me endless options to change-up a traditional tiramisu.
The idea of a raspberry tiramisu stood out, using fresh bursts of whole berries, as well as a coulis to dunk the biscuits in.
I adapted it into my own recipe, and I think I just might like it more than the regular!
Using fresh raspberries is imperative.
For the coulis however, you can use frozen berries or fresh.

Ingredients:

For the coulis:
1 1/2 cups frozen or fresh raspberries
3/4 cup water
6 Tbsp sugar

For the tiramisu:

1 bar (250g) cream cheese

3/4 cup heavy cream

1/3 cup sugar

3 cups fresh rasperries

2 packages (about 30 pc) soft ladyfingers

Method:

Start making the coulis: combine the frozen (or could be fresh) raspberries with the water and six tablespoons sugar in a pan or small pot.
Bring to a boil and let simmer about 7 minutes until all the berries have burst and you have a thick but still runny (not jammy) sauce.
While still hot, pour through a sieve over a bowl and scrape to release the coulis and discard the seeds.
Set aside to cool.
Whip the cream cheese, sugar, and whipping cream until thick and creamy, of spreadable consistency.
To later, dunk the biscuit fingers in the coulis and roll it around to absorb as much as it can without breaking.
Layer in single file half of the biscuits, dunked .
Spread a third of the cream over the biscuits, and press in a cup of the raspberries; repeat.
This is the arrangement of the first, second, and third (top) layers:
1/3 cream + 1/2 biscuits, dunked +1/3 fresh raspberries
1/3 cream + 1/2 biscuits, dunked +1/3 fresh raspberries
1/3 cream + 1/3 fresh raspberries
Make sure to tidy the last layer of raspberries prettily for presentation.
You can sprinkle with some crushed pistachio for a nice visual contrast.
Refrigerate overnight and serve cold.

صحة و عافية

583. Shrimp Broccoli Fettuccini

This pasta is restaurant quality and so satisfying I found myself wanting more, despite being thoroughly full!
Shrimps flavor pasta so well, but I decided a green crunch was needed, and added broccoli as well.
The sauce is as simple as can be: a bit of cream and parmesan cheese, thinned out with some pasta water.
Pasta water is sort of the secret ingredient for pasta sauces: it contains a fair amount of starch from the pasta which will thin out our sauce without making it watery.
No fancy egg yolk sauce here, and just as delicious.

Ingredients:

200g fettuccini (uncooked)
250g cooked frozen shrimp
1/2 head broccoli, floretted
2 cloves garlic
1 Tbsp butter
1/2 cup cream
1/4 cup grated parmesan
1/2 tsp salt, pepper

Method:

Boil the fettuccini according to packet instructions.
Meanwhile, melt the butter and saute the broccoli florettes and shrimp for about 5 minutes until the shrimps have thawed (or cooked through if fresh) and the broccoli still has a bite to it.
Add the cream and grated parmesan cheese to the shrimp-broccoli mix, and season with salt and pepper.
By now the pasta has cooked, save a quarter cup of the pasta liquid and set aside.
Drain the pasta and add to the mix.
If the consistency is too thick, thin it out with the pasta water.
Serve hot, with extra grated parmesan cheese.

صحة و عافية

582. Roasted Beetroot-Rocket Salad

Cooking TV shows grew immense popularity over the last decade or two, and I think I'm not alone when I say they are sometimes really fun to watch.
I picked this recipe from one of Ina Garten's TV episodes, and it's one of those non-deceptive recipes where what you see is what you get: it looked really good and it tasted really good.
I made this salad for a gathering that included some palates adverse to adventurous cheeses, so I reluctantly used feta cheese in place of the suggested goat cheese Ina used. I think a blue cheese would work wonders as well. As for the greens, any sharp, peppery green would do. I used Jerjir (جرجير) which is akin to rocket and arugula.

Ingredients:

4 beetroot, clean
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup olive oil
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
3 cups rocket/arugula
1/4 cup roasted salted almonds
60g cheese*

*feta, or goat, or blue cheese

Method:

Wrap the beetroot individually in foil and roast in a preheated 420F oven for about an hour (until a knife easily goes in and slides back out).
Meanwhile, whisk the balsamic, mustard, salt, pepper, and olive oil well.
When the beets are done, let them cool for 10 minutes until cool enough to handle, but still warm.
Peel the beetroot and slice into wedges.
Toss the beetroot wedges (still warm) into the balsamic vinaigrette and set aside until fully cooled.
Note that the warmer the beetroot, the more they absorb flavor from the dressing.
Spread the clean, dry rocket or arugula into the serving dish.
Scatter the cooled beetroot over the greens; and finish off with dots of cheese and sprinkles of almonds.
Drizzle with a bit of extra olive oil and balsamic vinegar and serve immediately.
Note that the beetroot itself holds up really well over time, but once the greens are dressed they must be consumed as soon as possible.

صحة و عافية

581. Lebna: Strained Yogurt

Lebna, which is strained yogurt, is a very basic ingredient in Arabic cooking.
It can be featured in breakfast, lunch, and dinner in various shapes and forms.
This is the most basic of all, lebna used as a dip or appetizer. I am used to sprinkling it with zaatar, but it is also common to use dried mint. I always think of a castle surrounded by a moat of crocodiles when i shape the lebna onto the plate; I guess some things from our childhood just stick.
Lebna can also be used as part of a dish, as in kubba labania and stuffed courgettes in yogurt sauce.
When I tasted whipped feta dip, it tasted so incredibly similar to labna, that I wondered at how we take so many things for granted that other people have to work much harder at, Alhamdullah rab alalameen.
Concentrating the yogurt through straining brings out a delightful tanginess in the lebna. Wonderful used as a spread, too.

Ingredients:

1kg plain yogurt
1/2 tsp salt

Method:

Stir the salt in the yogurt (it will aid in the draining).
Line a non-reactive sieve or strainer (I used plastic) with two layers of kitchen paper towels, with an over-hang, and place over a bowl to catch the dripping whey.
Pour the yogurt into the paper-lined sieve, then fold the over-hang onto the surface of the yogurt.
Refrigerate 24 hours.
By now you will have up to 2 cups of whey (discard) in the bowl, and a thickened unctuous creamy lebna.
Using the back of a tablespoon, shape lebna like a moat, drizzle olive oil and sprinkle with zaatar.

صحة و عافية

580. Sugar Cheese Pita Pizza: Sukaria

There's this local bakery that sells these sweet pizzas, naming them Sukaria (سٌكرية).
Their price has more than doubled in the last two years, from a scant 6 Qatari Riyals ($1.65) to its current 15 QR ($4.12), due to its popularity.
I decided to recreate it at home, using a pita or tannur bread.
Note that the tannur bread I use is roughly the size of a dinner plate, with a slight overhang.
The cream cheese I use is Kiri, but I see no problem using Philadelphia instead.
This creamy and ever-so-slightly-salty cheese is topped with grated mozzarella cheese, which will give us a stingy-gooey finale; which in turn is sprinkled with granulated sugar for a sticky-sweet crusty crunch.

Ingredients:

1 large tannur bread
100g cream cheese
100g mozarella, shredded
3 Tbsp sugar

Method:

Preheat oven to 450F, with the rack in the upper third of the oven.

Spread the cream cheese over the surface of the bread.

Distribute the grated mozzarella over the cream cheese.

Sprinkle the sugar over the mozzarella.

Bake for 10 minutes and broil for a few seconds for color.

Consume hot, but still good cold.

صحة و عافية

579. Zaatar Haloomi Pita Pizza

I thought the minted three cheese pita pizza was my favorite until I made this beauty!
Granted, I love zaatar and just cannot get enough of it, nevertheless it was fantastical.
Zaatar and haloomi cheese (زعتر و جبن حلوم) were a match meant to be.
The quantities listed below was what I used for one Iraqi tannur bread (خبز تنور), which is ver similar in texture to an Indian naan, just bigger.

Ingredients:

1 tannur or naan bread
3 Tbsp heaped zaatar
4 Tbsp olive oil
1/3 block haloomi cheese (80g)

Method:

Preheat oven to 450F.
Mix the zaatar with the olive oil and spread over the bread.
Slice haloomi thinly and arrange over the zaatar.
Bake for 10-15 minutes and consume hot or warm.

صحة و عافية