1892. Pistachio Mascarpone Dates

One of these decadent and delightful mascarpone-stuffed, pistachio spread-coated dates is enough to satisfy any sweet tooth. 

1891. Simple Chicken Cream Pasta

The other day I had six hungry people to feed and I wanted a quick and simple yet delicious pasta. I did a quick search online but nothing was simple enough to make with the basic ingredients I had, so I improvised. 

1890. SD Discard Cheese Mint Galette

The week after I made the SD zaatar galette, I still didn't need to restock my sourdough freezer stash, so I made another galette, this time cheese with dry mint and olives. A properly heated pan even without the toxic teflon coating become naturally nonstick, so do not skim on pre-heating time.

1889. SD Discard Zaatar Galette

There is a gradual shift in my kitchen that's been in the making for years now, and the transformation is not yet complete. Slowly yet surely, I am replacing teflon pots and pans with stainless steel and cast iron; commercial yeast with sourdough; store-bought and shelf-stable flour with freshly milled wheat; among some other micro-changes. 

1888. Sour Lebna Balls

I was lucky to get my hands on a no-nonsense natural yogurt starter from a Turkish expat who got it from her mom. I have been making yogurt and straining it into greek-style yogurt weekly for months now. It was just a matter of time before experimenting with degrees of sourness and making these lebna balls.

1887. Savory Zaatar Cake

Wonderful Levant flavors are combined in this savory cake that can be sliced and served with lashings of lebne in place of frosting. Fresh zaatar leaves, olives, cheese, and nigella seeds are only some of the flavor notes. 

1886. Purslane Fateer

A couple of weeks ago I had a hanker for lemony, tangy, fresh spinach fateer made from scratch right at home. I checked four or five different sores, online and in person, and none had fresh spinach. In the last one, I found two bundles of purslane, or bakle, so fate was sealed. 

1885. Cypriot Basturma and Haloomi Pitas

Almost ten years ago (!) I published a recipe on freezer Iraqi basturma. It is completely different from the Armenian basturma. These Cypriot basturmas follow a very similar pattern wherein the meat is heavily spiced and garlicked. Freezing them into mini-rods makes the slicing easier. 

1884. Brisket Rashers

America has glorified the consumption of bacon for breakfast. It is a coveted favorite in any hollywood movie. Everyone glazes over the fact that they come from a pig, which is one of the worst things a person can eat, and is absolutely saturated in nitrates and other cancer-causing preservatives. Cue these one-ingredient beef brisket rashers. 

1883. Café Style French Toast

Using just a few key ingredients, this café worthy french toast is a hack worth saving and making on repeat for the weekends.