1150. Iraqi Savory Dill Biscuits

These Iraqi dill biscuits significantly exceeded my expectations. We Iraqis love to dunk things.. cookies in tea, bread in soup, cake in coffee... so this savory biscuit delighted us all. Even when fresh out of the oven, the biscuit gives a hint of its toughness. As they cool, they dry into an almost stale consistency, but this is all the better for the dunking!.

1149. Best Chocolate Loaf Cake

I by no means take lightly the claim that this is the best chocolate loaf cake. This coming from a year heavy in chocolate cakes (Kinder Chocolate Loaf Cake, Cocoa Bundt Cake, Dense Chocolate Loaf Cake, Mayonnaise Chocolate Cake, Courgette Chocolate Cake), I would urge you too to take this claim seriously.

1148. Mushroom Chicken Pie

I was gifted a newly released 5 ingredient cookbook, and considering our affinity here at MCW to mushrooms and pies, making the chicken mushroom pie was the first recipe that popped out to try. The result was not a fail, but it was not a success by our standards either. You see, sticking to the limit of five ingredients resulted in what felt like sauteed Chinese mushrooms topped with crusty puff pastry. In short, not something you want from a pie.

1147. Cherry Kebab

This is such a sophisticated dish that is so complex in flavors. A tasty kebab mix is seared, before the most amazing fresh cherry sauce is made in the pan drippings. Savory, with a tinge of sweet and a very pleasant pucker of sour from pomegranate molasses and lemon.

Jerusalem is Ours

Jerusalem is Muslim.

Palestine lives.

Israel does not exist.

Allah is most great.

1145. Date Bran Muffins

Bran muffins are one of my favorite excuses of felling better about having cake for breakfast. There are already one or two bran muffin variations on MCW, and this is a well deserved addition to the collection. As a self-admitted affectionado of the date fruit, I was particularly happy about adding that distinct sweetness and mega nutritional value to the already nutritious muffin.

1144. Creamy Mustard Chicken with Mushroom

Tender chicken pieces cooked in a creamy sauce is a favorite classic world-wide anywhere. This specific version has the addition of sauteed mushroom and whole grain mustard to the sauce. The fact that skinless, boneless chicken breasts were used makes this dish express.

1143. Chickpea and Roast Pepper Salad

Yet another chickpea salad is not what most people seek out, but you'll have to try this one to decide for yourself if this is the best chickpea salad ever. There is a combination of elements that make this salad outstanding, and totally worth the effort, as this makes a giant batch which you will be very happy to have leftovers with.

Time and Again Part 6

There is no order or leading trend for the sixth installment of the Time and Again series so many of you are fond of. Obviously, Iraqi food hold a greater majority presence, but if I had to label, I'd call this a collection of very homey recipes, to very chic ones.

1141. Chocolate Courgette Sheet Cake

There must be something in the air demanding chocolate cake! Come to think about it, isn't there always something in the air demanding chocolate cake? In any case, I am a late comer to the trend-turned-classic courgette chocolate cake. I'm not sure if this is an American thing, or they simply popularized it, but oh my this is moist to a crazy level.

1140. Harissa Roast Chicken

The Moroccan harissa is not to be confused with the Iraqi or Arabian Gulf harissa. The Moroccan harissa is a spicy paste made of dried chilis and combined with a medley of spices and flavorings. It is spicy (obviously), abut also slightly tangy and oh so fragrant. Note that the heat of the spice varies from one manufacturer to another, ranging from mild to light-your-head-on-fire hot.

1139. Roast Sujuk and Vegetables

I cannot give justice to this tray bake on how much I loved it. I loved it so much that I hated having to share it. A dish chock-full of vegetables, roasted alongside medallions of spicy sujuk sausage, to a golden perfection, and has minimal hands-on? Count me in.

1138. Sweet Potato Peanut Brownies

Food that appears to be what it isn't is all the fad right now, if you've noticed. Cauliflower masquerading as rice, cashew as cheese, and chia seeds replace eggs. A particular favorite food to meddle with is brownies. I have seen black bean brownies and pumpkin brownies, but I had a hanker for peanut butter and decided to go with this sweet potato brownie recipe.

1137. Beetroot Hummus

Hummus being the ultimate and original dip, countless variations have popped up over the course of years as serious contenders. One of my unabashed favorites is the pea-mint dip of a while ago. Mama ganouche is not to be confused with beetroot hummus; the former's bulk comes only from beets, whereas the latter's comes from chickpeas and beets.

1136. Steak on Beans and Mushrooms

Quick meals need not compromise health nor flavor. This is a steak lunch healthified. Instead of the loved yet heavy side of fried potato, the steaks are served on a bed of nutritious bean and mushroom saute, further enriched by a reduced stock sauce.

1135. Isfahan Loaf Cake

Isfahan is the dessert combination of rose, raspberry and litchi, resulting in an amazingly fragrant and sophisticated dish coveted by master patissieres around the globe. This here is an almond pound cake flavored with these aforementioned ingredients and glazed in a rose-white chocolate concoction perfect for any ladies' gathering.

1134. Special Roast Turkey

While a whole stuffed and roasted lamb on a bed of jeweled rice is quite the feast, a whole roast turkey is also festive and perfect of an intimate gathering between family over Eid, or graduation, or engagement parties. This roast turkey is no ordinary turkey though. It takes a full 24 hours of brining, and another 24 hours drying, before the ultimate 3.5 hours of cooking and 30 minutes of resting to achieve this unbelievably succulent, tender, and juicy turkey.

1133. Chestnut Dressed Rice

This is a very festive rice that can be the bed for a roast turkey or roast leg of lamb alike. In the West, they serve this rice for their thanksgiving or christmas dinners, but only because chestnuts are winter fruits. When you find them conveniently peeled, boiled, and frozen, there is absolutely no reason to not make it for any festive occasion throughout the year.

1132. Superfood Breakfast Bars

The previous "regular" muesli bars version here easily replace packaged granola bars in my opinion. Totally customizable, and just as moreish, they are definitely one of my favorites. This version is Nigella's "healthified" breakfast bars, which are chockful of all things good for your body. Healthy does not necessarily mean food good for losing weight, and eating too much from these will not aid your weight loss journey, but they do promise to be a healthy breakfast or snack.

1131. Kale Sauce Spaghetti

It all started with the classic basil pesto coating a dish of pasta. This eventually morphed into a short-lived avocado sauce pasta. Now it's all about the kale. This pasta is coated in an intense kale-y sauce, giving the dish a vibrant green color.

1130. Fried Egg and Dukka Bagel

There are two types of dukka: the Palestinian and the Egyptian. I have previously shared the Egyptian one on MCW; it consists of a hazelnut base with a predominance of coriander and cumin seeds. Now the Palestinian dukka, usually a product of Gaza, uses toasted wheatberries as the base, combined with spices similar to those found in zaatar which include sumac and sesame.

1129. Chocolate Mayonnaise Cake

It took me months of on and off contemplation before actually pulling the trigger and trying out this mayonnaise cake. While the idea of mayonnaise in a cake might seem off putting, it might help to remember what mayonnaise is made of: eggs and oil. Not-so-strange ingredients in a cake, eh? The result is a fluffy and moist cake that few will believe did not come from a box.

1128. Carrot Curry with Kale and Paneer

This curry breaks the mold for every generic curry. It was so strange to us, but so strangely good too. For me, this has become a new favorite indeed. A flavorsome base including pureed carrots and sultanas is bulked up with coconut milk and roughly shredded kale. The seared paneer cubes are totally optional, but totally worth the extra effort.

1127. Chocolate Berry Cups

Barely a recipe, these impressive dessert cups are simply a realization of assembly. Got chocolate, dulce de leche, and fresh berries? Then you're set. Silicone cups make life easier in making the chocolate cups, but lacking these, just use cupcake liners.

1126. Russian Potato and Mushroom Saute

Discovered through an impromptu conversation about food, someone told be about the Russian potato dish that is basically a comfort food closely associated with many if not all homes of the region who are blessed with mini woods and forests. They would go every fall mushroom picking, and besides pickling their natural harvest (mushrooms just pop up, they are not planted), they would make this saute.

1125. Applesauce Cake

Every once in a while, I like to buy at least twenty golden delicious apples and make a couple jars of compote with them. I enjoy my compote for breakfast or even a light snack. Sometimes, I have a surplus, and this cake makes wonderful use of that. Combining oats, yogurt, and applesauce, I am almost tempted to call this a healthy cake, were it not for the bits of flour and sugar rendering it a healthy-ish cake.

1124. Grilled Mushroom Toasts

A hearty vegetarian meal done right will make you forget all about meat. It does help that sauteed mushrooms are somewhat meaty in and of themselves, but piling them up high over some rustic crusty toast with wads upon wads of cheese doesn't hurt either.

1123. Oat Pie

Chewy oat cookies are some of my favorites. I have a couple of reciepes here on MCW, and honestly cannot pinpoint my favorite. There is the one with raisins, another with M&M's... and now this giant oat cookie, served as a pie, swerved with a thick layer of butter frosting.

Eid Al Adha 1438

Eid Mubarak to all my Muslim family. May Allah bless and unite our Islamic Umma, grant a steadfast victory to our brave mujahideen around the globe and award us a life and death in His pleasure only.

1121. Chicken Fritters

"It smells like Mc Donald's, and that's a good thing." That was the first thing I was told as I was making these fritters. I think it may be the seared cheese seeping from the chicken patties into the hot pan and grilling up its magic. I had to try this recipe to believe how tender and juicy the chicken breast turns out in the cooked fritter.

1120. Quick Vanilla Cookies

I needed a quick cookie recipe that is oat-less, does not require refrigeration, nor any special tools like cutters, pressers, or the sort. Sweet, short, simple, and most of all, appealing to the kiddies. This soft-yet-sturdy cookie fit the bill on every level.

1119. Bolognese Sauce

One would think a bolognese sauce recipe would be one of the easiest things to come across, but in fact it is one of those things that is so much of a classic that it just had to be messed with. So with all those variant recipes floating around, I believe I have finally found and adapted my personal favorite version of spaghetti bolognese.

1118. Iraqi Honeyed Dates

Being blessed with abundant date fruit, us Arabs cannot have enough different ways to get creative in their consumption. These Iraqi honeyed dates (التمر المعسل)are actually an ancient technique driven from a necessity to preserve dates while keeping them moist and chewey, as dried dates can sometimes get a bit tough.

1117. Grilled Chicken over Minted Quinoa

A well-rounded, healthy, and satisfying meal is a bare 30 minutes away from your reality. Grilled chicken breast is far from my favorite, usually being stringy, dry, and tough, but this defies all past experiences in its tang, tenderness, and taste. The quinoa, although a purportedly ancient South American grain, is basking in popularity lately, and for good reason, as it has a very high protein factor and doesn't weigh you down like rice would.

1116. Chocolate Cornflakes Clusters

If you haven't tried chocolate cornflakes clusters, you're missing out. Top famous chocolatiers sell them behind shiny glass vitrines for easily 90 euros per kilo. Which frankly, is rather unnecessary, as you can see, even a toddler can make them.

1115. Kale Panzanella Salad

This salad skyrocketed to the top of our favorite salads list from the first bite. I have been having a kale moment for a while now, and while I do enjoy it cooked in stews, I also thoroughly enjoy it raw and finely shredded in a salad. It's just so hearty and substantial. Paired with toasted garlic croutons made from my go-to artisan bread (no-knead, overnight), the lemony dressing made this an almost daily treat for the last couple of months.

1114. Yemeni Marag

I realized the term marag has different connotations between the Iraqi and the Arabian Gulf. You see, a marag to the Iraqi is a hearty stew. The consistency of the liquid is just bearely thinner than a soup, and usually has a vegetable and some meat or chicken. To other Arabs of the Gulf, a marag is a broth, which is essentially meat-flavored water used as a base for stews or soups. Now for the Yemeni, marag is a dish in its own right.

Time and Again, Part 5

The fifth installment of the Time & Again series holds a veritable mishmash of favorite dishes, spanning the realms of Iraq (of course), India, Turkey, Sweden, Qatar, Palestine, Portugal, South America, France, and beyond.

1112. Arelettes

Arelettes are a genius French cookie, very, very similar to the palmier cookie, yet very, very different in method and structure. Similarities are that only puff pastry and sugar are used. Differences are in the out-of-this world caramelization and crisp of the cookie.

1111. Sundae Bar

Setting up a sundae bar for dessert is a very fun and easy way to end a meal, requires no cooking, and is interactive where everyone builds their own sundae. All you need is a good tub of ice cream and arrange all the various fixings and toppings.

1110. Qatari Chicken Machboos

We've seen how fragrant and delicious Qatari desserts can be (remember sago and ageeli?), now it's time to try their equally fragrant, perfumy, and delicious chicken. The medley of spices almost seems random, until you give it a taste and see for yourself the magnificent outcome. Onion and garlic do form the base, but the heaps of dry lemon, saffron, ginger, turmeric, and others make the chicken sing.

1109. Mini Fustuqia

For such a simple dessert, the result was fantastic both in presentation and flavor. I would almost consider it a cheat's fustuqia, because compared to my (also amazing) pistachio mafrooka of  five years ago (!), the pistachio crust consists of three ingredients versus the classic eight. The "secret ingredient"? Powdered tea biscuits.

1108. Aubergine Kishk Dip

Baba ghanouche comes of as a very tame relative to this pungent and ferocious aubergine dip. Slowly caramelized onions merge with fragrant seeped saffron, which melds with sauteed garlic and plenty of dried mint, all to combine with silky roasted aubergine flesh. But that's not all.

1107. Dense Chocolate Loaf Cake

I think this cake should be renamed to Brown Sugar Cake, but that is no where near as attractive as chocolate cake. I got two reasonably-sized loaves of cake from this recipe, all of which contains a grand total of only 100 grams of dark chocolate. Therefore, what really gives it that special texture and taste is the ratio of brown sugar and butter.

1106. Frozen Yogurt Bark with Berries

While the overly-healthy concept is enough to throw most people off, this dessert must be given a fair chance. I for one, had to google how to eat yogurt bark. Making it was less of a problem than eating it. Sure enough, the gone-in-three-bites serving size is recommended to avoid messy fingers and face.

1105. Quick Oat Bread

This is a near instant oat bread that barely requires kneading, and absolutely no rising time is involved. Baking powder is the leaving agent, and to add on to how easy the bread is, it is also a very forgiving dough. Too dry, add milk or yogurt. Too wet, add oats or flour.

1104. Date Rahash Tart

Eid al Fitr 1438 mubarak to all my Muslim family everywhere, especially the blessed muhajireen and mujahideen. May Allah bless our Umma and unite us under His name.

This date rahash dates is a masterpiece. It combines the two favorite Arabian flavors of dates and sesame halva in a tart, held together by the softest and kindest pie crust you can come across. Add some crunch in the form of pecans and almonds, and you've got a tart fit for Eid.

1103. Matar Paneer Curry

I may have mentioned before that curries are numerous and vast in nature, soaring beyond the borders of India, merging with many cultures, each lending their own flavor to the dish. The Thai green curry is so vastly different from the Indian coconut curry, which in turn bears little resemblance to the Iraqi chicken curry. This vegetarian curry features the Indian cheese paneer, and green peas.

1102. Courgette and Lebne Tart

This tart has all the components I love together. A flaky butter crust, topped with a tangy herby luscious lebne, and a gorgeous array of slightly overlapping courgette circles, grilled to perfection. To make it even better, there is not a tart tin in sight.

1101. Ageeli Baked Donuts

We wanted some saffron-infused ageeli cakes this Ramadan, but in a new bite-sized form. Que the mini baked donut tin. This Qatari cake is perfume to your tastebuds; the luxurious combination of saffron, rosewater, and cardamom will have you feeling like you are feasting in Aladdin's tent.