Eid Al Adha Mubarak

1424. Triple Pistachio Baklava

Some Eid tables simply must have their platter of baklava, and this is a simple and quick baklava recipe the comes together in a cinch and has huge pay-off in flavor. Three types of pistachio are used in the forms of slivers, powder, and paste. The paste is truly what brings it all together. Add some floral water and crispy butter fillo pastry and you are set to go.

1423. Fetteh Chicken Musakhan

Chicken musakhan is a hundreds' old recipe that also happens to be the national dish of Palestine. While the most authentic version looks like this, MCW is such a fan of the dish that we have multiple spin-offs of it: kubba, spring rolls, and cones. This fetteh spin-off was the next natural evolutionary step.

1422. Turkish Cheese Borek

I have spoken unreservedly previously about my love for Turkey. It's nature, culture, people, and of course, their food. Borek is a popular street food there which, like gozleme, comes in vegetarian or carnivorous forms. This home made cheese borek has layers upon layers of flakey fillo pastry and blend of really good cheese all brought together with a milk-egg sauce.

1421. Colored Burger Buns

These colorful buns are a fun and cute way to present burgers in another interesting way. Even more so if you make them mini. The dough is an enriched bread dough with mashed potato, egg, milk, and some margerine.

1420. Instant Toum Dip

MCW does host a recipe deep in its archives for a whipped garlic sauce, which I in no way retract by posting this similar recipe. You see, the former is more fluid, and certainly more pungent. This is a more spreadable and mild counterpart, yet just as multi-purpose. And it bears a secret.

1419. Superfood Breakfast Donuts

This superfood breakfast donut recipe consists of a date-saturated dough smothered in a deep jewel-tone blueberry and greek yogurt sauce. The amazing mother I got the recipe from adapted it from a Jamie Oliver recipe to make for her equally amazing daughter as a fun but totally nutritious breakfast. She adds a myriad of additional seeds and stuff to the dough which does not compromise on flavor and still shoots the nutritional value through the roof.

1418. Lebanese Pomegranate Sausages

Sujuk and naqaniq are Turkish/Arabian types of sausage that get their names depending on the spices used in the mixture. These pomegranate-glazed naqaniq are typical of a Lebanese, Palestinian, or Syrian breakfast, but I would personally welcome then to by plate any time of day.

1417. Iraqi Cucumber and Salt

As a child, our main family meal was lunch, and not dinner as is common in westernized cultures. My father, may Allah bless his soul, would often prefer a light dinner. Horizontally cut Arabian cucumbers sprinkled with salt had a recurrent presence on his plate.

1416. Retro Custard Jelly Trifle

There is an Arabic term used to describe retro dishes that roughly translates into "from the good old days." This combination of custard and jelly with banana slices is one such dish. I think it comes from the 70's when everything jelly and trifle was having its glory moment.

1415. Dressed Zaatar Manakeesh

I made zaatar manakeesh years ago on this platform and it apparently ruffled a lot of feathers all because there was an egg in the dough. Well, it worked beautifully, yielding great results, which is why I shared in the first place. So here I am this many years later with a more authentic recipe to placate the critics.

1414. Grilled Vegetables with Pomegranate Marinade

Some consider this one of the best ways to use up excess vegetables stored just a bit too long in the fridge. I consider it well worthwhile to buy vegetables just to make this. Aubergines and courgettes are pretty much standard. Roasted red pepper would not be amiss here either. I added roasted butternut cubes for a contrast in both color and flavor. The dressing which also serves as a marinade is what really brings it all together.

1413. Turkish Potato Feta Filo Rolls

These crispy flakey little parcels bear good tidings. They are stuffed with a potato and cheese mixture that lends it a lightness as compared to an all-cheese stuffing. You don't taste the potato in the final product, but it gives a very mild flavor preventing the cheese from overwhelming the pastry.

1412. Beetroot Quinoa Salad

I admit there came a time regardless of the wonderful salad recipes I have on MCW, I found myself in a salad rut. No salad would excite me, and I am the kind of person who finds it burdensome to eat something just because it is "good for you". It needs to be deliciously good. Then came this beetroot quinoa salad and reignited my love of salads all over again.