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Thursday, December 24, 2020

Best of MCW 701-800

A three-ingredient Iraqi masterpiece kicks off the Eighth installment of the Best of MCW series. These Iraqi lamb ribs are quite simple sprinkled with salt and pepper before taking on a good roasting in the oven. Peasant food, it may be, but aren't some of the best foods of peasant origins?

The rest of the installment is as varied as the world, jumping around from the Middle East, to Europe, the the United States, all the way down to Australia, before circling full force back to Iraq. There is little to link one delicious post to another except for the basic foundation of good food.

See also part 1 and part 2part 3 , part 4 , part 5 , part 6 , and part 7 of previous Best Of series.

Fattouche is hardly a new dish, but having made a plenty of this salad dish in my lifetime, I can proudly call this Maryam's Fattouche, as it combines the best of all the fattouche variations into one single masterpiece.

This here is a recipe for the balsamic dressing, which once discovered you will be happy to drizzle over any leafy salad your heart desires.

At first glance, melon and dried meat may seem like an odd combination. Upon tasting it, it will quickly become one of the most delicious delicacies imprinted in your taste buds for life.

Admittedly, this blog already boasts a couscous salad or two (or three).
However, this Turkish couscous salad is well worth another addition.

This is the perfect multipurpose soup. Down with the flu? This Chinese chicken noodle soup is your answer. Fancy something aromatically Asian? Look no further. On a diet? This is not only healthy, but also really low on calories. Cold from the freezing weather? This will warm you right up.

This chicken liver mousse may not be for everyone, but as a former foie gras affectionado, I was very happy to discover this as a more ethical and less cruel way to enjoy a little luxury.

Avocado toast may no longer be all the rage, but these small avocado toast bites are a great way to get your fix.

Sprinkle on some tobasco on this cheesy olive bread and you've got yourself a deal. 

   This is loaded nachos, the MCW way. One of the strangest dishes I have eaten, and it's so delicious.

If you find yourself a real fan of Iraqi fava-dill rice and kubba halab, this kubba is a dream come true.

Hachis parmentier, cottage pie, shepherd's pie... there's something to be said for meat mince topped with mashed potato and baked to a bubbly crusty finish.

This Greek shrimp sanganaki was such a wholesome and flavorful dish that it's become one of my go-to recipes.
A sauce of garlic, tomatoes, olives, and dill envelope envelope tasty shrimp, all topped with salty feta cheese.

This amazing fish dish is everything you could look for to surprise and entice the senses: sweet, savory, tangy, and can be started and finished, with the yellow rice, in 30 minutes or less.

Chicken and mushroom, much like chicken and lemon,  is a classic and made time and again for a reason: it's a winning combination.

Roast chicken is the most heart-warming, caring, thing to make for a family, not to mention simple and so cozy. In addition to this peri-peri version, here are a couple of favorites: salt roast chicken, ugly-delicious MilkGreekSpanishFrenchThaiChinese Teriyaki, and now Portuguese. And that's not even mentioning Arab roast chicken variations, including: YogurtSumacDukkah, and Zaatar.

Chicken tashreeb is one of my favorite Iraqi stews (and there are many stews, and many favorites). However, what puts me off making it almost every single time is the browning of the chicken parts. This recipe for chicken tashreeb express not only avoids this sticky and smelly situation, but also drastically cuts down on cooking time.

Although reminiscent of my cauliflower-meatballs casserole, this meatball pea stew is more of a household favorite as we like peas here. 

Pavlova has ricocheted to being a favorite dessert for gatherings. This Berry pavlova is the favorite of the favorites.

Based off a second take on my pignoles I changed the presentation from two dozen individual mini-torts, into two elegant rectangular tarts.

These fig bar cookies are as wholesome as they are healthy, especially with my using whole wheat flour in the cake-like (yet still firm) dough enveloping the jammy dried fig filling.

These red velvet cupcakes turn out with such a tender crumb and the best frosting, it has become our go-to for everything from school bake sales to "just because".

Kinder cookies... enough said.

While I love and cherish my Aunt's date kleicha, this method of preparing kleicha is more traditional

Knafa (الكنافة) is the all-time Ramadan dessert, and is just as good any other time of year. Everyone from the Arabian Gulf, to the Levant, to Turkey, Greece, and Northern Africa make it and call it theirs. Its true origin? None other than our mother land of Palestine.


I have posted an overnight muesli before, which is great for brunch, but this recipe is perfect for single serving. Other versions: refreshing blueberry-lemon, rich and nostalgic banana-peanut, tropical ananas-coconut, and the colorful carrot-walnut.

صحة و عافية

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