Vegetarian Potato Kibbe (Kibbet Batata) Recipe

There is a wide variety of Kibbe recipes in Lebanon. It can be made by mixing bulgur with meat, or with pumpkin and even with potato like the one I made today. The bulgur is always the main ingredient of all kinds of Kibbe, it should be fine and brown color. This recipe is vegetarian, which makes it suitable for Lent. The major ingredients are simple, based on bulgur, potato and onion, but it needs a lot to spices and flavors.

Ingredients:

4 potatoes
1 cup of fine brown bulgur
2 tablespoon flour
1 tablespoon salt
1 teaspoon seven spices
1 small onion grated

Ingredients for the filling:

3 large onions
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon 7 spices
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon dried mint
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon dried coriander
1 tablespoon sumac
1/2 teaspoon caraway
2 tablespoons olive oil

Preparation:

Boil the unpeeled potatoes in a saucepan with salted water, until they becomes tender

When the potatoes are cold peel then mash them

Wash the bulgur and drain it from the excess water

Mix the mashed potatoes with bulgur, the grated onion, the flour, salt and the spices; mix by hand very well until smooth

Cut the onion of the filling into fine strips and mix with all the spices

Preheat the oven to 180 C

Grease an oven pan with little of olive oil until you cover the bottom

With wet hands place a thin layer of the potato Kibbe mixture and flatten it

Place the filling of onion and cover it with another thin layer of potato Kibbe

Wet a knife and cut the Kibbe into a square or diamond pattern

Drizzle the remaining of the olive oil on the top

Bake for about 30 minutes in the oven, until the top becomes a nice golden color

Serve with a green salad for better taste

Note:

You can also shape the potato Kibbe in a small ball; stuff it with the onion and close the ball forming a flat circle. Fry it in a deep frying pan. It is also DELICIOUS.

Fatteh al-betenjane (Eggplant Casserole) Recipe

The word fatteh means "to crumble" in Arabic and this is the idea behind this dish. Bread that is somewhat stale is crumbled, toasted, and layered with a variety of ingredients including a yogurt sauce and some fried pine nuts.

This fatteh is an eggplant and minced lamb version. It can easily be converted to a vegetarian dish by omitting the meat and replacing it with coarsely ground walnuts. There are at least ten versions of fatteh in Lebanese cuisine: chickpea fatteh, chicken fatteh, lamb fatteh, kafta fatteh, stuffed eggplant fatteh, lamb feet fatteh, lamb tongue fatteh, etc. Fatteh is a popular brunch dish especially in the coastal city of Tripoli in Lebanon.

Recipe By Joumana Accad

Ingredients

1 pound of eggplants
3/4 pounds of minced lamb or beef (meat can be omitted and replaced with ground walnuts)
¼ cup of pomegranate molasses
1 small can of tomato sauce (8 ounces)
Olive oil, as needed
3 pita breads
½ cup of pine nuts
Spices: salt, seven-spice, sumac
1 teaspoon of butter, 1 teaspoon of oil
3/4 pound of yogurt (full or low-fat)
8 cloves of garlic (or to taste)
1 generous tablespoon of tahini

Directions

Peel the eggplants and cut in small cubes. Sprinkle generously with salt and place in a sieve over a bowl; let the salt draw out the bitter juices for several hours if possible (you will get at least one cup of dark water).

Brown the minced lamb in a skillet. Break it into small pieces with two wooden spoons, add some spices: I added salt, ½ teaspoon of sumac and 1 teaspoon of seven-spice mix. Stir and cook until browned. Then transfer to a sieve and let the meat drain its grease.

Cut the pita breads with kitchen scissors into tiny croutons, place in a Ziploc bag, add a tablespoon of olive oil and toss. When the croutons are shiny, transfer to a cookie sheet lined with foil and bake in a 300°F oven till dry, golden and very crunchy.

Dry the eggplant with paper towels; pour two or three tablespoons of olive oil in a skillet and when hot, pan-fry the eggplants stirring from time to time until they release their flavor, get soft and browned a bit. Transfer the eggplant to the skillet with the minced meat and add ¼ cup of pomegranate molasses and a cup of tomato sauce. Cook the mixture over medium heat for 20 minutes or so, and let the sauce reduce by one half until the remaining mixture is moist but not too soupy.

Melt a teaspoon of butter and one of oil (if using clarified butter, don't bother with the oil) and fry the pine nuts until caramel-colored. Drain on a paper towel.

Mix the yogurt with a generous tablespoon of tahini (optional, but adds a nice nutty taste) and ½ teaspoon of mashed garlic (mash the garlic with a dash of salt in a mortar).

ASSEMBLY: Place the meat and eggplant mixture on a platter, still warm. Cover with the yogurt, then top with the croutons and pine nuts.

How to Make Fish Vegetarian Kibbeh: a Promise of Delight!

Fish Kibbeh is a delight of vegetarian meal that has the bonus of being fulfilling yet light. It ensued as a healthier and lighter version of the original meat Kibbeh our cuisine is well-known for. I believe that an overview on Kibbeh is in order here.

Ingredients

Servings:  8 portions

500 gr Fish Filet

FOR THE STUFFING
2 Kg Potatoes
1 medium Onion
1/2 bouquet Fresh Cilantro
4 cloves small Garlic
2 tbsps Croutons
4 tbsps Lemon Juice
2 tbsps Walnuts
1 tsp Salt
Vegetable Oil
White Pepper
Black Pepper

TO GARNISH
1 medium Tomato
Lettuce Hearts

Steps

1 PREPARING THE CILANTRO MIXTURE

1- In a pan, over medium-high heat, pour the 2 tbsp of oil and mix in the chopped cilantro and mashed garlic.
2- Cook for about 15 minutes, or until the cilantro wilted.
3- Put aside.

2 PREPARING THE FISH

1- Preheat oven to 250°C ( approx. 482°F).
2- Season both sides of the fish pieces with some salt and white pepper.
3- Place them in a non-stick oiled pan in the oven.
4- Bake for 20 minutes.
5- Flip them gently, and bake for another 10 minutes.

3 MAKING THE FISH MIXTURE

1- Preheated oil and fry the sliced onions until golden.
2- Meanwhile, mix the cilantro mixture with lemon juice and walnuts.
3- Season with salt, white pepper and black pepper.
4- Part the fish in smaller pieces and add them and the mixture on the frying onions.
5- Mix very well, and cook on low heat for 5 minutes while stirring.
6- Put aside to cool.

4 THE KIBBEH: HERE WE GO!

1- Preheat your oven to 250C to ready it for the next phase.
2- Divide the smashed potatoes in 2 parts.
3- Lay one part in a non-stick, oiled baking pan, covering all the surface.
4- Spread over the fish stuffing.
5- Lay the 2nd part of the potatoes on top. (See below for the easier way to do this part).
6- Add a layer of smashed croutons all over the surface.

5 NOTE: HOW TO BEST WORK THE 2ND POTATO'S LAYER.

1- Divide the 2nd part of the smashed potatoes in various balls.
3- Flatten each between your palms, and place them side by the side on top of the fish stuffing until all is covered.
4- Damp your hands and gently dub it all to close the gaps then to spread the layer as equally as possible.

6 BAKING & SERVING

1- Place the pan of Kibbeh in the preheated oven and bake for 20 minutes.
2- Switch the heat to the upper top and bake for 5 more minutes to golden the surface.
3- Serve the Kibbeh from the oven to the table and cut when serving on the plates.

NOTE: You may also cut it in 8 equal rectangles and place them on a serving plate.

Serve hot or warm.

7 DECORATING THE PLATE (OPTIONAL)

PRESENTATION TIP:

1- While the Kibbeh is baking, I cut a medium-size tomato into a flower-shape, and prepare some lettuce hearts for the decoration.

2- When the Kibbeh pieces are placed on the serving plate, I gather some of the smallest lettuce hearts around the tomato, and place the set on the center between the pieces of Kibbeh.
I then add some lettuce hearts on both sides of the plate.

Lettuce hearts could be substituted with similar greenery of your choice. Be elegantly creative!

Whole-wheat Meat Pies Recipe

Ingredients:

For the dough:
1 ½ cup whole-wheat flour
1 teaspoon yeast
½ teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon corn oil
½ cup drinking yogurt (laban)
some water to soften the dough
More water for brushing
1 tablespoon black seed

For the filling:
200g ground veal, fat trimmed
1 onion, chopped
1 tomato, chopped
½ teaspoon of each (salt, black pepper)
1 tablespoon corn oil

Steps:

1) To make the dough, mix the dry ingredients then add the drinking yogurt, oil and some water. Knead the mixture until a soft dough is formed. Cover the dough for an hour and leave to rise in a warm place.

2) Meanwhile, prepare the filling by mixing the meat with onions, tomatoes, corn oil, salt and black pepper.

3) Divide the dough into small balls (the size of small lemons) then roll them into circles.

4) Add a tablespoon of the filling into the center of each circle and fold over to cover the filling; seal well and arrange in a baking tray. Brush the pies with water and sprinkle with black seeds.

5) Bake in a preheated oven 400 F (200 C) for 15 to 25 minutes or until golden brown.

Traditional Falafel Recipe

Learn how to make falafel, a delicious Middle Eastern recipe for crispy, fried chickpeas balls are one of the best vegan foods

Preparation time 40 m
Cooking time 40 m
Recipe category Brunch
Recipe yield 4
Recipe cuisine Middle Eastern

Ingredients

Chickpea 500 g dried, soaked in water for 24 hours
Garlic 1 clove
Onion ¼
Coriander 2,5 g, ground
Cumin 2,5 g, ground
Parsley 1 g, chopped
Salt 5 gr
Lemon juice 5 ml
Black pepper 2,5 g
Oil As needed, for frying

Preparation

Once the chickpeas have finished soaking, mash them in a bowl together with the spices until they are well-mixed, but not a purée.

If necessary, add a bit of water and adjust the salt, pepper and lemon according to taste.

Shape into balls, about the size and shape of a slightly flattened walnut, then let them rest in the refrigerator for a half hour.

Fry them in boiling oil for about five minutes, turning them, until they form a golden crust.

Serve with tahini (sesame sauce), hummus, or yogurt.

Batenjan Makdous (Preserved Eggplants in Olive Oil) Recipe

by ninabaydoun

I’m going to show you how to preserve eggplants, using a recipe I learned from my mother-in-law years ago. It takes about ten days for the Makdous to have been pickled properly. After it has been prepared, the eggplants can be eaten as a appetizer, side dish or can even  be put in a sandwich alone. You will find many ways to enjoy it by playing on your own. Personally, I like to eat it for dinner with labneh (yoghurt) and cheese on the side; it makes for a lovely and easy to prepare dinner.

Ingredients:

1 kg baby eggplant
200 grams whole nut
about 15 cloves garlic, crushed
1 tablespoon rock salt
1 teaspoon chili paste (optional)
about 4 cups olive oil

Preparation:

1. Wash the eggplants, remove the stem
2. Place the eggplants in a pot full of water, leave it on fire for about 10 minutes (not more); the skin of the eggplants when tested should be soft
3. When the eggplants are cooked place in a strainer and wash with cold water. Make a small slit lengthwise in the eggplant, sprinkle with salt, put them back in the strainer, slit facing down, place a weight over them and leave it for about two days. This helps any remaining water to come out of the eggplants

4. Meanwhile, prepare the filling by roughly crushing the nuts and mixing it with garlic, salt and chili paste if desired
5. With you thumb widen the slit, fill each eggplant with a spoon from the nut garlic mixture

6. Place the filled eggplants in a jar, turn the jar upside down on a plate at a certain angle to release the remaining water, leave it for 2 days until no more juice comes out from it

7. Return the jar after 2 days to upright position, and fill it with olive oil. After five days the eggplants are ready to be consumed

Lamb, pumpkin and haloumi gozleme recipe

0:30 Prep | 0:30 Cook | Advanced

Enjoy the taste of Turkey with a homemade gozleme - a parcel of dough, packed with filling and cooked in a frying pan.

INGREDIENTS

4 cups plain flour
2 teaspoons salt
1 2/3 cups warm water
1/4 cup Coles Brand Pure Olive Oil
1 brown onion, finely chopped
1 tablespoon sweet paprika
2 teaspoons ground cumin
350g Coles Australian Lamb Mince
1 1/2 cups coarsely grated pumpkin
250g haloumi, coarsely grated

METHOD

Step 1
Combine flour and salt in a large bowl. Make a well in centre. Stir in water and 2 tablespoons of the oil. Turn onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 5 mins or until smooth. Place in a bowl. Set aside, covered, for 30 mins to rest.

Step 2
Meanwhile, heat half the remaining oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Cook onion, stirring, for 5 mins or until soft. Add paprika and cumin. Cook, stirring, for 1 min or until fragrant. Add mince and cook, stirring with a wooden spoon to break up any lumps, for 5 mins or until cooked through. Season and set aside to cool. Stir in the pumpkin.

Step 3
Preheat a barbecue flat plate or large frying pan on high. Divide dough into 6 portions. Roll out 1 portion on a lightly floured surface to a 20cm x 40cm rectangle. Spoon one-sixth of the mince mixture over half the dough, leaving a 2cm border around the edge. Sprinkle with one-sixth of the haloumi. Fold remaining dough over to enclose filling, pinching edges to seal. Repeat with remaining dough, mince mixture and haloumi.

Step 4
Brush dough with remaining oil. Cook, in batches, for 2-3 mins each side or until golden brown and crisp. Cut into rectangles.

Publication: Coles

Sauteed leek, silverbeet and hot sopressa gozleme recipe

0:15 Prep | 0:35 Cook | 4 Servings  | Advanced

Serve the gozleme as a starter or a side at your Middle Eastern dinner party. You could also prepare it for your family as a yummy afternoon snack.

INGREDIENTS

2 cups plain flour
1 teaspoon fine salt
1 1/2 cups natural yoghurt
FILLING
2 leeks, white part only, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 bunch silverbeet, washed, roughly chopped
180g tasty cheddar cheese, grated
120g feta, crumbled
12 slices hot sopressa salami

EQUIPMENT
You will need an electric mixer stand fitted with a dough hook for this recipe.

METHOD

Step 1
To make the dough sift together the flour and salt. Place in the bowl of an electric mixer stand fitted with a dough hook or large mixing bowl if making by hand.

Step 2
Add the yoghurt and mix on low speed to combine, add a little water if needed to make the dough come together. Knead for 5 – 10 minutes, until dough is smooth and pliable. The dough should not be so sticky that you cannot knead it or so tough and dry that it’s difficult to roll out.

Step 3
Cover dough in cling film and allow the dough to rest for 30 minutes.

Step 4
Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to the boil, add silverbeet and blanch for 3 minutes, strain silverbeet, press with paper towel to remove excess water. Set aside.

Step 5
Place olive oil in small frypan over low heat, when hot add leeks and saute until softened for about 10 minutes. You do not want to achieve colour on the leek, just cooked through gently. Set aside.

Step 6
When dough has rested, divide into 6 equal size balls. Lightly flour a clean, smooth work surface and roll each piece of dough into a large, thin circle. Dough should look almost translucent. Spread filling ingredients into centre of dough so to fill half the gozleme with filling. If using filling below start with cheddar cheese then fetta, followed by leek, spinach then sopressa. Fold the dough over the filling, if necessary roll out the edges thinner before folding over so dough is not too thick. Press the edges with a fork. Repeat with remaining dough and ingredients.

Step 7
To cook the gozleme, brush one side of gozleme with olive oil and place in frypan over medium heat. Whilst the bottom side is cooking, brush top with olive oil and flip over when bottom side is golden and cooked through. Remove from pan, season with salt and serve warm.

NOTES
The amount of natural yoghurt and flour may need to be adjusted slightly depending on the consistency of the yoghurt used and brand of flour, if the dough is too sticky add more flour, if its too dry and water or more yoghurt.

Author: Dani Venn Publication: Coles

Lebanese Raw Kibbe Recipe – Kibbeh Nayyeh

Kibbe Nayyeh stands for “raw Kibbe”, Kibbe being the patties made from ground meat, burghul (cracked weat) and spices.

Learn How to Make Raw Kibbe Nayyeh Like a Pro. This recipe is an Authentic and Traditional Version of the Lebanese Kibbe Nayyeh (spicy raw ground meat).

Raw Kibbeh (Nayyeh) Ingredients (4 servings)

1 lb of lean goat leg meat (no fat), frozen for 2 weeks prior
1/2 cup of fine Burghul (cracked wheat)
1 small white onion
1/3 green/bell pepper (optional, but preferred)
20 leaves green mint
10 leaves of green Marjoram (Mardakoush) (optional, but preferred)
1/2 teaspoon of 7-spices
1/2 teaspoon of Cayenne pepper
2/3 teaspoon of salt
1/2 teaspoon of ground cinnamon
High quality olive oil

Optional sides of greens, including green onions, white onions, radish, mint, pickled chilli pepper etc…

Kibbeh Nayyeh Preparation Method

1. Freeze the meat for 2 weeks if possible, in order to age it and to help eliminating any typical raw meat contamination. When ready to prepare the dish, place the frozen meat in the fridge for 2-3 hours to thaw it half way.

2. When the meat is halfway thawed, place it in a food processor along with about 5 cubes of ice, 1/5 teaspoon of ground cinnamon (no more) and spin it for about 3-5 minutes until it becomes very fine. Important: stop the food processor every 1 minute or so and feel the temperature of the meat and make sure it’s not warming up otherwise its color and taste would change. If you feel that it’s warming up, add a bit more ice or 1/4 cup of icy water and spin again.

3. Place the Burghul in a small bowl and rinse it with cold water, then squeeze it to get rid of as much water as possible. Place it aside.

4. Put the green pepper, mint, marjoram, onion, salt, cayenne pepper and 7-spices in the food processor and mix them well.

5. Place the ground meat in a large bowl, add the wet Burghul and the spice mix, and mix it well with your hands for a few minutes to make sure that all ingredients have well infused in one another. While mixing it, you can wet your hands every now and then in bowl of icy water that has a tiny bit of ground cinnamon in it.

Serving And Presenting the Kibbeh Nayyeh

1. Kibbe Nayyeh needs to be served cold, so you need to keep the dish in the fridge until serving time.

2. When ready, make the Kibbe mix into balls the size of a baseball and line them up along your serving dish.

3. Spread the kibbe on the dish with your hands or spoon, until it’s no more than 3/4 inch thick. Make some patterns on it if you wish.

4. Add tons of high quality olive oil on it.
Serve with optional sides including: mint, radish, green peppers, green chilli peppers, hot peppers, green onions, white onions etc.

5. Kibbe Nayyeh can be eaten with a fork or wrapped in pita bread.

6. We hope you enjoyed this recipe, and you now learned how to make Kibbe Nayyeh like a pro 🙂 We’d love to get your feedback and comments on it.

Preparation time: 1 hour(s) 20 minute(s)
Cooking time: 40 minute(s)
Diet tags: Raw
Number of servings (yield): 4
Culinary tradition: Middle Eastern
Copyright © Mama’s Lebanese Kitchen.

How to make Chicken sambousek

Serves 640 Mins

Ingredients

For the stuffing:

6 Kiri® squares
Green pepper (diced)
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 small onion (finely chopped)
250 g chicken meat (minced)
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 tablespoon pine nuts (roasted)
¼ tablespoon ground white pepper
1 tablespoon green basil (minced)
1 garlic clove
½ tablespoon five spice

For the dough:

4 cups white flour
1 ½ tablespoons salt
4 tablespoons vegetable oil
¾ cup water
1 tablespoon baking yeast

Cooking Directions

1 In a deep bowl, mix the flour with the salt and oil until it is crumbly.
2 Add melted yeast.
3 Pour the water gradually and mix to create a smooth-textured dough.
4 Cover the dough with a clean towel and set aside for half an hour.
5 Heat the oil in a pan. Fry the onions and garlic for 2 minutes.
6 Add the chicken and mix until done.
7 Toss in the diced peppers and stir the ingredients on medium heat for 5 minutes.
8 Add the tomato paste and stir. Cook for 5 more minutes until the vegetables are done and the moisture evaporates.
9 Mix in the Kiri squares, pine nuts, basil and spices. Then remove from the heat to cool.
10 Spread the dough thinly.
11 Cut in circles using a medium-sized cup.
12 Put a tablespoon of stuffing in the center of each dough circle.
13 Press the ends with a fork to close.
14 Place the sambousek wraps in a tray that has been brushed with oil or melted butter. Leave the tray aside for half an hour until the sambousek wraps rise again.
15 Bake for 15 minutes or until golden at 250 degrees Celsius.
16 Serve immediately.