Spice the rice
Putting a favorable meal together gets easier when the ingredients matter. When it comes to The Cookery’s rice and spice dish, go with a traditional basmati if you can work it into the food budget. It’s certain that basmati adds up more quickly than alternatives, but you’ll appreciate the results. Rice and spice 1 cup basmati rice 2 cups water 1 pound ground […]
Meat pies in Baghdad
Our forwarded mail is catching up to us in New York, with the July issue of National Geographic resting on a stack of incoming magazines last week. Note . . . . for great reading throughout, see this issue, with a look at Lynsey Addario’s striking photographs in the “Baghdad After The Storm” feature by Brian Turner. Meat pies help illustrate the story […]
Breakfast bon voyage from Ann Arbor
Friends in Ann Arbor sent us on our final leg of the journey with a bon voyage Mediterranean breakfast. Healthy, fresh, and full of flavor. Laced with love from a Lebanese kitchen, their morning meals provided a kick-start to each new day. When departure day from Michigan arrived, we prepared to complete our journey with […]
My man Hazi and his eggplant stew
In the mood for stew? I make this stew often, and when eggplant looks especially tempting (I couldn’t pass them up last weekend at the farmers’ market), this dish makes an appearance. I discovered this stew with a wonderful Arabic teacher in California, and posted this recipe a couple of years ago. Try Hazi’s Stew […]
Layer of life street food
Layer of life street food What’s the value of . . . street food? It depends on where we go, what we’re willing to experience, and how we interpret sources of life. I closed The Cookery for a while last month and explored Syria. With my kids in tow, we found our daily bread along […]
Two-day Baba
More or less, it took two days to prepare Baba Ghannouj this week, though active time clocked at just under 30 minutes. We grilled out last night, and I roasted a plump eggplant in preparation for another meal. Today, I reached for the roasted eggplant (from the refrigerator) and blended it with my remaining baba ingredients. Here’s my basic baba recipe: Two-Day […]
Fattoush
I’m rounding up the ingredients to prepare fattoush and hoping to find just the right produce to toss into this beautiful salad. Fattoush is light and colorful with the perfect crunch to stand alone as a meal.
You’ve got mail-surprise on the doorstep
Want to surprise a friend? Why wait for a birthday? The Cookery loves the new skewers that arrived on our door step yesterday. Selected at the market in Morocco by Middle Eastern explorer Ms. Carrie, the skewers have found a welcome home. Beautiful! Kebabs anyone?
Hummus for the holidays
Check your pantry. Do you have any garbanzo beans on hand? Here’s a healthy menu stretcher. We’re serving hummus during this holiday season.
Food from Farouk? Dining in the city at La Kabbr
When we dine in New York City, there are usually a few good reasons to make the hour’s drive from home. Last night, our parents sent us out to celebrate our wedding anniversary. I persuaded my husband to mark our occasion at La Kabbr, 683 9th Avenue. Farouk, the owner and chef, delivers. For a Middle Eastern dinner laced […]