!! 71 Potato Kibbeh Stuffed with Spinach and Walnuts
Prepare the shell:
Mash the potato in a bowl. Add the bulgur, grated onion, flour, salt and pepper. Mix into a dough, then knead for 3-4 minutes. Add 2-3 tbs of cold water, more if needed, if the dough becomes too hard. This can also be done in a food processor.
Prepare the stuffing:
Heat the olive oil and sautÄ the chopped onion until tender. Add the spinach and sautÄ until most of the liquid from the spinach evaporates. Add the walnuts, spices and lemon juice. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground pepper. Set aside.
[Shape the potato dough into small balls and stuff with the spinach and walnut mixture.] Heat oil for deep frying (180í C). Fry the kibbeh until brown and crisp, approximately 2 minutes. Drain and serve hot or at room temperature.
!! 72 Watermelon Rind Preserve
Remove the green skin and the pink spots from the watermelon rind. Cut the white peel into 2 x 2 x 2 cm cubes. Place the rind in a saucepan. Cover with water and cook over medium heat for 1 hour. The peel should be almost translucent. Drain.
Peel the thin yellow rind from the lemon. Reserve. Juice the lemon.
In the saucepan, combine 720 ml of water, sugar, lemon rind, honey, cinnamon or cardamom and 1 tbs of lemon juice. Bring to a boil and then continue cooking for 5 minutes. Add the watermelon rind and return to a boil. When the mixture is boiling, lower the heat and simmer, very gently, for 20 minutes. Remove the saucepan from the heat and then skim. Leave the watermelon rind in the liquid for 12 hours.
After 12 hours, bring the mixture back to a boil and simmer until the liquid turns into a syrup. Remove the spices and the lemon rind. Add the rest of the lemon juice. Simmer for 3 minutes. Transfer the mixture into sterilized jars. Let cool and seal.
!! 73 Goose Liver Baked in Bulgar
Prepare the stuffing:
[Trim the livers] then cut into 2 x 2 x 2 cm cubes. Combine the liver, port, brandy, salt and pepper in a bowl. Let sit for 12 hours. Mix from time to time.
Prepare the bulgur dough:
Place the bulgur into a bowl and cover with water. Set aside for 15 minutes. Strain the bulgur and [squeeze out the excess water.] Heat the olive oil in a frying pan. Fry the celery and shallots until they are very soft, about 7 minutes. Set aside to cool. Combine the soaked bulgur, chopped celery, chopped shallots, egg and salt and pepper in a bowl. Mix thoroughly until the ingredients form a dough, adding the whole wheat flour as necessary, to make a workable dough. Knead the dough until it is firm, adding water if the dough is too dry. Leave the dough to rest for 1 hour.
Strain the liver. Preheat the oven to 150í C. Grease the ramekins with butter. Line the ramekins with the bulgur dough. Gently massage the liver with your hands then arrange the cubes, tightly, in the ramekins. Flatten the remaining dough with your hand and cover the ramekins with the dough. Cover the ramekins with aluminum foil and then put them in a baking dish. Add hot water to the baking dish until the bottom half of the ramekins are submerged. Bake for 25 minutes. Let cool and serve warm or at room temperature.
!! 74 Fig Jam - Ribat Te'enim
Quarter the figs. Combine the figs and sugar in a saucepan. Mix well. Let sit for 2 hours.
Add the lemon juice and cardamom to the figs and sugar. Bring to a boil. Lower the heat to medium-low and simmer, stirring from time to time, for 1 1/2 hours. Let the jam cool until lukewarm then store in a sealed glass jar.
!! 75 Ribat Gezer - Carrot Jam
Combine the grated carrots and sugar in a saucepan. Mix well. Let sit for 3 hours.
After 3 hours, add the water and cook over low heat until all of the sugar has dissolved. Simmer until the carrots are soft, about 35 minutes. Add the lemon juice and the spices and continue cooking for 5 minutes, then let cool. Store in a sealed glass jar.
!! 76 Ribat Kishuim - Squash Jam
Boil the water and 1 tablespoon of lemon juice. Wash the squash and [grate into long strips.] Transfer the strips to a large bowl. Pour the boiling water into the bowl and let sit for 5 minutes. Transfer the contents of the bowl to a strainer. When cool enough to handle, press down on the squash to squeeze out any remaining water.
Combine the sugar, the rest of the lemon juice and 120 ml of water in a saucepan. Bring to a boil and stir until the sugar has dissolved. Add the squash and, while stirring continuously, cook until transparent, about 6 minutes. Remove from the heat, add the vanilla essence and blanched almonds, and let cool. Store in a sealed glass jar.
!! 77 Dried Fruit Salad
Pour the tea and the liqueur (if using) into a bowl. Add the fruits and soak for 12 hours.
[Strain. Reserve the liquid.]
Add the lemon juice, sugar and rose water (if not using liqueur) to the liquid. Add the fruits and chill. Sprinkle with pistachios and serve cold.
!! 78 Tahini Parfait
[Line the tin with plastic wrap.] In a bowl, combine the tahini, condensed milk, honey and liqueur (if using). Blend well. In another bowl, whip the cream until stiff peaks form.
[Fold 1/3 of the whipped cream into the tahini mixture. Very gently fold the rest of the whipped cream into the tahini mixture.]
Gently pour the mixture into the pan. Cover with plastic wrap. Freeze for at least 6 hours. Unmold, slice and serve.
!! 79 Tiropita - Cheese Pie
Preheat the oven to 200í C.
In a saucepan, heat the milk and 1/4 of the butter. Add the semolina in a very slow stream and then mix over low heat for 2 minutes. Mix the cheeses into the saucepan until well blended and remove from the heat. Let cool for 5 minutes while stirring from time to time. Beat the eggs and mix into the cheese mixture. Season with pepper. As feta is salty, add salt only after tasting the mixture. Melt the remaining butter.
Using the pastry brush, brush the baking dish with butter. [Cut half of the phyllo sheets to the diameter of the pan] and the remainder of the sheets 8 cm larger than the diameter of the pan. Place the phyllo dough on a towel and cover with a damp towel. [Line the baking dish] with 5-6 phyllo sheets, gently brushing each sheet with butter. Spread the filling over the phyllo. Using the remaining phyllo sheets, cover the filling, brushing each sheet with butter. Gently fold the edges over and around the edge of the baking dish to seal in the filling. [Score the pastry] according to the way you want to serve it. Sprinkle with cold water and bake for 30 minutes until golden. Let stand for 10 minutes and serve warm.
!! 80 Spanikopita - Spinach Rolls
Wash the spinach. Cut off the stems and coarsely chop. Place the spinach in a large covered saucepan and cook over medium heat for 6-8 minutes, shaking the pan from time to time. Using the colander, drain the spinach, pressing it down with the spoon.
In a frying pan, gently fry the onions in the olive oil until soft and golden. Add the spring onion and continue to cook for 5 minutes.
Preheat oven to 190í C.
Combine the spinach, onions with olive oil, herbs, eggs and nutmeg in a mixing bowl. Crumble in the feta cheese and mix well. Season with salt and freshly ground pepper.
Using a pastry brush, brush the baking dish with butter. Place the phyllo dough on a towel and cover with a damp towel. Take one sheet, gently brush with olive oil, (fold in half and brush again if using large sheets). [Spread about 2 tbs of filling across the long edge, fold the sides in then roll up firmly. Bend into a coil] and place in the baking dish. Repeat this procedure with the rest of the phyllo sheets. Place the coils in one, tight layer in the pan. Gently brush the tops again with olive oil. Bake for 25-30 minutes until golden. Serve hot.
