A Week of Recipes (3/9 - 3/15)
Happy Sunday once again and happy almost St. Patrick’s Day. This year my wife and I were invited to a very fun St. Paddy’s themed party by a long time friend since my middle school days! I have to say I’m blessed to have made such amazing friends that no matter how long it’s been since you’ve seen them, things pick up right where they left off.
This week was the second week of Ramadan so I have another few recipes that are very common during this month. The first is Kebab Hindi which is basically kafta meatballs baked in a tomato stew with lots of onions and jalapenos. Second we have probably the most popular item in the whole month of Ramad - Atayef. You might also see it written as “Qatayef.” This dessert is deep fried pancakes filled with cheese or nuts. Sounds a bit different than your normal dessert but I promise they’ll blow your mind…especially this recipe I have here. They’re the best I’ve ever had! And last we have arguably the most popular salad from the Middle East - Fattoush. This is a salad of several herbs and spices mixed together. It fights for top contender alongside Tabbouleh, both are extremely delicious. But is the most common salad to have during Ramadan so that’s why it’s here. I’ll break down each below.
Kebab Hindi translates to Indian Kebab. This is by no means an Indian recipe. What I’ve learned, from asking several mothers and cooks, is that the amount of spice resembles the spice in Indian cuisine. Lot’s of Indian food use meatballs in a tomato broth with spice so I guess the name makes sense? But despite the confusing name, they are absolutely delicious. It was one of my favorite dishes to have at dinner parties and it was enjoyed by people of all ages. It looks incredible too especially when presented in a large tray. You just want to dive in a swim in it. But don’t….it’s spicy.
The Atayef or “Qatayef” are the most popular dessert from the Middle East. They make their special appearance during Ramadan usually. They are basically deep fried pancakes stuffed with either a sweet cheese or cinnamon sugar walnuts. Then they are drowned in the Levantine style simple syrup which is essentially a cold syrup infused with rose water and orange blossom water. Then at the end they’re topped with crushed pistachios. This recipe here is my Mom’s recipe. They are the BEST Atayef I have ever had and I say this as objectively as possible. Yes they’re my moms but I’ve eaten a lot of Atayef and these are the best! I had to really work to get her to share the recipe with me and the deal was I had to make them with her so here we are.
Finally I have the famous Fattoush which is a salad made up of several herbs and spices and gets it’s name from the crumbled pita chips we add at the end. They’re basically our version of croutons. It’s nothing crazy but my Mom’s side of the family is from Gaza and on the coast, they like to add spice to everything they eat. It’s still a refreshing salad but the little bit of heat we add to it is just so perfect. So it’s not your typical Fattoush, it’s a Gazawi style Fattoush to give you a small twist on this classic.
Kebab Hindi
This is another dish I’ve only ever seen at home. I honestly don’t know how popular it is but for me it’s in my top 10. It’s warm and comforting and has a little kick to it. My favorite part is the onions, I could eat a whole bowl of just the onions they’re so good. This was a dish my Mom would prepare for dinner parties, It was always one of many dishes presented mostly because it was a very simple dish to put together and was a crowd pleaser for all ages.
Atayef
Atayef is the most treasured dessert in the Middle East. More than Knafeh, more than Baklava, more than Ma’amoul…it is THE best dessert I can think of and typically only makes an appearance once a year during Ramadan. They’re basically pancakes stuffed with either cheese or walnuts, deep fried, then drowned in the Levantine style simply syrup. Every bite of Atayef is diving from beginning to end. This recipe I shot with my Mother because I’m not qualified to make these just yet. Hers are the best Atayef I’ve ever had and I’ll die on that hill.
Fattoush
This has to be the most popular or second most popular salad from the Levant. Just like every other dish, each region and even each household has a different way of putting this together. But the one thing each recipe shares is large cut veggies and crunchy pita. My family being from Gaza, we like to add a little spice to everything. It’s not an absurd …
Great recipes! Thank you for this!