Month: November 2015

How to peel the Beets

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I always watched my mom boiling beetroots then rinsing them in cold water and peeling them with a knife. It looked complicated especially that everything turned magenta red in the kitchen. Beetroot is an underestimated vegetable in my humble opinion, none cooks it because of its complicated peeling and transferring color. But here is the 4 steps solution to make peace with the beets: 1. Clean the beetroots: wash and cut stem and greenery from both side. 2. Cut them in halves and put them on wax paper in a tray. 3. Roast the beetroot in a preheated oven at 350°C for about 40 minutes (depending on their size). Beets are done when the skins are puckered and a toothpick is inserted easily till the center. 4. When beets have cooled a little bit just peel off the skin, I usually wear gloves to avoid the color transfer. >> You can store them in a container in the fridge up to 3 days or in the feezer up to 1 month. Hope it helps! The Urban Apron

Vegetarian Pizza Dough

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This time, I wanted to try to “bake” a vegetarian dough and it worked from the first attempt. I was so happy to have an entirely vegetarian option instead of carbs and cheese! The process is simple but step 4 is a bit messy (having food in a towel). Ingredients: 1 cleaned Cauliflower, without leaves 1 Egg 100g Parmesan Salt Pepper Toppings: 60g Tomato sauce 1 Grilled eggplant 2 Grilled zucchinis Sliced Mushrooms 200g Mozzarella cheese 1. Preheat oven to 200°C. 2. Put the cauliflower in a food processor until finely chopped. You will get a texture similar to almond meal (powder) 3. Transfer the cauliflower mixture to a bowl and cook it in the microwave for 5 minutes, until tender. 4. Put cauliflower mixture in a towel and let it cool for 10 minutes in the fridge then squeeze out the excess water until it is completely dry. 5. Mix the egg with the cauliflower, add parmesan, salt and pepper until well-combined. 6. Spread the cauliflower dough on a baking sheet simply like a pizza and bake for 40 minutes until gold. 7. …

The Moudardara Salad

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The story of a Lebanese dish turned into a salad. Moudardara stands for Lebanese lentils mixed with rice, topped with a lot of caramelized onions and flavored with cumin spice. Could be eaten both hot and chilled. I had never tried it in my life even though my mom used to make it [I think I have a problem with the Lebanese lentils because I do not mind the French ones: Puy Lentils]. My husband loves lentils in general, so I decided to try cooking the Moudardara for him… and the funny part is that I ended up eating it. The Moudardara is easy and fast to prepare; but I find it to be dull in the plate and I would certainly not categorize it as a main dish. To make peace with it I decided to transform it into a SALAD!! I tossed some grilled and raw vegetables on the Moudardara plate, some feta cheese and lemon-oil dressing: it turned out fulfilling, refreshing and delicious for dinner or a quick lunch at work! First, let me introduce you to my Moudardara recipe and then how …

The secret of Halawa

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Halawa, Haleweh, Halva.. different names to the same middle eastern confectionery. Its preparation is based on traditional recipes that include long hours and meticulous steps of creating a meringue, which makes it difficult to re-create at home. You should know first that this sweetmeat is one of the most nutritious whole foods sweets you can have. Plus the fact that it indulges the sweet toothed! It’s delicious and can come in different flavors: chocolate, coffee, vanilla, rosewater or orange oil. You can add a crunchy flavor to it using pistachios, almonds or hazelnuts. It is usually served with bananas and honey, in a bread. In my opinion it can be used as a great topping to a chocolate tart. It feels like a good mix of French and Lebanese culture in a dish… Super Tasty! Ingredients: 250g Powdered Milk 200g Icing sugar 250g Tahini (sesame paste) 30g Cocoa powder (optional for chocolate flavor) 2 tsp Vanilla flavor (optional) 1. Mix the tahini (sesame paste) with the cocoa powder or vanilla flavor in a robot (make sure to sift the cocoa powder). 2. In a bowl, sift the …

Almond Butter – Breakfast Edition

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They say breakfast is the most important meal of the day! I say it’s the most delicious one specially when drinking coffee 🙂 Okay… I might sound like a coffee addict, but I only drink it twice a day: A cappuccino lactose-free milk in the morning (my new habit) and a double espresso in the afternoon to keep me going! You might have noticed that I recently posted the Almond Butter Spread recipe which I am using for my morning dishes & snacks. I am also experimenting on different spread flavors depending on my mood. Here are some quick breaky recipes to fuel your day: 1. Granola & Fruits with Almond Butter Cut your favorite fruits, squeeze half an orange to add more taste. Spread the almond butter and add some granola and pomegranate seeds. 2. Toast & Fruits with Almond Butter Toast your bread then spread the almond butter. Add some banana slices and sprinkle with chia seeds, agave syrup and pomegranate seeds. Enjoy your morning. The Urban Apron

Pizza Dough

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It is Pizza day! Sometimes we need carbs and cheese to get through the day. Pizza has it all! And the veggies will make us feel less guilty! Here is the dough recipe for 2 medium sized pizzas: Ingredients 3 cups Flour (keep a bit more for dusting) 1 cup Water (lukewarm) 1 tbs Instant dry yeast 2 tsp Salt 1 tsp Sugar 2 tbs Olive oil 1. Mix the yeast with water and leave for 5 minutes (till it has some sort of mousse on top). 2. Combine all dry ingredients in the robot. 3. Add the oil and the yeast mix. >> Mix until the dough comes together in a solid ball. If the dough is sticky add flour; if it is too dry add water. 4. Put the dough in a bowl and cover with a plastic wrap. Keep in a warm area for about 1 hour. The tip: you can do the dough overnight and keep it in the fridge until the next day! Bon Appetite, The Urban Apron

French Ratatouille

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Ratatouille is the epitome of Provençal vegetable stews made primarily of eggplants, zucchinis and ripened tomatoes. I got the chance to try this authentic dish during my vacation in south of France. First, the vegetables are sautéed individually in oil before being stewed, so they keep their shape and texture. Then the addition of thyme and basil to the vegetables will make all the difference. This dish still tastes excellent when reheated, and can be eaten both cold and hot as an hors d’oeuvre topped with small black olives and lots of bread. This recipe can also be adapted with other vegetables of your choice but I wanted to try the authentic recipe and bring back the taste of my holiday. Ingredients: 3 Eggplants 3 Zucchini 2 peeled Bell peppers (red, orange, green or yellow) 2 Onions 5 ripened Tomatoes; peeled, halved and seeded 4 Garlic cloves 2 sprigs Thyme 2 sprigs Basil 2 bay leaves Oile Oil Salt & Pepper 1. Prepare the vegetables: Dice the onions and roughly chop the peppers, zucchinis, and tomatoes into cubes. Mince the garlic. keep each …

How to peel Bell Peppers?

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Bell peppers contain high quantities of vitamin C and add great taste to dishes but sometimes they are tough to digest so it is better to peel off their skin by roasting them. What you might not know is that roasted bell peppers are tender, smoked, and delicious. They add flavor and texture to a variety of dishes and sauces. The method I use guarantees a faster way to peel off the skin without loosing any tasty flavor. This method can be used with any peppers; bell or chiles. 1. Chargrill the bell peppers on an open grill at medium flame, use the tongue to turn them until completely black, it should take about 10 minutes. 2. Remove the bell peppers and rub off their black skin. 3. Remove the stalk and pips and cut the bell peppers into large strips. >> Make sure to peel the bell peppers without holding them under water since it will make the sweet smoked flavour disappear.  

Chocolate Tart

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Friends are coming over and you don’t have time to bake something fancy? Well, if you already have a baked tart (pie crust) in the freezer here is a 5 minute chocolate ganache preparation to dazzle them. Please note that the chocolate quality is key to a tasty flavor. My favorite brands are Lindt (for pastry) and Poulain: not easy to find in Jeddah, so I purchase them every time I travel to stock up my pantry. The original french recipe has 2 eggs, but I like to reduce the amount of eggs I use. In this case, I increase the chocolate and lower the milk to keep it well balanced. Eventually, you have to get a concentrated ganache (not too liquid). You can also find other recipes without eggs: with sugar instead, which in my opinion, kills the chocolate taste. Ingredients: Tart Sablee 1/4 cup Milk 120 g Heavy Cream 140 g Dark Chocolate 1 Egg 12 g Butter Salt flakes (optional) 1. Break the chocolate into pieces in a bowl. 2. Boil the cream, the milk and the butter in a pot (keep stirring so …

The Tart Edition (1) Tarte Sablée

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I have a sweet tooth, what can I do? When it comes to pastry there are some basics to be praised. My first learning and practice in my culinary workshop was the “Sablage” –  the basic of making a tart, known as pie crust. There are 2 methods of Sablage: – Classic Sablage using your bear hands takes you 15 minutes to prep the dough. – Modern Sablage using the robot only takes 8 minutes to prep it, which is great when you are on a hurry! I prefer the classical Sablage even if it takes me 10 minutes more because I feel I am in control of the dough shaping and texture and I usually make more than one dough when I am not in a rush. Another thing to know about French pies is that there are 3 types – it is not that complicated: – Tarte Brisée: the basic unsweetened pie crust, used for savory pies and salted tarts. – Tarte Sucrée: Same as tarte brisee but with added sugar, used with any sweet filling. – Tarte Sablée: my preferred pie …