About 
Hi there, I'm Rose. I love to cook food - and eat it. If you have any questions concerning any of my recipes, drop me a line at:
Contact:
rose [at] avocadobravado.net
|
At first glance, mast-o khiar looks an awful lot like Greek tzatziki. There are countless versions of yogurt and cucumber based dips stretching from Greece to India. Mast-o khiar is a very simple and straightforward dip, it means “yogurt and cucumber” in Persian. Persian cucumbers are most commonly used for this dip. They have thin skins and don’t require any peeling, but they may be unavailable in your area. If you can’t find them, you can easily substitute with common cucumbers available at your local supermarket, but be sure to cut off their bitter skins and deseed them. Serve with warm flat bread, pita chips, and vegetables.
Mast-o Khiar (Persian Yogurt & Cucumber Dip)
(adapted from Claudia Roden’s The New Book of Middle Eastern Food)
Print this recipe
16 oz yogurt, preferably strained or Greek
2 tablespoons dried or chopped fresh mint
salt & pepper, to taste
2 Persian cucumbers, sliced and chopped
Optional garnishes: more chopped cucumbers, ground dried rose petals, more mint (fresh or dried), olive oil
In a large bowl, beat together yogurt until smooth. Add the mint, salt, and pepper and mix thoroughly. Fold in the cucumbers and serve with warm flat bread, pita chips, or vegetables. Add more salt, if necessary. Garnish with any of the following: more cucumbers, mint, dried ground rose petals, or olive oil.
Try the recipe index for more ideas.
Some people have their favorite recipes and stick to them forever. When I talk to my dad and he tells me he’s making squash or chicken for dinner, I know exactly what he’s talking about. I try keep things constantly changing in the kitchen, but there are a few recipes I rarely ever stray from – mujaddara, for example. As much as I love the traditional hummus bi tahina (hummus with tahini), I’m constantly looking for new ways to reinvent it. I’ve been accused of being a hummus purist and even a snob, but that’s simply not true. I’ve just made it a personal mission to inform people that hummus means “chickpeas” in Arabic. It’s silly to call beet hummus, white bean hummus, edamame hummus, lima bean hummus, etc. hummus if the recipes don’t contain chickpeas. If you see a crazy lady rocking back and forth at a bus stop in San Francisco mumbling under her breath, “hummus means chickpeas in Arabic…” That’s me. Feel free to say hi.
Usually when I prepare hummus, I use canned garbanzo beans and simmer them in a saucepan with some water for 15-20 minutes. I find that this method helps the beans blend easier and improves the texture of the hummus. Plus, I love popping a few garbanzo beans into my mouth. They’re melt-in-your mouth delicious after simmering for 15 minutes or so. There are Syrian grandmothers who swear by soaking the garbanzos overnight and discarding the skins of the beans for the creamiest hummus possible, but I’ll leave that time consuming method to the experts (grandmothers, that is).
I’ve been on a garlic roasting kick lately. I’d say we’re going through 3 to 4 bulbs of garlic a week… and I have the breath to prove it. I’ve been adding roasted garlic to everything. Potatoes, toast, salad dressings, and now hummus. Apparently, there is such a thing as too much raw garlic. Not really for me, but for Cory. So I added roasted garlic to this batch of hummus. With roasted garlic, you get the garlic taste without at all being overpowering. The fresh herbs add a nice kick and a lovely pale green color.
Hummus with Roasted Garlic and Herbs
Print this recipe
1 bulb of garlic, roasted
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 15-oz can of garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained plus 1 cup of reserved water
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/4 cup tahini (roasted is best, but raw is fine)
2 tablespoons freshly chopped chives, plus extra for garnish
2 tablespoons freshly chopped parsley, plus extra for garnishing
salt, to taste
Preheat oven to 350F. Slice the top of the garlic bulb open, revealing the tips of the cloves. Place the garlic on a sheet of aluminum foil and drizzle a teaspoon of oil over it. Wrap the bulb in the aluminum foil, place on a baking sheet, and roast for 35 minutes.
Meanwhile, prepare the rest of the hummus. Drain and rinse the can of beans. Toss the garbanzos into a small sauce pan with a cup of water and simmer on low heat for 15-20 minutes.
Remove from heat and set aside. Juice lemons, set aside tahini, and chop the herbs. Add the lemon juice, chives, parsley, salt, and a ladleful of garbanzos with some reserved water. Pulse together in a food processor or blender. Continue adding garbanzos a ladleful at a time and blending, adding more water until needed. Continue this method until all the garbanzos have been blended.
By now, the garlic should be ready. Open up the foil and let the garlic cool until easy enough to handle with your hands. Pop the cloves out of the bulb into a small bowl. Take a fork and smash the garlic until formed into a paste. Toss the paste into the blender and pulse until thoroughly blended. Transfer the hummus to a large bowl. Add the tahini to the bowl and mix thoroughly, this will thicken the hummus considerably. Taste the hummus, adding a couple more pinches of salt or lemon juice, if needed.
Serve with warm flat bread, pita chips, or your favorite raw vegetables. Garnish with olive oil, extra freshly chopped herbs, and spices (thyme, sumac, za’atar, paprika, etc).
Try the recipe index for more ideas.
San Francisco acquired a new resident today – Cory’s brother who has a freshly minted MBA. Cory and I assembled a humble care package for his arrival with the basic necessities – dish soap, body soap, paper towels, tissues, toilet paper, hangers, and a laundry bag, among other small things. Since he won’t be doing any grocery shopping until tomorrow, I also took it upon myself to make him a very large salad with a red wine vinaigrette and homemade almond vanilla granola. Yes, I am 25 going on 70. My mom keeps reminding me how old I am, so I may as well bring out my inner-doting grandmother, you know?
A funny thing happens when you eat 90% of your meals at home, everything you don’t prepare for yourself becomes incredibly expensive. I had every intention of buying granola, but I experienced slight sticker shock at the grocery store and decided to just make a small batch of granola at home. After all, I already had the ingredients waiting for me in the pantry. As far as granola goes, this one is fairly standard. Simple, very lightly sweetened, and warmly spiced. If you’re new to making granola, this is a good place to start. Just a warning, almond extract is strong. 1/4 teaspoon doesn’t seem like much, but any more than that would probably be too much.
Almond Vanilla Granola
Print this recipe
1 1/2 cups oats
1/4 cup barley flakes (optional)
1 cup almonds, chopped (or slivered almonds)
3/4 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons agave nectar or honey
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon ground clove
pinch of salt
1/2 cup raisins
Preheat oven to 300F.
Meanwhile, toss together the oats, barley flakes (if using), almonds, and shredded coconut in a large bowl.
In a small bowl, mix together the olive oil, honey, vanilla extract, almond extract, cinnamon, nutmeg, clove, and salt. Pour the mixture into the bowl with the oats and toss to coat. Transfer the granola into an even layer on the largest baking sheet you have and bake for 40-50 minutes. Stir the granola every 10 minutes or so, to make sure the oats toast evenly.
When the granola is golden brown, remove from the oven and mix in the raisins before transferring to an air tight container. Store the container away from direct sunlight. Serve the granola with yogurt and fresh fruit.
Makes 5-6 servings
Try the recipe index for more ideas.
Do you buy certain foods even though you don’t like them very much? That’s the sort of relationship I have with store bought pita bread. Supermarket pita pales in comparison to its restaurant and freshly baked counterparts. It’s often stale, dry, and cardboard-y. Still, I buy it anyway because I rarely bake bread and I don’t have a Lebanese grandmother. Store bought pita is good for one thing, though – pita chips. They’re crispy and addictive. Adding a little bit of salt and pepper to them is a must, but from there the spice combinations are endless. They’re a cinch to make, too.
Pita chips
Print this recipe
4 pita breads
2-3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
salt & freshly ground black pepper, to taste
a few pinches other spices (optional)
Preheat oven to 325F.
Meanwhile, cut each pita into 8 to 12 triangles. Place the triangles on a cookie sheet.
Pour 2 tablespoons of oil into a small bowl. Dip a pastry brush into the bowl and brush each triangle lightly with oil. Add another tablespoon of oil to the bowl, if needed. Add a few pinches of salt over the triangles and add freshly ground black pepper.
Transfer the cookie sheet to an oven and bake for 15-20 minutes, or until lightly browned and crispy.
Serve with hummus or your favorite dip. And go ahead, eat them all a couple of days. Your secret is safe with me.
Makes 32-48 chips
Try the recipe index for more ideas.
Last year, when I started making my own homemade granola I proclaimed that I was now officially a resident of the Bay Area. It’s a quintessential hippie food and a derogatory term for Prius drivin’, farmers market lovin’ Liberals (hey, I’m one of those, actually! Or I would be, if I had a car). I used to think that I couldn’t live in California because it was “too granola”. That’s what happens when your opinion of California is shaped by television and media. Turns out, the Bay Area is just like anywhere else. Except prettier. And more expensive.
Wait, what was I talking about? Oh yeah, granola. Before I started making it myself, I used to mix boxes of granola with equal amounts of rolled oats because the store-bought stuff was just way too sweet for my tastes. Every other batch of granola I’ve made has included butter and I’ve seen several recipes for olive oil granola floating around the food blogging world lately. This Middle Eastern-ized recipe from the taste space immediately captured my heart. I made a couple slight changes to the recipe and added about a teaspoon and a half of orange blossom water, which can be found from Middle Eastern groceries and specialty shops (like Whole Foods and co-ops). If olive oil in granola scares you a bit, don’t worry! Of course, the end result depends on the type of olive oil you have. I used what I had on hand – cheap extra virgin olive oil from Trader Joe’s. The olive oil taste isn’t very noticeable, in fact, it wasn’t overpowering like butter can be. I found it preferable to butter, actually.
 Check out my new bowl. I picked it up from Japantown a couple weeks ago. It was made for me!
Olive Oil Granola with Pistachios and Apricots
(adapted from Tastespace)
Print this recipe
3 cups rolled oats
1 1/2 cups pistachios, hulled and chopped
1 cup shredded coconut, unsweetened
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
3/4 cup maple syrup (I left this out)
1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
a few pinches of salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1-2 teaspoons orange blossom water (to taste)
1 cup dried apricots, chopped
Preheat oven to 300F. Meanwhile, toss together oats, pistachios, coconut, maple syrup (if using), brown, sugar, salt, cardamom, cinnamon and nutmeg in a large bowl. Transfer the mixture in an even layer on the larget baking sheet you have and bake for 40-50 minutes. Stir the granola about every 10 minutes or so, making sure it toasts evenly.
When the granola is golden brown, transfer to a large bowl and mix in a teaspoon of the orange blossom water and apricots. Add up to another teaspoon of orange blossom water, according to taste. Be careful to not add too much, or the batch of granola will end up tasting like perfume. Store the granola in an airtight container away from direct sunlight. Serve with yogurt and fresh fruit.
Makes 10-12 servings
Try the recipe index for more ideas.
|
|
