Mafroum - fried stuffed veggies in a spicy tomato sauce

Mafroum is a sephardic dish that originated in Tunisia, it is comforting and filling and goes great with couscous. It is traditionally made with potatoes but I did a combination of potatoes, eggplant, zucchini and a few onions. You can use whatever vegetables you like.

Patties:
1-2 pound ground beef
2 eggs
1 bundle of parsley chopped
Large onion, peeled chopped
salt and pepper
Oil for frying
Matzo meal or breadcrumbs or panko

Coating the patties:
Flour
4 eggs (at least)
1 small tomato paste
Salt and pepper

the rest:
5-6 potatoes
1 large eggplant
1 onion
a few zucchinis

Sauce:
can of tomato paste
celery
salt pepper
oil (from fry pan)
jalapeño

Wash and dry the veggies and the slice them into a V...you can slice about 3 cm thick then slice them in down the middle leaving the end attached to form little pockets.

Mix everything under the meat ingredients together and stuff into the vegetables as in the picture above, coat them with flour then dip in the egg tomato paste mixture and fry until golden.

In a large pot make the sauce by mixing all of the ingredients together and let boil. Once that is ready, put the fried vegetables in the pot or in a baking dish with the sauce (covered) and place in the oven for about an hour on 350. Uncover it for the last 20 minutes so it can get golden and then garnish with celery leaves or parsley.

Stuffed Peppers

My friend Shirly came over the other day and made me these amazingly delicious and simple stuffed peppers. It is a simple and hearty meal that takes minutes to make.

What you'll need:

You can use any vegetable you want but I love the red peppers, I also added a couple yellow zucchinis I had in the fridge...

8-10 peppers (top sliced off and cleaned inside)
about 1 1/2 cups of rice
1 1/2 lbs of ground beef
salt
pepper
chicken powder
1 can of tomato paste
some boiling water
parsley for garnish

Clean out the peppers and arrange them in a pot like in the picture. In a separate bowl, mix the rice with the meat and season with salt, pepper and chicken powder (about 1 tbsp). Fill each pepper about 3/4 of the way full and then poke your finger in each one to get all the filling down and leave some room for the rice to expand. In a separate bowl, add about 3/4 of a small can of tomato paste, about 2 cups of boiling water and season.
Pour a few spoons of the mixture into each pepper and the rest slowly around the peppers into the pot. Place in med-high heat and bring to a boil for about 30 minutes. Then put it the oven at 350 degrees for an additional 30 minutes or until golden and broiled. Garnish with parsley and enjoy!

Tuna Tartare and Avocado

Last week I went over to my mom's house and my brother had just whipped up this amazing little appetizer. It was freakin' delicious!

Spicy mayo:
· Mayo
· Siracha
· Sugar
· Ponzu
· Rice vinegar
· Sesame oil

Tuna:
· Soy sauce
· Rice wine vinegar
· Lemon juice
· Wasabi paste
· Grated ginger
· Chives or scallions
· Sesame seeds
· Shallots, diced
· Cucumber, diced
· Serrano pepper, diced

Mix everything all ingredients for the mayo together and all the ingredients for the tuna together, you can serve them in separate serving bowls or you can make a stack like above. To do so just take a plastic cup, cut out the bottom and and use it as a mold for the stack, stuff in the avocado, put some cucumber and then the tuna. Garnish with chives, black sesame seeds, and toasted pita chips.

Jute Plant Soup (Molokhia)

 This soup is made of Jute plant leaves and has tons of health and anti-aging benefits. It's an Egyptian soup and was a staple in Cleopatra's diet. I love greens and I love soup so I knew I had to try this! After reading about 20 recipes I came up with this somewhat simplified version using frozen jute plant and it was delicious! I used both chicken and meat since I couldn't decide, but if you prefer one over the other thats fine too... For a vegetarian version, just use veggie broth and potatoes instead of the meat.

1-2 packs of frozen jute plant 
1 lb of chicken ( I used the legs)
1 lb of beef (cubes or for stew or any other meat you like)
1 tbsp cumin
8 cups of chicken or beef broth (I made my own with the chicken and meat or you can use vegetable broth)
1/2 cup lemon juice
1 tsp chicken powder or one cube
1 cup of chopped cilantro
1 cup of chopped parsley
salt and pepper


Heat a little olive oil in a large pot, add the meat and chicken and let it brown a little. Add the broth and bring to a boil. Let it cook on medium for about 1 hr or until meat is tender, if you don't use meat the cooking time will be less (around 30 minutes for chicken). Next add the jute plant and let the melt in (add more water or broth if the soup is too thick), then add everything else and cook on medium for an additional 40 minutes.
Garnish with herbs and olive oil and serve.

Wings!

This recipe is super fast and the wings are NOT fried! 

20 wings

For marinade:

1/4 cup hot sauce

3 tbsp vinegar

1 tbsp karo syrup or honey

For sauce:

1/4 cup hot sauce

1/4 cup of sriracha

juice of 1 lemon

2 tbsp white distilled vinegar

3 cloves crushed garlic

a splash of soy sauce

Mix all the ingredients for the marinade and coat the wings with it. Place the wings on a nonstick baking sheet and broil on high for about 15-20 minutes on each side.  Meanwhile mix all the other ingredients for the sauce. Once the wings are well done enough for you (I like mine extra crispy) take them out and put them in a bowl. Pour the sauce over them and mix until all wings are coated evenly and enjoy!

Deliciously Decadent Chocolate Tort

I am the worst baker ever, 99 out of every 100 cakes I make go straight to the garbage. Except for this baby...this tort is amazing and you can make it days ahead and just freeze it. 

250 grams butter
250 grams sugar
250 grams melted semi sweet chocolate
7 yolks
7 whites(whipped to form a peak)
3 spoons bread crumbs or flour



1.Before anything whip up the egg whites and leave on the side then if not youll have to clean th emixer in the middle and thats really annoying
2. Beat butter and sugar until light yellow and creamy
3. add yolks 1 at a time with mixer on
4. then add the melted chocolate and continue to mix until blended
5. then add the egg whites...slowly fold all in until smooth
6. split the batter in half refrigerate 1 half and add the bread crumbs to the other half.
7.Then place the half with the breadcrumbs/flour in a greased and floured round baking dish with removable sides and bake for about 30 minutes on 300. ( careful not to over cook)
8. Once its ready, let it cool and then top with the refrigerated half and cover with plastic wrap touching the mousse and place in fridge for a few hrs. ( can put it in the freezer too but will need to thaw it out for and hr before serving)

Roasted Veggie Dip

I love this dip/sauce/spread! It goes with just about anything and you can make it as spicy or mild as you want.

4-6 whole tomatoes

2 jalapeños

1 large onion quartered

2 tbsp smoked Tabasco

1 tsp sugar

1 tsp honey

3 garlic cloves

olive oil

juice of 1/2 lime

salt

Place the whole tomatoes,  jalapeños, and onion on a baking tray and broil on high for about 20 minutes or until blackened, flip over and broil and additional 10 minutes or so. remove from tray and place in food processor with all the other ingredients and pulse until it's pureed. If its too thick add a little more olive oil and lemon juice. Taste for salt since the tomatoes and honey are sweet.

30 Minute Matbucha

I use canned tomato sauce and diced tomato for a chunkier matbucha. But if you prefer it smoother you can use only the sauce.

2 medium cans of tomato sauce

1 can if diced tomatoes

½ cup oil

8 garlic cloves crushed

4-8 jalapeños halved then sliced (depends how spicy you like it)

½ tsp black pepper

1 tsp sugar

1 tsp paprika

1 tsp hot paprika (optional)

Heat the oil in a high pot and add the crushed garlic and sliced jalapeños. Let that sauté for about 8 minutes or until garlic is golden brown.

Add the diced tomatoes and tomato sauce and stir. Next add the sugar, pepper, and paprika and stir again.

Cover the pot and put the heat on medium high and bring to a boil.  Let it boil for about 10 minutes and stir then lower heat to medium and stir every 5-10 minutes so that it doesnt burn or stick to the bottom. Once it starts to thicken lower heat to low, cover and let simmer.

Once it reaches a thick consistency turn off heat and stir. Let it cool and either serve or refrigerate. You can also freeze the matbucha for a few weeks.

Spicy Tuna and Avocado Sandwich

I am obsessed with spicy food, I like anything and everything extra extra extra super spicy to the point where my face turns red and I start sweating bullets...So last night I was home alone and craving something hot, and I came up with this yummy little concoction that took about 2 minutes to make:

Toast
1 avocado sliced
tuna
jalapeño finely diced
juice of 1/2 lemon
salt and pepper
olive oil
mayo


mix mayo, tuna, lemon juice, salt, pepper, and jalapeño. spread it on the toasted bread, top it with avocado and drizzle the olive oil over it. So simple but so freaking good!

Stuffed Grape Leaves

• I love stuffed grape leaves and no one makes them better than my mother-in-law. Here is her recipe, they are easy to make and full of flavor.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  1 jar of grape leaves
• 2 cups arborio/round rice
• juice of 7 lemons
• 5 crushed garlic cloves
• 1 chopped tomato
• 2 stalks of celery finely chopped
• 1 chopped onion
• 2 stalks of celery cut in 3-5 inch pieces (leaves included)
• ⅓ cup chopped green onion
• salt and pepper
• 1½ tbsp chicken powder
• 1½ tbsp curry
• ¼ cup olive oil
  2 tomatoes quartered

• mix the rice, onion, celery, garlic, tomato, green onion, olive oil, and spices in a large bowl. add about half of the lemon juice and mix.
• Set aside a large pot. coat the bottom with olive oil and the put the big pieces of celery in the bottom and lay them flat, place 2 grape leaves on top of them to cover them.
• Take out the grape leaves and rinse them with water. One by one lay out each leaf, cut off the stem and stuff it with about 1 tbsp of the rice mixture. To roll them, fold in the sides and the roll up
• Place the grape leaves tightly together in rows. Once the bottom is filled pile them on top of each other. Add in the quartered tomatoes and spread them over the grape leaves
• Once finished, boil water and fill the pot just enough to cover the grape leaves and add the remaining lemon juice and salt. Cook on high until it reaches a boil. Then lower the heat and cook until most of the water is gone, about 40 minutes.
• 
  

Joy's Fish Patties

So my friend Joy is making a blog too...and I have to say that her fish patty recipe is the bomb! check out her blog at Nibbles & Nosh for this amazing recipe!!

Hummus with Mushrooms

Ingredients:

1 pack of mushrooms (washed and dried)

3 tbsp of olive oil

1 chopped shallot

1/4 cup of marsala or burgandy cooking wine 

salt 

scallions for garnish

1 container of  hummus

Heat the olive oil in a nonstick pan ( I use a high one for less mess). Add the chopped shallot and the mushrooms. Let it all brown and caramelize on med-high heat.  Stir occasionally to brown all sides. This should take about 15 minutes. Once it all gets dark in color and starts sticking to the pan, add the cooking wine to deglaze the pan. Let it simmer for about 10 minutes on med low until the juices thicken a little and add the salt. Let it cool and spoon it on top of a hummus plate. Garnish with scallions.

Eggplant with herbs

I made this Friday night and it was delicious,it finished in 3 seconds and best part, its NOT fried!!

You'll need:

2 eggplants cut into wedges

a handful of parsley- finely chopped

3 tbsp of white wine or cider vinegar

3 tbsp lemon juice

2 tbsp olive oil

kosher salt and black pepper

olive oil (about 1/3 cup)

Slice the eggplant into wedges and place on a nonstick tray. Generously brush with olive oil so that all sides are coated evenly. Sprinkle with salt and broil on high for about 15 minutes or until golden brown. Flip over if necessary and brown the other side for an additional 10 minutes or so. remove and let cool.

In a small bowl or cup mix all the other ingredients and set aside. Just before serving plate the eggplants and drizzle the herb sauce over them.

Kube - Delicious Beet Soup

This Soup is hearty with it's meat filled dumpling, and super lemony and sour...You can freeze the balls and put them in pretty much any broth, but this one is my favorite, enjoy!

meat:

1 pack of ground beef

1 large onion diced

1 cup of chopped cilantro

salt and pepper

1 tbsp chicken powder

3tbsp olive oil

2 tbsp paprika

1 tbsp cumin

dough

2½ cups of farina

⅓ cup bulgar

¼ cup olive oil
Pinch of salt

soup
1 tsp sugar

1 large onion diced

6 beets peeled, halved and sliced

5 garlic cloves crushed

1 bunch of cilantro chopped

4 stalks of celery chopped (leaves and stalk)

2 tbsp chicken powder

1 tbsp cumin

salt and pepper

2 tbsp paprika

juice of 3-5 lemons

Meat:

Heat olive oil and cook the meat with a few tbsp’s of water to help separate as it cooks. Keep stirring to break apart large chunks.

Once it has broken down and the water has dried out, add the rest of the ingredients and continue cooking on medium until everything is golden. Add a little more olive oil if necessary. Then let cool and you can refrigerate if you want to make this a day ahead.

Dough:

Mix the oil with the farina and stir. add the bulgar and mix. slowly and while mixing add the water until all the farina is moist and forms a doughy consistency. If there is excess water empty it out and let the mixture set for 10 minutes to absorb.

Soup:

Sauté the onion, garlic, cilantro, beets and celery in the olive oil for about 10 minutes. Then add the water and the spices and bring to a boil. Once boiling add the lemon and lower heat to simmer

Meanwhile to make the balls take about a tbsp of the dough, lay it flat on your hand and fill it with a spoon of the meat and fold it over to form a ball. Roll it in your hands to make sure the dough has sealed. set it aside and finish the rest. once you’ve rolled out all the balls you can either put them one by one into the BOILING broth or you can freeze them for another time.

Let the soup with the balls boil on high for about 8 minutes and then you can lower the heat to low and leave it for another 15-20 minutes and then serve

Fish Tacos

Light and Healthy Fish Tacos!!

These are so simple to make and you can pretty much add whatever else you like to them.

Fish:
2 lbs of Tilapia
3 tspn lemon juice
1 tspn garlic powder
1 tspn paprika
1 tspn cajun seasoning
salt and pepper


Broil fish in oven on high for about 15 minutes on each side or until golden brown an crispy


Guacamole:
2 ripe avocados
1 jalapeno finely chopped
1/2 purple onion finely chopped
juice of 3 limes
1/3 cup of chopped cilantro
2 cloves crushed garlic
salt and pepper


Mix all together and smash up with fork


Chipotle Tomato Salsa:
3-4 tomatoes
3 tspn smoked tabasco
1 tsp smoked paprika
2 tablespoons of honey
a pinch of hot paprika
1/2 onion
3 cloves garlic
a drizzle of olive oil


Put all in a food processor and pulse until smooth.


Mango Salsa:
Same as Guacamole but instead of avocados, use mangos


I like to add light sour cream and fresh scallion too...