Rice and Honey (Riz b’Asal)

Sarah and I wish everyone a sweet new year! We hope you had a wonderful Rosh Hashana, an easy fast and meaningful prayers on Yom Kippur...and to ensure that your year remains sweet, we present you with our recipe for a delicious Syrian dessert that would be perfect for you to serve on Sukkot.

My grandmother included the recipe for this rice and honey pudding in the cookbook which she made for my mom, but she did not specify how long it takes for rice and honey to cook.  I expected it to take 20 minutes or so because after all that is how long rice takes to cook normally. After 45 minutes, I called up my mother and said, "This is taking forever! I want to go out and I'm stuck at home waiting for the rice and honey." My mother told me that yup, it takes about an hour to cook. So, if you have an hour, this recipe couldn't be easier. If you like honey, then this recipe is for you. (Disclaimer: I do not like honey. I do wish that I did because the texture of this dessert is amazing. My mother and brother were the consumers of this dish in my family. This year Mike tried it for the first time and loved it.)

First you mix the rice, honey and water together in a big pot.

You leave it covered on medium/low heat for an hour. Check on it after 45 minutes and see how it is doing.  You know it's done when all the liquid is absorbed and it is very thick and somewhat hard to stir. It may even stick to some pots (not mine because I used a stick proof pan). Add the corn starch, which has been diluted in some cold water and cook for 5 more minutes.

After you take it off the fire, mix in rosewater, according to taste. I used 2 teaspoons, but add as much as you feel it needs. I used orange blossom water instead of rosewater. I prefer orange blossom water because it has a more mild flavor than rosewater. It is very similar and a good substitute. If this is your first time tasting rosewater, I suggest using the orange blossom instead.

This is what my bottle of orange blossom water looks like. 

Then take a medium size plate (I used 4) and spoon the rice mixture onto the plate to make big patties. Make sure you use real plates and not paper plates because it will stick to the paper. If you have wax paper you can put it on top of the rice and honey patty and make layers. I did not have wax paper so I just used 4 different plates.

Cool to room temperature before serving. To store, cover the plate with saran wrap and put in the fridge.

Rice and Honey:

1 cup rice

1 cup honey

5 cups water

2 tablespoons of corn starch

2 teaspoons rose water or orange blossom water (according to taste)

Mix the rice, honey and water together in a big pot. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium until it is soft and thick  (approx. an hour). Dilute corn starch in a little bit of cold water (I used 6 teaspoons) and stir and add to pot. Cook for 5 more minutes and then take off of the fire. Add the rosewater or orange blossom water to the rice and stir. Pour into individual dishes. Cool to room temperature before serving. To store, cover the plate with saran wrap and put in the fridge.

Year Round Cookies Perfect for Passover (Flourless and Gluten Free)

I found this recipe ages ago on the blog Everybody Likes Sandwiches. These cookies are delicious and I make them all the time. These are not gluten free cookies or Kosher for Pesach cookies, they are normal, every day cookies that just so happen to be gluten free/Kosher for Pesach. Got it? These are yummy. They're fudgy/nutty cookies that also have a meringue like texture. You could use any nut of your choice. This time I made them with almonds, but I usually make them with walnuts or pecans. In fact, if you want to be adventurous, you don't even have to use nuts. You could use chocolate chips/coconut/mint chips/anything or all of the above instead. In fact, the recipe that I adapted this from called for sunflower seeds and cocoa nibs. Enjoy these on Passover/Enjoy these on Easter/Enjoy these with your gluten free friends/Enjoy these with your allergy-free friends/Enjoy these any day of the year!

chocolate puddle cookies

1) 3 c icing sugar (aka powdered sugar)
2) 2/3 c cocoa
3) 1/2 t fine sea salt
4) 1 c toasted almonds (chopped)
5) 4 large egg whites
6) 1 t vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350F. In a large bowl, mix together icing sugar, cocoa, and salt. Add in nuts. In a small bowl, stir together the egg whites and vanilla and then pour into the nut/cocoa/sugar mixture. Stir until everything is well combined.
Line cookie sheets with parchment or silpat and then drop batter using a tablespoon. Bake for 13-15 minutes. You will know that they are ready when the cookies lose their shine and become matte. Wait until cooled before you lift the cookies off the tray (using a spatula) and place them on the cooling rack.If you move them to soon you will find yourself with a chocolatey (delicious) mess.

Meat Fila

MEAT FILA - A HAMENTASHEN TWIST

I thought that meat fila was an appropriate food to make this time of the year as it is three sided just like a hamentashen. A hamentashen is a three sided jelly filled cookie eaten on the holiday of Purim to symbolize the "ears of Haman", the enemy who was defeated on Purim. Meat Fila  is a three sided meat filled pastry that could be a fun savory twist on the ordinary hamentashen, perfect to eat at your Purim Seudah (meal). (If you're having a dairy meal, the cheese fila would work great, too.)

I used the tadbileh recipe for the meat filling. Filling the fila can be fun when you do it with someone else, so Mike very graciously agreed to help me. I cut the fila dough in half and we got to work.

 If you have the patience and extra time, cut it into thirds, they're better smaller and make more. Trust me, these go fast and are a real crowd pleaser.

I filled a little cup with vegetable oil and we got to work. After a few attempts, I fired Mike and he quit at the same time. He just couldn't get the hang of it, though in retrospect his triangles were quite nice and next time I'm not letting him off that easy.  But it was an amicable parting and he kept me company the whole time. He kept me entertained by quizzing me about Freaks and Geeks, one of our favorite shows.

Mike's Fila - looks more like a witch's hat than Haman's ears!

Despite Mike's difficulty with folding the fila, it's actually quite simple. First, put the two piles of fila on top of each other. You want to work somewhat fast because the fila dough dries up when it is out too long and becomes difficult to work with. I covered the fila dough with the plastic that it came with to keep it moist. Take each piece, one at a time of course, and spread oil on it with your pastry brush and then fold in half.

Now put a little bit of tedbileh on each corner and fold into the shape of a triangle (up and down, like a flag). 

After they are folded place them on a tray. When they are all filled, brush the tops of the fila with oil and sprinkle sesame seeds on top.

They are now ready to be heated up or frozen for later. Freeze them on the trays so that they don't all stick together and later move them into a Tupperware. Put wax paper between each layer so that they don't stick together.

MEAT FILA

What you need:
1)1 package of fila dough
2)Oil (pour a little in a small cup, you can add as needed)
3)1 recipe of tadbileh
4)Pastry Brush
5)Sesame Seeds (Optional)

Open the package of fila dough (usually it is sold in the frozen section, so make sure it is defrosted before you use it.) Cut the fila dough in half and place the 2 piles on top of each other.

Take one piece of fila and use the pastry brush to brush the oil onto it. Now fold it in half, using the oil to help seal it. Take a small spoonful of the tadbileh and place it on the end of the fila and fold over into a triangle and continue folding until you get to the end (it's like folding a flag.) Repeat with each piece of fila. As  you complete one, put it on an ungreased baking sheet. Put them on the tray with the points facing inwards, so that 4 filas make a square (like in the pictures above.) When the trays is full spread oil on top of all the fila and sprinkle sesame seeds on top (optional.) Now you can either bake or freeze them or both.

Freeze them on a tray so that they don't stick together. Then move them to a Tupperware and make sure to put wax paper between each layer.

Bake on 350 degrees on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper for 30 minutes or until slightly brown and toasty.

Meat Ejjeh - Perfect for Chanukah

Ejjeh B’Lah’Meh (Meat Pancakes) is basically a meat latkah and would be a perfect food to make for Chanukah. Lah'Meh means meat. Not exactly sure what ejjeh means. One Syrian cookbook translated it as fritter, another said omelet, and my mom wasn't sure and said she thinks it means pancake. But you get the idea. Basically it is anything mixed with egg and fried. There are all different types of ejjeh (which I will be posting about soon). My grandmother ate a lot of ejjeh when she was a child during the depression. Ejjeh is the perfect food to get the most bang from your buck. During times when the money was tight and families had a hard time putting food on the table, ejjeh was a way to fill a lot of mouths. Basically ejjeh is a way to take whatever ingredient you have (in this case ground meat) and turn it into dinner for the whole entire family.

Ejjeh B'Lah'Mah is meat mixed with eggs flavored with all spice and white pepper. 

                                                                          That's it.

Fry it.

Doesn't take long before it is ready.

Add bread and eat it as a sandwich. 

You can top it with ketchup, tomatoes, lettuce, or even guacamole, like me!

But truthfully, it is flavorful enough to be eaten on its own.

Ejjeh B'Lah'Meh - Meat Pancakes

1)1 pound ground beef

2)4 eggs plus 2 egg whites

3)1 tablespoon all spice

4)sprinkle of white pepper (I used black)

5)oil for frying

In a bowl, mix together all of the ingredients.  Heat oil on the stove. Drop 3 large spoonfuls of meat mixture and cook for 2 minutes on each side (until no longer pink). Continue until the meat mixture is all used up, stacking the pancakes on a plate lined with paper towels to absorb the extra oil.

Feeds 4 people. Or just 2 if a hungry husband is involved.