Brik

By Sue Nelson

One of my favorite snacks in Tunisia is a brik (pronounced breek); it is somewhat like a turnover, but different. Like a soufflé, it must be served immediately. A Tunisian brik always has an egg in it, but it can have other goodies such as tuna, potatoes, capers and parsley. The casing (malsouka, which is not available in the States) is a cross between phyllo dough and a spring roll sheet (for making eggrolls.)

A brik is deep fried, olive oil is best, then drained on a paper towel. Here is a tasty version which takes only 15 minutes to make.

1 small onion (optional)
1 six-ounce can of tuna
2 tablespoons of chopped parsley
2 tablespoons of grated Parmesan
4 eggroll or spring roll wrappers
4 small eggs
Olive oil for frying
Lemon wedges

Mix together tuna, parsley, Parmesan cheese, salt and pepper. Spoon about one fourth of the filling onto one half of each wrapper, making a well to hold most of the egg. Break an egg into each well and fold wrapping into triangle shape to cover the mixture and the egg. Seal both sides of the wrapping together. Fry in one half inch of hot olive oil (vegetable oil can be used, but olive oil works best). When brown on one side, flip over to continue frying. A couple minutes on each side is enough if the oil is hot enough. Serve sprinkled with lemon juice.

The trick is to hold the triangular brik with the point up while biting into it and not let the egg run down your chin. Good luck!

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Bubba Ganouj

By Alanna Nelson

This appetizer/dip is from Lebanon and Syria. Serve with slices of pita bread, crackers or as a dip with veggies (last two are my additions, first one is traditional)

1 medium eggplant
2-3 cloves garlic, crushed
juice of 1/2 lemon
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 cup tahini
6 sprigs of fresh parsley (flat leaved Mediterranean is nice, but curly works fine)

Roast the eggplant on a barbecue or flame until soft and tender. Alternately, place the whole eggplant in the oven for 30 minutes at 250° Farenheit, turning occasionally. Peel the eggplant and drop it in a food processor.

Add the remaining ingredients and blend until mixture is smooth. Garnish with more parsley, tomato wedges and black olives.

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Salata Kheyyar Bel-Labban (Cucumber Salad)

2 cups of yogurt
2 cloves of garlic (optional)
4 cucumbers
1 tablespoon dried mint
salt

Wash and peel the cucumbers. Cut in half lengthwise, then chop in semicircles. Put the yogurt in a bowl and mix in the chopped cucumbers, salt and crushed garlic. Sprinkle the salad with dried mint and chill. Serves two to four people.

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Fahqoos/Tmatim (Cucumbers and Tomatoes)

2 medium cucumbers
6 tomatoes (Roma or plum style tomatoes work best)
1 medium onion
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon olive oil
seasoning

Chop cucumbers, tomatoes and onion coarsely and mix together. Add lemon juice and olive oil and toss together. Toss in salt and pepper to taste. (Try the spice "tahbal" if available.) Chill several hours before eating for best blend of flavors.

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Salata Khadrah (Traditional Saudi Salad)

6 cucumbers
4 tomatoes
1/2 cup parsley
1 lemon
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
salt as needed

Wash cucumbers, peel and cut each one into small pieces as desired. Wash tomatoes, cut into small pieces. Wash the parsley and chop very fine. Combine the above in a bowl with the juice of one lemon. Add salt and pepper and mix well. Serves two to four people.

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Yemeni Eggplant Salad

Habeeb Salloum of Ontario, Canada presents the first contribution from Yemen, a country on the southern tip of the Arabian Peninsula formed in 1990 by the merger of Yemen Arab Republic (North Yemen) and People's Democratic Republic of Yemen, South Yemen.

This dish is served as an appetizer; dip or side dish. It serves four.

1 eggplant, about 1 pound
1 small Spanish onion, chopped
3 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 cloves of garlic, peeled and crushed
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/4 teaspoon cumin
1 dozen pitted green olives, sliced in half
1 small tomato, finely chopped

Roast eggplant in a 350° Farenheit oven for 1 hour. Remove and allow to cool. Peel and place in a food processor. Add onion, lemon juice, olive oil, garlic, salt, pepper and cumin. Process for about one minute. Place on a platter, then decorate with olives and tomato just before serving.

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Tabuli

By Sabi Atteyih

A popular dish in this country, this version of "Tabuli" (Tab-bu-leh) makes four servings.

Although united under the Ottoman Empire, the Arab countries were divided as a result of World War II. The divisions created borders which prevented the populations from interacting. Years of isolation and separation between the countries created variations in the cuisine. These variations are due to availability or lack of certain produce and spices.

1/2 cup bulgur (cracked wheat)
8 green onions, chopped
3 large tomatoes, diced
5 cups finely chopped parsley
2 teaspoons dried mint
1/4 teaspoon allspice
1/4 teaspoon black pepper

1/4 cup lemon juice
2 teaspoons salt
1/4 cup olive oil

Wash the cracked wheat twice and drain well immediately. (If the cracked wheat soaks up too much moisture, the taste will be bland. If rinsed properly, the olive oil will soak into the wheat.) Mix in the chopped green onions, tomatoes, parsley, mint, pepper and allspice. Refrigerate for two hours. Just before serving, add olive oil, lemon juice and salt. Start with a little salt and lemon juice and add if need be.

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Garlic Rice with Pine Nuts

Makes for a very nice and colorful rice dish. If you are a real garlic lover, then you can increase the amount by a few cloves. This recipe makes 4 servings and takes 15-30 minutes to make (10 -15 minutes prep time, 15 minutes cooking time)

1 small green pepper cut into strips
1 small red pepper cut into strips
1/4 cup pine nuts, or slivered almonds
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tablespoon margarine, melted
2 cups rice, cooked in chicken broth
2 tablespoons parsley, freshly chopped

Cook peppers, pine nuts, and garlic in butter in large skillet over medium-high heat until light brown.

Add rice and parsley; stir until thoroughly heated

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Couscous

In Tunisia it is a tradition to welcome guests with couscous. This recipe is from the kitchen of Mourad Chaouch.

1/2 pound meat (optional)
3 medium-size onions
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 small can tomato paste
1 cup garbanzo beans
2 small potatoes
4 ounces (1/2 cup) pumpkin or squash
1 pound couscous pasta
1/4 pound margarine
1 teaspoon coriander
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
salt and pepper to taste

Sauce: In a large frying pan, sauté diced onions with the meat (if any is used). Once the onions are transparent, slowly add the tomato paste, mixing it frequentIy. When the paste is well mixed (a few minutes), pour in 1/2 cup water with spices and let simmer at about 200° Farenheit for 10 minutes.

Put in all the rest of the chopped vegetables and cover with 2 cups of water. Let cook for 30-35 minutes or until meat is tender. If no meat is used, cook until potatoes are tender.

Couscous: If a box couscous is used, follow directions on box. If bulk couscous, use a large fry pan. Heat 1/2 cup water and 1 stick (1/4 pound) margarine. When it starts boiling, put in the couscous grains slowly and mix frequently. Once all couscous is wet, pour in 1 1/2 cups of water until barely covered. Let simmer at 200° Farenheit until the couscous is dry. Mix well and let simmer a few minutes more.

Serving: Slowly pour the sauce on the couscous, keeping the vegetables in a separate dish until enough sauce has been used on the couscous. Serve the vegetables on top of the couscous. Serves four Tunisians or eight Americans.

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Maqlouba (Upside Down)

This Palestinian recipe comes from Haifa Siam of Chicago. Haifa points out that the result feeds a large group and is traditionally served at family gatherings, Fridays (Muslims' day of worship) and feasts. During preparation, Haifa advises to keep in mind, "There is an Arab saying: "Your eye is your scale."

1 small onion
About 1 pound of meat or chicken (option: tofu or TVP)
1 1/2 cups rice
1/2 teaspoon turmeric (to color rice)
1/2 teaspoon habhal (Indian spice, ground)
2 1/2 cups oil for frying vegetables
2 midsize eggplants, or 1 cauliflower, or 1 dozen carrots
4 cups water
1 tablespoon salt
1 tomato (optional)
3 cloves garlic
1 cup boiled chickpeas
(You may want to experiment with a half teaspoon of additional spices)

Cut meat or tofu to desired sizes, wash and spice. Fry finely chopped onion in a small amount of oil, then add slices of meat/tofu and let steam for 5 minutes. Add water and let boil until tender (well cooked).

Cut vegetables. If you are using eggplant, put some salt on them and leave in water for a while so that it won't absorb oil after frying.

Fry vegetables in oil, then drain on paper. Fry tomato, then garlic. Put pieces of meat/tofu in deep pot, then tomato, garlic and vegetables so that they surround the meat/tofu.

Mix rice with some spice, salt and chickpeas; then add to the pot. Add water to cover rice (it should be about 1/2 inch above rice level). Let boil, then lower heat to simmer and leave until rice is well-cooked and fluffy.

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Spinach Pie

By Sabi Atteyih

Lebanon, Palestine and Syria, like most of the Arab League countries, are located at the crossroads between the West and the East. For thousands of years the area of the Middle East has been occupied by many different leaders from the early Greeks to, more recently, the French.

Influenced by the different civilizations, the cuisine in the Middle East developed into one which is fascinating, diverse and, most important, delicious.

I lived in the Middle East from 1963 (when I was born) to 1981, a relatively quiet time for the evolution of the cuisine. During that time, I learned from watching my family prepare traditional meals which were taught to my mother and father by their mothers and fathers.

The most valuable lesson I learned was that all ingredients are prepared from scratch. There is no easy way out and no short cuts. This fact makes the preparation of our food time consuming, but well worth the wait.

Our family moved to the states in 1981. My mother still believes in making things from scratch, but for me things have changed. Long hours at work, many hobbies and other commitments challenged me to find short cuts in making the food I grew up with yet does not sacrifice the superb taste.

The following is a recipe for homemade spinach pie. The estimated time of preparation is 30 minutes.

1 tube of biscuit dough (non-buttered kind), with 10 biscuits.
1/2 pound of fresh spinach, chopped to 1/4 inch (frozen spinach can be used)
1 large onion, chopped.
1/2 cup walnuts, ground to 1/4 inch
1 1/2 tablespoon lemon juice concentrate
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper

Mix spinach, onions, walnuts, lemon juice, vegetable oil, salt and pepper to make the stuffing.

Biscuit dough must be flattened and rolled into a 4 1/2 inch circle.

Place on full tablespoon of stuffing in the center of the circle and fold as shown. Bake at 375° Farenheit for 20 minutes or until golden. Serve hot or cold with a side of plain yogurt.

Chef Sabi Atteyih offers this alternative to a traditional spinach pie. Most is made with phyllo dough, which is thinner and more time-consuming to make.

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Moroccan Cookies (Semolina Cookies — Ghoriba)

Sweet butter
1/4 cup vegetable oil
2 large eggs
2 cups confectioners' sugar
2 2/3 cup semolina flour
1 teaspoon double-acting baking powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Heat 1/4 cup of butter in the oil. When melted, remove from the heat and set aside.

Use an electric mixer to beat the eggs until soft and fluffy. Add the butter-oil mixture and beat a few seconds longer.

Using the spatula, fold in the semolina flour, baking powder, salt, and vanilla. Blend well.

Preheat over to 350° Farenheit.

Prepare the baking sheets by smearing with dabs of sweet butter. Place the remaining 1/3 cup confectioners' sugar in a flat dish. Form the cookies by pinching off walnut-sized balls of dough and rolling between your palms until a perfect sphere is formed. (Dough is very sticky, so it's good to moisten your hands from time to time.) Flatten the sphere slightly, dip one side into powdered sugar and arrange on a buttered baking sheet.

Bake on the middle shelf of the preheated oven for 15-18 minutes. When they are done, the cookies will have expanded and crisscross breaks will appear on their tops. Allow to cool and crisp before storing.

Note: They will keep at least a month in an airtight tin container.

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Tumr Bel Nargine (Coconut Dates)

This recipe comes from the Winter '97 issue of Saudi Arabia which is published by the Information Office of the Royal Embassy of Saudi Arabia.

1 1/2 pound soft dates (for mixing)
1/2 teaspoon cardamom
2 cups grated coconut
6 tablespoons of butter
3/4 pound almonds
1/2 cup water

Blanch, peel and fry the almonds in oil until golden brown, place on paper towels to drain. In a pan, melt the butter, add pitted dates and stir well over low heat; dates should not stick to the sides of the pan. Remove from stove top. Add the cardamom and leave out to cool. Take a small piece of date dough, place an almond in the center and roll into a finger shape. Repeat using all the date dough. Roll each date finger in the coconut and arrange on a serving dish. Serves eight to ten.

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