Moussaka on Mashed Potatoes.

This is the best thing ever. Leftover moussaka on fluffy mashed potatoes. Tonight will be my second time eating it like this and I wouldn't mind having it again tomorrow!

Lebanese Moussaka

A few nights ago I went to a local Lebanese restaurant and ordered the moussaka. It was so delicious. Velvety pillows of eggplant with chickpeas and onions in a tomatoey sauce spiced with cinnamon and allspice. I knew I had to make it at home. I used the recipe from 'Tables of Lebanon' but instead of cooking it in the oven, I let it simmer low and slow on the stove for an hour. It was perfection. I enjoyed my moussaka on the patio along with a side of hummus, bread and pickled turnips.

Potato Boats.

So I had a big bag of potatoes that needed to be used up. I scanned through all my cookbooks but nothing was calling my name so I went online. And I found this. I changed them up a little which is why I called them "boats" rather than "skins". They are kind of a cross between a potato skin and a stuffed baked potato. I first "baked" the potatoes in the microwave then I scooped out the flesh. I followed the instructions to bake the skins first after brushing them with a oil/spice mixture. I used the potato flesh for the filling by mashing them with Earth Balance, Vegenaise, Tofutti Cream Cheese, garlic powder, onion powder, dried parsley and all purpose seasoning. I brushed the tops with olive oil and sprinkled a bit of imitation bacon bits before baking. They were sooooooooo yummy. They were crispy on the outside with fluffy insides. They reminded me of these frozen potato boats that my parents used to buy for us from the store. Can't wait to make these again.

Black Eyed Pea Salad

I was thumbing through an Iraqi cookbook from my collection called "Delights from the Garden of Eden" and was inspired to make this salad after reading a description of A Medieval Appetizer of Black-Eyed Peas. It's simply black eyed peas tossed with onion, tomato, garlic, lemon juice and sumac juice. I made mine with onion, tomato, garlic, lemon juice, cilantro, dried dill, ground sumac and olive oil. Was delicious!

Astara Barberry and Cumin Polow

A few weeks ago, I bought a package of dried barberries. I saw them at my local ethnic grocery and first thing I thought when I saw them was "Silk Road Cooking!". I've only cooked out of that particular book once and I was looking forward to trying something else from it. I highly recommend the cookbook. It's full of beautiful and exotic dishes that are sure to please the world traveller inside you. There are several recipes which call for dried barberries, which are a tart flavored dried berry that is commonly used in Iranian/Persian cooking.


I believe I got these for under $3.


They kind of look like smaller version of dried cranberries.


Here is how the beautiful "polow" (or pilaf) turned out. Beautifully studded with the red berries, pumpkin seeds (I substituted them for pine nuts) and flavored with golden caramelized onions, cumin seeds, cardamom, saffron and rosewater. The dish is named for Astara, which is a city on the southwest coast of the Caspian Sea on the Russian-Iran border. It's a very complex flavored dish with the earthiness of the cumin, sweetness of the browned onions and extreme tartness of the berries. I enjoyed the rice with the vegetable tagine I made yesterday which was the perfect accompaniment. The sweetness of the stew went well with the strong tartness of the pilaf.

Vegetable Tagine and PB & Pickle Sandwich

When I have lots of produce to use up, I like to find a recipe that utilzes them all in one pot. This vegetable tagine was the perfect thing. I based it off the recipe in 'Classic Veg.Cooking from the Middle East and N. Africa' and added tomato sauce, ras al hanout, coriander and a little water. I garnished with lemon slices and green olives stuffed with chiles.


Served with bread and sweet pickles. All the vegetables cooked away in the hot dutch oven which resulted in a meltingly tender melange. I used eggplant, zucchini, carrots, onions, peppers, potatoes and chickpeas.


Just wanted to show you my "snack of the moment". I used to read Sue Grafton's alphabet mysteries quite a lot and the main character Kinsey Millhone had several foods that she ate all the time. One of them was a peanut butter and pickle sandwich. I thought it was a genius idea. I don't remember if in the novels she used sweet or dill pickles but I prefer the sweet 'bread and butter' pickles. You might be cringing right now at the combination but don't knock it till you try it!

Tofu Scramble and Penne with Roasted Vegetables and Tunisian Pesto

For breakfast, I made a delicious tofu scramble with cremini mushrooms and red onions. Served with a blob of ketchup and HP sauce!


I'm going to a potluck today so I decided to make penne with roasted veggies and pesto. I used this tunisian style pesto that I got from a wonderful book, 'Classic Vegetarian Cooking from The Middle East and North Africa'. It's a delicious blend of fresh parsley, basil, almonds (I used walnuts), olive oil, garlic, butter (I used Earth Balance margarine), oregano, cayenne and parmesan (I used a vegan parmesan substitute). I added a squeeze of lemon for some brightness.


Tossed with the penne and roasted veggies. How festive!