Rainbow Trout with a Rustic Herb Sauce

Anytime I prepare whole fish, thoughts of platters of crispy-skinned sardines and red mullet (or Sultan Ibrahim as it's called in Lebanon) flood my vision.  It was my favorite way to eat fish growing up - crispy fish, lemon to squeeze and a garlicky tahini sauce!!

Today, we're not making those, but another seriously yummy and super easy recipe.  It was inspired by a TV show called "Under the Sun", where the host visits these gorgeous rustic villages and towns all over the world, talking to farmers about organic and sustainable farming.  Great show! 

I had a bunch of herbs at hand and a couple of fresh trouts. And Voilà, lunch was ready in no time.

  

 Roasted Rainbow Trout with a Rustic Herb Sauce


2 Rainbow Trouts or the fish of your choice
Sea Salt
Olive Oil
Lemon 


Clean the fish if needed, sprinkle with salt and olive oil. Slice the lemon into thing circles and place about 2 or 3 slices inside each fish.  Place on a baking sheet and roast in a preheated over at 400˚F for 15 minutes (depending on the size of the fish).


Rustic Herb Sauce
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/2 cup roughly chopped herbs (I used rosemary, oregano, thyme, basil and mint)
2 green onions, diced (green part only)
2 tbsp capers, roughly chopped

1/4 tsp sea salt (adjust to taste)
Freshly ground pepper to taste


In a bowl, whisk the oil and lemon juice and then stir everything in.  Drizzle liberally over fish and enjoy!

Spiced Kale Chips

Hi there.  I'm still here and really wanting to share recipes.  A year later, I'm still on my detox diet and working really hard to reach a wholesome state of being. Although quite difficult at times,  it has been an enlightening path this detoxing thing.  I have had the opportunity to creatively explore our food and reinvent our meals.  I am fascinated and impressed by the kids' attitude towards the non-existence of sugar (of any kind) in our kitchen and many many other favorite things, and their resiliency to find other snacks to dive into.  

The snacks seem to take turns in the number one spot. And these past few weeks, Kale has been king!  Lacinato kale or Dinosaur kale is an heirloom plant from 18th century Italy, and has these scaly, embossed leaves.  They make for the perfect snack, packing quite a nutritional punch. 

As the kids settle down from the school day, we've made a habit of gathering at the kitchen table in the afternoon for a plate of kale chips, and a bunch of books or crafts.  I like these moments of quiet satisfaction, and while they playfully create new art pieces for the wall, I enjoy a short moment of silence reading and browsing through some favorite books.  

Spiced Kale Chips

1 bunch of kale, washed and completely dry

3 tbsp grape seed oil (or sunflower oil)

1 tsp sesame oil

Flavorings (sea salt, dried mint, ginger powder, chili powder, sumac, oregano, etc.)

This time I made a batch with sea salt and mint, and one with oregano and sumac. 

To prepare, separate the leaves from their stalks just by running the knife down the edge of the stalks on both sides of it.  You can save the stalks to be used in smoothies or discard.

Place the leaves on a dehydrator rack or an over sheet.  In a small bowl, mix the oils together. With a pastry brush, gently oil the leaves sparingly, sprinkle your choice of seasoning.

Place in a dehydrator set at 105˚F for 2 hours or in a 200˚F oven for 15-20 minutes until crispy.

- Remember that temperature settings may vary from oven to oven, do a test batch first.  The temperature has to be gentle in order not to burn the leaves which will have a bitter flavor.

Enjoy!

Squash Love

Hello.  It's the week before Thanksgiving. Wow.  It's my favorite time of year, the time when everyone is a bit more tuned in to family, to being with loved ones, to simply being.  Somehow, work becomes less important, problems less pronounced and a cloud of happiness and contentment sprinkles overhead these tiny moments of relaxed breaths.  Take some deep ones :)


Here's to this festive Fall moment! And to Squash of all types and colors. This hearty vegetable practically finds its place in just about anything I make.  I want to share with you some of my favorites, hope you'll try one or all.

Roasted Spaghetti Squash with Artichokes, Greens and Pomegranate 

 

 Roasted Delicata Squash Soup 

 Roasted Spaghetti Squash and Chanterelle Confit 

Lentil Squash Soup

 Pumpkin Apple Smoothie 

Roasted Red Kuri and Shiitaki Dumplings in a hearty Lamb Sauce

What a wonderful time in our lives!
Cheers to all.

Gluten/Sugar Free Apple Cranberry Tea Cakes

Another beautiful Fall day here.  A busy week ahead, in the kitchen prepping for three back to back birthdays (hubby and kids).  The kids' parties this year are especially challenging seeing as we are still on our detox diet.  I have been developing, testing and adjusting recipes last week, and I have found the cake part quite easy in relation to having to come up with a frosting for the cakes that is sugar free, dairy free, soy free, coconut free, etc.  Phew!  I'll have an update later on this exhaustive task.

 

So Happy Halloween!  Today I woke up with a recipe in mind to use the season's first cranberries.  We've been munching on them all day yesterday.  So delicious on their own and so much better than their dried counterpart.  They float like little jewels in the batter of these little tea cakes.


If you have a sweet tooth, you will need to add some more sweetness to them, because these cakes are delicately sweet.  Although they are delicious just as they are with a glass of rice milk or some lemon verbena citronella tea. I hope you like them too.

Gluten/Sugar Free Apple Cranberry Tea Cakes

1/2 cup superfine sweet rice flour
1/2 cup potato starch
1/4 cup all purpose gluten free flour (I used King Arthur Flour)
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/2 cup brown rice syrup ( you can substitute for agave)
1/4 cup grape seed oil
1/2 cup almond milk or rice milk
2 tbsp blonde flax seed meal
2 tsp truvia
2 eggs, room temperature
1 tbsp vanilla
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/2 cup fresh cranberries
2 cups apple chunks (I used 2 winesap apples)

Peel the apples and cut in chunks, place in a bowl and mix them with the lemon juice to avoid discoloration.
In the bowl of a mixer, beat together eggs, brown rice syrup, vanilla, and salt until well blended and doubled in size.  Add almond milk and mix again.  In another bowl, whisk  all other dry ingredients until well blended and fold into the liquid mixtures.  Add oil and run the mixer for a few seconds until all blended.  Fold apples and cranberries into batter.  Bake at 350˚F for 15-20 minutes depending on the size of the mold used.  Let cool completely before handling.

Halloween Thoughts

For as long as I can remember, I've been a seeker of information - an eternal student.  I love to know the history of how everything originates, why we do the things we do, where the traditions came from, why we cook certain foods on certain holidays.  Sometimes, the answers are fascinating but mostly I am often reminded that we have all shared a similar or the same history and essentially we are One.

This Halloween weekend, as you are wrapping your little ones in their superhero, princess or furry costumes, take a moment to breath in the air that our ancestors and ancient families breathed thousands of years ago.  And while, on that cool autumn night, they were calling on the departed souls for advice, we can - with that breath- allow our hearts to be free and open them wide, radiating light around our beautiful planet and lifting those that need it to the possibility of this new world and this new Earth.

We have segregated ourselves by nation, language, religion, class, color, height, beauty, possessions and every possible sub-category, and that will not serve us anymore, for ultimately we are all One People, sharing One Earth with One Heart and One Consciousness uniting us everywhere.

Happy Halloween Weekend to All!

Roasted Delicata Squash Soup - Perfect Welcome for Fall!

It's been a mostly rainy first week of Fall, begging for soups and autumn dishes - satisfying, colorful and healthy.  And on a personal note, I've been finding much satisfaction in clean and simple cooking, no fads, no trendy ingredients - just what naturally resonates with me.   Many of the recipes lately have been transmuted from flavors of childhood to present dishes that we are loving.   If I were to give you advice for your kitchen musings, all I would say is trust your intuition and work with ingredients that feel true to you.  Fads and trends come and go just as fast, find your core ingredients, and go wild!

I love using squashes in soups. Butternut, Delicata and Red Kuri are some of my favorites.  You can find some of my recipes here and here.  I recently was told by my Dr.  that I could almonds again.  To a nut'aholic like me, who has not been able to have any nuts since January, this piece of news was enough to cause some crazy dance moves in celebration.  I came from that visit, my mind racing with all sorts of concoctions I can achieve with some almonds.  Here is the result.

Roasted Delicata Squash Soup

For the Broth
2 quarts water
1 whole chicken, cleaned
2 bay leaves
4-6 kefir lime leaves
3 lemon verbena leaves
6 cardamon pods

Place all in a large pot, cover and simmer for an hour.  Turn off heat and let cool covered for 20-30 minutes.  With tongs, carefully remove the chicken and place in bowl to be pulled.   Strain the broth and set aside.

For the Soup
6 cups chicken broth
2 Delicata squash, roasted (you can also use Butternut)*
1 tbsp ginger, grated
1 tbsp olive oil
2 apples, roasted (any of your favorite sweet kind)
or 1/2 apple sauce, unsweetened
1/4 cup almond butter, unsweetened
1 1/2 tsp sea salt (adjust to taste)
1 tsp coriander, ground
Juice of one lemon to finish
Handful of fresh thyme to finish


In a large pot, over medium heat sauté the ginger with the olive oil for just under a minute.  In a high powered blender, add broth, squash, apples, almond butter and bring to a liquid.  Pour over the ginger, add the salt and spice and bring to a gentle simmer for 15 minutes.  Adjust seasoning to taste.  Turn off heat, pour lemon juice and add thyme.  Enjoy!


* To roast the squash and apples, slice in half, clean out the seeds, place on a baking sheet and roast at 400˚F for about 30-40 minutes until tender.  Sizes must be similar to finish roasting at the same time. Note, I use the squash unpeeled, but you can peel if you desire.

Gluten Free Carob Cake (Faux Chocolate Cake)

Years ago, carob was traditionally used as a sweetener in Lebanese baking.  To this day, many Lebanese love mixing carob molasses and sesame butter (tahini) to make a delicious sweet bite after a meal.  The molasses is made by soaking the carob pods in  water and reducing the extract to make a thick syrup.
Carob cake is a very traditional dessert made in the mountains of Lebanon, especially the area called "the District of Carob" (Iqleem el Kharoob) which is south of Beirut, in the Chouf Mountains.

 

This carob cake, however, is not the traditional recipe.  It has the reputation in my household as the other chocolate cake!  It smells and tastes quite close to chocolate, although die hard chocoholics would certainly disagree. You be the judge! The recipe has progressed from being vegan, sugar-free and gluten-free to the just the latter two.  It began as an experiment to come up with a dessert for the kids that was sugar free/grain free/chocolate free and vegan.  THAT feat was accomplished, and then in the past month was morphed to yet another great cake.  I hope you try it and let me know what you think.

 

Gluten Free Carob Cake (my faux chocolate cake)

1/2 cup brown rice flour

1/4 cup cornstarch

1/4 cup carob powder

1 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp sea salt

1 stick ghee (or butter), softened

3 eggs (I used small fresh eggs) or 2 extra large eggs

1/4 cup pear purée

1/4 cup almond butter

1/2 cup agave nectar

2 tbsp carob molasses (you can get it from any Mediterranean market) 

1 tbsp vanilla extract

1 tsp lemon zest

In the bowl of a mixer, whisk the ghee (butter) and agave until they form a smooth ribbon.  Add eggs one at a time and continue mixing to completely incorporate for about a  minute. Add pear purée and almond butter and blend all together.  Sift all the dry ingredients and fold into the liquid ingredients.  Pour the batter in a cake pan ( I used a 6"x2" round).  Bake at 325˚F for 35-45 minutes depending on your oven.

Stuffed Cousa in Lemon Herb Sauce

What a brilliantly sunny and mild week it has been.  The fig tree in the backyard actually believes it's Spring again and started blooming.  It's a sneak peak of a glorious Fall season, my absolute favorite.  It's a wonderful time to plan and organize, and of course to cook.   We are lucky to have a bountiful year-round Farmer's Market.  Last Thursday, I made my way there before the weekend rush and found these gorgeous looking Mediterranean Cousa Squash.  A delicate and mild squash that is traditionally braised in a sauce and stuffed with a variety of vegetables, rice or ground meat.

Here's a delicious and light recipe for another variation.

Stuffed Cousa Squash in a Lemon Herb Sauce

10 Cousa squash, cleaned and carved out 
2 cups water or stock if desired
1 cup brown rice, cooked
1/4 lb ground bison
1 bunch cilantro, finely chopped (divided in half)
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup lemon juice, fresh
1 + 1/2 tsp sea salt
1 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp chervil
2-3 lemon verbena leaves
1/2 tsp coriander, ground
Freshly ground pepper to taste

Carve out the cousa with a squash corer (usually found at Mediterranean stores). Reserve the pulp and add it to the stuffing.  Sprinkle a little salt inside the squash.  In a skillet with a little olive oil, sauté the meat with the ground coriander until done.  In a bowl, mix together the meat, cousa pulp, cooked rice and half of the chopped cilantro.  Add to it 1/8 cup of lemon juice and 1/8 cup the olive oil, 1/2 tsp salt and pepper to taste.  Mix well, taste and adjust seasoning.  Stuff the cousa and pack tightly.  In a heated heavy pot, drizzle the bottom with olive oil, then line the stuffed cousa.  Sauté for a couple of minutes, then add water until it covers cousa approximately 2 cups. Add the dried herbs, lemon verbena and 1 tsp salt.  Cover and cook gently over medium heat until the cousa is fork tender.  Finish with lemon juice and the rest of the chopped cilantro.  Serve hot or cold.

Brown Rice Pan Bread and a Chysamthemum Pomegranate Salad

Hello dear friends.   I've missed writing here.  I've been meaning to share this bread recipe for a long while.  We, Lebanese folks, love our bread and use it a whole lot in many different ways - rolled for sandwiches, as a scoop for stews, as a snack with zaatar.   Early in January, I had to find ways to replace this bread.  After many many tests I had come up with a really good substitute.
A brown rice bread that is packed with nutrition and flavor.  Its applications are similar to a pita bread or a tortilla, but more delicate.   Over the months, I have made it hundreds of times and shared the recipe with several friends and family members who were looking for alternatives to wheat or grain in general.  The kids and I love it warmed, drizzled with olive oil, sea salt and oregano. 
 

 I also want to share with you a wonderful easy salad.  This is the season for pomegranates, my favorite fruit hands down - I'm sure I've said that about peaches too!  When available during the very short season, I use pomegranate in as many recipes as I can.  During a recent trip to the local Asian market to pick up some, I spent time browsing the greens section packed with some wonderful greens, and picked up a few varieties of spinach, bok choy and chrysanthemum greens.  Tung Ho as it is labeled is a fragrant edible chrysanthemum which looks exactly like a leafy version of the ornamental plant.  I have been using it sauteed with a variety of herbs, brown rice and lamb, and in this greens salad that I will share with you.  Happy cooking! Enjoy.

 

Brown Rice Pan Bread

1 cup brown rice flour ( I use Lundberg's Golden Rose variety)

1/4 cup (packed) rice bran 

1/4 cup (scant) flax seed meal

1/2 tsp nigella seed oil (optional)*

3 tbsp olive oil

1 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp sea salt

2 cups water 

 

Place all the ingredients (minus the water) in a large bowl. With a whisk, mix throroughly until the mix become grainy. This is to help the flour absorb the oil.  Make a well in the center and add water gradually mixing as you add.  Depending on the rice flour used, you may need more or less water.  Add it slowly and judge.  The consistency should resemble that of a runny pancake batter or a crepe batter.  Heat a flat non stick pan or griddle on medium high, measure a 1/2 cup of the batter and pour on the griddle in a circular fashion, starting from one point and ending at the same point.  The batter will spread to fill the middle.  If you notice the batter getting thicker, add a bit more water.  Cook the bread on one side until browned and then turn over to the other side.  Remove and place on a cooling rack before piling them up.  Refrigerate if not using on the same day.  The bread will last in the refrigerator for 2 days.

* Nigella seed has been middle eastern staple for thousands of years known in Arabic as Habbat al Baraka.  The oil is very fragrant with phenomenal immunity boosting qualities.  You can find it at Middle Eastern markets or online.  It adds a beautiful fragrant to the bread.

Chrysanthemum Pomegranate Salad

2 cups edible chrysanthemum, chopped

1 cup Italian parsley, finely chopped

1 cup dandelion, chopped

3-4 stalks green onions, diced

2 cucumbers, sliced

1 cup pomegranate arils

1 lemon, juiced - about 1/4 cup

1/3 extra virgin olive oil

1 tbsp pomegranate molasses

1/2 tsp sea salt (adjust to taste)

 

Chop all ingredients, place all in a bowl and toss until well blended.  Enjoy.

Mediterranean Chicken Salad with Artichoke Spinach Relish (dressing)

*Hello Friends, please make note of the new site address www.myfreshlevant.com

Do you sometimes dream solutions to your questions??  A couple of weeks ago, I did.   Let me backtrack a bit.  I'm one of those foodies that's always thinking about ingredients and how they would fit together to create new flavors.  This process has been on overdrive since my detox began (which I'm still on, believe it or not).  I went to sleep the other night with food on my mind.  I wanted to revamp the artichoke spinach dip to a dish that I could have, and I woke up the next day with a vague plan.

As I began chopping and dicing, everything sort of fell into place beautifully.   Since then, I have made this salad three times. I'm excited to share it with you today.

Mediterranean Chicken Salad with Spinach Artichoke Relish

2 skinless chicken breasts, grilled and diced
3-4 stalks celery, diced
1 large Granny Smith apple, diced
1 bunch green scallions, green stalks only diced ( if you use the whole scallion, 1/2 the quantity)
2 tbsp fresh thyme leaves
3 tbsp fresh oregano leaves 
1/4 cup fresh mint leaves, cut
3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 large lemon, juiced about 1/4 cup
1/2 tsp sea salt (adjust to taste)

Salt the chicken on both sides and brush with olive oil. Grill until done.  Set aside to cool before dicing.
In a large bowl, dice celery, apple, scallions, chicken.  Add herbs, olive oil, lemon and salt.  Toss well until blended.  Add 1/2 cup of the relish (recipe below) as dressing and toss well.  Taste and adjust seasoning to taste.



Artichoke Spinach Relish (dressing) 

1/4 celery, diced (about 1 stalk)
1/4 cup capers
1/4 cup scallions 
2 anchovy filets (can be omitted if you don't like them)
1 small jar artichoke hearts, drained
3 handfuls baby spinach
4-6 leaves fresh lemon verbena
3-4 sprigs marjoram, leaves only
2 tbsp lemon juice
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/2-3/4 tsp sea salt

In a blender, add capers, celery, anchovies, scallions, lemon verbena olive oil and lemon.  Blend until coarse purée. Add artichokes, spinach, salt and marjoram and blend (or pulse) until well mixed but not a smooth paste.  Keep it somewhat chunky.  Taste and adjust seasoning.  This relish will keep in the fridge for four days, and works great with any grilled item. Enjoy!