Lebanese Recipes by Habeeb

Lebanese Recipes by Habeeb:

Lebanese Salad
1 head Romaine lettuce
Two medium sized tomatoes
5 small salad cucumbers. If not available, use 1 or 2 English cucumbers (hothouse)
1-2 cloves garlic
¾ teaspoon salt
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
1½ tablespoon lemon juice

Smash the garlic with salt in a mortar and pestle or in the bottom of the pan. Add olive oil and lemon juice and mix well with a wisk or a fork to allow the garlic flavor to permeate the liquid.
Cut the lettuce, tomatoes, and cucumbers into bite-size pieces and mix thoroughly with the liquid dressing. Eat immediately.

Suggestion: Add dried parsley flakes and / or dried mint flakes to the salad and toss.
Hint: Do not prepare the salad ahead of time. Must be eaten immediately after preparation, otherwise the dressing will cause the vegetables to wilt and become soggy.

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Rice and Chick Peas (Garbanzo Beans)

1 lb. Stew meat cut in small pieces
1 medium yellow onion
2 Tbsp. Crisco vegetable shortening
4 cups water
2 cans garbanzo beans (15 oz. size)
1 1/2 tsp. Salt
1/4 tsp. Allspice
1 1/4 c. long grain rice

Cut pieces of meat into smaller pieces. Cut onion into small cubes. Melt Crisco in dutch oven. Fry meat until half brown, add onions and cook until they begin to become transparent. Add water and garbanzo beans to meat and onions. bring to boil and let boil for 5 minutes. Add rice, salt and allspice. (Water should be ½ inch higher than the rice. Add more if there isn’t enough.) Cook until rice is soft and water is evaporated. This dish should be cooked on medium heat.

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Lebanese Coffee (qahwa or 'ahweh)
2 1/2 cups water
Sugar to taste (I usually use 2 tablespoons)
1/4 cup (dry measure) Lebanese coffee. An additional one or more teaspoons make stronger coffee. My favorite brand of coffee is the famous Najjar brand, available plain or with Cardamom

Bring water to a boil in a rakweh (a tall narrow pot tapered at the top, used only for making coffee).
Take pot off burner. Add coffee and sugar and stir.
Place back on burner and bring to a boil again. Watch very carefully, otherwise it would foam and rapidly boil over. Move the rakweh to one side of the stove burner and hold it half-on the burner and half off the burner. Make a hole in the froth (or move the froth to one side) to release steam, otherwise it will boil over. Allow to boil for no more than 30 seconds. Remove from heat.

To drink: Use a Lebanese coffee cup or an equivalent,such as a demitasse.
Skim some of the froth and place in each cup. Let coffee stand for 5 minutes to allow the grounds to settle to the bottom of the pot. Gently pour coffee into the cups.

Warning: Lebanese coffee, like its Turkish sibling, is triple-strong. You can easily feel the caffeine kick into effect.

Variations:
1. Add sugar at the beginning then bring to boil.
2. If you are not sure whether you would like the cardamom taste, buy plain coffee grind and add two or three peeled cardamom seeds in the pot and boil with the water.


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Hummus:
Sorry, we cannot give this recipe away. It is a trade secret. However, let me tell you some information about this delicious appetizer and dip. Hummus is the Arabic word for chick peas (garbanzos). The more accurate name is “Hummus Bi Tahini”, meaning “chick peas with tahini”. Tahini is a paste made of 100% crushed sesame seeds and is available at most international food stores. Tahini by itself does not taste good at all. However, when added to chick peas, it gives hummus its distinctive taste.

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Baklava:
Sorry again, we cannot give the recipe away. It is even more of a trade secret. Thank you for your understanding. Please click on the button About Baklava on the top navigation bar to learn about baklava.

 

To our clients:  These recipes are available at www.habeeb.com for your enjoyment. If you use the recipes, please give reference to habeeb.com as the source. Thank you.

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