Celebrating Nowruz

If you are at all familiar with Iranians and their cultures, you might know that our new year is just around the corner.  We celebrate our new year, Nowruz, the first day of spring.  Nowruz is the most important holiday in Iran. 

Preparations for Nowruz begin in the last month of winter.  During this month, Persians do a major spring cleaning around the house to start preparing for Nowruz.  The also purchase new clothes to wear for the new year and purchase hyacinth and tulip flowers.  It is customary to buy at least one set of new clothes. On the New Year's Day, families dress in their new clothes and start the twelve-day celebrations by visiting the elders of their family, then the rest of their family and finally their friends. On the thirteenth day families leave their homes and picnic outdoors.  

Another tradition for Nowruz is to make and serve sweets and baked goods. On this blog, I plan to do just that!  There is so much to our new year and I cannot possibly cover all the food and sweets, but will share a home-baked sweet that tastes like home.

Baklava Cake

4 eggs – whites and yolks separated

1 cup sugar

1 cup vegetable oil

1 ½ cup ground unsalted almonds

1 ½ cup flour

1 tablespoon ground cardamom

1 tablespoon baking powder

4 tablespoon milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  .  Sift the flour and the baking powder in a bowl and set aside.  Using an electric mixer, beat the egg whites until it turns white and forms a peak.  Add sugar and mix on medium speed.  Add vegetable oil and mix.  Add the egg yolks and mix again.  Then add the ground almonds while mixing, and then add the flour, baking powder and cardamom.  Add milk and mix again.  Using a heat-proof glass baking dish (13 by 9 inches), grease it with a cooking spray.  Pour the batter in the baking dish and bake in the oven for 30-35 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean.  Let the cake cool.

Syrup:

1 ½ cup sugar

1 cup water

2 tablespoon rose water

In a small sauce pan over medium heat, dissolve the sugar in water.  Add the rose water.

After the cake has cooled off completely, pour the hot syrup over the cake, making sure the entire cake is soaked by the liquid.

Optional:

2 tablespoon ground pistachio to sprinkle on top of the cake

 Baklava Cake

Traditionally, they cut this cake diagonally to create small bite-size diamond shapes so that it’s easy to serve and also enough to go around.

Happy Persian New Year to all who celebrate.

هر روزتان نوروز نوروزتان پیروز

 

Grandma's Famous Meat and Potato Patties

Times have really changed since I was a kid growing up!

I feel as we get older, families are becoming smaller AND farther away from one another.  Growing up, I was the only child being raised by a single mother.  I remember taking the school bus after school to my grandmother's house where I spent my most afternoons until my mother got off work to pick me up.  I have such great memories from those days.  My grandmother was the kind of person whose house was open to ALL - neighbors, family members, friends of my aunts, uncles and so forth.  There was never a moment that no one was visiting.  I just loved the fact that it felt like a surprise to see who was stopping by that afternoon and possibly staying for dinner.  So naturally, my grandmother would be cooking something.  One of the common dishes was her famous meat and potato patties.  They were so good, so delicious that I couldn't wait for them to land on a plate!  She would make so much of them that there was enough to go around as well as to take home.  Those days were awesome.  There are moments that I wish I could create the same childhood memories for my kids.  Unfortunately, nowadays we not only live in different states, but even different countries! 

The following recipe is my grandmother's recipe that takes me back to my childhood.  Thank you grandma for being YOU, being a second mom and an amazing cook :)
 

Meat and Potato Patties

2 lbs baking potato (3 large potatoes) – cooked, peeled and grated

1 lb ground beef

1 medium onion – peeled and grated (make sure to drain and discard the liquid)

2 eggs

2 teaspoon sea salt

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

½ teaspoon turmeric

¼ teaspoon saffron powder

1 cup vegetable oil for frying

Beat the eggs in a small bowl.  In a large bowl, combine all the ingredients (except for the oil) and add the beaten eggs.  Mix well using your hands (you may want to put gloves on for this) until it’s a smooth, pasty mixture.  Using a large ice cream scoop, scoop out the mixture into your damp hands (so that the mixture won’t stick to your hands) and form a ball, then flatten them into a 3-inch round patties.  Heat some of the oil in a skillet over medium heat.  Gently place the patties on the skillet and brown them on both sides for about 3-4 minutes on each side.  Add more oil when necessary as you continue.

 Frying Patties

This recipe makes about 22 patties.  Serve hot or at room temperature.

These patties are great with salads or any yogurt dish - Spinach Yogurt from June 7th.  They also make great sandwiches using a pocket pita with a side of sour pickles.  You can also serve them as an appetizer for your next part.  I served them with the Persian Coleslaw from May 5th and they were a great compliment. 

Patties with the Persian Coleslaw

Trust me, I tried finding ways not to fry these, but frying is what makes these patties taste AMAZING.

I hope you will enjoy these patties.  Have a wonderful weekend!

Sweet or Savory

Sweet, of course!

Well after my savory, that is.  For this Valentine's, I decided to prepare some sweet recipes for you.  If you are a parent like me, this Hallmark holiday means absolutely nothing to you!  Actually come to think of it, it never really did even before kids.  My husband is not the kind to buy flowers.  Kind of glad for that.... here's why:

It was the first year of our relationship and there it was: Valentine's Day!  We had a long-distance relationship back then and he was also traveling for work abroad.  On Valentine's day, I received a package that looked like it was holding fresh flowers.  Clearly, that put a smile on my face, thinking how thoughtful of him to order these while he's traveling in Europe.  I opened the box and found a dozen of colored foil flowers with wire stems!!!  "HA?"  I was speechless - not in a good way but thought perhaps it was a joke.  Maybe I just had to get used to his sense of humor.  I immediately called my gay friend (because I was too embarrassed to call a girlfriend) and told him the story.  He couldn't stop laughing on the phone...  we figured perhaps my "boyfriend" was just humoring me.  Later I found out that the "rose buds" of these lovely foil flowers was a chocolate KISS!  This was not getting any better...  Of course, when my now hubby (then boyfriend) called, I thanked him for the gesture.  He asked how the flowers looked and how the chocolate tasted!  It was honestly hard to describe.  I'm not exactly sure how I answered but he gathered something was off.  So he asked what EXACTLY I had received and I explained.  He was floored (or at least sounded like he was on the phone).  It turned out that his employer had some sort of contract with this crazy company and one option on their form was "Chocolate Flowers."  This had given the impression that he was ordering chocolate with flowers, not the disaster box that I had received!  The worse part was that he had apparently paid a lot for that order too.  What a rip off, huh?  We of course laughed it off, but that was the LAST time he ever did anything for Valentine's and I'm perfectly fine with it :)

We usually try to have a semi-festive meal on this day and I make something sweet and chocolatey for post dinner.  While I was trying to figure out what to prepare for this post, I immediately thought of chocolate - of course!  I wanted to make a recipe that people can relate to but with a Persian twist.  I start thinking about ingredients and came up with not one, but two recipes!  I called them "chocolate brittle" then remembered that some call them "chocolate bark."  This started my search on the internet as to "what is the difference between a brittle and a bark?"  This was not an easy search I must admit, but apparently I wasn't the only curious person.  Someone had explained that a bark is made of semi-sweet and dark chocolate and has a higher fat content.  Brittle on the other hand, is made with white chocolate and has a lower fat content since there is no cocoa which makes it a sweeter confection.  This explanation actually made sense to me and since I already had my ingredients sorted out with both dark and white chocolate, I named them "Dark Chocolate Bark" and "White Chocolate Brittle."

Dark Chocolate Bark

Ingredients:
1 cup semisweet chocolate - finely chopped

1 cup bittersweet chocolate - finely chopped

¼ teaspoon saffron powder

1 cup walnuts

1 cup golden raisins

Melt the chocolates in a glass bowl by creating a double boiler (set the bowl over a pot of simmering water) add the saffron powder and mix well.  Line a sheet pan with parchment paper.  Pour the melted chocolate over the paper and spread to form a rectangle – it doesn’t have to be a perfect rectangle.  Sprinkle the walnuts and raisins over the chocolate and press them down gently with the palm of your hand to make sure there is a point of contact.  Set aside for 2 hours until firm.  Cut the brittle in small pieces and serve at room temperature.

 Dark Chocolate Bark

Persian White Chocolate Brittle 

Ingredients:
1 cups white chocolate - finely chopped

½ cup whole pistachios

Peel of 1 orange – candied (recipe below)

¼ teaspoon dried rose petals – crushed (optional)

Melt the chocolate in a glass bowl by creating a double boiler (set the bowl over a pot of simmering water).  White chocolate takes longer to melt since it has a lower fat content.  Line a sheet pan with parchment paper.  Pour the melted chocolate over the paper and spread to form a rectangle - it doesn’t have to be a perfect rectangle.  Sprinkle the pistachios, orange peels and crushed rose petals over the chocolate and press them down gently with the palm of your hand to make sure there’s a point of contact.  Set aside for 2 hours until firm.  Cut the brittle in small pieces and serve at room temperature.

 White Chocolate Brittle

Candied Orange Peels 

¼ cup water

¼ cup sugar

1 teaspoon rose water

Peel of one orange

Thinly slice the orange peels.  Put the peels in a small sauce pan and cover them with enough water.  Bring the mixture to a boil then let it simmer over low-medium heat for about 30 minutes.  Drain the water and repeat it again.  This process will take the bitterness out of the peels.

 Boiling Orange Peels

 
Heat the water and sugar in a small sauce pan.  Once the sugar dissolves, add the rose water.  Let it simmer until it starts thickening.  Dice the orange peels.  Then add the orange peels and allow simmering until it starts bubbling and the orange peels are completely coated.  Once the liquid is reduced by about half of what you initially started, you can take the peels out and lay them on a wax paper.  Allow to cool until they start hardening a little.

 Making Candied Orange Peels

Enjoy these amazing sweets.  Gift them and eat them!

 Bark & Brittle

Have a sweet Valentine's Day!


(Notice my ingredients for the brittle were half of the ingredients of the bark... that was because I never really liked white chocolate and didn't want to end up with so much leftovers.  It turns out the brittle was more popular among friends.  Who knew?!)

Tailgate Party Part II

To follow on our previous blog, I decided to post a recipe for those who are vegetarian.   Here's the most perfect recipe for you.  It's healthy, delicious and comforting.

Lentil Dip

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

1 small onion – finely diced

1 cup of dry lentils – cleaned and washed

¼ teaspoon turmeric

3 oz tomato paste

1 ½ teaspoon sea salt

¼ teaspoon fresh ground pepper

3.5 cups of water

2 tablespoon fresh squeezed lemon juice

1/8 teaspoon saffron powder

1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley (for garnish)

In a medium sauce pan, heat the oil and sauté the onions over medium heat for about 10 minutes or until they are slightly golden - stirring occasionally.  Add the washed lentils and mix well until they start looking glossy.  Add the turmeric and mix well until the lentils and onion are coated.  Add the tomato paste and mix well.  Add water and mix well.  Put the lid on and bring to a boil.  Add salt and pepper.  Then let it simmer for about 2 hours over low heat with the lid on until the lentils are well cooked and the fluid is mostly evaporated (if the lentils are not cooked and the liquid is gone, add more water and allow to cook longer).  Add lemon juice and saffron powder and mix well.  Serve hot or at room temperature.

For garnish, you can chop some fresh parsley and add a tablespoon on top.

I served this dip with home-made Lavash chips.

Lavash Chips

Preheat oven at 350 degrees.  Cut a sheet of Lavash into small pieces.  Layer them on the baking sheet.  Leave in oven for 8 minutes until they are dehydrated and slightly golden.  Serve with your desired dip.

 Lentil Dip with Lavash Chips

Enjoy and have a wonderful Super Bowl weekend.  Go Giants!

Tailgate Party

Before moving to New York, I lived in Indianapolis, where I got my engineering degree and also worked as an engineer at General Motors.  People in Indiana love their sports and take them very seriously.  But they also love tailgating before the start of the games.  I was never into sports, but found tailgating to be a lot of fun.  There was a particular restaurant about 45 minutes outside of Indianapolis, which was quite hard to get a reservation.  The tradition was that you drove up early enough, put your name down on their list and while waited for your table, you tailgated in the parking lot.  NOW, that's a kind of "sport" I like :)  This was my very first AND only tailgating experience and I loved it.

With the Super Bowl being so close - especially now that the Giants are playing - I thought it was only appropriate to dedicate this post to this event and have a tailgate-style party at home.  The idea of sliders is just so interesting to me.  Did they make a come-back or did I make a discovery?  Because everywhere I look, I see sliders on the menu!  I think they are great.  I noticed that our local burger joint even offers them on their adult menu - you get three mini burgers with the bells and whistles and they are absolutely delicious.  I also like how they fit so nicely in my hands AND they make me feel like I am eating less!  I decided why not turn a Persian dish into sliders?

So, I prepared a tomato-based beef stew "Khoresht / خورشت" which you can create several variations by adding different kind of fried vegetables (such as, zucchini, eggplant, okra and etc. to create a different dish).  There are also other styles of Khoresht that are not tomato-based.   Khoresht is traditionally served over steamed white rice.  In this case, I obviously skipped the rice part to create a Persian Bite.

Persian Beef Sliders

Ingredients:
1 lb of beef stew meat
1 medium onion - finely diced
2 tablespoon vegetable oil
3 oz of tomato paste (1/2 of a 6 oz can)
1 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1/2 cup of sour grapes* or 2 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon saffron powder
2 1/2 cups of water

In a medium pot, heat the oil and sauté the onions over medium heat for about 10 minutes or until they are slightly golden - stirring occasionally.  Pepper your meat and then add the beef chunks and brown them on all sides over high heat.  Add the turmeric and lower the heat to medium.  Mix well until the meat and onion are coated.  Add the tomato paste and mix well.  Add water and mix well.  Put the lid on and bring to a boil.  Add salt and then let it simmer for about 2 hours over low heat with the lid on until the beef chunks are fork-tender.  Add the sour grapes and saffron powder and mix.  Let it simmer for another 30 minutes.  Turn heat off and let it cool for a little.  Fork the meat before placing it over the slider buns. 

To add a little texture, you can sauté zucchinis - cut thin lengthwise - and place them over the forked beef on the sliders.

Yummy Sliders

I believe this recipe will go really well with the Persian coleslaw from our May 5th post.

*Note: Sour grapes are unripe grapes that have a sour flavor.  They are seasonal and you will be able to find them at the middle eastern specialty stores.  You can substitute by adding Sour Grape Juice (also available at middle eastern specialty sores and available all-year around).  Add 1 tablespoon at a time to get the desired tangy flavor.

Happy tailgating and enjoy your sliders!

New Year, New Routine and More

Hello blog readers!  Happy belated New Year.  Been a while, huh?  Hope you all ended 2011 beautifully and started 2012 fabulously.  With the start of the new year, I decided to have a new routine.  I don't like calling it a "resolution" simply because it's not.  I cancelled my ongoing 4-year membership at the gym and decided to add some new workouts to my routine.  A great friend - a sister blogger who by the way has an awesome blog: FORMERLY FAT MOM- introduced me to her boot camp group.  I have also signed up for Pilates.  In the past three weeks, I have been trying to juggle my new schedule with kids, house work, cooking and even blogging.  Just like any new job, it just takes time to "figure it out."  But I must admit that for the first time in my life, I'm not checking the clock or starting the countdown while I workout!  Perhaps, I have matured in that area, but I do love it.

I have always been the kind of person who didn't believe in diets, weight loss and so forth - mainly because I didn't like them.  I believe that as long as you eat in moderation, not only you stay steady but also you tend to satisfy your cravings (therefore no backfires later on!).  I do however believe in staying healthy and being fit.  After my second child, I joined a boot camp and ended it 1.5 years later last May.  Ever since, my body went through some sort of a withdrawal and I was in so much pain for at least a couple of months after that.  My legs and calves were in so much pain that doing my daily chores seemed like a torture.  It really was a weird feeling and I wasn't sure what was going on with me or my body until I had a doctor visit and we were discussing what had changed in my routine.  AND $1000 later after running all kinds of blood work, we came to the conclusion that my body was simply reacting to not being active anymore!  I also had some iron deficiency, but that's not new with me as I have had anemia before.  Honestly, I could have saved that $1000 and put it into my new workout routine.  Oh well, you learn something new everyday...

This whole experience prompted me to do something new and something that I enjoyed doing.  So far, I really enjoy my workout routine.  This doesn't mean that I may not change it ever because change is something I constantly need ;)

Okay, enough about workout talk... Let's bake!

If you know anything about Persians or their culture, you must know how much they love their fresh brewed tea.  Growing up, I remember that my grandmother's tea kettle and tea pot was on the stove from dawn (when she got out of bed) till dusk (or until she went to bed).  She had tea in the morning, mid-day, after lunch, mid-afternoon and evening.  The art of tea making however is also a whole other story or even a blog... you simply don't drink the tea - that you brewed in the morning - in the afternoon!  It was "against the law" at my grandmother's house and she could tell from the taste of the tea whether it was made earlier or not!  I never got into tea drinking as much as I was exposed to it, but I definitely liked the ritual and how it was served in mid-afternoons - SWEETS.  Whether these sweets were dried fruits, small home-baked cookies or cakes, I just loved having a cup of tea for those reasons! 

The following recipe is what you usually find at the Persian bakeries in Iran.  It's a great mid-afternoon snack with your tea as well as a great companion for your morning coffee.  On cold winter days, I enjoy a cup of herbal tea (tea bag version!) in mid-afternoon with something sweet like this.  I love the simplicity of this cake and I hope that you will too.

Walnut and Raisin Loaf 

Ingredients:
6 eggs - whites and yolks separated
1 stick of butter
1 cup of sugar
1 cup of all-purpose flour + 1 teaspoon
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 /4 cup raisins
1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Sift the flour and the baking powder in a bowl and set aside.  Mix the walnuts, raisins and 1 teaspoon of flour in a bowl and set aside.  Your cold ingredients should be at room temperature.  Using an electric mixer, beat the egg whites until it turns white and forms a peak, then set aside.  In a separate bowl, using an electric mixer beat the egg yolks; add sugar and beat again.  Add the butter and the vanilla extract and beat well until the batter is well mixed.  Using a spatula, add the egg whites to the yolk mixture and fold into the batter.  Then add the flour and baking powder in 3 batches and fold into the mixture using your spatula.  DO NOT beat the batter.  Add the walnuts and raisins to the mixture and mix gently.

Using a loaf pan, make sure you either butter the pan or use a cooking spray to grease it before you pour the batter in.  Then pour the batter in and put in the oven.  Bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour (depending on your oven).  Do a toothpick test and see whether on not the cake is ready.  Let the cake cool and then pull it out of the pan.  Serve while still warm or at room temperature.  You can save the rest of the cake wrapped in foil at room temperature.  If you decide to put it in the fridge, you can then heat it up in a toaster oven.

Butter Loaf with Walnuts & Raisins

Enjoy your afternoon tea :)