Vegetables & Sides

Spinach and Feta Puff Pastry Slab Pie

categories: Recipes, Vegetables & Sides
Spinach and Feta Puff Pastry Slab Pie

I can’t believe we’re coming up on the end of 2018. How is it December already?! While I figure out how to get everything I need to get accomplished by the end of the year, let me tell you a little bit about one of my favorite ingredients; Puff Pastry.

You can find frozen Puff Pastry in the freezer section of your grocery store, and it is an absolute godsend. Puff Pastry is a buttery flaky dough used for savory appetizers and desserts alike. When you bake puff pastry it rises, because of the water used to make the pastry sheets. The water, mixed with heat makes the dough puff up. Frozen puff pastry comes in sheets [usually two in a box], which requires defrosting. The best way to defrost is overnight in the fridge. However, as we all know, I’m very impatient, so I defrost my puff pastry at room temperature, and slowly open up the folded sheets as they defrost, making sure not to break them.

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Spicy Lebanese Potatoes [Batata Harra]

categories: Posts, Recipes, Vegetables & Sides

Spicy Lebanese Potatoes

Food is a universal language. I’ve realized through my blogging journey that so many countries within close proximity have similar foods. Most notably, Mediterranean food has so many similarities. Take, for example grape leaves. Everyone seems to have a version of grape leaves (each by a different name) The Greeks, the Turks, and the Arabs each make their own version of stuffed grape leaves with rice and meat, or vegetables. Sometimes they’re served cold and other times hot. Despite language differences, we can agree that grape leaves, in whatever shape or form, are delicious. We don’t even need to speak the same language. Food is a universal language. (more…)

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Cucumber Greek Yogurt Dip

categories: Posts, Recipes, Vegetables & Sides

Cucumber Greek Yogurt Dip

Sometimes I think to myself, there should be a Netflix series based off of true events in my life. I’ve already thought this through. It would include narration, screenshots, and re-enactments based on true events. I’m still mentally working out the individual episodes and I’m not sure how I’d break the seasons up, or how many seasons would make up the totality of the series. But I’m telling you, I have some pretty good material to work with. Without getting too detailed, the last two weeks of February were outrageous. A lot a bit of drama, with a side of crazy is probably the best way to describe it.

You’ll want a bowl of Cucumber Greek Yogurt Dip and some chips to snack on for this one … (more…)

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Oven Baked Sweet Potato Za’atar Fries

categories: Posts, Recipes, Vegetables & Sides

Oven Baked Sweet Potato Za’atar Fries

I had the most amazing za’atar fries at Falafel Inc. in DC over the summer. If you haven’t been there, this small place off M street also has delicious falafel sandwiches, for the affordable price of $3. Not only are their falafel sandwiches $3, but get this … for every $10 earned by Falafel Inc., the restaurant feeds a refugee for a day through its donations to the World Food Programme. (This is not an ad, I just really love the food, the mission, and well, who doesn’t love falafel?). You have to get the za’atar fries. You will not regret it.

Admittedly, I got my inspiration from Falafel Inc. for Oven Baked Sweet Potato Za’atar Fries. (more…)

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Spicy Tomato Zucchini Noodles [Zoodles] with Kafta Meatballs

categories: Beef, Posts, Recipes, Vegetables & Sides

 

Spicy Tomato Zucchini Noodles with Kafta Meatballs

I saw a meme once that said something along the lines of, every girl’s dream is not to find the perfect man, it’s to eat whatever she wants without getting fat.

Spicy Tomato Zucchini Noodles with Kafta Meatballs

So. Much. Truth. Unfortunately, that requires going to the gym more than once a month and not eating all the things I love — bread, pasta, cheese, salt and vinegar chips, crispy chicken, etc. I know I’m not the only one struggling here! Although I do love pasta, there have been some pretty solid vegetable substitutes. I won’t lie to you and tell you zoodles or spaghetti squash taste anything like actual spaghetti. But it’ll do the job when you’re really trying to cut the carbs. Carbbsss … I’m still thinking about my Rosemary Green and Black Olive Bread. (more…)

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Sautéed Dandelion Greens [Elet]

categories: Posts, Recipes, Vegetables & Sides

Dandelion Greens

Last week, during my weekly visit to see my Tayta, she pulled out some sautéed greens, Elet (علت) and a few pita rounds. I hadn’t had Elet in a very long time and was really excited to share a plate with her. As we were sopping up the greens with pita bread, I asked for her recipe and diligently took notes (in my notes app), but I had one problem. I had to figure out what Elet was in English. After sending a couple WhatsApp messages to my cousins in Amman, I found that those delicious sautéed greens were actually dandelion greens. Sounds weird, right?

When I think Dandelions, I think those yellow flowers that grow between the grass and weeds. The ones I used to pick out to make makeshift flower bouquets for my mom. (more…)

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