Getting ready for Ramadan...

[hollyw 0]

Hey Ladies..

I'm going on an amazon.com shopping spree and I'm looking to add to my cookbook collection...

Do you guys have any favorite ME/NA cookbooks??

Or even just cookbooks in general... I've had mine for sooo long and I'm itchin' for some new hot and spicy dishes...

[noura 0]

Holly, I ordered 4 cookbooks from there recently... haven't made a lot out of them but have perused quite a bit... I'll put them in order of preference:

Couscous & other Good Food from Morocco by Paula Wolfert

Cooking @ the Kasbah by Kitty Morse

Cafe' Morocco by Anissa Helou

Casablanca Cuisine by Aline Benayoun

Also - The Complete Armenian Cookbook by Alice Bezjian was a gift from a client and has come in handy looking up recipes, but again, I have not cooked alot out of it. It's also a beautiful "coffee table" style book. The client who gave it to me is Armenian and he said the recipes are very good.

Let us know what you get....

Noura

[Meriem_DZ 37]

This is one I would like to have. The Momo Cookbook: A Gastronomic Journey Through North Africa. Does anyone here have it?

Meriem

[Henia 11]

I donnot know the name but a Claudine Rodin wrote a very good cookbook on MENA foods some years back...I have it in the USA and has been very helpful.

[hollyw 0]

This is one I would like to have. The Momo Cookbook: A Gastronomic Journey Through North Africa. Does anyone here have it?

Meriem

That is one I've been drooling over.. in hard cover it is so expensive, but I just found it in paperback. If you buy it used I think the paperback is around $18. I am in no position right now to pay $75 for a hard cover

[sereia 0]

i had my post deleted because right after i posted the other one, i noticed this one at the bottom of the page as a link! so i thought we could just read/add to these ideas from last year!

you aren't losing it, doodle!!! lol

This is one I would like to have. The Momo Cookbook: A Gastronomic Journey Through North Africa. Does anyone here have it?

Meriem

That is one I've been drooling over.. in hard cover it is so expensive, but I just found it in paperback. If you buy it used I think the paperback is around $18. I am in no position right now to pay $75 for a hard cover

i know this is almost a year old...but anyone who doesn't have the momo cookbook should get it! i've eaten at momo's several times and it was awesome! (i also have the book)

and here's my MIL's recipe for baghrir. i posted it a while ago in the sultan's kitchen but thought i'd add it here in case no one reads that post! these are really easy and delicious to make!

baghrir (moroccan spongy crepes)

* i had not measured anything but this is a rough estimate. its realllllllly easy to do! there are all kinds of recipes calling for eggs, milk, and two kinds of flours but i love this one! its also lower in fat. but once you top it with honey/butter that goes out the window;)

in the cup of a blender combine:

fill half the blender with slightly warm water (not hot!!!)

about 1 pound of semolina. maybe slightly over.

1 T salt

2 packages of dry yeast

blend until smooth. pour into a bowl, cover, and let it set until you see lots of bubbles on top. at least 10 minutes or more.

then ladel into a non-stick pan , (no cooking spray needed), swirl around to make a pancake shape, and cook on about medium heat.

it should bubble up all over the surface, once you see it almost all the way cooked, flip the pancake over and cook for another 5- 10 seconds on that side. then remove. its mostly cooked on that first side.

***then a delicious topping is to melt 1/2 butter 1/2 honey in a pan and drizzle on top. (note: i would use a neutral honey like orange blossom honey that you can get anywhere. a really strong honey might not be that great with this)

Edited July 13, 2007 by abdounjen

[hollyw 0]

oh yay... this was a fun thread.

i don't have any recipes on me now, but I thought I'd bump it up a bit so it didn't get lost in the mix.

[yassmine2878 1]

Does anyone know the name of this type of seasame candy/fortune cookie thingy? I think Ahmed once told me it was a Ramadan candy, but I cant for the life of me remember the name. Its folded up like a wonton/fotune cookie/tortellini and soaked in a sticky honey-like substance and doused in seasame seeds.

[MarocAmer 0]

Does anyone know the name of this type of seasame candy/fortune cookie thingy? I think Ahmed once told me it was a Ramadan candy, but I cant for the life of me remember the name. Its folded up like a wonton/fotune cookie/tortellini and soaked in a sticky honey-like substance and doused in seasame seeds.

I think you are looking for Shebakia: (fyi there are a lot of recipes for this cookie on the internet) ENJOY!

Ingredients

Amount Ingredient Preparation

4 pounds flour

3 pounds butter

2 pounds sesame seeds

1 tablespoon yeast

1 tablespoon saffron

1 tablespoon cinnamon, ground

1 quart vegetable oil

10 pounds honey

Directions

In a food processor process all the ingredients, except the honey.

Take a walnut-sized piece of paste and roll it out very thin.

Using a metal cut-out typically found in Morocco, with different

designs, cut out cookies and let them rise for 15 minutes.

Deep-fry the cookies in the remaining quart of oil in batches

over low heat just to brown.

Soak the cookies in the honey for 15 minutes.

Remove and sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds.

---------

Shebakeeya (the honey cake):

Recipe makes 60 (I made 1/5 of the whole recipe)

1 kg all purpose flour

2 eggs

4 tbsp vinegar

1 tsp cinnamon, ground

150 gr sesamseeds

1 tbsp anise seedd

little bit bakingsoda and vanilla sugar

14 gr dry yeast

200 gr margarine

150 ml olive oil

pinch of gomma arabica (?)

pinch of saffran

100 ml flowerleaveswater

1 kg honey

sunflower oil to bake in

Dryroast the sesame seeds.

Put in a big bowl: egg, vinegar, cinnamon, aniseed, 100 gr sesame seeds, saffran and stir.

Put in a other bowl: margarine, olive oil, orangeflowerwater en meng.

Put the mass in the second bowl in the first bowl and add yeast, arabia gom and flour and baking soda.

Make a big dough that is flexible.

Make 60 balls and put them in a plastic bag for 15 minutes.

Put some flour on the workingsurface an make of every bal a rectangel and cut 4 stripes, so the ends are kept together. Make a flower.

Bake it on 350ºF sunfloweroil until golden. Let it soak in the warm honey for 5 seconds and then sprinkle some sesame seeds on them.

[yassmine2878 1]

Does anyone know the name of this type of seasame candy/fortune cookie thingy? I think Ahmed once told me it was a Ramadan candy, but I cant for the life of me remember the name. Its folded up like a wonton/fotune cookie/tortellini and soaked in a sticky honey-like substance and doused in seasame seeds.

I think you are looking for Shebakia: (fyi there are a lot of recipes for this cookie on the internet) ENJOY!

Ingredients

Amount Ingredient Preparation

4 pounds flour

3 pounds butter

2 pounds sesame seeds

1 tablespoon yeast

1 tablespoon saffron

1 tablespoon cinnamon, ground

1 quart vegetable oil

10 pounds honey

Directions

In a food processor process all the ingredients, except the honey.

Take a walnut-sized piece of paste and roll it out very thin.

Using a metal cut-out typically found in Morocco, with different

designs, cut out cookies and let them rise for 15 minutes.

Deep-fry the cookies in the remaining quart of oil in batches

over low heat just to brown.

Soak the cookies in the honey for 15 minutes.

Remove and sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds.

---------

Shebakeeya (the honey cake):

Recipe makes 60 (I made 1/5 of the whole recipe)

1 kg all purpose flour

2 eggs

4 tbsp vinegar

1 tsp cinnamon, ground

150 gr sesamseeds

1 tbsp anise seedd

little bit bakingsoda and vanilla sugar

14 gr dry yeast

200 gr margarine

150 ml olive oil

pinch of gomma arabica (?)

pinch of saffran

100 ml flowerleaveswater

1 kg honey

sunflower oil to bake in

Dryroast the sesame seeds.

Put in a big bowl: egg, vinegar, cinnamon, aniseed, 100 gr sesame seeds, saffran and stir.

Put in a other bowl: margarine, olive oil, orangeflowerwater en meng.

Put the mass in the second bowl in the first bowl and add yeast, arabia gom and flour and baking soda.

Make a big dough that is flexible.

Make 60 balls and put them in a plastic bag for 15 minutes.

Put some flour on the workingsurface an make of every bal a rectangel and cut 4 stripes, so the ends are kept together. Make a flower.

Bake it on 350ºF sunfloweroil until golden. Let it soak in the warm honey for 5 seconds and then sprinkle some sesame seeds on them.

Ahhhh, thank you

[dollface41601 0]

Everything on this topic sounds sooo good, unfortunately, i havent heard of msot of it....maybe jordanian food, is specifically jordanian food but, our monthly staple normally consists of Mansaf, Kefta ma leban, Kefta ma tahini, fasoolia, (white beans or green beans) greek chicken, mlokhea, fish, umsakhen (sp) bamia, and a lazy day when i dont feel like cooking is Hummus, eggs, potaotes, olives, etc...

[hollyw 0]

bump

[caybee 21]

bump

Bump again 'cause of the other thread (unless I'm late ).

I'm Christian and my husband is Muslim. This will be our first Ramadan together, his first in the USA. I fasted with him last year - something to share while we were apart - and I plan to do it again this year, but I didn't cook Moroccan food for myself last year. My husband is a great cook, so he'll be teaching me. I know we'll need to cut back on the salt. I've tried making harira in the Crockpot, but it comes out too thick; the kind he likes is drinkable. I've found out I learn best from him rather than from a written recipe (for most things) so I'm just going to get a big stock pot and watch and learn.

My husband doesn't like to eat when he first wakes up. The weather will still be hot here, so our biggest challenge may be dragging ourselves awake long enough to get hydrated. Fortunately, he'll probably be around a few Muslims during the day.

I know about the other ways he will abstain, but unfortunately I've never been to Morocco during Ramadan, so I don't know what other intangibles he might miss during that time. I'll read this whole thread again when I have a few minutes, and I'll ask him more questions also. Maybe next year he'll have his green card and we can spend part of the month in Morocco.

[UmmSqueakster 54]

Ramadan tips for newbies:

*Practice fasting ahead of time - start now, and practice fasting for increasing periods of time each day. Start by going for 4 hours, then take a day off, then 5 hours, etc, until you get from fajr (before sunrise) until maghrib (sunset).

*If you're feeling sick and woozy, stop - I usually get ishy towards the end of the day if I haven't fasted for awhile. If you have a massive headache and are getting dizzy, by all means, break your fast, drink lots of water, take medicine and rest. If you're simply fasting to provide support, no need to make the day up. If you're muslim, you'll need to make the day up later, no biggy.

*Don't stuff yourself at iftar (meal to break the fast) - it's easier to say than it is to do, but eat slowly and deliberately. You'll be suprised that you don't need 3 plates piled high with food to be full. Plus, what's the point of depriving yourself during the day if you're just going to eat like a pig at night? Ok, ok, have a few pig out days, especially when you're at a community iftar and people have cooked lots of yummy foods. Mmmm.

*Watch what you eat - Ramadan is an excellent time to attend community iftars, meet lots of different people and eat new kinds of foods. However, eat fatty, greasy, heavy foods in moderation. Too much, and your tummy will make you pay in a few hours. Also eat new foods in controlled amounts. You never know if your tummy won't like them, and again, you may be paying after a few hours time.

*Don't neglect the fruits and veggies - There is often an tendancy to fill your plate with carbs and meat. While these are all delicious and filling, don't forget to leave some room for fruits and veggies. Your body will already be out of wack from the changed eating schedule, you don't want to cause it anymore problems by forgetting the necessary and important vitamins and minerals you get from fruist and vegetables.

Also, and article with good advice from a doctor on smart eating choices during ramadan.

A thread I wrote last year on When exactly does Ramadan start???? Ah the joys of living in the american muslim community

[worldcitizen 0]

Hi all-

I have a few questions. I work in an office that is all Muslim but me. What is the best way to handle Ramadan? I mean, i still plan on eating or i'll be a b**** on wheels. Of course i am not going to eat around them, but is this considered rude if i still eat, just not around them?

Also, my fiance is muslim and i want to support him during Ramadan. We're just starting our visa process, but eventually we'll be together. anyone out there that has a muslim spouse but don't parcipate in ramadan themselves? i was just trying to figure out the best way to go about it. again, i don't want poor faisal to get the brunt of my "i gotta eat and your in my way" fasting self.