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Here is one of my favorite Lebanese traditions! Every year for Easter, it has been a tradition in our household to hard boil eggs with onion peels. On the morning of Easter Sunday, hard boiled eggs are served along with olives and labne or yogurt (and pita of course) for breakfast. Eva learned this technique for hard boiling eggs from her mother. *Everyone hard boils their eggs differently, the following instructions show how Eva boils them. As long as you are using the onion peels, you can feel free to hard boil your eggs in your own way! For this technique all you need are a handful of onion peels and white eggs (we used a dozen). Instructions: 1. Place some of your onion peels at the bottom of the pot and nestle your eggs over and around the peels 2. Add the rest of your eggs: tuck them in between and on top of onion peels (if doing more than a dozen, layer onion peels on top of each row) 3. Fill the pot with water (about 1 inch above eggs) 4. On medium heat, bring water to a boil 5. When the water begins boiling, let it simmer on medium low and set your timer for 9 minutes 6. After 9 minutes, turn the stove off and bring the pot to a sink. Run cold water through your eggs to cool them (remove the peels once the water is cool enough) 7. Once your eggs have cooled off, they can be refrigerated or decorated in your favorite Easter basket :) Enjoy! One of the best parts about this wonderful tradition is the egg cracking game (I'm sure many of you know this game). One person holds their egg in their hand only showing the tip of it. Another person, holding their egg the same way, taps their egg on the other to see which egg cracks first. The person with the cracked egg is out of the game and the other person wins! I have so many lovely memories of playing this game as a child with my family!
Sometimes, the cook of the family deserves a break from cooking! Surprise them with one of Eva's recipes, that's exactly what Eva's husband did! :) After a long day of working, Eva came home to a very delicious surprise! Eva's husband Tony surprised her with some of her favorite Lebanese dishes! A pot of Mahshi Malfouf, a pan of Kibbeh Bassal, some pickled turnips, and an avocado were on the table and ready to be eaten up!
Tony was thankful that these recipes were online to help him get the dishes right and Eva was ecstatic to come home to such a lovely feast. By the end of this dinner, everyone was happy! Happy Sunday and don't forget to surprise your loved ones every once in a while with some delicious food! :) Last night for dinner we mixed Lebanese food with American food! We had cheeseburgers with Lebanese-style homemade fries and tabouli! These made the best sides for our burger! To make these fries, we cut potatoes into strips, seasoned them with salt and then deep fried them in olive oil. If you ever visit Lebanon, you will notice that on every dinner table, there will be a plate of these fries. These also go hand-in-hand with tabouli. They taste great together! I know of some people who like to top their fries with tabouli and let them soak in the tabouli juice. My mouth is watering... So good! I can't wait to eat this again! :)
We are not sure where Smeaddieh Bil Sayniyeh (translates to cream of wheat in the pan) originated, but Eva's mother used to make this dessert often! It's customary in Lebanese culture to feed your houseguests and make them feel special. This was my grandmother's go-to dessert to make when she had unexpected guests over. It's delicious and not only easy to make, but also very quick! The main ingredient is cream of wheat so it's similar to Harissa but not as heavy. It's also eaten with atyr, the super sweet and yummy syrup used in a lot of Lebanese desserts. Good luck! Ingredients:
Instructions: 1. To make your atyr: add your sugar, water, and rose water to a pot and bring to a boil 2. Let boil for 5 minutes and then turn your stove off. Stir in lemon juice and let cool 3. Preheat your oven to 375 degrees 4. Butter a baking pan, Eva uses a 12 x 7.5 (pyrex) 5. In a pot, bring 2 cups of milk to a boil 6. Once the milk begins to boil, gradually start stirring in your cream of wheat and keep stirring until it begins to thicken 7. Once it has thickened, turn your stove off and pour it into your buttered baking pan and let rest for at least a 1/2 an hour or more (overnight works too) 8. Place the pan in your oven for 20 minutes on the bottom rack
9. After 20 minutes, move the pan to your top rack and broil for 5 minutes (or until golden brown) 10. After it has become golden brown, let it rest for 15 minutes before cutting it into squares (or however you choose). Use a bread knife or serrated knife when cutting your Smeaddieh. 11. Add ricotta cheese (optional) and pour some atyr over it before serving Enjoy :) |