BRUCK // RECIPES

Recipes and Nutrition

 It's not enough to just exercise; physical training has to be undertaken in concert with a nutritious diet. I can't guarantee that every recipe listed below is the healthiest thing you could possibly eat, but most of it ought to be pretty tasty. Some of these are old family recipes, others are lifted wholesale from one source or another, and a few have my own touches added to them. Where appropriate, the original sources have been listed. A few additional resources are included with the SARA section of HARDAC, and will be linked here once SARA is up and running.

I made several abortive efforts to do more cooking between 2007 and 2010, and particularly in 2009, when I was a bachelor living in southeastern Virginia. Of particular note during that period were the now out-of-print Gitmo Cookbook, which consolidated the halal recipes that the Navy cooks prepared for Gitmo detainees; and A Man, a Can, a Plan: 50 Great Guy Meals Even You Can Make by David Joachim, which I received as a gift from my boss. (The latter recipes, among others, can also be found at the DoD Joint Culinary Center of Excellence website.) I intended to try some Libyan recipes, but encountered some challenges sourcing (or even identifying) some of the ingredients.

Since I got married, my wife and I have taken a couple of cooking classes from "The Moody Persian," Mahsa Darabi. We also got a copy of Food of Life: Ancient Persian and Modern Iranian Cooking and Ceremonies by Najmieh Batmanglij as a wedding gift, and made a couple of attempts to cook recipes from it; and I bought a copy of The Food of Oman: Recipes and Stories from the Gateway to Arabia by Felicia Campbell, and I've made a couple of the simpler items. I was really excited to get a copy of Moorish by Ben Tish, and then discovered that the recipes weren't actually authentic, so I've either unloaded it, or plan to in the near future.

At this point, we actually subscribe to Hello Fresh, which has been great. I actually feel like I've learned a lot about cooking because of it. That said, it does act as something of a deterrent from trying recipes from the sources listed above! Finally, the last four recipes in this section are particularly special, because they were my great-grandfather's recipes. My great-grandfather spent many years as a distinguished professor of English literature at Oregon Agricultural/State College/University, and was also registrar for a number of those years. He was also an accomplished amateur geologist, and had a passion for making fine candy. Although I never met him personally, my great-grandfather has had a profound impact on my life, having influenced my education, my interests, even my religious faith. I'm fortunate to be able to include several of his candy recipes at the conclusion of this page.

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Main Courses and Standard Dishes


Shepherd's Pie 2.0
Source: Food Network/Rachael Ray (modified)


Ingredients:
  • 2 russet potatoes, cubed
  • 2 tablespoons sour cream
  • 1 egg yolk
  • ½ cup cream
  • 1 bulb garlic, chopped into fine pieces
  • 2 pounds ground lamb
  • 2 cans mixed peas and carrots
  • 1 can sweet corn
  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 1/3 cup Tillamook cheddar cheese

    Directions:
    1. Boil potatoes in water until tender, about twelve minutes. Drain.
    2. Mash potatoes, adding sour cream, egg yolk, cream, and garlic.
    3. While potatoes boil, preheat a large skillet over medium high heat.
    4. Brown and crumble meat for three or four minutes. Be sure to spoon away the grease once the meat is cooked.
    5. Preheat broiler to high. Fill a small rectangular casserole dish with meat as bottom layer, and vegetables as second layer.
    6. Spoon potatoes over meat evenly, and evenly top with sliced or grated cheese.
    7. Broil six to eight inches from the heat until cheese bubbles and potatoes are evenly browned.

    Tom's note: This recipe originated as the linked recipe from Rachael Ray's 30 Minute Meals. In January of 2010, I altered her recipe to create what I now call Shepherd's Pie 2.0. I eliminated a number of ingredients, substituted others, and added several of my own (garlic, corn, and Tillamook cheddar cheese). The end result is fantastic, and makes between six and eight servings.


    Steak and Guinness Pie
    Source: RecipeLand


    Ingredients:
  • 2 ¼ pounds beef steak round
  • 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon brown sugar
  • 1 tablespoon raisins, seedless (optional)
  • 5 each onions
  • 10 ounces Guinness Stout
  • 8 slices bacon
  • 3 ounces lard
  • 1 x parsley leaves chopped
  • 1 each pastry short pastry recipe for double crust pie in deep dish

    Directions:
    1. Cut the steak into bite sized cubes.
    2. Roll in seasoned flour, and brown in the lard with the bacon, chopped small.
    3. Place the meat in a casserole dish.
    4. Peel and chop the onions, then fry until golden.
    5. Add onions them to the meat.
    6. Add the raisins (if wanted) and brown sugar.
    7. Pour in the Guinness, cover tightly. Simmer over a low heat or in a very moderate oven (325° to 350°) for two and a half hours.
    8. Stir occasionally, and add a little more Guinness or water if the rich brown gravy gets too thick.
    9. Line a deep pie dish with half the pie crust, and bake it blind.
    10. Add the Guinness/beef mixture from the casserole, cover with the top layer of pie crust, and bake until finished, probably about ten more minutes.


    Crock Pot Lasagna
    Source: Big Brother Caleb


  • 1 lb lean ground beef (or lamb)
  • 2 jars (each 24 oz) spaghetti sauce
  • 2 cups water
  • 1 lb whole-milk ricotta cheese
  • 2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley (optional)
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 18 ruffle-edged lasagna noodles
  • 1½ lb. mozzarella cheese, grated
  • 1 cup parmigiano-reggiano 1. Brown ground beef (or lamb).
    2. Add your favorite spaghetti sauce, add water and bring to a simmer. Set aside on low heat stirring occasionally.
    3. In a small bowl, combine the ricotta, parsley, salt and pepper to taste and set aside.
    4. Spray the inside of your slow cooker with cooking spray or use a disposable bag. Spread a layer of sauce at the bottom of the slow cooker. Cover the sauce with a single layer of uncooked lasagna noodles (3), breaking the noodles to make them fit. Spread about 1/3 cup of the ricotta mixture over the noodles. Now top that with two cups of meat/sauce (that is simmering on the stove), then sprinkle with about 1 cup of mozzarella and ¼ cup of the parmigiano-reggiano. Now repeat this process three more times
    5. Cover and cook in your slow cooker on low for about four hours. The noodles should be soft and cooked through. You may want to add a sprinkling of the parmigiano-reggiano before serving.


    Irish Stew
    Source: Crock-Pot.com (modified)


    Ingredients:
  • 2 lbs lamb stew meat
  • 4 potatoes
  • 2 onions
  • 1 14½-oz can beef broth

    Directions:
    1. Slice potatoes, onions, and lamb stew meat.
    2. Layer potatoes and lamb in slow cooker.
    3. Add remaining ingredients.
    4. Cover; cook on Low eight to ten hours or High three to five hours.


    Lime Baked Fish
    Source: The Gitmo Cookbook (modified)


    Ingredients:
  • 1 flounder fillet
  • 2 tablespoons butter or margarine (melted)
  • 2 tablespoons lime juice
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon crushed paprika

    Directions:
    1. Preheat oven to 400°.
    2. Combine butter, lime juice, salt, and paprika; mix well.
    3. Place flounder fillet in a glass pan. Pour mixture over the fish fillet.
    4. Place glass pan in oven for fifteen to eighteen minutes. Makes about three servings.

    Variations:
  • The original recipe is for Lemon Baked Fish, but I prefer lime, so I substituted lime juice.
  • The original recipe also calls for two fish fillets, to be cooked on a large cookie sheet. I didn't have a cookie sheet, and I didn't need six servings, so I only used one fish fillet in a glass pan, with excellent results.
  • The original recipe calls for parsley as a garnish. If parsley's your thing, then go for it.
  • I actually used about three tablespoons of both butter and lime juice, and once I'd poured it into the pan, I tipped the pan around and back and forth to continually coat the fish. Once I was done cooking, I discarded the excess.
  • I found this recipe to be delicious, and remarkably easy to make. If you're a hungry bachelor, or a hungry bachelor who's eager to impress a date by cooking for her, this recipe won't let you down.


    Coronation Chicken
    Source: BBC Good Food


    Ingredients:
  • 6 tbsp mayonnaise
  • 2-3 tsp mild curry powder, to taste
  • ½ tsp ground cinnamon
  • 2 tbsp mango chutney
  • 1-3 tbsp sultanas, or to taste
  • 500g shredded cooked chicken

    Directions:
    1. Mix the mayonnaise, curry powder, cinnamon, chutney and sultanas together and season with black pepper.
    2. Add the shredded chicken and stir to coat in the sauce. Stir in 2 tbsp water to loosen if needed, then season and serve as desired.


    Rice Cooker Turmeric (Yellow) Rice
    Source: A Peachy Plate


    Ingredients:
  • 1 cup basmati rice use US measuring (dry) cup
  • 1 ½ cups chicken broth
  • ¼ cup minced yellow onion
  • 1 tablespoon melted butter
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1 teaspoon minced garlic
  • ½ teaspoon turmeric powder
  • ¼ teaspoon kosher salt

    Directions:
    1. Wash the rice and drain well in a mesh strainer.
    2. Add all the dry ingredients to the pot.
    3. Mix all the dry ingredients together well.
    4. Add the chicken broth and give it a stir.
    5. Set the cooker to start and forget about it!
    6. When done cooking, fluff it up with a fork and serve right away!


    Crock Pot Cinnamon Applesauce
    Source: Big Sister Criscina


    Ingredients:
  • 10 apples (peeled, cored and cubed)
  • ½ cup sugar (or as much or as little as you want, you don't even have to use it if your apples are sweet)
  • 1 tablespoons cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon nutmeg
  • ½ tsp ginger
  • ¼ tsp ground cloves
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • ½ cup water

    Directions:
    1. Throw everything into the crock pot. For the first hour, cook on high.
    2. Turn to low for around 6 hours. Stir occasionally. 3. If you like it chunky, simply eat it when its done. Otherwise, put it in a blender.


    • Libyan and Mediterranean Recipes


    The bulk of these recipes were lifted directly, then "translated" to whatever degree necessary, from the now-defunct Libyan Jamahiriya Broadcasting Corporation website. I haven't had the chance to make most of the recipes, but I attempted the stew a couple of times when I was a clueless bachelor. At some point, I'd love to spend some more time attempting these recipes. For now, they're provided as a historical record for anyone who wants to give them a try.


    Sharba Libya (Libyan Soup)
    Source: LJBC

    Ingredients:
  • ½ to 1/3 pounds lamb meat cut into small pieces
  • ¼ cup oil or "samn" (vegetable ghee)
  • one large onion
  • 1 tablespoon tomato paste
  • 2-3 tomatoes
  • 1 lemon
  • ½ cup orzo, salt, red pepper, Libyan spices (hararat) or cinnamon

    Directions:
    1. Sauté the onion with meat in oil. Add parsley and sauté until meat is brown.
    2. Add chopped tomatoes, tomato paste, salt, spices, and stir while sizzling.
    3. Add enough water to cover meat, simmer on medium heat until meat is cooked.
    4. Add more water if needed, and bring to a boil.
    5. Add orzo, simmer until cooked.
    6. Before serving, sprinkle crushed dried mint leaves, and squeeze fresh lemon juice to taste.

    Variations:
  • More parsley can be added at the end when the orzo is almost cooked to give a fresher parsley flavour.
  • Spices may be added to the meat while sautéing so it will absorb the salt and the spices.
  • Then add the tomato and simmer longer for the tomato to be cooked in the oil.
  • Substitute chicken or beef for lamb.
  • Add uncooked soaked chick peas with the meat.
  • Add cilantro with parsley.


    Zemmeetah
    Source: LJBC


    Ingredients:
  • ½ kilogram whole grain barley (shi'eer bwajah)
  • ¼ kilogram cumin seeds (kammoon 'areedh)
  • ¼ kilogram corriander seeds (kuSber)
  • 1 cup sweet cumin
  • olive oil
  • sugar or dates

    Directions:
    1. Boil the barley in water, drain and dry completely.
    2. Roast the dry barley (stir frequently in a hot, dry frying pan, for a few minutes, like you would do with coffee beans).
    3. Do the same with the other three ingredients.
    4. Mill each ingredient and pass through a seive (gherbaal).
    5. Mix thoroughly and place in dry containers.
    6. Label the containers (Z-mix) and date them - good for 2 yrs.

    Serving the dish: Pour the desired amount of the Z-mix into a bowl, moisten slightly with sprinkles of water and some olive oil, and mix with finger tips. The mixture should be a little dry, loose and olive-brown in color. Traditionally, a handful of the mixture is squeezed into a stick shape ('abbood), and sweetened with sugar or eaten with dates. For best results, zemmeetah is accompanied with a good size glass of genuine (full-strength) buttermilk, followed by a cup of undersweetened green tea (the original formula).


    Cuscus bil Bosla
    Source: LJBC


    Ingredients:
  • 1½ lb cuscus
  • 1 large spoon of oil
  • 1 tea spoon of salt
  • ½ cup water
  • 4 large onions
  • 2 spoons (medium) of butter
  • 5 slices of lamb meat
  • 1 cup garbanzi beans
  • 2 potatoes
  • 2 jalapenos
  • ½ spoon chili pepper
  • 2 spoons tomato paste

    Directions:
    1. Pour oil in a frying pan, add the meat and slices of onions. Cook it until its turn yellow.
    2. Add some spices, tomato, beans and 1/2 cups of water.
    3. Cook for two hours under low heat. Add some water if necessary. Keep turning the mixture from time to time.
    4. Cut the four large onions in thin round sizes and put them in a saucepan under the low heat. Cook it until it turns yellow.
    5. Add butter and a little salt, chili or pepper. Leave it until it's cooked.
    6. Add the round slices of onions into the sauce and while the sauce is cooking, add the cuscus and a spoon of oil and salt.
    7. Steam it for the period. Serve with some sauce poured on it.


    Osban
    Source: LJBC


    Ingredients:
  • dwara and masareen
  • 1 shibt
  • kabda and heart (meat (habra))
  • 2 spoons of tomato paste
  • 4 green onions
  • 1 cup of rice
  • 3 selantro (maadanous)
  • 1 spoon of salt
  • 1 spoon red chili
  • 1 spoon black pepper
  • 1 spoon bzaar
  • 1 spoon hararat
  • ½ cup of oil
  • 1 spoon mint (na’naa)

    Directions:
    1. Clean the dwarra and masareen with hot water and put them in a large bowl. Marinate with lemon juice and salt and leave it for an hour.
    2. Wash them again to remove salt and the lemon residues.
    3. Cut the vegetables and the meat (habra and kabda) into small pieces.
    4. Mix the vegetables, meat, and the balance of ingredients in a large bowl.
    5. Stuff the masareen and pieces of karsha.
    6. Put four cups of water, tomato and spices in a pan and boil it.
    7. Put the stuffed masareen and karsha in the frying pan and heat it up until it’s ready.


    Dolma (Stuffed Grape Leaves)
    Source: Uncle Phaedrus


    Ingredients:
  • 1 jar grape leaves
  • 1 medium onion, diced
  • ¼ cup olive oil
  • 1½ cups uncooked rice
  • 2 cups water
  • ½ cup fresh parsley, chopped
  • 2 tablespoons fresh dill, chopped
  • 1 teaspoon fresh mint, chopped
  • ¼ cup feta cheese, crumbled
  • ½ cup pine nuts
  • ½ cup raisins
  • ½ cup lemon juice
  • Salt and pepper, to taste

    Directions:
    1. In a saucepan, sauté the onion in olive oil until light brown.
    2. Add rice and brown lightly.
    3. Add the water, salt, and pepper.
    4. Bring the water to a boil and simmer for five to seven minutes, or until water is absorbed but rice is only partially cooked. Make certain rice does not stick or burn.
    5. Add all the ingredients except the lemon juice and mix well. Drain the grape leaves and place one tablespoon of filling in the center of each leaf.
    6. Fold the sides in and roll the leaf up.
    7. Place stuffed leaves in a pot in even and tight rows covering the bottom of the pan.
    8. When the bottom layer is complete, start another layer. Continue rolling dolmas until all of the filling is used.
    9. Add ½ of the lemon juice and enough water to cover half of the rolled leaves.
    10. Place a plate on the top layer to hold the stuffed leaves down and to prevent them from unrolling while cooking.
    11. Simmer over low heat until most of the liquid is absorbed, about 45 minutes.
    12. Remove the plate and dolmas from the pan, drizzle with olive oil and lemon juice, and serve. May be served warm or at room temperature.
    13. Serve with yogurt and mint sauce if desired.


    • CBN Persian Recipes


    A number of years ago, a friend sent me a recipe card from the Christian Broadcasting Network. The card featured several Persian recipes that were meant to be served together for "Sunday dinners." It's been about fifteen years since I got the recipe card, so I won't tell the folks at the CBN media team if you don't!


    Persian Leg of Lamb with Pomegranate Marinade
    Source: CBN


    Ingredients:
  • 1 leg of lamb (1½ to 2 lbs) butterflied, bone removed
  • 1 tablespoon ground coriander
  • 1½ teaspoons ground cumin
  • 1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 10 pods cardamom (or 1½ teaspoons ground)
  • 1 cup pomegranate juice

    Directions:
    1. Place spices in a spice grinder or a clean coffee grinder. Grind spices together until they are well combined.
    2. Place the lamb flat on the kitchen counter or cutting board with the meaty side facing up and the fatty side facing down. This way, when the roast is rolled, the fat will be on the outside, basting the meat throughout cooking. You may need to pound a few areas with a meat mallet to uniformly flatten the lamb as much as possible.
    3. Let themeat rest for 20 minutes to soften and come to room temperature. Rub the spice mix into both sides of the meat and sprinkle with sea salt.
    4. Roll the lamb up tightly and tie with moistened kitchen twine.
    5. Place in a large bowl. Pour pomegranate juice over lamb. Cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 6 to 10 hours, or overnight, turning halfway through.
    6. Heat oven to 375°. Remove the lamb from the marinade, and place lamb on V-shaped rack in roasting pan.
    7. Insert a meat thermometer into the thickest portion of the lamb and place it in the oven.
    8. Roast the lamb for a total of fifty minutes to one hour until thermometer registers 135° F.
    9. Remove the roast from the oven and let it stand at room temperature for fifteen minutes before carving in order to allow the meat to reabsorb the juices. The residual heat will raise the roast’s temperature to 140° F.
    10. Remove the twine. The meat will be medium rare and very tender. Serve with pomegranate molasses as a sauce, if desired.


    Pomegranate Molasses
    Source: CBN


    Ingredients:
  • 4 cups pomegranate juice
  • ½ cup sugar
  • 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed orange juice

    Directions:
    1. Combine the pomegranate juice, sugar, and orange juice in a saucepan set over medium heat.
    2. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the sugar has completely dissolved.
    3. Once the sugar has dissolved, reduce the heat to medium-low and cook, stirring occasionally, until the mixture has reduced to one cup, approximately ninety minutes. It should be the consistency of thick syrup and coat the back of a wooden spoon well.
    4. Remove from the heat and allow to thicken in the saucepan for 30 minutes.
    5. Serve in a sauceboat or directly from the saucepan with a spoon. Transfer leftover molasses to a glass jar and allow it to cool completely. It can be stored in the refrigerator for up to six months. Also good as a sauce for chicken or pork.


    Roasted Asparagus
    Source: CBN


    Ingredients:
  • 1 bunch asparagus
  • 2 tablespoon olive oil
  • salt and pepper (to taste)

    Directions:
    1. Trim and clean the asparagus, then toss with olive oil, salt and pepper.
    2. Arrange in a single layer in a Pyrex dish.
    3. Bake at 375° F until tender but still bright green (test for doneness with the tip of a sharp knife). Arrange on a platter and serve.


    Persian-Style Rice Pilaf
    Source: CBN


    Ingredients:
  • 4 tablespoons butter
  • ½ cup yellow onion, chopped
  • 2 tablespoons freshly minced garlic (optional)
  • 2 tablespoons of sliced almonds, toasted
  • 1½ cups uncooked basmati rice
  • ½ cup raisins
  • ¼ cup currants
  • 2 teaspoons ground turmeric (or to taste)
  • ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon salt (to taste)
  • pepper (to taste)
  • 3 cups low-sodium chicken broth

    Directions:
    1. Melt butter over medium heat in a medium-sized skillet (one that has a lid); add in onions and almonds.
    2. Sauté for 6-7 minutes or until the onion is tender and the almonds are golden; in the last two to three minutes of sautéing, add the fresh garlic to the pan, being careful not to burn the garlic. Burning will make it become bitter and you will have to start over.
    3. Stir in rice, raisins, turmeric, cinnamon, salt, and broth; bring to a boil; cover and reduce heat.
    4. Simmer for between twenty and twenty-five minutes, or until rice is tender and most of the liquid is absorbed. Season with black pepper and serve.


    Leeks with Cream and Gruyere Cheese
    Source: CBN


    Ingredients:
  • 4-6 leeks
  • heavy whipping cream
  • 3 to 4 oz. Gruyere cheese, grated
  • salt to taste
  • butter to coat baking dish

    Directions:
    1. Trim away the dark green portions of the leeks. Cut leeks lengthwise in two, and clean well, taking care to rinse all silt from between the layers.
    2. Arrange leeks cut-side down in a buttered baking dish. Sprinkle with salt.
    3. Pour into the baking dish enough cream to just cover the leeks. Sprinkle with grated Gruyere cheese.
    4. Bake at 375° F for 30-40 minutes, until the cream mixture has reduced enough so that it coats (rather than covers) the leeks and the cheese is a golden brown.


    • Libyan and Persian Desserts


    This section consolidates the deserts that were included in both the LJBC recipes, and the CBN Persian recipe card.


    Aseeda
    Source: LJBC


    Ingredients:
  • 2 cups of flour
  • 3 cup water
  • honey
  • butter
  • oil
  • salt

    Directions:
    1. Combine the water and salt in frying pan and heat.
    2. Add one spoon of oil. Add flour while stirring the mixture quickly with a wooden spoon.
    3. Remove the mix and keep stirring in a large bowl until it softens (at which point it becomes aseeda).
    4. Add some of the boiled water to the aseeda and heat it for 10 minutes.
    5. Beat the mixture again to soften and thicken.
    6. Pour in some hot butter or honey.


    Gharaiba bil Laoz
    Source: LJBC


    Ingredients:
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 4 cup flour
  • 2 spoon butter
  • 2 spoon butter
  • almond

    Directions:
    1. Heat the butter and add to sugar, almond, and flour, beating until it's soft.
    2. Preheat the oven.
    3. Cut the mix into crescent forms and arrange them in a large, flat pan.
    4. Put the pan in heated oven.
    5. Remove from the oven and sprinkle some sugar over the gharaiba.


    Kaak Leebi Hilw
    Source: LJBC


    Ingredients:
  • 1 cup oil
  • 1 cup orange juice or water
  • 2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 5 cup flour
  • kammon kaak
  • jaljalan

    Directions:
    1. Mix the sugar and eggs and put in the oil, water, flour, baking powder, kammon, and jaljalan.
    2. Cut the mixture into kaak forms and put the kaak in a large pan.
    3. Preheat the oven to 350°.
    4. Put the dish in the oven for fifteen minutes.
    5. Remove from oven and sprinkle sugar over the dish.


    Kaak Malih
    Source: LJBC


    Ingredients:
  • 1 cup oil
  • 2 spoon kahmera
  • flour
  • kammon kaak
  • zahr

    Directions:
    1. Mix kahmera with sugar and leave for five minutes.
    2. Put the flour in a bowl and add with salt, kammon, jaljalan, oil, and kahamera and mix until soft. Cover and leave it for an hour.
    3. Cut the mix in kaak forms and put it in the large pan.
    4. Preheat the oven to 350°.
    5. Bake the pan in the heated oven, removing when sufficiently baked.


    Basboosa
    Source: LJBC


    Batter Ingredients:
  • 1 pound semolina
  • 3 tablespoons melted "samn" (vegetable shortening)
  • 1½ cup sugar
  • 1 cup plain yogurt
  • ½ cup peeled almonds
  • ½ teaspoon baking powder

    Directions:
    1. Mix the sugar and yogurt in a bowl.
    2. Add the other ingredients and mix well.
    3. Set mixture in a greased baking pan, slice into portions, and let it sit for six hours.
    4. Bake in a preheated oven at 350°. Remove when the mixture is yellowish in color.
    5. Place an almond on each piece, slice again along original cuts, and return into oven until golden brown.
    6. Remove cake from oven, cool it, then pour syrup over its surface.

    Syrup Ingredients:
  • 1½ cup water
  • 1½ cup sugar
  • ¼ tsp lemon juice

    Directions:
    1. Dissolve sugar in heated water and bring to a boil.
    2. Cook on low heat until thick, about 3 minutes.
    3. Mix in lemon juice and remove from heat.


    Magrood
    Source: LJBC


    Filling Ingredients:
  • 1 pound dates (paste)
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 3 teaspoon oil

    Directions:
    1. Mix all ingredients together.
    2. Take a handful of the mixture, and begin shaping into a ball.
    3. Roll out the date ball into a long, finger-wide "snake".

    Dough Ingredients:
  • 3 cups semolina
  • 1 cup oil
  • ½ cup flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • ½ cup sesame seeds
  • 1½ cups warm water

    Directions:
    1. Mix semolina, flour and B.P. in a bowl. Add oil and mix well.
    2. Test by taking a handful of the mixture, and try to roll it in a ball by bouncing it gently on the work surface. If it crumbles you need to add a little more oil. The ball should be able to hold together.
    3. Take about 1½ cup of the mixture in another bowl.
    4. Sprinkle a little bit of warm water and mix with hands, almost kneading. Repeat until it forms a soft dough.

    Making Magrood:
    1. Shape dough into a long loaf.
    2. Press on the center of the loaf with fingertips to form a groove along the length of the loaf.
    3. Place formed date roll into the groove, and smooth the dough over it.
    4. Cut the loaf diagonally into 1½ inch pieces.
    5. Decorate (engrave) the top of each piece by using a fork or the special tool "mangasha" (wide tweezers with a serrated edge) and arrange on baking sheet.
    6. Bake in a preheated oven at 375-400° for about forty minutes, or until golden brown.
    7. Dip each piece in a boiling sugar syrup and garnish with sesame seeds.

    Variations:
  • Sesame seeds can be added to date paste.
  • Honey can be added to the sugar syrup for richer taste.
  • Substitute Baker's Ammonia for Baking Powder.
  • After baking, sugar syrup can be poured on top of the Magrood while hot in pan instead of dipping into the syrup.


    Roasted Pears with Goat Cheese and Honey
    Source: CBN


    Ingredients:
  • 2 Pears (Bartlett, Bosc or any good cooking pear)
  • 4-6 oz good-quality goat cheese (at room temperature)
  • honey
  • ground pistachios, raisins and currants for garnish

    Directions:
    1. Split the pears in half length-wise and scoop out center to make a well. Fill the hollow with the goat cheese.
    2. Place cheese-side up in greased baking pan. Bake at 375° F for ten minutes, or until the cheese melts and edges of the pear are golden brown.
    3. Drizzle with honey. Sprinkle with ground pistachios, currants and raisins. Serves four.


    Roasted Figs with Mascarpone Cheese and Honey
    Source: CBN



    Ingredients:
  • 1 pkg ripe figs (approximately 12)
  • 8 oz mascarpone cheese (at room temperature)
  • honey
  • ground pistachios, raisins and currants for garnish

    Directions:
    1. Make an x-shaped cut at the top of each fig. Peel sides back slightly and fill with cheese.
    2. Pull sides back up and set figs upright in greased baking pan. Bake at 375° F for ten minutes.
    3. Drizzle with honey. Sprinkle with ground pistachios, currants and raisins.


    • Family Recipes


    The final section of recipes were provided to me many years ago by a childhood friend's mother, whose father was acquainted with my great-grandfather. In addition to being a university professor and amateur geologist, my great-grandfather was well known in the local community as a talented candy maker.


    D.T.O. Fudge

    Ingredients:
  • 2 cups sugar
  • ½ cup milk
  • 4 squares bitter chocolate

    Directions:
    1. Heat these items slowly, when it bubbles and gets thick, (about the time it reaches 232°) remove from heat.
    2. Place in a pan coated with two pats of melted butter. Add a dash of salt, vanilla, and chopped nuts.
    3. Let it cool to the touch, then beat it until it loses its shine. An alternate way to cool and work the fudge is to cool it on the marble slab, adding other ingredients, and then work it with a putty knife until no longer glossy.
    4. Spread to the desired thickness, allow to cool thoroughly, then cut.


    D.T.O. English Toffee


    Ingredients:
  • 1 pound butter
  • 1 pound sugar (2 ¼ cups)
  • 3 tablespoons Karo light syrup
  • 3 tablespoons water

    Directions:
    1. Cook to 290° using a candy thermometer, stirring constantly on medium heat.
    2. Pour hot mixture on a buttered marble slab to cool, turning it over before it is totally cool to prevent shattering.
    3. Score slightly with a sharp knife.
    4. When cool, pour on melted dark or milk chocolate, and sprinkle with finely chopped nuts. Allow to cool, turn over, and repeat on the other side. Break into pieces.


    D.T.O. Fondant


    Ingredients:
  • 4 cups sugar
  • 4 tablespoons light Karo syrup
  • 1½ cups water

    Directions:
    1. Boil these items with a lid (stirring only occasionally) until it reaches 240°. Do not scrape the kettle.
    2. Pour on a marble slab that has been chilled with ice cubes.
    3. Work it with a wide putty knife until it sets.
    4. Allow to set a few minutes, then mold it into a ball.
    5. Add 1/8 cup of butter (1 tbsp) and work it in with the putty knife. Allow it to ball up again, then spread it out and add your flavoring (mint, rum, lemon, vanilla, etc.).
    6. Ball it up again, let it set a while to firm in air, leave no sharp points on balls.
    7. Form into drop centers, using your thumb and a fast roll and drop into dipping chocolate.
    8. Wrap the fondant in a damp cloth and put it in a jar with a lid so it will not dry out, and you can keep it a long time. Makes four pounds.

    Dipping Ingredients:
  • 4½ lb Semisweet chocolate
  • 1½ lb unsweetened chocolate

    Directions:
    1. Shave chocolate, put in a double boiler, over water. Heat chocolate to 150°, stirring until smooth.
    2. Set boiler in cool water until chocolate cools to 100° and it threads.
    3. Drop fondant drop center in chocolate, turn over with a loop, wipe bottom off on the next fondant center.
    4. Turn loop and allow drop to slide off into the marble slab.
    5. After dipping ten or so, the chocolate will have lost its sheen, and needs to be gently reheated. It will make white streaks if the dipping chocolate is too cool.


    Kraft Caramels


    Ingredients:
  • 1 1/3 Cups Eagle Brand sweetened condensed milk
  • 2 cups brown sugar
  • 3/4 cup light Karo syrup
  • ½ cup butter
  • few grains salt

    Later:
  • ½ Tbsp. vanilla
  • chopped nuts

    Directions:
    1. Mix first five items, cooking slowly to 240°, stirring almost constantly.
    2. Remove from heat, add vanilla and nuts if desired.
    3. Cool on marble slab.