Lamb Shank with White Beans Stew-Fasulia Beitha

4 lamb shanks

1 large onion chopped

1 pound white dry beans

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

2 tablespoon tomato paste

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 tsp. black pepper or Arabic spice(Baharat)

2 dried limes (noomi Basra) optional

8 cups water



Soak the white beans in water overnight. Drain the beans. In a pot, saute the lamb shanks in oil. Add onions,water and beans and bring to a boil for 20 minutes. Lower the heat and simmer for 45 minutes. When shanks are tender, add tomato paste, noomi basra, salt and spices. Cook for 30 more minutes. You could add more tomato paste if needed.
Serve with white plain rice.

You can buy dried limes from Middle Eastern markets. Wash them before using them. Crush them and remove the seeds. Drop them in the soup and leave them to boil for 15 minutes. They will add a sour flavor to the sauce.

Fresh Dates

Every Summer, during this time, I make a special trip to the Middle Eastern grocery store looking for fresh dates on the stem. They usually come in the market in mid August. They are crunchy and not too sweet. When I keep them on the kitchen counter for few days, the dates ripen and change color to light brown and taste very sweet.

Sometimes, I freeze a bag of them for use in the winter. These yellow dates turn light brown when I freeze them. They taste like candy!

Potato Kibbi-Potato Chap بطاقة جاب

You can make these kibbis and freeze them before frying or deep fry them and freeze them. Then you can reheat them in the oven before serving.

4 large Yukon Gold potatoes boiled
1/4 cup bread crumbs
2 tablespoons cornstarch
½ teaspoon salt
Filling:
½ pound lean ground chuck
1 small onion, chopped
2 tablespoons flat leaf parsley, chopped
½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon Arabic spice or
a combination of(allspice, black pepper, cinnamon and cloves)
1 cup vegetable oil for frying

Place the potatoes in the food processor and pulse until well mashed. Place it in a bowl and add the cornstarch, breadcrumbs and salt, and set aside.

Prepare the filling. Sauté the meat in oil and add the onions and spices. When cooked, add salt and chopped parsley, and set aside to cool.

Form the potato patties
Take a small piece of potato the size of an egg. Form a cup in your hand and stuff the middled with the meat mixture. Close the pattie and flatten it. Make sure to wet your hands in vegetable oil while forming the patties. Place the patties on a tray and refrigerate for 30 minutes or freeze.

Heat oil in the pan and drop in the potato patties. Add more oil as needed. When golden brown, turn to the other side. Drain on paper towel. Serve hot as an appetizer.

Baked Fish-Samak Maskouf السمك المسكوف العراقي

We usually buy fresh fish and have the fish opend along the spine to lay flat in the tray. Do not remove the skin. You can cut off the head.
Wash the fish and salt the inside of the fish. Put it in the colander to drain for 30 minutes.

5 pounds whole fish (trout or blue fish)
1 large onion, sliced
2 large tomatoes, sliced
1/2 cup chopped parsley
5 cloves crushed garlic
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon curry powder
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup vegetable oil for the pan
1/4 cup oil for the paste

Combine the tomato paste with the lemon juice, garlic, 1/4 cup oil, salt and spices to make a paste. Oil the baking pan and place the fish flat on the tray. Cover the cavity of the fish with the paste. Top it with the sliced tomatoes, onions and chopped parsley.
Place in the pan in a 400 degrees oven for 30-40 minutes.
Serve with plain white rice or saffron rice. Serve with pickels and Arabic salad.

Zucchini with Tomato Sauce (vegetarian)

Shijar bil Tamata

1 pound zucchini peeled and sliced
1 medium onion sliced
2 cloves of garlic sliced
1 tomato sliced
1 (8-ounce) can tomato sauce
½ teaspoon salt
½ tteaspoon Arabic spice or a combination of allspice, cinnamon and black pepper
1 cup water
3 tablespoons olive oil

Sauté the onion and garlic in oil for few minutes and add salt and spices and stir. Add the zucchini and sliced tomatoes and leave it to simmer for 5 minutes. Pour tomato sauce and water and leave it to simmer for 20 minutes. Serve with white plain rice.

We usually cook this dish with stewing lamb. You can boil the lamb for 40 minutes or until tender. Then add the onions, garlic, zucchini, tomato sauce, salt and spices. Simmer for 20 minutes and serve with white plain rice

Okra with Lamb Stew- Bamya

This is a very popular dish in Iraq. When you serve it in soup bowl with bread, it is called Shourbat Bamya, which is okra soup.

1 pound fresh or frozen okra
1 pound stewing lamb or beef
2 teaspoons oil
1 (16-ounce) can tomato sauce
3 cloves garlic, sliced
½ cup lemon juice
1 teaspoon salt
4 cups of water

Rinse the meat and drain in a colander. Heat oil in a pan and saute meat for 5 minutes. Add the garlic, water and tomato sauce, and simmer on low heat for 40 minutes, until the meat is tender. Add the okra and salt. Cook in the sauce for 20 minutes. Add the lemon juice and simmer for 10 more minutes.
Serve it with white plain rice.

When using fresh okra, make sure to cut off the stem side of the okra.

Date Nut Bread كيكة التمر

This is one of my favorite  breads. The combination of dates and cardamom is delicious! This bread taste even better the next day.
Date Nut Bread

2 cups all purpose flour
2/3 cup sugar
2 eggs
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup chopped dates
1 cup chopped walnuts
¼ cup chopped walnuts for topping
3/4 cup water
1/2 stick butter, melted
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon ground cardamom
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Soak dates in 3/4 cup of water and microwave for 1 minute to soften it.
Beat the eggs and sugar in a bowl. Add butter, and water with dates and stir. Gradually add the flour, salt and spices as you stir the batter. Add the baking powder and baking soda and stir. Add walnuts and combine.
Line a bread pan with parchment paper. Pour the batter in the pan, and sprinkle ¼ cup of chopped walnuts on top. Place the pan in the middle rack of the oven and bake for 45 minutes.

Leave it to cool for 15 minutes. Flip the bread pan on a wire rack to cool well. You can wrap it in foil and refrigerate it or freeze it for later use