Bulgur with tomato recipe

Cooking time: 20 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 cup coarse bulgur “Terroirs du Liban” (washed and drained)
• 2 cups water
• 1 big onion (finely chopped)
• 1kg fresh tomatoes (peeled and chopped)
• 3 garlic cloves (chopped)
• 2 tablespoons virgin olive oil “Terroirs du Liban”
• Salt, pepper (to taste)

Preparation

• Stir-fry onion and garlic in olive oil.
• Add tomatoes and seasonings.
• Keep on low heat for 5 minutes.
• Add bulgur and water to cover the bulgur.
• Bring to boil then keep on low heat until total evaporation.
• Serve hot. 

Bon appetit!

So who is Jim? And what is Fatteh?

Just like us, Jim is a gourmet who simply loves delicious food!

His eagerness to share with the world the secrets and richness of the Lebanese cuisine has driven him, along with his partner, to set up an online website dedicated to topnotch recipes that everyone must try out! Ladies and gentlmen, recettelibanaison.com is a mixture of food, of photography, of mezze, platters, breads and all types of desserts...While you're on the homepage, make sure to check out Les Recettes Minceur...I guess we all need some salad tips and ideas for summer time!

As for Fatteh...the origin of this dish is said to be Syrian...but it is commonly prepared in Lebanon and could have so many variations: with or without meat, with yoghurt or sometimes Tahini, could also include eggplants, some paprika and other types of spices.

Recettelibanaise brings you Fatteh as described below:

Ingredients (serves 4):
- 200 g cooked chickpeas
- 200 g of ground beef coarsely chopped
- 4 small pots of yogurt
- 2 cloves of garlic, crushed with salt
- 1 / 2 teaspoon of salt
- 1 / 2 teaspoon of dried mint
- 1 / 4 teaspoon of black pepper
- 1 / 4 teaspoon of pepper
- 2 tablespoons pine seeds
- 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil (olive oil could work as well)
- 1 loaf of Lebanese bread

Preparation:
-Cut the bread into small triangles and grill them in the oven.
-In a bowl combine garlic, salt, mint and yogurt.
-In a saucepan, brown the pine seeds until lightly browned then remove.
-Add ground meat and fry until it changes color. Season with salt and spices and then add the pine seeds.

Serving:

-Place the pieces of toast in the bottom of a dish.
-Add the chickpeas over the bread.
-Pour the yogurt.
-Top with minced meat and pine nuts.
-Garnish with a mint leaf!

Et voila...your perfect summer entrée! Bon Appétit!

And as my colleague would perfectly describe it"you will eat and cry" (from joy of course...a la libanaise)...!!

The Art of Italian Cooking...or how you can get involved!

The Art of Italian Cooking is launching a series of cooking workshops in collaboration with Fair Trade Lebanon, and is bringing you an exquisite menu made with fair trade products purchased from small Lebanese producers established in rural regions.

If you are bored of doing the same old things or just want to learn a few new recipes...then sign up for this fun cooking class, whether you are a group of friends (up to 8 people) or just a cozy couple, Nina will organize your workshop sur mesure and take you on a culinary trip through Italy and it's delicious recipes: Bitter orange peels à l'italienne, virgin olive oil and pizza dough, chicken slices in pomegranate marinade...and so much more!

Starting Wednesday the 22nd of June, Nina will use fair trade products in her menu and you will also be able to purchase those ingredients after the class is done.

How would you be getting involved?

The Art of Italian Cooking is actually raising funds for ALPHA (Association Libanaise pour la promotion Humaine et l'Alphabétisation), a Lebanese NGO founded in 1993 in the aim of promoting Human Rights and the development of our country through popular education.

By participating in this class you would be supporting two associations, ALPHA and Fair Trade Lebanon, and actively contributing to raising awareness for local and sustainable development.

Technical information:
Schedule of workshops:
Sundays from 4:30 pm until 6:30 pm
Tuesdays or Thursdays from 7:30 pm to 9:30 pm
Session fee: $ 30/ 50.000 LBP (including cooking kit & ingredients)
Session duration: 2 hours.
For reservation:
Mobile: 71211891 (Nina)
Email: italiancookingworkshop@gmail.com

The Art of Italian cooking facebook page: become fan and stay up to date with the latest news!

Roasted Cumin Chickpeas! so crunchy crunchy....

Great with BBQ, for nibbling with a fresh cocktail or on top of green salads!

Ingredients
•1 can chick peas (or boiled fresh chickpeas)
•2 Tbsp. olive oil
•1 tsp. turmeric
•1 tsp. cumin
•1/4 tsp. cardamom
•1 tsp. fresh oregano
•2 garlic cloves
•Dash of cayenne pepper
•Dash of Salt and pepper

Directions
•Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.
•Drain chick peas and rinse well with cold water. Let sit for 15 minutes in a colander to drain.
•Toss beans with olive oil and all above ingredients (except fresh oregano).
•Arrange on a baking sheet in a single layer; roast for 50 minutes or until browned.
•Serve warm with Parmesan Cheese and fresh oregano.

Note: You may also add a dash of paprika for a little spicy tasty!

A must try! enjoy it...!

Recipe from The Healthy Apple

Picture from The perfect pantry

Bulgur with Ginger and Orange Recipe!

Ingredients:
2 oranges
2 teaspoons canola oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons minced fresh ginger
1 cup bulgur, rinsed
2 teaspoons brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt, or to taste
1/3 cup slivered almonds
2/3 cup chopped scallions
1 tablespoon reduced-sodium soy sauce

Directions:
1. Zest 1 orange; reserve the zest. Juice both oranges. If necessary, add enough water to the juice to measure 1 1/2 cups total.

2. Heat oil in a large heavy saucepan over medium-high heat. Add garlic and ginger; cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add bulgur and stir to coat. Add the orange juice, brown sugar and salt; bring to a simmer. Reduce heat to maintain a gentle simmer, cover and cook until the bulgur is tender and most of the liquid has been absorbed, 15 to 25 minutes.

3. Meanwhile, toast almonds in a small dry skillet over medium-low heat, stirring frequently, until light golden and fragrant, 2 to 3 minutes.

4. Add scallions, soy sauce and the reserved orange zest to the bulgur; mix gently and fluff with a fork. Serve sprinkled with the almonds.

Ingredient Note: Fiber-rich bulgur?whole-wheat kernels that are precooked, dried and cracked?is sold in natural-foods stores and large markets.

About this recipe:
Bulgur is ubiquitous in Middle Eastern cooking but also pairs deliciously with Asian seasonings. This simple side dish is perfect with beef, lamb or poultry. For variations, substitute toasted sesame seeds for the almonds, or carrot juice (it is surprisingly good and certainly nutritious) for orange juice.

Source: KitchenDaily.com

Red Lentil Dahl Recipe

This list of ingredients is long but much of it is spices. The stew actually comes together quite quickly.

Ingredients:
Vegetable oil or grape seed oil
2 tsp. cumin seeds
2 tsp. black or yellow mustard seeds
1 medium onion, finely diced
1 ½ inches of fresh ginger, peeled and minced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 jalapeno chili, seeded, finely chopped
1 ½ tsp. curry powder
2 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. turmeric
Pinch of chili powder
1 tbsp. tomato paste
2 cups red lentils
2 cinnamon sticks (or 1, if large)
2 cups water
1 15-oz. can “light” coconut milk
Sea salt
Juice of 1 lemon
A bunch of mint, chopped
A bunch of cilantro, chopped

Instructions:
Heat just enough oil to coat the bottom of a large pan and add the mustard and cumin seeds. Be careful as they will begin to pop. Immediately add the onion, adjust the heat to medium, and cook until softened – about five minutes. Add the ginger, garlic, chili, curry powder, cumin, turmeric, and chili powder and fry for 3 minutes. Add the tomato paste and fry the mixture for 1 minute.

Add the lentils and stir to coat them with the oil and spices. Add the cinnamon stick, water, and coconut milk. Bring to a boil and then reduce the heat so the dhal is at a simmer. Cover partially and cook, stirring occasionally so it doesn’t stick to the bottom, until the lentils have partially lost their shape and are soft – about 15 minutes. Stir in more liquid as necessary for the consistency you want.

Remove the pot from the heat, season with sea salt and add the lemon juice to taste. At this point, you can allow the dhal to cool and then cover and refrigerate it overnight. When reheating on the stove, you will need to add more liquid as it will thicken as it sits.
About 10 minutes before serving, add the herbs. You will want them to cook down a bit but not so much that they lose their color.

Serve warm over basmati rice and with a raita if desired.

Bon Appetit!

Total Servings: 6
Nutritional Information Per Serving:
Calories: 455.9
Carbohydrates: 53.2 g
Cholesterol: 0.0 mg
Fat: 19.0 g
Saturated Fat: 15.1 g
Fiber: 26.0 g
Sodium: 100.7 mg
Protein: 22.3 g

By Dana Treat
Recipe from Foodily.com

Bulgur

In the region of Kob Elias, in the heart of the Bekaa valley, some 50 km from Beirut, FTL has identified a small family business of four people who decided to fight to stay at home and not to flee their impoverished rural areas.

For over 30 years, they have transformed wheat into bulgur, a very popular product in Lebanon.

The bulgur is a delicate product and its preparation represents a challenge. To achieve a top quality bulgur, you need to apply a specific detailed order for the entire process.

To begin with, Durum wheat is soaked in boiling water for 3 hours, until cooked.


Then it is drained and dried in the sun, extended in circular thin layers over a clean floor. The drying time is a secret.


Dried cooked wheat is then cut up and goes into the mill, according to the desired size: fine, medium, coarse, and whole grains. The different sizes are used for different purposes.



The variety of thick brown bulgur is packed in bags of 500 gr for Fair Trade Lebanon.




This product is available in France, Lebanon and Germany.

What you probably don't know about Bulgur...

"Bulgur is precooked and requires only minimal preparation before eating. Unlike cracked wheat, bulgur is ready to eat after just ten minutes of boiling, roughly the same amount of time that it takes to prepare pasta.

Bulgur has a delicious, mildly nutty flavor.

It is a good source of protein, iron, magnesium , and B vitamins. It is packed with fiber — a 1-cup (182 g) serving of cooked bulgur has 8 grams of fiber and contains very little fat. You can add nutritional punch to casseroles and other dishes by substituting bulgur for converted rice. Incorporating bulgur into your diet is both nutritionally smart and easily accomplished."

Lebanese tabbouleh is a classic example for an easy salad using bulgur. We’ve published the tabbouleh recipe here.

More about Bulgur here.

Mulberry Smoothie!

...Our mulberry obsession goes on...

You have fruits and mulberry syrup but you have no idea what to do with them...We are so glad you've checked the blog because this summer you are going to make your kids and your friends the healthiest drink to refresh them!

All you need for one serving, is:

-1 cup of non-fat yogurt
-1 banana
-A couple of mulberries (5 or 6 pieces)
-7 to 8 tablespoons of mulberry syrup

Put all the ingredients in the blender and serve fresh !!

Mulberry Muffins or Cake!

So yesterday night, I decided to make some mulberry muffins!

I used the recipe below that I found online, but ended up putting the batter in an english cake pan instead of a muffin mold (totally forgot to buy one), nothing changes to the result…except that you can no longer call them “muffins”…it’s simply mulberry cake with a muffin texture!!

I suggest you give it a try, it is extremely easy to make and tastes great. You probably have most of the ingredients at home; I got the sour cream, applesauce and almond extract from Caliprix (Maameltein highway, Lebanon). As for the fresh mulberries, they’re from my aunt’s garden!

Muffin molds and cups can be found in any big supermarket (or head to the 1st floor at Caliprix!).

Recipe for mulberry muffins:

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

• 1/2 cup white sugar

• 1 teaspoon baking powder

• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda

• 1 pinch salt

• 1/2 cup fat free sour cream

• 1/4 cup skim milk

• 2 tablespoons applesauce

• 1 egg

• 1/2 teaspoon almond extract

• 1/2 cup mulberries

Quantity: 8 big muffins

Time of preparation: 15 minutes

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 200 degrees C (or 400 degrees F). Grease 6 jumbo muffin cups or line with paper muffin liners.
• Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, soda and salt.
• In a medium bowl, mix together sour cream, milk, applesauce, egg and almond extract. Stir in flour mixture until batter is smooth.
• Fold in mulberries. Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups.
• Bake in preheated oven for 25 to 30 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into center of a muffin comes out clean.

NB: if you don’t use the muffin mold and end up putting the batter in a cake mold, then it will need more than 30 minutes to be done…I left it for about 40-45 minutes. You can decorate it with some icing sugar.

Bon Appetit!!

For a delicious Lebanese Tabbouleh...

...You need:

• 3 bunches of fresh parsley
• ½ bunch of fresh mint
• 2 onions
• 5 medium tomatoes
• 100g of bulgur or cracked wheat
• 3 lemons
• 3 tablespoons of olive oil
• Salt and pepper
• 1 roman lettuce

Preparation time: 40 minutes
Portions: for 6 people

Begin by soaking the raw bulgur in cold water for 20 minutes.

Wash and rinse fresh mint as well as parsley. Chop them up as finely as possible on a board discarding the stems.

Cut tomatoes in dices and chop the onions.

Now squeeze out water from the bulgur using hands and put in a salad bowl.
Add chopped parsley, mint and diced tomatoes.
Rub chopped onions with salt and pepper and add it to the salad. Add lemon juice and olive oil. Mix the whole ingredients.

Put it in the refrigerator for 20 minutes and serve chilled.

You can eat Tabbouleh with lettuce, with pita bread or simply with a fork!
You will have a taste of Lebanon with each bite...that's a guarantee! Alf Sahtein!

*Mom's tabbouleh in the pic ; ) yummy.

It's the apricot season!

Rediscover the apricot taste with the Terroirs du Liban Apricot Jam...Try it with croissants, cookies or white cheese!

About Apricots, here and there on the internet...read on:

The Chinese associate the apricot with education and medicine.

The fact that apricot season is very short has given rise to the very common Egyptian Arabic expression "filmishmish" ("in apricot [season]"), generally uttered as a riposte to an unlikely prediction, or as a rash promise to fulfill a request.

Dreaming of apricots, in English folklore, is said to be good luck!

The Turkish idiom "bundan iyisi Şam'da kayısı" (literally, the only thing better than this is an apricot in Damascus) means "it doesn't get any better than this" and used when something is the very best it can be; like a delicious apricot from Damascus.

...I'm falling for this fruit, oh yes.

Purchase with Responsability

Your choices matter and make a difference!


Dear Bloggers and Friends!


During one week, you can enjoy a 15% DISCOUNT on our products sold at the FTL office (in our modest showroom) and a FREE HOME DELIVERY:

Our offer includes:

• 1 Fruit in Syrup: you may choose between Eggplants & Almonds, Whole Figs, Diced Pumpkins and Dates stuffed with Almonds.

• 1 Bottle of Virgin Olive Oil, 50 cl… savour it ZAATAR, salads and steaks!!

• 1 Bottle of Ketchup Organic, made from IMC certified organic tomatoes, 100% natural. Try it with your pasta to replace industrial tomato paste, with your grilled steaks and home-made pizzas.

• 1 Syrup: you have the choice between Mulberry syrup, Rose Syrup or our famous Bitter Orange Syrup! Ever had cakes decorated with cranberries and dipped in Mulberry syrup? You don’t know what you are missing!.

• 1 Pack of Grilled & Salted WHEAT (250g), nibble it as an appetizer, delicious, light and very healthy!
  

So enjoy our offer with the approach of summer...ALL THE ABOVE FOR ONLY 20$, delivered to you in Lebanon via phone call or by commenting this post.

We look forward to meeting you!!

Phone: 05 - 952 153

Bonne dégustation !

Lesepicuriens.fr blogs about us!

An epicurean is a person whose devoted to the pursuit of sensual pleasure, especially to the enjoyment of good food and comfort!

We met Benedicte during our exhibition at the National Forum of Fair Trade last week in Lille. She attended our product tasting, wrote down some quick recipes and posted a note about us in her blog.

It's funny how Cuisine can create common interests and surprises!

Why not add up a Lebanese touch to your french menus?

You can check out the post here.

Hummus Recipe: Ready, Steady...Blend!!

Ingredients for the one and only Lebanese Hummus dip!!

• Chick peas (Marinate chick peas in warm water overnight. The next day, boil until cooked, drain and use for dip instead of canned ones).
• Tahini (paste of sesame seeds and olive oil; can be purchased at any Middle Eastern grocer)
• Yogurt
• Mint leaves
• Garlic
• Salt
• Lemon

Blend all and add more lemon or water until desired consistency.
Watch the video for step-by-step details and measurements (NB: FTL recommends the fresh chickpeas ingredient for greater taste)

To decorate the Hummus dip, you need:

• Parsley
• Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• Summac or Paprika

Alf Sahtein!!

Warm up with a great soup!

Recipe for a delicious lentil soup:

• Fry a thinly diced onion.
• Once golden brown, add salt, cumin and the lentils along with 2 to 3 litters of water.
• Heat until obtaining a thick yellow soup.
• Serve with croutons and lemon juice.

Bon Appétit!!

Buy Lentils here (in France and Europe)
Or here in Lebanon