Appetizers - Measuring Cups, Optional

Beet Walnut Dip

I’m generally not a picky eater. Really, I’ll eat just about everything, but there are a few things I just can’t get myself to like. Melons (all variations except watermelons) and beets. I just never liked beets—well, unless they were pickled with turnips. I avoid beet salads, and beets in pretty much any other form. But I decided to give beets another chance. Truth be told, it’s because I had some beets left over from making pickled turnips that I fully intended to give to my mom {an avid beet-lover}, but never got around to, and I just didn’t have the heart to throw them out. I gave them a second life, in dip form. (more…)

Warm Caramelized Onion Dip

categories: Appetizers, Posts, Recipes

I love caramelized onions {pronounced car-melized, but I guess some people say caramel-ized. It must be my Michigan showing}. I have very vivid memories of my mom in the kitchen caramelizing onions for Mujaddra and sayyadiyeh — a fried fish and rice dish. Despite the fact that she’d close the kitchen door, I could always smell the sweet scent of those onions seeping through the cracks in the door. I’d even sneak in and steal a taste after she scooped them out of the pan. The best part, she always made extra so we could add as much as we wanted to our plates at dinner. (more…)

Toasted Pita Nachos

categories: Appetizers, Posts, Recipes

It’s summer time, and quick, easy to throw together meals are the name of the game. Honestly, being a one-woman show means that most nights I just want to throw some popcorn on the stovetop and cozy up on the couch with a massive bowl of popped popcorn and an ice cold Diet Coke. I won’t tell you how many nights I’ve done that … there’s room for much judgment.

On the days when popcorn and Diet Coke just isn’t going to cut it, I crave easy-to-make snack-like dinners. I’m a snacker {could you tell when I mentioned popcorn for dinner?} I could live on Snack Boards. This is why I’m so in love with these toasted pita nachos. (more…)

Tayta’s Pink Pickled Turnips

categories: Appetizers, Posts, Recipes, Snacks

Pickled Turnips, or Tayta’s Pink Pickled Turnips, as I like to call them, are a staple at our house. Usually, pickled turnips are served alongside olives and green pickles at the dinner table. They’re added to chicken and beef Shawarma sandwiches, falafel, and (like us) placed in a small dish at the table to be eaten with just about anything. If you haven’t had them, you are in for a serious treat!

After I took down rough notes of my Tayta’s recipe, I scoured the internet looking to see what other people have done. Some recipes call for garlic and bay leaves, another even suggested adding a chili pepper. But why change something that is so simple and so good? I may be a little biased, but my Tayta’s Pickled Turnips are the best pickled turnips. (more…)

Middle Eastern Puff Pastry Meat Pies

categories: Appetizers, Arabic Food Made Easy, Breads, Posts, Recipes

I’m all about simplicity. Mainly simplicity when it comes to cooking. Because really, who wants to spend more time making delicious food, like let’s say middle eastern meat pies, when you can cut that time in half? This girl right here. That’s me! I have no patience. I openly admit it. It’s something I’ve been actively working on for 30 years. However, the truth is, patience does not come easily to me. I have a hard time waiting for just about anything. So it’s no surprise that bread making is a serious test of my patience. I have made various breads in the past. I tested out some sesame bread that didn’t make it onto the blog, as well as Zaatar Bread, and Irish Soda Bread. (more…)

Creamy Artichoke Spread

categories: Appetizers, Posts, Recipes, Snacks

Remember that week I spent in Rome I’m still eating my way through all the goodies I brought back.

While in Rome, I stopped at the local grocery store The Coop. It was perfect because that’s where I bought my 25oz bottle of extra virgin olive oil, that I’m still using. I also made my way to the spreads section of the store. There, I found black olive tapenade, capers in chunky salt and it’s also there I discovered Artichoke Pate. While the jar and ingredients were in Italian, I managed to google translate my way through. I wish I had brought a jar back home with me. Since I wasn’t able to, I decided to make my own artichoke spread with fresh ingredients. (more…)