easy recipe

One Pan Middle Eastern Roasted Chicken and Vegetable Bake

categories: Arabic Food Made Easy, Chicken, Posts, Recipes, Vegetables & Sides

Middle Eastern Roasted Chicken and Vegetable Bake

Middle Eastern Roasted Chicken and Vegetables is one of my favorite comfort foods. Comfort food by definition is, ” food prepared in a traditional style having a usually nostalgic or sentimental appeal.” For most, that means lots of carbs and lots of sugar. For me, comfort food really does fit the Merriam Webster definition, that is, a traditional dish that brings back childhood memories. So what is it about One Pan Middle Eastern Roasted Chicken and Vegetable Bake that makes me nostalgic? I have so many childhood memories of being at my Tayta’s around dinner time. She’d whip up her chicken and vegetable bake. She always had a way of making even the hardest dish seem easy to pull together. It must be all her years of cooking for 8 children. Yes, eight. The apartment always smelled amazing. It was wafting with aromas from a mix of garlic, onion and Arabic spices that made me practically drool as I waited not-so-patiently in the family room watching TV. (more…)

  •  Comments Off on One Pan Middle Eastern Roasted Chicken and Vegetable Bake

Nutella Cinnamon Rolls

categories: Breakfast, Desserts, Posts, Recipes

Nutella Cinnamon Rolls_2

Last weekend – ironically on Valentine’s Day – the founder of the Ferrero company, Mr. Michele Ferrero died at age 89. Known as “the Father of Nutella” and “real life Willy Wonka,” Ferrero’s company introduced Nutella, Kinder Eggs and Ferrero Rocher, making the world a sweeter, happier place.

I have to say, I was into Nutella before it became a thing here in the U.S. over the last few years. Nutella on toast for breakfast wasn’t unheard of during my childhood and was pretty much our substitute for peanut butter; that’s not to say we didn’t stock peanut butter jars in our pantry. But let’s just say, I was sneaking spoonfuls of Nutella in the middle of the night long before the food bloggers picked it up as the latest and greatest. (more…)

  •  Comments Off on Nutella Cinnamon Rolls

Turkey Bacon Hearts

categories: Breakfast, Posts, Recipes

Turkey Bacon Hearts

Valentine’s Day has come and gone. And while everyone focuses on their significant others (boyfriends, girlfriends, husbands, wives), Valentine’s Day is extra special in our family because it’s Tayta’s Birthday. (more…)

  •  Comments Off on Turkey Bacon Hearts

Hareeseh [Semolina Cake]

categories: Desserts, Posts, Recipes

Hareeseh

You know that moment of excitement and apprehension when you’ve tried to bake something and you go to share it with your grandmother, certain she’s going to be so proud of your work? Well, that happened about three years ago when I first tried to make Hareeseh. I was so excited to bring her a sample of my baking that I could even envision her smiling and telling me what a great job I did. (more…)

  •  Comments Off on Hareeseh [Semolina Cake]

French Onion Soup

categories: Posts, Recipes, Soups

French Onion Soup

It’s cold. Actually, it’s beyond cold. We were hit with snow early this week and it was terrible. Fairfax County schools, DC schools and the Federal Government all failed to call – at a minimum – a two-hour delay causing mass chaos during the morning commute.

Since Tuesday’s snowfall, the snow hasn’t melted. We’ve been seeing temperatures no warmer than 30 F with mornings at 8 F and afternoons hovering around 25 F. I’ve probably said this at least 10 times on the blog, but I am not a fan of cold weather. If it were up to me, I would hibernate all winter and come back to life when it’s no colder than 60 F, sometime around late March. The layers: sweaters, coats, socks, leggings, gloves, hats, ear muffs; it’s all too much for me. And to top it all off, the days are cut short when the sun sets at 5pm. (more…)