Egyptian Kofta

What You’ll Need:

• 1 pound ground lamb

• 1 pound ground beef (20% fat)

• 1/4 cup sour cream

• 1 cup parsley leaves

• 1/2 cup mint leaves

• 1 small yellow onion (or red onion)

• 3 garlic cloves (optional)

• 1 TBL salt

• 2 TSP all spice

• 2 TSP sumac

• 1/2 TSP chili flake (or 1/4 if you want it more mild)

• 1 TSP coriander

• 1/2 TSP cinnamon

• 1/4 TSP clove

• 1 TSP white pepper

STEPS:

1. Blend onion, sour cream, herbs, spices and garlic (if using) in a food processor

2. Add the watery mixture to a bowl with both meats

3. Mix very well together

4. Use a 1/4 cup spoon to measure out kofta

5. Shape into long ovals, patties or whatever shape you prefer

6. Grill or use a cast iron to cook through. Should take about 3-4 minutes per side or until the internal temperature reads 145 for medium, 155 for well done.

Seared Swordfish with Tahini Lemon Cauliflower

TIME: 40 min

SERVES: 2 people

• 2 6-9 ounce swordfish filets (1 inch thick)
• 1/2 teaspoon sumac
• 1/4 teaspoon cumin
• 1 lemon
• 1 head cauliflower
• 1 yellow onion
• 3 tablespoons tahini
• 1 tablespoon water
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 garlic clove
• Salt & Pepper
• Handful of parsley
• Handful of mint

1. Cut head of Cauliflower into florets
2. Toss in olive oil, salt and pepper and roast in a 350° for 30 minutes. Toss pan halfway through.
3. In a bowl, mix the tahini, olive oil, water, lemon juice and grated garlic. Mixture should be similar to a thick salad dressing. Add salt and pepper to taste. Set aside
4. Julienne the onion and cook on low heat with a pinch of salt until soft and golden brown. Set aside.
5. Sprinkle the cumin, sumac, salt and pepper onto each Swordfish steak. Lightly rub vegetable oil and sear on medium for 6 minutes on one side and finish lightly searing on the other side for a few minutes or until firm and cooked through.
6. Take a platter and spread a layer of the tahini sauce on the bottom. Top with the roasted cauliflower, caramelized onions, parsley and mint. Drizzle more sauce on top.
7. Serve with seared swordfish steaks on top.

Portuguese Baked Eggs

Shakshuka is one of my favorite crowd pleasers. Why? It's a one pan wonder, cooks quickly and is quite the stunner on the table. Everyone gets to dig in together and it makes for a nice centered conversation piece. This Portuguese spin on baked eggs really just reflects a different use of spices than the traditional Middle Eastern version. It is slightly smokier, a bit spicy and has a nice bite at the end from the Manchego that is shaved on top upon serving.

Here's what you'll need:

1 12 in cast iron or oven proof pan

6 small eggs (4 if they are large)

1 28 ounce can of  Marzano Crushed Tomato

2 roasted red peppers- julienne

1 small brown onion- julienne

4 large garlic cloves- minced

1 tsp smoked paprika

1 1/2 tsp chili powder

1/2 tsp cayenne (or more if you like it hot!)

1/4 cup fresh basil

Manchego cheese for shaving

Olive oil

Salt

Cracked black pepper

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Heat your cast iron or oven proof pan on the stove at medium heat. Add a tablespoon of olive oil and allow it to cover the pan.

3. Once hot, add your julienne onions and let sweat until translucent and slightly turning brown on the edges. Add a dash of salt to help them sweat!

4. Add the chili powder, paprika and cayenne to the onions and allow the oil to cook the spices for just another minute or so.

4. Add the chopped garlic and let toast just until golden brown. Once it's a little golden that's your cue it's done and on the brink of burning.

5. Add the roasted peppers, can of crushed tomatoes and let stew for 10 minutes until sauce thickens.

6. Break an egg into a separate small bowl. Be sure to take out any bits of shell just in case.

7. With your cooking spoon, make a little saucer hole in your thickened tomato sauce. Take your bowl with your raw egg and carefully drop your egg into the hole.

8. Repeat with remaining eggs.

9. Place into your 350 degree oven on the top rack and let broil until egg whites are firmed but yolks are still runny. This usually takes about 8-11 minutes.

10. Remove from oven and top with torn or chopped basil. Finish with shredded Manchego cheese or Pecorino Romano.

Serve with warm pita or crusty bread.

Middle Eastern Shredded Lamb TACOS

This recipe happens to be very special to me. It comes from a cheat sheet given to me by a chef I particularly admire from Los Angeles, but I won't tell just in case! This lamb is juicy, flavorful and smells infectious. Your whole house will smell of cinnamon and warmth, and your taste buds will crave the taste of this lamb, over and over.

My favorite way to serve this lamb is as a taco, with my special pickled pomegranate red onions and garlicy lemon yogurt sauce. It's a great make ahead dish that can be done a day or two beforehand and is perfect for serving at parties. However, you can always serve this lamb with cous cous, rice or whatever you like! It's a one pot wonder that you can just set and forget! 

COOK TIME: 8-10 Hours

SERVES: 4-6

Here's what you'll need:

1 large dutch oven (that can hold at least 6 quarts)

1 lamb shoulder with bone in (3.5 lbs)

1 1⁄2 qt veal stock or beef stock (use the best quality you can find)

1 1⁄2 qt red wine (I prefer to use a merlot or a zinfandel. Something with a bit of a sweeter flavor)

1  carrot, roughly chopped

1  yellow onion, quartered

1⁄2 bunch celery, roughly chopped

5  garlic cloves, peeled

4  bay leaves

1 TB black peppercorn

1⁄2 tsp coriander seed

1⁄2 tsp cumin

1⁄2 tsp cayenne

1⁄2 tsp paprika

3  cinnamon stick

Stage 1: The Lamb

1. Add all chopped ingredients, spices, liquids and lamb shoulder into your dutch oven. It's gonna be full! Cook covered at 350 degrees until it's falling off the bone. This takes about 4 hours. You'll know it's done once the meat separates from the bone or when you attempt to shred the meat and it flakes off.

2. Once done, pull it out of the oven and remove the shoulder into a bowl or onto a cutting board. Let it rest for 20 minutes to make sure it retains its juices and to cool down a bit.

3. Strain the sauce to remove all the vegetables and whole spices through a sieve. Pour the strained sauce back into pot and discard the rest. Set this aside on your stove top. 

3.  Time to shred! Using two forks, begin to shred the lamb off the bone. Don't worry about making it too perfect, once it's back in its liquids it will shred down further.

4. Place the shredded lamb in tupperware or a bowl and pour just enough of your strained sauce to cover the lamb. (we wanna keep it moist!). 

 If you're planning on serving this immediately, set the lamb aside fully covered, and continue onto Stage 2.

If you're making this a day ahead, you can place both the shredded lamb covered and tightly sealed into the fridge along with your stock pot (as is) with your strained sauce. The sauce will harden in the fridge, allowing the fat to harden and float to the top, making the next step under stage 2 very easy! 

Stage 2: The Sauce

1.  If you've kept your sauce in the fridge overnight, this will be quite easy. Just lightly tap and break the fat and discard of the white chocolate looking layer! You'll see what I mean. If you did not harden the fat overnight, do your best with a spoon to skim the top of the sauce, trying to remove just the liquid fat. 

2. Next, on your stove top on med-high heat, allow the sauce to reduce down by 1/2. This should take about 2 hours. Doing this will give the sauce depth and more body. 

3. Season the sauce. Adding another 1/2 teaspoon of cayenne, salt and a bit more cinnamon is usually what I like to add.

4. Add the lamb back in! Your lamb can be added in straight from your refrigerated container. You'll see fat from this sauce, and that's ok! Put the whole thing back into the pot! 

5. Now let this sit and simmer together for another 2-3 hours. The lamb will break down and soak up the reduced, concentrated sauce. Now, I realize not everyone can wait that long, so truly it is up to you. I have found that the full 8-10 hours of this recipe gives this lamb the most shredded, rich and flavorful outcome, but it will be good at any stage! 

Serve this with an exotic rice pilaf, cous cous or assemble them as my famous lamb tacos! For the tacos you will need:

• Pomegranate Pickled Relish
• Lemon Garlic Labne
• Arabic Green Herb Salad with Bergamot Lemon Dressing