Healthy and Delicious Lebanese Food

Fattoush, is our second favorite salad after Tabboulé. Fattoush is very easy to make and healthy. There is not a single recipe, you can mix your favorite vegetables and add sumac, a Lebanese spice, some olive oil and Lebanese toasted bread. You find sumac in Lebanese food shops, if you don't have sumac you can replace it with some lemon juice. my ingredients for Fattoush are the following: - lettuce salad, - tomato, - cucumber, - onion, - green pepper all cut in rough pieces, then I spread 1 spoon of sumac per serving, a dash of olive oil and a quarter of small Lebanese flat bread. Sahtein!

Here is another easy recipe and as usual without any fat. Beware there is sugar semolina and floor, it is lighter than usual but not 0 cal. The recipe is very easy takes 5 minutes to prepare and 25 cooking. Heat your oven at 220°C, in the mantime, your put in a bowl: - 2 low fat yogurt, each one 125ml - 1 cup semolina, in fact you can use one empty yogurt pot and measure 2 pots, - 1 cup whole floor, if you don't have whole floor you can use white floor, - 1 1/2 cup of sugar - 1 tea spoon of baking powder - 1/4 of tea spoon turmeric (curcuma). not more than a quater of small spoon - 2 table spoons of water - 1 tea spoon of anise seeds mix well and put in a 24 cm oven cake mold, spread sesame seeds on the mixture and cook for 25 minutes in pulsed air oven or 30 minutes in regular oven. Take out of the oven and leave for 30 minutes to cool down before removing for the mold. cut in parallelogram of 3 X 2. SAHTEIN !

Easy Mujaddara: This is an easy recipe, almost done in microwave, except for fried onions, I have never found how to fry in a microwave. I left Lebanon 31 years ago during the civil war. I lived in Europe all this time and I was missing our lebanese food and particularly moujaddara. This is a typical rural food very cheap, workers used to take with them every day some moujaddara wrapped in a lebanese bread; and also a raw onion. This meal is great, full of hydrocarbonates, proteins, dietary elements and many vitamins. I prepare in the microwave. Use a very large bowl, this will prevent having lentils split in the microwave. Add 1 cup of brown lentils 3 cups of water a pinch of salt a large pinch of sweet pepper cover with plastic film and cook in microwave on maximum power for 30 minutes, the lentils must be very soft if not cook longer In the meantime chop 3 large onions and fry in oil until brown When the lentils are cooked, take out of microwave, b...

Oven Falafel I am found of falafel, a middle eastern recipe, my issue is that falafel is deep fried in oil and is fatty. I avoided deep frying by oven cooking in silicone muffin pan, in this recipe there is only 1 table spoon of oil for 20 falafels. There are two recipes in the Middle East, one with a mix of fava beans and chick peas, the other is only with chick peas. I have tested the recipe with mix of both legumes. Put 1 cup of fava beans and another cup of chick peas in a large bowl filled with water, 1 tea spoon of salt and 1/2 tea spoon of baking sada. Leave it in water for 24 hours. After 1 day they are filled of water. I cook them in boiling water for 1/2 hour, they are soft but not fully cooked to eat. Drain water and put in a blander, add 1 table spoon of oil, 1 table spoon plain floor, 1 tea spoon ground cumin, 1/2 tea spoon peper, you could add a dash of chili if you want or few mint leaves. I also add 1 table spoon baking powder, mix all together and put in sili...

Quick Bulgur with tomatoes: This is easy, health and very quick. It will change from Pasta or rice. Get a large recipent for microwave, 4 pints or more, fill with : 1 cup of bulgur 3 cups of water pinch of salt 2 spoons of chopped tomatoes half tea spoon of cumin cover and put in microwave for 12 minutes on max power, beware this is very hot. 600 kcal for 4 - 150 per potion, this is correct Enjoy it is ready, my kids love it.

Light Nammoura I have a quick recipe for Nammoura 5 minutes to prepare if your atr is ready - 10 minutes atr included 25 minutes cooking for Nammoura you will nead 1 yogurt - these are standard size of half-cup (0% fat yogurt will be great) 1 cup of semolina 3/8 cup of sugar orange blossom water rose water 18 blanched almonds if you don't have blanched almonds,you can easily remove the skin: put almonds in a mug, cover with water and put 2 minutes max power in micro-wave oven. take out of the micro-wave add cold water and leave until cold. you can easily remove the skin with your fingers. Empty yogurt in a large bowl, use the yogurt recipient and measure - 2 semolina - 3/4 sugar add 1 table spoon backing powder 1 table spoon rose water 1 table spoon orange blossom water mix all pour 1 spoon of tahini in a backing tray, I always use a tray of 20 cm diameter and then add the mixture, put the almonds on the top imaging how your are going to cut the namm...

Santa Barbara is celebrated on the evening of 3rd of December, we prepare a bowl of wheat with anise, pomegrenate, grated coconut, almonds, walnuts, and sultanas. As I am lazy I use precooked wheat. In a bowl, add 3 tablespoons of precooked wheat, 1/8 teaspoon of anise, 1 cup of water, and microwave on maximum power for 5 minutes. Cool down, take out of the microwave and add 1 teaspoon of sugar 1 teaspoon of orange flower water on top of it you can add 1 tablespoon of grated coconut few almonds, walnuts kernels, pistachio seeds (without the shell of course, if you don't want to lose any crown from your mouth !!!), or raisins Eat it warm, near the fireplace and remember that on 4th December, in Lebanon we decorate Christmas tree...