Notes about Recipes in this book

• Zucchini omelette ('Ijjet kūsā)

  • Yildiz100 on February 18, 2019

    Reduced the cinnamon by half but it was still quite strong and made the omelet an unpleasant gray color. Was still pretty tasty though. Also simplified technique to dirty fewer dishes and finished in the oven.

• Cheese omelette ('Ijjeh bi-jibneh)

  • Yildiz100 on November 27, 2018

    Made a half recipe in my small skillet. Tasty, but the milk makes this very delicate and difficult to flip. Would repeat though.

• Fresh wax bean salad (Salaṭit fāṣūliya 'arīda)

  • Yildiz100 on May 08, 2019

    Pretty and bright with pieces of lemon in the salad.

• Bread salad (Fattūsh)

  • Yildiz100 on December 12, 2017

    My favorite fattoush! Perfect with lots of lemon, mint, and garlic.

• Sautéed zucchini with tomato sauce (Kūsā ma' ti'liet banadū'ra)

  • Yildiz100 on February 27, 2019

    Made just the sauce to serve with fried cauliflower. Subbed one can crushed tomatoes for the 3 fresh. For the hot sauce used chili flakes and a tiny bit of sriracha. Very simple sauce, but good, and was delicious with the cauliflower.

• Baked zucchini with tahini (Kūsā bi-ṭaḥini)

  • Yildiz100 on December 12, 2017

    Nice layered casserole type dish, though quite rich. Make sure to cook thoroughly to avoid the off flavor of half cooked garlic.

• Zucchini pulp with pomegranate molasses (Na'r kūsā bi-dibs rummān)

  • Yildiz100 on March 29, 2019

    Tastes ok, but it is an awful gray brown color that is really unappealing. Will not repeat.

• Hot spicy potatoes (Baṭāṭā mḥarḥara)

  • Yildiz100 on December 20, 2017

    Instead of pan frying the potatoes I parboiled them then peeled, sliced, and sauteed them. I also subbed parsley for the cilantro. This was very tasty, bright, and garlicky. The pomegranate molasses is just enough to add a hint of color and aroma to the potatoes without adding any noticeable sweetness or stickiness. It is a very attractive dish too. I think I can even use cilantro next time if I have it on hand, since it will probably be mild in this dish from the cooking it gets.

• Lentil soup (Shorbit 'adas)

  • Yildiz100 on December 12, 2017

    Surprisingly tasty for such a simple soup and there was no problem with just boiling the onions with the lentils without any sautee first. You definitely need the fried bread croutons. The only negative is the color is a bit unattractive as the red lentils become a brownish lentil. Might add a tiny bit of carrot next time just to brighten it up.

• Chickpeas dip (Ḥummuṣ bi ṭaḥīni)

  • Yildiz100 on October 04, 2017

    This is an almost perfect hummus. I needed to add 1 tablespoon + 1/2 teaspoon more water than indicated to get the perfect texture, but I am sure that depends a bit on how much liquid the chickpeas have retained. This hummus had just the right amount of garlic and tahini-for most people. For my taste I can easily add 2 Tbs more. However if I were making this for a crowd I would leave it exactly as it is because not everyone loves the bitterness of tahini as much as me! Just watch the salt. If you are using canned chickpeas it may already be quite salty. I was using a very refined (not kosher or more mineraly salt) and I needed about 1/2 a tsp. Also note this tastes quite tart but once you garnish with generous olive oil (there is none IN the hummus-just a topping of oil) then the balance is just right or the lemon could be reduced 1 tbs

  • Yildiz100 on December 12, 2017

    Perfect texture when just made, but after chilling the leftovers they are too thick. Will need extra water, oil, or lemon.

• Rice (Riz mfalfal)

  • Yildiz100 on January 26, 2025

    Good but some slight changes. Reduced salt to 1.25 tsp. After adding rice to Boiling water I cooked it uncovered until the water level was about even with the rice before putting the lid on and turning the heat down to low.

• Rice pilaf with vermicelli (Riz bi-sh'ayriyyeh)

  • Yildiz100 on October 22, 2017

    I followed this recipe exactly and it turned out perfectly! I had no idea how much water it would take to cook the rice and vermicelli but this ratio/technique was just right. There is one part of the recipe that is ambiguous. She says to soak the rice, never says to drain it, then later you add the rice and separately the water. So, I didn't know if I should soak it in the two cups of cooking water, drain, then add that same water back in later, or if the soaking water was just to be discarded, and two full cups were needed for cooking. I went with option two - soaked, discarded water, then when time to add water to the pot I used two full cups even though the rice would have absorbed a bit during the soak stage. Moisture level was just right so I will do the same next time. I did kind of miss some cinnamon or allspice but other than that it was perfect.

• Cabbage pilaf (Ma'lūbet malfūf)

  • Yildiz100 on October 04, 2021

    Nice flavors but the technique produces mushy rice.