Dalia's Kitchen: October 2011

Image by Chris Mejorada for CPI Publishing

I'm going through an exciting yet also a nerve racking phase to be honest. The fact of having a baby soon inshAllah, is forcing me to look at things in a different way. First of all, it's starting to put a lot of things in perspective, things that matter, things that don't, and making me realize that very soon, my priorities in life will completely change! I actually feel like I have a deadline and even though I am meant to take it easy, I'm trying to get things done before due date! But mainly from home.. I promise! :)

Yesterday Phiras cooked a beautiful lamb shoulder for dinner, but I forgot to take a picture of it so I leave you with another beautiful lamb delicacy which was featured in BBC Good Food's Ramadan issue.. Even though it takes about 3 1/2 hours, most of the time the lamb spends in the oven so don't be turned off by the lengthy process as it's well worth the effort ;)

Medium Difficulty. Prep & Cook Time: 3.5 hours

Serves 4 - 6

6 lamb shanks
6 garlic cloves
¼ cup sherry vinegar
500ml beef stock
3 bay leaves
1 tsp dried thyme
juice of 3 pomegranates
seeds of 1 pomegranate
1 butternut squash, peeled and cut into chunks
1 tsp brown sugar
knob of butter
salt and cracked pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 150C. Rub the shanks with olive oil, thyme, salt and pepper. In a large pot, brown the shanks on all sides, and set aside.

Add the garlic to the same pot, and cook for a few minutes. Deglaze the pan with sherry vinegar, add the beef stock, bay leaves and return the shanks to the pot. Cover with a lid and place in the oven for 2 ½ hours, turning the shanks every 45 minutes or so. If there isn’t enough liquid left in the pot, add a little stock or hot water.

In a pan, heat some olive oil on low heat and add the butternut squash. Sprinkle with sugar, salt, pepper and cook until soft and a little caramelized, for about 15 minutes. Set aside until serving.

Once the shanks are ready, place them on a serving plate and cover with foil. Remove the liquid from the pot, pass it through a sieve and pour it in a saucepan. Add the pomegranate juice, bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer until it thickens slightly. Finish with a knob of butter and season to taste. Now add the warmed squash to the lamb shanks, pour the sauce over the dish and sprinkle with the pomegranate seeds. Divine!
(As featured in BBC Good Food ME - August 2011)

Fried Eggs, Tomatoes & Mushrooms on Country Bread

Veal Limone

As mentioned a few days ago, I've been ordered to slow down my pace a little these days as I'm apparently too active, hehe.. And so I have been working from home as much as possible and even finished decorating the baby's room, thanks to my incredible sis Joujou - I LOVE YOU (in case she didn't know :) I think I'm probably the only woman on the planet that had not gotten one single baby's item until now so late in the pregnancy, in my 8th month! I don't know why I kept thinking I still had time but apparently I don't have that much time left anymore, so Joujou dragged me to the stores and we got some adorable stuff for the little one :)

Yesterday, the lovely Kate from Harper's Bazaar asked me to recommend a yummy and romantic dish from my blog, and I thought of this one. So I'm refreshing this very old D's Kitchen post, which so deserves a second run as it's absolutely delicious!

The first time I made Veal Limone, was in my first year of college, after becoming addicted to the Veal Limoni at Cipriani's restaurant in Downtown New York.. It's best to do this dish for only a few people as veal scalopines are tricky to do for a large group since they have to be seared quickly in a pan. Serve this with some simple linguine on the side (olive oil, salt and pepper) or some fluffy rice as the lemon sauce is perfect for it!

Easy - Medium Difficulty. Prep & Cook Time: ~25minutes
Serves 2- 3

8 thinly pounded veal scaloppines (the thinner the scaloppines, the yummier the dish)
1/4 cup of lemon juice
1/2 cup of white wine
1/2 cup of chicken stock
a little flour for drenching
a large knob of butter
olive oil
2 tbsp chopped parsley
salt & cracked pepper to taste

Preheat the oven at 180C. Heat a pan (stainless if possible) on med-high heat. Drench the veal in a little flour, removing the excess. Then add a little olive oil and a knob of butter to the pan, when it sizzles place the veal, searing them quickly about 30 - 60 seconds on each side. Put them in a oven safe dish and place them in the preheated oven or warming drawer to keep them warm.

Now deglaze the pan with the white wine, scraping all the yummy brown bits. This is what gives this dish ALL the flavour, so keep on scraping! Add the lemon juice & stock and simmer until it thickens a little. Add the knob of buttter, salt and pepper to taste and finish with the chopped parsley. Take the veal out of the oven, and pour the Limoni sauce over them. Beautiful!

Baked Rigatoni

MashAllah, my little angels Kayan and Dalia (yes, mini-me!)

My sister and her family just moved from Madrid to Dubai and I cannot begin to tell you how happy I am! Joujou, is like my other half, has always been my closest friend and living apart for all these years has really not been easy. Especially that I miss my four little nephews tremendously! I have no experience in being a mami yet, but I have the experience of Being Auntie D, and my little angels have brought so much joy to my life :)

So now that they live here, they come over for lunch and I get to cook for a few more little persons- which I absolutely love! I'm also experimenting with dishes that are more "kid friendly" if that makes any sense.. Spontaneously Joujou called saying they would pop over for lunch, and I had 1 hour to prepare lunch as the kids were starving.. I looked through my pantry and fridge, found rigatoni, cheese, carrots, peas, minced meat and so I opted for a Baked Rigatoni which the little angels absolutely adored! Super easy, and delish for kids and grown ups as well!

(I usually use low fat milk and little less butter for my béchamel sauce which you can see in other gratin recipes, but for the kids I went all out ;)

Easy. Prep & Cook Time: ~1 hour

Serves 6 - 8

750g rigatoni pasta
350g minced beef (lean)
350g minced lamb
1 large onion, finely chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
6 carrots, cut in rounds
1 pack of frozen peas
2 cans of chopped tomatoes
2 cups Ementhal cheese, grated
1/2 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp thyme
2 bay leaves
salt and cracked pepper to taste

for the béchamel sauce

1 liter milk
3 tbsp butter
3 tbsp olive oil
4 tbsp flour
1 cup cheddar cheese, grated
freshly grated nutmeg
salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven at 180C. In a pan, heat olive oil and sauté the onions until translucent. Add the garlic, cook for a minute or so, then add the minced meat, lamb, thyme and bay leaves. Cook until the minced meat turns golden and looks cooked through, then add the carrots and peas. Continue cooking everything on medium heat, then add the chopped tomatoes, sugar, salt, pepper and simmer for about 10 minutes.

In the mean time, cook the pasta in boiling salt water but not until it's done, just half the amount it says on the pack (about 6 minutes), so basically pre cook the rigatoni as they will cook more in the oven later and you do not want them to be too gooey!

In a saucepan, melt the butter and olive oil, add the flour and cook it through, until it turns golden brown. Add the milk and simmer until it thickens, then season with salt, pepper and freshly grated nutmeg. When the béchamel has the consistency of a thick sauce, add the cheddar cheese and set aside.

Add the meat mixture to the pasta, mix everything well (don't forget to season to taste) and start assembling your bake in the dish. Pour the pasta and meat in the dish, and top with the béchamel sauce. Finish off with the grated cheese and place in the oven for 25 - 30 minutes or until golden. Enjoy with a simple green salad. Yummy comfort food!

Newer Posts

Older Posts

Lemon Madeleines

Raspberry & White Chocolate Cake

Thank you Rasha & Zeina for the most wonderful day ;)

Decadent Sticky Date Pudding

Braised Lamb Shanks, Pomegranate & Butternut Squash

Fried Eggs, Tomatoes & Mushrooms on Country Bread

Veal Limone

Baked Rigatoni

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