Potato and artichoke tortilla

4 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 lb (500 g) potatoes, thinly sliced
5 marinated artichoke hearts (from jar), sliced
6 eggs
salt and pepper to taste

Heat 2 tbsp of the olive oil in a medium-sized skillet over medium heat. Add the potatoes and cook, stirring gently every now and then.

Add the onion and cook 3 mn. Stir in the artichokes and cook, stirring, for another 2 to 3 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the vegetable mixture to a bowl and let cool completely.

Place the eggs, salt and pepper in a medium-sized bowl and beat until just scrambled. Add the potato mixture and mix until well combined. Let stand for about 10 minutes.

Heat 2 tbsp of the reserved olive oil in a heavy 8-inch skillet, preferably nonstick, over medium-high heat until it is just beginning to smoke. Pour the egg mixture into the skillet and flatten the potatoes with a spatula until the top is fairly even. Reduce the heat to medium-low. Cook, moving and shaking the skillet, running a thin spatula around the edge and sliding it into the middle so that some of the egg runs under for about one minute.

Run the thin spatula under the tortilla to make sure that no part of the bottom is stuck to the skillet. Top the skillet with a rimless plate slightly larger than the skillet and, quickly invert the tortilla onto the plate. If the skillet looks dry, add a little more olive oil. Carefully slide the tortilla back into the skillet, uncooked side down. Shake the skillet to straighten the tortilla and push the edges in with the spatula. Reduce the heat to very low and cook the tortilla until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out dry, 3 to 4 minutes. Invert the tortilla again, as before, to cook on the first side for another minute.

Invert the tortilla onto a serving plate and pat the top with a paper towel to get rid of excess oil. Let it cool a little, then cut the tortilla into wedges and serve warm or at room temperature. To serve as a tapa, cut the tortilla into squares and serve with toothpicks.

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Tuna and White Bean Salad

Ingredients:
1 bunch purslane
400g (around 2 cups) cooked white beans
180g canned tuna in olive oil, cut into chunks
2 cucumbers, diced
12 cherry tomatoes
1 red pepper, diced
1 red onion, diced
a handful of chopped parsley

Dressing:
4 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper

To make the dressing, mix the the olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, oregano, salt and pepper.
Place the salad ingredients in a bowl, toss them with the dressing and serve.

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Banana Walnut Cake

Ingredients:
2 cups flour
1 tsp Baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 egg
1 1/8 cups sugar
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 tbsp milk
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
3 ripe medium bananas, mashed
3/4 cup chopped walnuts


Preheat oven to 325. Grease a 9x5x3 loaf pan and dust with flour
Blend the flour, baking soda, and salt; set aside.

Mix the egg, sugar, and vegetable oil until combined.
Add the flour mixture to the egg mixture and when blended, add the buttermilk, vanilla, and mashed bananas; mix well.

Fold 1/2 cup of chopped walnuts and pour batter into prepared loaf pan. Top the batter with remaining 1/3 cup of walnuts. Bake for 45-60 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean.

Adapted from http://www.geniuskitchen.com/recipe/starbucks-banana-walnut-bread-384181

Roasted Cauliflower Salad with lemon tahini dressing

Ingredients
1 head cauliflower
2 tbsp olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
1 bunch pasrley

Lemon Tahini Dressing
1/3 cup tahini
1/3 cup water
1/4 cup lemon juice
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

Spiced chickpeas
1 can chickpeas
1 tbsp olive oil
1/2 tsp paprika
1/4 tsp garlic powder
pinch of cayenne pepper
salt and pepper to taste

Preheat the oven to 400ºF. Chop the cauliflower into small florets and place them on a large baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and season with a pinch or two of salt and pepper. Toss the cauliflower until coated in oil, salt, and pepper.

 

Roast the cauliflower and onions in the preheated oven for 20 minutes, then stir, return them to the oven, and roast for an additional 10-15 minutes, or until the cauliflower is tender and browned on the edges. Let the cauliflower cool slightly.

 

While the cauliflower and onions are roasting, make the lemon tahini dressing. Add the tahini, water, lemon juice, garlic, cumin, cayenne, and salt to a blender. Blend until smooth, then refrigerate until ready to serve.

 

Drain and rinse the can of chickpeas. Add them to a skillet along with the olive oil, smoked paprika, cayenne, and a pinch of salt and pepper. Stir and cook the chickpeas over medium heat for about five minutes, or until they sizzle and become slightly crispy. Remove the chickpeas from the heat.

 

Roughly chop the parsley leaves into small pieces. To build the salad, combine the roasted cauliflower in a bowl with the spiced chickpeas and chopped parsley. Drizzle the lemon tahini dressing over top, and toss to combine. Serve warm or cold.

 

Source: https://www.budgetbytes.com/2017/02/roasted-cauliflower-salad-lemon-tahini-dressing/

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Sheikh el Mehshi - Eggplants with meat sauce

Ingredients

2 eggplants, sliced in 2-inch rounds

1 tbsp olive oil

1 lb (500 g) ground meat

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp nutmeg

1/4 tsp allspice

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp black pepper

1/2 tsp oregano

1 large onion diced

2 tomatoes diced

1 cup tomato sauce (strained tomato) 

Preheat the broiler and line a baking sheet with foil. Lay the eggplant slices in a single layer on the prepared pan, and using a brush, brush evenly on both sides with olive oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, then broil eggplant 5 minutes per side, until browned.  Place broiled eggplant in the bottom of a baking dish. I had 2 layers of eggplants on top of each other. Reduce oven heat to 350ºF (180ºC).

In a skillet, add some oil and saute the onion, add the garlic. When transparent, brown the meat then sprinkle with salt, pepper, cinnamon, nutmeg and allspice. Cook for 5-7 minutes using a wooden spoon to break up the meat as it cooks.

Add the chopped tomatoes and cook for 5-8 mn. Add the tomato sauce and let it simmer for a few minutes.

Carefully pour the meat mixture over the eggplant rounds and bake for 30 minutes.

Serve with rice or plain yogurt.

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Date Tahini Cake

Ingredients:

• 1½ cup pitted dates
• hot water
• 60 grams (¼ cup) unsalted butter, room temperature
• ½ cup (120g) brown sugar
• 2 eggs
• ½ cup tahini
• ½ cup flour
• 2 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp baking powder
• Pinch of salt
• Toasted nuts or sesame seeds for decoration

1. Preheat your oven to 160°C (320°F), and prepare your cake pan by generously greasing it with butter. I used a springform pan.
2. Soak the dates in hot water for 5 minutes or longer and then mash them until smooth. Set aside
3. Sift your flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt and the set aside.
4. With a mixer beat your butter and sugar until creamy, then add the eggs. Continue to beat until smooth.
5. Fold in the tahini and date paste and thoroughly combine.
6. Then fold your dry mixture into the wet. Mix until combined.
7. Pour the mixture into the prepared pan and coat the top generously with toasted nuts or sesame seeds.
8. Bake for about 35-45 minutes.

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Perfect Chocolate Cake

Ingredients:
3 cups flour
3 cups sugar
2 cups cocoa
3 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1/2 cup oil
2 eggs
2 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 cup milk
1 1/2 cup warm water

Ganache:
2 cups heavy cream
400g chocolate



Preheat oven to 180ºC.

Butter 2 round cake pans. Dust with flour and tap out the excess.

Mix together flour, sugar, cocoa, baking powder, and salt in a stand mixer using a low speed until combined.

Add eggs, oil, milk, and vanilla. Beat on a medium speed until smooth. This should take just a couple of minutes. Pour warm water and mix.

Divide batter among the 2 pans.
Bake for 30-35 minutes until the cake meets the toothpick test (stick a toothpick in and it comes out clean).

Cool on wire racks for 15 minutes and then turn out the cakes onto the racks and allow to cool completely. Frost it with the ganache.

Ganache

Melt the heavy cream and chocolate on low heat.

Allow it to cool a little bit.

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Chicken Avocado Salad

Ingredients:
2 large skinless boneless chicken breasts, halved to make four fillets
Dressing / Marinade:
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup lemon juice (juice of 1 lemon)
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
2 teaspoons minced garlic
2 tablespoons dried oregano
1 teaspoon salt
pepper

For The Salad:
4 cups lettuce leaves washed and shredded
2 cucumbers, halved and sliced
Cherry tomatoes
1 avocado

Whisk together all the marinade / dressing ingredients in large, shallow dish.
Pour out 1/2 cup to use as the dressing; reserve in the refrigerator for later to use as the dressing.

Add the chicken to the marinade in the shallow dish and evenly coat; cover and allow to marinade for 30 minutes. While chicken is marinading, prepare all of the salad ingredients (except for the avocado) in a large bowl and mix.

Heat a large grill pan or cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. Remove the chicken from the marinade and add to the pan along with any marinade left over in the bowl. Grill or sear until the chicken is golden on the outside and cooked through, (about 5-6 minutes each side).

Remove chicken from the pan and allow to rest for 5 minutes. Slice thickly and arrange over salad. Slice avocados and arrange on salad. Drizzle with the reserved dressing, and serve!

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Grilled Avocado Chicken

Who doesn't love juicy marinated grilled chicken? But when served with diced avocado and tomatoes, it's a whole new story!

A sweet honey balsamic marinade that makes chicken unbelievably juicy and tender. It's a very easy recipe. It is ready in less than a half an hour and I can bet that you have all of the ingredients that you need in your pantry right now.  Not only is this meal easy to prepare, it has a ton of flavor and everyone loves it.

Ingredients

• ¾ cup balsamic vinegar
• 1 tsp honey
• 3 cloves garlic, crushed
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tsp italian seasoning
• Salt and pepper
• 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
• 4 slices mozzarella cheese
• 2 avocados, diced
• 2 tomatoes, diced
• salt and pepper
• 1 tbsp lemon juice

In a bowl whisk the balsamic vinegar, honey, garlic, olive oil, italian seasoning, and salt and pepper. Add the chicken breasts and coat. Marinate for 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a small bowl add the avocado, tomato, salt and pepper to taste. Set aside.

Heat the grill to medium high heat. Grill the chicken on each side about 6 minutes or until cooked throughout and no longer pink. Top with mozzarella cheese and avocado, tomato mixture.

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