Tilapia on a Bed of Spinach, Topped with Tomatoes, Capers, Onions, & Garlic

This is a colorful seafood dish that can be thrown together quickly, yet has great color and flavor. The most laborious part of this is chopping the tomatoes, onions, and garlic – and you could even use canned chopped tomatoes and their liquid to save even more time. The rest is layering. I have to admit that tilapia is not my preferred seafood, … [Read more…]

Meatless Monday – Garlicky Potato Dip/Mash

This is a mashed potato dip, using olive oil instead of butter or cream. You can use parsley or cilantro in this, keeping in mind that each has a distinct flavor. Garlic is what makes this very tasty, but start at 1 clove, adding more if needed. We’ll be eating this along with an omelet and a salad for Meatless Monday. It is also good as part of a … [Read more…]

Caldo De Yum! , or Turkey Sausage, Spinach, and Alphabet Noodle Soup

We needed soup, because everyone in our house was sick. I didn’t have any chicken, but I did have sweet Italian turkey sausage, so I decided to make a soup that complemented the sausage. I thought of tomato, automatically, but we didn’t want it too strongly tomato-ey. So, this soup is mostly chicken stock based, with some tomato paste to flavor … [Read more…]

Meatless Monday – Colcannon

What is there to say about this recipe? Butter = good. Potatoes = good. Cabbage = good. Put it all together in whipped form = excellent. Next time, I think I’d add carrots or parsnips, and maybe kale as well. Meatless Monday – Colcannon 5 red-skinned potatoes, scrubbed clean (about a pound) ½ small cabbage 1 cup whole milk 1 … [Read more…]

Meatless Monday – Oatmeal Helba – Vegan Oatmeal Fenugreek Cake Bars

This is a reworked dessert/sweet recipe. It is made with fenugreek seeds. It is usually made with mostly semolina. I wanted to make these bars, but noted that I only had about half the required semolina. I had a hunch that oatmeal would taste great in this, and I was right. From the original posted recipe Helba is a traditional sweet, dense cake … [Read more…]

evian® Spray Giveaway – Enter now!

The Wilkes Group, distributor of evian® in the United States, is giving away 20 two 5 oz Evian Facial Sprays. Winners will be chosen at random. Readers of The Levantess are invited to enter this giveaway. Listed in CNN’s list of 8 products to bring your skin back to life, it is a hydrating spray that would also be useful to help with parched … [Read more…]

Kofta Kabob Under the Broiler

This is your basic kofta recipe, shaped into kabobs, and broiled. Once you do this, you can either serve with rice, or wrapped in flat bread or pita. Let me tell you, this recipe takes ground beef (or lamb) and elevates it way, way up. A little secret – My husband asked for this exact meal two days in a row. Shhhh. Broiled Kofta Kabob 1 1/2 … [Read more…]

Pulled Chicken Sandwiches – Djaj Musahab

This is called ‘pulled chicken’, but I used boneless, skinless chicken thighs for ease. You can serve this chicken in a crusty bread, or wrapped in flatbread. You can also eat it with rice and a salad. I prefer it as a sandwich, to feel like I have just stopped at a food cart in the center of a Levantine city. Tahini sauce 1 Tablespoon tahini 1 … [Read more…]

Matcha Green Tea Sahlab (Drinkable Green Tea Pudding)

Sahlab (salep) is a wonderful drink when it is bitterly cold outside. It is warming and thick and comforting. It has a consistency of a thin pudding. In the original sahlab, the thickening and flavoring ingredient was the tuber of orchids. This orchid, likely due to the deliciousness of drinks and desserts that can be made from its tuber, is … [Read more…]

The Levantess

Cooking, Shopping, Writing & Styling

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