Tag: Jerusalem cookbook

Hummus Kawarma (Lamb) with Lemon Sauce

Hummus kawarma (lamb) with Lemon Sauce - trust in kim

Yotam Ottolenghi, thank you for this recipe! I have several of his cookbooks, and I think this is my favourite recipe out of all of them. It comes from Jerusalem, which is filled with awesome recipes along with beautiful photos of the food and culture.

There is so much flavour in this dish – the lamb is marinated in herbs, and then it is served on top of hummus and drizzled with a delicious lemon sauce. Completely addictive!

In the colder seasons I serve this with another favourite recipe, roasted cauliflower and butternut squash. In summer I would switch to a refreshing fattoush salad.

You can substitute the hand-chopped lamb with ground lamb, but the hand-chopped meat has a much nicer texture to it. And it’s really easy to chop the meat yourself.

This recipe serves 6 people for an appetizer or small meal. Pita bread is nice served with this.

What you need:

kawarma ingredients:

  • 300g neck fillet of lamb (which I couldn’t find, so I just used a piece of top round)
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
  • 1 teaspoon ground allspice
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
  • 1 teaspoon crushed dried za’atar or oregano leaves
  • 1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon chopped fresh mint
  • 1 tablespoon chopped flat-leaf parsley, plus extra to garnish
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 tablespoon unsalted butter or ghee
  • 1 teaspoon olive oil

lemon sauce ingredients:

  • 10 grams flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped (also delicious without parsley)
  • 1 green chile, chopped finely
  • 4 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
  • 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
  • 2 cloves garlic, crushed
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt

optional toppings:

  • pine nuts
  • pomegranate seeds

What you do:

  1. Chop the lamb finely. Combine all the kawarma ingredients except the butter and oil. Mix well, cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
  2. Combine all the ingredients for the lemon sauce.
  3. Heat the butter and olive oil in a large frying pan. Add the lamb, in two or three batches, and stir as it fries. It only needs about 2 minutes to turn nicely light-pink inside.
  4. To serve, make a mound of hummus on the plate, and use a spoon to create a well in the middle. Spoon some of the lamb into the well, and top with a generous amount of the lemon sauce. Garnish with more parsley or other optional toppings.

Enjoy it while it’s warm!

Fish Cakes in Tomato Sauce

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I love fish, but I rarely cook it at home.  Not really sure why, it’s just not something I like to do.  Maybe it’s because of the fishy smell in the house after.  This one has no fishy smell or taste, just yum, and good for you.  I’m trying to cook more fish because it’s good for me, and this is a really delicious way to include more fish into your diet.

Yes, I have blogged this recipe before, but the picture was terrible, and the recipe really is amazing.  It’s from Yotam Ottolenghi’s Jerusalem cookbook.  This time I had some mahi mahi in my freezer that I wanted to use up, and worked really well in this dish.  You can use any white fish for this recipe; Ottolenghi suggests cod halibut, hake or pollock.

I brought the leftovers to work, and the people who ate it really enjoyed it.

I made this with whole wheat bulghur, which was good, but I think brown rice was a better match.

What you need for the tomato sauce:

2 & 1/2 tablespoons olive oil

1 & 1/2 teaspoons cumin

1/2 teaspoon sweet paprika (I once used smoked – not as successful with this recipe!)

1 teaspoon ground coriander

1 medium sweet onion, chopped

1/2 cup dry white wine

1-400 gram/14 oz  can chopped tomatoes (I added some cherry tomatoes I had in the fridge)

1 red chili, seeded and finely chopped

1 clove garlic, crushed

2 teaspoons sugar

2 tablespoons fresh mint leaves, chopped coarsely

salt and pepper to taste

What you need for the fish cakes:

3 slices white bread with crusts removed (about 60 grams) (I had no bread so I substituted bread crumbs)

1 & 1/2 lbs cod, tilapia, halibut, hake or pollock

1 medium sweet onion, finely chopped

4 cloves garlic, crushed

30 grams flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped

30 grams cilantro, finely chopped

1 tablespoon cumin

1 & 1/2 teaspoons salt

2 extra-large eggs, beaten

4 tablespoons olive oil (for frying)

What you do:

1. To make the tomato sauce, begin by heating the olive oil in a very large frying pan over medium heat.  Add the onion and spices and cook until the onion is soft, about 8-10 minutes.  Add the wine and simmer for a few minutes, then add the tomatoes, chile, garlic, sugar, 1/2 teaspoon salt. Simmer for about 15 minutes, then add freshly ground pepper and more salt if you need it. Keep this simmering so it is hot when you add the fish to it. (If you’re making rice, you could start it now)

2. To make the fish cakes, begin by putting the bread in a food processor and making bread crumbs, then place in a bowl.  (or just use bread crumbs) Chop the fish up very finely and add to the bowl along with all of the other ingredients except the olive oil.  Mix it all together with your hands.  Form the mixture into cakes about 8 cm in diameter and 2 cm thick.  You may need to refrigerate them for about 1/2 an hour to firm up a little.

3. To begin cooking the fish cakes, heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil over medium-high heat in a frying pan, then add half of the fish cakes, searing  for a few minutes, until quite browned. Carefully flip the cakes and brown the other side.  Place the seared fish cakes in the hot tomato sauce and then sear the other half of the fish cakes.

4. Once all the fish cakes have been placed in the tomato sauce, add about a cup of water (or white wine) to cover the cakes partially.  Cover the pan and simmer over very low heat for 15-20 minutes. Remove the lid and turn off the heat about ten minutes before serving to let the cakes settle.

I liked them when they were served hot, but the cookbook says they are good at room temperature too.  Serve over rice or bulghur, or with bread to soak up the sauce, and garnish with a little mint or cilantro.

fish cakes and tomato sauce - trust in kim

Turkey & Zucchini Burgers

Snapseed

The other day the sun was shining, so we wanted to make something to go on the barbecue.  We ended up frying these turkey burgers on the stove-top because we wondered if they would hold together on the grill.  In retrospect, after we let them sit while waiting to cook them, they ended up holding together quite well.  I would recommend oiling the grill really well if you’re going to barbecue them. The original recipe, in Jerusalem by Yotam Ottolenhi, says you can get 18 burgers out of this recipe.  When he says burgers, he means tiny little meatballs 9which would probably make a great appetizer).  If you are making a real burger, the kind with the regular-sized bun, you can make more like 4-6 patties.

Now, about the taste – so good! So juicy! And healthier than a lot of other barbecue options. The sumac and sour cream sauce is excellent.  The original recipe doesn’t have green onions in it, but I had a happy accident when I added the green onions meant for the burgers to my sauce instead.  So feel free to make the sauce with or without green onions.   I also used only yogurt in my sauce; use 1/2 cup sour cream and 2/3 cup yogurt if you want to follow Ottolenghi’s recipe.

What you need for the burger:

500 grams ground turkey

about 2 cups coarsely grated zucchini

3 thinly sliced green onions

1 large egg

2 tablespoons chopped mint

2 tablespoons chopped cilantro

2 cloves garlic, crushed

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon black pepper, freshly ground

1/2 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper

sunflower or vegetable oil for frying (unless you grill)

hamburger buns of your choice; I used focaccia buns

What you need for the sour cream and sumac sauce:

1 cup Greek yogurt (just strained some of my homemade yogurt)

1 teaspoon grated lemon zest

1 tablespoon grated lemon zest

1 small clove garlic, crushed

1 & 1/2 tablespoons olive oil

1 tablespoon sumac

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon black pepper, freshly ground

2 green onions, chopped (optional)

What you do for the sauce:

1. Mix all the ingredients together and set aside until needed, refrigerating if it’s going to be a while before you use it.

What you do for the burgers:

1. Combine all the ingredients for the meat patties, except for the oil for frying.  Mix with your hands and form into patties.

2. If you are pan-frying, preheat the oven to 425F. Pour a little oil into the pan, heat over medium until hot, then add the patties. Sear each side until it is nice and brown, then put the pan into the oven (or on another surface if your pan can’t go into the oven) and let them bake for 5-7 minutes.  In the meantime you can be toasting your buns, if you wish.

3. Serve with some of the sauce on top, and a salad on the side. Some options are found here and here.

Check out this posting if you want to see how to re-grow your green onions.

Fish Cakes in Tomato Sauce

cod cakes in tomato sauce - trust in kim

This popular Sephardic recipe from Syria comes from Yotam Ottolenghi’s Jerusalem cookbook. I would have never thought of serving fish cakes in a tomato sauce, but it works really well, especially over rice.  And it’s excellent for leftovers.

I used tilapia instead of cod, and it was delicious.  The first time I made it I had a hard time keeping the cakes together while they were searing, but I think the trick is leaving them to cook on one side without touching them until that side has browned well.  Once I did that I had no problem. You could make the tomato sauce ahead of time to make preparation simpler.

What you need for the tomato sauce:

2 & 1/2 tablespoons olive oil

1 & 1/2 teaspoons cumin

1/2 teaspoon sweet paprika

1 teaspoon coriander

1 medium sweet onion, chopped

1/2 cup dry white wine

1-400 gram/14 oz  can chopped tomatoes (I used canned cherry tomatoes)

1 red chili, seeded and finely chopped

1 clove garlic, crushed

2 teaspoons sugar

2 tablespoons fresh mint leaves, chopped coarsely

salt and pepper to taste

What you need for the fish cakes:

3 slices white bread with crusts removed (about 60 grams)

1 & 1/2 lbs cod, tilapia, halibut, hake or pollock

1 medium sweet onion, finely chopped

4 cloves garlic, crushed

30 grams flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped

30 grams cilantro, finely chopped

1 tablespoon cumin

1 & 1/2 teaspoons salt

2 extra-large eggs, beaten

4 tablespoons olive oil (for frying)

What you do:

1. To make the tomato sauce, begin by heating the olive oil in a very large frying pan over medium heat.  Add the onion and spices and cook until the onion is soft, about 8-10 minutes.  Add the wine and simmer for a few minutes, then add the tomatoes, chile, garlic, sugar, 1/2 teaspoon salt. Simmer for about 15 minutes, then add freshly ground pepper and more salt if you need it. Keep this simmering so it is hot when you add the fish to it. (If you’re making rice, you could start it now)

2. To make the fish cakes, begin by putting the bread in a food processor and making bread crumbs, then place in a bowl.  Chop the fish up very finely and add to the bowl along with all of the other ingredients except the olive oil.  Mix it all together with your hands.  Form the mixture into cakes about 8 cm in diameter and 2 cm thick.  You may need to refrigerate them for about 1/2 an hour to firm up a little.

3. To begin cooking the fish cakes, heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil over medium-high heat in a frying pan, then add half of the fish cakes, searing  for a few minutes, until quite browned. Carefully flip the cakes and brown the other side.  Place the seared fish cakes in the hot tomato sauce and then sear the other half of the fish cakes.

4. Once all the fish cakes have been placed in the tomato sauce, add about a cup of water (or white wine) to cover the cakes partially.  Cover the pan and simmer over very low heat for 15-20 minutes. Remove the lid and turn off the heat about ten minutes before serving to let the cakes settle.

I liked them when they were served hot, but the cookbook says they are good at room temperature too.  Serve over rice or with bread to soak up the sauce, and garnish with a little mint or cilantro.

trust in kim - fish cakes