This dish has a Lebanese origin but we can find it in all Middle East countries as well.
There are several legends about the name of this dish, but the most accurate is that when Lebanon was under Ottoman rule then high-ranking officers were called basha; hence the name of this dish, after an Armenian governor or pasha (basha is the Arabic pronunciation since p as a sound does not exist in Arabic) who was appointed to govern the Lebanese territory.
Ingredients
1/2 kg minced meat.
2 chopped onions.
1 egg
Chopped parsley and fresh coriander
Bread crumbs
4 tomates.
1 tablespoon tomato paste.
Olive oil
Boharat (Middle East mix of spices)
Cinnamon
Salt and pepper
Elaboration:
Mix the meat with onions with egg, parsey, coriander, bread crumbs, salt, pepper, boharat and cinnamon.
Make small balls with the mix.
In a non-stick pan, heat oil over medium heat.
Stir and fry meatballs in oil on all sides.
Take off heat and set aside.
Blend tomatoes in a blender with water.
Dissolve tomato paste in a cup of water.
Fry onions and one clove of garlic till golden brown.
Add blended tomatoes and tomato paste, salt and pepper.
Add the fried meatballs and leave to cook for about 20 minutes low heat.
Ramadan is the quintessential month of charity and I would like to share with all of you a little tip that is not only valid for Ramadan but also for the rest of the year.
Sadakka (Charity) is not only about money, there are other small details that we can do for others that are also charity.
Yesterday I was lucky to meet 2 people who transmitted this feeling of non-monetary charity to me.
I went out from work and wanted to do some shopping in my office area, and I was looking for a store where it sells the konafa dough and the qataifs that is quite famous in Cairo. I asked a street vendor and a lady heard me and she offered to accompany me. When we got to the store it was totally full of people, the lady not only accompanied me but also got among all these people and brought me what I wanted to buy, all with a smile and a sweetness that really made my day.
Then I went to another store to buy lasagna sheets and the saleswoman was also super charming and gave me all kinds of explanations on how to use them.
These people made me think on how important non-monetary charity is and the difference we can make to other people, who may be going through difficult times and need a helping hand to listen to them and smile at them.
Sometimes we are involved in our work life, home obligations and we forget to look around and be kind and supportive with others and especially with those we love the most. We forget to tell them how much we love them and that we are here for them, and we all love hearing these words of support.
Let’s not forget the little details that make the lives of others better, a smile, a thank you, Can I help you ? listen to those who need us, tell our husbands and wives and children how much we love them, they are all acts of sadakka non-monetary that is so necessary in this holy month.
May you have a blessed fast day and Rabbena yetakkabal
About the Author: Marisa Lopez Chicote is an event planner and mother of 5, living in Cairo and Muslim since 1985, alhamdullah. She loves travelling and cooking.
There is a legend about the origin of this dessert. Om Ali was the first wife of Sultan Ezz El Din Aybek. In Egypt, women were not allowed to rule but were allowed to be regents until their children were older to rule. When the sultan died, his second wife, Shagaret El Dorr, had a dispute with Om Ali over which of his sons would be the sultan’s successor.
Shagaret El Dorr hatched a plan by gifting her husband’s first wife with a maid of hers. While the first wife was in the hamam to bathe, she was beaten to death with a slipper by her own maiden. To celebrate her death, she ordered this dessert and distributed it all over her country.
OM ALI RECIPE
Ingredients:
1 package of puff pastry or phyllo dough sheets
1 cup of chopped pistachios
1 cup of chopped hazelnuts
1 cup of raisins
1 cup coconut flakes
1 and 1/4 cups white sugar
4 cups of milk
2 cups of whipped cream with sugar
Elaboration:
Preheat the oven to 175 degrees C. Butter a mold (23×33 cm).
Place the puff pastry or phyllo dough sheet painted with butter or ghee in an oven tray and put it in the oven. Watch closely. When the top layer is seen to turn crisp and golden, remove them from the oven.
Preheat the oven to broil.
In a bowl, combine the walnuts, hazelnuts, raisins, coconut and 1/4 cup of the sugar. Break the cooked puff pastry into pieces and stir it into the mixture of walnuts and other dried fruits.
Spread this mixture evenly in our mold or source.
Bring the milk and 1/2 cup sugar to a boil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Pour it over the mixture.
Beat the cream with the remaining 1/2 cup sugar until stiff peaks form. Spread it evenly on the plate throughout the mixture.
Place dessert under the grill until the top top is golden brown, about 10 minutes. Serve hot.
Mahshi is a dish of vegetables stuffed with ground beef, onion, tomato, herbs and rice, that are cooked in a broth with tomato and cumin sauce.
Mahshi, it is originally a traditional Greek dish which was made out of vine leaves stuffed with minced lamb meat and rice, according to the New York Times, but other resource that it is one of many dishes of Ottoman origin that spread throughout the territory of the ancient empire, from the Balkans to Egypt to the Levant.
The name mahshi can be translated as stuffed squash. In Croatian and Serbian, this dish takes the name of punjene tikvice. In Albania, it is called kungulleshka të mbushura. Finally in Turkey, it is called kabak dolmasi.
In Egypt, mahshi is present on all banquet tables for weddings, family reunions and especially during the celebrations of the month of Ramadan.
The base of this meal is preparing the stuffing made of rice, herbs (parsley, coriander and dill), semi cooked tomato sauce and a pinch boharat (Middle East mix spices) and salt and pepper. Once this filing is ready, you can use any vegetable of your choice. In Egypt we use cored zucchini, cored eggplants, cabbage leaves, grapevine leaves, or small bell peppers. You may also add some cooked ground beef to the rice mixture to make it a full meal.
This is a meal that takes a long time to prepare and making it is traditionally a communal activity, where all female members of the household sit and core and stuff while talking and bonding.Personally, the lady who sells me the vegetables, make the core for me so do not take me so long
Ingredients
3 cups short grain rice
3 large onions, chopped
2 large onion sliced or slides of zucchini
3 chopped tomatoes
A bunch of the following: parsley, coriander and dill
2 teaspoons of boharat
1 teaspoon of black pepper
3 teaspoons of sat
2 tbsp of ghee (samna baladi)
Chicken or meat Broth
Tomato sauce and cumin
– 10 pieces of zucchini- Choose pieces that are slightly fat and short
– 10 pieces of eggplant
– In other pot, 20 cabbage leaves (blanched and middle rib removed)
– and 20 vine leaves (blanched)
Elaboration:
Sauté chopped onions in 2 tbsp of ghee for 3 minutes or until wilted and yellow. Add the chopped tomato, salt, pepper and boharat. Simmer for 3 minutes.
Rinse the rice thoroughly and drain. Finely chop the herbs. Add the prepared mix of onion, spices and tomato and herbs to the rice and mix well.
Core the vegetables using what we call in Egypt “Mai-warr” or literally “corer”. Try to remove most of the core leaving only a thin outer shell, taking care not to break or pierce the vegetables.
If you are using eggplant, put each piece in a bowl of water as you core them one by one to avoid the eggplant darkening in color.
For leafy vegetables blanch and cool the leaves.
Using a teaspoon, stuff each vegetable with the rice mixture pushing down the rice as you add more with the handle of the spoon. Leave ½ cm unstuffed to allow the rice to expand when cooked.
Add a bit of ghee to the bottom of a non stick pot. Arrange the onion or zucchini slices to cover the bottom. This is to avoid the bottoms of the vegetables being charred if the water dries out and it also gives a nice flavor to the meal.
Arrange the stuffed vegetables on top of the onions in a slightly standing position to avoid the rice spilling out.
Add 2 cup broth and tomato sauce and a bit of cumin . Bring to a boil, then simmer on very low heat till rice is cooked, about 15-20 minutes. When it cools down slightly, arrange the vegetables in a serving dish and discard the onion slices.
For the leafy vegetables like cabbage, spread the leaf, add 1 tbsp rice mixture and roll like a wrap without tucking the ends. If using vine leaves you need to tuck the ends while you roll.
Served warm with a main dish of chicken or meat and yogurt salad.
Foul Medames is a very famous Egyptian dish made with fava beans as the main ingredient. Its origin come from the pharaonic times (Some remnants of foul medames was found in a tomb of the 12th Dynasty).
Egyptians used to eat this dish like breakfast together with ta3meya (falafel), pita bread and mixed salad . Also foul is the main dish for suhoor in Ramadan.
Egyptian streets during Ramadan nights are full of street vendors where they can buy foul that are already cooked only to season at home according of the preference of each one.
I share with you my recipe:
Ingredients:
Cooked Fava beans (you can cook in a slow cooker or in a medamesa 6 hours low fire o canned)
Tahina sauce (sesame paste)
Lemon juice
Salt, pepper and cumin
Olive oil
Elaboration:
Mix all the ingredients except the olive oil and blend its.
Served with a splash of olive oil, pita bread and mixed salad, For suhoor you can add also boiled eggs and cottage cheese
Fava beans are loaded with vitamins, minerals, fiber and protein. They’re thought to offer impressive health effects, such as improved motor function and immunity.
Today, we are going to talk about a very Egyptian Ramadan tradition, the FANOUS, from its origin to as we know it today.
Although the FANOUS – Arabic for lantern – are currently used as a decorative item or a toy for children to enjoy during the holy month, a journey back in time shows that their journey began quite differently.
Despite its common use in modern Arabic, the word fanous originates from the Greek word φανός – pronounced almost similarly – which means lantern, or a means of illumination, whether portable or fixed.
The first reviews on the origin of the FANOUS may differ, but all point to Cairo as the birthplace of the FANOUS as we know it today.
The story begins just over a thousand years ago, on the 5th of Ramadan of the Hijri (lunar) year 358 (969 AD), when the Cairots awaited the arrival of al-Mu’izz li-Din Allah al-Fatimy during darkness. . To ensure an illuminated entrance for the Caliph, Gawhar al-Siqilli, the military commander and viceroy at the time, ordered the city’s residents to light the way by holding candles along the way. To avoid extinguished candles, the townspeople placed their candles on wooden bases and closed them with palm and light skin. As the caliph walked through the city, he admired the design and from there the FANOUS became a symbol.
Another account tells that the families of Cairo used to accompany the Caliph throughout his journey through the city passing through the ancient gates of Cairo, Bab el-Nasr, Bab el-Fetouh and Bab el-Dahab on his way to the Mokattam hill for the sighting of the moon in Ramadan, announcing the beginning of the holy month. Along the route, children happily held the FANOUS and sang in welcome and celebration of Ramadan.
Although the early stories of the FANOUS may not be surprisingly strange, others associated with the FANOUS are quite unusual.
In the 10th century AD, the Caliph el-Hakim bi-Amr Allah forbade women from leaving their homes for the entire year. The only exception was during Ramadan when women were allowed to attend prayer outside their homes and visit relatives and neighbors. But that exception was made as a condition that women had to be accompanied by children who carried the FANOUS to illuminate their path and notify men that a woman is walking.
Furthermore, Caliph el-Hakim bi-Amr Allah approved an order for lanterns to be installed in every alley and in front of every shop and home. Whoever disobeyed was fined. Under such strict orders, the FANOUS industry in Cairo flourished remarkably
During Fatimid times, celebrations and holidays were of notable importance to the Egyptians, this is the reason why they invested a lot of time and effort in preparing for them. Consequently, the FANUS industry began to change from a utility for lighting houses, mosques and shops to a decorative item used during Ramadan.
In addition, it was spread as a tradition for children to walk along the roads and alleys with their FANOUS and singing happy songs while asking for gifts and sweets.
At night, the mesaharaty, a person whose job it is to wake people up for Suhoor before sunrise in Ramadan, would also gather the children around them as they happily chanted through the neighborhood, carrying the fanuos.
Over time, more traditions emerged that linked the FANOUS with Ramadan, resulting in a deeply rooted bond in Egyptian traditions.
Little by little, the Egyptian FANOUS began to reach neighboring countries until it became a Ramadan tradition in many of them, especially in Damascus, Aleppo, Jerusalem, Gaza and others.
Although the tradition is seasonal, the FANOUS industry is active throughout the year, even in our modern times. Throughout the year, industry innovators work to create and craft new designs. They are then stored until shortly before Ramadan, when they become available for sale.
As the original birthplace of the FANOUS, Cairo continues to maintain its pivotal role in the industry. The center of today’s FANOUS industry is considered to be Taht ElRab “, an area near al-Azhar. There, you can find some of the largest FANOUS workshops that have been passed down from one generation to another.
About the Author: Marisa Lopez Chicote is an event planner and mother of 5, living in Cairo and Muslim since 1985, alhamdullah. She loves travelling and cooking.
