Tunisian Ojja

Ojja to me was love at first bite. It was at a get together at my gorgeous Tunisian German friend Ines and her Egyptian hubby Sherif’s home in Cairo that I fell in love with Ojja. Bursting with tangy flavours of tomatoes, a mild heat from Harissa and a perfectly balanced spice mix Tabelkouria, all blending in together with eggs in oil. That’s how I would describe Ojja. And during one of our cooking mornings, Ines taught us friends to cook this in no time. Eversince then, this has been a regular at home, equally loved by all. A truly verstaile dish, can be whipped up with no extra efforts and served as a dip with Pita bread, over crackers, in sandwiches and pairs well with chapathi too. A definite show stopper in your party menu !

This recipe calls for two flavours from North Africa, Harissa and TebelKarouia , popularly known as Tabil. Living in Egypt, Harissa was locally available in the stores but as we moved out of Egypt, the bottled ones weren’t as authentic as the North African ones. Very sweetly, Ines brought me some while we met a few years later but I had to learn to make it myself. So I looked up for recipes, mixed and matched a few to something that’s come quite close to the authentic Harissa. Now this recipe helps me make Ojja and also lends its magic to many other dishes. Tabil is a Tunisian spice blend with bursting flavours of corriander seeds, garlic, caraway seeds and chillies. With time, I discovered my own way of making Tabil at home, so now making Ojja is a breeze. Am sure, you will also fall in love with Ojja when you try it out!

Let’s dive into the recipe.

To make Ojja you will need:

1 whole garlic peeled, crushed or pressed
1 cup olive oil
7 tbsp concentrated tomato paste
6 eggs
1 tablespoon Harissa paste
1 tablespoon Tebelkarouia/Tabil spice mix
Salt & pepper to taste

Method:

Add everything except eggs in a saucepan with oil, over medium heat.
Let it simmer for a while, till the tomato paste gets into an even consistency.
Add 1 cup water, remove excess oil that floats on top.
Let it cook on medium heat for a while, covered with a mesh lid, till it reaches a creamy consistency, removing the oil that floats on the top.
Add half cup water and let it simmer further until an even creamy mixture is achieved.
Break in an egg at a time into the tomato mixture (do not mix).
Increase the heat/fire to high power and let it cook for a minute or two.
Lightly break the eggs, but do not scramble it. Let the whole mixture cook for few minutes (around 5 minutes). This helps give those little bites of cooked eggs in Ojja.
Let it cool and your delicious Ojja is ready to be served along with pita or crackers.
Enjoy your Ojja, paired with anything that you like !!

Fried Zucchini Flowers (Courgette/Squash flowers)

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Summer brings along beautiful summer flowers and summer squashes. I remember in my garden in Cairo home, every time Zucchini plant had blossoms our neighbor Michel would mention to harvest them to use it for cooking and would say they are incredibly delicious. But I never tried them until today, as this time I had plenty of zucchini blossoms at home.

Most often of times, the squash plants begin flowering with male flowers that do not bear fruits, so the best way is to fry these gentle flowers, with a delicate batter for an appetizer or use in soups, salads, crepes or as garnish.

To harvest these blossoms, the best time would be post mid day, after letting the bees spread the pollen. Pinch them behind the blossoms leaving a little bit of the stalk on it (female blossoms bear fruit right behind the flower).

Here in this recipe I have tried a beer batter fry, but am sure it will taste equally good with a regular fritters batter. Do try it out and enjoy the crispy crunchy and yet delicate and unique flavor of the blossoms.

This recipe is a quick and easy one and gets done in no time. So lets get started with it.

Ingredients:

8-10 zucchini blossoms ( or as many as you have/ want)
1/3 cup flour approximately
about 1/3rd cup of chilled beer or sparkling water (freshly opened)
1-2 tsp of chili powder
1/2 tsp crushed/powdered black pepper
salt to taste
oil (any flavorless oil) for shallow/pan frying

Flour, chili powder, crushed pepper and salt

Directions:

Clean the blossoms by removing the pistil of the flowers. It’s better to tear a little and open to ensure that no insects or dirt is inside. Then rinse them gently and dry on paper towel.
To make the beer batter, put the flour, chili powder, pepper powder and salt into a large mixing bowl and mix well.
Pour the chilled beer/sparkling water into the flour, little at a time and whisk it well with a whisk or a fork until a thick consistency is reached.
Set aside to rest for 10-15 minutes.
Heat little oil in a shallow pan.
Dip the flowers, gently one after the other until well coated and place them in the warm oil.
Cook on medium heat.
Fry until cooked on one side, then turn and continue cooking for few minutes until done on the other side.
Remove with a slotted spoon onto a paper towel lined plate.
Crispy and crunchy Zucchini flowers are ready.
Serve warm with sour cream or mayo dip.
Best eaten while still warm.

Enjoy it warm with a dip and chilled beer!

Skillet Baked Cornbread

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My search for a quick and easy, healthy and filling, moist and crunchy Cornbread has been on for a while now. After many trials in my experimental kitchen with my dear husband and kids trying them out, the search finally ends in the form of this recipe. This skillet baked cornbread is just the way I wanted it, savory and mildly sweet, loaded with cheese and jalapenos. Pair with the in house jalapeno salsa or a blob of homemade butter or even a drizzle of honey.

Moist and Crunchy Cornbread, with a drizzle of Jalapeno Salsa

The ingredients used in the recipe are most often available in our pantry. You can also mix in and add more textures and tastes as you wish too, and it will yet come out deliciously baked. I have used a well-seasoned cast-iron skillet for baking this cornbread, do not panic if you don’t have one, you can use a loaf tin, a cake pan or even muffin tin but monitor the baking time.

Recipe

Serves 14-16 slices

Preparation time 20 mins

Baking time 30-40 mins

Ingredients

1 3/4 cups corn (fresh, frozen or tinned)
2 tbsp/ 30 ml honey
2 tbsp brown sugar
1 cup ( 225 ml) milk
2 free-range eggs
1/4 cup butter, melted
1 1/2 cups (213 gms) sharp cheddar, grated
1 cup yellow cornmeal (you can easily replace it with semolina/Rava or coarsely ground oats, I used semolina)
2 Jalapeno pepper, chopped
3/4 cup (105 gms) all-purpose flour
1 tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt

Optional add on’s:

diced bacon
chopped herbs (chives/garlic chives/parsley etc)
2 – 3 tsp Jalapeno salsa

Preheat the oven to 200 C (400 F).
Roughly blend the drained corn in a food processor or with a knife. I have used frozen sweet corn and blended them in the processor. Keep aside.
In a mixing bowl, whisk together the milk, melted butter, eggs, honey, and brown sugar.
In another bowl, mix the blended corn, and bacon ( if using ).
In another bowl, mix together the dry ingredients (flour, cornmeal, baking powder & salt) along with the grated cheddar.
Add the dry ingredients into the wet, along with the Jalapenos and chopped herbs. Do not over mix.
Place the castiron skillet in the oven with a tablespoon of butter for 5 mins.
Pour the batter into the hot skillet. Bake the cornbread for 30-40 mins or until it’s golden brown.
Remove from oven, let stand for 10-15 minutes before serving.
Enjoy warm as an accompaniment or with a blob of butter or a drizzle of honey or the in house jalapeno salsa.

A slice of goodness with garden fresh garlic chives !

Christmas Cake

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Certain parts of celebrations and traditions never change, one such is the traditional Christmas cake. Christmas is incomplete without the aroma of fruity rum wafting through the home for weeks and a classic Christmas cake on the table.

At first glance, making this cake, may seem complicated but it is very easy. Bake this Christmas cake in advance of Christmas and feed it regularly with rum to build the dark and rich flavor and keep it moist. The secret to baking is to weigh and prepare all the ingredients, and line the tins before you start mixing.

Christmas cake ideally is best when made at least two months to three weeks before Christmas. This allows time for the cake to be fed at regular intervals with rum, which, in turn, helps to mature the cake. However, if you are making it later, you can be assured the cake will still taste as good, though it may not store as long as a mature one.

This recipe uses 2 baking pans of 9 inches
Ingredients:
For Soaking
Mixed fruits : 3 cups , I used a mix of the following
Golden raisins : 100gms
Black raisins : 150gms
Dried cranberries : 100gms
Glaced cherries : 150gms
Candied peels : 100gms
(You can also use dry apricots, prunes, dates and nuts while soaking)
Dark rum : 300 ml ( ½ cup)

For caramel
Sugar: ½ cup
Water : 1 tbsp
Warm water : ¼ cup

For cake
White Flour : 2 cups
Baking powder: 1 ¼ tsp
Baking soda : ½ tsp
Sugar: 1 cup + 2tbsp
Unsalted butter: 250 gms
Eggs : 4
Vanilla essence : 2tsp
Jam : 1 tbsp (apricot)

Pecans/Walnuts/Almonds for decoration (optional)

For Spice powder
Cloves: 2
Cinnamon: a small piece
Cardamom : 2
Nutmeg: small piece
Grind all with the 2 tbsp sugar

Method
Soaking : Chop all the dry fruits into small pieces and soak them in an air-tight glass jar, in a dark place away from sunlight for at least 1.5 months, if that’s not possible then for a minimum of 1 week. Shake/toss the jar once in a while.

Caramel Preparation
Combine ½ cup sugar & 1 tbsp water in a saucepan. Heat it & let the sugar melt. When the color of the melted sugar becomes dark brown, remove the pan from the fire & add ¼ cup warm water, be careful as it may bubble and splash. Mix it thoroughly & bring it back to simmer for 3-4mins. Remove & let it cool completely. You can prepare caramel in advance & refrigerate it.

Cake preparation

Pre heat the oven to 140c

Drain the soaked fruits & keep aside

Retain 4 tbsp of the drained liquor

Toss the drained fruits in 3-4 tbsp white flour

Sift the white flour with the baking powder & baking soda

Powder the sugar & keep aside

Separate the yolks & the whites

Beat the egg whites to soft peaks, keep aside

Beat the butter & sugar

Add the egg yolks, one by one, while mixing

When it becomes smooth, add vanilla essence, the cooled caramel & spice powder & beat again

Add the sifted white flour, in 2 batches Add jam n combine

Fold in the egg whites in 2 parts, & gently fold till no white streaks are visible

Fold in the soaked fruits & the 4 tbsp of retained liquor

Line the baking dish with parchment paper, Grease (butter) & dust (white flour) it well

Bake in the pre heated oven for 60-80 min, until a skewer inserted comes out clean. ( if the top is getting too dark, then cover it with aluminum foil, punch a hole in the foil).

Brush the remaining liquor once while it is warm, keep the cake to cool in a dark place. Brush more liquor after few days, repeating once every few days until the liquor is over.

Store in an air tight container or wrap it into a beautiful gift for your loved ones.

Happy Baking and Season’s Greetings!!

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The Spice route….

Thanks for joining me!

The journey of the Spice route

In the land of the great Pharaohs & the pyramids, the journey of the Spice route began. My family and I relocated to Cairo, Egypt from Bangalore, India many years ago. While building some great friendships over the years, we realized that one of the greatest things that bring people together around the world was food and music. Thus began the journey of learning the various cuisines from the different kitchens of my friends. Our expat journey took us to Nairobi, a foodies paradise in Kenya, setting off more into the culinary journey with my friends from various regions of the world. Now back home to Bangalore, I sit down here, to publish my Spice route.

My blog is a treasure trove of recipes that I learned from my friends in their kitchens and my trials too.

About me…..

An avid travel photographer, a wildlife enthusiast who belongs in nature with the flora and fauna. Professionally, trying to be a better educator and facilitator of learning in the process of teaching the child, equally passionate about cooking and experimenting with food. While am not doing any of the above, you would find me in the company of little kids or be dancing away.

Jalapenos in oil

I have been addicted to jalapenos preserved in oil ever since I had it at my friend Pady and Jay’s beautiful home in Cairo. It’s such a joy when the hubby’s get into action and come out with some really amazing, yet so simple discoveries that we relish all through. Pady and Jay, both are amazing chefs with a passion for cooking and everything that’s beautiful around them.

This condiment has been a must have in my pantry, since then. I always have one bottle aged and another one in the process of aging. One can use this in a plethora of ways, over Bruschetta, in sauces, as a garnish, in dips, while cooking, over eggs to name a few. On a plain toasted bread, oh my It’s heavenly! The oil infused with delicate hint of spice from jalapeno and garlic and a tartness from the lime adding to the party, it just seems like a perfect amalgamation.

A simple preserve, gets done in no time if you have all the ingredients at hand. All you need is some fresh, plump, juicy jalapenos and rest all are from the pantry. I had a good harvest of Jalapenos in my garden and decided to make a jar of this beauty. All I did was, few months ago while deseeding the jalapenos, I scattered some in a pot and within weeks I had a couple of them germinating and now I have a constant supply of Jalapenos at home. You could try that too 🙂 So lets get started with making your own bottle of this versatile preserve that you ll love to use, over and over again.

Ingredients:

6-8 fresh red jalapenos
Garlic, peeled and sliced, half a cup
juice of half lemon
Salt to taste
Extra virgin Olive oil, 1 cup
Clean, dry and sterilized bottle to mix them all up and store

Method:

Wash and pat dry the jalapenos, deseed them by slitting into half, lengthwise and chop them to bite size (approximately a cup of chopped jalapenos)
Slice peeled garlic and keep aside (approximately half a cup).
Take a jar and start to put all the ingredients one after the other. (jalapenos, garlic, lime juice, and salt).
Pour the oil over the ingredients in the bottle, give it a nice mix.
Close the bottle with a tight lid.
Store in the refrigerator for 7-10 days, for the flavours to get infused. and then, the preserve is ready to use.
You can store it in your pantry at room temperature for 2-3 months or even more (depending on the humidity and weather at your location). If it doesn’t get over in a month or two, it may get a bit soft but it’s still good to use and relish.
Ensure that there’s always a layer of oil on top to preserve.
Enjoy the Jalapeno preserved in oil as you desire.

A jar of Jalapenos in oil, ready to be relished

Tebelkarouia – A Tunisian spice mix

I love buying spice blends from various speciality stores. I find myself lost amidst those intoxicating scents of spices on the shelves. But most often the store brought spice blends do not stay fragrant for a long time unlike the home made ones. So I always look for ways to make them at home.

Tebelkarouia was introduced to me by my Tunisian German friend Ines and I instantly fell in love with it. Tebelkarouia, popularly known as Tabil is a Tunisian spice mix, a potent, versatile blend made of coriander and caraway seeds, chilli flakes and garlic powder. It’s a real easy one to blend and store, and a real game changer too. Once you start using this, you will get hooked on to Tabil. You can throw it on grilled meats, marinades, roast vegetables, stews and many more.

With this blend in your pantry, you can do wonders with your cooking.

So let the magic begin.

This recipe makes 1/3rd cup of Tabil spice mix, in less than 10 mins.

Ingredients:

⅓ cup coriander seeds
1 tablespoon caraway seeds
1 tablespoon red chilly flakes
1 tablespoon garlic powder

Method:

Toast the coriander seeds, caraway seeds and red chilly flakes on a dry skillet until fragrant. (around 2 minutes, on low heat)
Set aside to cool slightly in a container.
While the spices are still warm, add the garlic powder and mix well.
Let the mixture cool to room temperature and then grind to a fine powder.
And, there you have, The fragrant Tabil spice mix!
Store Tabil in a dry airtight container, in a cool dark place. It stays fresh for a really long time.
Use it as a rub on meat, fish or vegetables, or in sauteed seafood or kebabs. It tastes good on salads too!

Magic Bars

While searching for a quick and easy snack to prepare for a tea party among my colleagues at school, I stumbled upon this recipe from the Joy of Baking. I have been a big fan of Stephanie for few years now, and her website. I have tried many recipes from her website and they all have come out just as perfect as they sound.

Magic Bars, as the name suggests blends all the ingredients together like a magic in the oven and comes out as a fabulous snack in no time with absolutely no efforts. A perfect balance of the chewiness and crunchiness in every bite. They are also known as coconut dream bars.

I have baked these bars many times, and every time I bake a batch, they disappear in no time with a demand to bake another batch. I have also tried it with chopped raisins/sultanas/dates along with walnuts and they have turned out as delicious as the ones without. So feel free to add and experiment.

The recipe calls for ingredients that are almost always available in our pantry. A very easy to follow, only the base layer involves combining the biscuit crumbs and butter, rest all ingredients are spread as layers and they are ready to go into the oven. These bars are also called as 6 or 7 layer bars because of the 6 or 7 different layers of ingredients.

Recipe

Makes 25-30 bars

Preparation time 5 – 10 mins

Baking time 30 – 35 minutes

Ingredients

1/2 cup (113 grams) unsalted butter, melted and cooled to room temperature

1 1/2 cups (150 grams) graham crackers/ digestives biscuits, crumbs or crushed

1 cup (55 grams) sweetened or unsweetened, flaked or shredded dried desiccated coconut

1 cup (175 grams) semisweet chocolate chips or

1 cup white chocolate chips (optional)

1 cup (175 grams) butterscotch chips (optional)

1 cup (100 grams) chopped walnuts/pecans

1 can (14 ounce/396 grams) sweetened condensed milk

Chocolate chips, butterscotch chips & chopped walnuts

Method

Preheat your oven to 180 degrees C (350 degrees F). Line a 9 inch baking pan or a brownie pan with parchment/butter paper and then butter the paper.

Layers of biscuit crumbs, coconut, chocolate chips, butterscotch chips & walnuts

In a mixing bowl, combine well the biscuit crumbs and the melted butter. Press the crumb mixture evenly on to the lined baking pan.

Next, sprinkle the desiccated coconut over the crumbs, follow that with a layer of chocolate chips and butterscotch chips ( if using) over the coconut layer. Sprinkle the chopped walnuts/pecans over the chips.

Finally, evenly drizzle the sweetened condensed milk all over the ingredients. Do not mix the ingredients together, just layer them.

Bake in a preheated oven for about 30-35 minutes, in the center rack or until golden brown and set . Remove from oven and place on a wire rack till completely cool. Cut into bars and store in an airtight jar or in the refrigerator.

Magic Bars, also known as Coconut dream bars or 6/7 layers bars.

Happy baking !!

Bamboo Rice Payasam

Wishing all my readers a very Happy Vishu!

Vishu Kanni Konna and Mulayari payasam/bamboo payasam

A few weeks ago while driving back from my home town Kannur, My family and I, stopped at a hotel in Coorg for breakfast. Waiting for our breakfast, I began to explore the small shop attached to the hotel, selling all the local, handmade, & organically sourced produce. My eyes fell upon this pack of bamboo rice. I was intrigued by this as I had heard many fascinating dishes that could be made with Bamboo rice and it’s health benefits. Here’s my trial of Bamboo rice payasam, also known a Mulayari payasam, a Vishu special.

While making this payasam, figured that it is very easy to prepare and tastes best when cooked using fresh coconut milk and jaggery syrup. The method is very similar to that of making wheat payasam or parippu pradhaman.

Recipe

Serves 8

Soaking time 8-10 hours

Cooking time 30 mins

Ingredients

Bamboo rice 1 cup
Jaggery 1 cup
Coconut milk (thick/1st extract) 1 cup
Coconut milk (thin/2 extract) 2 cups
Dry ginger powder/chukke/Saunth 1 teaspoon
Cardamom/elaichi powder 1 teaspoon
Sea salt a pinch
Ghee/clarified butter 2 table spoon
Coconut slices, cut small for garnish (1 table spoon)
Cashew nuts and raisins for garnish (1 table spoon)

The pre-packed bamboo rice needs to be thoroughly cleaned as there may be tiny particles of dirt or mud.
Once cleaned, wash and soak the bamboo rice in water for over 8-10 hours or overnight.
Pressure cook the bamboo rice with the 2nd extract or the thin coconut milk for 10 minutes after the 1st pressure is released.
Boil the jaggery with 1 cup water to form a thin syrup. Sieve it and keep aside.
Open the pressure cooker, when cooled. Transfer the cooked bamboo rice to a thick bottom sauce pan.
Add the jaggery syrup and a pinch of salt to the cooked bamboo rice and let it simmer on very low heat for about 10-15 minutes, stirring once a while.
Add the thick coconut milk (1st extract), dry ginger powder, cardamom powder and bring it to a boil. Stir well. Do not over boil this as it may curdle. Take it off the heat and keep aside. The payasam is nearly ready.
Take a small pan for tempering, add little ghee, when hot add the coconut slices and let it cook till golden brown, pour it over the cooked payasam.
Pour a little ghee to the tempering pan, when warm, add the cashew nuts, fry them till golden brown, pour it over the cooked payasam.
Pour the remaining ghee to the tempering pan, when warm, add the raisins, when all swell up, turn off the heat and pour them over the cooked payasam. Give it a good stir and the Bamboo payasam is ready to serve.
Enjoy the payasam warm or cold. Tastes even better the next day, straight out of the refrigerator.

Chocolate Zuchini Cake

Amongst the various arts of cooking, I enjoy baking the most. I bake when am happy, I bake when am sad, I bake almost all the time. Baking is therapy, the most magical stress buster & energizer. Above all, it’s so much fun to whip up magic in the oven.

Baking runs in the family, my mother was an amazing baker herself. Our childhood memories are filled with the aroma of freshly baked cakes & cookies. Those timeless Pound cakes and butter cookies of her’s are just as fresh as a memory yesterday. And now I watch my children baking some yummy goodies. As I am writing this post, my daughter is creating her magical oats chocolate chip cookies.

This recipe came to me when we had a surplus of Zucchini in our garden in Cairo, I had discovered a multitude of way to use this humble summer squash in soups, stir-frys, zoodles, crumb fries, crusted and you name it and have tried it all out, and almost all the attempts were loved at home. This was another super healthy addition to my list of healthy bakes. I had found this recipe from the internet and have tried and modified many times with different ingredients too, after all, isn’t our kitchen a big experimental lab.

Taking you straight to the recipe, keeping aside the many stories that I would have otherwise written here….

This cake tastes best when it is cold..or even fresh out of the oven… glazed or no glaze… This cake just tastes good in any way that you would love to have. So be ready to whip up the magic.

Chocolate Zucchini Cake with walnuts, cranberries & chocolate chips

Ingredients

2 1/2 cups regular whole wheat flour
1/2 cup cocoa
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
3/4 cup oil/soft butter ( u can substitute it with coconut oil/canola oil)
1 cup white granulated sugar
1 cup brown sugar
3 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 teaspoons grated orange peel
3 cups coarsely shredded zucchini (from about 1 pound of zucchini)
1/2 cup milk
1 cup chopped walnuts or pecans
A handful of chocolate chunks/choco chips
Handful chopped cranberries/sultanas
Glaze (directions follow)

Glaze:

2 cups powdered sugar
3 Tbsp milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Method

Preheat the oven to 350°F/180°C

1 Set the shredded zucchini to drain in a sieve over a bowl. If no moisture drains out and the zucchini feels dry, sprinkle some water over it and let the excess drain.

2 Vigorously whisk together the flour, cocoa, baking powder, soda, salt, and cinnamon in a bowl, and set aside.

3 With a mixer, beat together the butter and the sugars until smooth. Add the eggs to the butter and sugar mixture one at a time, beating well after each addition. With a wooden spoon, stir in the vanilla, orange peel, and zucchini.

4 Alternately stir in the dry ingredients and the milk into the zucchini mixture, including the nuts with the last addition

5 Spray the inside of a 10-inch bundt pan or tube pan lightly with cooking spray (or grease with butter). Wipe off the excess. Pour in the batter and use a rubber spatula to level the top of the batter. Bake in the oven for about 50-55 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in the center comes out clean (test at 45 min). Cool in pan 15 minutes; turn out on a wire rack to cool thoroughly.

6 Make the glaze by mixing together the glaze ingredients. You can easily do this by hand with a whisk or a spoon. If the glaze is too runny, add some more powdered sugar. If too thick, add more milk. Drizzle glaze over cake.

This is a fairly large cake. Cut in thin slices to serve.

I have replaced the brown sugar with powdered jaggery, Butter with coconut oil, Orange zest with lemon zest & even cranberries with sultanas. So feel free to change as per the supplies available in your pantry. Believe me, all the versions will be just as delicious as it could be.

Recipe adapted and modified from simplyrecipes.com

Falafels

My love affair with falafels began when we moved to Cairo, and it still continues (though the south indian paripu vadas seem like its cousin & am not a much fan of it). The hot falafels with a garlic tahini sauce were the best combination ever. During one of my explorations of this mystic city, my friend Kavita Rangappa took me to “Gad”, a local cuisine restaurant and introduced me to “on the go” Tahmeya sandwiches. These sandwiches consisted of the Baladi (local ) bread, which is a whole wheat pita, filled with falafels, fresh salad, tahini & many options to be added, for instance, you could even add french fries into them (but I liked it without). and then just munch on as you continue to drive around the city.

When we moved to Nairobi, I began to miss falafels tremendously & began the search for Arabic restaurants that served falafels on their menu, found a few but nothing compared to the ones we had in Cairo. And one fine afternoon, thinking back, I remembered a television show (cookery channel) I watched while we were in Cairo, that was shot on the river Nile, on a boat. I was fascinated by the whole set up of the show though I couldn’t follow the language. And coincidently the chef was making falafels. I could understand the ingredients and followed the recipe. From then on, my search for falafels at restaurants came to an end as I could make these amazing (Egyptian way, I believe every Arabic country have their version of falafels) at home.

So here in this recipe, the measures are all as per my understanding of the recipe (as it was in Arabic, but believe me it’s delicious) so please feel to modify as per your liking and do make it too.

Falafels

Ingredients

Chickpeas (dry): 2 cups, soaked in water for 8-10 hours

Flat leaf parsley: a medium bunch, approximately 1 cup (or you could use a small bunch of coriander leaves if you don’t find parsley, but the flavor is different)

Peeled garlic: 8-10 cloves

Onion: medium size, roughly chopped

Green chilies: as per taste

Cumin powder: 1 tbsp

Coriander powder: 2tsp

Cumin seeds & coriander seeds: 1 tsp each

Rice flour:2-3tbsp

salt to taste

White sesame seeds (to roll)

Method

Rinse the soaked chickpeas well. Add the chickpeas in a food processor along with the chopped parsley, garlic, onions, green chilies & the seeds. Add in the cumin, coriander powder, rice flour & salt to taste and Mix well. Allow the mixture to stand for 2 hours.

Heat plenty of oil in a deep saucepan or fryer. Shape small balls from the falafel batter. Roll them gently in white sesame seeds and fry in oil until they are golden brown.

Serve warm with Garlic tahini sauce and a hot cuppa mint tea…..

You can also fill them in pita pockets smeared with garlic tahini with some fresh salads, pickled vegetables and make your own tahmeya sandwiches.

Garlic Tahini sauce

Ingredients

Minced Garlic: 1tsp

salt to taste

Tahini: 1/2 cup

Juice of a half lemon

cold water

Method

Crush garlic & salt in a mortar. Mix in the lemon juice. In a bowl, pour tahini along with the lemon, garlic & salt mix, whisking a few tablespoons of water at a time, to get a smooth consistency. The Garlic Tahini sauce is ready. This can be stored in the refrigerator for 7-10 days