The temperatures are rising as the warm South-Western Winds are bringing in their wake a humid and hot summer. Summer inspire fashion, holidays, quick getaways to cool hill-stations and most importantly it inspires food. We find extraordinary joy in savouring something cooling and refreshing after a hot tiring day or conjuring up a quick and nippy snack for lunch when the sun, at its peak snatches all our tolerance and calm.
But do not let the heat restrict you to only a few cool cucumbers or watermelons, for there lies before you a world of luscious warm- weather treats that quell your hunger and give joy to your taste-buds. Following up on our last week’s post about Lebanese food where we introduced our new range of Middle-Eastern Al-Fez products , this week we bring to you two Lebanese recipes to help you keep cool and tackle the heat waves.
Tabbouleh :
Tabbouleh works excellently as a vegetarian side dish, salad or even a quick wholesome lunch. The lemon, herbs, tomatoes, and
cucumbers in this Middle-Eastern dish offer a fresh succulence that will instantly perk you up.
Serves: 4
The classic Middle Eastern tabbouleh is a bulgur salad with parsley;
Ingredients:
Substitute the Bulger with Daliya
- ½ cup fine organic bulgur or daliya
- 1 ½ cups minced fresh flat-leaf parsley
- 1 bunch green onions, sliced fine
- 1 large tomato, peeled and diced
- 3 tbsp organic extra-virgin olive oil
- 3 tbsp fresh lemon juice, plus more as needed
- ½ tsp ground toasted cumin seeds
- salt & freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Method:
Place bulgur or Daliya in a bowl, cover with cold water and allow to stand for 10 minutes. Then drain, place in a clean kitchen towel or a
double thickness of cheesecloth and squeeze dry.
Transfer to a bowl and, with a fork, separate into individual grains. Stir in the parsley, green onions, tomato, mint, olive oil and lemon
juice.
Season with salt and pepper. Taste and adjust seasonings, then cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours but bring to room temperature
prior to serving.
Hummus dip
This savoury dip is full of protein and makes a delicious dip for pita bread and raw veggies. You can also use it as a sandwich spread or
topping for crackers. Chill it before serving and dip away to refresh your palate.
Ingredients:
- 1 cup cooked chickpeas (Kabuli channa) sea salt to taste,
- 2 cloves garlic,
- ½ tsp cumin powder,
- 1 green chillies (optional)
- ½ cup olive oil
- 1 tbsp Al Fez Tahini Dressing
Method:
- To make dip, place everything in a blender and blend to a coarse texture, drizzle with a little olive oil and leave in fridge to chill.
- Serve with crudités, crackers or pita bread.
