ZEE's RECIPE: Fatet Beithenjan // Yoghurt, Fried bread and Aubergine

If you're looking for a quick recipe to whip up that will impress your guests and taste absolutely delicious, I've got just the one! 

Below is my mum's version of Fatet Beithenjan - a Palestinian dish that has proven to be an ultimate success at every dinner party, lunch, 3azeemeh I have ever been to. 

My mum enjoys preparing this dish during Ramadan because it is a time to get creative in the kitchen, and to spoil us with yummy food without feeling to guilty about the calories. Thank you Mum, for all your hard work, love and absolutely delightful cooking! :) 

Disclaimer: this is really a recipe for occasions because it can be heavy. We usually try to make it healthier by grilling the eggplants, or toasting the bread instead of deep frying it. 

I hope you try it out and enjoy the richness of the flavors :)

Fatet Beithenjan! 

Method:

Eggplants:

4 medium/large eggplants 

Peel the eggplants and slice them into medium slices. Fry the slices in oil on both sides, then drain them and put them in a  pot. Season the eggplan with some salt and pepper to taste. Allow them to boil for 15 minutes and then add 2 tablespoons of pomegranate sweet sour sauce (dibs Ruman). 

Minced Meat Topping:

1 large white onion/ chopped

1/2 kg of minced meat

Fry the onions until tender then add the minced meat. Stir then add cinnamon powder, cumin, pepper and cardamom. Stir until cooked.

Yoghurt Topping:

3 tubs of yoghurt (laban)

4 cloves of garlic 

salt to taste

Put 3 small tubs of yoghurt in a bowl.  Add crushed garlic and salt and mix until fully incorporated.

Bread Base:

Arabic bread (enough to fill bottom of Pyrex dish)

Cut pieces of bread into squares, then fry and drain.

Putting it all together

In a big Pyrex dish place the fried bread to create a bottom later. Layer that with the cooked eggplants, then spread the yoghurt evenly over it. Top it off with the minced meat. 

Garnish with roasted pine seeds and coriander. 

Sahtain! :) 

Leave me a comment if you have tried this recipe or letting me know what other recipes you would like to see. 

Enjoy your day!! 

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Baked Ziti with Summer Vegetables

Summer veggies are still abundant around here and this ziti from my friend & fellow Spartan, Alissa, was the perfect way to dress up the veggies. 

The sauce on the ziti is incredibly light – made up of ricotta cheese & herbs.  This allowed the flavor of the veggies to shine right through.  We’ll make this one again!

Baked Ziti with Summer Vegetables – Adapted from 33 Shades of Green

Ingredients

• 6 oz. uncooked whole wheat penne
• 3 C any combination of zucchini & eggplant
• 1 tsp. olive oil
• 1 medium bell pepper, diced
• 1 T dried minced onion
• 1 tsp. dried minced garlic
• 2 C diced tomato
• 1 tsp. basil
• 1 tsp. oregano
• 1/2 tsp. salt (divided)
• 1/8 tsp. pepper
• 1/2 C ricotta cheese
• 1 egg white
• 1/2 tsp. parsley
• 3/4 C shredded mozzarella cheese

Directions

Begin by sautéing the quartered zucchini, summer squash and eggplant in a large skillet with 1 tsp. olive oil.  Season with 1/4 tsp. salt and 1/8 tsp. pepper. 

Meanwhile, boil the pasta according to package directions. 

Add in the red pepper to the sautéing veggies.  Continue sautéing for 5 minutes until veggies begin to become tender. 

Add in the minced onion, garlic and basil and oregano. 

Continue cooking for 5 minutes until veggies are done to your liking.  Add in the tomatoes and heat for 1-2 minutes. 

Then, remove from heat and prepare a 9x9 or 9x13 glass baking dish by lightly greasing.  We chose a 9x9 baking dish for our dinner, but you could easily spread this out into an 9x13 dish too. 

Mix together the 1/2 C ricotta cheese with the egg white and 1/2 tsp. dried parsley. 

When the pasta is done, drain.  Then, add the pasta to the skillet. 

Plop in the ricotta mixture & stir to incorporate. 

Then, add 1/4 C mozzarella cheese and stir. 

Transfer the mixture into the prepared baking dish. 

Spread the remaining 1/2 C shredded mozzarella cheese over the top of the dish. 

Bake at 400 for 15 minutes until the cheese is melted and the dish is warmed throughout. 

Serve warm & enjoy!

Mmmmm….

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Remy’s Ratatouille

My husband and I have a thing for animated movies.  We LOVE them.  And, Pixar’s Ratatouille stole our hearts.  Especially with our love for cooking – it’s the perfect movie for us. 

Since the release of Ratatouille, we started making the famed dish.  We have a stove-top version and a crockpot version, both of which we love. 

But this dish – Remy’s Ratatouille – is the best. 

The others don’t even come close. 

And, that’s saying a lot!

If you haven’t tried ratatouille, pick up some in-season eggplant, bell peppers, tomatoes, zucchini and summer squash from your farmers market (or in our case, our garden) and make this right away. 

This dish is filling enough served over rice to stand alone, but would be great alongside steak or chicken.  Did I mention how easy this dinner is too? 

Remy’s Ratatouille – Adapted from Smitten Kitchen

Ingredients

• 1 medium eggplant
• 1 medium bell pepper {we used orange}
• 1 large tomato
• 1 medium zucchini
• 1 medium summer squash
• 4 mushrooms {we used baby bella}
• 2 tsp. olive oil
• 1 C tomato sauce
• 1 T minced onion flakes
• 1 tsp. minced garlic (or 1 garlic clove, freshly minced)
• Salt & pepper, to taste
• Mozzarella cheese

Directions

Begin by slicing your eggplant, bell pepper, tomato, zucchini and summer squash into very thin slices.  I used our mandolin cutter to do so and it worked wonderfully. 

In a large oval baking dish (~10 inches in length), pour 1 tsp. olive oil, 1 T minced onion, 1 tsp. minced garlic and 1 C tomato sauce.  Stir together and spread over the base of the dish.  

Layer over the top of the dish all the veggies.  To do so, pick a location along the outside edge of the dish to start, and layer the zucchini, tomato, eggplant, bell pepper, summer squash {we used extra zucchini} and mushrooms.  Repeat layers until you have the entire dish filled around.  Then, fill in the center of the dish. 

Sprinkle with salt and pepper, and drizzle the remaining 1 tsp. olive oil over the dish.

Cover the dish – using a cookie sheet, parchment paper or foil.  Bake at 375 for 45 minutes.  If you use foil or parchment paper, do not tightly seal the dish, you want the steam to escape! 

At this point the tomato sauce should be bubbly and it might look a little watery based on the fact that the veggies have released their excess water. 

Remove the dish from the oven and shred some mozzarella cheese over the top of the veggies.  Return the dish to the oven, uncovered, and bake for an additional 5-7 minutes until cheese is melted. 

Serve over brown rice.  Our favorite way to make excellent brown rice is to cook it in chicken broth with 1 tsp. added minced onion.  Yum. 

Enjoy!

reade more... Résuméabuiyad