It’s summer.  It’s hot.  And I’m all out of Ben & Jerry’s Chunky Monkey ice cream (always a sad event). At the grocery store, I was tempted to simply pick up another one of their cartoonish pints and call it a day… but I didn’t. What type of foodie would I be if I never make my own ice cream from scratch?  For the longest time I didn’t own an ice cream maker, so I didn’t feel guilty in turning to my friends Ben and Jerry or their buddy Breyer for my ice cream cravings.  Now that my machine finally arrived in the mail, I decided to get in the kitchen and give it a whirl.

I came back from the Middle East with lots of goodies that would make any foodie swoon. One of my greatest treasures is a small bottle of pure rose water that I had bought at an Aleppan souq. Although ice cream isn’t a traditional Middle Eastern dessert, Arabs make plenty use of their rose water. In fact, it isn’t uncommon for ladies to dab some behind their ears and use it as a fragrant perfume. I, on the other hand, knew exactly what to do with my rose water!

I aimed for an unadulterated rose flavor that wasn’t too overwhelming, but that left a note of intrigue with every bite. To achieve this, I made a very simple ice cream custard out of milk, cream, egg yolks and sugar and added a 1/4 tsp of rose water at the very end (before pouring the mix into the machine). Depending on the brand and intensity of your rose water you might choose to add a bit more or less.  Also note that the flavor will only intensify as the temperature drops, so make sure to add just shy of what your taste buds consider appropriate.

I don’t particularly like adding red food coloring to my ice cream because I feel that it gives it an unnatural look.  Sort of like that alien green color most brands use to distinguish their mint chocolate chip ice cream flavor. Hopefully this trend will change soon!

This ice cream hit home for me. Although the vehicle for the rose flavor was not traditional, the undertone of the rose water brought back memories of the delicate Middle Eastern sweets I enjoyed on my trip. With a bold flavor like rose, a small scoop is perfect for that post-meal indulgence or a refreshing snack. This is certainly not the type of ice cream you want pile into a massive bowl and eat your way through while watching a Law & Order marathon.

The texture, the freshness, the purity… all these qualities can never be matched by a product that has been produced in a factory, shipped across the country and has been chilling in the freezer for weeks. 

Granted, it does take some work time to crank out a homemade batch, but you will continue to reap the rewards for however long you can resist the ice cream sitting in the ice box. If you do make this flavor at home, consider sprinkling toasted pistachios or almonds on top. I tried it after having photographed these, and fell in love with the flavor combination.

Special thanks to Kelly from Sass & Veracity and Ben from What’s Cooking? for hosting this month’s challenge!

Growing up in a Middle Eastern home, dates were something my family always had around.  The medicinal properties that my grandmother claims this humble fruit holds are endless (and albeit, perhaps a bit exaggerated); but I was never one who needed any sort of convincing to eat these sweet, chewy nuggets.  I did find out, though, that there is archeological evidence of date cultivation since 4000 BC,  to which my grandmother simply responded with the Arabic equivalent of, “I told you so.”  I want to dedicate this entry to my grandmother because I drew inspiration for this challenge from her date-stuffed semolina cookies that I grew up eating.

I didn’t tweak the recipe for the pastry too much.  I used the zest of a lemon instead of an orange because I thought it would go better with the lemony undertone of the ground cardamom.  I also didn’t use vanilla beans because, let’s face it, even though I already graduated, I’m still living on a college student budget. 

The recipe for the dough was great.  I loved that cardamom was already included in the recipe because I felt that it went well with my Middle Eastern theme.  

This is a shot of the dough after four turns and I absolutely loved how you could see the specks of cardamom and the laminated butter running throughout.   

Of course, the braid part of the challenge flew right over my head and so I opted to make individual portions by cutting out disks using the rim of a small drinking glass.  This was not a great idea when it came around to eating the little things because I never felt guilty about having one more piece.  In fact, as I’m writing this, I’m munching on a piece and telling myself that a visit to the gym will be necessary tomorrow.

Since I know that dates might not be everyones cup of tea, I used the scraps to make star-shaped pastries with a strawberry jam center.  Because I know EXACTLY how it feels to be that kid unpacking the “weird food” during lunch while Timmy gets to build his Pizza Lunchables and enjoy his chewy chocolate chip cookies. Anyway, I digress.

The star-shaped pieces tasted good, but I had my eyes set on the prize - the medjool date, Danish-inspired pastry.

The secret to the date filling is to throw in a couple teaspoons of butter so that the filling doesn’t dry out in the oven.  Other than that, the filling is nothing more than pure dates that have been pulsed in the food processor.

One of my best friends from high school, Yuliana, was visiting this weekend so I was happy to share the fruits of this challenge with her (and my roommates, of course).  Raquel also went to high school with us and so we all had a fun weekend talking about how OLD we all are and how crazy it is that high school was so long ago.

Click on the stamp to find out more information about this event and how to enter to win this month’s prizes!

event: A Taste of the Mediterranean

deadline: July 15, 2008

recipe: Hummus

Ever since graduation a couple of weeks ago it seems as if all my time and energy has been consumed by the process of unpacking.  Seriously though, where did all these boxes come from?! I see now that two jars of whole nutmeg are unnecessary and a third bottle of balsamic vinegar is overkill. Meanwhile, my room is still in shambles, hidden somewhere underneath piles of unopened boxes that have constructed a fort around my bed.  The kitchen, however, was the first space to be thoroughly unpacked.  To commemorate this occasion I decided to blog about one of my all-time favorite Middle Eastern desserts, haytaliye.

Haytaliye (hay•ta•lee•ya) is a traditional Aleppan dessert that is popular during the scorching summer months that characterize the Middle East.  And trust me - even though we’re thousands of miles away, nothing brings out the heat more than lugging densely packed boxes up three flights of stairs.  Plus, the entire dessert is made with things most of us would already have in our kitchens on any given day.

The dessert itself is nothing more than whole milk cooked with cornstarch.  This mixture is then chilled, cut into bite-sized cubes, and served as the foundation for the other toppings.

Traditionally, this dessert is served with clotted cream ice cream, but that’s pretty hard to come by in the States.  Instead, I use high quality vanilla ice cream, and it works quite well.

The third component of the dish, and arguably the most important, is the orange-blossom-infused simple syrup.  A simple syrup is equal parts water and sugar, barely boiled until the sugar has completely dissolved.  Once it’s done, adding a touch of orange blossom water gives the syrup its unique flowery fragrance.

If you don’t happen to have orange blossom water, no worries.  I will be giving away two bottles from Dayna’s Market to two bloggers that comment on this post.

Click on the stamp to find out more information about this event and how to enter to win this month’s prizes!

event: A Taste of the Mediterranean

deadline: June 15, 2008

recipe: Pesto

This entry is dedicated to Karen, my brunch-loving friend who will always have a soft spot for Oreos!

Has anyone else noticed this? Cardamom is everywhere now; in blogs, recipe books and other food-driven media. For centuries, Middle Easterners used this unassuming pod to flavor teas, coffees and the occasional desserts. Now, the humble cardamom pod has been given the 90210-celebrity treatment and is making its way to pantries around the world. If you need to see it to believe it, you could check out these blogs featuring delicious cardamom Christmas cookies and cardamom roasted cauliflower for yourself.

Sweet or savory, I love the lemony fragrance that Cardamom brings to the table.  The idea of pairing cardamom with french toast came to me when my friend Desiree told me of this exquisite cardamom crème brûlée she had tasted in a restaurant.  The way she described the fragrant cardamom undertone that the dessert carried through made me eager to experiment some more with the spice. I figured both, French Toast and Creme Brûlée, are custard-based so the cardamom pairing should adapt well.

Random Fact: In France, French Toast is called Pain Perdu, which literally means Lost Bread.  This is because stale bread is traditionally used to make this dish and so it is a great way of using stale, or “lost,” bread.

This past weekend my friend Karen came to visit me in Ithaca now that it’s springtime no longer subzero. On Sunday we enjoyed the day together by climbing Cornell’s clock tower and making brunch.  It was the perfect time to try out the Cardamom French Toast that I had been meaning to experiment with. Here is how it went:

This entry is dedicated to my cousins Dina and Yasmin (aka Rita), my Aunt Kiki and the rest of the family who showed me such an amazing time while I was visiting the Middle East, shukran jazeelan!!

In the Middle East, goat milk is king. That fact alone earned the ME major points in my book. Although I don’t necessarily use it to dunk my cookies in; for cooking purposes goat milk is phenomenal. I find it to have a much deeper and sharper taste than the everyday cow’s milk, and when used properly it can take something ever so simple and turn it into something spectacular.

While traveling in the Middle East, I enjoyed strolling down the different markets (souks) and admiring how store owners were true artisans of their culinary crafts. It was just as I remembered it in Aladdin, only it was real and even more chaotic. Markets were divided into categories such as meats, spices, nuts, dairy and so forth, creating perfect competition ideal for bargaining.

Every morning my aunt and I enjoyed a variety of mezze while watching her favorite news anchor read the daily horoscope. Then a few of her neighbors would stop by for a mini gossip session over a cup of Turkish coffee and take turns reading each others futures printed in their coffee cups; a pastime that is extremely popular among women in the Middle East.

Aside from all the amazing memories I made while traveling, I also made sure to inquire about every single recipe I was curious about. Labne certainly made the cut and was one of those recipes I knew I had to bring back with me. Luckily, all it is, is strained yogurt topped with a few garnishes. Making the yogurt from scratch with the freshest goat milk will yield a more authentic product, but this recipe is versatile and adapts well to regular cow’s milk.

If you are in need of a (relatively quick) labne fix, go for a store-bought plain yogurt and strain that. And if you could get your hands on goat yogurt, you’re in business and you may also pass go and collect 200 dollars. However, for the slow food aficionados and for those those looking for some culinary therapy, take the scenic route and make your yogurt at home.

Once you’ve made your yogurt as directed on the package of your preferred yogurt starter, refrigerate for a few hours or overnight.

I gave up on cheese cloths a long time ago and started using a clean undershirt to strain my yogurt. It’s a lot cheaper, it’s reusable and you could fit a lot more yogurt per batch. However you decide to strain your yogurt is up to you, but make sure to stir salt into the yogurt before setting aside to strain (approximately ½ tsp. of salt per cup of yogurt).