Musakhan Pockets

 Ingredients…

2 tb. Olive  oil
2 tb. Butter
4 scallions, finely minced
1 ½  pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts
   Cut  into 1 in. pieces
1 tsp. sumac
½ tsp. ground cardamom
¼ tsp. allspice
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
¼ tsp. ground pepper
4 whole pockets breads cut in half to form 8 pockets
Greek yogurt

Directions…

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large heavy skillet, heat the  oil and butter over  med. heat.
Add the scallions and cook until soft but not  browned.  Add the pieces of chicken and sprinkle with
The spices, salt and pepper.  Cook, stirring often for about for about 15 min. until the chicken
Is tender but juicy.  Taste and adjust seasonings as desired.  Fill each pita halfway with  the chicken
Mixture, wrap each with foil  and heat in the oven for  10 min.  unwrap and top with a dollop of Greek yogurt and sprinkle with sumac. Serve while hot.

Mesclun and Herb Salad

Ingredients:
1 - 5 oz. bag of baby Mesclun and Herbs greens
1- cup Cherry tomatoes  cut in half
½ - cup Goat cheese crumbles
1/3 cup chopped walnuts




Ingredients:
Balsamic Vinaigrette:
1 shallot, peeled and roughly chopped
1/2 tablespoon dried basil leaves
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1/2 cup olive oil


Directions:
Put the shallot and basil into the bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal blade. Pulse until the shallot is finely chopped. Add the balsamic, sugar, salt and pepper and pulse again. With the machine running, add the olive oil in a steady stream through the feed tube. Pour the vinaigrette into a small bowl and serve.

Toss the greens together with just enough vinaigrette to coat, about 1/2 cup. Place them in a decorative bowl and top with the cherry tomatoes and Walnuts and goat cheese. Serve the remaining vinaigrette on the side.

Middle Eastern Granola ice cream sundae

2 scoops of vanilla ice cream  drizzle with 1/2 tbls. of tahini and 2 tablespoons of honey sprinkle with  granola & serve

Granola as  it looks right out  the oven.

Ingredients...
2 1/2 cups  of old fashioned oats
1/3 cup maple syrup
1/4 cup tahini
2/3 cup pepitas (pumpkin seeds) unsalted
2/3 cup sliced almonds
2/3 cup chopped pecans
2/3 cup raisins or cranberries or mix together both
1 tablespoon  ginger powder
1 teaspoon cinnamon


Directions...  
Preheat oven to 325°. Place Parchment paper on a baking sheet
1) In a small bowl, mix  with a fork syrup, tahini,  and cinnamon until incorporated. In a large bowl, mix all remaining ingredients until well-distributed.
2) Drizzle the syrup-tahini mixture overtop, stirring with a fork until all dry bits are at least slightly wet and clumps have started to form.
3) Spread granola on a large  baking sheet lined with a parchment paper in a thin layer and bake at 325 for 10-12 minutes.
4) Remove from oven, stir with a fork to move pieces from edge to center and from top to bottom. Make sure pieces that have started to brown are in the center and well-surrounded.
5) Return to oven and bake 10-12 more minutes, until golden brown throughout. Granola will not be crunchy when it leaves the oven; don’t worry — it’ll crisp up as it cools. Once cool, transfer to air-tight container; granola will keep this way for up to 1 month.



*  To make the Ice Cream sundae...
2 scoops of vanilla ice cream  drizzle with 1/2 tbls. of tahini and 2 tablespoons of honey sprinkle with  granola & serve

15 Bean Soup (Crock Pot recipe)

1 pd. bag of dried 15 bean mix. Soaked overnight and rinsed
1 pound of ground meat  browned( I used turkey)
1 med. yellow onion diced
2  16 oz.- cans Fire roasted tomatoes ( do not drain)
1 -32 oz. container chicken broth
½ cup diced bell pepper
1/2 tsp. sage
¼ tsp. black pepper
½ tsp. Thyme
Pinch of salt



Directions…

Soak beans over night and rinse and  drain and put in the crock pot. Brown the meat in a skillet and add to the beans. Add diced onion, 2 cans of fire Roasted tomatoes with the juice, all the chicken broth, diced bell pepper, sage, pepper , thyme, and salt also in the crock pot, stir and cook on high  and are simmering for 3 hours  or until beans  are tender, you can water if needed.