Sfiha

Sfiha are meat pies widely spread in the middle east specially in Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine and Iraq. Sfiha is an appetizer that is prepared at homes specially during Ramadan and can be bought from pastry restaurants.

Ingredients - Sfiha:

• Dough
• 1/2 kg (16 oz) ground lamb meat
• 1 kg (32 oz) firm tomatoes, finely chopped
• 5 medium onions, finely chopped
• 1 tspn salt
• A dash of: ground cayenne red pepper, ground cinnamon, and ground allspice
• 2 tbls butter, diced
• 2 tbls yoghurt
• 1 tbls sesame paste (Tahini)
• 1 tbls pomegranate thickened juice (if available)
• 4 tbls fried pine nuts
  

Preparation - Sfiha:

1. Mix well meat, tomatoes, onion and spices. Add yogurt, sesame paste and pomegranate. Mix all with fried pine nuts. Add butter.
2. Divide dough into walnut size balls. Roll between hand palms to smooth.
3. Roll out balls with a rolling pin to form 8 cm diameter circles. Put one tbls of meat mixture on dough circle seeing that a cube is in each spoon.
4. Bring the edges up and press to make a square.
5. Arrange meat pastries in a tray brushed with butter. Bake in a moderate heat oven (180° C) for 30 minutes or till dough is golden and meat is cooked.
6. Serve hot with yogurt.
   

spicy hummus

In this spicy hummus recipe, the traditional sesame seeds are replaced with pine nuts, and added a kick of habanero pepper for a different kind of dip.

Ingredients - Spicy Hummus:

• 1 clove garlic, peeled
• 1/2 cup pine nuts, toasted
• 1/4 habanero pepper, seeded
• 1 15-ounce can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
• 1 lime, juiced
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 cup olive oil + more for drizzling
• 1/2 cup liquid leftover from blanching garlic
• 1/4 teaspoon paprika
• 2 teaspoons chopped fresh parsley
  

Preparation - Spicy Hummus:

1. Put the garlic clove in a small saucepan and cover it with water. Bring it to a boil and simmer 5 minutes, then remove the garlic from the pan and set aside. Reserve 1/2 cup of the cooking liquid.
2. Meanwhile, heat the pine nuts in a small skillet over medium-high heat. Toast them, tossing often, until they’re brown in spots, 3-5 minutes.
3. Combine the chickpeas, garlic clove, pine nuts, habanero, lime juice, and salt in a food processor or blender. Turn the processor on and drizzle in the olive oil. Check the consistency of the hummus -- you should be able to pour it, but it shouldn't be soupy -- and add a little garlic-blanching liquid at a time until you're happy with the consistency.
4. Pour the hummus into a serving bowl and chill it in the refrigerator for 30 minutes. Before serving, sprinkle the finished hummus with the paprika, parsley and more olive oil to taste.