This week’s Ramadan Recipe Collection by food blogger Nida Khalaf features four delicious recipes, celebrating Palestinian culinary traditions and building connection through food. 

Freekeh Soup 

One of my go-to hearty dishes is Freekeh Soup, and it’s the perfect soup to break your fasting! Freekeh soup is healthy, delicious and also filling. I used my mom’s recipe, which is not really measured but eyeballed, so here are the ingredients and some measurements all of which are pretty much to taste! So adventure out …

Freekeh soup is the Arab version of a chicken noodle soup  

Ingredients 

• 1.5 cups Freekeh (soaked in hot water for an hour) 
• 1 chicken with bone-in (cut into quarters) 
• 1 large onion finely chopped 
• 3 cloves of garlic minced  
• 1 medium carrot chopped into cubes 
• ½ tsp salt and 1/4 pepper (to taste)
• ½  tsp cumin 
• ¾ tsp 7 spice (bharat) 
• A good squeeze of lemon juice (around ½  a lemon or more) 
• 1 Liter chicken stock (1 bottle) 
• 3-4 tbsp olive oil 

Method: 

• Place a soup pot on high heat, add the olive oil, the chicken and the spices, let them cook until the chicken starts browning; 5 mins or so in, add the onions and garlic, let them cook and sweat with the chicken for another 5 mins 
• Once the chicken gets a nice color on all sides, add the Freekeh and the carrots and let them sweat for 5-10 more mins, occasionally stirring to prevent the Freekeh from sticking to the bottom of the pot
• Add the chicken stock, bring it to a boil, reduce the heat to medium and let the soup cook for 1 hour or until the Freekeh thoroughly cooks (becomes soft) 
• Add a squeeze of lemon, let it cook for 5 more mins and enjoy this delicious soup. Add some more fresh lemon juice to your bowl while eating for an extra lemony taste 

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Lamb Shanks and Ouzi 

Authentic rice, lamb and vegetable dish seasoned with traditional Arabic spices. Ouzi has a lovely warming flavour with just the right spiciness, making it ideal for iftar. Best served with yogurt and an Arabic salad

Prep: 30 mins 

Cooking time: 2-3 hours 

Enough for 3-4 people 

Ingredients:

Lamb Shanks:

• 3 Lamb Shanks 
• Meat dry rub:  
  • 1 tsp ground cardamon 
  • ¼ tsp cinnamon 
  • ½ tsp ginger 
  • ¼ tsp clove 
  • ½ tsp nutmeg 
  • 1.5 tsp salt 
• 4 bay leaves 
• 5 Allspice whole 
• 2 pieces cloves 
• 4 cardamon pods 
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 1 medium onion cut into wedges 
• 3 cloves of garlic 
• 2 cups of water 

Ouzi Rice:

• 700g minced meat (beef or 50/50 lamb and beef)
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 clove of garlic minced 
• ½  medium onion finely chopped 
• ½ tbsp 7 spice (bharat) 
• 3 bay leaves 
• 1.5 tsp salt and ½ tsp black pepper (to taste) 
• 2 medium carrots cut into small cubes 
• 1.5 cups green peas 
• 2 cups of rice (medium grain) 
• Water or broth approx. 2.5 to 3 cups 
• ¼ toasted almonds and 2 tbsp toasted pinenuts for garnish 

Method:

• Pre-heat the oven to 500F 
• Rub the lamb shanks with the spice mix. Place in a roasting pan, add the onion, garlic, bay leaves, and the rest of the seasoning, add water, and drizzle the olive oil on the shanks. Cover with parchment paper and then with foil paper tightly
• Bake the meat at 500F for 30 minutes, lower the oven temperature to 350F and let it cook slowly for 2 hours
• While the shanks are cooking slowly, prep the Ouzi rice
• Place a large non-stick cooking pan on medium heat, add the olive oil, the meat and the seasoning, and let it start cooking; a few mins into the cooking process, add the chopped onion and the garlic. Once the meat is 75% cooked, add the carrots and peas and let them cook. The carrots and peas add a bit of sweetness; give it a try, and based on your preference, you can add a bit more salt. 
• Soak the rice for 30 mins; once done, drain it and add it to the minced meat, mix well and quickly add 2-3 cups of boiled water or broth (follow rice instructions). Bring the ouzi rice to a boil, reduce the heat to low, cover and let it cook for 20-25 mins. 
• Serve with Arabic salad and yogurt, and Ramadan Kareem! 

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Znoud Al Sit (Estha stuffed phyllo pastry with orange blossom syrup)

A Popular Middle Eastern street food and dessert, a crispy phyllo dough stuffed with eshta, soaked in ghee and nicely fried in the oven! It is topped with pistachio and infused with orange blossom water syrup. Znoud Al Sit is the ultimate comforting and satisfying dessert after a long day of fasting, and it’s surprisingly simple to make! 

Prep 30 mins 

Cook 30-40 mins 

Ingredients:

Clotted cream (Eshta) 

• 2 Liters of whole milk + ¼ cup of vinegar 
• 1 Liter of whole milk 
•  ½ cup corn starch 
•  ¼ cup of sugar 
• 2 tsp rose water
• 1 tbsp orange blossom water 

Orange Blossom water Syrup:

• 2 cups of sugar
• 1 cup of water
• A couple of drops of lemon juice
• ½ tsp orange blossom water

1 pack of phyllo pastry

1.5 cups ghee 

¼ cup crushed pistachio for garnish 

Method: 

Note: Prep the Estha (Clotted cream) and the simple syrup in advance, I highly recommend the night before. The syrup should be room temp, so store it outside in a mason jar 

• In a medium-sized pot, pour 2 liters of milk, bring to a near boil on medium heat (stirring occasionally to prevent the milk from burning), then add the vinegar and reduce the heat to low. The milk will start clotting. 
• Using a strainer ladle skim the clotted cream or curds from the surface and place it in a sieve; repeat until you collect all the clotted cream leaving the ‘water behind’; and set it aside. 
• In another pot, pour the 1 Liter of milk, the corn starch and the sugar; whisk while the milk is cold to prevent the corn starch from clotting. Place on medium-low heat, and continuously whisk until the milk thickens; once the milk thickens, add the orange blossom and rose water and the clotted cream. Mix well and pour into a bowl. Cover using a plastic wrap; once it reaches room temperature, place in the fridge for at least 2-3 hours or overnight 
• To make the syrup, simply add the sugar, water, 2-3 drops of lemon in a pot, cook on medium heat stirring occasionally until the sugar fully dissolves, let it boil and simmer for 15-20 mins until it slightly thickens, turn off the heat and add the orange blossom water. Set aside and store outside on a couter top 
• To assemble Znoud Al Sit Take 2 sheets of phyllo and place a spoon full of clotted cream around its edges forming a line; once done gently roll the phyllo to form a cylinder, place it in a baking tray and repeat until you finish the phyllo pack.
• Using a sharp knife, cut the phyllo into 5 cm pieces (or 3 fingers lengthwise), pour the ghee fully covering it, bake in a preheated oven at 350F for 30-40 mins or until golden brown 
• Take out the dessert and immediately pour the room temp syrup while it’s sizzling hot; pour around 3-4 ladles of syrup 
• Garnish with Pistachio, allow to cool to room temp and enjoy 

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Anise & dates bracelets cookies كعك الاساور

I’ve been tinkering with this recipe for quite some time, and I finally tweaked it to my family’s liking. This is another one of those desserts for which I didn’t have an exact measured recipe, so with a bit of trial and error, I finally got it! So here it goes, and I hope you enjoy it. These cookies are especially good with a nice cup of coffee and are the perfect Ramadan snack as they are filled with nutrients and dates. 

Ingredients:

• 3 cups flour 
• ½  cup semolina (#2)
• ½  cup dried milk (I use Nido)
• ¾ cup olive oil
• ¾  cup melted butter 
• 3.5 tbsp powder sugar 
• ½  tsp instant yeast 
• 1 tsp ground fennel 
• 1.5 tsp ground anise 
• 1 tbsp coarse anise seeds (of half ground) 
• 2 tbsp toasted sesame seeds 
• 1 tbsp nigella seeds
• ½  tsp mahlab or mehlipi 
• ½  tsp mastic (arabic gum) 
• ¾  cups water (add ¼  more if the dough is not soft, play-dough like) 

The date filling:

• 1.5 packs of baking dates. I use @ziyadbrand 
• ¾  tsp cinnamon 
• ¼  stick softened butter
• ¼  to ½  tsp nutmeg (to taste) 

 Method:

• Add the flour, semolina, oil and butter to a bowl, and mix using a stand mixer for 2-3 mins until well combined (using the cookies hook)
• Add the rest of the ingredients and mix for 3-5 mins. The dough should be somewhat soft (a play-dough like texture, yet dense)
• Cover the bowl with a kitchen towel and let the dough rest for 30 mins to an hour
• In the meantime, prep the date filling by kneading the dates with butter and spices. Cut the dates filling into small pieces and roll them to form strings
• Divide the dough into small circles around 1-2 cm each
• Now, let’s assemble the cookies, take each ball, roll it into a log (approximately 5-7 cm in length), then flatten it with your hands.
• Take ½  inch of the date filling strings and place it in the middle. Fold the cookie dough around the dates and roll it until it shapes up (log-like shape); pinch both ends and fold into a circle; using your pinky, press and seal together
• Place on a baking tray covered with parchment paper and bake in a preheated oven at 375F for 11-12 mins or until slightly golden in color 
• Place the cookies on a cooling rack, and enjoy while they are at room temperature

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ABOUT NIDA KHALAF

Nida Khalaf was born and raised in Ramallah, Palestine. She later moved to North America to pursue higher education and settled in Toronto. For Nida, food, family, and culture are intimately tied up; food serves as a memory and a human connection. Preserving recipes passed down from her loved ones and sharing them with her own unique twist, gives her a wonderful sense of nostalgia for her childhood home and the people with whom she shared the cooking and dining experience. Follow Nida on Instagram!

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