foodessa

An Italian flare influenced by a Middle Eastern delicacy during a holiday mingle.
As an appetizer or as part of a meal, these bites are incredibly addictive.

Since most of us have touched upon some holiday shopping one way or another…
I wanted to take this time to highlight the intricate decor that embellishes mall interiors.

Being an Interior designer by no means has me appreciating these impeccable spaces any less.

Knowing what it takes to get from sleepless night ideas to sketching it on paper for proposal…
only skims the tip of the tree and thus so much more gets hashed out before reality.

The incredible reward is witnessing your crumb of an idea…
flourish into such a happy place for all to enjoy.

No matter how advanced in age…the child in me always holds a twinkle in her eye.
The colors…textures…embellishments…and of course…
the whimsy of exaggeration all bring me an unquestionable bliss.
This environment helps kick me into the mood of welcoming the craziness in the malls.

Now, that we've bonded in some cheerful moments…
join me in the kitchen to make these incredibly easy and delectable bites.

In principal, this recipe is very forgiving and open to creativity.
Feel free to substitute a few ingredients for similar choices while respecting quantities.
However, don't omit the Sesame seed which offers a powerhouse of protein and magnesium.
Let's get the food processor out and get pulsing your next appetizer or in my case, a full meal ;o)

Served with an Onion and Blueberry jam and a mashed squash mix on the side.

Leafy Green Cheese Sesame balls
With or without a side dip…these are deliciously inviting.

makes 16-18 small portions

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INGREDIENTS:
(American / Metric measures)

Step-1
. 1 big handful* packed, cooked leafy greens, water squeezed out (frozen greens can also be used)
. 3/4 cup (150g) Cottage cheese or Ricotta, well drained
. 1/2 cup (100g) Feta cheese
. 1/4 cup (40g) Parmesan cheese, grated
. 1 Tbsp. (15ml) Tomato paste
. 1 xLarge egg

Seasoning:
    . 1 tsp. (5ml) granulated garlic powder
    . 1/2 tsp. (2.5ml) sea salt
    . 1/2 tsp. (2.5ml) dried basil
    . 1/2 tsp. (2.5ml) dried Marjoram

. small handful flat parsley leaves (optional)
. 1 cup (80g) dried breadcrumb, packed

Step-2-Coating:
. 1/4 cup (60ml) e.v.Olive oil
. 1 cup (150g) Sesame seeds (lightly toasted** is optional)

* About 1 bunch of fresh leafy greens such as: Broccoli Rabe, Spinach or any other of your choosing.
** Stovetop Toasting : Heat the sesame seeds in a pan on over medium heat. Toss them a few times until they start getting lightly golden. Remove immediately and let them cool in a dish.

PREPARATION:

Step-1

1. Once the leafy greens have been completely squeezed of water, add them into a food processor.

2. Then, except for the breadcrumbs, add the remaining ingredients. Pulse a few more times until a rough paste is combined. Now, scoop out this mix into a bowl in order to integrate the breadcrumbs until well combined.

3. Pat down the mix and then cover with a plastic wrap. Refrigerate for a minimum of 1 hour up to overnight.

Step- 2 ... Later:

. Pre-heat the oven at 400F/200C/Gas6. Position the rack in the center of the oven. Prepare a large, Silicon mat lined baking pan or simply line with parchment paper.

4. With the aid of a medium (2 Tbsps. / #30) ice-cream scoop, make packed and leveled portions. Gently, extract each onto the pan.

5. Prepare two small bowls to hold the oil and the other for the Sesame seeds. Then, gently coat one ball at the time into the oil first and then into the seeds. Place them back on the pan.

6. BAKE them for 20 minutes. Close the heat and leave them there for another 5 minutes. Remove them from the oven and let them rest on the pan for about 30 minutes before serving.

. Serve them plain, with your dip of choice or other complementary sides.

. These can be made ahead of time and baked later as well as to be frozen after baking for later warming.

I have to admit that this year for some reason I felt the need to express more joyful cheer than usual. With so many unfortunate events hitting us from all ends, we need to keep reminding ourselves of the tiny moments of joy.

After a few bites of these appetizers and a trip to the mall to appreciate their dedicated decor…you'll temporarily forget that you're there for the craziness that holiday shopping imposes.

Flavourful wishes,

Foodessa

Comments ... ??? ... or suggestions ... write me :o)

Claudia at: foodessa [at] gmail [dot] com

Go HERE for more SAVOURY creations.

Please take note on how I bake and cook...

Here’s a 101 of sorts to make sure that there are no disappointments when trying my creations.

Also...just so you know...feel free to increase the salt and sweet factor since I'm not high on either of them ;o)

. Use DRY cup measurements for...you guessed it...all DRY ingredients.

Anything DRY gets measured by spooning the overfilled ingredient (never shake the cup) and then level off with a flat edged tool. Exception...Brown sugar should be packed in and leveled.

. Use LIQUID cup measurements for...all LIQUIDS that cannot be leveled like for example butter, yogurt...etc. Measure the liquids at eye level to avoid overdoing what the recipe truly needs.

. OVENS are unfortunately not created equal. Mine is so old that it has reached many degrees off it's norm. It's really worth investing a few dollars to test yours with an appropriate oven thermometer. You'd be surprised how many ovens I've heard about not being where they should have been. Before you lose any more ingredients and much time preparing a new recipe...run to the store...you'll thank me later.

Snacking on nuts by the park highlighted my desire to try making Baklava my way.

Flaky pastry phyllo layered with a nut variation, while sweetened with a light citrus syrup.

I'll never forget the first time a restaurateur had offered me to try their in-house Greek pastry.

Other than getting aggravated with slipping, flaky pastry sheets, I remember falling in pastry love.

How could I not have known of a dessert that held all the...

characteristics of what I appreciate most in pastry.

Flakiness...mildly tart and sweet syrup, and of course nuts.

Afterwards, whenever I found myself in a new Middle Eastern restaurant...

I always looked forward to trying their versions of this fabulous bite.

Sadly, over the years, I started finding myself greatly disappointed or maybe just overly exigent.

This pastry became many more leveled phyllo dough sheets and very skimpy on nuts.

Not to say that some Montreal Middle Eastern pastry boutiques don't have excellent sweets.

However, they have also unfortunately swayed from their initial excellence.

I can only assume that tougher economic times may have something to do with this phenomena.

A few years ago I decided I was going to rectify this by trying my hand at making the fine pastry.

Armed with one of my favourite Mediterranean cookbooks, I truly was pleased with the results.

My first attempt was surprisingly very good and I vowed to make it again with some twists of my own.

Well that time came and I'm now ready to share my detours with you.

Did I mention how amazingly delicious the results turned out ;o)

Don't shy away from making this delight.

Although the recipe may seem long and complex, it really is not that difficult.

Make sure you have all the ingredients ready and that you've read the preparation at least once.

Before you know it, you'll be completely impressed by this delectable bite.

BAKLAVA

phyllo and nut pastry...a Middle Eastern delicacy

recipe was modified from:

Mediterranean (Over 300 sun-drenched recipes) cookbook

Attention: New and improved update (August 2023)

yields about 30 small pieces
9x12 inches (23x30 cm) rectangle baking pan

Printer version

INGREDIENTS:

(American / Metric measures)

Butter (melted):

. 1 cup (240g) unsalted, Butter, clarified*

Nut mix:

. 2-1/2 cups (400g) mix of choice nuts:
. roasted Almonds or Hazelnut (filberts)
. raw pecans, walnuts or pistachios

. 3/4 cup (95g) confectioners; sugar

. 1 tsp. (5ml) ground cinnamon spice

. 1 tsp. (5ml) ground cardamom spice

. 1 large orange, finely zested (optional)

. pinch of sea salt

Pastry Phyllo layers:

. 14 sheets (1lb./450g) thawed Phyllo pastry

(divided in half at the shortest side) This will yield [8+6+6+8] half sheets required

Syrup:

. 1 cup (250ml) water

. 1 cup (220g) granulated sugar

. 1 tsps. (10ml) Orange Blossom water

Honey topping:

. 3/4 cup (175ml) mild honey

. 1 Tbsp. (15ml) lemon juice

* Clarified Butter: in a small pot, bring the butter to a light boil. Skim off the foam. Remove from heat and set aside.

PREPARATION:

melted Butter:

1. In a small pot, bring the butter to a light boil. Skim off the foam.

Remove from heat and set aside.

Nut mix:

2. With the aid of a food processor, pulse the nuts several times to coarse, pea-size pieces. Add the sugar, spices, orange zest and salt. Give the processor one last swirl. Transfer mix to a medium bowl. Set aside.

Assembly:

. Pre-heat the oven to 325F/160C/Gas3 for the first baking part. Position rack on the 2nd level from the bottom.

3. Take the 9x12 inch (23x30 cm) rectangle baking pan and very generously brush the melted butter all over the pan.

4. Unroll the Phyllo dough sheets. On the shortest length, cut the sheets in half. Cover to avoid dryness. Place the first pastry sheet and lightly brush every sheet with the melted butter until 8 layers are placed. Now, spread a third of the nut mix. REPEAT with another 6 layers and spread another third of the nut mix. Again, drizzle a little butter. REPEAT again for the next 6 layers plus nut mix and drizzle of butter. Finish off with the last 8 layers of buttered pastry sheets. With the point of a sharp knife, cut into the preparation to make the pieces either diagonal or straight rows.

5. Initially BAKE for the first 25 minutes at 325F/160C/Gas3.

6. Meanwhile...make the syrup: In a small saucepan, bring both the water and sugar to a boil without stirring it. Once the boiling point is reached, turn down the heat to MEDIUM for 10 minutes. Remove from the heat. Add the orange blossom water. Set aside.

7. Afterwards, right before removing the pan from the oven, RAISE the heat to 400F/200C/Gas6. Take the pan out and evenly pour the syrup throughout the pastry. BAKE for another 15 minutes.

8. Meanwhile...prepare the HONEY-LEMON mix:
. Mix the honey and lemon. Then, once out of the oven, immediately pour it all over the Baklava.

. Let the pan rest uncovered onto a cooling rack for at least 4 hours before serving. This pastry gets better with time. Serve at room temperature. Store in a metal box lined with parchment paper. Will keep up to 2 weeks at room temperature with the lid kept ajar.

This exquisite middle Eastern pastry is absolutely delectable.
Go ahead and grab a package of phyllo pastry and give those nuts a whirl.
You'll succeed a well balanced and not too sweet pastry in no time at all.

Ciao for now and flavourful wishes,