The Woman's Kitchen — Variations from the Home Corner

Madam, it is spring, and summer is almost upon us, and no doubt we have grown weary of the dishes we have set upon our tables all through the days of winter. From this corner, therefore, we shall bring you the newest useful notes and instructions — things you can learn afresh today, to show off before your husband and children.

With spring the udders of the cows and goats fill with milk — so how do we cook laban dishes? Kibbeh in labaniyya, squash in laban, shish barak, and so on... The wholesome vegetables have begun to abound in the markets: how do we show our art in cooking artichokes? And Arab and European sweets have those who call for them and insist... Your children, Madam, love every kind of sweet... And here is The Woman's Voice equipping you, every month, with a seasonal collection of these good dishes and recipes.

1 — How to cook goat's laban: Strain the laban through a fine strainer, put it in a bag of fine calico, and hang it up for about an hour. Then put it in a pot and bring it to the boil over a strong fire, stirring constantly until it boils well; then add to it 15 grams of starch dissolved in a little cold water. Strain it through a fine strainer so that it boils well — the stirring must never be left off — and then add whatever is to be cooked in it. Let it boil over a strong fire, then move it to a fire of moderate heat for some 10–15 minutes, and so it finishes cooking.

Cow's laban

2 — How to cook cow's laban: Strain the laban through a fine strainer, and let it drain in a bag of fine calico for about an hour. Put it in a pot and add to it 25 grams of starch dissolved in cold water; then strain it through a fine strainer and stir the laban. Set the pot over a strong fire and keep stirring the laban until it boils. Then add whatever is to be cooked in it and leave it until it boils well; afterward move it from the strong fire to a fire of moderate heat for about ten minutes. Then take it off the fire and serve it.

Quantities
16 artichoke heads, uncut
300 grams boiled green peas
150 grams butter
75 grams flour
400 grams milk
100 grams cream
20 grams salt
2 grams allspice

Method: Peel the artichokes and boil them whole with the salt,

and keep them in a vessel near the fire. Heat the butter, add the flour to it, and stir them together over a low fire for about three minutes; then pour the boiling milk over the above. Add the salt and the spices and let it boil well; add the boiled peas to the above and let them boil, then remove and keep near the fire. When serving, add the cream to the filling and stuff the hot artichokes with it.

Quantities: 16 artichoke heads, cleaned, each in two pieces
400 grams of cut-up meat, or 250 grams of choice lean meat, provided it is ground
125 grams of ghee
50 grams of finely chopped onion, or none
20 grams of flour
20 grams of salt
1.5 — a gram and a half — of allspice
1200 grams of boiling water

Method: Put the meat, the onion, and the ghee in a pot and turn them all until the onion begins to brown. Add the flour and stir over the low fire, then add the water until it boils well in the pot. Add the artichokes, well cleaned after peeling, and after that add the salt and the allspice; leave the pot on a moderate fire until its contents are done. Then pour into a dish; with this dish, fluffy rice is served.

Note: If the meat is ground, it is added after the artichokes are put into the pot.

Quantities: One liter of milk

50 grams of rice
75 grams of cold water
125 grams of sugar
250 grams of rose water, or 15 grams of orange-blossom water, or both kinds if need be.

Quantities: 1000 grams of water
600 grams of sugar
150 grams of sour lemon juice
30 grams of orange-blossom water

Note: The syrup takes 5–7 minutes on the fire

The quantity of materials required: 275 grams of flour, 165 grams of butter, 165 grams of powdered sugar, one egg, the yolks of two eggs, a spoonful of orange-blossom water.

Method: Mix the materials named well and knead them; gather them into a ball and work it well twice, and leave it to rest in a cool place. Then roll it out with a rolling pin to a thickness of 3–4 millimeters.

Before putting it into the oven, cut the rolled-out dough into small pieces of whatever shape is desired; paint the pieces by dipping a brush in egg yolk, place them on a special tray, put it into a hot oven, and leave it there until they are fully baked. As soon as the tray comes out of the oven, paint the pieces with a brush dipped in milk. Then sprinkle each piece with the amount of powdered sugar it requires.

Method: Boil the nut kernels in boiling water for about three minutes over a strong fire, then peel them and split them, and chop or pound them as required.