The idea for the recipe (mainly the lemon) came from a Donna Hay cookbook. So, thank you for inspiring this dish Ms Hay!

Ingredients serves 1 or 2 people

1 small very fresh zucchini

about 8 radishes

handful of lettuce (I used the lovely butter lettuce seedlings from the garden)

1 lemon, cut in half

salt and pepper

sprig of garden mint

a glug of good olive oil

Method

Put the lemon on a hot ridge grill, cut side down until it becomes caramelised

Meanwhile use a bean peeler to thinly slice the zucchini, cut the radish finely and arrange in a bowl with all the other ingredients. Toss.

Serve with the lemon wedges on the side, perhaps with some crusty bread to soak up the dressing.

I’ve also used radish sprouts instead of radishes in this salad

COMPETITION REMINDER!! We have a mixed case of 24 bottles of Apple and Pear Cider to give away from Punt Road Wines. To enter, all you have to do is write a comment on ANY post on iatebrisbane and add your suburb name in the comment. Open to Brisbane (and surrounds) entrants only (could you imagine the international shipping fees on a case of cider?!). Check out the details and the tricky little fine print here.

One of the first thing that grabbed my attention was the Lamb Sambousek.  According to LeClerc, Sambousek were discovered during the Crusades, and are supposed to have “later inspired the development of meat pies and Cornish pasties in Britain”. Whilst commonly deep-fried, LeClerc recommends oven-baking the Sambousek to avoid making the pastry so heavy.  I wholeheartedly agree – I’m not really into overly-fatty pastries, and I think that the oven-baked pastry really allows the filling to shine.

This was my first try at pastry crimping, too, so you mightn’t be surprised to learn that my first few Sambousek were a little wonky-looking! All in all, though, I really enjoyed cooking these little parcels of savoury goodness. The recipe didn’t specify the yoghurt dressing, but after the first batch came out of the oven, we really thought that a cool, flavoursome yoghurt would contrast nicely with the cinnamon-sweetened lamb and the texture of the pine nuts.  It was a perfect addition, and we enjoyed the Sambousek with tall glasses of iced cranberry juice – hopefully we’ll get to enjoy them with a glass of Middle Eastern Lemonade next time around.

Lamb Sambousek

Pastry

• 2 cups plain flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 2/3 cup cold water
• extra flour for kneading and rolling
• 1 egg beaten with 1 tbsp water (to seal pastries)
• (Sunflower oil for deep-frying, if you prefer)

1. Sift flower and salt into a bowl. Add just enough water to form an elastic dough, mixing the dough with a knife.
2. Remove from the bowl and knead on a lightly floured surface for 5 minutes until smooth.  Return dough to bowl, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes to rest.
   NB: if you wanted to save some time, you could easily alternate pastry for pre-made shortcrust pastry sheets

Lamb Filling

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 onion, finely diced
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• 375g lean lamb mince
• 3 tbsp toasted pine nuts
• 2 tbsp fresh mint, chopped
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp ground allspice
• 1/4 tsp chilli powder
• Juice of 1 lemon

1. Heat the oil in a frying pan over medium-high heat, and cook onion and garlic for about 5 minutes until onion is softened and golden brown. Add lamb mince and cook until browned, breaking up the mince as it cooks.  Drain off any excess fat.
2. Add pine nuts, mint, spices and lemon juice and cook for 2-3 minutes more. Season with salt and pepper to taste.  Cool mixture before using to fill pastry parcels.

To assemble Sambousek

1. On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough to 3mm thick. Use a pastry-cutter to cut out 9cm circles.
2. Place a tablespoonful of lamb filling in the centre of each.  Dampen edges with the egg mixture, and fold the pastry in half, covering the filling to form a crescent shape.  Press edges together with your fingers to seal, and then crimp edges with a fork, or by making tight, overlapping folds.
3. To deep fry: Heat oil to 170°C or test temperature by adding a crust of bread – if it bubbles and gently turns golden brown the oil is the correct temperature.  Cook pastries in batches of 4 or 5 at a time, until golden brown.  Remove with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towel.
4. To bake: Line baking trays with non-stick baking paper. Preheat oven to 200°C and bake pastries for 15 minutes, or until golden brown.  You can brush the pastry with egg first, if you want a nice glossy finish.
5. Serve with Mint & Garlic Yoghurt, and dress with sprigs of mint.

Mint & Garlic Yoghurt

Combine 1/4 cup freshly chopped mint, 1 clove finely chopped garlic, and 1 cup natural greek yoghurt.

(Makes 24)

So it was prudent, of course, that I commenced my foray into Middle Eastern cookery with a tip of the hat to them, and the skill and charm that they have shared with us over the last few years.  And what better way to do this than by whipping up Simon’s delicious Felafel with Yoghurt Sauce.

And boy what a way to start! This recipe was truly enjoyable – a long process that started at 9:20 this morning to my local nut shop to pick up the requisite chickpeas for soaking. It was surprising to check on them at midday prior to heading off to James St to see Balibo (which is a great film, by the way) to find that they had already swollen significantly – what a great process to witness, rather than getting them in a can! Regardless, when it came to cooking up the felafel at 3 o’clock this afternoon, my chickpeas weren’t sufficiently soft for ideal felafel texture. No harm done, though, as a quick boil for about 20 minutes or so had my lovely little chickpeas fat, soft and happy.

After straining and rinsing them, my kitchen compatriate, Nanda, and I engaged in the pleasant work of shelling the chickpeas over the sink – a little squeeze and they pop right out of their shells! I don’t think it’s a requirement that you shell the chickpeas, but according to another recipe I’ve read (for hummus) shelling the chickpeas gives a smoother consistency.

From there, it was just a matter of throwing all ingredients into a food processor (or in my case, a glorified blender) to get the chickpeas, onion and garlic combined to your liking, before throwing in all the dried spices followed by the fresh herbs.  One mistake here for me, though, was that I ought to have cut the onions into smaller pieces (although those of you with a decent food processor probably won’t find this such an issue), as this went on to limit the stickiness of my batter, and they didn’t hold together so well.

Simon’s recipe is definitely heavy on the herbs, and it gives these falafel a distinctly green appearance. I rather like the affect of this approach too.  From my exploration of Middle Eastern cookbooks thus far, it’s evident that coriander, mint and parsley are the herbal trinity of the region, and you’re likely to find one – if not all – in many recipes. The great thing about this is that the greens contrast so nicely with the browns of the meats, the golden yellows and browns of the pastries and the creamy colours of many of the dips, so you get lots of visually vibrant combinations.

Most enjoyable, though, is the Yoghurt sauce that goes with these falafel. Splendidly prepared by Nanda, the fresh, creamy yoghurt really lifts the texture of the falafel, and provides a beautiful contrast in temperature in your mouth. The lemon and garlic in this sauce provides a nice, acidic balance, too.  I used good quality greek yoghurt as well, which gave it all a beautiful consistency, and subtle sweetness.

The only thing I might change next time round is finer preparation of the onions, and perhaps a little olive oil to keep the falafel together better (they tended to break apart a little on cooking). And please don’t be scared off by the many ingredients, as they are very easy to make. All in all, these little morsels were a splendid and simple start to my Middle Eastern culinary adventures.

Ingredients

Falafel

• 1 cup dried chickpeas
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 2 cloves of garlic, chopped
• 5 tablespoons of fresh parsley, chopped
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh coriander
• 2 tablespoons fresh mint, chopped
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 2 green chillies, deseeded and chopped
• 2 tablespoons flour
• ½ teaspoons baking powder
• sesame seeds to coat (optional)
• Salt and Pepper to taste
• Veg Oil for frying
• yoghurt sauce to serve

Yoghurt Sauce

• 150g natural yoghurt
• 3 tablespoon tahini (we omitted the tahini, and it was fine without; woudl love to try it next time though!)
• 1 clove garlic, crushed with a little salt
• 1 lemon juice
• pepper to taste
• herbs to taste (mint, coriander and parsley)
• smoked paprika or sumac to garnish (optional)

Method

1. Place dried chickpeas in a bowl and cover and soak in a lot of cold water overnight. Drain (If you run out of time to do this, soak for as long as possible, then boil the chickpeas until they are soft but still firm – you don’t want them too mushy!).
2. Puree chickpeas in a blender, the degree of blend depending on your own preference. Add garlic, onion, chillies, coriander, cumin, salt and pepper. Fold through all fresh herbs.
3. Add just enough flour to get the mixture to come together into a ball, pulsing as you add each bit of flour until it is the right consistency. Pulse in the baking powder and check the seasoning, it may need more salt.
4. Trial one in the oil to see that it doesn’t fall apart (which will happen if there are cracks in the mixture), and that the oil is hot enough.
5. Form into balls about the size of a golf ball, and flatten into little discs. Coat in sesame seeds.
6. Fry in oil until golden brown and serve with Yogurt Sauce.

Yoghurt Sauce

• For the Yoghurt Sauce, whisk all ingredients together until smooth, and check for seasoning. Put into a small bowl, sprinkle with a little smoked paprika or sumac, and top with chopped herbs and a dribble of olive oil (you could easily prepare this in advance).

Makes approx 16 small felafel

Recipe from Simon Bryant, The Cook and The Chef Episode 26, 5 August 2009

Over September and October, we will be exploring all the depth and diversity that the Middle East has to offer us.  First, though, a bit of clarity: for the purposes of our theme, we will be working with food from Turkey, Iran, Iraq, Syria, Jordan, Israel, Egypt and Lebanon. This isn’t to say that we won’t include food we might find from other countries of the region, however, it’s good for us to start small, and delve into the culinary commonalities and differences of these countries without spreading ourselves too thinly!

But I digress – without any further geographically correct ado, let’s start conjuring up the richness of the Middle East!

What about spiced minced meats, wrapped lovingly in baked pastries? What do you say to the cool yoghurty dips contrasting with ever-so-tender grilled lamb, engulfed by simple greens and wedged between layers of pita? How about sweet, spiced teas in ornate glasses with tinkling silver spoons? And alongside them, crumbling layers of filo drenched in honey, nestling with pistachio-encrusted snacks? What about the bursting of pomegranate seeds when you pop them in your mouth?  And what of the baked fishes draped lovingly with parsley, mint and coriander, and served with olives and wedges of lemon? And, my dear readers, what say you of Turkish Delight?

If the idea of all these flavours has you salivating as much as me, stay tuned for the next two months, as we will explore the Middle East both in our own kitchens and the kitchens of Brisbane. Middle Eastern cooking is known for its spices, grains and breads, its celebration of coriander, parsely and mint, and the sonsory delight caused by the contrast of hot and cool foods in the same mouthful. It should be an enjoyable adventure!

PS: We have some great establishments popping up around the place that we’re excited to go forth and review, but we’d also love to hear from you about any Middle Eastern establishments you’d love us to explore – simply let us know in the comments, and we will endeavour to make our way there.