World Cuisine
Refresh Your Next Easter Celebration with a Passover Seder
When I was growing up, my family celebrated Passover-led by my wonderful Jewish grandfather. I did not realize the incredible richness and depth of importance in the details of the Seder service until I was in my teens, after I had become a follower of Jesus. Although the Passover celebration is a Jewish festival, it holds deep significance and meaning for believers who call themselves Christians. So this Easter season, our life group from our church decided to have a Seder dinner, and the next night we attended a Seder dinner held at the Messianic Jewish Congregation gathering in a nearby town. Adding the Passover Seder dinner as part of our Easter festivities has enhanced my appreciation of the significance of all the events surrounding the trial, crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus. Every detail is a fulfillment of the Old Testament scriptures as I truly believe that Jesus is the true Passover Lamb that came to redeem all people.
Passover (Hebrew word is pesach) occurs in the Spring. The Passover Haggadah (haggadah literally means “the telling”) contains the complete liturgy and instructions for the ceremonial Seder (order of service). Historically, Haggadahs have been written and revised numerous times, but the basic theme of God’s redemption of the nation of Israel from bondage to Egypt remains constant. Most of the ceremonial practices of the modern Seder have been in place since the late Second Temple period (second temple period was 530 BCE to 70 AD).
For thousands of years, even up to the present, the Jewish people have believed that God would again send redemption on Passover. Redemption did arrive on the very day they were looking for it, but it took a surprising shape. For God had engineered a far greater liberation than they had imagined–freedom not just …
Read MoreFreekeh Salad-A New Taste in an Easter Picnic or Brunch side dish
Easter Brunch or Picnic Fun—-Freekah Salad
Easter is a fun day to gather with friends and family. There are many traditions that make that day extra special. Being outdoors and celebrating resurrection Sunday with a picnic and time together is part of the way we like to remember the true meaning of Easter. New life, new beginnings and the opportunity to experience God in a fresh new way was made possible when Jesus died on the cross and came to life again on resurrection day!
Here is a new recipe that I tried last week and will make for our Resurrection Sunday/Easter picnic. It is made out of a grain called Freekeh. Freekeh (or farik) is ancient food made from green durum wheat that has been harvested early, while the grains are still tender and green. The kernels are then parched, roasted, dried and rubbed to create its unique flavor. It is a healthy whole grain food, much like bulgur wheat and often mentioned right alongside other superfood heroes like quinoa, spelt, amaranth and farro. 
Technically, the term freekeh is actually the name of a process used to prepare grains, and not the name of a specific grain variety. According to food lore, freekeh’s fiery story dates back thousands of years, possibly as far back as 2,300 BC. Allegedly, a Middle Eastern village came under enemy attack and their crops of young, green wheat caught fire during the siege. The villagers ingeniously found they were able to salvage their food supply by rubbing away the burned chaff to reveal the roasted wheat kernels inside. This is what we know today as freekeh, which means “to rub” or “the rubbed one. However, it typically refers to wheat, and generally to durum wheat. So, although the freekeh process can be applied …
Chili Chicken Stew-Creative Meals that Multiply for Busy Families
Spring is in the air and families are beginning the frenzy of evenings filled with sports practices, games, spring music concerts and all sorts of activities. As a mom who prefers not to grab fast food for her family on the way to or from all the evening activities….we have to have a strategy. When we were in the flow of 4 girls doing multiple activities and I felt like I was driving circles around our community, I came up with a creative strategy of “meals that multiply“. This is the first installment of some of the meals I made regularly that literally lasted for a week and the family never knew that our dinners came from the same big pot of stew.
Chili Chicken Stew (Crockpot or stovetop)
3-4 boneless skinless chicken breasts (cut into pieces if cooking in a pot on stove)
1 large onion chopped
1 yellow, orange or red pepper chopped
2 cloves garlic chopped or pressed
2 Tbs oil
2 (15oz) cans stewed tomatoes
2 (15 oz) cans pinto beans
1-2 cups pace picante sauce
1 tsp chili powder
1-2 tsp cumin
1 tsp salt
Place whole chicken breasts, fresh or frozen, in the crockpot. Put all remaining ingredients in the order listed in crock pot and cook on low 6 hours. Remove chicken from stew and shred. Place back into crock pot, mix and serve. 
To make on stovetop, cut chicken into bite sized pieces and cook chicken, onion, pepper, and garlic in oil in a large pot until chicken is white and no longer pink. Add remaining ingredients and simmer 2-3 hours. This chili chicken stew can be made the day before and freezes well.
Now here is where the magic begins……This one pot of chili chicken stew can be …
Curried Chickpea Chicken Stew: Cooking Healthy with a Modified Kitchen
As some of you may know, I have been operating our home with a “remodeling in process” kitchen. Due to an unfortunate mystery leak from the back corner of our 30 year old refrigerator, we have a forced kitchen repair in progress. We decided it was due time to do some remodeling, so we have turned our unfortunate event into a blessing of a new kitchen. I have spent the past few months learning a whole new vocabulary as I have become educated in appliances, countertops, backsplashes, hoods, knobs and pulls, etc….the list goes on and on. We are approaching the demolition day and I am getting excited to see how it all turns out. In the meantime…I have been cooking in a small space that I set up in my laundry room and a tiny bit of available countertop space in the kitchen. I have had to be very creative with the recipes I have tried because most of my kitchen supplies are packed away in bins in the playroom.
So, in honor of “National Nutrition Month” I have been experimenting with healthy Crock Pot meals. My favorite one to date is Curried Chickpea Chicken Stew.
Ingredients
3 pounds boneless skinless chicken (you can use a combo of breasts and thighs)
1 Tbs olive oil
2 onions chopped fine
4 cloves garlic smashed
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
2 Tablespoons curry powder
2 teaspoons cumin
2 (15 oz) cans diced tomatoes undrained
2 (15 oz) cans garbanzo beans drained and rinsed
2-3 cups chicken broth
In a saucepan heat olive oil. Sauté onions and garlic until soft. Add salt, pepper, curry and cumin and stir on low until combined. Pour this mixture into crockpot. Add chicken, garbanzo beans, tomatoes and chicken broth. Cook on low for 8 hours …
Read MoreBaked Falafels with Spirulina Green Sauce
Our family LOVES Mediterranean food. I love falafels, but have been looking for a baked falafel recipe for a long time. I finally found one that looked good and revised it with more herbs and spices and additional protein supplied by adding quinoa to the falafel mixture. We had falafels tonight with hot pita bread, homemade hummus, tabouleh and lots of fresh vegetables. I did not have spiraling powder so I substituted my green food powder that I put into my smoothies each morning. The resulting sauce was spectacular. Delicious!!
Ingredients
¼ cup quinoa
1 ½ cups fresh parsley
½ cup fresh cilantro
2 Tablespoons ground flaxseed
2 Tablespoons olive oil
3 large garlic cloves
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon turmeric
½ teaspoon salt
1 (15 oz) can unsalted garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
2 Tablespoons minced yellow onion
Spirulina Sauce
¼ cup tahini
2 lemons juiced to yield 6 Tablespoons
¾ teaspoons spirulina powder (I used my green vegetable powder that I add to my smoothies)
3 cloves garlic
½ teaspoon salt
½ cup fresh parsley
½ cup fresh cilantro
¼ cup water
Red cabbage
Pita bread
Hummus
Tabouleh
In a small saucepan, cook quinoa in ½ cup water. Bring to a boil, turn to simmer and cook for 15 minutes or until water is absorbed. Let cool. in a food processor place cooked quinoa, parsley, flax seed, oil, garlic, cumin, turmeric and salt. Process until mixed slightly.
Add garbanzo beans and onion and pulse to grind coarsely. Do not blend. Leave a bit of texture in the mix. Drop the mixture by rounded tablespoons onto parchment or foil that you spray with nonstick spray. Fresh balls down a bit into 16 small patties.
Place under preheated broiler (rack on the second-to-top notch) and broil 9-10 minutes. Flip …
Roasted Lemon Chicken with Root Vegetables
The smell of a Roasted Chicken brings back memories of a chilly fall afternoon working on projects while it rains outside. This recipe combines a Mediterranean lemon zesty flavor with oregano and garlic. It is best if you have time to marinate the chicken the night before but you can do it all in one day as well. The root vegetables that roast alongside the chicken enable you to have your whole meal roasted and prepared at the same time. Serve with a big green salad and some crusty french bread and you are all set.
Ingredients
1 whole 3-5 pound organic chicken
1 teaspoon black pepper
1-2 lemons
3 Tablespoons fresh ginger
4 cloves fresh garlic
2 Tablespoons honey
1-2 Tablespoon canola oil
2-3 teaspoons dried oregano
½ teaspoons red chili pepper flakes
3 parsnips washed, peeled and cut into chinks
4 carrots washed, peeled and cut into chunks
4 red potatoes cut into chunks
1 red onion cut into chunks
2 Tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon sea salt
¼ cup fresh parsley
Rinse and pat dry the chicken. Place in a roasting pan (spray with cooking spray) with 4-5 inch high sides. Sprinkle the chicken and the cavity with the black pepper. Cut one of the lemons in half and cut one half into small chunks. Slice the other whole lemon and the remaining half into circles to decorate the chicken before you roast it. Place the small chunks of lemon, the garlic, ginger, honey and canola oil into a blender or Cuisinart and blend until smooth. Stir in the oregano and the red chili pepper flakes. Spread mixture all over chicken. Decorate with lemon circles. Cover and refrigerate overnight or for the afternoon. 
Remove from refrigerator and let stand 30 minutes. Place cut up root vegetables in …
Israeli Salad and other Favorite Foods from Israel
My husband and I just returned from a trip to Israel. Visiting a new country brings opportunities to experience a new culture-the history, the economy, the geo-political climate, the ancient customs, the food and costumes, the music and dance, the art and architecture and the archeological discoveries that unlock the mysteries of the people over centuries. Discovering the secrets of Israel was transformational for the two of us who have spent the last 45 years studying the Bible, both Old and New Testaments. Traveling through Israel, we were able to experience the amazing food and LOVED each dish we tried. We already knew we loved Tabouleh and Hummus (click to find previous posts with recipes) and now our two new favorite dishes are found below……..
Israeli Salad
1 lb Persian cucumbers, diced
1 lb fresh ripe tomatoes, seeded and diced
1/3 cup minced onion (optional)
1/2 cup minced fresh parsley
3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
4 tbsp fresh lemon juice
zest of 1 lemon
Salt to taste (I used about 1 tsp each)
Chop all vegetables into small cubes. Finely chop parsley. Toss vegetables and parsley with olive oil, lemon zest and lemon juice. Stir together, adding salt and pepper to taste.
Chicken Shwarma
2-2 ½ pounds chicken thighs
2 Tablespoons ground cumin
2 Tablespoons round coriander
8 cloves garlic
2 teaspoons sea salt
6 tablespoons olive oil
¼ teaspoon cayenne
2 teaspoons tumeric
1 teaspoon ground ginger (fresh grated ginger)
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
2 teaspoons allspice
Mix all ingredients in a small bowl to make a rub. You can mix ina food processor if you want.
Rub over all pieces of chicken and let sit between 30 minutes and 24 hours. Grill chicken on medium high heat about 8 minutes on each side. Remove from BBQ …
Greek Style BBQ Chicken
Labor Day in the United States is a public holiday celebrated on the first Monday in September. It honors the American labor movement and the contributions that workers have made to the strength, prosperity, and well-being of the country.
We like to have theme dinners in our family. A fun meal to serve at a Labor Day picnic is a Greek style barbeque. I mixed up this marinate and whipped up a big Greek salad, bought some pita bread and hummus and we are ready for a party.
Greek Style BBQ Chicken
4-5 pounds of boneless skinless chicken breasts and thighs
½ cup fresh squeezed lemon juice
1/3 cup olive oil
1 ½ teaspoon oregano
10 leaves fresh basil or 2 teaspoons dried basil
1 teaspoon sea salt
1-2 teaspoon lemon pepper
Mix all ingredients and pour over chicken. Let marinate for 2-3 hours or overnight.
Barbeque until chicken is cooked through.
Serve with a big Greek salad. Another fun option is to shred chicken and make pita sandwiches with hummus, shredded lettuce, tomatoes and avocado.
- 4-5 pounds of boneless skinless chicken breasts and thighs
- ½ cup fresh squeezed lemon juice
- ⅓ cup olive oil
- 1 ½ teaspoon oregano
- 10 leaves fresh basil or 2 teaspoons dried basil
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 1-2 teaspoon lemon pepper
- Mix all ingredients and pour over chicken. Let marinate for 2-3 hours
Plum Chutney
Chutney is a sauce in the cuisines of India that can vary from a tomato relish to a ground peanut garnish or a yoghurt, cucumber and mint dip. Chutney that I made with my mom when I was growing up was usually made of a tart fruit such as apples, apricots, mangos or plums. Our homemade recipe differed a bit from the typical Indian chutney recipe. As the Americanized version of chutney was developed, sugar and vinegar were added to the recipe to keep the sweet and sour flavor but to give a longer shelf life so that fall fruit could be preserved for use throughout the year (as are jams, jellies and pickles). Indian chutney uses mustard oil as a pickling agent, but Anglo-Indian style chutney use cider vinegar which produces a milder product.
Ingredients
5 cups cut up plums (you can use apricots, mangos or apples)
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup sugar
¾ cup vinegar
¾ teaspoon crushed red pepper
2 teaspoons salt
2 Tablespoons mustard seed
2-3 big cloves garlic
¼ cup thinly sliced yellow onion
½ cup chopped candied ginger
1 cup white raisins
Mix the sugars and vinegar in a large pot and bring to a boil over medium heat. Add the fruit and all the spices, garlic, onions, ginger and raisins. Simmer over medium-low heat, stirring frequently so chutney will not stick as it cooks and thickens. This step may take 1 to 1 ½ hours depending on how juicy your fruit is. When thickened, pour chutney into jelly jars that have been sterilized and seal according to canning directions.
I pour the hot chutney into the 1 cup jars and seal with hot tops. I tighten the tops and turn the jars upside down for 30 minutes. When you flip them right …
Ratatouille-Fresh from the Garden
Do you have a garden full of veggies? My garden is overflowing with an abundance of veggies so this recipe is a wonderful way to utilize them. Here is a delicious dish to prepare and serve in a variety of ways…Most often this is our side dish served with BBQ skewers of chicken or beef, but I sometimes will add white beans or grate some parmesan cheese over the top and serve it as our main dish. You can also eat it cold stuffed in pita bread with hummus…..wrapped in a warm tortilla or naan bread with arugula and goat cheese…or serve cold on a bed of greens with toasted pine nuts and a scoop of quinoa. Enjoy this delicious recipe for a summer favorite.
Ratatouille is a stewed vegetable dish from the French Provencal traditional menu, originating in Nice.The French word touiller means to toss around. In most recipes, the key ingredients are the same but the process of cooking the dish vary between each chef’s preference. Some sauté all the vegetables together and simmer on the stove top, some sauté the vegetables separately and layer and bake. Our family favorite (recipe below) is as delicious as any I ever tasted when traveling in France and is the easiest recipe of them all!! Ratatouille was a family favorite of ours way before the Pixar animated “RATATOUILLE” movie was released in 2007. The movie brought awareness to the delicious French dish but many were put off by the lengthy steps to prepare the recipe. You no longer need to be intimidated because you can try our family favorite Ratatouille and wow all your friends. Most often this is our side dish served with BBQ skewers of chicken or beef, but I sometimes will add white beans or grate some …
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