Let’s Cook Lebanese: Baba Ghanoush

“Baba Ghanoush” is a wonderful smoky, eggplant dip of Eastern Mediterranean origin. My favorite Greek & Lebanese Café serves a version of this dip which is just the best one you will ever find. It combines the flavors of smoky eggplant, tahini paste, lemon juice, fresh garlic plus a little salt to make a a creamy and smooth dip. There’s still time to make this dish with the last of summer’s eggplant in fresh produce markets. I decided to try see if I could duplicate Serop’s “Baba Ghanoush.” It is more difficult than you might think to properly marry all the ingredients and flavors. Although still different from Serop’s, my version is tastes great, too!

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Lebanese-Style Stuffed Yellow Squash

Every now and then I’ll find a recipe that just absolutely “wows” the main ingredient. Such is the recipe, “Mrs. Elias’ Stuffed Yellow Squash.” Yellow squash is plentiful in the summertime; I’ve been looking at it in the grocery stores for a while now. It’s a good vegetable to include in meals while in season.

Lebanese- Inspired Stuffed Yellow Squash - IMG_6145_1

 

There are so many creative ways to cook yellow squash–beyond boiled. A local Lebanese diner serves stuffed baby yellow squash on their cafeteria-style menu every day. I’ve always been curious about how the squash dish was made. I found a similar recipe in a saved newspaper clipping and tried it; the recipe was delicious–one of the best I’ve made in a while.

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