Falafel

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  This is a fairly authentic version of Middle Eastern falafels. They taste just like the ones I ate in Israel and Egypt!
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Prep time: 15 mins
  Bake time: 25 mins
  Total time: 40 minutes
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  • Make cucumber sauce first and chill in fridge while baking falafels. Mix:
  • 1 (6 ounce) container plain yogurt
  • 1/2 cucumber - peeled, seeded
  • 1 tsp dried dill weed
  • 1 tbsp mayo
  • salt and pepper to taste
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Falafels:
• 1 (15 oz) can chickpeas (garbanzo beans), drained
• 1/2 onion
• 1/2 cup fresh parsley
• 4 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 egg
• 2 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp ground coriander
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 dash pepper
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 cup dry bread crumbs
• Pitas

1. In a food processor, chop chickpeas, onion, parsley and garlic until very fine. Stir everything together.
2. In a small bowl combine egg, cumin, coriander, salt, pepper, lemon juice, baking powder and olive oil. Stir into chickpea mixture. Slowly add bread crumbs until mixture is not sticky but will stay together.
3. Form mixture into small balls, roll into additional bread crumbs, and then flatten between your hands and place on a cookie sheet. HINT: I use a cookie dough scooper to make mine all the same size. It usually makes about 15-20 falafels, which will feed 4 people.
4. Bake patties in 400 degree oven for 15 minutes on the top shelf, flip them over and cook an additional 10 minutes.

Serve in pitas with cucumber sauce and your favorite veggies- tomatoes are our favorite!

Baklava

• Prep time: 45 minutes
• Bake time: 40-50 minutes
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• Pastry:
• 1 (16 ounce) package phyllo/filo dough sheets*
• 1 pound chopped nuts (I used pecans and walnuts)
• 1 cup butter
• 2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 cup sugar

Sauce:

• 1 cup water
• 1 cups white sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup honey

*This can be found in the frozen food section of most grocery stores. I found it by the frozen berries at Smiths. It is about $3.25 there.

1. Make sauce first. Boil sugar and water until sugar is melted. Add vanilla and honey. Simmer for about 20 minutes, then put in fridge to cool (this is key!).
2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease the bottoms and sides of a 9x13 inch pan (Pam).
3. Chop nuts and toss with cinnamon and sugar. Set aside. Unroll phyllo dough. You may need to cut the whole stack in half to fit, each sheet should be about the size of the pan. Mine was already cut to the right size when I bought it.
4. Place two sheets of dough in pan, brush butter on with a pastry brush**. Repeat until you have 8 sheets layered.
5. Sprinkle 2 - 3 tablespoons of nut mixture on top of the 8 layered sheets. Top with two sheets of dough, and more butter and nuts.Continue layering, but save 8 sheets for the top layer.
6. When you have 8 sheets left, layer them two by two with butter in between, just like the bottom layer.
7. When you are done, use a sharp knife to cut the baklava into diamond or square shapes (see bottom picture) all the way to the bottom of the pan. Bake for about 40-50 minutes until baklava is golden and crisp. I did half the time on the middle shelf and half the time on the top to ensure that it gets golden brown and crispy.
8. Remove baklava from oven and immediately spoon the cold sauce over it. Let it cool for a few hours. Leave it uncovered so it doesn't get soggy, or you can freeze it.

**NOTE: A pastry brush is ideal to have but not necessary. I made it without and it was fine and much faster. These instructions were for if you have a pastry brush. If you don't, do 4 sheet layers (instead of 2) and just spoon the butter on and spread it around with the back of the spoon. It worked fine :)

If you have any questions or a better way to make this, let me know! Enjoy!!! Thomas said it was the best baklava he has ever had, so I was pretty happy with it :)

Mango Salsa

1/2 sweet onion

1 jalapeno

1 clove garlic

1 ripe mango, peeled and pitted

1 tbsp lime juice

1/4 bunch cilantro

2 (14.5 oz) cans stewed tomatoes

salt and pepper

Remove seeds from jalapeno. Using food processor, chop onion and jalapeno and set aside. Mince garlic. Chop mango into small chunks. Snip cilantro into smaller pieces. Put lime juice, cilantro and tomatoes into food processor. Pulse until tomatoes are consistency you want. Add onion, jalapenos, mango and garlic. Add salt and pepper to taste. Store in refrigerator for 1 hour for flavors to blend. Eat with your favorite tortilla chips!!

Chicken Crepes

Crepes:

1 cup flour (I use whole wheat)

1 egg

1 1/4 cup milk

1/4 tsp salt

3 tbsp butter

Blend well. Batter should be very thin and will still have some lumps. Cook like pancakes in a greased small skillet over medium high heat- using about a 1/4 to 1/3 cup batter to just cover the bottom. Make sure to not over cook, you want them pliable.

Filling:

1 cup sour cream

1 can Cream of Chicken soup

1/4 cup chopped black olives

1 can rotel (diced tomatoes and chili peppers)

2 cups diced chicken (canned or from cooked chicken breasts)

Optional: any veggies you like- mushrooms, onion, celery, peppers, etc.

Spoon filling into each crepe, wrap like an enchilada and place in a 9x13 pan. Place them close together, they will cover the whole pan. Save a little filling to spread over the top. Bake at 325 for 20 minutes, pull out and cover with shredded cheddar cheese. Bake about 5-10 more minutes until cheese is melted and inside is hot. Enjoy!

English Toffee

Cook on medium-high in a saucepan for about 10-20 minutes, until it becomes the color of a brown paper bag:

1 c butter

2 tbsp water

1 c sugar

Coat a jelly roll pan with 1 c chopped walnuts. Pour toffee mixture on top of nuts. Cover with chocolate chips while it is still hot, and as they melt, spread them into an even layer covering the toffee completely. Let set and enjoy!

*You can do this without the nuts, just pour the toffee mixture directly into jelly roll pan.

Pesto

Thank you Evan, for this delicious recipe that we dream about often :)

2 c fresh basil

3/4 parmesan cheese, grated

1/2 c pine nuts

2 large cloves garlic, chopped

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp black pepper

2/3 c olive oil

8 oz cream cheese

1/4 c butter

1 tbsp milk

In dry skillet, lightly toast pine nuts over medium heat until browned.

Blend in food processor: pine nuts, basil, garlic, parmesan, salt, pepper and olive oil.

Mix in a separate bowl cream cheese, butter (both softened but not melted) and milk.

Layer in a dish the cream cheese mixture, basil mixture, repeating until mixtures are gone. Chill and serve.

Serve on bread or with chips.

Spinach-Artichoke Dip

Thank you, Evan, for this delicious favorite!

1 (15 oz) can artichoke hearts

1 tbsp butter

3 packages frozen spinach

1 (8 oz) package cream cheese

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

1/4 c almonds, sliced

sprinkle of paprika

1 c swiss cheese, shredded

Drain and halve artichokes. Saute in butter. Cook spinach as directed. Drain well. Mix spinach, artichokes, cream cheese, salt, pepper and almonds. Pour mixture into casserole dish. Top with swiss cheese and paprika. Bake at 350 F for 30-40 minutes. Enjoy on bread or with chips!

Sticky Buns

You got it, these are the classic Martin Family Sticky Buns that everyone will do just about anything for!

15 oz package frozen rolls

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup margarine

1 package butterscotch pudding

Arrange rolls in greased pan, sprinkle pudding mix and sugar over the top, cover with melted butter. Cover with a towel and let rise at room temperature. Bake at 350 F for about 20-25 minutes. ENJOY!

Crepes

This recipe came straight from my "French sister" Nathalie. It is her family's recipe that they make in Paris, so it's pretty authentic. Thanks Nathalie! We love them!

Mix together until there are no lumps. It should be a very thin batter:

1 1/4 c milk

1 eggs

1/4 tsp salt

2 c flour

1 tbsp melted butter

Pour batter in thin layer into a medium greased saucepan. Cook until golden brown, flip over and cook other side.

Fill with whatever toppings you like! Some of our "Crepe Night" favorites are:

Strawberry pie filling with bananas on top

Lemon icing (lemon juice, powdered sugar and water mixed together)

Nutella

Peanut butter and chocolate syrup

Chicken Pillows

(pictured without the sauce)

Prep time: 10 minutes
Bake time: 13-18 minutes

Mix together for filling:

4 cups diced cooked chicken (or canned)

6 oz cream cheese, softened

salt and pepper to taste

optional:

olives, green onions, hot sauce, etc.

2 cans crescent rolls: flatten each crescent roll triangle out, place filling inside, and wrap it closed (pull the three corners into the center, making sure there are no gaps for filling to ooze out). Bake at 350 F for 13-18 minutes, until crescent rolls are golden brown.

Topping (heat on stove):

1 can cream of chicken soup

1/2 cup chicken broth

2 gloves minced garlic

Top each pillow with "gravy" and enjoy!

Mommy Martin's Lasagna

1 pound hamburger meat, crumbled

2 cloves garlic, minced

8 oz can tomato sauce

20 oz can of diced tomatoes, drained

1 1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

1/2 tsp oregano

8 oz lasagna noodles

2 c grated mozzarella

1/2 c grated parmesan

16 oz cottage cheese

Saute hamburger meat and garlic. Add tomato sauce, tomatoes, salt, pepper, oregano. Boil 8 oz lasagna noodles for 15 minutes, drain.

Layer in a large casserole dish:

1. noodles

2. cottage cheese

3. meat mixture

4. mozzarella/parmesan mixture

Repeat.

Bake at 350 F for about 35-40 minutes.

Yummy Chicken Marinade

• 2/3 c olive oil
• 2/3 c reduced-sodium soy sauce
• 1/4 c lemon juice
• 2 tbsp liquid smoke flavoring
• 2 tbsp spicy brown mustard
• 2 tsp ground black pepper
• 2 tsp garlic powder
• 4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
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In a large bowl, mix the olive oil, soy sauce, lemon juice, liquid smoke, mustard, pepper, and garlic powder. Place chicken in the bowl, and coat with the marinade. Cover, and allow chicken to marinate about 4 hours in the refrigerator.
Place chicken on grill. Cook 6 to 8 minutes on each side, until juices run clear.

Calzones

• 1 (25 oz) package active dry yeast
• 1 c warm water
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tsp white sugar
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 1/2 c all-purpose flour
• 1/2 c spaghetti sauce
• 3 c shredded Mozzarella
• 1 pkg pepperoni
• 1 tsp olive oil
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• To Make Dough: In a small bowl, dissolve yeast in water. Add the oil, sugar and salt; mix in 1 cup of the flour until smooth. Gradually stir in the rest of the flour, until dough is smooth and workable. Knead dough on a lightly floured surface for about 5 minutes, or until it is elastic. Lay dough in a bowl, cover and let rise for 40 minutes, or until almost doubled.
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• When dough is ready, punch it down and separate it into 2 equal parts. Roll parts out into thin circles on a lightly floured surface. Transfer dough to cookie sheet. Coat circles with spaghetti sauce (but leave 1 inch of dough around the edges without sauce). Place pepperoni and cheese over sauce on one half of the circle. Fold other half over and press edges together with a fork to secure. Poke holes in the top with a fork. Brush with 1 tsp olive oil.
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• Bake at 375 degrees F for 30 minutes. Serve hot.

Jalapeno Cream Cheese Burger

• 1 cups seeded and chopped jalapeno pepper
• 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
• 1 pound ground beef
• Liquid Smoke flavoring
• 3 hamburger buns

In a medium bowl, stir together the jalapenos and cream cheese.

Divide the ground beef into 6 portions pat out each one to 1/4 inch thickness. Spoon some of the cream cheese mixture onto the center of 3 of the patties. Top with the remaining 3 patties, pressing the edges together to seal.
Top each hamburger with liquid smoke flavoring. Grill for about 8 minutes per side, or until well done, taking care not to press down on the burgers as they cook. This will make the cheese ooze out. Serve on buns with your favorite toppings.

Peanut Butter Chocolate Bars

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• Prep Time: 10 minutes
• Set Time: 1 hour
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• 1/2 c butter
• 1/2 c packed brown sugar
• 2 1/2 c confectioners' sugar
• 2 c peanut butter
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 c semisweet chocolate chips

Melt butter. Add sugars, peanut butter and vanilla. Mix well.
Press into a 9 x 13 inch pan.
Melt chocolate chips and spread over the top. Cool.

These are heaven. Thomas requests them every time I make treats!