Tagin hamam bi-l-firik - Casserole of Pigeon with Hulled Grain

Ingredients

2 pigeons
2 cups hulled grain
1 tablespoon cooking oil
4-5 cups meat stock
1/2 teaspoon mixed spices
1 tablespoon butter
salt and pepper
Directions
Parboil pigeons in salted water for about 10 minutes and halve them. Lightly fry the hulled grain in 1 tablespoon oil. Add stock, mixed spices, seasoning, and cook for 10 minutes. Remove from flame and place in casserole dish, burying the pigeons joints in the grain. Melt butter and dribble on top. Cover casserole dish and bake in preheated 350 F. oven for 30-40 minutes. Uncover and allow top to brown.

Musa'a`a - Eggplant, moussaka

Ingredients

2 cups tomato juice
1 pound savory minced beef
2-1/2 pounds fried eggplant
salt, pepper, and mixed spices
Directions
Mix 1/2 cup of tomato juice with savory minced beef and cook over low flame for 7-10 minutes. Line bottom of oven pan with one layer of eggplant slices, spread the minced beef on top, and cover with the remaining eggplant. With the tip of a knife make several deep dents in the eggplant. Season the remaining tomato juice and pour over the eggplant. Bake in center of 350 F oven for about 30 to 40 minutes

Sahlab - Egyptian Spiced Drink

Ingredients

1 glass of milk
teaspoon sahlab
sugar to taste
pinch of cinnamon powder
1 teaspoon mixed nuts


Directions
Stir the sahlab into 1 tablespoon of cold milk. Boil the remaining milk, then pour over sahlab and stir well. Return to flame, add sugar, and boil for about 2 minutes. Serve very hot, sprinkling top of individual cups with cinnamon powder and mixed nuts.
This can also be prepared with 1/2 cup milk and 1/2 cup water.
Sahlab is a pre-packaged spice drink, sold in powder form in all spice shops and some supermarkets. It is a warming winter drink.

Khiyar Mikhallil - Pickeled Cucumbers

Ingredients

3 tablespoons salt
6 cups water
1 tablespoon vinegar
4-1/2 pounds cucumbers
5-7 hot chili peppers (optional)



Directions
Dissolve salt in water, add vinegar and pour into pickling jar. Add cucumbers and hot peppers, making sure that they are completely submerged in the liquid. Weigh down, cover tightly. The pickles should be ready after 3-4 days, but they do not keep as well as in Khiyar Mikhallil.