Do you know this feeling when you try some amazingly delicious dish and even before you’ve finished it you realize that you want to visit the country this dish is origin from? This is exactly how I feel about this Mediterranean Kofta. Every ingredient reminds me of beautiful and far Israeli. And it is not a coincidence. I always try to find some inspiration for my cooking, this time my amusement was fantastic and very talented cookbook called Jerusalem by Yotam Ottolenghi and Sami Tamimi. I am sure lots of you have heard about it already. The book is saturated with Jewish spices and cooking traditions. Maybe it is the reason I am so eager to visit Israeli. I can only imagine what a breathtaking culinary adventure I would have there. I guess I would gain a few extra pounds, trying to taste everything that the country could offer me. Luckily for my body shape, this is not going to happen in the nearest future. Lol! But if seriously, I feel like I have already made the first step to start learning more about wonderful Jerusalem cuisine, even if this step is inside my kitchen.I am sure you can find many different Kofta recipes on the internet, but I really want you to try this one. Garnish it with some simple salad and this meal will highlight your day!

Kofta with Tahini Sauce

By voloshyna, January 21, 2015

• Total Time: 50 minutes
• Prep Time: 20 minutes
• Cook time: 30 minutes

Ingredients:

• For the Kofta: -
• ground beef - 1 lb
• ground lamb - 1 lb
• bread crumbs - 1/2 cup
• yellow onion - 1 medium, finely chopped
• garlic - 2 large cloves, minced
• toasted walnuts - 6 tablespoons, coarsely shopped
• red chili pepper - 1 small, finely chopped
• grated nutmeg - 1/2 teaspoon
• ground allspice - 1 1/2 teaspoon
• grund cinnamon - 1 3/4 teaspoon
• freshly ground black pepper - 1 1/2 teaspoon
• salt - 1 3/4 teaspoon
• freshly grated lemon zest - 1 1/2 teaspoon
• For the Tahini Sauce: -
• light tahini paste - 2/3 cup
• lemon juice - 3 tablespoon
• water - 1/2 cup
• garlic - 1 clove, crushed
• toasted pine nuts - 2 tablespoons
• For garnish: -
• parsley - 2 tablespoons, finely shopped
• sweet paprika - 1/2 teaspoon

Instructions:

Put all the ingredients for Kofta in a big bowl and mix well with your hands or wooden spoon. With damp hands, shape the meat into 3 inches oval shape meatballs. Heat the oil in a large frying pan. Sear kofta in batches, so they can cook evenly. Sear until golden brown about 6 minute for medium-rare. If you want your kofta well done, just put them in the oven (425F) for 3-4 minutes. In a small bowl mix, all the ingredients for tahini sauce, adjust to taste. Whisk well and spoon over kofta before serving. Sprinkle with sweet paprika and chopped parsley.

Great vegetarian appetizer, good for a summer party with your friends! This is also my first step by step recipe.

Cut zucchinis into 1/2-inch rounds.  In a small bowl mix together flour, Parmesan, bread crumbs, chili powder and pinch of salt. In another bowl, lightly beat eggs with 1/4 teaspoon of salt.

Dip zucchinis in the flour mixture, followed by the egg, do the same manipulations one more time.

 In a big skillet preheat the oil. Place zucchini slices in the hot oil and fry until golden brown. Transfer them into a paper towel to drain.

Chop basil leaves and garlic. Cut tomatoes into a thin slices.

Combine together mayonnaise, garlic and finely chopped basil, season with a black pepper.

 Top each zucchini slice with a teaspoon of basil mayo, tomato slice, shaved Parmesan and small basil leaf. 

Breaded zucchini with basil mayonnaise

By voloshyna, April 23, 2013

• Total Time: 40 minutes
• Prep Time: 10 minutes
• Cook time: 30-35 minutes

Ingredients:

• zucchinis - 2, pilled
• all purpose flour - 1 cup
• ground Parmesan - 4 tbsp
• bread crumbs - 4 tbsp
• chili powder - 1/2 ts
• salt - 1 ts
• vegetable or sunflower oil - for frying
• Campari tomatoes - 4-5, thinly sliced
• shaved Parmesan - for serving
• For the sauce: -
• homemade or store-bought mayonnaise - 1/2 cup
• fresh basil leaves - 8
• garlic - 2 cloves, minced
• freshly ground black pepper - to taste

Instructions:

Cut zucchinis into 1/2-inch rounds. In a small bowl mix together flour, Parmesan, bread crumbs, chili powder and pinch of salt. In another bowl, lightly beat eggs with 1/4 tsp. of salt. Dip zucchinis in the flour mixture, followed by the egg, do the same manipulations one more time. In a big skillet preheat the oil. Place zucchini slices in the hot oil and fry until golden brown. Transfer them into a paper towel to drain. Combine together mayonnaise, garlic and finely chopped basil, season with a black pepper. Top each zucchini slice with a teaspoon of basil mayo, tomato slice, shaved Parmesan and small basil leaf.

Here it is the key to a man’s heart. Well at least the key to the heart of my men. This Cheese Sticks is my husband’s favorite snack, and he can eat them in unlimited quantities. So when I learned how to cook this dish he was just in seventh heaven. This golden, crunchy snack is a perfect match for a glass of cold beer.

Fried Mozzarella Cheese Sticks

By voloshyna, August 24, 2012

• Total Time: 30 minutes
• Prep Time: 5 minutes
• Cook time: 25-30 minutes

Ingredients:

• mozzarella cheese sticks - 12
• bread crumbs - 1 cup
• eggs - 2
• vegetable oil - for frying

Instructions:

In a small bowl lightly beat the eggs. Pour the breadcrumbs into a flat dish. Preheat the 1/2 inch layer of oil into a big frying pan. Dip stick, first in egg, roll in bread crumbs, then in egg and again in crumbs. Fry from all sides until golden brown.  Drain on paper towels. Eat this Cheese Sticks while hot. You can also cook a tomato dipping sauce for this appetizer http://divinecusine.com/?p=189.

Zucchini is never really inspired me. All the dishes cooked with them, seemed incredibly boring to me. Fried zucchinis, stews, squash blinis -I used to eat them without much enthusiasm. Big changes occurred when I began to cook by myself. My kitchen become a place for experiments, where I can come up with a new recipes and find the most incredible combinations. So, one day, I decided to give a chance to zucchinis. I fried them in a batter with parmesan and bread crumbs, dressed with homemade spicy sauce, and cherry tomatoes slices on top. They came out crispy and golden on the outside and very tender inside. I can no longer say that zucchini is boring!

Crispy zucchini sandwiches

By voloshyna, August 9, 2012

• Total Time: 35 minutes
• Prep Time: 10 minutes
• Cook time: 25 minutes

Ingredients:

• small zucchinis - 2
• all-purpose flour - 1 cup
• ground Parmesan - 3-4 tbs.
• bread crumbs - 3-4 tbs.
• chili powder - 1/4 tsp.
• eggs - 2
• salt - to taste
• cherry tomatoes - 8-10
• vegetable oil - for frying
• For the sauce: -
• homemade mayo - 1/2 cup
• minced garlic - 2 cloves
• finely chopped dill and parsley - 2-3 tbs.
• freshly ground black pepper - to taste

Instructions:

Cut zucchinis into 1/2-inch rounds. In a small bowl mix together flour, Parmesan, bread crumbs, chili powder and pinch of salt. In another bowl, lightly beat eggs with 1/4 tsp. of salt. Dip zucchinis in the flour mixture, followed by the egg, do the same manipulations one more time. Preheat oil on the frying pan. Place the zucchini slices in the hot oil and fry until golden brown. Transfer them into a paper towel sheets to drain. Combine together mayonnaise, garlic and herbs, season with a black pepper. Put one teaspoon of sauce and slice of tomato on top of the each zucchini.