One of the best parts of making the Spicy Cig Kofte is using the leftovers. Usually I buy a leg of lamb, so after portioning out the 3/4 pound I need for the kofte, I easily have a couple of pounds left over. What to do with all that lamb? Make lamb sliders!

This recipe was born from my love of the kofte. I wondered how the spicy mixture would taste grilled. So I altered the spices a bit, made a couple of substitutions given that there are certain ingredients I didn’t have left over, and one of my favorite burgers was born (and my husband’s favorite burger, and my friend’s favorite burger… they’re really good!). (more…)

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Cooking outdoors, Dinner, Gourmet, Lunch, Mid Eastern, Sandwiches, Wine pairings by Courtney

In less than one year, I’ve finally made it to 100 posts! Since this seemed quite the milestone, I decided this post needed to be something special, but what to write about? After a little thought, it hit me: I should write about one of my favorite lazy Sunday lunches. It’s the lunch that, in tandem with a blog post, kickstarted the idea to start a food blog (more on that in this first post).

The lunch – spicy cig kofte and stuffed zucchini blossoms. It’s a lazy Sunday lunch not because it’s a quick and easy meal, but because it’s one of those meals that you savor and enjoy while sitting under the sun, shaded by umbrellas, while sipping sparkling water and good wine. It’s not how I first enjoyed kofte, but I’ve done it since, and decided it may be superior.

So what is kofte? This dish is raw lamb, minced with numerous spices, and served with pita. I first enjoyed this dish at a Lebanese restaurant in Dubai while I was on my honeymoon. Upon ordering the kofte, which was listed on a menu page with “RAW” written not only at the top but down the side, the waiter said, “But ma’am, that is raw”. Yes sir, but I like to live on the wild side!

Long story short, I loved the kofte and long after arriving back in the States, I craved the dish. With some birthday money, I picked up a couple of cookbooks from Greg Malouf, one with Lebanese and Syrian dishes, and one with dishes inspired by Turkey. Low and behold, the Turkish one had a kofte recipe! (more…)

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Appetizers, Dinner, Lunch, Mid Eastern by Courtney

One of the things I find funny is when people downplay copying something instead of creating your own. Especially those who eschew following a recipe. I’ve learned a lot from my family and have a number of “recipes” that are simply a bit of this, a dash of that, until it looks right, smells right, tastes right. I have a number of recipes that I’ve created, and as you know from reading this blog, I follow quite a lot of recipes too. And there’s nothing wrong with that, because I’ve learned a lot of techniques and flavor combinations I wouldn’t have thought of otherwise.

Let’s take spaghetti as a for instance. (more…)

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Dinner by Courtney

When my husband and I were in Venice on our honeymoon, we stopped into a small restaurant for lunch just off Piazza San Marco. We were the first people in the door for lunch, and we were the last to leave, with the waiters sweeping up around us after closing up until dinner. We enjoyed many great foods that day, but the wine was what really stuck out in our head. We enjoyed a bottle of La Fiorita Brunello di Montalcino that day, and when I was at a loss for what to buy my husband for his birthday this year, I decided to stock up on this memorable wine. (more…)

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Dinner, Gourmet, Italian, Sunday Suppers, Wine pairings by Courtney