KONGsicle

Posted: 3 July 2014 | Author: bootehBeeta | Filed under: KONGsicle, Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Hot outside for everyone: humans, cats and dogs – especially dogs I would say.

Popsicle for us, what about dogs? I have this delicious, clever thing made of Kong and frozen broth – thanks to my dog’s trainer! So easy to make, you just need to give it 7-8 freezing time. Take a KONG (appropriate to your dog’s size). Using a dab of peanut butter or cooked meat, seal the smaller hole, then turn it upside down and place it in a small bowl and fill the KONG with chicken broth. You could throw in bits of treat to make it more exciting for your dog. Place the bowl / KONG in the freezer overnight, or long enough to make the liquid completely hard. Read the rest of this entry »

Facebook notice

Posted: 2 July 2014 | Author: bootehBeeta | Filed under: Memories & Events, Uncategorized | Leave a comment

My dear friends,

As you might have noticed, I have a face book page for this blog which until recently was used for the sole purpose of reflecting the contents of this blog. Over the past few months however, I have increased my facebook page activities. I first started with sharing interesting articles, or photographs on food cultures around the world, as well as innovative cuisine from other blogs – the kind of entries that did not have room in my blog but certainly was worth sharing.

Presently, I am also sharing in my facebook page, my own posts as well. These entries are very “short and sweat” so to speak, like a quick tip on how to make walnuts look and taste fresh, here; or a nice picture of Iris in bloom and what they represent, here. These entries are occasional, and might be temporary; I need to share them but they are not “big” or “deep” enough in my mind to occupy a blog space.

Anyhow, I just wanted to keep you posted of the recent development in case you did not know. BTW, you could always follow me there, by liking my page 😉

Crab Salad / Sandwich

Posted: 19 June 2014 | Author: bootehBeeta | Filed under: Appetizers, Sides and Salads, Crab Salad / Sandwich, Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Crab Salad, often eaten as sandwich, is definitely a summer delight because it is so simple to make and made mostly of refreshing ingredients. It is also among the salads that is made of almost any vegetable and herb – depending on your taste – you could mix the cooked cooled crabmeat with onion, bell pepper, lettuce, vinegar, basil, chervil, coriander, even hazelnuts and boiled egg. Here is my selected version of crab salad. I love it and actually crave it as soon as it feels like summer out there!

Ingredients: 300 gr. cooked crabmeat, flaked. 1 cup celery (leaf and heart), diced. 3 tbsp. parsley, chopped. 2-3 tbsp. mayonnaise. 1 medium lemon juice. To serve, you could use any plain or seeded sandwich rolls, or for an added visual effect and nutritional value top it on avocado wedges. Read the rest of this entry »

Vase Ideas7

Posted: 11 June 2014 | Author: bootehBeeta | Filed under: Photography, Uncategorized | Tags: vase_ideas | Leave a comment

Mints stems stay fresh in vase for at least 48 hours and add lively smell to my kitchen. I love the smell and the site of it, especially in my new gorgeous vase – a gift from a dear friend, made by hand in Mashhad, Iran.

Moussaka, domesticated

Posted: 16 May 2014 | Author: bootehBeeta | Filed under: Moussaka, domesticated, Uncategorized | Tags: eggplants, mausaka, vegetarian | Leave a comment

Okay, this is a completely innovative meatless, eggplant-based side dish inspired by the Greek moussaka; it is much simpler than Moussaka, with far fewer ingredients. I have worked on the recipe several times and am quite proud of the result. Here we go.

Ingredients (Serving 4-5): 1½ kg eggplant, peeled. 1 kg tomatoes. 1 large onion, peeled and thinly sliced. 4-5 cloves of Garlic, minced. 250 gr, Mozzarella cheese, grated. 1-2 tbsp. tomato-based hot sauce (see below). 1 teaspoon turmeric. Salt and cooking oil as needed. Read the rest of this entry »

Turkish Pepper with everything

Posted: 6 May 2014 | Author: bootehBeeta | Filed under: Turkish Pepper with everything, Uncategorized | Tags: Turkish Pepper | Leave a comment

I am all for experimenting with new spices. What about you? Well, I recently came across this “Turkish Pepper” in a Middle Easter supermarket when I was looking for our traditional Persian red chili pepper powder and I absolutely fell in love with it! The type I am talking about has red light, and relatively large flakes. The pepper is milder than chili pepper. I use it in cooking – especially in vegetarian dishes, be it dry or stew like. And I also use it as a finishing spice for almost any type of dish, barbecue, or even salad, as the flakes add a lot of warmth and smiling welcome to the table!

Barberries mixed rice (Zereshk Polow)

Posted: 10 April 2014 | Author: bootehBeeta | Filed under: Barberries mixed rice, Uncategorized | Tags: Barberries, Persian cuisine, zereshk_polow | Leave a comment

This is one of the easiest yet among the most colorful and appetizing Persian foods which usually finds its way in to big formal parties and gatherings. The two main ingredients – barberries and saffron are relatively expensive, therefore the food is considered prestigious, if simple in making.

Ingredients (serving 4-5): Rice (ideally, any type of Basmati), 3 cups. Barberries, 1 ½ cups. Sugar, 2 tbsp. Saffron powder, 2 teaspoons. Salt, 2 tbsp. (this is for soaking the rice). Cooking oil and water.

Start with picking over barberries. Sometime you need to be extra careful with solid particles of grit. Place the barberries in a small colander and soak it in a bowl of cold water for an hour. Change the water and repeat the process if necessary. Rinse thoroughly and drain.

Make your rice, as you would with plain rice – by soaking it in advance in salted water for at least a few hours in advance, semi-cook it in boiled water and steam-cook it for an hour. See here for the full instruction. Read the rest of this entry »