Spinach with Yogurt Salad

This is the recipe for the Spinach and Yogurt Salad that I made to go with my curries.

Brazilian Potato Salad

Today I was filling out a permission form for my first grader to go on a school field trip. I wasn’t really paying attention and then I realized that the field trip is next week and they are going to the Botanic Garden. What? With the kind of weather we are having here in Chicago, I don’t think the Botanic Garden is an ideal field trip destination. Well, it isn’t for me at least. I’d prefer the indoors of the Science Museum in weather like this. But I guess kids don’t care so much, so I just hope they don’t get rained out like their field trip in the fall.

Halal Mama’s Layer Salad with Rosy Dressing

 

 Although the weather isn’t cooperating, it is time to start thinking about summer. And, for me, with these warm weather thoughts comes a little perplexing about what to do to entertain my four kids who will be home all day. I have never sent my kids to summer camp and get quite anxious about the idea of that for many reasons which can probably be summarized in one word: supervision. What do you do with your kids in the summer?

As far as food goes, I dream of summer for the grilling and salads. I like to put together salad combinations that my husband will try, but with much skepticism. In the end, however, he almost always becomes a fan. The combinations my family enjoys the most are my Santa Fé Salad with Moroccan Honey Dijon dressing, my Greek Cranberry Salad with Lemonette dressing, and this Layer Salad with Rosy dressing. I must say I don’t measure anything and just put all together on a whim. This is why up until now I haven’t posted any of my salad recipes. But Jill came over this week and really liked this salad and said I should post it. So here it goes.

Brazilian Eggplant Salad

As Eid quickly approaches I'm forced to think of what to serve to family and friends. One of the first things that came to mind is this eggplant dish because it is simple yet impressive, and very versatile. You can make it an antipasto for a sit-down dinner served with crunchy Italian bread or serve at an informal lunch with friends as a sandwich filling on batbout (Moroccan Pita Bread – recipe to follow).

 

Spinach à la Marocaine

I really want to apologize for being MIA, but between twins starting pre-K, PTO meetings, laundry, basketball practice, playgroups, playdates and life in general I have not had much time to breathe.

Afghan Eggplant (Buranee Banjan) with Mint and Garlic Yogurt Sauce

I know so many people who just won't share their recipes. While they won't admit to this crime, the email they promised with the prized recipe simply never reaches your inbox. Well, enough about these people.

I wanted to share something today about the opposite kind of people, those who are always happy to share a good recipe. I've never understood why someone wouldn't want to share such a thing unless of course they were making a living off of it. After all, it is always interesting to try a friend’s take on your recipe as often the dish never tastes quite the same as yours and it's both fun and interesting to note the differences. With that said, at times I have a hard time sharing recipes but not because I don’t want to (or I wouldn’t have a recipe blog), but because many times I simply don’t have an actual recipe to share - a lot of what I cook is simply in my head and not on paper. In fact, one of the hardest things for me with this blog is trying to slow down my cooking to measure stuff so that I can post here. At the end of the day, I'm a full-time Halal Mama of four kiddos and don't cook exclusively for the blog but rather include in the blog what I am feeding my family and friends.

Almost Moroccan Salad Plate

We had Moroccan guests over for dinner the other day and upon seeing my salad presentation one of them teased that I could be Moroccan. I like to arrange my salad in the same beautiful way I learned from my mother-in-law. Despite how well I may have managed to mimmick her style, deep inside I couldn’t help but think my guest hadn’t looked too closely at my salad or he would have withdrawn the comment. I do not cut my tomatoes, cucumbers, carrots or beets with as much symmetry as they do in Morocco. Whether in the comfort of one's home or fresh from a street vendor, in Morocco you can expect great presentation. In fact, food presentation in Morocco is just as important as the taste. My husband will not even taste something I make if it doesn’t agree first with his eyes.