Ramadan 2011- شهر رمضان ٢٠١١
By: Mimi Cooks
Published: Tuesday, August 16, 2011 - 1:59pm

Ingredients




Recipe for Lentil Soup:
-1 cup red lentils-washed and drained
-Cut up the following vegetables into big pieces:
2 onions- 2 potatoes- Few carrots- Optional, you may use a small bunch of spinach or few pieces of tomatoes. You may modify these recipes to your liking by using different kinds of lentils or adding more vegetables to the soup.
-Salt, Pepper and Cumin
-Water

Preparation

1 Bring to a boil in a 5 to 6 quart pot then lower heat, cover and simmer gently about 30-40 minutes until all the vegetables become soft. Blend to a smooth finish in the blender, add salt, black pepper and cumin. This is a high in protein recipe and very low in fat, it is filling and tasty too.You may garnish with fresh chopped parsley and fried pita bread chips. A squeeze of lemon is added to it when it is served. Green olives and radishes compliment this soup. Serve hot.

About

In less than two weeks, the holy month of Ramadan will be finished. This year Ramadan falls in the middle of the Summer. It started at the beginning of August and ends probably till the first day of September. On this occasion, I would like to wish all Muslims around the world a very happy, blessed and fruitful Ramadan. May God bless you all and grant you his mercy and forgiveness, Amen
Since I have started my blog few years ago , and for my reader's connivence, I have collected a list of my recipes in one post, especially for this holy month, to make it easier to search and find a variety of Ramadan recipes . Again, I hope you can use some of these recipes to enjoy during this blessed month. I Wish you all a very blessed month and many happy returns.
Although its going to be too warm this month, but soup comes first on Ramadan table. Most of the recipes here are for vegetarian soups but you may always use chicken or meat broth, it is all up to you. Here is a list of soups:
Lentil Soup: Is a vegetarian soup that is made from split lentils, the orange colored ones. You may add a variety of vegetables and spices to this soup to make it your own.
Tomato soup: A vegetarian soup consists of tomato paste, water and vermicelli pasta. Plain simple and easy to prepare but very delicious.
Vegetable soup : Using seasonal vegetables is always continent and simple. this soup is nutritious and very delicious.
Onion Soup: A classic French onion soup that is hearty and easy to prepare.
Minestrone Soup :Vegetable soup with Italian flavors, makes a wonderful meal.
Brown Lentil Soup: A simple vegetarian soup that is full of flavor.
Roasted Carrot Soup: Easy to cook. You may use other Roasted vegetables instead of the carrots to make your own soup.
Ramadan table should have any form of Salad on it. Also many appetizers are prepared for variety too. here is a list of salads and appetizers:
Fattoush: A salad prepared with greens, tomatoes, cucumbers and toasted or fried pita
chips. I personally like to add pitted green olives to it to add to its tangy taste.
Tabbouleh:  A refreshing and nutritious salad.
Arugula Leaves Salad.
Priest/Raheb Salad:  one of the many ways to use roasted eggplants
Cabbage Salad: This is a filling salad. The usage of Balsamic vinegar compliments the cabbage in a nice way.
Hummus: A favorite appetizer for young and old, easy to prepare and nutritious.
Fattet Hummus:  A popular dish in Ramadan that is prepared mainly in the Levant. This dish could be prepared with many ingredients including yogurt, meats and chicken and then topped off with fried nuts. Great flavors all in one dish.
Chicken Fatteh:  Could be a meal by itself and very easy to digest.
Baba Ghannoug, Mutabbal:  Another popular appetizer using roasted eggplants.
Pasta Salad: A mix of your favorite pasta with seasonal vegetables, dressed with lemon juice, red vinegar and olive oil. Nutritious and delicious.
Kibbeh, Kubbeh: This dish is time consuming to prepare but worth it.
Traditionally, many Pastries are served next to soups. There are many variations  to preparing these pastries that are filled with meat or vegetables, fried or baked, depending on the origin of the recipes.
Suggested Main Dishes:
Dill Chicken
Broad Beans
Chicken with Vegetables
Stuffed Vegetables
Stuffed Onions
Musakka, Musakka3a
Stuffed Grape Leaves and Zucchinis
Mujaddara OR Mudardara
Pasta With Ground Beef
Pasta With Bechemel Sauce
Rainbow Carrot with Rice and Tamarind Sauce
Liver with Pomegranate Molasses
Beef Burgers wrapped in Grape Leaves
Carrots and Rice
Macaroni and Cheese
Macaroni with Beef And Cooked Yogurt
Sheeshbarak
Kufta With Tomato Sauce
Kufta With Tahini Sauce
Okra Stew with Tomato Sauce
Okra with Olive Oil and Pomegranate Molasses
Mulukhyya Leaves and Fine Cut
Maqloobeh, With meat and eggplants
White Beans Stew and Rice
Wheat Pasta With Basil And Mozzarella Cheese
Fettacini with Vegetables And Cream Sauce
Fava Beans With Rice
Chicken Tenders With Ranch Dressing
Roast Beef with Mashed Potatoes
Lamb Filled With Parsley and Garlic
Beef with Onions
Palestinian Musakhkhan with Onions and Sumac
Ramadan Drinks:
During the holy month or Ramadan people enjoy a list of specialty drinks that are prepared in many homes throughout the Middle East.  Many of these drinks  are prepared only in Ramadan. Although water should be the number one drink in Ramadan, but these drinks are tasty, here is a list:
Amar al Deen Drink ( Apricot Drink) is considered the number one drink associated with Ramadan, at least in the Levant. It is prepared from dry cooked Apricot sheets. It gives energy with its fresh sweet taste.
Yogurt Drink Known as Shineenah or Eeran. Prepared from yogurt , water and salt. Sometimes, garlic is added to it, depending on the personal taste.
Kharroob Drink: Is prepared from Carob tree, by cooking the dry pods with sugar and then soaking the mix in water for many hours, drained, added sugar and then served chilled.
Liquorish Drink:  Refreshing and delicious drink during the holy month.
Tamarind Drink: Prepared from Tamarind dry pods by soaking them in water for at least 12 hours then adding sugar to it after it is strained.
Ramadan Desserts and Sweets:
During the month of Ramadan people tend to eat more desserts than usual. Beside the usual sweets that are available or made on a regular basis, there are many desserts that are prepared ONLY in Ramadan. Qatayief is considered the king of sweets in Ramadan and associated with this holy month. The pancake like dough is filled with all kinds of goodies including cheese nuts, pudding, creams , even with apples. The Qatayief is served hot, fried or baked after its drenched with sugar syrup. There are couple of sizes for these pancakes, regular size and small size that is knows as Asafeeri Qatayief that is filled with cream and pistachios and eaten without baking the dough, but it will be already cooked on a pan.
Awwameh, or Sweet Delight, Is doughnut like dough that is formed into little balls , fried and drenched with sugar syrup.  Kunafeh:    Easy to prepare dessert at home, filled with cheese, cream or nuts. baked to perfection and served hot. Bread Cream Sweet(Aysh El Saraya): Toast bread with cream and pistachios.  Basbooseh: Semolina cake  with butter and sugar. easy to prepare and delicious.
Baklava: Widely available dessert at sweet stores throughout the Middle East but can be prepared at home if all the ingredients are available.
Mushabbak,and Osmallyya, with many more desserts are also prepared during Ramadan.
Sugar Syrup: Is used in almost all Middle Eastern Sweets, which gives it the shine and the sweet taste.
During Ramadan, one should not ignore a major meal which is Suhoor meal.  This meal provides the nutritious that are needed to endure the hunger and thirst throughout the day of fasting. A preferred Suhoor meal should be light and nutritious. Milk or yogurt accompanied with dates is a good suggestion for a Suhoor meal. One dish that is eaten at Suhoor time is Khuhshaf , which is a mix of dry fruits and nuts all soaked in apricot drink.
I hope this Ramadan menu list is helpful in your quest for recipes to prepare during Ramadan. Wish you and your loved ones a very happy and blessed Ramadan.