Feast

by Anissa Helou

  1 tablespoon lemon juice

  Put the sugar in a medium pot and add 1 cup (250 ml) water. Add the cardamom, cinnamon stick, saffron, and lemon juice and bring to a simmer over low heat. Let simmer for 30 minutes, stirring every now and then, until you have a thick syrup. Take off the heat. If you are not going to use the syrup straightaway, store it in an airtight glass jar in the refrigerator, where it will last for a few days.

  Saudi Sweet Fritters

  LOQMAT AL-QADI

  SAUDI ARABIA

  Here is the Saudi version of sweet fritters, which seems to combine almost all aspects of the Lebanese/Syrian and Arabian versions.

  SERVES 6 TO 8

  1 cup (120 g) unbleached all-purpose flour

  2 tablespoons whole milk powder

  2 tablespoons cornstarch

  2 tablespoons raw cane sugar

  1 teaspoon baking powder

  1 tablespoon instant (fast-acting) yeast

  1 teaspoon fine sea salt

  1 teaspoon ground cardamom

  1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

  2 tablespoons yogurt

  1 organic egg

  Sugar Syrup

  Vegetable oil, for deep-frying

  1. To make the batter: Put the flour, powdered milk, cornstarch, sugar, baking powder, yeast, salt, cardamom, and cinnamon in a large mixing bowl and mix well. Then add the yogurt and the egg and mix a little bit before adding ½ cup (125 ml) water. Mix well. Then with your hand beat the thick batter or loose dough until it is smooth. This is a very traditional technique that you will find used from Egypt to Zanzibar to develop the gluten in very loose doughs until the dough becomes smooth, which will take a few minutes. Cover the batter with plastic wrap and let rest for 30 minutes.

  2. Meanwhile, make the sugar syrup as directed. Set the syrup by the stove.

  3. Pour 2 inches (5 cm) oil into a large skillet and heat over medium heat until very hot (if you drop a piece of bread in the oil, the oil should immediately bubble around it). Grease your right hand with a little oil and do the same with a teaspoon. Pick up a handful of dough with your oiled hand and squeeze a little ball through your clenched fist. Scoop the ball with the oiled teaspoon and drop into the hot oil. Repeat the process until you have dropped enough balls of dough to fit comfortably in the pan. Fry until golden brown all over, 7 to 10 minutes, stirring very regularly so that they color evenly. Drain on paper towels, then drop the fritters into the syrup. Stir for a minute or so, then remove to a large shallow bowl and serve immediately. These are best eaten soon after frying as they tend to go soggy rather quickly.

  South Asian Sweet Milk Fritters

  GULAB JAMUN

  INDIA | PAKISTAN

  Possibly the best known of South Asian sweets, these round fritters are similar to ‘uwwamat (Lebanese/Syrian Round Fritters) or l’geimat (Saffron-Flavored Fritters), but they are made very differently, having a base of milk solids rather than flour, and as a result they absorb a lot more syrup, which results in a spongy rather than crisp fritter.

  SERVES 6 TO 8

  FOR THE SYRUP

  1 cup (200 g) raw cane sugar

  4 green cardamom pods, smashed

  1 teaspoon kewra (pandanus flower extract)

  FOR THE FRITTERS

  1 cup (80 g) nonfat powdered milk

  1½ teaspoons unbleached all-purpose flour

  ¾ teaspoon semolina

  1 teaspoon baking powder

  Sea salt

  1 small egg

  ½ teaspoon vegetable oil

  ¼ cup (60 ml) whole milk

  Vegetable oil, for deep-frying

  1. To make the syrup: Put the sugar and ¾ cup (180 ml) water in a medium saucepan. Add the cardamom pods and bring to a boil over medium heat. Let bubble for about 5 minutes. Take off the heat and add the kewra.

  2. To make the fritters: Put the powdered milk, flour, semolina, baking powder, and a pinch of salt in a medium bowl and mix well. Add the egg, vegetable oil, and milk and mix until you have a smooth dough. Let the dough rest for 10 minutes. Divide the dough into 16 equal portions and roll each into a ball the size of a walnut.

  3. Pour 2 inches (5 cm) vegetable oil into a large deep skillet and heat over medium heat until hot (if you drop a piece of bread in the oil, the oil should immediately bubble around it). Working in batches, drop as many balls as will fit comfortably in the pan and fry, stirring frequently, until golden brown all over, 3 to 5 minutes—because of the milk sugars, these color quickly. Scoop with a slotted spoon and place on a plate for a few minutes—if you drop them too hot in the sugar syrup they may lose their shape—then drop into the sugar syrup. Let them soak up the syrup for 5 to 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove with a slotted spoon to a shallow serving bowl. Serve soon after, at room temperature.

  Lebanese/Syrian Round Fritters

  ‘UWWAMAT

  LEBANON | SYRIA

  I used to visit Syria very regularly before the uprising and in each city I had one or more favorite food spots. One of those in Damascus was in Souk el-Tanabel (Souk of the Lazy People). I loved the souk itself for the displays of vegetables prepared by women in their homes during the night so that they could be fresh in the shops the following morning. But it was one sweets stall that drew me back to the souk every time I visited the city because the sweets maker had the most extraordinary technique for making ‘uwwamat. He stood a few feet away from his gigantic frying vat, next to a large tub in which he had the loose ‘uwwamat dough. He worked incredibly quickly, dipping his left hand, then a small spoon in water before grabbing a chunk of dough in his wet hand. He would squeeze a little ball of dough through his clenched fist and, with the spoon, he scooped the dough and flicked it into the hot oil. He never missed and the dough never stuck to the spoon. He was there morning and evening, making hundreds of these small round fritters, and I would stand and watch, mesmerized by the spectacle. Most other ‘uwwamat makers simply stood over their skillets, dropping the dough straight into it. I had never seen anyone flicking it from a distance the way he did. Not only did he have a masterful technique, but his fritters were also exquisite and always crisp as he seemed to sell them as soon as he made them—‘uwwamat are best eaten soon after they have been fried. He obviously knew he was the best because written in big letters at the front of his stall was a sign proclaiming him as Malak al-‘Uwwamat—“King of the Round Fritters”!

  SERVES 4 TO 6

  1¼ cups (150 g) unbleached all-purpose flour

  1¼ cups (300 g) yogurt

  ½ teaspoon baking soda

  Twice the amount of Lebanese sugar syrup in Semolina Cake

  Vegetable oil, for deep-frying, and to dip the spoon in

  1. Put the flour in a large bowl. Add the yogurt and baking soda and whisk until you have a smooth batter. Cover with plastic wrap and let rest for 45 minutes.

  2. Make the syrup as directed. Keep the syrup near the stove.

  3. Pour 2 inches (5 cm) oil into a large deep skillet and heat over medium heat until very hot (if you drop a piece of bread in the oil, the oil should immediately bubble around it). Dip a dessert spoon in a little cold oil, fill it with batter, and drop this ball of batter into the hot oil. Drop in as many balls as will fit comfortably in the pan and fry them, stirring to brown them evenly, until golden all over, 5 to 7 minutes. Drain on paper towels, then drop into the syrup. Turn them in the syrup a few times and transfer to a serving dish. Serve soon after frying for an optimal texture.

  FORMING ROUND FRITTERS

  You can form round fritters in one of several ways:

  1. Wet your hand and with the tips of your fingers pinch off bits of dough, adding them to the oil to fry and puff up to the size of an apricot.

  2. Wet your hand, grab a handful of the soft dough, invert your clenched fist over the oil, and squeeze enough dough from between your thumb and index finger to have the same size ball, though this method is difficult and requires practice.

  3. An easier method is to grab
a handful of dough in the palm of your wet hand, then close your hand and squeeze the dough out from between your thumb and index finger so that you can scoop it with a wetted spoon to drop into the hot oil to have the same size round fritter.

  4. Use a pastry bag with a large plain tip and pipe the fritters into the oil.

  Aniseed Fritters

  MA’CARUN

  LEBANON

  Ramadan is the month of sweets. Wherever you go during that month and for Eid after, you will find abundant displays of sweets and, in Lebanon and Syria, these anise seed fritters will be prominently displayed, piled high on large metal trays, next to pyramids of baklava and neat lines of qatayef. The sweets serve two purposes after this month’s day-long fasts. The first is to restore energy quickly to all those who have had no food or drink pass through their lips from sunrise to sundown, while the second is to take them as presents when visiting with family and/or friends and neighbors—Ramadan is when people exchange the most visits, not to mention that each family will keep beautiful trays of sweets at home ready to be passed around with coffee and tea.

  MAKES 20

  1½ cups (275 g) fine semolina

  ¼ teaspoon instant (fast-acting) yeast

  1 teaspoon ground anise seeds

  ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon

  3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

  All-purpose flour, for shaping the dough

  Twice the amount of Lebanese sugar syrup in Semolina Cake

  Vegetable oil, for deep-frying

  1. Put the fine semolina, yeast, ground anise seeds, and cinnamon in a large bowl and mix well. Make a well in the center and add the olive oil to the well. Work it in with your fingertips until fully incorporated. Add ½ cup (125 ml) plus 2 tablespoons water and knead with your hands until you have a firm, elastic dough. Shape the dough into a ball. Place on a lightly floured work surface. Cover with a damp cloth and let rest for 45 minutes.

  2. Meanwhile, prepare the sugar syrup as directed. Set the syrup near the stove.

  3. Divide the dough into 20 equal portions and shape each into a fat sausage, about 2½ inches (7 cm) long. Place a dough roll against a perforated surface, like the bottom of a colander or the fine side of a box grater, and with your fingers press the dough down and roll it toward you to create a knobbly pattern and a groove as the ends meet. Place, groove side down, on a platter and continue making a pattern on the remaining dough rolls in the same way until you have shaped all 20 pieces.

  4. Pour 2 inches (5 cm) vegetable oil into a large deep skillet and heat over medium heat until hot (if you drop a piece of bread in the oil, the oil should immediately bubble around it). Working in batches, drop in as many dough rolls as will fit comfortably in the pan and fry until golden brown all over, 7 to 10 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon and immediately drop into the sugar syrup. Let the fritters soak up the syrup until just before the second batch is ready, then lift them out onto a medium serving platter before dropping in the second batch of fritters. Finish doing the rest of the ma’carun in the same way. Serve at room temperature. These are really best soon after they have been fried as they tend to lose their crunch fairly quickly.

  Turkish Mixed Nut, Dried Fruit, and Legumes Dessert

  ASURE

  TURKEY

  Asure is prepared on the feast day of Noah’s escape from the flood in the first month of the Muslim calendar. Those living in the countryside will usually make it with whatever they have growing in their fields, or in their neighbors’, most of which they will have picked and dried themselves, while city folks will buy the necessary ingredients in the bazaar. Asure is also prepared to commemorate ‘Ashura on the tenth day of Muharram, which is when the Prophet’s grandson, Hussein bin Ali, was martyred in the battle of Karbala.

  SERVES 8

  ½ cup (100 g) wheat berries, rinsed

  ¼ cup (30 g) dried chickpeas, soaked overnight in plenty of water with ½ teaspoon baking soda

  ¼ cup (30 g) dried cannellini beans soaked overnight in plenty of water with ½ teaspoon baking soda

  ¼ cup (30 g) dried fava beans soaked overnight in plenty of water with ½ teaspoon baking soda

  ¼ cup (50 g) short-grain white rice, soaked overnight in cold water

  4 dried figs, soaked overnight in cold water

  6 dried apricots, soaked overnight in cold water

  2 tablespoons golden raisins, soaked overnight in cold water

  2 tablespoons (30 g) unsalted butter

  1 cup (200 g) raw cane sugar

  ⅓ cup (50 g) hazelnuts, coarsely ground

  1 tablespoon cornstarch

  ½ cup (125 ml) whole milk

  ⅓ cup plus 1 tablespoon (100 ml) rose water

  FOR GARNISH

  1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

  1 teaspoon toasted sesame seeds

  1 teaspoon nigella seeds

  ⅓ cup (50 g) walnut quarters, toasted and coarsely chopped

  Pomegranate seeds (if in season)

  1. The night before: Put the wheat in a large pot and add 2 quarts (2 liters) water. Place over medium heat and bring to a boil. Take off the heat. Cover with a kitchen towel and let sit overnight.

  2. Set up the chickpeas, beans, fava beans, rice, and dried fruit to soak in separate medium bowls.

  3. The following day: Return the wheat to the heat and simmer, covered, for about 1 hour, or until tender. Drain and rinse the chickpeas, cannellini beans, and fava beans. In separate small pots, cook the beans for 45 minutes, or until tender but not mushy. Peel all the beans, if you have the patience.

  4. Drain the dried fruit and chop both the figs and apricots into small pieces the size of the plumped-up golden raisins.

  5. Drain the rice and add to the cooked wheat, along with the dried fruit. Add the butter and bring back to a boil. Add the peeled chickpeas, cannellini beans, and fava beans and simmer for 10 minutes. Add the sugar in three or four different batches (according to Nevin Halici whose recipe I have adapted here, the wheat will harden if you add the sugar all at once). Add the hazelnuts and simmer for another 15 minutes, stirring all the time so that the mixture does not stick, until the asure has thickened and become like a textured porridge. Quickly whisk the cornstarch into the milk and add to the pan. Stir until the asure starts bubbling again. Take off the heat and add the rose water.

  6. Pour the asure into a large serving bowl and sprinkle with the ground cinnamon, sesame seeds, and nigella seeds. Scatter the walnuts and pomegranate seeds all over and serve hot, warm, or at room temperature.

  Lebanese Wheat and Mixed Nut Porridge

  S’NAYNIYAH

  LEBANON

  S’nayniyah is the Lebanese version of asure (Turkish Mixed Nut, Dried Fruit, and Legumes Dessert), except that it is associated with the appearance of a baby’s first teeth and is prepared to offer to visitors coming to congratulate the proud parents, who will also send out bowls of s’nayniyeh to family and friends to let them know the exciting news!

  SERVES 4 TO 6

  1¼ cups (250 g) wheat berries or hulled barley, soaked overnight

  1 tablespoon anise seeds, wrapped in cheesecloth

  FOR SERVING

  Raw cane sugar

  8 to 12 teaspoons orange blossom water

  8 to 12 teaspoons rose water

  ⅓ cup (50 g) pine nuts, soaked for 1 hour in boiling water

  ⅓ cup (50 g) walnuts, cut in half lengthwise, soaked for 1 hour in boiling water (and peeled if you have the patience)

  ⅓ cup (50 g) blanched almond halves, soaked for 1 hour in boiling water

  1. Drain the wheat (or barley) and put together with the parcel of anise seeds in a large pot. Add 6 cups (1.5 liters) water and bring to a boil over high heat, skimming the froth from the surface. Cover and boil hard for 10 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium-low and let bubble gently for another 10 minutes, then turn the heat to low and simmer for 40 minutes, or until tender but not mushy. Discard the anise seeds parcel.

  2. Ladle into individual b
owls, adding to each bowl sugar to taste and 2 teaspoons each of orange blossom and rose water. Mix well. Drain the soaked nuts and pat dry with paper towels before scattering a little of each over the wheat. Serve hot.

  Pumpkin Halva

  ASSIDAT AL-BOBAR

  UNITED ARAB EMIRATES

  Pumpkin in classical Arabic is yaqtin or laqtin, but in the Emirates where they speak a slightly different Arabic, pumpkin is referred to as al-bobar and this pumpkin “halva” is a perfect example of the sweet-savory desserts that are so typical of that part of the Muslim world.

  SERVES 6 TO 8

  1 pound 10 ounces (1.25 kg) pumpkin, peeled and cut into medium cubes

  1½ cups (175 g) unbleached all-purpose flour

  ¾ cup (150 g) raw cane sugar

  ½ teaspoon crushed saffron

  Pinch of saffron threads

  ¾ teaspoon ground cardamom

  1 tablespoon rose water

  2 tablespoons (30 g) Emirati ghee or clarified butter, plus more for brushing and drizzling

  1. Put the pumpkin pieces in a large pot and add 2 cups (500 ml) water. Bring to a simmer over medium-low heat and cook, covered, 15 to 20 minutes, until the pumpkin softens completely and absorbs most of the water.

  2. Meanwhile, toast the flour in a large skillet, stirring constantly, until the nutty aroma rises, 7 to 10 minutes. Be careful not to let the flour burn or it’ll taste bitter.

  3. Mash the pumpkin with a potato masher or a large fork, while still in the pot. Add the sugar to the pot and stir until completely dissolved. Add the crushed saffron, saffron threads, cardamom, and rose water. Mix well.

  4. Gradually add the toasted flour and mix well until you have a smooth mixture. Add the ghee and mix well. Brush with more ghee. Place the lid over the pot and keep warm.

  5. To serve the “halva” the traditional way, spread it in a large shallow bowl and brush with ghee. If you want a prettier presentation, use two spoons to make quenelles. Arrange these in a rosette on a large platter and drizzle with a little ghee. Then, pile pretty edible flowers in the middle and serve warm or at room temperature.