All posts tagged: LOW CARB

Tomato Salad with Pomegranate-Sumac Dressing

Tomato Salad with Pomegranate-Sumac Dressing

Summer is salad time, so the kitchen stays cold, and a tomato salad with pomegranate sumac dressing is a welcome refreshment. Large, small, black, and colorful sun-ripened tomatoes, soft mild onions, and an oriental Dressing of pomegranate molasses, grated tomato, best olive oil, and tart sumac finish the taste. Tomato salad with a sweet fruity pomegranate dressing is not only refreshing, but it is also prepared in a snap and is even vegan. All these ingredients transform a simple tomato salad into a unique dish. Watch How to prep Video on Instagram

Saffron Iced Tea – آیس تی زعفران

Saffron Iced Tea – آیس تی زعفران

Can you imagine a better summer treat than an ice-cold homemade iced tea? Today I have a recipe for a fresh and delicious saffron iced tea – آیس تی زعفران. The iced tea with saffron has a very aromatic flavor and lifts your mood. After all, a Persian quote says: “Drink a glass of saffron tea and get happy.” I prepared the recipe with black tea, but you can also use white tea instead. I don’t recommend Green tea, as it can overpower the fragrance of saffron. You can adjust the sugar level and the ingredients of a homemade iced tea to your taste. Ready-made iced tea from retail stores contains a lot of sugar, flavors, and artificial ingredients. Try my refreshing saffron iced tea and treat your health. Watch How to Prep Video on Instagram

Honey and Yogurt Cheesecake with Thyme

Honey and Yogurt Cheesecake with Thyme

Happy Cheesecake Day! To celebrate, I have a simple recipe for you and take you on a culinary journey to Greece. This No Bake Honey and Yogurt Cheesecake with Thyme is with tender oatmeal cookies, butter, and thyme. The creamy filling consists of Greek-style yogurt, full-fat cream cheese, icing sugar, lemon zest, and white chocolate and melts in your mouth. Top it with the delightful thyme honey just before serving.

Khoresh-e Albaloo - Meatballs in Sour Cherry Sauce خورش آلبالو

Khoresh-e Albaloo – Meatballs in Sour Cherry Sauce خورش آلبالو

Cherries ring in the summer for me, whether sweet or sour, as the season begins in June/July. Did you ever hang the most beautiful double or even triple red cherries over your ears right and left, and it made you feel beautiful? This childhood memory is anchored deep in my memory. Tart cherries are a mouthwatering combination in savory stews, and so is my recipe of today, Khoresh-e Albaloo – Lamb meatballs in sour cherry sauce خورش آلبالو. In this dish, tart cherries stand in the spotlight and complete the taste of the lamb meatballs. The preparation is simple, super quick, and will blow you away. Watch my Video on Instagram 

Soup-e Esfenadj - Spinach Soup for Tirgan

Soup-e Esfenadj – Spinach Soup for Tirgan

Tirgan Mobarak! Happy Tirgan! Like all our Persian festivals, at Tirgan, there is a lot of dancing, singing, and reciting poems. It’s tradition to splash water on each other (Ab Pashi) on this day. We also eat certain foods, such as my Soup-e Esfenadj – Spinach Soup for Tirgan. The recipe is super simple! The soup includes fresh baby spinach, potatoes, onions, and oriental spices. It’s vegetarian, as I made it with vegetable stock, but you can also use chicken stock. Add a blob of Greek yogurt, fresh mint, and a few drops of good olive oil to garnish. This creamy, healthy, and delicious soup is on your table in no time.

Vavishka – A Quick Persian Skillet Dish

Vavishka – A Quick Persian Skillet Dish

Vavishka is a quick and easy Persian skillet dish, a speciality from Gilan at the Caspian Sea. In Gilan it is called “Vavij” or “Vabij” which means steaming. There are various versions of Vavishka. I prepared Vavishka from minced meat, onions, tomatoes, and seasoned it with turmeric, lemon juice, Advieh – a Persian spice blend and topped it with eggs. The unique flavor of this dish is the spice blend Advieh – the jewel among the spices of the Persian cuisine. It gives the dish a warm, sweet floral flavor. If you don’t have Advieh use these ingredients: 1 tsp cinnamon, 1/4 tsp mixed cardamom, 1 tsp rose petal powder, 1/2 tsp mixed saffron, 1/2 tsp mixed coriander, 1 tsp dried lime powder and some nutmeg. Vary the ingredients according to your own taste. It goes best with Nan-e Barbari – Persian flatbread, Nan-e Taftoon – Persian pan-fried Nan bread, Salad Shirazi – Persian tomato and cucumber salad and Sabzi Khordan – Persian herb platter, Sir Torsi – pickled garlic, Torshi – pickled vegetables or …

Valak Kuku - Wild Garlic Omelette

Valak Kuku – Wild Garlic Omelette

Valak Kuku is a delicious quick pan-fried egg dish blended with tasty wild garlic, eggs, crunchy walnuts, and tart barberries. Spices like coriander, cinnamon, and turmeric add this irresistible sweet and sour flavor. I soak the walnuts and barberries in boiling water, which gives the walnuts a nice fresh touch and makes them less floury, so try it out. For Sabzi Khordan – a Persian herb dish, I also soak the walnuts and enjoy the fresh taste. Do you want to learn more about wild garlic? I have posted about it here.

Valak Polo ba Mahi – Wild Garlic Rice with Marinated Salmon

Valak Polo ba Mahi – Wild Garlic Rice with Marinated Salmon

Finally, it’s wild garlic time, and you can only find it on the market a few weeks of the year, so I prepared several Persian recipes with wild garlic. I made Valak Polo today, a traditional Persian Rice Dish with Wild Garlic, Sumac, and Saffron. We serve Chicken or meatballs with this dish in Iran. I prefer to fish with Valak Polo, so I made it with salmon in a lemony marinade. The marinade is to die for and consists of rose petals, ground dried lime, bay leaves, sumac, cinnamon, grated zest of a lemon, lemon juice, and lemon pepper tossed in olive oil. Salmon tastes best when you marinate it for about 2 hours. If you like wild garlic, you might also like my creamy One Pot Past with green asparagus and wild garlic, as I also show you the place near my home where wild garlic grows. Watch Video on Instagram (Wild Garlic Rice Preparation) Watch Video on Instagram (Marinated Salmon Preparation)

Kuku Sabzi - Persian Herb Frittata کوکو سبزی

Kuku Sabzi – Persian Herb Frittata کوکو سبزی

Just eight more days to Norooz! I would love to know, what do you prepare for the Persian new years feast? For me and the most iranian people Kuku Sabzi – Persian Herb Frittata کوکو سبزی is an aromatic herbal omelet and is a Must-Eat at Norooz. Persian Kuku announces spring for the many green herbs included in as parsley, cilantro, dill, chives, spring onions, dried fenugreek leaves, ground walnuts, and barberries. The herbs symbolize rebirth and the eggs fertility. The red barberries give the Kuku Sabzi a slight sour taste. Imagine fragrant herbs wafting through your kitchen as you spend a quiet afternoon concocting the Persian herb frittata. Give this Persian vegetarian dish a try! Watch preparation video on Instagram

Salt Baked Sea bream

Salt Baked Sea bream

*Ad book review The Breton Cookbook*. We are about to celebrate the Persian New Year Norooz, and for this special day we prepare fish and herb rice. I’m quite experimental in my kitchen, and every year I prepare the fish a little differently, see here, here and here. This year I decided to choose one of my favorite methods of preparing fish. I got inspiration from the Breton cookbook* with Commissioner Dupin’s favorite dishes by Jean-Luc Bannalac. I serve it with Mamie Fouesnant’s Shallot Cream Sauce. Salt Baked Sea bream and the Breton Cookbook are must-haves for Foodies and fish lovers. Cooking the whole fish in a salt crust inside an oven, the Dorade gets tender, juicy, flavorful and even low in calories. A healthy way of preparation, easy, with little effort and simply delicious. My husband and our youngest sit at the dining table and wait to see the salt crust cracking, and the tasty secret unveiled. Try this recipe, and you will be thrilled. Bon appetit!