Rose Water and Orange Blossoms: Fresh & Classic Recipes from my Lebanese Kitchen, written by Maureen Abood, features over 100 traditional Lebanese and Lebanese-inspired dishes from her family and childhood. I will be sharing her recipe for Fattoush Salad following the review.
Disclosure: I received this book from Running Press in exchange for my honest review. All comments and opinions are my own. This post contains Amazon affiliate links. If you purchase something through the link, I may receive a small commission at no extra charge to you.
Maureen Abood
Maureen Abood was born in the United States to a Lebanese-American family.
She left her job in Chicago to attend culinary school in San Francisco before settling in Michigan to be near her family. This is her first cookbook.
Rose Water & Orange Blossoms
Chapters are divided based on course: Introduction, Flavor Makers, Maza and Salads, Main Dishes, Grains and Legumes, Pastry and Sweets, Breads and Savory Pies, Pickles and Preserves, and Drinks. Abood also provides a list of menu guides for those looking for a little inspiration: A Summer Cookout, An Elegant Dinner, A Spring Luncheon, A Cocktail Party, A Holiday Brunch, A Winter Gathering, A Vegan Menu, and A Gluten-Free Menu.
Scattered across the pages are beautiful family stories surrounding the food. Maureen includes various cooking tips, such as how to remove the seeds from a pomegranate, picking grape leaves, peeling chickpeas, and what to look for when picking out eggplants.
For those who enjoy making yogurt, there is a guide to making Lebanese yogurt and the thick cheese, Labneh. For Kibbeh fans, she offers a variety of recipes: Raw Kibbeh (with tips on working safely with raw meat), Baked Kibbeh Sahnieh, Fried Kibbeh, Vegan Tomato Kibbeh, Potato and Spinach Kibbeh, and Yogurt-Poached Kibbeh.
Photography is provided by Jason Varney. Many of the recipes are paired with beautiful full-page photos.
Ingredients are listed in US Customary and Metric. The index is divided based on ingredient and the name of the recipe.
Every recipe includes a detailed headnote on how Maureen came across the dish, history, and tips for serving or working with the ingredients. The Arabic name of the dish is occasionally provided and she also makes a note of the pronunciation.
Fattoush
Fattoush is a Lebanese bread salad made from tossing toasted pita chips with various chopped vegetables and seasoning with a lemon sumac vinaigrette.
It is a fantastic use for any leftover pita bread lying around. Maureen also has a recipe for making your own pita chips by frying or baking (I used the baking method).
Do not dress the Fattoush until right before serving. Last thing you want is the pita chips soaking up that dressing and becoming soggy. The crisp texture of the bread is such a wonderful contrast to the other ingredients.
Notable Ingredients
Sumac is a spice made from the berries of the sumac bush and is common in Middle Eastern and Mediterranean cooking. It is available in berry or ground form. Sumac has a lightly bitter, lemony taste and a deep brownish red hue. There are no good substitutes for the flavor.
I have been able to find sumac in the specialty section of some International grocery stores and recently at Whole Foods. Watch the ingredient list and color of sumac. It should be a deep red. Bright red spices may have added coloring and some have added salt.
I have been able to locate Pomegranate Molasses at markets with Middle Eastern ingredients. I haven’t personally tried it, but you can also make your own.
Other Dishes
I also made the Tomato and Sweet Onion Salad; Walnut Baklawa Diamonds; Eggplant with Lamb, Tomato, and Pine Nuts (Sheik al Mehsheh); and Cafe Blanc (Orange Blossom and Raw Honey Tisane).
The Tomato and Sweet Onion Salad was easy to toss together and a perfect choice for the abundant heirloom tomatoes available this time of year. A variety of sizes and colors of tomatoes are combined with mint and onion, then tossed with a lemon olive oil dressing.
There are so many exciting desserts choices in Rose Water & Orange Blossoms– from rice pudding and pistachio bark to frozen yogurt and a few types of cookies. I started with the Walnut Baklawa Diamonds. It is great for serving a crowd and we had a get-together that particular weekend. They were a huge hit!
Chad and I have never been huge eggplant fans, but I keep trying recipes to learn of new ways to prepare it. Maureen’s mother has a variation of Sheik al Mehsheh that involves layering instead of stuffing of the eggplants with a lamb mixture and baking in tomato sauce. The eggplants are cut into slices and broiled until golden before being layered with seasoned ground meat, tomato sauce, and buttered toasted pine nuts. After a long bake in the oven, the mixture is topped with cheese.
I tried the Cafe Blanc on a whim since I had all the (three!) ingredients on hand. Despite the name, there actually isn’t any coffee at all. Creamed raw honey and a splash of orange blossom water are mixed into boiling water. The honey added a bit of sweetness and accompanied the floral tones from the orange blossom water perfectly.
Rose Water & Orange Blossoms is a great pick for those wanting to learn more about Lebanese cuisine. The recipes are well-adapted for the home cook with a nice mixture of easy to more complicated dishes. You will find an array of dishes incorporating fresh produce, herbs, and spices with seasonal choices.
Most of the ingredients are readily available to the average American cook. A few are a little harder to source and require a trip to the Middle Eastern Food Market or a purchase online. There is a list at the end of the book of websites specializing in Lebanese ingredients.
Fattoush Salad Recipe
Excerpt from Rose Water and Orange Blossoms
Fattoush Salad
Ingredients
- 1 lemon juiced
- 1 teaspoon pomegranate molasses
- 1 small garlic clove minced
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 teaspoons crushed dried mint divided
- 2 teaspoons sumac divided
- 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 hearts of romaine chopped into 1 to 2 inch (2.5 to 5 centimeter) pieces
- 1 cup (150 grams) cherry tomatoes quartered
- 1/2 red onion thinly sliced
- 2 radishes thinly sliced
- Pita chips
- 10 fresh mint leaves cut in chiffonade
- Freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- For the vinaigrette, in a small bowl whisk the lemon, pomegranate molasses, garlic, salt, 1 teaspoon of the dried mint, 1 teaspoon of the sumac, and olive oil until it is thoroughly combined and emulsified.
- In a salad bowl, combine the romaine, tomatoes, onion, radishes, and pita chips.
- Dress the salad with the vinaigrette, tossing it to evenly coat everything.
- Dust the fattoush with the remaining sumac, dried mint, the fresh mint, and a few grinds of black pepper, and serve immediately.
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