My dear readers – First off, Happy New Year!  I just wanted explain my long hiatus.  We are currently in the process of moving our family to the United Arab Emirates from Washington DC, which, I have discovered, is no small feat! I am also working on a new food writing project with a dear friend of mine and our new site should be up and running soon.  I promise the new site will not disappoint, and you will find all of the recipes below and more.  In the meantime, I will try to post some little snippets here and there!

I had the opportunity earlier this week to be a guest blogger for Serena’s website, SeriouslySoupy.  I was asked to feature my harira soup, since so many of her readers were looking for a lamb soup.  The post, and the recipe, were a huge hit.  I hope you all get a chance to check out the post here.  How fun!

I know it has been awhile since I last posted, but the summer has been quite hectic. With that said, I am also getting ready to launch a bunch of new Ramadan recipes to get everyone through what will likely be a tough month of fasting. Let me know if you have any special requests, as I plan to be a cooking machine in August!

I woke up this morning and got the best news ever – a fellow Egyptian food blogger tried my recipe for Citrus Cardamom Rice Pudding and…she loved it! Check out her review, and all of the other great recipes she has on there!

Arabs love to stuff vegetables – onions, tomatos, peppers, and, my personal favorite, squash (koosa).  The soft texture of the squash coupled with spiced meat and rice always evokes memories of my aunt’s place in Egypt.  We used to eat this during our summer vacations in Egypt along side stuffed grapeleaves.  Yum! The type of squash used is not the typical green and yellow squash in the grocery store. Lebanese squash is short and stocky, making it the perfect vegetable to core and stuff. It is also light green, rather than dark green like traditional zucchini.  I made this tonight, and I literally could not stop eating it.  My husband is still on a low-carb diet, so this just means more leftovers for me! Also, I usually make this dish in the oven, but I made it on the stovetop this time.  I ended up with a lot of sauce leftover.  I actually put some in a bowl and served it with a side of rice, but you can eat it like soup, too – two dishes in one!

Curried Stuffed Squash (Koosa Mahshi)
Prep Time: 45 minutes
Cook Time: 45 minutes

10 squash
1 yellow onion, diced
1 clove of garlic, minced
1 lb lean ground beef
1 cup short grain brown rice (or white rice)
2 tbsp parsley, chopped
1/2 cup pine nuts
1 6-oz can of tomato paste
3 cups chicken broth
1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 cup lemon juice
1 tsp cumin powder
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp curry powder
pinch cayenne pepper
dollop of pomegranate molasses

(1) Cut the top off of each squash. Using a squash corer, remove the pulp of the squash. Set aside the pulp for later use.
(2) In a small bowl, soak the brown rice in water while you prepare the other ingredients.
(3) In a large saucepan, heat 2 tbsp of olive oil. Saute the onion and garlic. Add a dollop of pomegranate molasses to the onions and mix well. Add the ground beef, salt, cumin, cayenne pepper and curry. Brown the meat until cooked.
(4) Add the chopped parsley, pine nuts and tomato paste to the meat mixture. Fill the can of tomato paste with water twice and add to the meat mixture (i.e., add 12 oz of water). Let the mixture come to a rapid simmer. Remove the meat mixture from the heat.
(6) Rinse the rice and remove excess water. Add the rice to the meat mixture. Mix well.
(7) Using a spoon, scoop the meat mixture and put inside of the hollowed out squash until filled. Repeat until all of the squash is filled.
(8) Place the reserved pulp on the bottom of a large stockpot. Add the stuffed squash on top of the pulp tightly.
(9) Add the chicken broth, lemon juice and 1/2 cup of olive oil on top of the squash. Most, if not all, of the squash should be covered in liquid. I also added another pinch of salt and pepper to the stock.
(10) Cover the squash and place on high heat. Once the liquid comes to a rapid simmer, reduce the heat to medium-low heat for 45 minutes. You can cook for longer if you like a more soft texture.  Use tongs to remove the cooked squash from the liquid, and spoon some of the sauce on top of the squash. Enjoy!