Cookbook: Chef Sam’s Lunch Recipes

ICYMI: We partnered with Chef Sam, known on Instagram as @CookWithSam, who is always preparing dishes that feed your eye and your soul!

We shared a few of Sam’s recipes during Ramadan as Iftar ideas for our mommies on Instagram and Facebook, but we wanted them to be more accessible for all ladies and men who want to cook a meal for the family or themselves.

These recipes are simple and guaranteed to keep your taste buds screaming with joy. When you try one, you’ll want to try them all. Scroll through to view the recipes and share them with your friends, let’s see how good food is made:

Ouzi

Ingredients:

➔ ½ kilo of minced lamb	➔ 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
➔ 4 cups of water	➔ 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
➔ 2 cups of basmati rice	➔ 1 teaspoon sea salt
➔ 1 cup of peas	➔ ¾ teaspoon Aleppo Dakka spices
➔ 1 packet of baklava chips or puff pastry	➔ ½ small spoon of crushed clack pepper
➔ 2 tablespoons toasted pine nuts	➔ ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
➔ 2 tablespoons blanched and roasted almonds

Recipe:

Over medium heat, heat the butter and oil, then add the onion and stir until soft
Add the meat and stir until it changes color, then add salt, pepper, spices, cinnamon and stir well
Add the carrots and peas and stir for two minutes, then add the water, and leave it until it boils
Add the rice and stir well, then cover the saucepan and leave it on a low heat until it is done
Cut the baklava chips into equal sized rectangles
Preheat the oven to 200 degrees
In a small, deep dish, place two baklava sheets in this way (+), then put an amount of the filling in the plate, then close the ends of the baklava chips over the filling
Repeat this step until you finish the amount of pastry
Arrange the Ouzi on a greased tray, then brush the face with the melted butter
Place the tray in the oven for 30 minutes, until it becomes golden in color

Oven Baked Kibbeh

Ingredients:

Kibbeh dough:

➔ 2 cups of blond bulgur

➔ a small piece of red onion, finely chopped

➔ ¼ teaspoon of Aleppo Dakka spices

➔ Pinch of black pepper

➔ Pinch of cumin

➔ Pinch of dry mint

➔ 500g of Habra meat

The Filling:

➔ a spoonful of butter	➔ ¼ teaspoon of ground cinnamon
➔ 2 medium-sized white onions	➔ salt, to taste
➔ 500g minced veal	➔ 25g toasted pine nuts
➔ ¼ teaspoon of Aleppo Dakka spices	To Decorate:
➔ ¼ teaspoon of black pepper	➔ 24g pine nuts

Recipe:

Kibbeh dough: Soak bulgur in two cups of water and season with onions and spices. Put the bulgur in the meat mixer twice, then add the meat and mix with the bulgur.
The filling: Melt the butter and fry the onions for 5 minutes, then add the meat and cook for 3 minutes and season with salt and spices. Strain the mixture and set aside, then add the pine nuts.
To serve: Spread the Kibbeh dough on the tray. Half of the filling is placed on the dough, after which it is covered with a second layer of the dough. Cut lozenges and cover with the extra fat from the filling or a mixture of unsalted butter and vegetable oil. Decorate with pine nuts and grill in the oven at 160 °C.

Mutabbal Eggplant

Ingredients:

➔ 4 large eggplant (special for barbecue)

➔ 1 cup labneh (preferably sour Syrian labneh)

➔ 0.5 cup of yogurt

➔ 4 cloves of garlic, peeled or finely grated

➔ Salt, to taste

➔ 2 tablespoons of lemon juice

➔ 2 tablespoons of olive oil

Recipe:

Grill the eggplant on charcoal on a stove-flame or on the plumage until the skin burns, then peel the eggplant and the seeds are discarded.
Chop the eggplant into large pieces and mix with garlic and olive oil.
Mix the labneh with yogurt and lemon juice in a different bowl, then season the mixture with salt, preferably using coarse sea salt. Then add the eggplant mixture and mix well, but carefully.
Keep the mixture in the refrigerator until use.

Oven Baked Kibbeh

Ingredients:

➔ 800g lamb, minced kebab or kofta	➔ 2 tablespoons of parsley, finely chopped
➔ 450g halloumi cheese, sliced	➔ 1 tablespoon French thyme
➔ 2 tablespoons toasted pine nuts or chopped pistachios	➔ 3 tablespoons butter
➔ 3 white onions, sliced	➔ ½ teaspoon black pepper
➔ 400g mushrooms, beans cut into cubes	➔ 0.25 teaspoon paprika
➔ 1 large sweet green bell pepper	➔ 0.25 teaspoon of peppercorn
➔ 1 large sweet red bell pepper

Recipe:

Kibbeh dough: Soak bulgur in two cups of water and season with onions and spices. Put the bulgur in the meat mixer twice, then add the meat and mix with the bulgur.
The filling: Melt the butter and fry the onions for 5 minutes, then add the meat and cook for 3 minutes and season with salt and spices. Strain the mixture and set aside, then add the pine nuts.
To serve: Spread the Kibbeh dough on the tray. Half of the filling is placed on the dough, after which it is covered with a second layer of the dough. Cut lozenges and cover with the extra fat from the filling or a mixture of unsalted butter and vegetable oil. Decorate with pine nuts and grill in the oven at 160 °C.

Meat with Mint

Ingredients:

➔ 1kg lamb, finely minced or ground finely (whipped)	➔ 150g white onion, finely chopped
➔ 2 teaspoons dry mint	➔ 25 teaspoon Aleppo red pepper
➔ Pinch of Dakkah Aleppo spices pistachios	➔ 1 tablespoons fine or coarse sea salt
➔ Frying olive oil (for the grilling)

Recipe:

The meat is mixed with mint, onions and spices, then formed into disc shape (1 cm thick), and then grilled on a charcoal grill or non-stick frying pan after brushing it with a little oil.

Cheese Rolls

Ingredients:

➔ 1 pack of spring roll pastry	For wrapping:
➔ 600g of French cream cheese	➔ 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
➔ 125g toasted walnuts	➔ 3 tablespoons of drinking water
➔ 200g of pitted and chopped dates
➔ 50 g of chives, finely chopped

Recipe:

In a large saucepan add the cheese, chopped nuts, chopped dates, chives or chopped chefs.
Mix the ingredients well and then fill the pastry according to the desired shape.
In a deep dish, mix the flour and water until a thick liquid is formed and use it to close the cylinders.
With a lot of hot oil, fry the rolls until golden blonde color.

Chef’s Notes: While using the pastry, it is recommended to use the soft tip to add the filling and the rough end to the outside to get a nice crunch. It is advised to avoid large amounts of filling and to seal the rolls well. Heat the oil on a medium to high heat until it reaches a temperature of 175 degrees Celsius.

And lastly, our final words on the blog: Bon Appetit ?