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<pre>Greetings all,

For those of you in the southern hemisphere, who may have been feeling left
out by the eggplant (aubergine) recipes for summer's bounty, here is a recipe
for Levantine stuffed cabbage rolls to be enjoyed year round.

I hope the description and recipe for Baharat, the Levantine spice mixture,
will provoke lively responses from our Arabic-speaking members.

Both recipes come from the web site of Clifford A. Wright.
(http://www.cliffordawright.com/index.html <A
HREF="http://www.cliffordawright.com/index.html">Click here: Clifford A.
Wright - Cook and Author Specializing in Italy and the Mediterranean</A> )

Wright is an American food writer and culinary historian whose next two books
will be published by William Morrow & Co in the fall of 1999 and in the year
2000. They are "A Mediterranean Feast: Celebrated Cuisines from the Merchants
of Venice to the Barbary Corsairs" and "A Cook's ABC of Mediterranean
Vegetables." He describes the first book as a comprehensive work, the first
of its kind, encompassing culinary history and illustrated with more than 500
recipes.

I'm looking forward to the book as he will write about how so many foods, and
their names, made their way into Europe and European languages from the lands
of the Eastern Mediterranean and Arabic.

Formerly married to a Syrian, he has spent much time in the country and wrote
an article entitled "Hearts of Syria," published in the March 1997 issue of
Saveur magazine, one of America's premier food magazines. The hearts referred
to are those of artichokes and the article is devoted to Syrian recipes for
that wonderful vegetable. I'll try to post a few so that those of the
southern hemisphere, who will soon find artichokes in their local markets,
can indulge. North America will have its fall crop coming from California at
the end of September. The spice mixture Baharat is called for in some of the
recipes.

Though Saveur magazine has a web site at www.saveurmag.com, it carries
nothing beyond information on how to subscribe.

All best, Kaye

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~
http://www.cliffordawright.com/recipes/mahshi.html <A
HREF="http://www.cliffordawright.com/recipes/mahshi.html">Click here: Recipe:
Mahshi Malfuf (Stuffed Cabbage)</A>

Mahshi Malfuf (Levantine Arab) Stuffed Cabbage

Arab cooks are the masters of the stuffed vegetable, the repertoire of a
competent cook seemingly endless.

These labor-intensive preparations are some of the most rewarding and, if you
sit around rolling or stuffing with someone else, really quite joyous to
make. Of course, it is traditionally women's work, but this is communal labor
where patience and good spirit is rewarded with happy eaters and a contented
cook.

When I asked my former mother-in-law, Leila al-Qattan, what fifteen recipes
must be included in any cookbook on Arab cuisine, she included this stuffed
cabbage recipe. Cabbage has been part of the Arab culinary lexicon since
medieval times.

1 large head green cabbage (about 2 3/ 4 pounds)
1 cup medium- or short-grain rice, rinsed under running water until clear or
soaked in water to cover for 30 minutes and drained
3/4 pound ground lamb
1/3 cup very finely chopped onion
2 teaspoons baharat (see recipe below)
3/4 teaspoon freshly ground allspice berries
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 1/2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
3 tablespoons dried mint
6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
8 large garlic cloves, finely chopped
Juice from 5 lemons (about 1 cup)
3 1/2-4 cups water

1. Remove and discard any of the outermost leaves of the cabbage that are
blemished. Bring a large pot of water to a rolling boil and plunge the whole
cabbage in until the leaves can be peeled away without ripping, about 10
minutes. Drain well and, when cool enough to handle, separate the leaves
carefully, setting them aside, and chop the central core. Lay the larger
cabbage leaves in front of you and cut out the thick central stem ribs of the
leaves with a paring knife, dividing each leaf in two. Leave the snallest
leaves whole. Arrange the cabbage stem ribs and chopped core over the bottom
of a round stove-top casserole or saucepan a little wider in diameter than a
dinner plate.

2. In a medium-size mixing bowl, knead together the rice, lamb, onion,
baharat, allspice, cinnamon, salt, and pepper until well blended.

3. Place about 1 tablespoon of the stuffing along the rib side of each leaf
and roll up tightly without folding the sides over. The rice will not expand
enough to damage the leaves. Once rolled, the cabbage leaves will look like
thin cigars. Arrange the rolled cabbage leaves on top of the cabbage ribs in
the casserole or saucepan, seam side down. The rolled cabbages should be
placed tightly next to each other. Once you've got a single layer, sprinkle
with more salt and pepper, 3/ 4 teaspoon mint, 3 tablespoons of the olive
oil, half the garlic, and half the lemon juice.

4. Continue stuffing and rolling the leaves and place a layer upon the first
layer, making each row and each layer compact and neat. Sprinkle with more
salt and pepper, the remaining 3/ 4 teaspoon mint, the remaining 3
tablespoons olive oil, the remaining garlic, and the remaining lemon juice.

5. Pour in enough of the water to barely cover the cabbage rolls. Put an
inverted heavy dinner plate over the cabbage rolls to hold them down. Bring
to a gentle boil over medium heat, about 20 minutes, then reduce the heat to
very low, using a heat diffuser if necessary, cover, and simmer until tender,
about 3 to 3 1/ 2 hours. Remove a roll-up to test for doneness. Serve or
continue cooking until done.

Makes 6 servings

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~
Baharat - Middle Eastern Mixed Spice Mix

http://www.cliffordawright.com/recipes/baharat.html <A
HREF="http://www.cliffordawright.com/recipes/baharat.html">Click here:
Recipe: Baharat - Mixed Spices.....</A>

Baharat (Levantine Arab)

Mixed Spices for Syrian, Lebanese, and Palestinian Cooking

Baharat means "spice" in Arabic, derived from the word bahar, which means
pepper, so it is a mixed spice with black pepper. It is an all-purpose spice
mix used in Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, and Palestine and found in many prepared
savory dishes.

Baharat can be bought at Middle Eastern groceries and markets but it is also
quite easy to make fresh for yourself and keep it stored in a spice jar.
There are many different variations, all based on the basic ingredients of
black pepper and allspice. Some mixes might include paprika, coriander seeds,
cassia bark, sumac, nutmeg, cumin seed, or cardamon seed. This recipe is
basic. If you like, you can fiddle with it by adding some of the other spices
mentioned.

1/4 cup black peppercorns
1/4 cup allspice berries
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

1. Grind the peppercorns and allspice together and blend with the cinnamon
and nutmeg. Store in a jar in your spice rack, away from sunlight. It will
lose pungency as time goes by, but, properly stored it can be good for many
months.

Makes about 1/ 2 cup.
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