Tag Archives: maya oryan. food stylist

Chestnut Banana Bread

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Chestnut Banana Cake.jpg

Christmas just wouldn’t be Christmas to me without a lot of recipes with chestnut on the table.

I have a home-made chestnut cream that I did last week, so I decided to bake my regular banana cake recipe and add it to it, the results were simple and delicious.

I know this recipe is a keeper and definitely worth to share with you.

Chestnut Banana Bread

Ingredients

  • 2 cups all-purpose-flour, sifted
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • ½ cup unsalted butter, diced
  • ¾ cup brown sugar
  • 3 eggs, at room temperature
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 3 small mashed ripe bananas
  • 3 tablespoons chestnut cream
  • ¼ cup milk

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 180°C / 350°F. Grease a 9×5-inch loaf pan.
  1. In a large bowl combine flour, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
  2. Beat butter and sugar until creamy. Add eggs and vanilla, continue beating about 3 minutes.
  3. Add bananas followed by chestnut cream and beat until combined.
  4. Gradually add dry ingredients; flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt.
  5. Beat in milk.
  6. Pour batter into pan and bake for 50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the bread comes out clean.
  7. Allow bread to cool for 10 minutes, then turn it out and let it cool completely on a wire rack.
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Raheb Salad or Grilled Eggplant Salad

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BatenjenRaheb

My husband has been away for the past 10 days, so little action since he’s gone. Taking it easy, sleeping more, working out more, (cooking less), playing with the kids and drawing together, volunteering for school where I can see my girls in class and all the things I love and I miss doing.

Next week is going to be a busy week for me more photo shoots and more food styling.

LIVE Broadcasting from the gym, writing this post after my 5km run and feeling proud!

I present you “Batenjein Raheb”!  A vegetarian Lebanese dish, made of grilled eggplant mixed with olive oil and lemon juice, seasoned with salt and topped with fresh parsley, tomatoes, cucumber and pepper.

I don’t remember when did I shot this picture with Serge but am happy to find it because it’s one of my favorite salads especially during Lent, which is starting on Monday.

I love this time of the year, a time of prayer and reflection for many, and a period when people are closer to God. During their fast they abstain from eating meat and vegetarian meals come more in fashion. The Raheb salad for me is easily a main course especially when eaten with bread. I sure prefer to grill my eggplants at home and eat them fresh, but for those who have little time in the kitchen, grilled eggplants come also in jars and are very tasty.

Raheb Salad or Grilled Eggplant Salad

Ingredients

  • 1 kg eggplant
  • ½ cup Olive oil
  • ½ cup Lemon juice
  • Salt, to taste
  • 2 tomatoes, diced
  • 2 cucumbers, diced
  • 2 bell peppers, diced
  • ½ cup parsley, chopped

Preparation

1.Pierce the eggplant with a fork, cover with foil and char grill over the stove burner on all sides. This will take around 15-20 minutes pending on how large is the eggplant. Alternatively, it can be grilled inside the oven on a baking tray for about 30 minutes.

2.Remove from heat and allow to cool.

3.Peel and scoop out the grilled pulp and discard charred skin. The pulp can be sieved to reduce the water.

4.Place the pulp in a bowl and mix with olive oil, lemon juice and salt.

5.Layer with peppers, cucumbers, tomatoes and parsley and serve.

Hummus with Meat

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Hummus b-lahme

Hummus b-lahme

I’m traveling again this weekend and was trying all this week to finish everything in my fridge before going.

I have Hummus leftover, it’s a shame to throw it, no? I decided to fry some meat and pine nuts, and this fabulous recipe is the result.

Hummus is a very Lebanese appetizer –we even have a news website called hummus nation– known for being a healthy meal especially for vegetarians around the world. I haven’t met one vegetarian from anywhere in the world who hasn’t heard about Hummus. They might not heard about Lebanon, but they sure know Hummus hehe;-)

I wonder who had this idea to top the Hummus with meat!

Might be a disappointing story for vegetarians, but for meat lovers out there, I promise this combination is a delish! Eat it with pita bread and remember to open your eyes☺

Ingredients

To make the hummus

  • 2 x 410g cans chickpeas (a.k.a Hummus or Garbanzo Beans), drained
  • 5tbsp Tahina (sesame paste)
  • 4tbsp lemon juice
  • 2 garlic cloves, crushed
  • 1tsp salt
  • 4tbsp extra virgin olive oil, plus more to drizzle
  • 1tsp sumac (optional)

To make the topping

  • 1tbsp butter or cooking oil
  • 1 onion, finely chopped
  • 3tbsp pine nuts
  • 200g ground beef or cut in small pieces
  • 1 tsp 7 spices (if not available, use cinnamon and black pepper)
  • Salt, to taste
  • 1 tbsp pomegranate molasses (optional)

Preparation

1.In a food processor, put the drained chickpeas with the rest of the ingredients (Tahina, lemon juice, garlic, salt and olive oil) and blend until you get a smooth paste. This is now Hummus.

2.To make the topping; melt butter in a frying pan and sauté the onion, add the pine nuts and fry for 2mn. Add the meat and cook for 10mn or until they are well done. Sprinkle with black pepper, cinnamon and salt. Add the molasses and stir until well combined.

3. Top the Hummus with meat, drizzle with more olive oil if desired and garnish with parsley. Serve with Lebanese (or pita) bread.