Foodie Event: Eat To The Beat
Man, I am getting in a lot of blog posts this week! I guess there is just so much good stuff going on in the food blogoshpere that I want to support and be a part of. Sometimes, I get so backed up with other food related posts that I wait until the last minute to get my entry in for a Foodie Event. I wish I had time to do them all! I just love the creativity in this community! Food Bloggers ROCK!
Which leads me exactly to this post and this Foodie Event which is called Eat To The Beat and is the brainchild of my friend
Elly from Elly Says Opa! Elly says she was inspired to create this event because her love of music is about as big as her love for food! I completely concur. I have always believed that my life would be so much better if it had a soundtrack. So since I have started working from home, I can listen to music all day long and it just makes my life so complete. I can’t imagine cooking without music, dinner parties or meals without some kind of music playing the the background. So in a way, I have created a soundtrack for myself!
Press Play:
As you all who are regular readers of this blog know, I do bellydancing and I love it. Due to this fact, much of my music collection is what we call in this house “bellydancing music”. If the music hails from the Middle East, North Africa, Turkey or any of the places in between it is referred to as such.
And as all of you know who read this blog, I love all the foods from those regions as well…coincidence? Most likely not.
So this gets me to the meat of this post. We were having friends over for dinner last week, and I wanted to create a fun atmosphere – so we did small plates- meze, antipasti, tapas, whatever you want to call it. I was really getting into all the dolmas or stuffed grape leaves people were making in the weeks leading up to it. So I decided to combine Peter’s from Kalofagas and Mag’s from Hommus w/ Tabbouli to make my own version. I also made the Labneh from Mag’s blog as well, which is a soft Lebanese yogurt cheese, plus I re-created the Middle Eastern Meatballs with Orzo I had made last year. However, this time I made my own meatballs with the leftover ground meat from the gyros the week before. I just added and egg and some bread crumbs and baked the meatballs in the oven at 400 F for about 25 minutes. The meal was a huge hit and we had a great evening.
I chose this song, Desert Rose, click here to see the original video, the partnership of Sting and Cheb Mami, who is one of my most favorite artists and who is a very big star in his native Algeria and much of the “bellydancing music” world. His voice is unique and beautifully haunting. I also love Sting and give him major props for introducing Cheb’s beautiful voice to the western world through this song.
For more by Cheb Mami, click here.
To hear more of his music, click below.
Now for the recipes:
Slow Cooked Dolmas (as opposed to the ones I usually make)
Filling Ingredients:
1 big tomato or 2 medium ones diced
1 medium onion diced
1cup of arborio rice
½ cup fresh dill, chopped
½ cup fresh mint, chopped
Juice of 1 big lemon or 2 small
2 TBS tomato paste
1/2 tablespoon of salt
1/2 cup of olive oil (or a bit more)
60 grape leaves
2 cups veggie stock
Ingredients for Peter’s Avgolemeno Sauce
2 eggs
juice of half a lemon
2 Tbsp. Flour
METHOD:
Prepare the rice according to package directions, but leave off 10 minutes, so the rice is not fully cooked. Set aide to cool. In the meantime prepare the grape leaves. Peter had some great direction on that:
1. Prepare an ice water bath and set aside.
2. To prepare grape leaves, bring a medium pot of water to a rolling boil over high heat, add grape leaves, and cook for 5 to 10 minutes (depending upon the size of the leaves) or until leaves are tender but still hold their shape.
3. Remove grape leaves from the water and submerge them in the ice water bath. Allow the leaves to cool for 5 minutes and then strain.
4. Using a paring knife, remove the stem from each vine leaf and reserve.
Then onto Mag’s directions:
1. Mix all the rest of the ingredients together with the rice and get ready to roll.
Rolling grape leaves:
Cut the stems if there’s any and start adding the filling in the middle of the leaf, then fold the sides and roll while pressing a bit to let the juice out and also to make it a bit tight so it doesn’t fall apart. (just like spring rolls).
Then back to Peter:
Place your Dolmadaki into a casserole dish and fill your casserole with Dolmadakia, side by side until the the bottom is completely covered. Continue layering the Dolmadakia until the casserole is filled with your parcels. Pour the stock into the casserole and put the lid on the casserole (or cover) and place into a preheated 375F oven and cook for 90 minutes.
For the Avgolemeno
1. In a large bowl, beat eggs and flour with a fork or a whisk until they begin to get foamy, about 3 minutes.
2. Add lemon juice in a steady stream, and continue beating for an additional minute.
3. Add the hot cooking liquid (one ladle at a time) from the dolmathes, and beat for 1 minute more.
4. Pour some sauce back into the casserole with the dolmathes and the rest into another medium pot.
5. Stirring constantly, heat sauce over low heat for about 3 minutes (do not let it come to a boil. Adjust seasoning with salt.
6. Pour over the warm Dolmadakia or serve on the side.
(NOW PETER: I had some issues with the avgolemeno – when I poured some on the casserole, it cooked the egg and made like a grape leaf/ egg casserole…what did I do wrong?????)
Labneh (Lebanese soft yogurt cheese)
INGREDIENTS:
1 cup plain Greek style yogurt
teaspoon of salt
olive oil
cheese cloth
za’atar
METHOD:
Mix yogurt with the salt, then empty the yogurt onto the cheese cloth, tie it and hang it over your sink overnight. You want the whey to drain all night.
In the morning, empty the labneh from the cloth and serve with olive oil on top and a hefty sprinkling of za’atar. Serve with pita triangles.
Speaking of Foodie Events, don’t forget to get your entries in for the Royal Foodie Joust! Voting begins this Saturday, March 1.
Sophie - February 28, 2008 at 12:15 pm
I used to dance a lot and *love* middle eastern music. My fave has to be Natacha Atlas (but I guess Tarkan would be fun to cook to – cheesey Turkish pop music!)
I must give making Labneh a go – you make it look very straightforward which I guess it is! The trick will be protecting it from the cats while letting it hang all night
Ben - February 28, 2008 at 12:20 pm
I love that Sting’s song and that Cheb Mami has a really amazing voice. I need to get more music from him. The food looks delicious. I really want to try that Lebanese soft yogurt.
There is an award waiting for you on my blog. Click here
Peter - February 28, 2008 at 12:39 pm
I love The Police and Sting (and belly dancing)! lol
You’re very giving to take the time to offer mezedes to your guests, it’s alot of work.
On to the Dolmades/Avgolemeno issue…the obvious culprit would be that the liquid in the dolmades was too hot vs. your egg/lemon mixture.
Tempering of liquids is key here…bring your eggs and lemon juice to room temperature and allow the casserole to cool abit too (take the lid off too) and most definitely do not place the casserole on a stove element that’s still warm/hot.
Making Avgolemeno is akin to getting that creamy Carbonara Sauce…tempering is key.
Does that help?
Much like when making
Elly - February 28, 2008 at 12:54 pm
Such a great post, Jenn (not that that’s surprising!). I love the song/bellydancing/food connections 🙂 All of the food looks fantastic as always, but what I could really go for right now is that labneh. I love labneh and with zaatar? The love has just increased ten-fold.
As for the avgolemono, I let my cooking liquid reduce in temp just a bit and then add it very slowly to the egg mixture, beating continuously. I sometimes employ my husband here to do the drizzling in of the cooking liquid while I do the beating, to make sure the eggs don’t scramble. Then he claims “we made this together.”
Judy - February 28, 2008 at 1:26 pm
Jenn – I sooo enjoyed this post! Maybe it was the music blasting through my speakers while I was reading it? It was almost like being there in your home!
I have been so wanting to make Dolamdes as they are one of my favorite foods but alas it is always a time issue with 2 children!!!
Hélène - February 28, 2008 at 2:17 pm
I do bellydancing as well. I did couple classes. I think in another life I was born in middle east because I like their costumes and food. Everything looks so good.
The Leftover Queen - February 28, 2008 at 3:46 pm
Wow Sophie!!! I am huge Natacha Atlas fan! And I love Tarkan! You are speaking my language totally! 🙂
I will tell you, my cat didn’t bother the labneh AT ALL.
Hey Ben! Yeah, Cheb Mami is totally awesome! You should totally get some of his stuff…I can’t wait to see what you’ve left for me….be right there! 🙂
Yes, Peter! I am forever indebted to you for these tutorials! I think that was my big problem – I didn’t look at it as tempering…so in the future I will be more aware.
Thanks Elly! I am so pleased that you approve! 🙂
I love the idea of employing the husband element to help. Roberto loves helping in the kitchen so next time, he is gonna get to help me!
You and Peter have to give me more ideas of what to make with avgolemono because it tastes sooooo good and I want to make it again!
Thanks Judy! 🙂
Yep, this is what my home usually sounds like, although right now I am listening to the Jamaica station on XM in anticipation of our honeymoon in ^ WEEKS!
Get the kids to help you roll! It is so easy!
So cool Helene! I think that about myself often – I love the music, the food, the dance all of it! 🙂
courtney - February 28, 2008 at 6:47 pm
I want that cheese now. And all the other dishes too. I dont know how you do this with a wedding appraoching!
Jen in MI - February 28, 2008 at 7:08 pm
Hey Jenn, do you know Shantel’s Bucovina Club? It’s wonderful middle eastern fusion. I blogged about it on Monday. Lots of fun. And I just love Labneh. We make it a lot.
Peter G - February 28, 2008 at 7:36 pm
Great song choice Jenn…thats an all time favourite. The meze look great and what an effort. In regards to the avgolemono, it can be a little tricky (its very hit and miss with me!). I think Peter M’s further instructions explain it well.
VeggieGirl - February 28, 2008 at 8:59 pm
Wow, Eat To Beat sounds like a great event!! And I’m completely enticed by all those delicious meal components on that plate… especially the dolmas!! yum!!
Kevin - February 28, 2008 at 9:32 pm
Those meze, antipasti and tapas look so good! So many tasty recipes.
Nikki - February 28, 2008 at 10:48 pm
I had some gawd awful Mediterreanean food earlier for lunch today. The tzatziki was regular yogurt with pulpy cucumber mashed in, hard nuggets of falafel, a bunch of parsley with the ribbon still on passing for tabbouleh, and 9-day old pita bread. I’m sOOoo glad to see you making good stuff today.
Bellini Valli - February 28, 2008 at 11:18 pm
All of these dishes, the music, everything ROCKS Jenn 😀
LisaRene - February 28, 2008 at 11:41 pm
Small plates are my favorite form of entertaining.
Belly dancing is hard! I took about 8 lessons but conceded that I don’t have the knack. I could never master the rib lift 🙂 I’d be sitting in my car at a stop light practicing and getting strange looks for the neighboring cars!
Scott - February 29, 2008 at 9:36 am
Yogurt cheese (or YoChee) is a great versatile ingedient and substantial nutritional benefits (low or no fat, protein and calcium). You might want to take a look at,†Eat Well the YoChee Way†a guide and cookbook to this important food. It really expands the use of yogurt cheese to desserts, main courses and much more. Also nutritional content. Also, the website YoChee.com contains a free yogurt cheese how- to slide show, nutrition information and free recipes.
The Leftover Queen - February 29, 2008 at 11:39 am
Hey Courtney! I don’t know, something about being in the kitchen is relaxing for me – and you know with impending weddings comes lots of gatherings and entertaining – I got talked out of catering my own wedding! Now you probably think I am really nuts! 🙂
Hey Jen! I am a labeh making novie, but not for long – we are seriously hooked! And now I do know about Shantel! Thanks for sharing!
Thanks Peter G! I know, that song is a classic. I am glad not to be alone in this avgolemono situation, but Peter M has been tutoring me! So all is well, hopefully next time.
Hey VeggieGirl! Those dolmas were really good. Sadly we are eating the last of them today… 🙁
Thanks Kevin! 🙂
That SUCKS Nikki! I am so sorry to hear that – there really is nothing worse. I wish I could invite you over so you culd have some!
Thanks Valli! I can picture you rocking out at home! LOL! 🙂
LisaRene! That is too funny! I love the rib lifts and rib slides – those are my faves. The thing I always had the hardest time getting was undulations. It still gives me trouble. But I practice in the car too! It is the best time.
Thanks for the info Scott. Sounds interesting.
Heather - February 29, 2008 at 12:07 pm
I was wondering when that gyro meat was gonna show its face again! I really like the way that yogurt cheese looks. Very rustic. Nice post, Jenn!
Andrea - February 29, 2008 at 2:55 pm
Great music choice, I love Mami’s voice, too. Everything you’ve made here looks wonderful and brings back good memories of living in the Middle East!
katie - February 29, 2008 at 4:52 pm
How fun! And great food. I have so enjoyed…and rally missed not being in my kitchen for 2 whole weeks. Glad to be back
Emiline - February 29, 2008 at 9:14 pm
This sounds fun! I am really getting inspired by all of this Greek/Mediterranean food.
You know how we were talking about food costs on the forum? Well, you wouldn’t believe how much a jar of grape leaves are, here! I think around $5, but I’m not sure. Maybe that’s what you pay too.
Cakelaw - March 2, 2008 at 4:01 am
This looks great Jenn! And I love the fact that you love beyydancing – I think it is so much fun! We saw some great bellyadancing at Minzaman the other night.
Windy - March 2, 2008 at 1:48 pm
Oh mine, Desert Rose! I love this song as well. I never cook and listen to the music at the same time… Hmm… maybe I should try it and may make me feel more relax when cooking.
Marie - March 2, 2008 at 2:35 pm
Jenn, Your dishes here look delicious as usual, how exciting about the marriage license!! I am an enormous fan of Sting and have seen him when he comes to Chicago. Love that song too! I adore Chris Botti too, that cute Italian trumpet player of his!
núria - March 3, 2008 at 5:59 am
I love Sting’s songs and all Police ones!!! What a hard job you had with this Greek dish, Jenn! Your friends were surely happy with the music and the food 😀
I wish you could all be neighbours!!!! Wouldn’t that be fun????? 😀
The Leftover Queen - March 3, 2008 at 12:41 pm
Thanks Heather! Yeah, I also made another dish with the gyro stuff – but I can’t seem to find the pictures yet…..that reminds me I need to go searching for them…
Thanks Andrea! I am glad I was able to give you a trip down memory lane with this post! 🙂
Glad to have you back Katie! I will have to come see what you’ve been up to!
Hey Emiline! Actually I get my grape leaves from an Indian specialty food store – I find a lot of Middle Eastern goods there, for much cheaper!
Hey Cakelaw! Sounds like fun!
Windy! I can’t imagine cooking without music! You should totally try it! 🙂
Thanks Marie! I am excited about the marriage license too! 🙂 I didn’t know Sting’s trumpet player was Italian! See, you learn something new everyday! LOL!
I think they liked it Nuria! I know Roberto and I did! I think it would be great if we could all be neighbors!
Mag - March 3, 2008 at 1:04 pm
You rock!!!! This song holds lots of good memories to me, I love both Cheb Mami and Sting! Also it reminds of Sting’s open air concert at the Baalbeck ruins in Lebanon that one summer, it was amaziiiiiiiiinng!!! Glad you liked the Labneh 🙂 and thanks again for mentioning my blog 🙂
The Leftover Queen - March 3, 2008 at 1:43 pm
Thanks Mag! 🙂
I am so glad you approve! That must have been a great concert! I have aways wanted to visit the Baalbeck ruins – I hope to get there someday.
Maria - March 14, 2008 at 3:14 am
I love the song “Desert Rose”.. I’d completely forgotten about it though.. thank you for allowing me to revisit it!
I’ll have to look into this “Eat to the Beat”.. it sounds great.. and your recipe is something special.. I love dolmades and am always looking to try new, tastier versions!
ashlee - March 26, 2008 at 7:31 pm
Yummy lebneh!!!!
How much salt, olive oil and zaatar????
thank you
ashlee
Rosa - March 27, 2008 at 3:05 am
Great dishes! I love Dolmas and I’m sure that this fresh cheese tastes great, especially with za’atar!
For me, music is as important as food! I always cook/bake while listening to my favorite CDs…
Cheers,
Rosa
The Leftover Queen - March 27, 2008 at 8:32 am
Hi Ashlee! Thanks for stopping by. Honestly I just eyeballed the amounts of olive oil and za’atar. I would say it is to taste. For the salt I did one teaspoon.
Thanks Rosa! The labneh was wonderful and definatly something we will make with frequency. I completely agree with what you say about music! It is a must have!