Saffron Butter Cookies

These cookies were from a recipe by TheIndianClaypot . They were very simple to make. The saffron really made the cookies so tasty. I substituted oil, as I can't have butter, and dissolved the saffron in hot water, so these cookies in the photo are vegan. (They don't contain eggs.) They reminded me of Indian nankhatai & Middle Eastern ghorayeba cookies. I enjoyed them so much, and they were so easy to make, that I'm sure I'll make them again!

Sicilian Eggplant Bread Rolls 

(Focaccia di Modica/Scaccie/Focaccia di Ragusa)

The other day, I bought 3 eggplants. The 2nd one became . . . Sicilian Eggplant Bread Rolls (Focaccia di Modica/Scaccie/Focaccia di Ragusa), made with semolina flour. Recipe from Savory Baking from the Mediterranean by Anissa Helou. My first attempt. Never had it before, so I don't know what it's supposed to look like.  It was delicious, though, so I'm glad I tried.  I had to leave out the cheese, so this one is vegan.

Basmati Rice & Potato Tahdig

Inspired by Instagram's @cooking_for_fun_page & explanation of hikaka & tahdig = the nice brown bits on the underside of cooked rice, I decided to finally try it myself. Underneath the rice were frozen hash brown potatoes = what I had available. You can't see them, but it made the rice smell so good once cooked.

Baingan Bharta (Indian Baked Mashed Eggplant with Tomato)

The other day, I bought 3 large eggplants at the store. The next day, I baked all 3 until soft. One went into this dish. It is based on 2 baingan bharta recipes in Neelam Batra's The Indian Vegetarian. Good with any kind of bread, toast, or crackers. Never tried it with tortilla chips, but might also be good with that.

Eggs poached in tomato-&-zucchini sauce

I was probably thinking of shakshouka at the time. Good with toasted pita bread broken up into "chips," or toast, rice, or even pasta.

Panisicos Dulces/Petit Pains/Mounettes (Sephardic Sweet Buns)

with anise seeds

Recipe from The World of Jewish Desserts by Gil Marks. Hadn't made anything like this in a very long time, so was pleasantly surprised at the results.

Loaf Bread

Loaf of bread, mixed & kneaded in mixer. Recipe, which came with mixer, uses 4-5 cups of flour and produces 2 loaves, which is very handy. #tbt 

Pizza a Caballo, or Farinata with Pizza 

Pizza a caballo ("pizza on horseback"), or a slice of fainá on a slice of pizza. Fainá is the name for farinata in Argentina, where they eat this dish. I first made farinata, a baked chickpea flour pancake, recently, and wasn't sure if I got it right. When I Googled it, I learned about the combination. For the pizza, I used potato focaccia topped with some pizza sauce and toasted. No cheese, so this version is vegan.

Potato Focaccia from Southern Italy, 

From recipe by Anissa Helou in Savory Baking from the Mediteranean. I think the addition of mashed potato may be what causes the focaccia to rise so high. Delicious, and good for so many things, or just by itself.

Spicy and Sour Coriander Potatoes

A close-up view, from recipe by Chetna Makan, except made with shredded hash brown potatoes rather than the baby potatoes I didn't have. 

Spicy & Sour Coriander Potatoes

From recipe by Chetna Makan. I really wanted to make some, but unfortunately had no baby potatoes. I remembered the hash browns in the freezer, so I used those, instead. Though a different format, I really liked it. I think the fennel seeds made it especially memorable & tasty. 

Peach Pancakes

Peach Pancakes from recipe by JamilaCuisine on YouTube. I often drown my pancakes in maple syrup. Recently, I tried lemon juice and confectioner's sugar. What topping do you prefer?

Muhallabiyah (vanilla pudding)

Another dish, with chocolate chips.

Muhallabiyah, Vanilla Pudding (with some chocolate chips).

Based on recipe in Habeeb Salloum's Classic Vegetarian Cooking from the Middle East & North Africa. This is one of the few recipes I found for any kind of a vanilla pudding that didn't contain eggs. After it's cooled in the fridge a bit, I like to put most of it in the freezer, for a light "ice cream."

Zebra (Marble) Cake. 

Another view. Less zebra-y, but still a marble cake with alternating vanilla and chocolate. Recipe from Lauren Chattman's Cake Keeper Cakes.

Zebra (Marble) Cake

A marble cake in which vanilla and then chocolate batters are slowly and alternately added to the baking dish. If you do it right, in the end, it should resemble zebra stripes! If not, it's okay, it'll taste good, anyway. I substituted ground hazelnuts in place of a half-cup of the flour. Recipe from Lauren Chattman's Cake Keeper Cakes.

Sabzi Pulao (Vegetable Rice Pilaf) - another view

Another view of the Sabzi Pulao. It contains mustard seeds and sambhar powder normally in South Indian dishes, as well as other spices from traditional North Indian pulaos. It's easy, with a dish like this, to make enough to feed half an army, so I like to freeze the extra for another time when I'm too tired or busy to cook.

Sabzi Pulao (Vegetable Rice Pilaf)

Sabzi Pulao from The Turmeric Trail by Raghavan Iyer, except it contains cauliflower instead of potato. Aside from the addition of a couple of spoonfuls of ground cashews for protein, and using less oil, it otherwise follows the recipe. I used to make this recipe all the time, but it's been a while. I like to eat it with yogurt and potato chips.

Cinnamon Apple Rolls

Cinnamon apple rolls. Didn't get the rolling thing quite right, but they tasted fine! 

Potato & Broccoli Samosas in Egg Roll Wrappers

Samosas, with a filling of seasoned mashed potato and broccoli, in a shell of 1/2 an egg roll wrapper, folded. To help seal the edges, I used a flour & water thin paste. I pan-fried, rather than deep-fried, in oil. If you use a vegan egg roll wrapper, this is vegan.

Potato & Broccoli Samosas in Egg Roll Wrappers

Samosas, with a filling of seasoned mashed potato and broccoli, in a shell of 1/2 an egg roll wrapper, folded. To help seal the edges, I used a flour & water thin paste. I pan-fried, rather than deep-fried, in oil. If you use a vegan egg roll wrapper, this is vegan.