Make Ahead

This makes an exciting cold first course or buffet dish. The fish is fried, then marinated in a beautifully flavored dressing. Make it at least an hour before you are ready to serve. You can use Mediterranean fish, such as bream, or any firm-fleshed fish, such as cod or haddock.

You have to love garlic to appreciate this most ancient of sauces.

The combination of raisins and pine nuts was brought by the Arabs all the way to Spain and Sicily.

I love this Moroccan salad. The eggplants are boiled, not fried, so it is not oily. It is best made several hours in advance so that the flavors have time to penetrate.

A curious gelatinous relish with a slightly bitter flavor is made with fenugreek seeds. It is an acquired taste that can become addictive. Eat it with bread to dip in. The flat square yellow-brown seeds need to be crushed or ground, so it is best to buy the fenugreek in powder form. It needs to be soaked to remove some of the bitterness and to develop the gelatinous texture.

The dough given here is one of a variety used to make the famous Arab “pizzas” variously called lahma bi ajeen and sfiha. It contains yogurt and olive oil and is soft and moist. Small pizzas make good finger food; large ones make an excellent snack. They can be made in advance and reheated. Do also try the different toppings given in the variations below.

These melt-in-the-mouth cheese pies make good party food. They can be eaten hot or warm. You can make them in advance and heat them through before serving. Use fresh or frozen and defrosted puff pastry.

These zucchini slices are usually fried but they are just as good grilled. They can be prepared hours before serving, even a day ahead.

These dainty little rolls, or “cigars,” make ideal appetizers and canapés. The cheese used is beyaz peynir, or “white cheese,” which is salty and much like feta cheese. Use large sheets of fillo measuring about 19 inches × 12 inches, cut into strips, but if the fillo sheets are too thin, the pastry is liable to tear and the filling to burst out during the cooking. In that case, use 2 strips together, brushing with butter in between. You will then need to double the number of sheets. I prefer using only one strip if possible, as it makes for a lighter pastry. (See page 9 for information about fillo.) Serve the rolls hot. They can be made in advance and reheated.

Pumpkin is frequently used in Turkey in sweet as well as savory dishes. This is a “cheese” with an unusual, delicious flavor. It is best made the night before and keeps very well for days in the refrigerator. You need the large pumpkins with the sweet orange flesh. They are winter vegetables, but you can now buy them most of the year in Asian and Middle Eastern stores, where they are sold by the slice, weighing between 1 pound and 2 pounds, the seeds and stringy fibers removed. Some greengrocers also sell them by the slice. In Turkey, this dessert is served with the very thick cream call kaymak (see page 218) but clotted cream or mascarpone will do very well. It is very rich, so serve small portions.

A pasta like tagliatelle called erişte is a traditional Turkish food that is still made by hand in rural areas. This recipe, with feta cheese, eggs, and milk is easy-to-make comfort food. It can be served as a first or main course and can be made in advance and heated through before serving.

Fried onions, feta cheese, and herbs lift what is otherwise a bland vegetable. These little fritters can be served hot or cold. They can be made in advance and reheated.

These exquisite pastries called “the bride’s fingers” feature in medieval Arab manuscripts found in Baghdad, fried and sprinkled with syrup and chopped pistachios. In Morocco, they are made with the thin pastry called warka or brick (see page 29) and deep-fried. I prefer to make them with fillo and to bake them. For a large-size version of the pastries, I use a supermarket brand where the sheets are about 12 inches × 7 inches. I especially recommend you try the dainty little “bride’s fingers” (see Variation). I make them for parties and I keep some in a cookie tin to serve with coffee. They are great favorites in our family; my mother always made them and now my children make them, too.

Harira is the generic term for a soup full of pulses—chickpeas, lentils, or beans—with little meat, few vegetables, and plenty of herbs and spices. Every day during the holy month of Ramadan, when Muslims fast between sunrise and sunset, the smell of this soup permeates the streets as every household prepares its own version to be eaten when the sound of the cannon signals the breaking of the fast. While ingredients and spices vary, a particular feature is the way it is given what is described in Morocco as a “velvety” touch by stirring in a sourdough batter or simply flour mixed with water. In the cities in Morocco, it serves as a one-dish evening meal, and in rural areas it is also eaten as breakfast before peasants go out to work in the fields. During Ramadan, it is served with lemon quarters and accompanied by dates and honeyed pastries. The soup can be made a long time in advance, but if you are adding the tiny bird’s-tongue pasta—douida in Morocco (you find it in Middle Eastern stores), orzo in Italian stores (or you can use broken vermicelli)—these should be added only about 10 to 15 minutes before you are ready to serve, otherwise they will get bloated and mushy. I have given measurements for a large quantity because it is a rich, substantial soup that you might like to serve as a one-dish meal at a party. The best cuts of meat to use are shoulder or neck fillet.

Use a soft, fresh-tasting, mild goat cheese for these little pies. Use the fillo in sheets that measure 12 inches × 7 inches, which you can find fresh in some supermarkets, or use the large sheets measuring 19 inches × 12 inches and cut them in half. See the note on fillo on page 9. You can freeze these pies and you can put them straight from the freezer into the oven without thawing, but they will need a little more cooking time. They make elegant and tasty party fare.

The tomatoes can be served hot or cold. I prefer them cold. For vegetarians, they make an elegant main dish accompanied by a potato or carrot salad. Use large or beefsteak tomatoes.

These sweet tomates confites have a deliciously intense flavor. Serve them hot or cold as an appetizer or with grilled meat or fish. Considering their versatility and their great use in Moroccan cuisine, it is extraordinary that tomatoes were adopted by Morocco as late as 1910. It is best to use plum tomatoes. Although they take a long time to cook, you can cook them in advance, even days in advance, as they keep well in the refrigerator.

This is what I do most often with fresh strawberries. Sprinkling the sweet strawberries of late spring to early summer with just a little sugar, then letting them stand, draws out their delicious juice. They become almost an instant sauce, perfect for serving over yogurt and frozen yogurt, or to simply enjoy on their own. This is also delicious as a filling for Miniature Fresh Fruit Tarts (page 243).

A somewhat more exotic salsa, this jazzes up meals with a tropical beat. See the menu with Gingered Coconut Rice, page 96. Serve with tortilla chips or as a condiment with spicy dishes.