Upright Roasting Rack for Chicken and Small Poultry
One of the most useful tools I have in the kitchen for roasting chicken and other small birds is this upright roasting rack that actually folds away for easy storage. Once you put the pieces together, you basically just plop the bird down in their by placing its hollow cavity face down onto the rounded middle section. The pointed...
Steaming Basics
Steaming is universally known as a healthy method of cooking because little fat, if any, is needed in the process. One of the oldest known methods of cooking, water vapor produced during steaming is even hotter than oven heat because steaming transfers heat so efficiently. It’s also one of the quickest cooking methods at our disposal.
Two Types of Steaming
Water...
Preserved Lemons
If there's one ingredient that says "Moroccan cooking" it's preserved lemons. They're smaller than most lemons found in the U.S. and also sweeter. Traditionally preserved in salt and lemon juice, they are used in tagines, stews and other dishes after the lemons have had time to sit in a tightly sealed jar for several weeks.
Once the jar is opened...
Creamy Pasta with Roasted Vegetables
A day in the life of recipe testing goes a lot like this:
Creamy Pasta with Roasted VegetablesÂ
-shop for fresh ingredients and bring them home to sort out
-wash and dry fresh herbs and produce
-chop everything
-get out the camera, notebook and pen and jot down the step-by-step procedure of each recipe
-take a snapshot at every interesting point
That's mostly before all the...
Culinary and Cosmetic Uses of Argan Oil
Have you ever tried argan oil? Â It is some really amazing stuff that is great for cooking as well as making yourself beautiful on a budget...not that you need any more beautifying, of course. Â In the past year I've been using it in my cooking and even more so on my sensitive skin (the cosmetic grade) in a massive...
Tips For Celebrating Ramadan In Style
I am so delighted to bring you this article by Jomana Siddiqui, founder of modernEID.com who creates some of the most beautifully designed 'Eid decor for the home, something I've been in search of for years now. I asked Jomana to give us some of her best tips on how to celebrate Ramadan in style and bring the beauty and...
Are You Ready for Ramadan Cooking?
Ramadan, the 9th month of the Islamic calendar (lunar) and the holy month of fasting is approaching quickly. There is so much to prepare and it can be quite overwhelming if you think about it all at once. For those of you who are new to My Halal Kitchen, you may not realize that there are lots of organizational...
Chicken Rogan Josh with Potatoes, Peas and Cilantro
Rogan Josh is a north Indian curry dish that is typically served with lamb. The word rogan is Persian for oil and josh mans hot or heat (some also say it means passionate). Despite the name or meaning, I've not ever had this dish at the multitude of Indian restaurants, weddings or gatherings that I've attended, and I thought I had tried just...
Myth #2: Halal Food Isn’t Clean
The second notion to tackle in our series, Myths About Halal Food, is one that questions the cleanliness of halal foods (including the process of making it).
my stewed zucchini and tomato recipe
I am completely saddened to hear people say or think that halal food isn't clean and that their experiences with ‘halal’ meat markets or restaurants were horrific. That...
Myths About Halal Food
It’s not too often that I receive direct questions about what halal food is or what’s entailed in the processes that bring halal food to the table. I’m not sure if that’s good or bad thing, but I would hope that if people don’t understand it then they would look to credible sources to get a truthful and thorough...
Spicy Olive Tapenade
Appetizer aren't just for entertaining guests. I've come to learn that keeping homemade appetizers around my house is a great way to eat healthy by avoiding eating outside, eating junk food or not eating until one is ravished with hunger at the dinner table- not pretty. We definitely want to avoid that.
So, one of the most recent appetizers I've...
A Simple Way to Jazz Up Your Refrigerator
A couple of weeks ago when my husband was away for a few days, I had some time on my hands to work on a few projects on my 'someday' list. Since moving recently, I really wanted to bring color to my new spaces, whether it was the kitchen, bathroom, bedroom or my office. I wanted to really love...
Ruby Red Grapefruit & Blood Orange Juice
One of the ways I try improve my overall health is by making fresh juice most mornings and sometimes again later in the evenings for a refreshing drink. Right now (winter season), grapefruits and oranges are at their best so they are absolutely delicious and juicy.
My favorites are the ruby red grapefruits and blood oranges, which are almsot the same...
Saffron Road’s New Line of Vegeterian Entrees
You may have already heard about Saffron Road's new vegetarian entrees, which are making quite a buzz on places like Facebook and Twitter. Vegetarians, vegans and those who are gluten-free are raving about the flavors and quality of these products, and I couldn't agree more.
These Manchurian Dumplings photographed above were soft, saucy and had a nice kick of spice to...
Bon Appétit Magazine Presented Chicago Gourmet
Last Saturday morning I had the pleasure of attending the Chicago Gourmet event in Chicago's Millenium Park. You know the kind of experience that leaves you in a happy place for the entire remainder of the day, no matter what else happens? It was that kind of experience.
How could it not be? With celebrity chefs like Rick Bayless, Chicago food critic Steve Dolinsky...
Feta, Avocado & Homemade Mayonnaise Torta
Everyone has some sort of comfort food. Some people love cakes for soothing comfort; others love chicken noodle soup or a hearty chili. For me, it's always a sandwich (aka torta, in Spanish): thick bread, a bit of mayo and mustard, and always some sort of cheese- extra cheese.
Recently, I spent over a month in Cleveland with my family. After...
Chicago’s Green City Market and Roasted Chestnuts Recipe
Saturday was a crisp fall morning perfect for heading out to any farmers' market, even if just to take a look at all of the beautiful fall colors existing within the produce: bright red beets, crisp green lettuces, orange pumpkins, gourds from green to yellow to orange, and of course apples in every shade of red imagineable.
We needed to...
How to Dry Citrus Peels
Whether you have tons of lemons and limes around or just a few, it's easy to preserve the outer skin, or zest, for future use in baking and cooking. Did you ever realize how expensive it can be to purchase a jar of this stuff? It's steep. That's why I make my own.
I had a ton of citrus fruits...
Turkish Style Summer Bean & Tomato Salad
One of my neighbors passed on some of their long garden green beans to me, which I relish so much- anything from home gardens, without chemicals and given with a warm heart and smile is absolutely golden.
Since real organic, super fresh foods tend to break down quickly, I processed them the same day by immediately boiling them in salted...
New Products in My Halal Market
If you haven't visited My Halal Market lately (or ever), then you're missing out on some really neat products in my global online marketplace. In this video, I'm covering an array of food and cosmetic products that I love and carry in MHM because I use and cook with them myself and believe in the companies that create them....
Optimize Your Immunity Series- Talking About Fruit
A couple of days ago, I continued my series with Dr. Madiha Saeed, aka Holistic Mom, MD over on my Facebook and YouTube channels. In this video we talked about the differences in processed sugar vs. natural sugars found in fruit (fascinating explanations by Dr. Saeed), and I give you four ultra simple recipes and ways with peaches, bananas,...
Zeytin Olive Oil Bundle Giveaway
By now if you've been following me in the past few months you'll know I've been blessed to discover some of the best, most delicious and high quality olive oil - and it comes from Turkey! Zeytin olive oil is new to the American market, but it comes from the ancient land of Turkey in and around the Mugla...
Learn More About Black Seed Oil Production in This Live Interview
Yesterday I interviewed Abudllah Naki of The Blessed Seed company about his experience and efforts to bring high quality black seed oil and black seed products (including cosmetics) to our marketplace. He's full of knowledge about this miraculous seed and tells us more about how it's gently processed to make different grades of black seed oils, creams, soaps and...
How to Make Coffee in the Italian Mokka Pot
I have been making Italian coffee the 'old fashioned' way for so many years it seems like a blur as to when it actually started, but most likely during college. What college kid doesn't need a good old dose of caffeine for all that late-night studying?
Without much room for a huge American coffee maker, I asked my family to...
Easy Oven-Roasted Baby Potatoes
I promise you this is a super easy side dish for any night of the week or any morning when you have some time to make that breakfast even just a little bit special. It doesn't involve peeling potatoes (who has time for that!) or chopping them into super fine pieces just to make them quick-cooking.
My oven-roasted potatoes are so much...
All the Videos in My Meaning of Halal & Tayyib Series
If you've been following my audio series on The Meaning of Halal & Tayyib, you'll know I've been rolling them out daily for the past several days. Now that I'm finished, I'm putting them all in one place for you so that you can have them in one place, making them easier to find and watch all at once,...
The Meaning of Halal & Tayyib Part 5: Solutions to Cooking & Eating Halal
This is my fifth and last video in a series of audio discussions about what halal means and how that affects what we put into our bodies. In this presentation, I discuss various solutions pertaining to all the issues I've discussed in the previous four videos and how you as a consumer can take action to empower yourself, take...
The Meaning of Halal & Tayyib: Eating Out or Cooking Global Cuisine
This is my fourth video in a series of audio discussions about what halal means and how that affects what we put into our bodies. In this presentation, I discuss various issues pertaining to halal when eating out or cooking global cuisine dishes and the ingredients that can be substituted for non-halal ones. This content is a discussion based...
