Moroccan Harira Soup {Recipe}

May 22, 2019December 4, 2019 | acraftyarab

Harira is a Moroccan soup that is mostly eaten during Ramadan by residents but often made year round for visitors who want a local taste.

The name harira, derived from the Arabic word meaning silk, takes it’s name from the texture of the soup after it’s been thickened with the egg at the end.

While I was visiting Morocco, I was surprised at the different ways it was made. From the hotel in Rabat to the riad in Tétouan, they each had their own spin.

I wanted to try out my version tonight that I thought my family would like and they loved it. I used beef and my youngest said she would like to try it with chicken next time, while my husband wanted a version with no meat. We’ll keep playing around with it and if you do make it for your family, make sure to let us know!

Ingredients

1 pound beef
2 TB Olive oil
1 Onion
3 Celery stalks
3 Carrots
1 cup Lentils
1 can drained Chickpeas
Parsley bunch
Cilantro bunch
1 can Tomato sauce
8 cups beef bouillon/broth
2 tsp cumin
2 tsp turmeric
1 tsp red pepper flakes
2 tsp cinnamon
salt & pepper to taste
1 cup rice
1 Egg
2 TB Flour
2 TB Lemon juice
2 cups water

I started by browning the meat in the olive oil.

Once it was done, I set it aside in my cooking pot and used the meat juices to cook the chopped onion. After five minutes of medium heat, I added the celery and carrots.

I also added all the spices and cooked everything for an additional five minutes.

Now that the celery and carrots had softened just a little, I added the meat mixture on top so I could use the pot to get the water mixture started. I boiled the eight cups of beef broth and added the chickpeas, lentils and tomato sauce. Once everything started to boil, I added the meat and other vegetables back in to simmer for one hour.

My timer told me after an hour that it was time to add the finally chopped parsley and cilantro and let that cook for an additional ten minutes.

While that was on the stove, I whisked together the water, egg, flour and lemon juice and slowly added it in for an additional five minutes.

The soup is wonderful with bread to help soak up the last few drops. Be sure to leave leftovers for the next day. One of my favorite foods for breakfast at the Rabat hotel was their harira and many Moroccans swear their favorite soup is best eaten as a leftover.

If you enjoyed making this soup, make sure you stop by these other yummy foods to make for Ramadan

Libyan Sharba Soup {Recipe}

Palestinian Spinach and Lentil Soup {Recipe}

Visit A Crafty Arab on Pinterest to see what other foods you can make from the Arab world.

2nd Annual Seattle Arab Cultural Camp {Resource}

April 11, 2019November 29, 2019 | acraftyarab

Do to popular demand, I have decided to bring back the Seattle Arab Cultural Camp this summer.

The mission is to spend some time creating the art projects from this blog that educate about the Arab culture.

We will discuss language, food, music, artists, dress, holidays, etc, to learn more about the 22 countries that make up the Arab world in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region.

By spending a week looking at the MENA area, we hope this opens children’s eyes into seeing more about that culture.

It will be held in the Seattle suburb of Redmond the week of July 15 to July 19, 2019. We will start our day at 8:30am and pick up will be at 3:30pm. Extended hours available.

Kids will stop mid day for an exercise and lunch break and each day will include a service project to give back to the community.

I am still working out the final schedule, but it will be very similar to last year’s camp, which can be found here.

The camp will once again be limited to 15 participants on a first come, first served basis. I will be taking children entering grades 1-6. Camp will be $200 a week to cover materials and visiting artists fees.

There will be an open house for interested parents, to check out the studio and experience a sample art stations, on June 22th.

If you are interested in learning more about the Arab Cultural Camp, either contact me or fill out an

Arab Cultural Camp Application Download

If you would like to be involved in camp, please let me know as I will be grateful for a few helping hands to turn this into a larger scale project.

Kofta Crescent Ring {Recipe}

January 8, 2019December 4, 2019 | acraftyarab

Our family had friends over for dinner recently and I made kofta, a meatball type dish, commonly eaten from the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. To make my kofta a little more unusual, I placed it into pre-made crescent rolls shaped into a ring.

In Morocco, kofta is made in a tagine, while in Libya and Egypt, kofta might be shaped into cigar or finger sizes that can easily fit into sandwiches. Some in the Levent region, like Jordon or Palestine, might make kofta flattened into a tray or made into patties.

I have seen the crescent rings made before, from taco crescent rings to french dip crescent rings, but I had never seen one made from kofta.

I will have to admit the photos below are of our family’s second attempt. The first try tasted just the same, but did not look pretty. I figured out the secret and want to share it with you so you’ll enjoy this yummy dish at home too.

Ingredients

2lbs ground beef
1egg
1cup bread crums
3 or 4 cloves garlic
1tsp sald
2 1/2tsp ground sumac
2tsp ground cumin
1 1/2tsp red peper flakes
1 1/2tsp paprika
2 packages of Pillsbury Crescents

I started by getting the ring ready first. I placed all the crescent rolls in a circle, making sure the bottoms overlapped, with the points facing out.

Slice the garlic cloves and place them, along with all the other ingredients, into one bowl. Wash your hands and use them to mix everything. Kids love to do this part, so let them at it.

After everything is well mixed, shape the meat mixture into a circle on the crescent rolls.

Here is where I messed up on my first try, make sure the tips of the crescent rolls are tucked under. Bake at 350 for 30-35 minutes and your kofta crescent ring is ready to enjoy.