Urf! Urf!

[Jenise]

Jasmine carries at least three versions of za'atar. I'm down to a package of the Jordanian version (contains nuts) so have to stock up soon. They also have Lebanese and Palestinian plus a blend that includes za'atar with added Aleppo pepper.

Here - have fun browsing: http://jasminefoods.com/?s=zaatar&post_type=product

Lots of cool stuff there. Btw, not sure the pix helped. They used the same photo for the Jordanian and the Lebanese. Impossible to feret out the difference without smelling/tasting. The yellowish color looks promising, though!

We can do three za'atars plus a dukkah...

Is that like Gladys Knight and the Pips?

We can do three za'atars plus a dukkah...

Is that like Gladys Knight and the Pips?

Can you hum a few bars...? Or did you just hear it through the grapevine.....

Dukkah !! Had forgotten about it but excellent on fish.... and many other things
One of the reasons I prefer to make my own mixes is that commercial quantities are usually way to huge to stay fresh and I'm not a fan of freezing things with nuts, sesame seeds to prevent rancidity at the expense of loss of freshness of herbs. I usually scale down recipes to have enough for a few uses before they are wasted.

[Jenise]

Can you hum a few bars...? Or did you just hear it through the grapevine.....

Well, you're in a Gaye mood!

Call me Starvin' Marvin.

Can you hum a few bars...? Or did you just hear it through the grapevine.....

Luckily, I know where the restroom is.

One of the funniest things I've seen was a performance by The Pips on the Richard Pryor Show. They performed "Midnight Train to Georgia" without Gladys Night, just doing their harmony bits.

-Paul W.

[Jenise]

Wonder if that's on You Tube somewhere? Would love to see it.

True story: took my Grammy once to a piano bar on her birthday. The blonde pianist/singer asked Grammy for a request, and the only song my dear wonderful grandmother could remember ever liking (outside of things seen on Lawrence Welk) was Dean Martin's "Everybody Loves Somebody Sometime", so she asked for that.

Turns out the pianist had been not just a performer on Dino's old variety show, she'd been one of the Golddiggers! An excellent musician, she knew the song well enough to play it but not the actual lyrics--only the title and the doo-wop parts. Guess who got to sit on the piano bench and sing what I could remember of the lyrics?

The urfa arrived today. Very interesting ripe roasted coffee aromas. Will keep you posted when we use it.

[Jenise]

Paul, I found it!

"...and The Pips"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ZOqRo9dfTE

Glad you found it on YouTube. Speaking of Lawrence Welk, another hilarious YouTube item you can find is a performance by Welk's squeaky-clean duet singers of "One Toke Over the Line". In its last decade the show's producers realized that their main demographic was dying off and so they tried to modernize their repertoire a bit in hopes of attracting a younger audience. They apparently thought the song was some sort of spiritual.

-Paul W.

Here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ye3ecDYxOkg

You cannot write stuff this funny.

[Jenise]

I've seen that one, Jeff. It IS hilarious. All they heard was "sweet Jesus" and "mama said".

So to update this thread. I am again dipping into my stash of urfa biber and thought I might post the recipe of what I am making.
(Note that the first post in this thread has a link to an article on urfa biber)


Eggplant with Urfa Biber Yogurt

1 pound eggplant chopped into large cubes
6 cloves of minced garlic
1 1/2 tbsp urfa biber
2 tsp cumin seed, toasted
1 cup strained Greek yogurt
Chopped cilantro for garnish

Toss eggplant cubes in several pinches of coarse salt and set aside in a colander for 30 min.

Heat cast iron skillet on high until it smokes and add just enough olive oil to coat the bottom. Add eggplant and toss with oil. Toss frequently for about 5 mins. until eggplant develops a char on several sides. Reduce heat to medium and cook until eggplant is very tender, stirring frequently to prevent burning.

Add garlic, urfa biber, and cumin seed and cook for 1 min. or until spices are aromatic, then stir in yogurt to coat. Cook until yogurt sauce tightens slightly and little pools of orange oil form. Add salt to taste and serve immediately (we found it is fine for up to one day) with a garnish of chopped cilantro.

If you try it, let me know what you think!

Ass garlic...

Is this another new spice?

...and little pools of orange oil form.

I always thought it came from oranges. Thanks for clearing that up, Bill!

And here I thought Urfa Biber was one of Justin's relatives....

-Paul W.

Jeff - I have owned this laptop long enough to wear off the letters on the keys and as I am not a touch typist, (nor, it would appear a very good proofreader) I do sometimes make typos. Thanks for pointing it out so I could correct it, although I do wonder how anyone making the recipe would find sufficient ass to proceed....but me no butts?

Paul - haha - I' get you back sooner or later in the other thread when I think up a good pun!