Fried Potatoes with Harissa Tehina

Zahav is a popular Middle Eastern restaurant in Philadelphia, and its owner Michael Solomonov wrote a fantastic cookbook using recipes that he serves at the restaurant, as well as at his home. Cowritten by James Cook, Zahav: A World of Israeli Cooking reinterprets the type of Israeli Cuisine served at the restaurant, but makes it more manageable for American kitchens. We're especially excited about this inventive recipe for fried potatoes using Harissa, a perennial favorite here at the shop!From the Authors: "This dish happened by serendipity. At Zahav, our Israeli pickles come packed in huge cans with a ton of excess pickle juice. One day, in a passion for brining, I decided to throw some peeled potatoes into that leftover pickle juice. A day later, I drained and fried the potatoes, ending up with the most amazing French fries ever. The potatoes were seasoned from within with a garlicky tang from the pickle juice. Deep-frying can be an undertaking, so when I make this dish at home, I just slice the potatoes into rounds and pan-fry them on both sides in a cast iron skillet until they’re nice and crispy. I serve the potatoes with tehina augmented with harissa, the North African condiment based on dried chiles that’s a staple on the Israeli table. In my harissa, I use ground Aleppo pepper from Syria, which has a fruity flavor and is not screamingly hot, so you can appreciate the pepper’s earthy undertones. I thin the sauce with a little more pickle juice to cut through the richness and echo the flavor of the potatoes. I’ll bet there’s a jar in your fridge, with a lonely pickle or two bobbing in a sea of brine. This recipe is the perfect way to put those pickles out of their misery."

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FODMAP Friendly Salmon Chowder

This salmon chowder recipe is missing some surprising ingredients! Onions and garlic are two of the most challenging foods to eliminate for the FODMAP diet, and two of the most critical! Enter Asafoetida, the perfect spice to add flavors of onion and garlic without using the vegetables themselves. This intensely pungent spice fills the gap nicely when you have to eliminate these essential ingredients. It infuses loads of flavor into this chowder alongside Herbes de Provence and Urfa Biber. You won't believe we've left out the onion and garlic.Baking the sweet potato and roasting the vegetables before adding them to the soup intensifies their flavor, and we've added a sprinkle of spice to each step to really spread the flavors around.

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Massaman Curry

There's a world of currries out there, and we are happy to try all of them! We often get requests for a Japanese-style curry, so we got approval to add this wonderful one from Lucky Peach Presents 101 Easy Asian Recipes. The book features a mouthwatering lineup of dishes, like this recipe for Massaman Curry features Indian Coriander Seed, Turmeric, Star Anise, and Cassia Stick Cinnamon alongside fresh ginger and lemongrass.

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White Bean Chicken Chili

Mild and mellow with layers of spice, this go-to chicken chili recipe is sure to please. It's equally delicious whether you're cooking in a Dutch oven in the back country or entertaining friends at home. This version is mild, but packed with flavor from Adobo, Cuban Spice and Mexican Oregano. This is our favorite version, but you can play with different flavor profiles by changing the Cuban Spice to a chili powder like Chipotle, Ancho or New Mexico Chili Powder. Adobo is the perfect spice base for all Latin soups and stews. A simple shortcut to flavor, it includes onion, garlic and cumin.

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Cajun Cobb Salad

I won't kid you, this Cajun Cobb salad has a lot of ingredients that require individual prep, but it is SO worth the effort! A Cobb salad is wonderful in its own right, but when you add layers of flavor with Cajun blackened shrimp, caramelized vegetables with Herbes de Provence and a generous splash of peach-infused white balsamic vinegar it becomes something spectacular.

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BBQ Broccoli

Eat your vegetables? Yes, please! We love to cook outside the box, so why not treat broccoli like BBQ. Seasoned with KC Tailgater's BBQ Rub and roasted to perfection in a hot heavy skillet, we finished the BBQ broccoli with a delightful Smoked Honey Bourbon dipping sauce.

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Shakshuka

Shakshuka is a Middle Eastern dish that is quick and easy to make, and can be served for any meal. Our favorite occasion is always brunch with friends, though, because it's such a crowd pleaser. This versatile recipe is traditionally seasoned with cumin and paprika, but you can use just about any spice blend that suits your fancy. For this one, I used our El Greco, with Mediterranean herbs and a hint of sumac. To top it off, I added chopped spinach and feta cheese to the sauce.

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Frank's Chocolate Cinnamon Cake

Need a chocolate fix? If you can't decide between brownies, cake or fudge, make Frank's Chocolate Cinnamon Cake and enjoy all three. The cake is dense and moist like a brownie, the frosting is like fudge, and the two combine to create the ultimate chocolate cake. Thanks, Frank!

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Pumpkin Rolls with Kashmiri Garam Masala

Take your cinnamon rolls from simple to sensational with the addition of pumpkin and Kashmiri Garam Masala. When I started looking for a pumpkin dessert, because it is that time of year, the thought of pies, cookies and loaves just seemed...boring. Enter the pumpkin rolls. I was SOLD as soon as I saw this post on Smitten Kitchen, and in making them found the recipe spot on! I barely adapted it, just a little spice make-over with one of our secret ingredients, Kashmiri Garam Masala, and some maple in the frosting. The results should be illegal. I know I say that about all the desserts, but this one is seriously irresistible.We opted for maple syrup and buttermilk in the glaze to round out the flavor profile. Next time I think trying coconut oil in place of some of the butter could be tasty, and orange in the frosting. Stay tuned! This one will definitely be back.While the glaze does put them over-the-top, these beauties are so delicious they could stand alone...or with butter...or with maple syrup.

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