Father's Day Tribute - !کیک عشق - My Version of Persian Love Cake

A few years ago when I was just starting to blog about the food of my heritage, I came across an image of "Persian Love Cake," a chiffon cake with a few pink rose petals scattered about. My first reaction was: no way, how come I've never heard of this before?! Where was I all that time growing up in Iran when everyone else was eating کیک عشق - cake-e eshgh? After my initial surprise I realized there was no need to worry and that this was a newly created concoction of aromatic and flavorful classic Persian ingredients. I figured since the combination of saffron, rose water, cardamom and lemon zest transforms a simple cake into a magical Persian love cake, then we Iranians have been consuming a whole lot of love for the past several centuries! I may have been taken aback by discovering that there's a Persian love cake, however I wouldn't be surprised if Persian food in general were to be called a love cuisine! Much love goes into mastering the art of simmering stews into glorious deliciousness using fresh seasonal ingredients, putting just the right amount of salt, pepper and a few spices and steaming the rice to a fluffy perfection with a golden crunchy tahdig - crust. I can easily call salad shirazi a love salad, fesenjoon a love khoresh or zereshk polow a love polow and I think, we should call it a love menu!

In addition to my passion for Persian food, which is clearly evident in this very personal blog of mine, I have also developed a passion for Persian poetry over the years. Persian poetry is as fragrant as drops of rose water in the air, colorful as saffron threads and flavorful as cardamoms in their pods. That's what you get when an Iranian food blogger writes about Persian poetry! Among many of the poems that I grew up with there are a few that have made an everlasting impression on me and are my favorites. I am a firm believer that love is the power that connects and holds all the particles together in this world even in the darkest and most challenging times.

 

روزی که می گرفتند پیمان ز نسل آدم       عشق از میان ذرات در جست وجوی ما بود

~ غمام همدانی   

On the day of making a covenant with Adam's generation, "Love" among all other particles was looking for us.

My next favorite poem is a line from a tale in the book: منطق الطیر - The Conference of the Birds by Attar.  It is about an old woman who wanted to buy یوسف - Joseph when he was being sold to the highest bidder at a market in Egypt, having only a handful of yarns to offer. The old woman knowing that she couldn't afford Joseph replied to the merchant's ridicule:
 

لیک اینم بس که چه دشمن چه دوست       گوید این زن از خریداران اوست

~ عطار

This is enough for me that everyone, friend or foe, will say this woman was among his bidders.

The next poem or rather a line of a poem is by Hatef Esfahani known for his ghazals (ode) and tarji- band (recurrent verse) style of poetry. However, I would like to take the liberty to say that for me this poem stands alone by itself as the best of the best to describe the mood and the feeling of someone's love and devotion and it has to be read several times over and over to feel the rhythm and the beat embedded in the words. Perhaps, one day I'll come back to this post and write a translation for it but so far I am at a loss for words to capture the essence of it. Therefore, I'll leave it without the English translation. My sincere apologies.
 

تو کمان کشیده و در کمین که زنی به  تیرم و من غمین      همه ی غمم بود از همین که خدا نکرده خطا کنی 

~هاتف اصفهانی

I haven't written about my father as much as I have written about my mother. One reason could be that I didn't spend much time with him growing up or rather he didn't have much time to spend with us since he was always working so hard and was away from home. I was also long gone by the time he retired. I don't think I ever got a chance to know him completely and it's interesting that all I've learned about Baba's family history, childhood and upbringing was through my mother! Baba was a fairly quiet man who had suffered from many physical ailments throughout his life.
 

I clearly remember my last long distance phone conservation with Baba right before his passing. I had gotten the terrible news about my father's deteriorating condition. Devastated, I called home and asked to have a few words with him even though I was told he couldn't speak coherently. Still, I needed to hear Baba's voice. I asked my mother to place the phone next to his ear and I started to plead with him to say something, anything, that I just wanted to hear him. His last few words were: work on your heart and polish it into a jam-e jahan nama (a crystal globe that reflects the world). These were Baba's last words, a short message of a self-realized life lesson that spoke volumes and showed me the depth of his love for his child on his last breath and for that alone I am forever indebted to him.

For this recipe I had a couple of options, the first one was the chiffon cake with rose water icing and candied rose petals. The second option was a simple almond cake. I chose the second version simply  because it tastes more like the kind of sweets I grew up with, no-frills and downright delicious. I've tweaked the recipe a little bit. Please see my Pinterest link for more Persian Love Cake recipes.

Persian Love Cake
Adapted from: Gourmet Traveler's Persian Love Cake by Gerard Yaxley, Qom 
 

Ingredients
Serves 8
 

3 cups almond meal

1 cup white sugar

1 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened at room temperature
1/2 teaspoon salt

2 large eggs
1 cup strained yogurt
2 tablespoons rose water

1 teaspoon ground cardamom

Zest of 1 lime

1 tablespoon lime juice

1/4 cup chopped pistachios

1/4 cup sliced almonds (lightly toasted)
1 tablespoon dried rose petals (crushed) *optional

Method:

1. Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. In a large mixing bowl combine almond meal, sugar, butter and salt. Mix thoroughly by hands.
2. Lightly butter the bottom of a 9- inch springform pan. Divide mixture in half and press half of the mixture evenly into the bottom of the greased pan.
3. Beat the eggs lightly and add to the remaining almond meal sugar mixture. Add yogurt, lime zest, lime juice, cardamom and rose water and using a wooden spoon mix all ingredients together until well blended.  
4. Pour the creamy mixture over the prepared base in the pan and using a small spatula smooth out the surface. Sprinkle the chopped pistachios, sliced almonds and rose petals on top or however you want to decorate. It's your love cake!
5. Set the cake on the middle-rack of the oven and bake for (45-50) minutes until center is set and the cake is golden.
6. Remove from oven and cool completely in the pan.

Transfer the Persian love cake onto a serving platter, slice and serve with a dollop of strained yogurt, some fresh sliced fruits and a hot cup of chai.

Enjoy! Happy Father's Day!

My Baba and I



Kookoo-ye Marchoobeh - Persian-Style Asparagus Frittata with Fresh Herbs, Walnuts and Barberries

کوکوی مارچوبه (Asparagus kookoo) recipe came about as a result of a recent trip to my local vegetable market where I noticed bundles of fresh green asparagus neatly tied and arranged on the shelves. I enjoy the taste of fresh asparagus either steamed or grilled plain with just a little bit of coarse salt. However, as I reached to pick a bundle up, it dawned on me that I had never cooked a Persian-style asparagus meal and among seemingly endless options I have decided to make a new version of kookoo/kuku incorporating asparagus.

Growing up in Iran, I remember hearing my mother talk about marchoobeh (asparagus) but I don't remember eating or even seeing any asparagus back then. Perhaps asparagus wasn't very popular or vastly cultivated and therefore it was not available among the wide range of vegetables then.

To enjoy the in-season asparagus I have combined fresh herbs, chopped walnuts and barberries with eggs and I'm very happy with the results. For this recipe, I have added a touch of cayenne and cumin to bring just the right amount of flavor to the egg and asparagus combination. I must point out though that the traditional kookoo/kuku sabzi, like most dishes in the Persian cuisine, is not spicy at all.  I also did not chop the vegetables as finely as I normally would for the traditional kookoo. For those unable to find barberries you can substitute it with dried cranberries instead.

Kookoo-ye Marchoobeh - Asparagus Frittata

Ingredients:
Serves 4-6

1 pound fresh asparagus (about 20 medium sized stalks), ends snapped and cut into 2-inch pieces
8 large eggs
1 cup chopped fresh flat leaf parsley
1 cup chopped fresh scallion (green parts only)
A few sprigs fresh mint, chopped
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 cup dried barberries (can be found in most Persian grocery stores), picked over and rinsed well
1/4 teaspoon turmeric
A pinch of cayenne pepper (or to taste) *optional
A generous pinch of cumin *optional
Salt and pepper to taste
Olive oil (extra virgin) or vegetable oil

Method:

1. Heat 4 tablespoons of olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Saute the asparagus pieces lightly for about 5 minutes. Sprinkle a bit of salt over the asparagus.
2. In the meantime, combine the chopped herbs, walnuts, barberries and the spices together in a large mixing bowl.
3. In a medium-size bowl, beat the eggs until yolks and whites are completely blended. Add salt and pepper to taste.
4. Pour the egg over the herbs and walnut mixture in the large bowl and blend well.
5. Add the egg and herb mixture over the sauteed asparagus in the skillet. With a spatula flatten the surface of the kookoo. As eggs start to set take the spatula and run it around the edges and make four large wedges or eight small ones in the skillet. Cover and cook for 25-30 minutes on medium-low heat.

To serve, cut the kookoo into small wedges and place onto a platter. May be served hot or at room temperature with yogurt, salad shirazi, torshi and bread.

Enjoy!

Gozlemeh - Fried Eggs with Garlic Yogurt Sauce - Iranian Style

گزلمه (gozlemeh/gozleme) is a regional dish of استان آذربایجان غربی (West Azerbaijan province) served throughout the capital city of ارومیه (Orumieyeh/Urmia). Gozlemeh is just a perfect recipe for a spring brunch or a light summer lunch. I came across this simple and healthy recipe long ago while going through an old Iranian cooking manual. However, I was a bit hesitant about making a dish I had never had before and had never even heard of. In Iran, each region has its own unique food that the people from other provinces may not be familiar with. Finally, a few days ago I decided to give this recipe a try for the first time. I ended up making it again the next day and it tasted even better. As I prepared this warm and creamy yogurt dish topped with exquisite fried eggs and a touch of turmeric (my fave spice) and served it over toasted flat bread, it made me feel as though I had traveled to Western Azerbaijan and was eating a delicious gozlemeh in someone's home in Orumieyeh!

When making a new recipe I am most comfortable if I at least had a chance to taste it once before to know exactly what the meal should taste like and what flavors to expect. However, that doesn't stop me from trying out new recipes. Occasionally, my daughters bring different recipes home that they would like to try and we make it together. Now that they know how to cook for themselves, I get to be the taste tester and I watch them hone their cooking skills. That's how I learned to cook at a young age by watching my mother cook and also by helping out in the kitchen too. One time, when I was eleven years old my mother told me to take the raw chicken out of the fridge and cook it for lunch as she was heading out the door in a hurry and did not leave any instructions. It is challenging moments such as this that propels one to figure things out on one's own and learn things faster. Cooking, like most things in life, takes practice before you feel confident that you can create a delicious healthy meal with whatever you have in your pantry/refrigerator with or without a recipe.

My advice to novice cooks is to familiarize yourselves with the ingredients that you are going to use, learn about different methods of cooking, always go for fresh and good quality ingredients if available, read the recipe a few times before starting to cook and have all the necessary kitchen tools and gadgets ready to go. And if you are like me, cleaning and washing as you cook, place a mat between the sink and the counter or wear a pair of non-skid shoes! Put your apron on, take charge and make the recipe your own by substituting what you don't have and adjusting the amount of sugar, fat and the level of spiciness to your liking and your dietary restrictions while staying true to the recipe.

I have made some changes to the original recipe. I also added a pinch of turmeric to the oil in the skillet before frying two of the eggs (a personal preference). This recipe doesn't take long to make. You may want to set the table and have the drinks, bread and condiments ready before you start cooking.

Ingredients:
Serves 2

4 large eggs (preferably organic)
1 1/2 cups strained yogurt
1 large garlic clove
Salt
Pepper, freshly ground
A pinch of turmeric *optional
Butter or vegetable oil (I used canola oil)
Water
2 lavash bread, lightly toasted

Method

1. Place the garlic clove with a pinch of salt in the mortar and pestle and finely crush.
2. Add a tablespoon of water to the strained yogurt, stir well to loosen it up a little.
3. Add the crushed garlic to the yogurt. Mix thoroughly.
4. Heat a a tablespoon of butter in a medium-sized skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic yogurt mixture, heat thoroughly for a few minutes, remove from heat before it starts to boil.  
5. Spread the yogurt mixture generously on each of the toasted flat-breads separately.
6. Heat a couple of tablespoons of oil or butter in a frying pan, add a pinch of turmeric, swirl around the pan a couple of times. Add the eggs to the hot frying pan, cook until the white is set, season with salt and pepper to taste. Use a spatula to remove the eggs from the pan. 
7. Place them on the bread with the yogurt mixture and serve warm.

Enjoy!

My Shurka Bazaar Visit - NYC Persian Parade 2013

This past Sunday, April 14th, was the 10th annual Spring Persian Parade in the heart of New York City. The parade took place along Madison Avenue from 39th Street to 26th Street and lasted for several hours. In addition to the parade there was a bazaar along the Madison Avenue park with many vendors showcasing their products such as hand-made crafts, home furnishings, rugs, jewelry, teas and Persian food. I unfortunately missed the parade in its entirety. My plans changed a few times in the morning before I actually left my home but I finally ended up taking the Long Island Rail Road into the city with my eldest daughter. Having my daughter by my side and being to able to share this day honoring the Persian culture with her was precious to say the least. Although, I missed having my other daughter with me since she was busy studying for her Biology midterm and was not able to attend.

This post consists of various photos detailing my short day among my fellow Iranians in New York City, drinking tea, eating delicious food and meeting friends as I worked my way through the crowd. The weather cooperated and it was a glorious spring day. Since I mainly write about Persian cuisine my post captures only that aspect of my day and only the ones that captured my attention. I don't like posting images of people without their permission. Otherwise, I would have loved to post pictures of people of all ages dancing and singing in the middle of the park. I love how some of us dance to the beat of the music like nobody's watching! I cheer them on by clapping and perhaps doing a little sway on the side.

My first stop was at the table where Najmieh Batmangelij was signing her cookbooks! I asked her for a copy of her vegetarian cookbook and told her how I'm a fan of her work. She graciously signed my copy of the book and I got to take a picture of her. Such a lovely lady! How I would love to one day be in the kitchen with her and cook something together or even just watch her boil some water!

This book is a gift for a lovely family member with a heart of gold and since I haven't had a chance to give it to her yet I've cropped the name out.

                                                                             Photo courtesy of Nini Ordoubadi

Next, I visited the delightful tea den of the lovely Nini Ordoubadi where I got to drink her flavorful Persian Rose tea. Her den, which was surrounded by Persian rugs, beautiful photos, spring flowers and of course an array of all artisanal teas, felt intimate, warm and endearing. I am planning to visit her Tay tea store sometime during the summer when life is less hectic. I also purchased her Persian Rose tea which I made the next day and I love it!

Enjoying a freshly brewed tea at home

Saeed Pourkay the owner of Taste of Persia

 My next stop was the Taste of Persia's ash-e reshteh since I had heard about it for the past couple of years. I thought how wonderful it would be to be able to eat a bowl of hot ash on the sidewalk of Madison Ave. During the years when I worked in the city and had frequented many times, I don't remember ever strolling down on Madison Ave. For me it was just another avenue to cross on the way to work. So, I stayed on the long and slow line for ash reshteh and when we got to the front of the line we were told that they were all out and only had halim left! I bought a large bucket of halim instead and took it home for my husband and to photograph it too!

Halim the next morning at home

Torshi and khiar shoor, cellphone photo courtesy of my daughter

Have a lovely spring!

Soup-e Jo - Persian Chicken Barley Soup

This is a healthy and delicious barley soup recipe with chicken, carrots and a good squirt of fresh lemon juice. This is the kind of recipe that I would highly recommend to college students living away from home that are tired of eating campus food and unhealthy take-outs. This soup is easy to prepare and there aren't too many ingredients. All you need is access to a working stove, a little time and a good dose of enthusiasm.

It's officially spring but the pleasant spring weather has not arrived yet! For my first post of the new season I would have liked to prepare a light dish with fresh vegetables but I'm still waiting for that exhilarating moment to be able to open all the windows and let the fresh air fill the house and to feel the arrival of spring all around me. I can't wait to put back my outdoor bird houses and wind chimes around the house that I had brought inside before the Sandy Storm last fall. Spring is such a short season here in New York, it arrives late and is gone before you know it.

While I was growing up in the southern region of Iran, early spring meant beautiful weather and gorgeous landscapes with wild flowers. One of my springtime memories goes back to یک روز بهاری (one spring day) when I was a seventh grader in our small town of Masjed Soleiman in Khouzestan province. I watched a flock of wild parrots pass over our house in the early hours of the morning. I don't know where they were traveling to or where they were coming from but my father, who loved birds and at one point had about two hundred birds and possibly more had my mother not objected, suggested catching those parrots and excitedly I went along. The next morning, at the crack of dawn, I watched my father bring out an old mesh wire cage and place it by a large open window. He tied a long string to the little latch on the opening of the cage, placed some seeds inside with a trail leading out. We waited patiently as a couple of parrots from the flock approached our house and one of them followed the seed trail into the cage. My father pulled the string and closed the door on the parrot. It was a thrilling moment and the joy continued for the next few days until we had eventually captured five beautiful parrots.

Several days later I came home from school joyfully refilling their water bowl and giving them more seeds. Things seemed calm in our household and my mother appeared to be going along with our little hunting escapade. However, she apparently tolerated the whole situation for as long as she could and one day while I was still at school she took the cage out in the back of the house over the hills, opened the cage-door and let the wild parrots out in the middle of nowhere. To my horror I found the cage empty on the lonely porch. I think I went through each stage of grief except the last one, acceptance, in the span of ten minutes before I headed down to the kitchen where I knew she would be. I don't remember what I said, it's all a blur, but I remember what she told me: پرنده جاش تو قفس نیست (birds don't belong in a cage!) "Birds need to be free and to be able to go wherever they wish to go," she said. Through our heartfelt connection I understood what she meant and to this day I am still learning the depth of that poignant lesson.

Soup-e Jo - Chicken Barley Soup 

Ingredients:
Serves 6-8

1 1/2 cups pearled barley, rinsed and soaked in cool water for an hour
4 pieces of chicken (drumsticks or wings)
1 1/2 cups shredded carrots
1 large onion, peeled and quartered
2 celery stalks, cut into chunks
1-2 garlic cloves
1/4 teaspoon turmeric
2 bay leaves
Salt and pepper to taste (I would suggest a freshly ground black pepper for this recipe)
2-3 tablespoons of freshly squeezed lime/lemon juice
Water
Chopped flat-leaf parsley for garnish

Method:

1. Arrange the quartered onions at the bottom of the stockpot, add the chicken, celery, garlic, bay leaf, turmeric, salt and pepper. Add enough water to cover all of the ingredients, bring to a boil on medium-high. Reduce the heat, cover and cook on medium-low heat for about 45-50 minutes or until the chicken is fully cooked. 
2. Remove the pot from the heat and let cool. Drain the soup and pour into a bowl for later use. Separate the chicken from the bones and shred into small pieces.
3. Place the soaked and drained barley in a large pot, add the strained chicken soup and enough water to cover up to 3 inches. Bring to a boil for a couple of minutes on medium-high heat, reduce the heat, cover leaving the lid a little ajar and cook for 45 minutes.
4. To the pot add the shredded chicken and the shredded carrots, stir. Add more hot water if needed. Cover and cook for another 40- 45 minutes on medium-low heat.
5. In the last 15 minutes of cooking add the lemon juice, taste and adjust the seasoning.

Serve the soup in a large bowl, sprinkle chopped parsley on top and serve with warm bread.

Note: All the soup pictures are taken from the same barley soup. The first two were taken with little liquid and freshly shredded carrots on top to show the ingredients. The last two photos are from the soup filled with liquid.

Enjoy!