Gulab Jamun a traditional Indian dessert

gulab jamun

Ingredients: For the dough balls 225g/8oz powdered milk 110g/4oz plain flour 1¼ tsp baking powder ½ tsp bicarbonate of soda 350ml/12fl oz milk 25g/1oz butter, melted vegetable oil, for deep frying For the sugar syrup 200g/7oz caster sugar 100ml/3½fl oz water few strands saffron To serve 1 tbsp chopped pistachio nuts 1 tbsp flaked almonds, toasted in a pan

Instructions: For the dough balls, mix all the ingredients together in a bowl, adding

enough extra water to form a soft, and set aside for 10 minutes. sticky dough. Cover with cling film

Shape the dough into small round balls. Heat the oil in a deep heavy-

bottomed frying pan.

It is ready when a breadcrumb dropped in will sizzle gently. (CAUTION: hot oil can be dangerous. Do not leave unattended.) Deep fry the balls until golden brown; then remove from the oil with a slotted spoon and set aside on kitchen papper to drain.

Make a sugar syrup by heating the sugar and water together with the saffron until the sugar has dissolved and the mixture is syrupy. When the dough balls are cool, add to the syrup and leave to soak for about 1 hour. Garnish with chopped pistachio nuts and flaked almonds and serve.

jollof rice

Ingredients: 1/3 cup oil 6 medium-sized tomatoes 6 fresh, red poblano peppers (or 4 large red bell peppers), seeds

discarded 3 medium-sized red onions (1 sliced thinly, 2 roughly chopped),

divided1/2 to 1 hot pepper, or to taste (yellow Scotch bonnets are

my favourite) 3 tablespoons tomato paste 2 teaspoons (Caribbean/Jamaican-style) curry powder

1 teaspoon dried thyme 2 dried bay leaves 5 to 6 cups stock (vegetable, chicken, or beef) or water,

2 teaspoons unsalted butter (optional), divided divided

4 cups uncooked converted long-grain rice or golden sella basmati, rinsed Salt, to taste Black and white pepper, to taste

Extra: sliced onions, tomatoes

Instructions: In a blender, combine tomatoes, red poblano (or bell) peppers,

chopped onions, and Scotch bonnets with 2 cups of stock, blend till

smooth, about a minute or two. You should have roughly 6 cups of

blended mix.

Pour into a large pot/pan and bring to the boil then turn down and let simmer, covered for 10-12 minutes. In a large pan, heat oil

and add the sliced onions. Season with a pinch of salt, stir-fry for 2 to 3

minutes, then add the bay leaves,

curry powder and dried thyme and a pinch of black pepper for 3-4 minutes on medium heat. Then add the

tomato paste stir for another 2 minutes. Add the reduced tomato-

pepper-Scotch bonnet mixture, stir, and set on medium heat for 10 to

12 minutes until reduced by half, with the lid on.

This is the stew that will define the pot. Add 4 cups of the stock to the cooked tomato sauce and bring it to boil for 1-2 minutes. Add the rinsed rice and butter, stir, cover with a double piece of foil/baking or parchment paper and put a lid on the pan—this will seal in the steam and lock in the flavour. Turn down the heat and cook on low for 30 minutes. Stir

rice—taste and adjust as required. If you like,

add sliced onions, tomatoes and the 2nd teaspoon of butter and stir through. fresh

Red bean paste cookies

Ingredients: 100 g cake flour around 180 ml/100 g red bean paste 50 g unsalted butter, soften in room temperature 25 g icing sugar 2 drops of vanilla extract 1.5 tbsp whisked egg

Sesame seeds for decoration

Extra whisked egg for brushing

Instructions: Beaten the soft butter until light and white, add whisked egg and

whisk until they are well combined. Shift flour and sugar in and add

vanilla extract; knead to form dough. Cover with plastic wrapper and

refrigerate for 1 hour. Pre-heat oven to 180 degree C

(around 360 degrees F). Shape the dough into a long log and then press down to a rectangular wrapper. Shape the red bean paste into a smaller long log too and place it in the center of the wrapper. Carefully fold the two sides up. Roll several times on the operating board and then cut the long log into one-bite size small cookies. Brush whisked egg on surface and decorate with sesame seeds (optional). Bake for 20 to 25 minutes until well colored. Cool down several minutes and enjoy! Better serve with tea!

malawach

Ingredients: 3 cups all-purpose flour 1¼ cups pastry flour 1 tablespoon sugar 1 tablespoon kosher salt ¾ teaspoon baking powder 1½ cups water 1¼ cups (2½ sticks) softened butter, divided

Instructions: In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, pastry flour, sugar, salt and

baking powder.

Make a well in the center and slowly add the water, stirring with your hands or a wooden spoon, until a shaggy dough forms. Transfer the dough to a clean surface and knead until smooth and elastic, 5 minutes. Wipe the bowl clean and lightly grease with oil, then place the dough inside and cover with a kitchen towel to let rest 30 minutes. Turn the dough onto a clean surface and, using a pastry scraper or large knife, cut into 9 even pieces. Cover and let rest another 30 minutes. Grease one rimless metal baking sheet with 1 tablespoon of the butter. Line a second baking sheet with parchment and set aside. Place one piece of dough onto the buttered baking sheet and pat 2 tablespoons of soft butter on top. Using flat hands, press and slide the buttery dough outward, stretching it into a very thin rectangle, around 10-by-12-inches. It's OK if a couple little tears occur. Starting at one short end, fold up the dough until you have one long strip about 1 inch wide. Slightly flatten the strip and roll it up into a coil, then place onto

the parchment-lined baking sheet, smooth-side up, resembling a snail

shape.

Cover with a kitchen towel and roll the remaining dough pieces. Refrigerate, covered, until chilled, about 1 hour. Place one piece of

dough in between 2 sheets of wax paper and, using a rolling pin, roll

into a rustic 8-inch circle. Freeze the sheets until completely frozen,

about 45 minutes. Do ahead:

The dough can be rolled out into circles, frozen in between wax paper and stored in a large Ziploc bag for up to 1 month. Prepare a grill for medium-high heat or set a large grill pan over medium-high heat. Add one frozen dough sheet, then immediately reduce the heat to medium and cook until the bottom is golden brown with large bubbles forming underneath the dough, 1½ to 2 minutes. Flip and cook another 1 to 1½ minutes until golden brown all over. Transfer to a plate and cover with a kitchen towel while baking the remaining dough sheets.

Instant pot kalua pork

Ingredients: 2 lb pork shoulder or pork butt 3 ½ tsp Hawaiian sea salt few cracks of black pepper 2 tbsp liquid smoke ¼ cup water ½ head cabbage, quartered Instructions: Cut off any excess fat from pork. Place pork into the instant pot and

with gloved hands, rub in the sea salt, black pepper, and liquid smoke

into the pork.

Add water into the pot and set the instant pot to “Pressure Cook” on “High” setting for 40 minutes. After releasing the

pressure from the instant pot, take out the pork, leaving the liquid in

the pot.

Add the quartered head cabbage and set the instant pot to “Pressure Cook” on “High” setting for 3 minutes. While waiting for the

cabbage to finish cooking, use two forks to shred the pork.

When the cabbage is done cooking, combine the shredded pork and cabbage with the excess cooking liquid.

Best* served over white rice. Leftovers can be used to make a kalua pork sandwich, or on top of pizza or salad.

kolokithopites: zucchini

fritters

Ingredients: 3 pounds zucchini 1 tsp sea salt 1/2 cup plus 1 tbsp all purpose flour 2 large eggs 1/4 cup chopped, fresh mint 1/2 tsp black pepper 8 oz feta cheese 2 tablespoons grated cheese, such as Parmesan

Olive Oil Instructions: Cut each of the zucchinis down the middle lengthwise. Scoop out the

seeds and the pulp from the middle, leaving about 1/8 of the skin

behind. Set the skins aside to use in another recipe,

such as stuffed zucchini, or discard them.Add the pulp to a food processor or blender and pulse until chopped very fine. Transfer the chopped pulp to a colander and sprinkle 1/2 teaspoon of salt over it. Cover the zucchini with a plate to add weight which will enable the zucchini to release some of its moisture. Drain for ten minutes and then rinse the leftover pulp with a little bit of water after removing the plate. Squeeze the pulp with the hands until more of the moisture is released.

TAHCHIN MORGH

Ingredients: 1 1/2 cups rice 1 small onion 1/2 lb boneless chicken 1 Tsp Zafran (saffron)

Salt

Ground Chili Pepper 1/4 cup oil 4 egg yolks 10 oz plain yogurt 3 tbsp dried barberries (zereshk)

Instructions: Soak the rice with 2 tsp salt for an hour in a pot. Soak the zafran for 20

minutes, and beat the egg until fluffy.

Put the chopped onions into a pot. Lay the chicken pieces on top of the onions. Add some salt and fill the pot with boiling water until it covers the chickens. Put the lid on the pot and let it simmer for 20 Minutes. Take the cooked chicken pieces out of the pot (keep the water in the pot, you will need it) and slice them in smaller pieces. Bring the soaked rice pot to the boiling and continue simmering until the rice becomes tender. Drain the rice in a colander. Pour 10 oz of plain yogurt in a bowl. Add half of the beaten egg yolks, ground chili pepper and 1 tbsp of the soaked zafran (saffron) to the bowl and mix them together. Add the chicken pieces to the bowl and mix up with the egg yolk mixture. Take another pot and add 2 tbsp vegetable oil. Add the rest of the beaten egg yolks to this pot. Add 2 tbsp of the egg yolk mixture to the pot. Add 2 tbsp of the drained rice to the pot. Stir until well mixed. Flat the mixture, take the chicken pieces out of the bowl and put them in the pot on top of the mixture. Add 3 tbsp dried barberries (Zereshk). Add the rest of the rice to the pot. Flat and spread the rice across the pot but don't mix with the mixture. Now take the egg yolks mixture bowl add 1/4 vegetable oil, and 2 tbsp of the zafran (saffron), and pour the boiled water (left from the onion and chicken's pot) into the bowl until it covers the mixture and mix thoroughly. Back to the rice pot, put pressure on the rice and press down using a large spoon and pour the rest of the egg yolk mixture on top of the rice. Cover the pot with the lid and let it simmer for 120 minutes over low heat.

domata yemistes

Ingredients: 10 12 tomatoes 1 1/2 pounds ground beef 2 tablespoons sugar 1/4 cup olive oil 1 finely chopped onion 1/2 cup rice

Chopped parsley

Pepper

Salt 1/2 teaspoon (optional) cinnamon

Instructions: Slice a piece from the top of each tomato and remove the pulp with a teaspoon. Save the pulp and set aside. Arrange tomatoes in a baking pan and sprinkle 1/2 teaspoon sugar into each one. Heat 1/4 cup olive oil in a frying pan and sauté onion until soft.Add ground beef and stir for a few minutes. Add rice, parsley, salt, pepper, cinnamon, and 1 cup tomato pulp. Cover and cook over low heat for 10 minutes. Remove

from heat and allow to cool. Fill tomatoes, leaving room for the rice to

swell and replace tops.

Sprinkle some olive oil on top of the tomatoes. Pour 1 cup tomato pulp in the bottom of the pan; bake in an oven that has been set to 350 degrees Fahrenheit for about 1 1/2 hours, or until the rice has softened and the meat is cooked all the way through.

THANK you to those who contributed: Anjali Patel Mikaela Rose Tajo Asreeta Ushasri Jessica Carr Clarice Lebow Liat Wasserman International Justice Mission GW Iranian Student Association GW Cross Country GW Hawaii Club Hellenic Student Association Hindu Student Association Jewish Student Association Philippine Cultural Society Puerto Rican Student Association GW Interfaith Council Members Julia Kerrigan