I include here simple recipes that are either daily to us or serve as a basis for other dishes -- starting with making your own yogurt and derivatives the Lebanese way.What the west calls yogurt, that we call laban, was already made and enjoyed thousands of years ago by the Phoenicians

. Laban, labneh, and Lebanon all come from the ancient word LBN meaning "white". If you like yogurt, you will enjoy making your own with this very old method.

LABAN(yogurt or curdled milk)Ingredients:1 liter of milk (during the war when only powder milk was available, my mom would use that and it would turn out great)1 tablespoon of rennet (or readymade yogurt)If the milk is raw, boil it. If it's pasteurized, warm it to 451⁄4C (if you can insert your finger and count till 10 without getting burned, the temperature is right).Dilute the rennet or yogurt in a bit of milk and pour into the lukewarm milk. It is even better if the latter is in an earthenware recipient at that point. Stir with a spoon then cover with a thick duffel or the like.Leave it 4 hours.TipsYogurt/laban can be eaten sweet or salted, and we use it for many recipes such as stuffed zucchini with laban, stuffed vine leaves with laban, meat stew with laban... A very simple and very fresh recipe is to mix laban with crushed dry mint leaves, salt and sliced cucumbers.Once you have made laban, you can make a variety of derivatives, the most popular of them all being labneh.
LABNEH(drained curdled milk)Prepare the laban as explained above, then add 1 teaspoon of salt for every liter you have.Stir gently and then pour inside a thin mesh bag. Suspend the bag overnight so that it can drain; my mom would suspend it to the tap of the kitchen sink. Whether you want the laban to lose all or part of its water is up to you. The result will be a white spread-like cheese. Empty the contents of the bag in a dish, beat slightly and keep in the fridge.TipsThere are many ways to eat labneh, this wonderfully healthy and versatile cheese.
• The classical way is to spread it in a round dish, and with a spoon create a depression in the center so that the result is like a shallow labneh basin. Pour olive oil all over: it will form a pool in the center of the dish. Eat it by taking scoops with "pita" bread, accompanying it with salt, mint leaves, or olives.
• If you like garlic, pound some and mix it to the labneh to obtain labneh-with-garlic, a delicacy.
• Spread it in "pita" bread or even on toast bread and add slices of cucumber or tomato.
• The young generation appreciates labneh as an alternative dip for french fries or nachos.
LABNEH MALBOUDEH(drained labneh)Prepare labneh but let the laban drain completely. At that stage, the cheese comes easily loose from the bag. Transfer it to a bowl and knead it well so as not to leave any lump. If it's not drained enough, put it back in the bag for a few more hours. Check that it is salted to your taste.Thoroughly heap the resulting cheese in a glass jar that can be sealed, and keep it in the fridge or a fresh place.TipsBoth laban and labneh keep a while in a sealed container in the fridge, but if they turn sour they should be thrown away. Packed labneh can be kept up to 6 months.
LABNEH BILZAYT(labneh in oil) Prepare labneh malboudeh, but instead of packing the labneh in a jar, roll little balls the size of a nut in your hands. Fill a jar with olive oil up to 1/3rd, then fill it with the labneh balls. Add oil as you go; when the jar is full, the balls should be covered with about 1/2 inch oil. Prepared in this way, and if you're careful to always keep oil above the balls once you start consuming them, the cheese can be kept for over a year. However, as it ages it turns slightly more sour (personally I like it best when it does).TipsWhen prepared with goat milk, this recipe is a delicacy.
3AYRAN(labneh drink)The basic labneh, cut with water and salted, makes a refreshing drink to be served cold.
JIBNEH(cheese)This simple cheese, so basic it has no other name, is firm, like pressed unbaked dough. Salted, it is an ingredient in many recipes.Ingredients:5 liters milk1/2 teaspoon of rennetPour the raw, cold milk in a, earth or glass container. Dilute the rennet in a bit of milk and add it to the container.Stir and allow to curdle for an hour. The curds form a block then; take a chunk using a teacup and press it between your hands until you get a compact cake and part of the remaining milk has been drained. Dispose the cheese cakes on an upturned sieve, or a slightly inclined platter. Turn them over after an hour and leave them to drain another hour or two.TipsJibneh can be eaten fresh, with a bit of salt, a bit of sugar or even some honey or jam. It can be conserved 5 or 6 months if the following procedure is followed: salt the cheese using a pinch of salt per cake, wait 2 0r 3 hours and store it in glass jars containing water that has been boiled then cooled and salted (1 teaspoon per liter). Covr the surface with a thick layer of olive oil.
TARATOR BIT'HINEH(ground sesame sauce)Ingredients:4 tablespoons "t'hineh" (ground sesame)1/2 cup fresh lemon juice4 garlic cloves (if wanted)1/2 teaspoon saltDilute the ground sesame in the lemon. Pound the garlic with the salt and mix everything well.This sauce accompanies fish or is served alone with a bunch of chopped parsley. It is also used to make several other dishes.
OLIVES(how to prepare them)For green olives:2 kg of green olives in their natural state4 tablespoons salt1 cup olive oilWash the olives in hot water in a colander. Split them using a pebble or a large pounder. Wash them again in cold water. Put them in a jar or two. Cover with salt water, then with about a centimeter of olive oil. The olives can be prepared this way without being split: in this case they keep longer (over a year) but are more bitter. Either way they can be consumed after 2 weeks.For black olives:2 kg of black olives in their natural state6 tablespoons saltOlive oilWash the olives in hot water, then in cold water. Place them in a bowl and roll them in 4 tablespoons of salt. Allow to macerate for 5 days, stirring occasionally, then pour in one or more glass jars (don't pour the reject juice that's at the bottom of the bowl). Cover with salt water then a centimeter of oil. They will be good to eat after a week and keep up to a year as long as there's always oil on top of the water.Tip:Insert in the jar a few slices of lemon, or a chili pepper, or a branch of thyme to flavour your olives.
QATR(syrup)Ingredients:1 kg sugar1/2 liter water3 tablespoons lemon juice4 tablespoons orange blossom waterPut the sugar in an aluminum cooking pot, add the water and stir to melt the sugar. Set to medium heat to bring to a boil. Foam, add the lemon juice and the orange blossom water. Stir and remove from fire.This syrup is served on the side anytime sweets are presented, so that guests can pour some on top of theirs.

Mezza
The mezza was born in Zahle in the 1920s. The word is an abbreviation from al-lumazza: "that which is savoured". It is now the form of the traditional Lebanese meal -- a meal that extends both in space and time. A large number of entr?es, up to 30 for exceptional occasions, are laid on the table until there's no space left whatsoever. Rather than serving from the dishes into individual plates, the guests eat straight from the dishes, using folded pieces of bread as spoons. After the entr?es comes the grilled meat and chicken done on the "fahm" -- in other words, skewered and barbecued. Fruits are the usual dessert, unless the meal is really lavish, and Turkish or white coffee concludes it. A Lebanese meal is not just about eating, it is about laying back, exchanging news and laughing with friends; a drink of arak (grape spirits) and a narguileh pipe are a must. The meal can very easily last 4 hours or more: I suspect that the reason why so many mezza dishes are made is to make it last as long as possible without ever leaving the table empty of things to munch on.Every mezza element below can be readily made on its own as an entr?e to a regular meal.
TABBOULEH("mixture") This very famous salad is the national dish and you will find it everywhere there is mention of Lebanese food.Ingredients:1 cup of fine bourghoul (ground wheat)3 bunches of parsley1 bunch of fresh mint4 tomatoes4 green onions or 1 white onion6 tablespoons olive oil1 teaspoon salt1/2 cup freshly squeezed lemon juiceWash the bourghoul in a deep dish by filling it with water and gently pouring out the water so that it will take away any impurity. Leave the bourghoul to soak in cold water for 30 mn. Finely dice the tomatoes and onion and chop the parsley and mint. Mix together the oil, salt and lemon for the sauce. Squeeze the borghoul between your hands to press out the water and mix all the ingredients together.TipsThe tabbouleh is best eaten with small lettuce leaves or better yet, fresh vine leaves rolled up in a cone shape.
FATTOUSH("crumble")Bread is kept in a basket or a nylon bag, and small pieces always accumulate at the bottom of it. The salad known as fattoush makes use of them and prevents their waste.Ingredients:Small grilled or fried pieces of Lebanese/pita bread (although you can try with croutons)1/2 kg cucumber or Lebanese cucumber1/2 kg tomatoes2 bunches of parsley1 bunch of fresh mint1 bunch of purslane (this "weed" grows in American backyards, but if the word rings no bells simply ignore it and use lettuce instead)3 onions (if wanted)4 cloves of garlic1 teaspoon sumac4 tablespoons olive oil5 tablespoons fresh lemon juice1 teaspoon saltSeparate the leaves off the parsley, mint and purslane. Slice the cucumbers, dice the tomatoes. Pound the garlic with the salt and mix it in the oil and lemon. Mix the vegetables and top with the bread fragments. Pour the sauce and sprinkle sumac all over.
HOMMOS BIT'HINEH(mashed chick peas in ground sesame)Ingredients:1 glass of dry chick peas (or a can of cooked chick peas)Tarator sauce as prepared aboveabout 2 tablespoons olive oilIf the chick peas aren't cooked, soak them overnight. Cook them well then mash them in such a way as to get a thick purée. Add the tarator and mix thoroughly. The olive oil is poured on top of the hommos before serving.TipsServed alongside the hommos are usually radishes, green onions and pickles.
SALATA HOMMOS(chick peas salad)Ingredients:1 can of precooked chick peas6 tablespoons olive oil8 garlic cloves1 tablespoon dry mint2 lemonsTake the chick peas out of the water and quickly plunge them in salted boiling water. When it starts boiling again, take them out, rinse them with cold water, pout them in a clean towel and gently rub them to remove the skins. Rinse again in cold water in a bowl: the skins float and flow away with the water.Season with lemon and oil. Offer the pounded garlic and the mint on the side so that everyone can add it according to their own taste. Serve fresh.
FALAFEL("spiced") Ingredients:3/4 glass broad bean flour1/2 glass chick peas flour1/2 glass flour1 teaspoon salt1 pich of pepper1 pinch of red chili powder1 glass of olive oilMix together the flours, salt, pepper, chili. Add very little water, just enough to be able to shape small firm flat cakes thick as a finger. Brown them in the hot oil, on medium-high fire. Remove them and put them on absorbant paper. Serve with radishes, mint, parsley, tomato slices.
LAHM B3AJEEN(meat cakes)Ingredients:500g dough (or frozen shortcrust)600g ground mutton2 onions1 teaspoon salt1 pinch of pepper1 tablespoon butter10 tablespoons laban or yogurt50g pine kernels (if available)Mix together the mutton and finely chopped onions, with salt, pepper, melted butter, yogurt and pine kernels. Separate the dough in pices the size of an egg and spread it to a thickness of about 5 mm. Spread one tablespoon or more of the meat mixture on each piece of dough. Bake in a hot oven for15 mn.Tip:The yogurt can be replaced with 1/2 kg finely chopped tomatoes. Either way they are served with a bowl of yogurt and each person sprinkles some on his hot cakes.
FATAYER BI SBANIGH(spinach cakes)Ingredients:1 kg 1/2 chopped spinach2 big onions8 tablespoons olive oil1 tablespoon salt1 pinch pepper1/2 glass lemon juice500g dough (or frozen shortcrust)Gently rub the spinach with salt and squeeze them to get the water out. Mix them with oil, lemon juice, finely chopped onions, and pepper.Spread the dough to a thickness of about 5 mm. Use a glass to cut round shapes in it, and put a good tablespoonful of spinach mixture in the center of each. Close the dough in the shape of a pyramid. Bake in a hot oven about 20 mn.
KIBBEH NAYYEH(raw meat ground with onion and wheat)Kibbeh shares with tabbouleh the position of national Lebanese dish. This recipe is for the raw version, but the next is an example of the many ways in which kibbeh can be cooked.Ingredients:600g mutton leg1 big cup of bourghoul (ground wheat)1 onion1 teaspoon saltpepper to taste Wash the bourghoul well by rinsing it in a deep dish so that the scraps float and are evacuated with the water. Cover the bourghoul with water and let it soak for half an hour. In the meanwhile, very finely chop the meat and onion together -- they must take the consistency of a dough. Add salt and pepper. Press the bourghoul between your hands to squeeze out the water and add it to the meat and onion. Knead at length with the palm of the hand, often dipping your fingers in cold water. Spread in a dish, not too thickly. Decorate with fresh mint leaves and store about 15 mn in the fridge before serving. Serve with olive oil on the side for the guests to pour on their plate if they wish.Tip:Raw kibbeh is often eaten with pita bread and green onions.
KIBBEH KBEIBAT(kibbeh balls)Ingredients:500g mutton leg2 big cups of bourghoul (ground wheat)1 large onion1 tablespoon saltpepper to tasteStuffing:100g finely chopped mutton ribs1 onion50 g pine kernels2 tablespoons butter or oilPrepare kibbeh nayye as explained in the previous recipe. Prepare the stuffing: brown the ingredients separately in the butter or oil, then mix them.Make a ball of kibbeh the size of an egg. Dig it with the finger while holding it in the hollow of the palm of the other hand. When the walls are no thicker than half a centimeter, insert a bit of stuffing inside it and pinch the opening closed again. The ball takes on the shape of a lemon, which you can see in the image to the left. Bake the balls of kibbeh in the oven at medium heat for 40 mn, or fry them in butter or peanut oil. They are served cold or warm.Tip:Kibbeh balls can be seasoned in various ways. Kibbeh Labniyeh involves a yogurt-based sauce: bring water to a boil in a cooking pot, with very little salt. Poach the balls in it for 10 mn and carefully remove them with a sieve. Bring laban to a boil on low fire -- 1 liter for 20 balls. When it's boiling, pour a teaspoon of starch and add the balls. Leave to simmer for 5 to 10 mn.The yogurt can be replaced by tomato sauce.
KAFTA MISHWEH(skewered parsleyed meat)Ingredients:600g chopped mutton leg2 onions1 bunch of parsleySalt and pepperChop the meat very finely until it becomes dough-like. Also chop the onions and parsley very finely. Add salt and pepper, knead well together and divide into 8 balls. Skewer each ball individually and press with the fingers to spread the ball alogn the skewer in the shape of a sausage. Press the extremities well wo that they'll adhere well to the metal. Barbecue and serve hot on a bed of fresh mint leaves, roughly chopped parsley, and onion slices (sprinkled with sumac if available).Tip:Kafta can also be baked in an oven, under the grill. The dough can be made into flattened balls just like hamburger meat and browned in a wok, or put in a dish with tomato sauce, tomato slices and potato slices, to be cooked in the oven.
Other than prepared dishes, the following are also put on the table for a mezza:
French fries (like everything else that enters the country, they were Lebanized).
Labneh, either plain or garlic-flavoured
A large plate of fresh vegetables: tomato, lettuce, cabbage, cucumber, radish, Lebanese cucumber...
Small bowls of black and green olives (stuffed are a plus).
Small bowls of fresh almonds in water or pistacchios (depending on the season).
Lots and lots of Lebanese bread! The traditional bread, the 'marqouq", is the favourite for this sort of meal: it is very large, up to 2 feet in diameter, and so thin the French used to call it "drum skin".

Home dishes
There is quite a difference between Lebanese food one eats in a restaurant or on occasions and food that is made at home for daily meals. The quantity of rice that we eat is more obvious in home cooking, for one thing, and the ingredients are not scattered in dozens of little dishes, but rather concentrated in one or two large ones.
DAOUD BACHA(meatballs with rice)Ingredients:600g ground mutton (hamburger meat works fine)50g pine kernels2 cans of tomato sauce (or 1 kg fresh tomatoes)2 onions1 teaspoon salt2 tablespoons butter or vegetable oilAn appropriate quantity of cooked white riceFinely chop the onions and mix them with the meat along with salt and pepper. Knead well and make balls the size of a nut. Dig each ball with a finger, stuff a few pine kernels in and close it again. Brown the balls in half the buter and put them in a greased baking dish. Cover in tomato sauce (if canned, dilute it with 1 and 1/2 glass of water). Cook for 25 mn at medium high. Turn over the balls after half the time has passed.Serve hot on white rice.(This dish was named after the pacha David, who administrated Mount Lebanon from 1961 to 1968)
LOUBIEH BZAYT(French beans in oil)Ingredients:1 kg tender French beans (also called green beans I believe?)2 onions10 garlic cloves1 kg ripe tomatoes2 tablespoons peanut oil4 tablespoons olive oil1 teaspoon saltWash the beans then cut them in two. Whiten them 5 mn in boiling water then drain them. Brown the thinly sliced onions and the peeled garlic cloves (whole) in peanut oil. After a few minutes, add the salt and beans. Cover the cooking pot and steam on low heat for 5 mn. Add the diced tomatoes and 1/2 cup boiling water. Allow to stew for half an hour on low heat, covered. Add the olive oil at the end. Serve lukewarm or cold.Tip:This dish can be prepared without mashing the lentils: in this case it is called Mdardara. Thinly slice another onion and brown it to cover the surface of the mdardara (or mjaddara) dish.
MJADDARA(mashed lentils and rice)Ingredients:1 cup lentils1 cup round rice1 onion2 tablespoons olive oil2 tablespoons peanut oil1 teaspoon saltWash the lentils. Boil the lentils in 3 cups of water for about 40 mn. Mash them and add 2 cups of boiling water. Bring to a boil again and add the rice after havign washed it. Brown the finely diced onion on the side in the peanut oil and add it to the cooking pot. Stir and let cook on low heat for 20 mn, stirring occasionally. Add the olive oil towards the end. Serve lukewarm or cold with a tomato and cucumber salad or another Lebanese salad.
3ADASS B'HAMOD(lentils in lemon)Ingredients:2 cups of lentils2 onions4 garlic clovesA few beet leaves2 medium potatoes1 teaspoon powdered mint2 tablespoons peanut oil2 tablespoons olive oil1 teaspoon salt1/2 cup lemon juiceBring the lentils to a boil in 6 glasses of water and cook them for one hour. Chop the onions roughly and brown them slightly in the peanut oil. Pour them in the pot on the cooked lentils along with the garlic, pounded and mixed to the mint. Dice the potatoes and chop the beet leaves before adding them to the mix. Add 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Stir. Add the lemon juice. Serve as a soup.
Desserts
It is not really customary to eat desserts at the end of a meal in Lebanon (usually it ends with fruits), but sweet dishes are numerous to be served to guests or unexpected visitors.
MHALLABIYEH(rice cream)Ingredients:1 liter milk1/2 glass powdered rice3/4 glass sugar1 glass roughly ground pistacchiosDilute the rice in a bit of cold water. Boil the milk and add the rice. Stir until the mixture thickens. Pour in cups and allow to cool. Sprinkle pistacchios on the surface before serving.TipsThe rice can be replaced by starch, and the pistacchios by almonds, in which case the dessert is called ilmassiyeh ("diamonded").
ROZZ BI HALIB(rice in milk)Ingredients:1 liter milk3/4 cup round rice3/4 cup sugar2 tablespoons orange bloom waterWash the rice and cook it in 3/4 cup of boiling water until the water is completely absorbed. Boil the milk and add the orange bloom water, the sugar and cooked rice. Stir until boiling point then allow to cook on low heat for about 30 mn. Serve cold or lukewarm.
SIMSMIYEH(sesame nougat)Ingredients:2 cups sesame seeds3/4 cup sugar1 tablespoon lemon juicePut all the ingredients in a wok on medium heat and sti continually. Qhen the sigar starts to melt, lower the heat while continuing to stir until it is completely melted. Pour the mixture on a platter. Spread it with a rolling pin. cut it into pieces while it's still warm.TipsThe sesame seeds can be replaced by pine kernels to make a Snoubariyeh, nuts for a Jauziyeh, pistachios for a Fistqiyeh or hazelnuts for a Bunduqiyeh. In the later two cases, grill the fruits first.

Special occasions
A number of dishes, especially desserts, are made only at a specific time of the year, notably for religious celebrations, or for special events such as a birth.
ZALABI HAF(doughnuts)Prepared on the Eve of the EpiphanyIngredients:500g flour1 teaspoon salt1 teaspoon yeast1 or more cups of water2 cups of oil (for frying)Knead the flour, salt, yeast and water together to get a light dough. Let it rest for an hour. Heat the oil in a wok. Take egg-sized pieces of dough and lightly stretch them, then drop them in the boiling oil. Remove when golden and dispose on absorbant paper. Serve lukewarm or cold, sprinkled with sugar or accompanied with honey or jam.
KAAK B'HALIB(milk cakes)Prepared for EasterIngredients:500g flour100g butter2 tablespoons olive oil1 cup of milk200g sugar1 teaspoon yeast1 teaspoon powdered aromatic plants: wild cherry seed, marjoram, aniseed.Mix the flour, yeast, aromatic plants and gradually add the olive oil and melted butter. Dilute the sugar in the milk and add to the mixture. Knead the dough and allow to rest for 2 hours. Shape flat cakes about 7 cm in diameter and 1 cm thick (wooden molds exist to imprint a motif on the dough). They can also be stretched in the shapes of bracelets thick as a finger. Bake in medium oven after preheating it at a high temperature. They are eaten lukewarm or cold.TipsOnce the kaaks are baked, you can dilute 2 tablespoons of sugar in half a cup of milk and dip the top face of the cakes in it, then sprinkle them with sugar. Allow to dry a bit before serving.
QIRBAN(festivity cakes)Prepared for religious celebrationsIngredients:500g flour1 teaspoon yeast1 teaspoon salt200g sugar1/4 cup orange blossom water (or rose water)1 cup water or moreGradually mix together the flour, yeast, salt, sugar, orange blossom water and water until you get a dough like bread dough. Allow to rest for 2 hours. Make cakes the size of a tea saucer. Prick the dough with a fork or knitting needle, especially in the center, to prevent it from swelling. Bake in the oven on medium heat. Serve cold.Qirban are prepared in large quantities for holidays. They are distributed to relatives and friends and a dozen is sent to the church to be blessed by the priest. He symbolically sends one back to the family and the rest are cut into pieces that are distributed to the mass attendees.
MIGHLI(carvi cream)Prepared on the occasion of a birthIngredients:2 cups sugar1 cup rice powder2 tablespoons carvi powder1/2 tablespoon aniseed powder1/2 tablespoon cinnamon powderroughly chopped nuts, pine kernels, almonds, grated coconutBring 2.5 liters of water to a boil, add the rice powder diluted in a bit of cold water. Add the sugar and spices. Stir with a wooden spoon until the mixture thickens. Pour in cups. Serve cold, covered with the nuts and coconut.