Fatimas Fingers Tunisian Egg Rolls Recipes

FATIMA'S FINGERS (TUNISIAN EGG ROLLS)

Steps:

• Bring a pot of water to a boil over high heat. Meanwhile, prepare the filling: Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high. Add the chicken and sauté until golden brown, about 4 minutes. Add the onion and garlic and sauté until the onion is translucent, about 2 to 3 minutes.
• Add the ras el hanout, turmeric, salt and pepper to the pan and cook, stirring occasionally, for another 2 minutes. Transfer mixture to a large bowl and set aside to cool.
• Once the water comes to a boil, add the potatoes and cook until tender, 5 to 10 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer potatoes to another bowl to cool. Let the water continue to boil.
• Prepare the hard-boiled egg: Add 1 egg to the boiling water, reduce the heat to medium and let it cook for 10 minutes. Remove the hard-boiled egg from the water and let cool. Peel the egg and chop it into small pieces.
• To the chicken mixture in the large bowl, add the cooled potatoes, chopped egg, mozzarella, parsley and the remaining 1 uncooked egg. Stir to combine the filling.
• Prepare the rolls: Working with one at a time, place one spring roll wrapper on a flat surface. Add a scant 1/4 cup of the chicken filling in the wrapper in one corner, arranging the filling a 4- to 5-inch log. Starting from the same corner, roll the wrapper twice around the filling. Fold in the sides and continue rolling toward the furthest corner. Brush egg wash on the last corner to seal, then roll until the parcel is fully sealed and forms a tight cylinder.
• Add the vegetable oil to a medium saucepan and heat over medium-high until the oil reaches about 350 degrees. Working in batches, add about 3 rolls to the oil and cook, rotating frequently until golden brown and cooked through, 4 to 5 minutes. (If you prefer to avoid deep frying, you can bake the rolls on a rack-lined sheet pan at 375 degrees until golden brown, about 25 minutes, turning them halfway through.) Place cooked rolls on a paper towel for a few minutes to absorb oil before transferring to a serving platter. Serve warm with fresh lemon wedges to squeeze on top.

DOIGHTS DE FATMA / FATMA'S FINGERS - TUNISIAN SPRING ROLLS

Steps:

• Put the prawns in a bowl with the cilantro, lemon, capers, spice, salt & harissa. Add the ricotta & mix together using your hands or a wooden spoon.
• Mix in the egg & the black pepper.
• Take a sheet of phyllo pastry, fold in half to strengthen. Place a line of filling in the middle of the sheet, then roll up tightly - making sure to tuck the sides over the filling first. You can seal the fingers with a little water - this will stop the oil seeping in & the filling from bubbling out.
• Pour enough sunflower or vegetable oil into a large frying pan to cover the bottom by 1/2". Heat the oil over a medium heat until it is around 180c, then fry the fingers in batches for around 8-10 minutes or until they are crisp & deep golden, you will need to turn them so that they cook evenly.
• Remove the fingers wfrom the oil with a slotted spoon & stand upright on plenty of kitchen paper to drain. Serve warm. (if you do want to make these slightly ahead of time, you can fry them & reheat in the oven but take care not to leave them too long as the prawns will over cook & become rubbery.

MAUREEN ABOOD'S EGGPLANT WITH LAMB, TOMATO AND PINE NUTS

Steps:

• Heat broiler and line a baking sheet with foil or parchment.
• Brush both sides of eggplant slices with 2 tablespoons olive oil and sprinkle with 1 teaspoon salt. Arrange slices on prepared baking sheet and broil in batches until they are deep mahogany brown, turning once halfway through, 5 to 7 minutes per side.
• Adjust the oven to 375 degrees with rack positioned in the center.
• In a large skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of the remaining olive oil over medium heat. Add onion and sauté until translucent, but not browned, stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add ground lamb or beef, stirring frequently and breaking up meat into very small pieces with the side of a metal spoon. Season with remaining teaspoon salt, cinnamon and pepper. Sauté until meat is just cooked through. Taste and add more salt or pepper, or both, as needed.
• In a medium skillet, melt butter over medium heat. Add pine nuts and reduce heat to medium-low. Stir nuts to coat them with butter and continue stirring constantly until nuts are golden brown, 2 to 4 minutes. Keep a close watch over the nuts; they can burn quickly once they begin to brown. Transfer nuts to a bowl while still warm and salt them lightly.
• Coat a 13-by-9-by-2-inch baking dish with remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Spread 1/2 cup of tomato sauce in the bottom of the dish. Lay 1/3 of the eggplant slices in a single layer over the sauce, covering as much surface area of the bottom of the dish as possible. Spoon half the meat evenly over eggplant. Pour 1/3 of the remaining tomato sauce evenly over meat. Sprinkle with 1/3 of the pine nuts. Layer again with eggplant, meat, tomato sauce and pine nuts. Finish with a layer of eggplant and cover with more tomato sauce, sprinkling top with pine nuts.
• Pour 1 cup warm water around the perimeter of the baking dish. (Sauce will thicken as it bakes.) Cover pan with foil and bake for 90 minutes. Remove foil and top eggplant evenly with mozzarella. Bake for 15 minutes longer, uncovered, or until the cheese is bubbling and golden. Serve eggplant warm, over rice.

PISTACHIO BAKLAVA

Steps:

• In a food processor, pulse the pistachios until coarsely ground (or you can chop them by hand until very finely chopped). Don't overprocess the nuts. You want to maintain some texture.
• Clarify the butter by melting it over low heat, then letting it cook until the foam rises to the top and the milk solids fall to the bottom of the pan. This will take about 5 to 15 minutes depending upon how high your heat is, but don't rush it or the butter could burn.
• Skim foam off the top of the melted butter. Line a fine-mesh sieve with a piece of cheesecloth, place it over a bowl and pour the melted butter through.
• Heat oven to 400 degrees and brush the inside of a 9-by-13-inch baking pan with a little of the clarified butter.
• Prepare the phyllo dough by trimming the stack of it with scissors to fit the bottom of your baking dish. Packages of phyllo come in different sizes; some won't need any trimming, some may need an inch or two cut off a side, and some may need to be cut in half crosswise. Cover phyllo layers with a lightly damp kitchen towel, and keep covered.
• Place 1 piece of phyllo on the bottom of the baking pan; brush lightly with clarified butter. Layer phyllo sheets on top, brushing each sheet with butter as you go, until half the phyllo is used.
• Spread pistachios on phyllo in an even layer, then layer with remaining phyllo, brushing each sheet with butter as you go (rewarm butter if necessary).
• Cut the pastry into 36 pieces, using clean up-and-down strokes and rotating the pan if necessary. Make sure to cut all the way through to bottom of pan. Pour any remaining butter evenly over pan.
• Bake baklava until the top is golden brown, and the lower phyllo layers beneath the pistachios are thoroughly baked through. To test this, use a knife to lift up a corner of one of the pastry rectangles from the center of the pan so you can peek at the bottom layers. Start checking after 40 minutes, but it could take an hour or even 1 hour 10 minutes. If the top starts to get too brown before the pastry is cooked through, lay a piece of foil over the top.
• Meanwhile, prepare sugar syrup: In a medium pot, combine sugar with 1 2/3 cups/400 milliliters water. Bring to a boil, then let simmer for 10 minutes, until slightly thickened. Stir in lemon juice.
• When the baklava is baked through, reheat the syrup until it comes to a simmer. Remove pan from oven and place in the sink or on a rimmed baking sheet to catch any drips of syrup. Slowly pour hot sugar syrup over the pastry; it will bubble up and some may overflow. When the syrup stops bubbling, move pan to wire rack to cool completely. Serve at room temperature.

TUNISIAN SHAKSHUKA WITH SHRIMP

Steps:

• Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large cast-iron skillet or heavy pan over medium. Add 1 teaspoon garlic and sauté until tender, about 1 minute. Add shrimp to pan, season with salt and pepper and sauté until shrimp turns pink all over, 4 to 5 minutes, then set aside.
• In the same pan, add the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil, the onion and the rest of the garlic. Season with salt and pepper. Cook the onion and garlic, stirring frequently, until onion becomes translucent, about 3 minutes. Add the tomatoes, bell pepper, tomato paste and harissa to the pan and sauté for 5 minutes.
• Add the ras el hanout, caraway, coriander and 1/2 cup warm water and stir to thoroughly combine. Reduce the heat to low, cover and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes.
• Set the shrimp on top of the sauce, spacing evenly apart, and using a spoon, make shallow craters in the tomato mixture for the eggs. Crack the eggs into the craters, cover, and let simmer 6 to 8 minutes, or until eggs are cooked to your liking. Serve with warm baguette, and olives, pickled peppers and cornichons, if desired.

YVONNE MAFFEI'S DATES WITH CREAM AND CHOPPED PISTACHIOS

Steps:

• Rinse and dry the dates. Make a clean cut along the side of each date to open, and remove the pit.
• Stuff each date with 2 whole almonds and lightly pinch closed. (The recipe can be made up to this point up to 2 days in advance. Store in an airtight container.)
• When ready to serve, arrange dates cut sides up on a plate or platter. Drizzle on the crème fraîche, making a dollop on each date. Sprinkle on the citrus zest, then the chopped pistachios. Serve immediately, as finger food or on plates with a small fork and knife.

ROASTED EGGPLANT WITH SPICED CHICKPEAS

Steps:

• Heat oven to 450 degrees and lightly oil two baking sheets (or use nonstick). Combine the 1/4 cup olive oil and the peanut oil. Brush eggplant slices on both sides with the mixture, then place on pans. Roast, flipping once, until golden brown on both sides, about 15 minutes total. Set aside.
• In a large skillet, heat the 2 tablespoons olive oil over medium heat. Add onion and garlic, and cook, stirring, until soft and translucent, about 10 minutes. Add tomatoes, spices and molasses, and bring to a simmer. Add sugar, salt and pepper to taste. (The amount of sugar will depend on the tomatoes' sweetness; there should be a hint of sweetness in the mixture.) Simmer until slightly thickened, about 15 minutes. Add chickpeas and cook until thick, 5 to 10 minutes more. Stir in half the pine nuts and set aside.
• To serve, place a slice of eggplant on a platter and spoon tomato-chickpea mixture onto the wide end of the slice. Fold the narrower end of the slice over to cover the filling and place a mint leaf on top. Repeat with remaining slices and garnish with remaining pine nuts. Serve cold or at room temperature, topping each piece with a dollop of yogurt, if using.

KEEMA (SPICED GROUND MEAT)

Steps:

• In a large, heavy skillet, heat the oil over medium. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until evenly browned and caramelized, 25 to 30 minutes.
• Add the garlic, ginger and green chile to a food processor, and pulse until finely chopped. Add the tomatoes, caramelized onions and any oil from the skillet, and process again until finely chopped. Return the mixture to the skillet and bring to a simmer over medium-low heat.
• Stir in the ground beef. Sprinkle with the chile powder and 1 teaspoon salt, and cook, stirring occasionally to break up any clumps of meat, until most of the liquid has evaporated and the fat has floated up to the surface, about 30 minutes.
• Taste and adjust the salt, then stir in half the fresh herbs. Sprinkle with garam masala and remaining herbs and serve.

MAST-O KHIAR (PERSIAN CUCUMBER AND HERB YOGURT)

Steps:

• In a small bowl, submerge the raisins in boiling water to plump for 10 minutes, then drain well.
• Remove alternating stripes of peel on cucumbers and trim ends. Dice cucumbers into 1/4-inch pieces and place in a large bowl with raisins, yogurt, fresh herbs, garlic, 3/4 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper and, if using, half the rose petals. Using your fingers to break up any large pieces, gently grind the dried mint and dried dill into the bowl. Stir to combine and adjust seasoning with salt as needed.
• Just before serving, stir in the walnuts and transfer to serving bowl. Garnish with remaining rose petals, if using. Cover and refrigerate leftovers for up to 3 days.

KEEMA SAMOSAS (CHICKEN SAMOSAS)

Steps:

• Make the filling: Heat oil in a large nonstick pan over medium. Add the ginger and garlic, and cook, stirring, until the raw smell dissipates, about 2 minutes. Add the onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until translucent, 5 to 7 minutes.
• Add the cumin seeds, ground chile, coriander and turmeric. Cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant but not burned, 30 seconds to 1 minute. Add the chicken, salt and vinegar, and raise the heat to medium-high. Cook, stirring to break up the chicken, until all the liquid has evaporated and the chicken is cooked through but still retains some moisture, 10 to 15 minutes.
• Add the garam masala and fresh chiles, and stir for 30 seconds to 1 minute. Turn off the heat and add the cilantro. Stir until well mixed and let stand until cool enough to handle.
• Meanwhile, prepare to assemble the samosas: Line a sheet pan with wax paper or plastic wrap. Stack the wrappers and cut evenly in thirds to create 42 rectangles, 8 inches long by 2 2/3 inches wide. If your wrappers are not 8 inches square, aim to cut 42 rectangular shapes in a 3-to-1 ratio. Place a damp clean cloth over your pastry sheets to prevent them from drying. Place the flour in a small bowl and add enough water (about 3 tablespoons) to make a smooth paste that's the consistency of craft glue.
• Take a pastry rectangle and place it with the long side facing you on a flat work surface. Replace the damp cloth over the remaining pastry sheets to keep them from drying out. Take the bottom-right corner of the rectangle and fold it over the top, with the short side extending 1 to 2 inches past the top. The overlapping pastry at the bottom right of the sheet will form an equilateral triangle with sides that are about 3 inches long. This triangle will be the final shape and size of the samosa. Fold the triangle so its right outer edge is aligned with the horizontal bottom edge of the sheet. There should now be a triangular pocket with two flaps sticking out to the left. Pick up the pocket so it is open and upright like a cone. Fill the cone with 2 teaspoons of the filling. Using the back of a small spoon, spread the flour paste in a thin layer over the remaining strip of pastry. Fold it over the stuffed triangle to seal the samosa. If the corners of the samosa have any gaps, fill them with the flour paste and pinch them to seal. Repeat with the remaining filling and rectangles (you may have leftover wrappers) and lay on the lined sheet pan, spacing apart. They can be fried or baked right away, or frozen on the pan until firm, then sealed in an airtight container or freezer bag. They can be frozen for up to 2 months before frying and go straight into the hot oil from the freezer.
• To fry the samosas, fill a frying pan with oil to a depth of 1/2 inch. Heat the oil over medium-high until it ripples. Add enough samosas to fit without overlapping and shallow-fry until golden brown, 1 to 3 minutes per side (longer, if frying directly from the freezer). Transfer to a cooling rack or plate lined with a paper towel to prevent them from getting soggy. Repeat with the remaining samosas, replenishing and reheating the oil between batches.
• To bake the samosas, heat oven to 400 degrees. Line a 1-inch-deep sheet pan with foil and add a thin layer of oil to the pan (about 1/4 inch). Coat the samosas with the oil in the sheet pan and arrange them on the pan in a single layer in rows. Bake, turning once halfway through, until evenly golden brown, 6 to 8 minutes per side. Transfer to a cooling rack or plate lined with a paper towel to prevent them from getting soggy.
• Serve hot or warm with the mint chutney for dipping.