I adore PBS cooking shows, don’t you? Christopher Kimball has a new one, Milk Street, that’s just fantastic. I couldn’t wait to get my hands on the book, Christopher Kimball’s Milk Street: The New Home Cooking
. I’ve edited this to the current copy that includes all 4 years! I need this one! 😀
A huge thanks to Milk Street for letting me share their recipes for Israeli Hummus with Spiced Beef Topping and Tabbouleh with you! I was wowed by it! Vegetarian friends, skip the spiced beef topping, and go to your happy place. Omnivores, wait til you try that hummus!
(In my pic, 2/3 of the spiced beef topping is at the bottom of the serving bowl, then the hummus, then the other 1/3. The dish is about the hummus, so I didn’t want that covered up by its topping.)
My review of the book with my pics and thoughts of the dishes I tried is below the recipes.
Israeli Hummus with Spiced Beef Topping
Israeli Hummus (Hummus Masabacha)
Start to finish: 1 hour (15 minutes active), plus soaking
Makes 4 cups
Water
8 ounces (227 grams) dried chickpeas
2 Tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon kosher salt
½ teaspoon baking soda
¾ c sesame tahini, room temperature
3 ½ Tablespoons lemon juice
1 to 2 Tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 Tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
½ teaspoon ground cumin
½ teaspoon paprika
1. In a large bowl, combine 8 cups water, the chickpeas, and 2 Tablespoons of salt. Soak for at least 12 hours.
2. In a stockpot over high, bring another 10 cups of water and the baking soda to a boil. Drain the soaked chickpeas, discarding the soaking water, and add to the pot. Return to a simmer, then reduce heat to medium and cook until the skins are falling off and the chickpeas are very tender, 40 to 50 minutes.
3. Set a mesh strainer over a large bowl and drain the chickpeas into it; reserve ¾ cup of the chickpea cooking water. Let sit for 1 minute to let all liquid drain. Set aside about 2 Tablespoons of the chickpeas, then transfer the rest to a food processor. Add the remaining 1 teaspoon of salt, then process for 3 minutes.
4. Add the tahini. Continue to process until the mixture has lightened and is very smooth, about 1 minute. Use a rubber spatula to scrape the sides and bottom of the processor bowl. With the machine running, and the reserved cooking liquid and the lemon juice. Process until combined. Taste and season with salt.
5. Transfer the hummus to a shallow serving bowl and use a large spoon to make a swirled well in the center. Drizzle with olive oil, then top with the reserved chickpeas, the parsley, cumin, and paprika.
Spiced Beef Topping (Kawarma)
Start to finish: 25 minutes
Makes about 2 cups
½ pound lean ground beef
2 teaspoons sweet paprika
¾ teaspoon kosher salt
½ teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground cumin
½ teaspoon dried oregano
½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 garlic cloves, grated
¾ cup water
½ small yellow onion, chopped
1 Tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
2 Tablespoons tomato paste
2 Tablespoons chopped fresh parsley or mint
1 ½ teaspoons lemon juice
Tahini, to serve
1. In a medium bowl, mix together the beef, paprika, salt, cinnamon, cumin, oregano, cayenne, garlic, and 2 Tablespoons of the water.
2. In a 10-inch skillet over medium-high, add the ground beef mixture, the onion, and oil. Cook until the onion is softened and the beef is no longer pink, 6 to 8 minutes. Stir in the tomato paste and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
3. Add the remaining water and cook, scraping the pan, until the water has evaporated and the mixture sizzles, about 5 minutes. Off heat, stir in the parsley and lemon juice. Salt. Spoon over hummus, then drizzle with tahini.
Lebanese-Style Tabbouleh
Start to finish: 15 minutes / Servings: 4
½ cup boiling water
1/3 cup fine-grain bulgur
1 teaspoon ground sumac (optional)
½ teaspoon ground allspice
Kosher salt and ground black pepper
3 Tablespoons lemon juice (1 to 2 lemons)
1 small shallot, minced (about 2 Tablespoons)
¼ teaspoon white sugar
¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 to 3 small, vine-ripened tomatoes, diced (about 8 ounces)
4 cups lightly packed flat-leaf parsley leaves, well dried then minced
1 cup lightly packed mint leaves, well dried then minced
1 In a medium bowl, combine the water, bulgur, sumac, if using, allspice, and ½ teaspoon of salt. Cover with plastic wrap and let sit for 10 minutes. In a large bowl, stir together the lemon juice, shallot, sugar, and ¾ teaspoon of salt; let sit for 10 minutes.
2 Whisk the oil into the lemon juice mixture. Fluff the bulgur with a fork and add to the dressing along with the tomatoes; mix well. Fold the parsley and mint into the tabbouleh, then taste and season with salt, pepper, and additional sumac, if needed. Can be refrigerated for up to 24 hours.
My review of the book….
Christopher Kimball’s Milk Street: The New Home Cooking
by Christopher Kimball
Edition: Hardcover
This book is filled with delicious, homey, globally inspired recipes. Once you have all the ingredients prepped and in place, the dishes are very easy and relaxing to pull together, so I turned up my kitchen radio. I was surprised that there’s an uncharacteristically large amount of chiles and garlic in for Christopher Kimball, but nothing we’ve tried yet has been spicy enough to set off my youngest’s chile alarm. Fun, tasty book. Recommend.
Pictured below:
1) Chicken Tagine with Apricots, Butternut Squash, and Spinach – p 184. Very fragrant and flavorful dish. There’s a ton of produce in this one. It calls for 2 cups of butternut squash. Mine was small and produced about 3 cups. I didn’t want the extra cup to go into the refrigerator and be forgotten, so it all went in.
2-3) Spicy Stir Fried Cumin Beef – p 128. Delicious. It’s not as spicy as it looks. The mild spiciness takes a back seat to the cumin, garlic, onions, sesame, soy, rice vinegar, and cilantro. It’s supposed to be served over steamed white rice, but I was in a mashed potato mood. Delicious stuff.
4-5) Curry Braised Eggs – p 28. Yum. We’ve always loved Eggs in Purgatory and Shakshuka. This is another fantastic one.
6) Shrimp in Chipotle Sauce – p 163. Super yummy and easy peasy.
7) Japanese Fried Chicken – p 150 and Sweet-and-Spicy Ginger Green Beans – p 82. We loved this dinner, especially my teenagers. It’s got a lovely crisp, delicate coating. The recipe instructs to fry at 375. I have a deep fryer, and it was browning too quickly at that temp. I lowered it to 350, and it worked perfectly.
8) Turkish Meatballs with Lime-Yogurt Sauce – p 136. It’s ground beef, but my youngest was sure it was lamb because of the spice profile.
9) Caramel Oranges – p 222. This dessert is so bright and fresh, and positively lickable. The recipe makes no mention of the cream or pistachios, but they were in the photo, so I added them in, too.
10) Brown Butter Cardamom Banana Bread – p 203. Great banana bread. The whisper of sugar on top gives it a lovely finish.
11-13) Israeli Hummus with Spiced Beef Topping – p 140 & 140 and Lebenese-Style Tabbouleh – p 57. Darn good tabbouleh and hummus. I’d never seen the spiced meat added on as a topping, and it’s fantastic. I put 2/3 of it underneath, or you wouldn’t see the hummus, and that’s the main player here. I’m crushing a clove or two of garlic into the hummus next time.
Some others I have flagged to try: Baked Persian Herb Omelet – p 27 * Spanish-Style Eggs with Garlicky Crumbs and Chorizo – p 31 *Georgian Chicken Soup – p 45 * Spanish Garlic Soup – p 51 * Kale Salad with Smoked Almonds and Picada Crumbs – p 63 * Skillet-Charred Brussels Sprouts with Garlic, Anchovy, and Chili – p 70 * Sweet Potato Gratin with Vanilla Bean and Bay Leaves – p 78 * Herb and Pistachio Couscous – p 99 * Punjabi Chickpeas with Potato – p 104 * Cuban Style Pork Shoulder with Mojo Sauce – p 156 * Thai Beef Salad – p 160 * Vietnamese Caramel Fish – p 171 * Caramelized Pork with Orange and Sage – p 176 * Potato and Herb Focaccia – p 196 * Tahini Swirl Brownies – p 207 * Rye on Rye Sticky Toffee Pudding – p 237
Get the book with my Amazon affiliate link! Thanks!
Christopher Kimball’s Milk Street: The New Home Cooking
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Very tasty recipe 🙂
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Thank you, Mistimaan! 😀
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[…] from Christopher Kimball’s Milk Street: The New Home Cooking. I have that recipe posted here. Roasting garlic is easy peasy. Might as well do a few since you’re firing up the oven. 🙂 Just […]
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Thank you for following my blog!
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Geez, Jennifer, I’m almost ready to move to the Middle East, thanks to your recipes! Great photos.
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Ha! Thanks TMH! 😀
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All these dishes look amazing!
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Thank you so much, InspiresN! 😀
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I have been eating my way thru the latest issue of Milk Street Magazine. Soooo good!
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Oooh! I’m jealous! I don’t have the subscription yet. Cross your fingers for me for mama’s day! 😀
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waoo…. its a great delicious recipes i must try this…. thanks for sharing
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Thanks Mehboob Alam! I hope you love them!
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I really loved this cookbook. It definitely corresponded to my picture of what the up to date American home cook does and gave me lots of ideas.
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Me too! I always love the guests they have on their show. I can’t wait to check out their new book!
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[…] Christopher Kimball, Milk Street: The New Home Cooking. Earlier this year I was listening to the radio show occasionally on Sunday mornings, so I decided to get this at some point. I used to have an idea of what my own “home cooking” would be like if I ever became someone who had to put meals on a table according to a schedule, and this book really conforms to it: American food with a twist, or rather with the incorporation of some of the central ingredients and foods that have become standard fare since the 1970s. (The paradox is, of course, that as of July I do put meals on a table according to schedule, and I cook exactly the way my mother did in the 70s. Ah well.) But this cookbook conforms really well to my vision of myself as a home, cook, even if not to the reality. For a better, more detailed review, check out Jennifer Guerrero’s blog here. […]
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OMG these recipes are amazing! Another great cookbook!
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It really is. It’s easily in my top 10! I never would have thought of adding a meat topping to hummus and it’s just so good!
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I am constantly thought about this, thanks for posting.
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[…] Milk Street’s Israeli Hummus […]
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[…] (My review of that one (with recipes for Israeli Hummus with Spiced Beef Topping and Lebanese-Style Tabbouleh!) here. […]
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[…] Milk Street’s recipes for Israeli Hummus with Spiced Beef Topping and Lebanese-Style Tabbouleh […]
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