Fried Eggplant with Yogurt (Mfassah’)
Very thick slices of deep-fried eggplant, contrasting between a crisp surface and a soft heart, are soaked in fresh, cold laban (yogurt) with a hint of garlic. Fried goes refreshing!
Wilted Greens with Fried Onions (Hendbeh b Zeit)
Hendbeh b zeit is a mezze table must! Traditionally, the bitter, dark green leaves of wild dandelion are required. But substitutes are easy: Kale or Swiss chard is as good as dandelion, or try any kind of dark, bitter greens. Just follow the recipe!
White Butter Bean Stew (Yakhnet Fassolia Baida Arrida)
Fassolia baida arrida—big, flat, white butter beans—are considered the fanciest beans. Every good garden must have at least one plant, which will grow fast and big, like a vine, and produce large, flat, tender green pods that hold the flat white jewel-like beans.
White Bean Salad (Fassolia Aa’rida Moutabale)
Tender fassolia aa’rida is a delicacy that needs short cooking over a low fire, and gives plump, pearl white, melting beans, that are best served warm with a drizzle of lemon and olive oil . . . they are not called butter beans for nothing!