The screen to our front door is on a metal frame, and it has gradually been ripping off for several months. Mostly this is because little kids keep pulling and pushing on it. (Why do I keep these annoying kids around anyway?) Oh, this is why:
Because they’re ADORABLE. Look, she made it! What kind of mom am I that I grabbed my camera instead of helping my screaming baby who’s stuck upside down in a broken screen? She made it by herself while I snapped photos. This isn’t cruel and unusual parenting, it’s allowing my kids to solve their own problems, right? This is good for her independence, right?? (I learned at our summer block party this year that one of my neighbors down the street works at CPS, and I was like MENTAL NOTE, don’t let her come over when I’m doing photo shoots. It’s like Lord of the Flies over here. Yesterday I found the baby sitting in the freezer. Our freezer is a pullout below the fridge, and she just helped herself to some frozen berries, no problem. See, they can totally fend for themselves.)
Raise your hand if you’ve ever tried Lebanese food? Syrian food? Anything Middle Eastern?? For some reason dishes from these regions haven’t taken off in recent years, the way that Thai and Indian food has, for example. But mark my words: I think Middle Eastern cuisine will become trendy and much easier to find over the next few decades. It is just so GOOD.
Today’s recipe is Lebanese, and it’s from my friend Liz’s new cookbook, Food From Our Ancestors: The Ultimate Syrian Sunday Dinner. Liz blogs over at The Lemon Bowl, and I’ve been following her for a long time! She has so many great HEALTHY recipes. Everything is so fresh. Liz is Syrian, and she gathered up some of her family’s favorites and put them all together in an e-Cookbook. (That’s like a cookbook that you can access on a device, not an actual book.) You can buy it here for $3.99, or you can buy the ebook bundle here for $12.99, which includes 3 other cookbooks.
Now about this recipe. Have you ever tried my brother-in-law’s family’s recipe for Traditional Tejano Carne Guisada? It’s braised beef meant for tacos and it’s amazing. It’s a huge family favorite. I was delighted when I read through Liz’s recipe to realize that hers is basically identical, it just uses different spices (Oh and adds green beans, of course). Brown the beef with onion, add spices and tomato sauce, cook on low for a few hours. The result is the most tender, melt-in-your-mouth, packed-with-flavor beef of your life.
I love these prepped green beans they have in the produce section! The recipe calls for a full tablespoon of cinnamon, which sounds weird to us Americans. We take our cinnamon in swirly rolls with icing on top, thank you very much. But I’m here to tell you that we’ve underestimated poor cinnamon. It doesn’t have to be sweet; cinnamon has savory notes that we often ignore. There is no sugar in this recipe, and I promise, it doesn’t feel like you’re eating a Braised Beef Cinnamon Toast. It tastes deliciously earthy, warm, and aromatic. If you are reading this first thing in the morning, check out my Instagram stories to watch me make it!
I tested both a stovetop and slow cooker version of this recipe. The slow cooker version would be perfect for Halloween night! Some stick-to-your-ribs type food so that you don’t eat as much candy? Maybe?? Facebook | Pinterest | Instagram | Twitter One Year Ago: Apple Custard Pie with Cinnamon Streusel Two years ago: Easy Queso Dip Potato Soup Six years ago: Halloween Cheesecake Parfaits Here are some other dishes you are guaranteed to love! Traditional Tejano Carne Guisada (Braised Beef for Tacos) « this is a huge family favorite. It’s VERY similar to today’s recipe!
Beef Barley Soup « bring on the braised beef recipes. This one’s KILLER.
Asian Seared Chicken with Stir-Fried Green Beans
More Lebanese Lubee recipes from other blogs! Lebanese Green Beans (Lubee) from a Cedar Spoon Lebanese Green Beans from The Orgasmic Chef Lebanese Green Beans and Lamb from Genius Kitchen
