Hashweh, Meat Filling for Kibbe

These days, I'm feeling more and more like my Sitto! How's that you may ask? It's because, in her day, most of her waking hours consisted of preparing three meals a day for the family. Sure, she had many other considerations, like raising 5 children and all that goes with it.

Even now, those three meals are a real challenge in today's modern world. We have become so spoiled with fast foods, take-out, restaurants, etc. It sure seems like we have gone back a century in this whole pandemic. And with that, it's sometimes more challenging to come up with something for supper as we are all experiencing "cabin fever" during these “shelter-in-place”.

As I've mentioned before, look to your freezer and pantry for innovation....like taking a bag of Syrian bread, Khubiz, and topping it with some hummus, either prepared or purchased as a base. Then using a bit of leftover Hashweh or using the simple recipe for Hashweh, Sitto’s meat filling for Kibbe on page 91 of the cookbook, and spread it on top. This traditional meat filling consists of ground lamb, spices, onions, tamarind syrup, Dibis, and pine nuts. It’s an easy recipe and so delicious when you spoon it on top of the hummus slathered bread. I added some sliced green onions for color and crunch.

By the way, the recipe for homemade Hummus is on page 38 if you want to make your own. You’ll marvel at how much better it is than the store-bought variety…and there is quite a variety out there!

No ground lamb? Try this with ground beef, which you are more likely to have on hand. Make a few of these and then cut them like a pizza. Yum!