Weekly Menu Planning - July 2022

[Saregama]

If you want to read about our HO Egyptian group dinner it’s reported here:

NYC Group Dinner at Mombar w/Dean & Kay 7/27

Dean & his wife Kay have been visiting NYC this week (as his many postings attest to) & he had asked to go to a Greek or Egyptian restaurant while here. I know him from when he owned 2 great restaurants in D.C. where I had had some very memorable (in a good way) meals, so I was happy to see him & Kay again in my habitat. I asked if he was interested in going to Mombar, a one man show on Steinway St where, for many years, I have known the owner/chef & have been part of group dinners thru CH and…

I did end up baking both Basbousa (Egyptian semolina cake) and brownies because there wasn’t supposed to be dessert course — but then there was!

Here’s the baking write-up on Basbousa:

What are you baking? July 2022

Looked through a bunch of Basbousa recipes to bake a little one for our HO Egyptian group dinner last night. I was really skeptical about this Egyptian semolina cake. There is an Indian semolina dessert with virtually identical ingredients (rava no sheero / suji ka halwa) - semolina is lightly roasted with ghee (or oil), then sugar, water or milk is added, which the semolina absorbs and fluffs up. Finally, flavorings are added (cardamom, saffron, nuts). This is eaten as with a spoon, like a fi…