Egyptian Cooking

Main Course

Kushari -Lentils, rice, and macaroni mixture

1 cup brown lentils

1 cup rice

1/8 Kg macaroni

2 large onions, chopped

2 cups tablespoons oil

2 cups tomato sauce

hot chili, salt

Cook lentils in saltet water until tender.Strain.Cook rice in salted water until tender. Strain. Cook macaroni,preferably the small, roundvariety, strain rinse and strai again.

Place these three ingredients in a cooking pot. Fry  onion to a rich brown, then remove the onions onto absorbent paper and strain the oil into lentil mixture. Return the pot to the flame andcook for 7 - 10 minutes, tossing often to prevent sticking.

Serve by topping each individual plate with tomato sauce and fried onions.Sprinkle with hor chili

Dim'a misabbika - Tomato sauce, stewed

2 cups tomato juice

1 - 2 onions chopped very finely

5 - 7 garlic cloves, crushed

1 teaspoon vinegar

cooking oil, salt, and pepper

Saute onions until soft, then add garlic and fry to a pale brown. Add tomato juice and simmer for 15 - 20 minutes, until sauce is cooked and become dark. Add vinegar and seasoning and cook for 2 - 3 minutes longer

Desserts and Sweets

khoshaf 'ar' 'asali - Pumpkin pudding

1/4 kg sugar

1/4 kg raisins, grated coconut, almonds, hazelnuts,etc,combined

Chop pumpkin roughly and allow to stew i its own juice over low flame, toosing at first, then stir it very gently from time to time to keep it from sticking to bottom of the pot. When the pumpkin is very soft, tilt the pot to drain as much of the juice as possible. Add the sugar and return to very low flame, until all sugar is dissolved. Let cool, then stir in the any or all of the remaining ingredients

Saniyit 'ar' 'asali - Baked pumpkin pie

1/4 kg sugar

1 tablespoon raisins

1 tablespoon roasted , halved almonds

1 cup sweet white sauce

1 egg (optinal)

Cook pumpkin pie.Mash to a smooth pulp, pour into baking pan, abd sprinkle evently with raisins and almonds. Cover with thin layer of sweet white sauce. The pumpkin must be twice as thick as the covering sauce.Beat egg and pour it over the sauce (optinal).Bake in  center of preheated oven , till the pie bubbles or begin to boil, then place it under grill until the top turns golden.

Kreema li-l-hilw - Sweet white sauce

1 cup milk

1/2 teaspoon  cornflour

1 teaspoon sugar

1 teaspoon rosewater (optional)

Stir cornflour into a half cup of milk.Dissolve sugar in the rest of the milk and bring to boil. Add cornflour, redure heat, and cook -stirring from time to time - until it resembles thin custard. Turn off flame and add rosewater.