We had a little taste of the Middle East this past weekend. Ro-Ri San took us to the Midtown Global Market in downtown Minneapolis. The market has fresh and prepared foods, restaurants, and arts and crafts from around the world. Our visit was centered around the Holy Land Grocery & Deli featuring Middle Eastern and Mediterranean foods. The setting is like a bazaar with groceries spilling onto the aisles.
It was a busy place with lots to see and taste. There was a sampler spread of pitas, flat breads, feta, hummus, olives, and dates throughout the bazaar. The place was filled with the aroma of kebabs and grilled meats. It seemed like a world away from Minneapolis…..
We had a wonderful lunch at the Holy Land Deli. Some of the delicious food we ate were falafel, moussaka, kebabs and tabouleh, chicken gyro, roast chicken, and hummus. The falafel was excellent – crunchy on the outside with a soft inside. The vegetable moussaka was more like a stew but it was really good.
For dessert, we had kataifi and baklava. They tasted very similar to each other. Kataifi is made with a form of shredded phyllo pastry. Both have the same filling of walnuts, almonds, pistachios, and honey…..very sweet but delicious.
After lunch, I did some grocery shopping. I saw a great looking chunk of lamb shoulder roast and decided to change my Midwest Easter dinner plans for a Middle Eastern dinner instead. I immediately thought up a menu for the meal…
Sumac and Rosemary Crusted Lamb
Saffron Pistachio Pilaf
Vegetable Moussaka…..post to follow
Spring Greens, Strawberry, and Feta Salad…..post to follow
Some of the other ingredients and foods I bought were sumac, pita, Deglet Noor dates, and Greek feta.
The first time I ever tasted sumac was at an Iranian restaurant. It has a slightly tart and lemony flavor and is great sprinkled on roasted meats. The pita breads are really fresh as they are made here in Minneapolis. Deglet Noor dates have a caramel color and is medium firm. I like it as it is not as sweet as other soft dates. It is really good as a snack and for baking. There were 4 kinds of feta being sold – Greek, Egyptian, Bulgarian, and French. They all looked very fresh and I had a hard time trying to decide which to buy. In the end, I went with the Greek feta. I will try the others in my next visit.
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Two other ingredients that are often used in Middle Eastern cuisine are saffron and pistachios. I combined both ingredients to make this fragrant and fluffy pilaf garnished with pistachios. The pilaf had a hint of sweetness from the golden raisins.
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Enjoy…..and have a wonderful day! 😎
denise @ quickies on the dinner table says
April 6, 2010 at 1:04 pmWhat a spread! I would go nuts in such a place LOL Hubby knows better than to take me to a food bazaar!
The roast looks fantastic and I can see that your pilaf is cooked to perfection – so fluffy and grainy! Been on the lookout for sumac but never seen it.
I do find most Mid Eastern desserts extremely sweet but I love the cookies stuffed with pistachios or dates. Great post – looking forward to the next instalment 🙂
Tina says
April 6, 2010 at 1:37 pmLooks delicious….Nice fotos too…
5 Star Foodie says
April 6, 2010 at 3:56 pmThe lamb with Sumac and Rosemary crust sounds amazing and what a wonderful rice pilaf! Yum!
Sarah Naveen says
April 6, 2010 at 4:35 pmGreat clicks and oh My Lamb looks awesome!!!!! a fully satisfying meal..loved it.
Cooking Rookie says
April 6, 2010 at 8:47 pmYour lamb looks so juicy and delicious. Every time I place meat in an oven it turns out too dry. Don't know what I'm doing wrong 🙁
Also love the idea of adding pistachios to the rice 🙂
Kamalika says
April 6, 2010 at 9:33 pmmouthwatering and welcoming meal…u must had a real fun and grt food….
bunkycooks says
April 6, 2010 at 10:34 pmI love the way you prepared the lamb. I have never used sumac. It looks wonderful!
Yasmeen says
April 6, 2010 at 10:34 pmWhat an appetizing platter of food,the rosemary sure must add lovely aroma to the meat 😀
tigerfish says
April 6, 2010 at 11:53 pmI hardly have Middle Eastern food, just once or twice, maybe? I love the idea of pistachio in the pilaf rice. The lamb looks huge – no wonder such a long time to cook it :O
Rumana Rawat says
April 7, 2010 at 12:38 amThis is looking awesome… love it, i wish i would have been there to help u in eating, hehehehehe:-)
Cinnamon-Girl says
April 7, 2010 at 12:54 amAll of the market food looks so delicious! So does your crusted lamb! And the rice – such delicious flavors. You made a wonderful feast!
Anna says
April 7, 2010 at 3:17 amIt looks awesome, all the flavors that I like and the pistachios pilaf must be yummy.
Biren says
April 7, 2010 at 3:35 amdenise@quickies on the dinner table – It was a fun outing. The food was really good and we ate too much. Had to skip dinner 😀
If you can find a middle eastern store in Singapore, they will probably have sumac.
The baklava was sweet but a small slice is okay, right? Thanks for the compliments.
Tina – Thanks!
5 Star Foodie – My boys really enjoyed the lamb and the pilaf 🙂
Sarah Naveen – It was very satisfying and very filling 🙂
Cooking Rookie – I used to cook my meat to death too. It takes a little practise but eventually you get the hang of it. As I rarely cook a chunk of lamb like this, I had to check the internal temperature two or three times to get it just right.
Kamalika – Thanks and we did have fun at the market 🙂
bunkycooks – Sumac has subtle lemony flavor and is really nice on roasted meats and vegetables.
Yasmeen – Thanks for visiting and for the nice comments 🙂
tigerfish – We don't eat Middle Eastern food that often too, but it is really tasty. Love their pilafs and some of their vegetarian dishes. Actually, that was the smallest piece of lamb being sold there.
Rumana Rawat – Thanks! Would love to share it with you 🙂
Cinnamon-Girl – Thank you and yes, the market foods were delicious.
Anna – Thanks for visiting and for your nice comments 🙂
Kathleen says
April 7, 2010 at 5:06 amThis looks like an unbelievable meal. I LOVE everything!!!
Jay says
April 7, 2010 at 6:42 amHy Biren,
Chanced upon ur blog, while blog hopping..wonderful n healthy collection of recipes u have…glad to follow u…do drop in at my blog sometime…
Mother Rimmy says
April 7, 2010 at 2:06 pmWhat a fun shopping experience! I've never cooked with sumac. What does it taste like? The whole meal looks fantastic!
MaryMoh says
April 7, 2010 at 5:01 pmEverything looks awesome to me….so much good food….mmm. I wish I was there!
Cajun Chef Ryan says
April 7, 2010 at 5:41 pmWow! Does this look like some good eats! Saved this one for future reference when I can eat meat again.
Bon appetite!
CCR
=:~)
Lea Ann says
April 7, 2010 at 6:29 pmWow, this deserves a standing ovation! Thanks for stopping by my blog, I've subscribed to yours and look forward to more from your kitchen.
Biren says
April 8, 2010 at 7:21 pmKathleen – Thanks! I had fun preparing the meal.
Jay – Thanks for visiting, following and the kind comments 🙂
Mother Rimmy – It was fun and we really enjoyed it. Will visit again as there are so many types of cuisine there to explore. Sumac has a lemony taste and is nice sprinkled on roasted meats.
MaryMoh – There was lots of food and we all ate too much 🙂
Cajun Chef Ryan – It was all very tasty. All the best with the diet.
Lea Ann – Thank you. I enjoyed visiting your blog and hope to continue sharing recipes with you 🙂