Carrots with Basil

1 bag of baby carrots
1 T of dates honey
1 T of olive oil
Dry basil

1. Turn the slow cooker to High
2. Place the olive oil.
3. Then the carrots.
4. Place the dates honey on the carrots.
5. Coat the carrots with the olive oil and the dates honey.
6. Sprinkle the mixture with dry basil.

Slow cook until ready.

Blue and Red Berries with Dry Mint

A perfectly healthy dessert. Mix the blueberries and raspberries and add a sprinkle of dry mint. That's it!

Bi-Meat Loaf

Minced beef
A small amount of ground pork
Worcestershire sauce
3 T of ketchup
2 T of Barbecue sauce
1 egg
Small amount of bread, cut in small pieces
Finely chopped onions
Butter

1. Grease the baking dish with butter
2. Mix them all together and form into something that resembles a meat loaf.
3. Bake until done

Quick, tasty and easy!

Confession: I don't buy ketchup at all. I use the sachets they give out at fast food restaurants.

Nile Perch with Provence Herbs

It was the first time Mark and I tried Nile Perch for dinner. As I was preparing the fish, I realized I ran out of Rosemary! No! So, I substituted Provence Herbs instead. It saved the evening!

Nile perch
Provence herbs
Salt, crushed pepper and oregano
Thinly sliced onions
Fresh lemon
Butter

1. Grease the oven dish with butter
2. Layer the dish with thinly sliced onions
3. Drizzle lemon on the Nile perch, followed by the Provence herbs, Salt, crushed pepper and oregano
4. Place the fish on the dish with onions underneath the fish
5. Bake until done

Observation: For fresh water fish, I prefer to use fresh lemon instead of lemon salt. Typically, fresh water fish taste delicate and I love the natural lemon juice to lift up the essence of the fish.

Conclusion: The fish is tasty and not fishy. It's cod-like consistency held itself while baking.

Ginger Salmon

This tasty recipe also neutralizes the fishy odor of salmon in the kitchen. A negligible, side benefit.

Salmon fillet
Rosemary
Finely sliced ginger
Crushed Pepper
Lemon Salt
Butter

1. Preheat oven
2. Grease the pan with butter
3. Cut some slivers in the salmon steak and insert the ginger slices. Do not get carried away.
4. Sprinkle the lemon salt, crushed pepper and rosemary on the salmon
5. Top with ginger slices
6. Place in the oven and wait until done. Sing a happy tune.

Serve with Yang Chow vegetable fried rice my dear habib prepared.

Lab Test: Chicken Curry with Rice

Chicken Curry with Rice
By Diana Rattray, About.com

Ingredients:

* 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut in 1 inch strips or chunks
* 2 large onions, quartered and sliced thinly
* 3 cloves garlic, minced
* 1 tablespoon soy sauce or Tamari
* 1 teaspoon Madras curry powder
* 2 teaspoons chili powder
* 1 teaspoon turmeric
* 1 teaspoon ground ginger
* 1/3 cup chicken broth or water
* hot cooked rice

Preparation:
Mix all ingredients, except rice, together in the slow cooker/Crock Pot. Cover and cook on low from 6 to 8 hours, or until chicken is tender. Serve over rice.
Crockpot chicken and rice recipe serves 4.

Spice Source

In case you were wondering where I source the exotic-sounding spices in my recipes, wonder no more. I get my spices from the Carrefour Supermarket in Dubai and Abu Dhabi. While Dubai has most of the spices I need, Abu Dhabi has the hard-to-find Provence Herbs and Rosemary. Everytime I visit Dubai, I always take with me a laundry list of spices that are hard to find back home.

Lemon salt – typical in Turkey. It is superb when used in shellfish and seafood. No Sinigang mix in the cupboard? Use lemon salt and your meal will taste just like you used Sinigang mix. Add vegetables like a white onion and tomato. Check my previous recipe for proof.

Rosemary on baked salmon? It brings out the flavor of the fish.

Za’atar – typical in Jordan and Lebanon. Use this spice to flavor your fried egg. Its taste is so unique and the eggs have never been more tasty.

Dry mint – I use this as tea or as a rub for my pork loin.

Dry basil and oregano – A lovely addition to my pasta.

They also have herbs such as Karkade – typical in Egypt. They come from red hibiscus flowers and boiled to make tea. The tea, in a very red color, is used to lower blood pressure. Just put a lot of honey since the tea is tart (think cranberry juice. Tart but filled with nutrients). I bought a small bunch and will experiment with this. I can buy the boxed version ala Twinings but I will try and do it the old fashioned way.