Lasagna

Lasagna is one of my favorite Italian dishes, but not the Lasagna with tomato sauce, the one with a creamy meaty ragu sauce.  The first time I tried Lasagna with meat sauce was at Angelini Osteria on Beverly Blvd. (One of the best Italian restaurants in LA) IT WAS AMAZING! I learned to make this version of lasagna while working at Terroni Los Angeles during my culinary school internship. I love this recipe and it is so rewarding when you actually take the time to do it, so i hope you guys enjoy this one.

Ingredients

2 Medium size carrots rough chop
1 stalk celery rough chop
1 onion rough chop
1 LB ground beef (80%)
1/2 C heavy cream 
2 tsp salt 
3 Tablespoons EVOO
4 C Chicken stock 
About 12 fresh pasta sheets 8x4"

or 
Dry lasagna sheets 
about 1.5 C grated Parmesan cheese
one container of fresh mozzarella cheese

Procedure

1. pulse the carrot, onion, and celery in a food processor until you reach a fine mince consistency.
2. Sweat the mix in the EVOO on a low to medium heat until well cooked. (about 30 min)
3. add the ground beef and continue to cook until the ground beef begins to color.
4. add the chicken stock and bring to a low simmer.
5. cook until the beef becomes very tender and almost all the liquid is gone.
6. add the salt and the cream and bring to a gentle simmer and cook until the sauce thickens just a bit.
7. set the sauce aside to cool.
8. Now cook the pasta sheets in boiling salted water until they are aldente and still have a little bite to them.
9. once cooked shock them in ice water.
10. now start to layer the lasagna in a small square baking pan. about 8x8"
11. Start with one layer of pasta, then a thin layer of sauce and cover the sauce with grated Parmesan cheese and shredded mozzarella cheese.
12. Rinse and repeat, and at the final layer only top the pasta with Parmesan and Mozzarella, and make sure to fully cover the top layer of pasta withe cheese to ensure that you get a nice cheesy top layer. 

Moroccan Cigars

So if you guys don't already know I am half Moroccan, and I grew up eating a lot of amazing Moroccan food.  One of my favorite things to snack on growing up was Moroccan Cigars.  To this day there is nothing quite like biting into one of these amazingly crispy, beef (or lamb) filled spicy treats.  My mom used to make these for me all the time so when she moved to Israel I had to learn how to make them myself. Traditionally "Cigars" are wrapped in Phyllo dough, but I like to use Egg Roll wrappers instead of Phyllo dough. You can use either or.

Ingredients

1 Lb Ground beef (Preferably 80%)

1 Tablespoon canola oil

1 onion - fine chop

1 teaspoon Turmeric

1/8 teaspoon chili flakes (Pinch)

1/4 teaspoon paprika

1/2 lemon (Juice)

1 C water

about 1 Tablespoon salt

1 pack Egg roll Wrappers

Procedure

1. Sweat the onions in the canola oil until they are translucent.
2. Add the paprika, turmeric, and chili flakes, and cook on medium heat for about 1 minute.
3. Add the ground beef and break it up with a wooden spoon.
4. once the ground beef starts to color add the water and the lemon juice and bring to a simmer.
5. Simmer the mix on a low heat until there is close to no liquid left.
6. season with salt and remove from the heat.
7. Run the mixture through a grinder, or process in a food processor until the mixture becomes very fine.
8. Put the mixture in the refrigerator to cool.
9. Once the mix cools it's time to roll some cigars.
10. place small amount of the mix in a line on the egg roll wrapper like shown in the picture below. Fold each corner over the mix and then roll. dab the end of the wrapper with water so that it will stick. 
11. Make sure the cigars are rolled tight, and that the edges are sealed with a light coat of water before frying.
12. Fry the cigars on a medium heat and enjoy! (If you don't want the cigars to be doughy cut the wrapper after one or two rolls, do not overlap too much)

Delicious Tomato and Basil Bruschetta

I have always loved Tomato Bruschetta. When I was a kid I always looked forward to going to Italian restaurants just so I could get my hands on some fresh Bruschetta.  I never knew how they could make such a simple thing taste so good, I always thought to myself "there must be some secret to making Bruschetta" I have been trying out many different variations of this recipe until I could finally capture that same taste I was so familiar with in my childhood, and I would love to share this easy yet delicious recipe with you.

Ingredients

5-6 Roma tomatoes - Small dice

1/2 red onion - Fine chop

3-4 Garlic cloves - Minced

7-8 Basil leaves - Chopped 

1 Cup Olive oil (Preferably Extra Virgin)

1 Tablespoon Balsamic Vinegar

1 Tablespoon Lemon juice (Fresh)

Kosher Salt To Taste (Aprox. 1/2 TBL)

1 Baguette cut into 1/2" Slices

Freshly Shaved Parmesan cheese to garnish (Optional)

Procedure

1. Preheat your oven to 400°
2. Combine onion, garlic, tomatoes, and a 1/2 cup of the olive oil in a small bowl and set aside.
3. Cut the Baguette into equal size slices and place on a sheet tray. 
4. Brush the remaining Olive oil generously on the baguette slices and season lightly with kosher salt.
5. Put the Baguette slices in the oven to toast for about 5-7 minutes, or until the bread starts to become golden brown around the edges.
6. While the Bread is toasting add the Lemon juice, Balsamic vinegar, Basil, and Salt to the tomato mixture. stir and let sit until the bread is ready.
7. Now that the Bread is done toasting just spoon some of the Tomato mixture onto the slices of bread, garnish, and Enjoy!