Persian Eggplant Dip (Kashke Bademjan)

Persian food has always been one of my favorite cuisines. Over the years I have tried a handful of recipes, like Jujeh Kabobs and Persian Barley Soup and they are always delicious. I decided to try this recipe after having a handful of eggplants at home and needing to use them. I loved this dip and it was a hit with everyone who tried it. I simplified the original recipe so the ingredients listed are easier to find.

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Rice with Fava Beans and Dill (Baghali Polo)

I was looking for a quick and easy side dish recipe to make for dinner the other night. I knew I didn't have much more than 30 minutes and wanted to make a rice dish. I remember having a delicious Persian rice with fava beans and dill as a child and began looking for an easy version of this recipe. I wanted to stick with simple ingredients and didn't want to go as far as making tahdig (a crunchy, delicious crust on some Persian rice dishes). After searching through a few recipes, I found this one which had a simple ingredient list and sounded reminiscent of the rice I had enjoyed as a child. This side dish did not fail. I am sure this is not 100% authentic, but the flavor is fantastic. What I love about this variation as well is that your prepare the rice separately, then add the other ingredients. This way I can keep some plain rice on the side for any picky eaters in the group. Enjoy this rice wish some Persian chicken kabobs or just about any meal.

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Persian Barley Soup (Asheh Jo)

I love Persian food. Growing up, some of my friends came from Iranian backgrounds and their mothers were the best cooks (seriously, I would still gladly live off their food). I've always wanted to be able to cook like them, but have never given it a try. For about a month now (in the middle of summer) I've been eyeballing this recipe, wondering when I'd be able to make it. It combines so many things I love into what looked like a perfect winter soup. I finally got around to making this recipe today, after my first gloomy, cold and rainy day since June. While I was making this soup, I was really skeptical. The dish doesn't come together until the end when all the flavors have been cooking together for a while. But once this happens, it is awesome. It's a meal in a bowl, and even though I made a salad and garlic and Gruyere bread, I would have been more than happy just having the soup.

To me, Asheh Jo is more like a stew than a soup in terms on consistence since it's filled with lots of chunky ingredients and is not meant to be liquidy. Do not skip the step of shredding the beef in a food processor or blender. At first the meat was too tough and stringy, but shredding it solves all these problems. I was last minute in making this recipe and didn't have time to soak the beans overnight, so I used canned beans and it worked out fine. The lentils can be dry as that is plenty of time for them to cook. Don't skimp on the herbs either since they're a huge source of flavor. In my grocery store I can only get 1/2 cup chopped chives from one bunch, so make sure you have enough. Also, try not to be lazy and skip the garnish, the shallots add a great flavor! This soup is time consuming, but it is so delicious and makes a ton of soup, so you can easily freeze some and have some as leftovers.
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