Egyptian Cooking Recipe: Spinach Labaneya Soup with Yoghourt
An Egyptian soup traditionally made with the leaves of a plant of the spinach
family called silq (beet);
the French call it blette. The soup is equally delicious made with spinach, fresh if possible, but frozen
leaf spinach will also do.
(I often find silq in Greek stores.)
500 g silq (beet) or fresh spinach, or 250g (8 oz) frozen leaf spinach
1 Onion
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About 2 tablespoons oil
1 leek or 3-4 spring onions, finely chopped
120g (4oz) rice
Salt and black pepper
500 ml (3/4 pint) yoghourt
1 clove garlic, or more, crushed
˝ teaspoon turmeric (optional)
Wash the beets or fresh spinach leaves in a bowlful of water. Drain and cut into large pieces or ribbons,
but do not chop them.
Chop the onion and saute in oil in a large saucepan until faintly coloured and soft. Add the spinach,
stir and saute gently. A finely chopped leek or a few spring onions will add a delicate flavour to the soup.
Add them to the saucepan, together with the washed and drained rice. Cover with 1 litre (2 pints) water,
season with salt and pepper, bring to the boil and simmer gently until the rice
and spinach are cooked.
This will take about 15 minutes, and the rice should not be allowed to get too soft or mushy.
In the meantime, beat the yoghourt with one or more crushed cloves of garlic. When the rice and spinach are
ready, add the yoghourt mixture to the soup and beat well. Heat but do not let the soup boil again, or it will
curdle.
A pinch of turmeric added to this spinach recipe and rice while they are cooking will give the soup a pale yellow,
Oriental tinge.
Reference: Extract from “A New Book Of Middle Eastern Food” written by Claudia Roden. Penguin Books, England, 1986.
Lamb Shanks With Spinach and Basil
8 (2kg) lean lamb shanks
Plain flour
Cooking oil spray
2 medium (300g) onions, sliced
2 cloves garlic, crushed
3 large (540g) carrots, chopped
3 cups (750ml) chicken stock
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
500g spinach, trimmed
1/4 cup finely shredded fresh basil leaves
Toss lamb in flour, shake off excess. Coat medium flameproof baking dish with cooking oil spray; cook lamb, in batches,
until browned all over. Cook onion and garlic in same dish, stirring, until onion is soft.
Return lamb to dish with carrot, stock and mustard; bring to boil.
Bake, covered, in moderate oven about 2 hours or until lamb is very tender, stirring occasionally. Add spinach and basil;
stir until spinach is witted.
Reference: Extract from "healty eating Casseroles" by The Australian Women's Weekly
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