I’m the kind of girl that craves an adventure every day. It can be a thrilling moment that lasts for 30 seconds or an exciting day that lasts 8 hours. Either way, I make an attempt to create that adventure for myself on a daily basis.

One way that I get this feeling of adventure is by trying new food. Eventually, I’d love to travel around the world and taste all kinds of locally ethnic cuisines; however, until that day I have resorted to trying ethnic cuisines that are in the area. Some of my favorites are Mediterranean, Indian, Thai, Vietnamese, Greek, etc. But there’s one problem, fulfilling my craving for these ethnic foods comes with a budget. I then came to the revelation that I could create my favorite dishes from these restaurant right in my own kitchen. I’ve ventured into making indian food but had never tried to make Greek or Mediterranean food so I went right to work and made my very own Tabouli and even ventured into an ethnic field I had never even tried at a restaurant: Egyptian Hawawshi.

Whenever I’m stressed out, I like to cook meals that require time and precision and the Hawawshi gave me just that. I left out the coriander, seven spice, and cayenne pepper because I didn’t have access to these spices and it still came out delicious. If you want to try this out you should definitely make sure your pita bread is thick because I used the thin ones and the bread got pretty soggy (when it should’ve been crispy). The tabouli salad was exactly what was needed for the side. I personally put a lot more lemon juice than it called for because I like tabouleh when it’s moist with the juices from the dressing. I’ve included a concise version of the Hawawshi and Tabouli recipe below but feel free to click on the names and view the original recipes as well! Let me know how it goes if you try them out :)

Egyptian Hawashi
6 pita bread pockets (not the thin kind)
1 pound (450 grams) of lean ground beef
1 onion, diced
1 roma tomato, diced
2 cloves garlic, pressed
1/4 cup of fresh chopped parsley and coriander mixed together
1/4 cup of chopped green pepper
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper (add more if you like it spicy!)
1 1/2 tsp seven spice (blend of cinnamon, clove, allspice, etc.)
1/2 tsp of crushed red pepper or Simply Organic Spicy Steak seasoning (optional)
1 1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup of melted butter
Wax paper

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Combine the beef, onion, garlic, tomato, green pepper, parsley/coriander, and the remaining spices until well mixed. Fill the pita pockets with meat mixture and brush the outside with butter. Wrap each in wax paper and bake for 20-25 minutes.