Jewish Iraqi Meatballs in Schwandar (Beet) Stew

Someone special is joining the Cooking Middle Eastern blog, as my partner in culinary explorations. Eli Cohen is a native of Israel and his family is originally from Iraq...and he happens to be my life-partner (lucky me!). The most interesting and tasty cuisine I've tasted comes out of his mother's kitchen, based on very old family recipes. Here's Eli!

Hi everyone. Koubba (a semolina meat dumpling) is a signature dish in Jewish Iraqi cooking that comes in innumerable different versions of stew types. This version replaces the the Koubba with a meatball while the stew sauce stays the same. It cuts out some significant labor that the Koubba usually requires.

This beet stew is an impressive summer dish to prepare. Its full of color, very healthy and fun especially now when beets fresh and in season. Enjoy!

Vegetarian Hashwa (filling) for Stuffed Vegetables

The recipe I posted earlier this week for the Iraqi Stuffed Zucchini has an alternative, vegetarian stuffing that is absolutely delicious. This version is made with chickpeas instead of meat and is just as good as the non-vegetarian version. The secret, if you have the time, is to cook the chickpeas yourself. This is for you Rebekah and Chen!

Iraqi Hashwa Chickpea and Rice Filling (Hashwa Houmous), prep time 15 minutes, total cooking time (with chickpeas) 8-10 hours.
Fills about 2 lbs. of vegetables

Ingredients:

• 1 cup dried chickpeas, washed and drained (be sure to check for small stones) or substitute 1 16oz. can of cooked chickpeas
  
• 1/4 onion, roughly chopped (for cooking with the chickpeas)
• 1/2 tsp. cumin (for cooking with the chickpeas)
• 1/8 tsp. baking soda (for cooking with the chickpeas)
  
• 1 onion, very finely diced
• 3 Tbsp. fresh, not dried, celery leaves, very finely diced (you may substitute 1/2 a stalk of celery very finely diced if you can't find celery with the leaves)
  
• 2 Tbsp. vegetable oil
• 1 tomato, peeled and chopped (optional)
• 3 Tbsp. finely chopped fresh Italian flat-leaf parsley
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1 tsp. ground cardemom
• 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon

Instructions:

1. Skip steps 1-6 if you are using canned chickpeas
   
2. Soak the chickpeas overnight (or for at least 8 h
3. ours)
4. Drain the chickpeas and place in a pot on the stove. Cover with about 1+1/2" of water and begin to bring to a boil.
5. Dice the 1/4 onion and place it in the water with the chickpeas. Add the cumin, baking soda (this will help the chickpeas soften fully) and about 1 tsp. of salt.
6. Cover and reduce heat to an extremely low simmer (if using gas, your flame should be so low that it almost extinguishes). Cook for at least 3 hours and up to 5 hours.
   
7. Drain the chickpeas and rinse with cold water.
   
8. Grind the chickpeas and cooked onions in a food processor, into a very coarse paste. Do not puree -- the best consistency is dry and grainy.
9. Add the chickpeas to a large bowl and add the remaining ingredients. Knead by hand until thoroughly blended. Don't fill the vegetables more than 2/3 full to allow for expansion of the rice.