Gulf style, green coffee (Qahwa).

The first time I ever had Gulf style coffee I thought "Eeww, what the heck is this funky water" then I had the first sip and I was hooked. The coffee is unsweetened and goes perfectly with Arabic sweets that are usually drenched in syrup. The tiny handle free cups are just beautiful and for some reason they make me feel beautiful as well when I have one in hand. Very classy cups I must say.



ingredients
3 cups of water
3 tbsp. cardamom (coarsely ground)
2 tbsp. of Arabic coffee
1/4 teaspoon saffron (optional)
1 teaspoon of rosewater (optional)

Directions
Boil the water in a pot.
Add the coffee to the water and bring to a boil over low heat.
Remove from the heat for five minutes to allow the coffee to settle.
Put the cardamom in the pot, strain the coffee into it and add the saffron or rosewater.Bring back to boil once and serve.

adapted from, Grouprecipes.com

Mango lassi

If you know me your eyes will pop out when you read the recipe to this very easy refreshing Indian shake. I used non fat yogurt, low fat milk, and best of all no sugar. Yes, Zelia is having a drink with NO sugar. But of course the only reason for this is that the Mango's are so sweet adding sugar to this drink would have been a sin. So, I sit here with guilt free mind drinking my lassi.


Ingredients
1 cup plain yogurt (I used non fat)
2 cups milk
1 cup chopped ripe mango (placed in the freezer for 2 hours)


Directions
Combine all your ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth and well blended.
You can add 1 cup of ice and 1 tablespoon of sugar for a colder shake like drink.

Moroccan mint and tyme tea

Moroccans are known for making some of the best tea in the world and they swear no "Mint" is better than "Moroccan mint". Tea is usually served for breakfast along with homemade breads, honey, olive oil, and a variety of olives. Tea in Morocco is a sign of hospitality to refuse a cup is not only impolite but worse than a slap in the face. No matter what home you visit in Morocco you will always be offered a cup of tea.


5 cups boiling water
1 tablespoon loose green tea leaves
2 teaspoons dried tyme leaves (Moroccan za'atar)
1 handfull Moroccan mint or regular mint
sugar to taste (about 1/2 cup)


Directions
Boil water, add tea leaves and tyme into your tea pot along with 1/4 cup boiling hot water. Swirl the pot to rinse the tea leaves and discard the water. Add a handfull of mint, enough water to fill the pot and sugar to taste. Place the tea pot over medium heat for approximately 3 minutes (make sure not to boil the tea or it will be bitter) remove from heat and serve hot.