Gondi can be served as a soup with white rice or as an appetizer with pita bread, pickles, spring onions, basil and radish. To this day the word Gondi brings a smile to my lips.
This recipe is not an original, nor is it the only recipe out there for Gondi, it is however the classic way to make Gondi. This recipe was given to me by my cousin Gila and has never let me down.....this one's for you Jax.
1 pound of ground chicken, dark meat is best for this recipe
2 medium/large onions, grated on fine
8 oz of chickpea flour, from Persian deli or ask Dafna
1 tsp ground cardamon (essential)
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp salt, 1 tsp of pepper if you like pepper
1/3 cup oil (can be left out if you wish)
1. Mix the ground chicken with the chickpea flour, turmeric, cumin, salt and cardamon
2. Grate the onions into the above mixture and mix really well, by hand is best
3. Add the oil now if you are going to use it....a must if using ground white meat
4. Form golf ball size balls....keep your hand wet so that the meat does not stick to you, they should look like matzah balls, round and smooth
5. As each gondi ball is made, drop gently into a boiling pot of soup
6. Let the gondi cook for an hour....actually the longer the better
You can make a chicken soup ahead of time but make sure that you have plenty of space to drop the gondi into the pot. You might want to remove the chicken and vegetables to make room for the gondi, then later you can remove the gondi and return the chicken and vegetables back to the soup pot. You can also make a simple broth to drop the gondi into, there is so much flavor in the gondi itself that it will flavor up the plain broth too.
Hagit's Chicken Soup
2 small zucchini
2-3 carrots cut up
1 onion cut into 4
2-3 potatoes cut up
2 stalks of celery plus the celery leaves cup up
2-4 pieces of chicken
2-3 tbsp marak off
1 tsp salt, pepper to your taste
(Dill and parsley is optional)
1. Place the raw chicken pieces in a big pot. Add water to cover the chicken and boil. The idea is to boil the chicken and remove the scum the comes to the top of the water....sounds gross but it's an essential step for a clear soup
2. Remove the boiled chicken from the pot and either wash the pot out to reuse or use another 5 quart pot to make the soup
3. Fill the pot 3/4 way with cold water, add all the cut vegetables, the chicken pieces, marka-off (chicken stock powder), the salt and pepper, on medium heat
4. Cook for an hour until the chicken is totally cooked and the vegetables are soft
5. If using this soup for the gondi, remove the chicken and vegetables to make room for the gondi
6. The vegetables can be added back later. The chicken can be shredded and returned to the pot too
Friday night dinners in the winter are just not the same without a good chicken soup. The kids expect it and the guests demand it.
We end with a classic Carrot Cake. This recipe comes to us via Orit, she is the Queen of the Carrot Cake and once you have tasted this cake, you will know why. Thanks for sharing this amazing cake with us Orit.
Orit's Carrot Cake
3 eggs
1 cup brown sugar (can be cut down as you wish)
1 cup of veg oil (can be cut down to 1/2 if you wish)
1 1/2 cups of flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 - 1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup of raisins
1/2 cup of walnuts
2 cups of shredded carrots
(makes 2 loaves)
First of all don't worry about the amount of raisins, walnuts and carrots. This recipe is very forgiving so you can leave out the raisins and walnuts but the cake is much better with them in. The carrot amount can be more or less....exactly 2 cups is best.
1. Whisk eggs and sugar....add the sugar slowly while whisking the eggs
2. Add the oil, again slowly to keep the frothiness of the eggs
3. Add the dry ingredients, flour, baking soda, baking powder and cinnamon...keep whisking
4. Add the raisins and walnuts and carrots last
5. Mix everything together, divide evenly into 2 loaf pans, cook at 325 for 45-60 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean....you know the drill
We really hope that you try these recipes and send us your comments on Facebook or an e mail.
Enjoy.
Hagit and Dafna
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