A cordon-bleu mother and grandmother and taste buds trained at their school – when she herself was very young and without having really put her hand in the dough – will have been enough to embark Hanan Haddad on great culinary adventures. A journey (but also an invitation to travel) that she shares in a book published in English by Antoine, under the title Culinary Adventures, meals with Hanan. Its great particularity is to be centered on complete menus which settle the eternal question of “what to prepare today for lunch or dinner”, for oneself or for guests. Hanan Haddad is not content to list a list of recipes to make, but offers to revisit them in intertwined flavors. A mixture of cultures not surprising given the career of Hanan (née Fakhoury), who, following marrying Sami Haddad, an eminent economist and former minister, continued to accompany him abroad for various missions, and in particular to the Morocco, Ivory Coast, Egypt and the United States. In his luggage, the family Comfort Food with essentials such as Mrabba Laban, or curd jam.
Le « Mrabba Laban » de Hanan Haddad. Photo Rayya Haddad
“Mrabba Laban” and “lahmé Makbousse” family
“This dish is so called because the mixture of curd and onions must be continuously stirred, like a fruit jam. The texture should be velvety and creamy. When I was young, it was my favorite dish concocted with love by my mother Slaloma,” says Hanan Haddad. “My mother was my mentor in all things cooking. She showed me the way with great patience, answering countless phone questions over the years. Even if we sometimes disagreed on certain recipes or techniques, we always respected each other’s differences. In the family note, we also remember the Lahmé Makbousse, (meat in vinegar) and, as a dessert, the Mafrouké. Throughout her travels, Hanan brought back many new flavors that she explored before presenting them in this culinary book under these different titles, which are all discoveries: A taste of East Asia; A fresh gastronomic experience; A tasty winter table; All regarding Solomon; The Italian spice trail; Flavors from the Easter’s Mediterranean; Spanish-inspired; From the sacred land: Fish the Palestinian way, or even A taste of the Maghreb. The author does not forget tea time and brunch time. For this very Anglo-Saxon meal straddling breakfast and lunch, she has developed colorful dishes that are out of the ordinary and have nothing to envy to the consistency of the midday meal. There is a unique cold soup of arugula followed by a salmon mousse on blinis, a reblochon pear on crostini, a fatteh of chard, sausages in paste, and a chocolate chips in the pan. Creativity that pleases the palate.
Hanan Haddad’s Mexican salad. Photo Rayya Haddad
Say goodbye to meat and make way for vegetarian Shepherd Pie
While keeping an eye on the stoves, Hanan Haddad closely follows current dietary options and discusses them in her book. Thus, for her chapter Hold the meat, she concocted a Shepherd Pie, meat in a completely vegetarian crust. Elsewhere, she reviewed the notion of Comfort Food, those foods particularly appreciated for their sentimental and nostalgic aspect. “I always thought that hot pasta should be accompanied, as usual at home, by a well-cooked sauce, until one day I was served a ‘pasta cruda’ as a starter. To the still hot spaghetti, we had just added fresh tomatoes, olive oil, garlic and basil. It was more than beneficial. I recreated it on the spot and it wasn’t very difficult. A piece of advice, enjoy the simple things. »
The author will sign her book on Wednesday July 6 at the Antoine bookstore, ABC Achrafié, from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. Photo Rayya Haddad
She had also let the children come to her during her stay in Washington where two American schools asked her to introduce the children to cooking at the end of a school day. The goal is to familiarize them with healthy food while entertaining them. A mission that the Lebanese chef has accomplished with an educational sense wrapped in fantasy and enticing perspectives. After each session, the budding cooks were able to happily enjoy the feast they had prepared. Of his Culinary Adventures, Hanan says quite simply “they are an invitation to my kitchen so that we can work on it together. I have learned a lot over the years in the different fields referring to the kitchen. And, I’d like to pass on that as well as the wisdom that comes from it. Cooking is regarding trial and error. His learning involves the use of his intuition. Modify recipes to suit your tastes and don’t be afraid to experiment and mess up. Mistakes in life are the best lessons and kitchen mistakes always make the best memories. These are some tips to keep in mind when using this book”. A book richly illustrated with photographs by Rayya Haddad.
*The author will sign her book on Wednesday July 6 at the Antoine bookstore, ABC Achrafié from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m.
A cordon-bleu mother and grandmother and taste buds trained at their school – when she herself was very young and without having really put her hand in the dough – will have been enough to embark Hanan Haddad on great culinary adventures. A journey (but also an invitation to travel) that she shares in a book published in English by Antoine, under the title…
