Fatima's Fabulous Kitchen

I don't eat to live. I live to eat.

Appetizers

Crab Rangoon Pizza

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So this Crab Rangoon pizza is super cool and as much as I’d like to claim credit for such an amazing idea, it’s actually a thing that’s popped up in several different joints across the Midwest.

Unfortunately there’s no pizzeria that has this on their menu in my area (at least not to my knowledge) so I figured I’d give it a shot to try and make it at home.

Plus it’s an excuse to make homemade pizza and test it out in a cast-iron skillet.

The toppings that go on the pizza are pretty self-explanatory and I’m pretty sure it’s similar to what you’ll find in the few restaurants that serve it – we’re taking the classic cream cheese filling of a crab rangoon and spreading it on pizza dough, topping It with some shredded mozzarella, green onions, sweet chili sauce and wonton chips.

I was thinking that this pizza would be ridiculously heavy and knock me out after a slice, but surprisingly it wasn’t (I should also mention that back in my undergrad days I would easily eat 8-9 crab rangoons with my friends during finals week without thinking twice. Shoutout to Umama, Abhiya, Nadia for accompanying me for late-night Cravings).

There’s really not much else for me to say except that this literally is a pizza that tastes exactly like crab rangoon and that next time you want to try making homemade pizza, try this.

And if you don’t want to go through making your own pizza dough, just buy it from the store. This is not one of those recipes you need to fuss over by making everything from scratch. Bring it to your next Friday night get-together with friends, kick-back and enjoy!

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Crab Rangoon Pizza

Servings 2 large pizzas

Ingredients

  • 2 lb pizza dough
  • 2/3 cup imitation crab meat
  • 2 tsp soy sauce
  • 8 oz cream cheese
  • 2-3 green onions
  • 1/2 tsp grated ginger
  • 1/2 tsp grated garlic
  • 1/2 tsp sugar
  • 1 tsp lime juice (or to taste)
  • 2 cups shredded mozarella

Garnish

  • sweet chilli sauce
  • wonton chips optional

Instructions

  1. Set your oven to 450 F.

  2. In a bowl combine the softened cream cheese, chopped green onions, soy sauce, ginger, garlic, sugar, lime juice. Taste and adjust for seasoning. Set aside.

  3. Using a hand-toss method, rolling pin, or whatever technique you prefer roll out the dough to whatever thickness and size you like. I used an 8 inch cast iron skillet and was able to make 4 smaller pizzas, equivalent to 2 large ones.

  4. If using a cast-iron skillet, make sure to brush the pan with plenty of oil. Press the dough into the pan.

  5. Add the cream cheese mixture to the dough and spread evenly.

  6. Add the shredded mozzarella. Brush the outer crust lightly with oil and set in oven.

  7. Once top has melted and the cheese is lightly caramelized, remove from oven. Using a spatula check to see if the bottom is finished cooking. If it is still pale in color (which will likely occur if you made a thicker crust), then simply finish it off on the stove-top for a few minutes.

    (If using a pizza stone, then simply place pizza onto stone using peel and remove when crust is a golden brown.)

  8. Once pizza is ready, garnish with sweet chili sauce, wonton chips, and extra green onions.

Calamari Pakora

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This week I decided to combine two of my favorite fried foods – pakora and fried calamari. Calamari dusted in flour, salt, and pepper and dipped in marinara is pretty heavenly as is but I thought we could up the volume a bit by dipping the squid rings into a flavorful pakora batter.

Instead of doing just AP flour, I did a 1:1 ratio of regular to rice flour. The rice flour helps the calamari be extra crispy. For my spice mix, I did a combination of kasuri methi, coriander, black pepper, garlic powder, paprika, chilli powder. I also added in a good amount of yogurt which you find in most pakora recipes along with a few curry leaves. I also chopped up a few serrano chilies to fry up along with the calamari rings.

These fry up super-fast and pair amazingly with a South Indian-Style Tomato Chutney – (my substitution for the marinara). I didn’t include the chutney recipe here but I plan to in the future. In any case, it’s made up of roma tomatoes, fresh tamarind pulp, cumin, mustard seeds, and curry leaves.

This calamari dish is a seafood lover’s dream. It’s the perfect summer appetizer that screams fusion food truck and pop-up appetizer all over it.

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Calamari Pakora

An Indian version of fried calamari made with a pakora batter

Servings 4 people

Ingredients

  • 1 1/4 lb calamari squid
  • 1/2 cup All-Purpose Flour
  • 1/2 cup Rice Flour
  • 1/3 cup yogurt
  • 1 1/4 cup water (or more)
  • 1 Tbsp garlic powder
  • 1/2 tsp turmeric
  • 2 tsp chilli powder
  • 2 tsp paprika
  • 2 tsp kasuri methi
  • 1/2 tsp black pepper
  • 1 Tbsp coriander
  • 1/2 tsp salt or to taste

Other Ingredients for the Fry

  • 2 jalapenos or serranos
  • 1/4 cup onion slices

Instructions

  1. Rinse your squid in cold water. Remove any dirt that may be lingering inside.

  2. Cut the squid into rings. Pat dry and set aside.

  3. Now start making the pakora batter. In a separate bowl, combine the AP flour, rice flour, and spices. Slowly mix in the yogurt and thin the batter out with some water. Start off with 3/4 cup and work your way up to 1 cup if needed. The batter should be the consistency of pancake batter.

  4. Now add in your calamari along with any other vegetable you'd like to fry up into the batter. Combine well.

  5. In a pot or pan, add at least an inch or so of oil for deep-frying. Once hot, add a handful of calamari at a time. Fry until golden brown. This should only take a minute or two.

  6. Remove with slotted spoon and onto a plate lined with paper towel. Serve the calamari with chutneys and hot sauces of your choice.

Vegetarian Ashak (Afghan Dumplings)

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I’d like to make a disclaimer that this is not an authentic recipe – I am not Afghani, just an afghan-food lover. I hope you guys enjoy my version of this cherished dish!

leeks, scallions, and dill filling

Ashak and mantou are two of my favorite dishes to order at the Afghan restaurant. Not only are these dumplings beautiful in presentation but they are so lovely and comforting to eat – thus making them the perfect centerpiece on your iftar table.

Mantou dumplings are typically filled with ground lamb or beef and topped with a tomato and lentil sauce as well as some extra-virgin olive oil, garlic-yogurt, and dried mint. Ashak are filled with leeks and topped with a tomato-meat sauce. Both are different yet equally delicious!

I wanted to make a vegetarian version for my non-meat eating friends as well as some of us who want to cut down on the red-meat this Ramadan.

Vegetarian sauce: tomato, eggplant, roasted pepper and lentils
Mantou

Instead of ground beef or lamb, I simply added some finely chopped eggplant and roasted bell pepper to the tomato and lentil sauce giving it a sweet and flavorful taste.

For the filling I did a mix of leeks, scallions, and dill but you can do any combination of either.

I also decided to make the dough from scratch but please by all means save yourself the trouble and get yourself a one-dollar pack of wonton wrappers!

A lot of classic Ramadan foods, while delicious, are usually quite heavy. Ashak is a light version that will make your waistline and you happy.

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Vegetarian Ashak

A vegetarian version of the classic Afghan dish Ashak – a dumpling filled with leeks and topped with a tomato-lentil sauce.

Ingredients

  • 20-25 wonton wrappers may also use fresh dough

Dumpling Filling

  • 3 leeks (may add or substitute with scallions)
  • 1/4 cup dill optional, may simply substitute with more leeks/scallions
  • salt to taste
  • pepper to taste
  • 2 1/2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil

Sauce

  • 2 roma tomatoes
  • 1 cup eggplant (diced)
  • 3/4 cup onion
  • 1 roasted bell pepper optional
  • 2 Tbsp parsley
  • 3-4 garlic cloves
  • 1.5 tsp chana daal
  • 1/2 tsp paprika
  • 1/4 tsp black pepper
  • 1/4 tsp turmeric
  • 1/4 tsp cumin
  • salt to taste

Yogurt Sauce

  • 2/3 cup yogurt
  • 1 garlic clove
  • 2 tsp dried mint

Instructions

Dumpling Filling

  1. Wash your leeks, scallions, and dills really well. Add to a food processor and chop until fine.

  2. In a pot or pan, add some extra virgin olive oil. Lightly sautee leek-mixture until soft and transculescent. Make sure to add salt and pepper. Set aside.

Vegetarian Tomato and Lentil Sauce

  1. Soak your channa daal (split pea lentils at least an hour before in some water). Note – if you have forgotten this step or don't have this ingredient, no worries. You can opt to leave it out all together.

  2. Chop up all your veggies- eggplant, tomatoes, garlic, roasted bell pepper.

  3. In a pan, add some olive oil. Sautee you eggplants and onions. Once translucent, add in your chopped tomatoes, lentils, and spices. Season with salt as you go. Add a cup of water, bring to a boil then a low simmer. Garnish with fresh parsley.

Garlic Yogurt Sauce

  1. Finely grate or mince the clove of garlic into the yogurt sauce. Add the dried mint. Combine and set aside.

Assembly

  1. Either using fresh dough or store-bought wonton wrappers, add a small amount of filling to the center of your wrapper. Press the corners together. Seal with water + cornstarch to prevent them from opening.

  2. If using fresh dough – boil and cook like ravioli. If using wonton wrappers, feel free to steam the dumplings until translucent.

  3. In your serving dish, add a layer of yogurt, then your dumplings, then your tomato-lentil sauce, and finally your yogurt sauce. Top with a few tablespoons of extra-virgin olive oil and paprika. Your ashak is ready to serve!