Comptoir Libanais: A Feast of Lebanese-Style Home Cooking

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Everyone uses some sort of raising agent, whether bicarbonate of soda or baking powder, to make their falafel extra fluffy. As there doesn't seem to be much in the way of acid in the recipe, I'm not surprised to find that Ottolenghi and Tamimi and Roden's baking powder proves more effective. Vegetables Last year the Lebanese restaurant Comptoir Libanais opened up in Utrecht. I love Lebansese food, especially because it has so many vegetarian and vegan options so I went to Comptoir Libanais straight away. Now, almost a year later they brought out their first Dutch cookbook. In this blog post I’m telling you more about the Comptoir Libanais cookbook that’s filled with party recipes and I’m giving you a 20% discount on your next meal at Comptoir Libanais in Utrecht. Fattoush is not fattoush without bread – that’s the whole point. Any kind of Middle Eastern flatbread will do (or, in fact, most kinds of flatbread); the important thing is it must be crisp. There are various ways to achieve this, from Baxter’s frying to Honey & Co’s grilling, but the most reliable, if you can bear to turn the oven on, is to bake it, which gives a dryer, crunchier result; the dressing should supply all the oil the dish needs. If it’s too hot for the oven, toast the pitta as Roden does. Some recipes season it with sumac, but as this intensely lemony spice is a key ingredient in the salad itself, the bread is, I think, better left plain as a contrast. Indeed, you can find good falafel everywhere from Baghdad to Bawshar - but, unless you live near one of the small, but growing, number of decent vendors here in Britain, your best bet might be to make your own. Thankfully, it's really quite simple. Pulses

Radishes are also popular, although less ubiquitous; if you follow Ghayour in quartering rather than slicing them, they add a satisfying extra crunch, as well as a mild pepperiness (Is it me or have radishes become less peppery in the past 20 years?). Tony’s vision for Comptoir Libanais was based on much more than the food. As the founder, he wanted to ensure the design and styling of each restaurant was inviting, simple and atmospheric. From the counter displays, to the lighting and furnishings, everything is devised by Tony to reflect the dining style that is at the heart of Lebanese hospitality and culture. He says: I’m keener on ingredients that add more in the way of texture and flavour, with cucumber falling firmly into the first camp (unless you thinly slice it and salt it for an hour, as Roden’s recipe in Jane Grigson’s Vegetable Book suggests, when it tastes pretty good, but feels distinctly limp). Try, as Ottolenghi and Tamimi write, “to get small cucumbers for this … they are worlds apart from the large ones we normally get in most UK supermarkets” – less watery, and with more bite. If you can’t find them, then scoop out the seeds, as Baxter suggests. And. whilst his London restaurants Levant, Pasha and Kenza put glamour into Middle Eastern cuisine, it is Comptoir Libanais that has begun introducing Lebanese food to the high street, providing relaxed canteen style dining with light Arabic cooking, served in the friendly and accessible way demanded by many customers today. And Tony points to just how healthy Lebanese food is: “The food of Lebanon is so healthy, I even lived on charcoal grilled meats and mezze for over a year whilst training and preparing for my 250 kilometre marathon – and lost 60 lbs in wight!”

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Put the aubergine, peppers and courgette into a large roasting tin and drizzle over the oil. Season, then toss everything together with a large metal spoon so that the pieces are well coated in the oil. Roast in the oven for 30 mins until golden. Heat 5cm oil in a deep pan to 180C/350F, then fry the falafel in batches and drain on kitchen paper. Serve with tahini sauce, toasted flatbreads and plenty of salad.

Steam the spinach leaves by putting them in a pan with a good splash of water and heat just to the point where they wilt, but not so that they lose their texture. Ground coriander and cumin are also pretty much a given, and I like the fiery sweetness of Helou's Lebanese seven-spice powder, with its ginger, cinnamon and allspice, which balances beautifully with the savoury garlic and peppery herbs. Some recipes use cayenne pepper, paprika or chilli flakes too – I find the warmth of the ginger sufficient for a dish that is rarely hot as opposed to spicy, but if you feel the need, add a shake to taste. Some recipes also use dried mint, too, but its more aniseedy flavour spoils the fresh flavour of the other kind as far as most testers are concerned, with one likening it to their grandma’s mint sauce in a not entirely complimentary way. Kitous’ restaurants were the first in London to merge traditional Arabic cooking with the easy contemporary eating to be found in the expanding network of Comptoir Libanais restaurants.Heat the oven to 200C. Toss the pitta with a little olive oil, then bake for about 15 minutes until crisp. Allow to cool slightly, then break into shards. Bringing together the passion of owner Tony Kitous, the extraordinary designs of award-winning graphic artist Rana Salam, and bestselling author and photographer Dan Lepard, the Comptoir Libanais cookbook blends a vibrant culinary tradition with modern flavours and cooking methods His next move was the acquisition at the end of 2005 of Pasha from Richard Caring of Caprice Holdings, transforming it into the most opulent and seductive restaurant of its kind in the capital. He then launched Kenza, a feast of Middle Eastern craftsmanship and rich design, in the City of London in 2007.