Kibbe Cherry

Now with an updated picture! Don’t hesitate to make this delicious meal for Shabbat.

Kibbe cherry is a traditional Friday night dish. Usually we serve it in a pretty bowl, but we couldn’t take the picture on Shabbat, so this is the picture you’re stuck with! Don’t worry, it tastes a lot better than it looks in this picture, we promise!

Not only is it one of our favorite ways to prepare kibbe, it’s also ridiculously easy. Unless you don’t have kibbe in your freezer, then you’re in trouble, or just stuck in the kitchen rolling the balls for a while. Besides the onion, there’s no slicing (and no pitting, ’cause we’re using canned cherries here). Plus, it’s a one-pot dish! Just make some rice and a salad, and you have an easy weeknight meal. Make about 10 other dishes, and you have a perfect dish for Shabbat dinner! Many people make one giant kibbe roll instead of the little balls, but we like this way better.

Kibbe Cherry, adapted from Deal Delights 2:

Ingredients:

• A few glugs of olive oil
• 1 onion, diced
• About 20 kibbes*
• 1 15-ounce can cherries
• 3 tablespoons oot
• Juice of half a lemon
• 1/2 cup prunes (optional)
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

Directions:

1. Heat oil on medium heat and add onions and kibbe until onions are soft and kibbes are browned, about 10 minutes.

2. Add the rest of the ingredients and simmer for 30-40 minutes, until all the flavors mix together and the cherries and prunes are soft.

3. Serve over rice.

*You can buy kibbes from a Middle Eastern grocery or butcher, or you can make your own.