Our Arab Breakfast (With Gluten Free Option)

This is what we often eat for a regular days breakfast.

• Ready In: 25 mins
• Serves: 3-4
• Yields: 3-4

Ingredients

• BREAKFAST TEA

• 3  orange pekoe tea bags (I use Tetley tea bags)
• 2 1⁄2 cups water
•  heavy cream (or half-and half)
• 6  teaspoons white sugar (to taste)
• 7  cardamom pods, crushed slightly

• CHEESE PREPARATION

• 1  tablespoon olive oil (A good quality please!)
•  halloumi cheese (Haloom, Arabic, hellim -Turkish)
• 1⁄4 cup all-purpose flour (to be gluten free I use white rice flour or a mix with tapioca starch in 1/2 the amount)
• 1  lemon, cut in half

• THE REST

• 1  large  pita bread (1 bag, Do NOT use if gluten free)
•  rice crackers (optional, for the gluten free)
• 1⁄4 cup butter, sliced
•  cream cheese (not sliced!!! Called Puck, Buck in Arabic, Danish cream cheese, no substitute) or   yogurt cheese balls in  oil or   goat feta cheese, sliced
•  assorted gourmet  olive
•  hummus (homemade or store bought, ours tends to be the later)
•  assortment  fresh fruit, cut up into chunks (lovely sprinkled with orange blossom water & sugar if needed)

Directions

1. Heat water & cardamom pods covered in a pot until boiling.
2. Drop in tea bags and simmer covered for about 1 1/2 minutes add sugar to taste along with the cream and keep simmering and adjusting cream to your desired amount not worrying about the fat content, only the taste :) This is called breakfast tea or you could use, Recipe #286617. Serve in regular tea cup/mugs.
3. Now slice the haloumi cheese into thick slices and rinse with water. Do not dry.
4. Place the flour on a flat surface and dip each piece of haloumi cheese to coat all sides in a light fashion. You may use just half the package.
5. Heat the olive oil on medium high and fry cheese slices until lightly golden reducing the heat as needed.
6. Remove to a plate and place halved lemon around it to squeeze on top while eating.
7. Place butter, cheeses, gourmet olives, hummus drizzled with some extra virgin olive oil, the fruits (lovely sprinkled with orange blossom water & sugar if needed if wished) on their own plates or in bowls.
8. Lay this all out on a low table or blanket/newspapers on the floor. This is both traditional and Islamic to sit on the floor while eating.
9. Lay out spoons for the fruit and heat the bread until warm with your preferred method just before serving.
10. Scoop up cheeses etc in bread pulled in half. (That's the way to do it traditionally) I serve rice crackers to as we are gluten free.