Rose Cucumber Cooler | Mocktail Recipe

A rose syrup drink has been made across North Africa and the Middle East for centuries — sweet, floral, cut with something bright. This is our version. Simple enough to make on a weeknight, elegant enough to serve to guests.

The base is a Villa Jerada rose petal syrup — just sugar, water, and dried roses, cooked down until fragrant. From there it takes minutes. Sparkling water, a squeeze of lime, a sprig of mint. The cucumber is optional and quietly transformative.

Non-alcoholic by nature. Easily made otherwise.

Ingredients

For the rose syrup

• 1 cup water

• 1 cup sugar

• 2 tbsp Villa Jerada dried rose buds

To serve

• ⅓ cup rose syrup

• ⅔ cup sparkling water (or to taste)

• 1 squeeze fresh lime 1 sprig fresh mint Ice

Optional

3–4 slices cucumber

muddled Splash of prosecco or sparkling wine in place of sparkling water

Serves 2 · Ready in 20 minutes

Method

1. Make the rose syrup: combine water and sugar in a small saucepan over medium heat. Stir until sugar dissolves. Add rose buds and simmer gently for 5 minutes. Remove from heat and steep for 10 minutes. Strain and cool completely. Syrup keeps refrigerated for up to 2 weeks.

2. Place 3–4 cucumber slices and a sprig of fresh mint into the bottom of your glass. Muddle together gently — just enough to release the juice and oils without turning everything bitter. You'll smell when it's ready.

3. Fill the glass with ice. Pour in rose syrup, then sparkling water. Adjust the ratio to your preferred sweetness — start with ⅓ syrup to ⅔ water and go from there.

4. Squeeze in the lime. Stir once gently. Garnish with a fresh mint sprig and serve immediately.

For a sparkling wine version: replace the sparkling water with prosecco.

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Mast-o Khiar | Persian Yogurt Cucumber Dip

Mast o Khiar — yogurt and cucumber — is one of the oldest and most quietly essential dishes in Persian cuisine. It appears at nearly every table, every meal: alongside rice, next to grilled meats, as a first thing set down when guests arrive. The name says exactly what it is. The dish does the rest.

In its most traditional form it is yogurt, cucumber, and dried mint. What makes this version distinctly Villa Jerada is the finish — a scatter of dried Moroccan roses and a pinch of sumac that brings a quiet tartness, bright against the cool yogurt.

Serve it cold. Make it ahead. It keeps well and improves by the hour.

Serves 4 · Ready in 15 minutes

Ingredients

• 2 cups full-fat Greek yogurt

• 2 Persian cucumbers, finely diced (or 1 English cucumber, seeded)

• ¼ red onion, very finely diced

• Small handful fresh mint, roughly chopped

• ¼ cup walnuts, roughly chopped

• 2 tbsp golden raisins

• ½ tsp Villa Jerada sumac

• Juice of 1 lime

• ½ tsp sea salt

• 1 tbsp olive oil, to finish

• 1 tsp Villa Jerada dried rose buds, to garnish

Method

1. If using English cucumber, halve lengthwise, scoop out seeds with a spoon, and dice finely. Salt lightly, let sit 10 minutes, then pat dry. Persian cucumbers can go straight in.

2. In a bowl, stir the yogurt until smooth. Fold in the cucumber, red onion, fresh mint, walnuts, golden raisins, lime juice, sumac, and salt.

3. Taste and adjust seasoning — the lime and sumac should brighten without dominating. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before serving. The flavors need time to settle.

4. To serve, spoon into a shallow bowl and spread with the back of a spoon. Drizzle with olive oil. Finish with a scatter of Villa Jerada rose buds and a pinch of sumac.

Leek Salad

Ingredients

• 1 Leek (trimmed and cut into circles)

• 1/2 Preserved Lemon (pulp and skin)

• 4 tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil

• 1/2 cup Parsley

• 1/2 cup Cilantro

• 1 clove Garlic

• 1 cup Water

• 1/4 tsp Black Pepper

• Salt to taste

Method

1. In a frying pan on low to medium heat place the water and the leeks cut into circles while maintaining them together. Add a bit of salt and cook covered on a relatively moderate heat to create steam but not boiling so the leeks stay intact, about 5-7 minutes.

2. Meanwhile in a mortar and pestle, put the garlic, lemon and a bit of salt and pound until you obtain a nice paste. Transfer to a bowl and add the rest of the salt, pepper and olive oil. Taste and adjust seasoning if needed.

3. Check the leeks, They should be soft by then. Otherwise add some water and keep cooking until they are soft. Plate them on a shallow plate and drizzle the vinaigrette on top. Let sit in the cooler for an hour at least to allow the leeks to soak in the flavors. Enjoy with some bread or in a sandwich with boiled eggs, roasted vegetables or a nice grilled steak.

Mrouzia - Lamb Tagine

Ingredients

• 1 pound lamb (shoulder or neck)

• 1/2 tbls Ras-El-Hanout

• 1/2 tsp ground ginger

• Pinch of saffron threads

• 1 onion (grated)

• 1/2 cup (75 grams) dried raisins

• 3 tbls extra virgin olive oil

• 2 cinnamon sticks

• 2 tablespoons of honey

• Almonds (whole raw)

• Fried almonds (whole blanched)

• 1/2 tsp salt (to taste)

• 1/2 tsp ground black pepper

Method

1. First make the marinade. In a bowl combine all the spices. Ras-El-Hanout, ground ginger, a large pinch of saffron, salt, and pepper. Add a little bit of water and mix well. For the meat, you can use lamb shoulder or neck – if you do not like lamb you can use beef instead. Pour the marinade over the meat, cover, and refrigerate for a few hours or overnight if you can.

2. When you are ready to cook the meat, do the following: peel and cut the onion, then grate it using the big holes of a grater. Place the raisins in a bowl and cover them with hot water for 1-2 hours so they become soft.

3. In a heavy pot, drizzle the olive oil over medium heat, add the grated onion, mix, and cook for a couple of minutes. Now add the meat with all the marinade, and brown the meat from all sides cooking meat for around 5 minutes until it changes color, this will help hold the flavors into the meat.

   Once the meat is browned, add 2 cinnamon sticks to the pot, and cover the meat with water. Increase the heat to medium-high, cover the pot, and cook until the meat is tender! This can take up to 2 hours meanwhile you have to check on the meat every 20 minutes or so. Stir the meat, keep adding hot water, and just check on it until it’s done.
   

   When the meat is done, which means it is very soft, you can easily cut it with a knife add the drained raisins. Remove the cinnamon sticks and add the honey that brings this dish together.
   Uncover the pot, and continue cooking on medium-high for around 10 minutes, until the sauce thickens and becomes syrupy.

   
   To plate it, first place the meat, put the raisins in the middle on top of the meat, pour the sauce on top and around the meat, then top the entire thing with fried almonds!!! Serve with Moroccan bread or French baguette.

Pickled Harissa Picholine Olives

Ingredients

• 1 jar of Picholine Olives

• 1 Garlic clove (grated)

• 1 tbsp Harissa

• 1/4 of a Preserved Lemon (skin only)

• 1 Napa Cabbage Leaf (diced)

• 1/4 Onion (chopped)

• 1 cup of Parsley and Cilantro (mixed)

• 1/2 tsp of Kefta Rub

• 2 tbsp of Extra Virgin Olive Oil (or more to your liking)

Method

Drain the olives and remove the bay leaf, garlic and preserved lemon from the brine.

Mix all the ingredients in a bowl and mix well until all the ingredients are well incorporated.

Enjoy as a salad. Add to sandwiches or serve as an appetizer.

Rose Onion Pickles

Ingredients

• 1 red onion

• 2 tbsp raisins

• 1 tsp sumac

• 1 tsp rose water or 1 rose bud

• 1/2 cup vinegar

• 2 tsp salt

• 1 tsp sugar

• 1 tbls extra virgin olive oil

Method

1. Thinly slice the onions and scatter them onto a shallow plate. Sprinkle the salt and the sugar. Add the raisins and the rosebuds or rosewater and mix with your hands to ensure the onions are fully coated.

2. Let sit for 5 mins. Add the vinegar and mix again.

3. Let sit for at least an hour at room temperature and add olive oil and garnish with sumac before serving.