Quail Stuffed with Tomato, Raisin and Pistachio Pilaf

This Turkish recipe features a tomato-flavored pilaf studded with raisins and pistachios. Added at the end, the raisins balance the tomatoes' acidity and the pistachios add crunch—a delicious match for the savory roasted quail. [Click here for recipe]

Seven Vegetable Tagine with Chickpeas and Raisins

"Tagine" refers both to the type of dish—a Moroccan stew—and the type of pointy-domed earthenware pot in which it is cooked. A properly prepared couscous takes time to absorb all the complex flavors of the spices with which it's made. You never want to rush a couscous or it will be bland and undercooked. In this delicious meatless tagine, the raisins balance out the acidity of the tomatoes and any bitterness left in the turnips, and they round out the spiciness of the stew. The number seven makes this a special dish to assure good luck. [Click here for recipe]

Imam Bayildi

The literal translation of this dish is "to make the wise man faint." Eggplant is plentiful in the Eastern Mediterranean, and this variation of the traditional Turkish dish is so good, it can make even an imam (a learned wise man or cleric) swoon! [Click here for recipe]