30 Meals, 30 minutes, 30 dollars

Recipes and photography by Hana Itzhaki

Israeli-Spiced Arayes with Roasted Potato Chips and Chopped Vegetable Salad

This is one of our family’s favorite meals. We prefer to make it vegetarian and use plant-based burgers, but you can use any ground protein you prefer. If you don’t have all the seasonings, just use what you have on hand from those listed. These oven roasted potato “chips” are a fabulous side and double as a healthier snack that you can make anytime. I use a mandoline to slice them thinly and evenly, but you can cut them by hand if you don’t have a mandoline.

Potato Ingredients

• 2 medium russet potatoes
• 1 teaspoon fine sea salt, divided
• ground black pepper, to taste
• cooking spray, preferably olive oil

Arayes Ingredients

• 5 pitas
• 2 packages plant-based burgers
• 2 tablespoons homemade Israeli seasoning  OR 2 teaspoons each cumin, paprika, and turmeric, plus 1 teaspoon each granulated garlic and graduated onion

Salad Ingredients

• 6 Persian cucumbers
• 2 Roma tomatoes
• juice of ½ lime
• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
• ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper

For Serving

ketchup, BBQ sauce, mayo, tahina, or any other condiments of your choice, for dipping (optional)

Total: $22.60

To prepare the potatoes, preheat oven to 450°F. Take out two extra-large rimmed baking sheets.

Give the potatoes a quick scrub. Slice the potatoes into thin rounds either by hand or with a mandoline. Line one of the baking sheets with parchment paper. Lay the potatoes in a single layer on the parchment paper. Season with salt and pepper and spray with cooking spray. Roast for 15–20 minutes, just until they start to brown in places. They will continue to crisp as they cool.

To prepare the arayes, cut each of the pitas in half. Place the burgers and the Israeli seasoning in a bowl and mix until the seasoning is evenly distributed. A gloved hand works well for this job. Take a large golf-ball-size amount of the burger mixture and place into each half of the pitas. Gently press the pita together so that the burger covers the inside of the pita evenly.

Cut the stuffed pitas in half again (optional, but will give each pita more crispy edges) and place on the second baking sheet in a single layer. Roast for 10 minutes.

To prepare the salad, chop the cucumbers and tomatoes into a ¼-inch dice and place in a medium serving bowl. Dress with lime juice, olive oil, salt, and pepper. Toss the salad ingredients to combine and serve with the potatoes, arayes, and condiments of choice.