I'm glad they're here, exclamation point.

Sandra and Ben are in San Diego county and they came up to dinner last night.

I made:

Egyptian spiced carrot puree with a garnish of toasted almonds, coconuts, coriander and cumin seeds all ground up together. I always feel like toasting whole spices before grinding them is a huge pain, but the spices really do taste better afterwards.

A thick, herbed yogurt that was more Turkish than Persian.

Skordalia--a kind of Greek garlicy potato dip with hazelnuts and other things.

Another version of muhammara (red pepper,pomegranate molasses, and walnut dip). This was my best version so far, though still not as intense or as thick as the kind we had at Ara's uncle's restaurant.

And some grilled lamb loin with a parsley, lemon and walnut sauce. Grilled lamb loin is always good. I marinaded it in what is becoming my default marinade--yogurt, some kind of chili pepper, cilantro, garlic, lemon juice, and lots of baharat seasoning.