I was given some sumac powder. What's the best recipe for this? I had it on a duck dish and felt it over powered..help?

I like to use it or za'atar as the seasoning for roast chickpeas. They make a great snack.

I love sumac, I find it has a special affinity to yogurt ..sprinkled on Greek yogurt drizzled with olive oil and some salt, maybe a little garlic a little fresh mint..makes easy lovely dip...or blend the exact same ingredients to form a marinade for chicken, fish or lamb or even sturdy veg like onions...onions marinated in yogurt & sumac then grilled till slightly blackened are delicious.

Chicken rubbed with sumac and salt stuffed with lemons and garlic roasted then served with a few torn mint leaves and some crunchy bottomed basmati rice is lovely too.

Sprinkle it on fresh cucumbers & radishes with a squeeze of lemon juice and a drizzle of good olive oil, speaking of olives, warm some olive oil and a few slivers of garlic, a cinnamon stick, a couple of coriander seeds and some thyme..saute olives till they just warm through, the sprinkle with sumac..yum!

Sumac & honey is very nice as well..has a sweet sour thing..maybe next time you try it with duck..rub duck with sumac (& salt & pepper), throw a thyme spring in the pan then sear , skin side down, basting with the fat till cooked through, then drizzle with a bit of honey/orange juice/duckfat from pan whisked together...I bet it will come out fantastic.

I always add it to my hummus, I'm making a dish right now using it, for a spring Shabbat dinner: quinoa stuffed peppers w/ feta and walnuts...they'll have a sumac scented tomato sauce.

Good luck....and if want to go another direction, when I was in camp on Old Vermont Day they would make Sumac Lemon-ade with local Honey

Here is a link to the recent issue of Food and Wine that has a few recipes that use sumac and zahtar.
http://www.foodandwine.com/chefs/sanjeev-kapoor

I loved it in a Fattoush Salad, http://www.food52.com/recipes/5981_fattoush

Oh, your soup sounds fantastic, yesplease!

For more information and recipes: SPICE, Flavors of the Eastern Mediterranean, by Ana Sortun.

It adds a certain zip to hummus/hummous, too.

I cooked the following recipe which contains sumac. It was the first time I used it, and it added a nice, subtle flavor that was new to me.

http://www.food52.com/recipes/2756_pastitsio

in the mountains of lebanon where I am from, we have a deliciously quick way to use sumac : sprinkle it on top of some sliced ripe tomatoes topped with a nice garlic spread. So good!

Garlic spread:

http://allrecipes.com//Recipe/thick-style-lebanese-garlic-sauce/Detail.aspx

I mix it with red onions or spring onions and parsley, then serve it along side of meat dishes like a little relish.

To keep the spice from overpowering other flavors, try adding something acidic to brighten the overall taste (this is definitely the effect the lemon juice has on my soup).

I also include something creamy to cleanse the palate when I use it as a rub. Yogurt dip is a great compliment to grilled veggies and meats that have been rubbed with sumac.

Earlier this winter, I spiced a lentil soup with equal parts sumac, toasted fennel seeds and toasted coriander (and some fresh lemon juice). I like this spice combo so much, I've also used it on flatbread, popcorn, and as a rub for lamb and eggplant.

It's good in light portions on top of scrambled eggs.
Or look up zaatar..toasted sesame seeds, herbs and sumac.
Great with flatbread and olive oil.

Once while camping I used some wild sumac..with raman noodles fried crispy in in 2 inch disks and topped with cheese, and plum slices from a nearby tree, sumac and salt. It was pretty good.

You can use it to make zahtar. Zahtar is a spice blend comprised of sesame seeds mixed with powdered sumac and dried thyme. It's sprinkled over meats and vegetables, or mixed with oil as a spread for bread. Equal parts thyme and toasted sesame seeds to 1/4 part sumac.

I made this dish for a dinner party with the Ambassador to Syria. He really liked it!
http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Grilled-Cornish-Game-Hens-with-Lemon-Sumac-and-Date-Relish-242994