Bailey's Chocolate Cream Frosting

I love Bailey's, and like most women, I love chocolate. So is there anything better than a combination of the both that can be used as a frosting for cupcakes? Mmm, I think not. I actually whipped this creation up myself the other day while searching for a suitable frosting for Vanilla Cupcakes. Can I tell you a secret? I've been eating the frosting without the cupcakes :p It's that good.

So here's what you'll need: 

• 250 grams of cream cheese, softened to room temp. 
• 150 grams of chocolate
• 1 1/2 cups icing sugar
• 1/2 tbsp of butter
• 1 tbsp Bailey's

Directions: 

Melt your chocolate with the butter. The trick to melting chocolate so that you get the rich and smooth texture is to avoid placing it directly on the heat. Best way to do this, is to place your chocolate in a pot, and place that pot on top of a pot of boiling water. It will provide consistent heat for the chocolate to melt. Adding just a 1/2 tbsp of butter gives you a smooth rich chocolate sauce that will easily pour.

Take your softened cream cheese and gradually add the icing sugar. Stir until smooth and most of the lumps are gone.

Add your chocolate sauce to the cream cheese and icing sugar mix. Stir well.

Finally, add your tbsp of Bailey's and stir through thoroughly.

Use to frost cakes, or as a delicious topping to cupcakes!

Bon appetit :)

Chicken-ella Recipe!

A friend of mine the other day was talking about quick and easy recipes, and I told her there were a few posted on my blog she could check out. When I searched though, I realised that I only have one savoury recipe posted! Time to rectify immediately, as I cook a great deal more savoury than sweet :D So here is my "patented" Chicken-ella Recipe. It's akin to a Chicken Curry, but this is a recipe I originally came up with in University, and have adapted and added to over the years. This is the finalized version, including all the options you can throw in. Total prep time to cook is about 30 minutes.

What you'll need (serves 4)

1/2 Kg (1 lb) Chicken Breasts

3 large tomatoes

1 large onion

2 tbsp vinegar

1 tbsp olive oil

1/2 cup water

1 tbsp black pepper

1.5 tbsp garlic (to taste - I like really garlicky stuff)

1.5 teaspoons thyme

1/2 teaspoon cumin

1/2 teaspoon red pepper

1/2 teaspoon curry powder (optional ingredient)

Dash of tobasco

1 large bell pepper (I recommend green or red - this is an optional ingredient)

1 can sweetcorn (again, an optional ingredient)

What to do:

1. Slice your chicken breasts into thin strips. Toss with vinegar, red pepper, thyme, 1 tbsp garlic, black pepper and 1/2 of the onion, finely chopped. Throw in dash of tobasco, cover and let marinate for at least 15 minutes. I prefer to let this marinate as long as possible.
2. While your chicken is marinating, chop your veggies. Dice your tomatoes, chop the remaining onion, and bell pepper if you have added it.
3. In a large pan, add your 1 tbsp olive oil. Warm over medium heat, and add onions. Saute until almost translucent, about 3 - 4 minutes.
4. Add your chicken to the pan. Use the 1/2 cup water and add to the marinate dish. Swill around to pick up all the extra spices, add to the chicken and onions. Add your curry here if you plan to use any. Cover your pan, and let cook over medium heat until the chicken is white around the outside - about 10 minutes.
5. Add your remaining vegetables, and let cook over medium heat for 15 - 20 minutes until chicken is tender. Stir occasionally.
6. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Serve with warm bread, 2 cups rice or spaghetti. Whatever tickles your fancy. I usually opt for rice ;)

The trick here is that the tomatoes while cooking will release their juices that then cook through the chicken and create a delicious tomato sauce. You can choose to thicken it up by adding 1 tbsp of tomato paste, your call.

Bon appetit!

Butterscotch Brownies

I was requested that I post this recipe, which was a huge hit. Apparently it tastes very similar to an Egyptian style of cake, so K was more than enthused to have it with his morning Chai Bil Laban (Tea with Milk) for breakfast. As per usual, I found a recipe in the Joy of Cooking and made it my own!

So here's what you'll need: 

1 eight inch baking pan (lined with foil) 

1 cup flour

1/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/8 teaspoon baking soda

1/8 teaspoon salt 

1/2 cup butter (unsalted preferably)

2/3 cup packed light brown sugar

1/4 cup sugar

1 large egg

1 egg yolk

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla essence 

1 tbsp white sugar mixed with 1/4 tsp water (original recipe called for 1 tbsp corn syrup, but that's something I cannot find here so I improvised)

Directions: 

Preheat your oven to 175 Celsius (350 degrees Fahrenheit).

Grease your foil-lined baking pan. This is very important, if you miss this step you'll end up peeling off foil from your brownies. Mmm...foil covered brownies.

Whisk together in a large bowl your flour, baking soda and powder, and salt. Set aside.

In a non-stick saucepan, melt your butter. Cook over a medium heat, stirring constantly, until the butter turns a golden brown colour (takes three to five minutes).

Remove from heat. Stir in brown and white sugar until well blended.

As the mixture cools, add in your egg, egg yolk, your sugar / water (or corn syrup) blend and vanilla.

Mix your wet ingredients into flour mixture.

Add to baking pan, and cook until top is golden brown and toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean, between 20-30 minutes.

 

Et. Voila! Bil Hana Wa Shiva! 

Top with cream, or serve with Ice Cream! 

A taste of Egypt: Konafa!

As promised, here is a recipe for a Ramadan dish; Konafa. Warning: if you are on a diet don't attempt to eat this stuff. :)

Konafa is a traditional Ramadan dish, although it is eaten year round. It can be served hot or cold, and with a variety of fillings and toppings. I found a recipe online for a cream cheese filling here (although I have never had one with cream cheese inside).

Image from Easy Recipes

The recipe below comes with the assumption that you will be able to readily find Middle Eastern ingredients. Fear not, if you cannot find katteyef (or ready made Konafa pastry) you can substitute with fine vermicelli.

Sweet Syrup ingredients:

• 3 cups sugar
• 1 ½ cups water
• Lemon juice
• Vanilla

Konafa ingredients:

• ½ Kilo Konafa pastry
• 1 cup butter
• Nuts
• Coconut
• Raisins
• ½ tablespoon sugar
• ½ teaspoon cinnamon

Sweet Syrup Directions:

1. Dissolve the sugar in water in a medium saucepan.
2. Add lemon juice and vanilla then bring to boil.
3. Reduce the heat and let it slowly boil for 8-10 minutes.
4. Remove from heat and put it aside.

Konafa Directions:

1. Cut the Konafa into smaller pieces.
2. Heat the butter, add Konafa and mix.
3. Grease baking dish and add have of the Konafa mixture with butter.
4. Mince the nuts with a little bit of sugar and cinnamon and sprinkle it all over the Konafah.
5. Add the rest of the Konafa over and compress with your hand to make sure it is holding well.
6. Put in the oven until the top is golden.
7. Pour the syrup on and the raisins on top.

Voila! Bil Hana Wa Shiva. 

For that extra authentic Egyptian taste, add some Eshta (Cream) on top of the Konafa and you have a sinfully delicious treat.

Key Lime Pie (with pictures)

I've previously posted a recipe for Key Lime Pie on the blog, but in the time since then, I've spiced it up and perfected it (well, in my humble opinion :p).

Cooking is a collaborative effort, and I find that often just reading through a recipe can be very daunting. My favourite recipes to follow have always been the ones that have step by step pictures, so at least I can see if my mixture is too lumpy, or too runny, or if something else has gone obviously wrong.

With me being in Egypt, it's impossible to find key limes here. Instead, I use lemons, and if I can find them, one or two larger limes. So technically, it's a Key Lime Pie, done Egyptian style. **note, the size of the lemons here are the same size as key limes, so the measurements are not affected - only the colouring**

Ingredients

1/2 cup fresh lime juice (12 to 15 key limes - depending on size) 4 teaspoons grated lime zest
2 egg yolks, 2 egg whites
1 - 14 ounce can sweetened condensed milk
2 packs vanilla wafers, 3/4 cup biscuits
1.5 tablespoons granulated sugar
5 tablespoons butter, melted

Directions

• Preheat oven to about 170 Celsius.
• Crumble your biscuits. There are a few ways to do this. If you have vanilla wafers with cream, make sure you mix up the wafers with the biscuits. I used a blender to crumble mine; if you don't have a blender on hand throw them into a ziplock bag and use a rolling pin to crush them. 

• Most recipes will tell you here to use 3 tablespoons sugar, and mix in with your biscuits. Because I used wafers, I cut back the sugar to 1.5, as the wafers are already quite sweet. So mix your 1.5 spoons of sugar in with your biscuit mix. 

• Add the melted butter to your biscuits, and mix together until well mixed and slightly sticky. I melt the butter right before I use it, and I melt it in the glass pie dish that I'll use. This way I can grease the dish at the same time as melting the butter, kill two birds with one stone. 

• Press the biscuit mix into a pie pan (roughly 9 inches), and up the sides for the crust. Make sure you spread it evenly. It's easiest to start from the center and press out towards the sides. Bake for roughly 10-15 min., until slightly browned.  

The best pie crust I have ever made!

• While your pie crust is cooking, prepare the filling. Start with zesting your limes, you'll need the zest off of about 5 limes. 

• Cut your limes in half, and juice them. Strain out the bits and pips 

• In a medium sized bowl, whisk together the eggs and lime zest until the mixture is slightly green. Add the condensed milk and your lime juice, mix well. Set mixture aside until your crust is cooled. 

• Once your crust has cooled, add your filling. Bake for an additional 15 minutes, until the centre is solid but wobbles like jelly. 

• Remove your pie from the oven and let cool to room temp. Once cooled, refrigerate for three hours or until solid. 

And the end result! Bon appetit!

A taste of Egypt: Molokheya, Molokheya, Molokheya!

I know, I know. Those of you who have tried molokheya will either shout out "YES, finally a recipe for it!" and those that don't, will find this repulsive. haha. Molokheya is a traditional Egyptian dish, which falls into either "you love it" category, or "you hate it." Obviously, I love the stuff.

I first tried this with my family while we were on a Bedouin camping trip through the Bahareya Oasis. Our Bedouin guide placed a bowl of green "stuff" in front of us, offered us bread and chicken, and warned not to eat too much because it may cause "stomach issues later." Now, we've all been raised that no matter what is put in front of you, when you are being offered food as a guest, you have to try. Even just one bite. Turns out, my sister, mum and I all loved this "green stuff" whose name we were unable to discern.

I spent the next two years in Egypt trying to describe to people what I had eaten in the desert, and it wasn't until one of my Egyptian friends actually gave me molokheya, that I realised this was the delicious "stuff" we'd had in the desert.

The closest comparison I can draw, is to spinach dip. There's nothing quite like this outside of Egypt, and I am lucky enough to have been "inducted" into the crowd that can actually make molokheya.

So here it is, a step-by-step guide to making molokheya, with pictures so you can easily follow along. Bil hana wa shiva!

What you'll need:

Molokheya (Sold in bunches in the supermarket)
Minced garlic (4 tablespoons)
Butter (2 tablespoons)
Coriander (2 1/2 - 3 teaspoons)
Chicken or vegetable stock
Salt and Pepper

1. Take your bunch of molokheya, and strip the leaves from the stems. Discard the stems, and wash the leaves well under cold water.

2. Begin your stock. You want your stock hot when you add the Molokheya. There's really no definite ruling as to how you should make your stock; if you want to use chicken bones, go ahead! You'll need approximately 2 cups of stock.

3. The fun part :P Crush your molokheya leaves. You want them the consistency of ground spinach, not runny, but more of a paste-consistency. I was advised AGAINST using a blender, as it will make the molokheya watery, and will affect the taste. This is all about old-school cooking.











4. When your stock comes to a boil, add your molokheya leaves. Cover, and let boil.

5. Meanwhile, take your garlic and add to a small frying pan. Cover your garlic with coriander, and add the butter. Cook the garlic until browned, about 5 minutes.











Now here's the trick. Add the garlic sauce to your molokheya soup. It will spit, so you'll want to add the molokheya, and cover again promptly. Let come to a rolling boil, stirring occasionally. Cook for 3 minutes longer, and remove from heat.

Serve your molokheya with rice. Goes great with chicken as a side dish too.