British take on Ma'asoob (معصوب)

So this is no proper 'traditional' recipe, but just a British variant because I can't find any decent Middle Eastern bread to use for it. Alas, the bog standard loaf of wholemeal bread that was laying around would have to do! And I think it worked quite well, if I do say so myself.

EDIT: So I just found out from a friend that the bread usually used to make this is called 'fateerah' (فطيرة) and that it is actually the same as South Asian 'Parathas'. So if you can find either, use that! :)

Ingredients

2 Bananas
3 Slices of bread (wholemeal if you wanna be healthy)
Optionals:
Dates
Some extra thick spooning cream (Not single or double)
Runny Honey

In a Large bowl, mash up your banana

Add your chopped dates if using

Toast you bread until lightly golden brown, do not burn!

Crumble the toast into the bowl by squeezing and rubbing it in your hands

Mash it all up some more with the help of a potato masher

Add a large spoonful of cream if using

Mix it all up

Place in a microwavable dish and heat until hot, drizzle with honey (optional) and serve.
And do not be fooled by what looks like a very modest portion size, there is 3 slices of bread, 2 whole banana, 4 dates, cream and honey in the dish! ;)

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Spinach Smoothie

I've fallen in love with this recently. Though admittedly, I was quite disgusted when I first heard about it, spinach smoothie? Who would want to drink that?!

But after having read about how great it is for the body, and not to mention how packed spinach is with vitamins and minerals (Pop-eye was certainly on to something, guys!) I decided trying it can't hurt.

So I did, and I've been hooked ever since! Here's the recipe I use for my spinach smoothie, though sometimes I mix it up a bit (today I added pomegranate afterwards, just because I have half a pomegranate to use :p). Feel free to adapt this to suit you own taste.

Oh and for those wondering, this tastes completely of banana, yum yum!

Ingredients

2 cups of baby spinach leaves
1 cup of milk (any type you prefer, soya, almond, coconut, cows etc)
1 banana*
*it's optional to freeze your banana before making this if you want it all nice and icy cold. If you are going to do this, PEEL IT BEFORE YOU FREEZE IT. You have be warned :p

Throw all ingredients into you blender/smoothie maker.
I'm just using one of those hand blenders that come with a beaker thing.

Whizz whizz whizz until smooth. And serve. Enjoy :)

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Heart-centred Cupcakes.

I bought a cupcake from a store a few weeks ago. On biting into it I had the great surprise of finding a pink heart inside it! This is just my attempt the replicate it. Next time I think I need to either use a small heart cookie-cutter or more cake batter as I had difficulty covering the hearts. Nothing a heck load of piped icing couldn't solve, but I am kind of a perfectionist when it comes to food. :)

Ingredients.

3/4 cup of butter

1.5 cup of sugar

3 eggs

2.5 cups of self rising flour

1 and a third cup of milk

Red food colouring.

Mix butter and sugar together until combined

Add your eggs one at a time, whisking well between each addition

Once all three eggs are added you should be left with something like this

Add the milk and flour a little at a time, whisking between each addition until you have add them both.

Put about one third of the mixture into a smaller bowel. Cover the remaining mixture and put aside.

Add some red food colouring until you get your desired colour, I went for a bright pinkish shade,
Cook in the oven at 180C for about 20min until I starts to go brown.

Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely

Once cooled cup out some heart shapes with a heart shaped cookie cutter

This is the best way to get the most hearts out of you sponge!

Add a spoonful of white cake batter into you cake cases.
Ad a heart, point down, and cover with some more white batter.
NOTE: Make sure you hearts all face the same way, if the batter covers them completely you'll need to figure out what way the heart shape sits in order to see it when you cut or bit into them!!

Cook at 180C for about 20min until the are golden brown.
Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely
(As I mentioned before, I didn't have enough cake batter to cover them completely so I am still able to see which way the heart shape sits. However I am now going to need to ice them to hide that mess on top :p)

Serve or cover with icing which I will be doing later. Enjoy!

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Chocolate Truffles

Love chocolate truffles but hate how expensive they are? You'll never need to buy them again with this recipe and they make greats gifts too! :)

Ingredients

For the truffles
300g of dark chocolate
300ml of double cream

For the topping/coating
Cocoa Powder
Icing Sugar
Crushed nuts
Edible Glitter
Melted Chocolate
Sugar Strands
anything that works and tickles your fancy :)

Heat the double cream in a sauce pan until almost boiling (DO NOT BOIL).
Remove from the heat and stir in the chocolate

Keep stirring until chocolate has melted and you have a nice chocolate ganache
Pour into a glass bowl and pop into the fridge for about 3 hours to allow it to set.

3 hours later and you have something that could almost pass as chocolate spread!

Take a small portion and roll between your hands to make a ball.
Make them as big or small as you like.

Once you have rolled the whole mixture into balls, roll the balls in you desired topping/ coating.

I attempted to cover them in melted chocolate, with the idea that when it cooled they would have a crisp hard chocolate shell and a soft truffle centre. Nice idea, right? Didn't work out the best so I wont show you how I made them, but here is a peek at one of the very few that did turn out ok :)

Enjoy!

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Caramel Shortbread

Just a Scottish treat here that is loved by my whole family and pretty much everyone I meet!

Most people think Caramel (or Millionaires) Shortbread is difficult to make but in reality it is very simple. However it does take a few hours to make, due to the cooling periods, and that is probably why so many view it as complex.

The cooling periods are essential if you want this to turn out right - do not, I repeat, do not be tempted to skip them or continue with the next step if your shortbread or caramel is still warm!

The Ingredients

For the Shortbread
250g of plain flour
175g of butter or margarine
75g of caster sugar

For the Caramel
150g of butter or margarine
150g of white or brown sugar
1 tin (400g) of condensed milk

For the topping
200g of your preferred chocolate

Mix caster sugar with the flour

Add the butter (175g) and rub in using your fingers

After a while a dough-like paste will form like this

Spread it out into you tin with your finger or the back of a spoon and prick the top with a fork
Cook at 180C for 20min or until golden brown on top

After 20min, remove from the oven and allow to cool completely.


Making the Caramel

Gently melt the butter (150g) over a low heat

Add the brown (or white) sugar

Mix well until you have a nice golden liquid

Add in the tin of condensed milk and mix well, bring to a very gentle boil (continually stirring) 

Simmer gently for 10 minutes, continually stirring, until the caramel thickens

Once thickened, pour onto your cooled shortbread

Spread out evenly and leave to cool completely

Topping with Chocolate

Melt chocolate in a bowl over and pan of gently simmering water

Pour on top of the cooled caramel and pop onto the fridge for a about and hour to chill

Nice and solid!

And I've yet to figure out how people actually cut this stuff neatly, but mess aside, look at that caramel!
Tuck in with a nice cuppa and enjoy! :)

PS - this was actually my first time making this. That's how easy it is ;)

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