Sherba harish beydha (creamy bulghur pudding)

This is a common Yemeni dish served with every iftar. It is reminiscent of rice pudding in that a grain is cooked with milk and sugar until it becomes thick and creamy. It differs in that sherba is served warm with melted semn (dark clarified butter) and honey.

1 cup bulghur, rinsed and drained
3 1/2 cups water
1 tsp salt
3 cups milk
3 tablespoon sugar (4-5 tablespoon if not using honey)
honey (optional)
semn

Combine water, bulghur, and salt in saucepan, bring to boil, and cook over high for 20 - 30 minutes until tender and most of the water has evaporated. Add milk and sugar. Simmer for 35 minutes or until thickened and bulghur is soft. If not soft, cover, reduce heat to low and cook for an additional 5 minutes. Place in serving bowls, put a small dallop of semn and honey and enjoy.

Cappuccino cake with caramalized nuts (poorman tiramisu)

The reason why I call this a poorman tiramisu is because the concept and the taste is similar to tiramisu but with less expensive ingredients. Instead of mascarpone cheese, ladyfingers, and espresso, cappuccino cakes calls for cool whip, graham crackers, and instant coffee. But the cappuccino cake is delightful and will be a big hit with your family, I am sure of it. This recipe is quite popular among my friends, though I don't know who initially came up with the recipe. I hope you enjoy it.

Cappucinno Cake

1 cup almonds
1 cup sugar
2 (6 oz.)cans of danish cream like Puck brand
1 (8 oz.) container cool whip
2 teaspoons instant coffee
1 (14 oz.) can sweetened condensed milk
1 cup water
1 (14.4 oz) box of graham crackers.

Heat sugar and almonds in saucepan until sugar turns to caramel color, then pour hot mixture onto a sheet of aluminum foil and let them cool. Once cool, crush the hardened caramel into coarsely pieces or grind them into finer pieces. Set aside.

In a separate bowl, mix the 2 cans of cream, cool whip, 1 teaspoon instant coffee, and about 1 cup of sweetened condensed milk. In a separate bowl, mix water, 1 teaspoon instant coffee, and the rest of the sweetened condensed milk. Dip crackers in the coffee/condensed milk/water mixture on both sides for a few seconds (not for too long because they will turn soggy). Start layering crackers in a 13x9 pan. Place some of the cream mixture and spread and then sprinkle with 1/3 of the almonds on top. Continue making the layers ending with a layer of almonds. Cover and refrigerate until the next day. Serve!

Strawberry Jam-Filled Vanilla Spritz cookies

I did the Kuhn Rikon recipe for vanilla cookies and decided to fill them with strawberry jelly. The key to making a stickier jam filling is to heat the jam (in a bowl) in the microwave for 30 or so seconds, spread between the baked and cooled cookies, and let set for a couple of hours.

I also tried baking the jelly in some of the cookies by pressing a dent and filling the dent. Did not turn out great, so I poured some heated jelly once they were cooled. You can (and I plan to try this next time) press a dent in the center of the unbaked cookies to close the hole but don't fill it with jelly until after they are baked and cooled.

The recipe for the vanilla cookies is available at Kuhn Rikon's web site. It says 2 1/2 cups of sifted flour on the web site, yet on the leaflet that came with a product says 2 1/2 cups flour, sifted. I take that as measuring the 2 1/2 cups of flour and then sifting.

Basbousa (Coconut Cake)

This recipe is a unauthentic (yet still yummy) version of the popular Middle Eastern dessert Basbousa. Traditionally Basbousa is meant to be dense, chewier, and made with semolina and yogurt. But I like the version that my friend gave me which is lighter and fluffier in texture and less syrupy.

6 eggs
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup oil
1/4 cup semolina
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 Tablespoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon grated lemon zest
1 cup sweetened coconut flakes, plus more for topping

Separate eggs, placing the egg whites in a large bowl and the yolks in a small bowl. Make sure there is no yolk in the egg whites. Beat on high until whites are frothy, add sugar and continue to beat until stiff peaks can form. Add egg yolks and oil and blend. Add semolina and all-purpose flours, baking powder and zest, and blend in well. Fold in 1 cup coconut flakes. Pour batter in greased 13x9 pan (or larger pan for a flatter basbousa). Sprinkle cake with coconut flakes. Bake in preheated 350 F for 20 to 25 min, until top is brown and toothpic comes out clean from the center.

Pour syrup (recipe below) over the cake as soon as it is out of the over. Can be served warm, room temperature or chilled.


Syrup

2 cups sugar
1 cup water
2 tsp lemon juice
Crushed cardamom, cloves and cinnamon sticks or rose water or orange blossom water (optional)

Stirring constantly, disolve sugar in water on medium heat. When sugar is throughly dissolved, increase heat and bring to a boil. Add lemon juice and your choice of flavorings. Boil for 5 - 10 min. Strain if necessary

The Best Low-Fat Banana and Blueberry Muffin

On the The English Patis blog I came across a low-fat (though not low-calorie) banana and blueberry muffin recipe that uses egg whites and olive oil instead of whole eggs and butter. Despite having little fat content, this muffin manages to be moist and tasty. The recipe uses metric measurements but I have converted them into American measurements as best as I can:

Low-fat Banana & Blueberry Muffins
2 cup + 6 tbsp + 1 tsp self-raising flour
1/3 cup porridge oats plus 1 Tbsp for topping
2/3 cup light muscovado sugar
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)
2 medium bananas - mashed (about 1 cup)
1 cup + 3 1/3 tbsp buttermilk
5 Tbsp olive oil
2 egg whites - slightly beaten
1 cup fresh blueberries

Preheat oven to 180C/350F/gas mark 4. Line a 12-hole muffin pan with paper muffin cases. Reserve 1 Tbsp of the muscovado sugar. Mix the rest of it with the flour and 1 Tbsp oats.In another bowl, mix the egg whites, oil, and mashed bananas until well combined.Pour the liquid mixture into the dry ingredients and quickly stir and fold until just combined. Do not overmix.Add the blueberries and give it a few stirs. Divide the batter into the prepared muffin pans. Sprinkle the 1 Tbsp oats and 1 Tbsp muscovado sugar on top. Bake for 25 - 30 minutes until golden brown.Let cool for a few minutes in the pan then remove and cool completely.