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!

Debikh (Yemeni Chicken Vegetable Stew) Low-fat and healthy

This healthy dish is one of the main meals in Yemen. Everyone has a very different variation and I tend to very flexible with this dish so my stew differs with each time. Sometimes, I add new ingredients or omit some ingredients. It really depends on what spices and vegetables I have on hand. Here is the basic recipe with optional additions.

1/2 large onion, chopped
1 Tablespoon vegetable oil
1 garlic clove, peeled and sliced (optional)
1 medium tomato, chopped
1 chicken, skinned and cut into 10 pieces (or 10 skinned drumsticks)
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp curry
1/2 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp black pepper
2 carrots, sliced
2 celery stalks, sliced (opt)
3 medium potatoes, cubed
1 zucchini, sliced or cubed
1 1/2 cups mixed vegetables like green beans, lima beans, peas, corn
3 tablespoons tomato paste
1 jalapeno, seeded and minced (opt)
1/3 cup cilantro, chopped (opt)

Fill a kettle with water, bring to boil and then leave on low heat.
In a pot, heat oil over medium high heat and then saute onions until just lightly browned. Add garlic and stir until fragrant, about 1 min. Add tomatoes, and cook until softened. Add chicken, salt, and spices. Stir to coat, cover. Stir occasionally, add some of the boiled water when needed to prevent the chicken pieces from burning. Cook until chicken is browned and cooked (about 28 min). Add carrots and celery and stir to coat, cover and cook for 4 min, stir occasionally. Add potatoes, stir to coat, cover and cook for 5 min. Add zucchini, mixed vegetables, jalapeno, and cilantro. Mix tomato paste with a half cup hot boiled water and pour into pot. Stir everything together. Add enough hot boiled water until just barely covering vegetables. Bring to boil on med-high and then reduce to med. Cook for 10 -20 minutes until potatoes are cooked.

Spoon on cooked white rice and serve. Can be eaten with bread too.

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.

Fatayer (Middle Eastern mini pizzas)

This recipe is a Yemeni twist of a popular food in the Mediterranean and Gulf Arab countries. I got this recipe from a friend. I put less cheese on mine though, and I used a blend of different cheeses this time. While I don't have the recipe for the dough ready, any pizza dough recipe would work fine. But I will write up the recipe next time I make the dough, so keep a look out for that.

Prepared pizza dough (let rise)

Filling:
2 Tablespoon oil
2 medium potatoes, peeled and diced
1 pound ground beef
1/2 tsp curry, or more
1/2 tsp cumin, or more
1/8 tsp black pepper, or more
1/2 tsp salt or more
1/2 medium onion, chopped
1/2 medium tomato, chopped
Shredded cheese preferably mozzarella

Heat oil in saucepan on high heat. Saute potatoes in oil until browned and cooked. Add meat and brown, pour out any excess oil (usually the potatoes absorb the oil so there won't be much). Add seasonings and stir. Adjust flavors and remove from heat.


Preheat oven at 500 F. Cut risen dough onto floured surface into golf ball size. Let rest for 5 min, then pat down each one and place each on ungreased baking sheets. Make several pricks with a fork. Bake each sheet of dough rounds in a preheated oven for 3 min or until half cooked (not browned). Place filling on top of each bread round. Place some of the raw chopped onions and tomatoes. Finally top with cheese. Place back in the over and bake until edges are golden brown and cheese is melted. Serve with hummus or sour cream

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.

Kuhn Rikon cookie press and Chocolate Spritz cookies

I recently bought a Kuhn Rikon cookie press (Amazon, $14.95). I am loving it so far. I can't believe how easy it is to use. It is much easier than scooping up cookie dough and plopping it on the pan though you cant use it on just any cookie dough. For example, chocolate chip dough and egg-white based dough will make for a disastrous event.

Well, the cookie press has an ample amount of shapes to choose from, but unfortuanly it does not have the pumpkin shape which is a really fun shape! The press also comes with decorating tips though it seems complicated to use (I have not tried it). The first recipe I tried doing was an almond-flavored cookie that I found on the Internet. It was too soft and so the cookies ended up flattening, thus losing shape. But I saved the remaining dough by adding more flour. Your best bet, however, is to follow the recipes that Kuhn Rikon provides (even though there are only four) and then branching out. Anywho, I tried the chocolate spritz cookies from Kuhn Rikon: a very tough dough but it works perfectly. It's tasty but not as chocolaty as I would like. Nevertheless everyone in my family ate them up quickly and I think I will do them again, maybe ice them next time. The recipe comes with the Kuhn Rikon cookie press but for your convenience here it is

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
1 egg

2 Tablespoons milk or water
2 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup cocoa
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, sifted

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees
2. Combine the butter and granulated sugar in a large bowl.
3. Using an electric mixer set on high speed, beat until light and fluffy.
4. Beat in the egg, milk, vanilla extract, and salt
5. Using a spoon stir in the flour and cocoa until well mixed.
6. Remove the white ring at the base of the plastic barrel and pack the dough into the cookie press. Fit with the desired disk and screw white ring back in place.
7. Place the press flat against the cookie sheet and squeeze the trigger to compress dough in the barrel. Use one click per cookie, lifting straight up and off the sheet.
8. Space the cookies 1 1/2 inches apart.
9. For perfectly identical cookies, keep pressing cookies at consistent intervals every 1 - 2 seconds until no more dough remains.
10. Bake until golden, about 10 minutes. Be sure to watch them so they don't burn!
11. Gently transfer cookies to wire racks to cool.
12. Sprinkle with vanilla sugar if desired and let cool. Decorate.
13. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days.