BasBousa -Egyptian Semolina Cake

Just made this delish cake for the family the other day and it turned out super amazing. It was my first time baking this Egyptian type sweet dish and baking a cake that uses SEMOLINA. I simply loved it!
It's so moist on the inside and a bit crunchy with the nuts on the outside and the infusion of lime and honey (which i replaced with sugar here) was divine in taste and aroma.

I WILL DEFINITELY MAKE THI AGAIN and RECOMMEND ALL OF YOU TO MAKE IT TOO!

Batter

* 7 tbsp unsalted butter
* 3/4 cup superfine sugar
* 1 tsp vanilla extract
* 2 medium eggs
* 12-1/2 oz (2 cups) semolina
* 1-1/2 tsp baking powder
* 3/4 cup yogurt
* 2 oz (1/2 cup) blanched almonds



Sugar Syrup

* 16 fl oz (2 cups) water
* 2 cups superfine sugar (or honey 1 cup)
* 1 tsp lemon juice



METHOD

Preheat the oven to 375°F. Start by making the batter. In a large bowl, beat the butter, sugar and vanilla until light and fluffy. Add the eggs and beat well. Gradually blend in the semolina and the baking powder. Add the yogurt and mix well until the batter is smooth. Spread the batter into a greased 12-inch round oven=proof pan. Cut into diamond shapes and place an almond in the center of each diamond. Bake for about 35 minutes, until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean.

In the meantime, make the sugar syrup: In a saucepan, bring the water and sugar to a boil, then add the lemon juice and reduce the heat. Simmer, uncovered, for 10 minutes, then remove from heat and allow to cool.

When the cake is cooked, remove it from the oven and pour the cooled syrup over the hot cake. Cool, cut and store in an airtight container.

Serves: 6 - 8


WHAT IS BASBOUSA?

Basbousa (Arabic), revani (Turkish) or ravani and revani (Greek ραβανί and ρεβανί) is a sweet cake made of a semolina soaked in syrup. Coconut is a popular addition to the cake. Although Greeks of Southern Greeks call it ravani, in the north it is called revani, as in Turkish, specifically in the town of Veria where it is the traditional dessert for many years.

WHAT IS SEMOLINA?

FIND OUT HERE

mango pudding

mango pudding
Originally uploaded by Joyful Reverie - Eid Mubarak

My own discovery:

Quick homemade mango pudding

Recipe*

half a cup of Cottage cheese
one whole Ripened mango sliced/cubed
half a cup of whole milk
sugar as needed

blend all in a Blender and serve with sliced mangoes on top =)

Lemony Lemon

Lime Lemon Lemony Lemonade!
“When life gives you a lemon... squeeze it, mix it with six ounces of distilled water and drink twice daily.”



Hello friends and food lovers! A very good afternoon. I have been MIA for a while, just took a few days off from the blogging so I can brainstorm with new ideas and new recipes to keep you all coming!

So spring is coming soon, and I am really excited about this spring and summer! I've got amazing plans. Today it is 14 degree Celsius in Toronto with partly clouds though. What is that?? It's not spring for another month but hey I am loving it. To celebrate this beautiful day, I started off with fresh lemons in the kitchen. Made some face mask with lemon peels which was totally refreshing and rejuvenating!

Lemon is a great way to add zest to everything in life. I believe it has got many many beneficial nutrients that is not only good for our health but also mental well being.

I love the aromatic citrus smell of lemons. I just love it!

I have discovered some great recipes with lemon which benefits me in my everyday life using just fresh lemons! Here they are:

Are you feeling fatigue and nauseated?


Take a glass of cold water, add some sugar and squeeze in some lemon.
Drink it as cold as possible and watch how refreshing you will feel within seconds!

Do you have headaches and Migraine?
Grate some lemon skin into a small bowl make it into a paste form and apply it onto your forehead and little it over the temples. And feel the magic!

Have dull and dead skin? Acne?
Take some of the lemon skin peels and make it a paste, add some glycerin or honey to it and apply it onto the troubled spots. Leave for 5 minutes and wash off with cold water!

Want that fresh summer scent in your home?
Take 1 whole lemon and squeeze it all into a bowl, add water as little as the half of that same lemon. Pour it all into a spray bottle and grate the lemon skin and sprinkle it all in. You've got yourself home made air freshener! Spray this anywhere in the house, on the clothes, shoes where ever you want!

Got the icky sore throat or need some caffeine free tea?



Boil a cup of water, squeeze some lemon into it and simply add 1 tea spoon of honey. Cut up some lemons in thin round or moon shaped slices and dip it in the tea and enjoy a refreshing cuppa and lose that sore throat in minutes!


For congested nose and asthma ( Which I have)
For congested nose: when you squeeze the lemon skin some oils come out, rub it with a fingertip and apply it near the nostrils and breathe it. It works as a nose inhaler!

For asthma: eat fresh lemon juice, about 1 tea spoon to 1 table spoon after every meal. It also helps to eliminate any fats from the meal consumed.

More amazing benefits?
VISIT THIS SITE

Have a Lemonious Day Folks!

Beef Curry

Spicy Beef Curry
A Bangladeshi Dish

It's a cold, chilly, snowy day. We need something to keep us warm and filled throughout the day. Today is my day off from school. I haven't cooked a good Beefy meal for days, today was a perfect opportunity and a good excuse to cook up a spicy delicious beef curry that we all love in our family. I am going to share with you a wonderful Beef Curry recipe which is a traditional Bangladeshi dish. I learned this from my mom and mother in law. They both have their own recipes and tastes. It's amazing how we all follow the same recipe but our cooked food still tastes so different!

Ps* Today's special ingredient is GARLIC

Ingredients:

1 Ilb Beef
Oil - 1/2 cup
Onions - 2 medium ones, chopped
Garlic Paste - 2 table spoons
Black pepper as much as needed
Salt - as much as needed
Green chillies - 3-4 medium ones - cut in halves
Garam Masala - 2 tea spoons
Paprika - 1/2 table spoon
Turmeric Powder - 1 table spoon
Ground Ginger Powder - 1 table spoon
Cumin/Zeera powder - 2 tea spoons
Potato - 1 large, cut in medium squares

Preparation:

Before cutting onions and potatoes, marinate the raw meat in a bowl with Salt & Pepper for about 15-20 minutes.

Cooking Method:

-In a cooking pot, preferably nonstick, heat the oil.
-When the bubbles in the oil start to appear, place in the chopped onions and fry under medium heat for 5-8 minutes until light brown.
-Add the Garlic paste in the onions and saute it together for couple of minutes
-Now take all the Turmeric powder, grown ginger powder, paprika powder and cumin powder and add it to the onion mix. Stir it and mix it properly for another couple of minutes.
-Add the halved green chillies and Garam Masala. Stir fry for 5 minutes. If it i sticking to the pot/pan, you can add few tablespoons of water to gain a thick paste consistency.

You will now start to smell the aromas of the spices. Now the meat is ready to go in.

-Add the beef that was marinated with salt and pepper with the browned onions and mix it all very well so the spices are all mixed well with the beef.
-Lower heat to medium. Cover and let the beef cook for 15-20 minutes.

Between the 30 minutes, check the meat every now and then and stir it. Flip over the meat pieces from bottom to top.

After 15-20 minutes of frying the beef and spices, add 1-3 cups of water. Mix it all together and you can turn the heat to medium-high. Cover

Let cook for another 20-30 minutes. Add the potatoes.
Cover and cook for 10 minutes, until meat is tender.

Serve with rice, flat bread or bread!

Most Essential Part of One's Day

French Toast
with banana and glazed strawberries
mmm mmm Good!

What is the most essential meal of one's day? Breakfast!
I don't usually have time to eat breakfast these days as i wake up and run to school. But, on my day offs I love a good stomach filling breakfast. Because, it is the most essential part of everyone's day.

I got bored with the usual and made french toast. I was craving whipping cream to go in the middle of these toasts but there was none at home! So what you see is what I pulled out. I am glad I got the healthier dose instead of whipped cream. mmmm!

Ingredients:

2 large Eggs
four slices of Wonder Brown Bread
2 tablespoons white granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon Vanilla essence
2 tablespoon whole milk
oil - 3 table spoons
1 banana sliced in half
sliced strawberries glazed in sugar

Method:

In a small bowl, beat the eggs with a whisk and add the milk and vanilla, whisk
Add sugar and whisk again

Heat a pan with oil in Medium heat, enough to lightly fry the toasts

Take the slices of breads and cut them in half, in a sandwich shape of your liking.
You can lightly toast the bread in a toaster if you like it crunchy.
I didn't.
Dip the bread slices in the egg mixture, when all of the bread has been dipped in the egg mixture take it out and get the excessive eggs out.

Place it in the pan and fry both sides for as little as 2 minutes. When it reaches light golden, take it out and place on Towel paper to soak the excessive oil.

Serve with fruits as I did or you can go wild with making french toast sandwich with Whipped cream, chocolate fudge, Nutella spread, or fruit jam!

It's so good!
I tried fruits because I am usually lazy these days to take my dose of fruits, and this way I actually enjoyed eating them.