Strawberry Shortbread Cake

We were having Easter Dinner at my inlaws, I decided on baking a light dessert, because we are having a big dinner, Turkey a l’orange a specialty of my father in law, he cooks it low and slow with basting it in a special mix of orange juice, homemade maple syrup (still boiling the sap) and some spice blend, also were having homemade lasagne, I also baked a smoked orange roast ham, Mediterranean Salad, steamed asparagus. Lots of food and few mouths to taste. My brother in law and his family went out of town to open the cottage, my sister in law couldn’t travel from Mississauga which is four hours South of  North Bay, and she is the next day.

My dessert has to be light and fresh, so I choose strawberry shortbread with a meringue topping , the cake was divided into two 8 x 8 pans, and topped with a layer of meringue, baked in a preheated 350F oven.

The dessert came extremely good, fluffy; the meringue topping gave the texture of an Angle Food Cake…we truly enjoyed it.

All the food was delicious, but I think we need to do another Lent week to burn all the calories we consumed during the Holiday.

Strawberry shortbread

Serves 8-9 persons

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1 cup sugar
• 3 large eggs
• *1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/3 cup 2% milk
• 1-1/4 cup pastry flour
• 1-1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon fine salt
• 2 cups sliced fresh strawberries
• 1 1/2 cup whipping cream, whipped to soft peaks

**If you use lots of fresh lemons like me, wash and dry the lemons, peel them with a lemon peeler, and add them to the food processor and ground finely, package them in small freezer bags, or small freezer containers, they freeze well.

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350F and grease and flour two 8-inch square cake pans. Beat vegetable oil, ½ cup sugar and egg yolks with electric beaters until fluffy. Stir in lemon zest and vanilla. Stir in milk. Sift together pastry flour, baking powder and salt and gently stir into egg yolk mixture until blended. Spread evenly into the 2 prepared pans. Whip egg whites with electric beaters until frothy, then gradually add the remaining ½ cup sugar and whip until whites hold a stiff peak. Spread meringue evenly over batter in pans. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until a tester inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. Cool cakes completely in the pan.
2. To assemble, turn one cake out onto a plate, meringue-side down. Top cake with half the strawberries and cream. Place second cake layer on top, meringue-side up and top with remaining cream and fruit. Chill until ready to serve.

Cake Lollipops - A nice project to do with kids

This is a big seller at the market , unfortunately I don’t have the time to do it every week, as it takes some time to assemble and I work alone, specially if I have some catering orders , I try to avoid wasting time on several projects. They are cute edible bouquets of cake lollipops, with different flavours…

Sometimes I bake the cake couple of days in advance and turn it into cake balls and freeze it to use it by the end of week.

This is a fun project for the mom and her children ,and it’s a good starts for the children to be involved in their food.

The lollipops can be made from different flavours: I do banana cakes, carrot cakes, and chocolate cakes, even fruit cakes.

In advance bake the cakes and crumble them by hand and better if using a food processor... it combines a better texture to work with. Roll them and put them on a baking tray lined with parchment paper. Freeze them until hard.

In separate bowls add in each your decorations.

Take the cakes out of the freezer. Melt white and dark chocolates in different pots (of course you will be in charge of dipping in the balls) In couple of minutes the balls will soften enough to insert a wooden lollipop stick in them.

Dip in the chocolates and give your kids the pleasure to decorate them.

Return them to the baking sheet to set, and if needed couple of minutes in the freezer will quicker the operation... use plastic candy bags to wrap them, use a scotch tape around the bag to tie, them use a ribbon to tie around it in a nice bow.

These lollipops are fun to do, a good project for the family. Great for birth day parties and school projects.

My beautiful niece visiting me at the market

An edible bouquet

Lebanese Mloukhieh - Jews Mallow Stew

Fresh Mloukhieh Leaves

Corchorus is a genus plant of about 40-100 species of flowering plants in the family Malvaceae, native to tropical and subtropical regions throughout the world. Different common names are used in different contexts, with jute applying to the fibre produced from the plant, and Mallow-Leaves Mulukhiyah (with many similar transliterations from Arabic: ملوخية‎) applied to the leaves used as a vegetable. The leaves of the Corchorus plant have been a staple Egyptian food since the time of the Pharaohs and it is from there that it gains its recognition and popularity. Varieties of Mallow-leaves stew with rice are a well known Middle-eastern cuisine.

Corchorus aestuans in Hyderabad, India

The plants are tall, usually annual herbs, reaching a height of 2-4 m, unbranched or with only a few side branches. The leaves are alternate, simple, lanceolate, 5-15 cm long, with an acuminate tip and a finely serrated or lobed margin. The flowers are small (2-3 cm diameter) and yellow, with five petals; the fruit is a many-seeded capsule. It thrives

Fiber

The plants of Corchorus genus satisfy the world with great amounts of fiber needs. The fibers from these plants are the most widely cultivated vegetable fiber after cotton.

Young Mulukhiyah leaves are used as a green leaf vegetable; Corchorus olitorius is used mainly in southern Asia, Egypt and Cyprus, Corchorus capsularis in Japan and China. It has a mucilaginous (somewhat "slimy") texture, similar to okra, when cooked. The seeds are used as a flavoring, and a herbal tea is made from the dried leaves. Mulukhiyah is eaten widely in Egypt and some consider it the Egyptian national dish. It features in the cuisines of Lebanon, Palestine, Syria, Jordan and Tunisia. The basic recipe for Egyptian Mulukhiyah stew is to place 400 grams of finely chopped fresh or frozen mallow leaves in two cups of chicken stock and cook over a low fire. In the meantime prepare the Mulukhiyah spice mix by frying a tablespoon of ground dried coriander and three cloves of minced garlic in a tablespoon of oil in a separate pan until golden brown. Right before the Mulukhiyah and the stock start boiling, place the spice mix in the mixture and immediately remove from the fire. It is very important not to allow the Mulukhiyah to boil as it coagulates and becomes inedible. The resulting Mulukhiyah dish can be served with white rice and chicken, or as a soup.

In Nigerian cuisine, especially amongst the Yorubas, it is commonly used in a stew known as ewedu, a condiment to other starch-based foods such as amala.

In rural villages of the near east many families grow their own Mallow Leaves. It constitutes a significant constituent of their diet, thickening dishes and contributing vitamins, especially A. Here is a picture of the plant taken in Bi"lim:

The leaves are rich in betacarotene, iron, calcium, and Vitamin C. The plant has an antioxidant activity with a significant α-tocopherol equivalent Vitamin E.

 

Recipe for using fresh leaves Mloukhieh if available in your area.

1 1/2 kg fresh mloukhieh leaves without stems, picked the day before, then washed couple of times, then spread on kitchen towels over night to dry completely. The next day coarsely chop the mloukhieh, using a sharp knife.

1 kg of lamb shanks or shoulder of even stew meat (optional - can be prepared with chicken only, or you can bring the flavour more by adding the lamb shanks)

1 whole chicken skinned
2 medium onion sliced
1 bulb head of garlic - peeled (chopped with the fresh cilantro in mortar and pestle or pulsed in food processor)
1 large bunch fresh coriander washed, chopped and minced with garlic. plus 1/2 tsp. of whole dried coriander to boost the flavour and this is optional.
3 tbls Olive Oil for frying the garlic cilantro mix
1/2 tsp black pepper 1 tsp. sea salt
2-3  fresh lemons squeezed, use the peel for the stock.
4 cups of stock from the meat and chicken if you think it needs more add one cup water.
bay leaves and cinnamon stick .
 

Topping: toasted pita chips - cider vinegar and minced onion
 

Rice Pilaf: 2 cups of Basmati , Jasmine or Long Grain Rice washed and drained, 1/3 cup of butter, 1 tbsp. olive oil.  Toast the rice in butter and oil till it starts frying and keep stirring as it will stick in the bottom when you feel that its toasted for 7 minutes add 2 cups of water for each cup of rice and couple bay leaves for a nice smell and spoon of sea salt.  Cook on medium heat then lower when it starts boiling.  when the water evaporate shut the heart , and you see holes on the surface of the rice, shut the heat and leave it to rest for 10 minutes before serving.   Stir with a fork to fluff.

If you are using the two kinds of meat, fry them in a spoon of olive oil to brown or do like me; bake them in the oven for 30 minutes to brown, skin the chicken and put them in deep large pot cover them with 6 cups of water , the spices, lemon rind and brings to boil. Remove scum from surfaces.  Add the sliced onions, salt and pepper. Cover and simmer for 1 hr. Remove chicken and debone, return half to the pot and leave half to decorate the plates.  Add the Mloukhieh and cook for 30 minutes , make sure the stock is enough you need to have at least 4 cups of the stock , after adding the Mloukhieh the stew seemed thick you can add one cup or more of warm water , you should have enough liquid when serving its a stew after all.  (If you added the lemon peel and the cinnamon stick to the meat stock you can fish them out before adding the Mloukhieh).
 

In a large mortar and pestle add the garlic , fresh cilantro and dried cilantro and start mashing till it become a paste (check the picture) you can pulse them in a food processor .  Heat the 2 tbsp. of olive oil in a pan , add the chopped minced garlic and cilantro mix fry for 5 mins till you start smelling the aroma , make sure not to burn it , soon as they start taking a light color add it to the stew and mix well to combine, squeeze the fresh lemon juice and add it stir, adjust the seasoning and continue cooking on medium heat for extra 10 minutes. (you need to add the lemon juice after the Mloukhieh Stew is boiling not before other wise it will turn slimy)

How to Serve:  in a plate add some rice, add Mloukhieh Stew with meat and chicken pieces and some juice, toasted pita chips, and sprinkle couple tablespoons of cider vinegar and minced onion  , then add some chicken pieces.
 

Recipe if using Dried Mloukhieh

150 Gms of dried Mloukhieh dehydrated in hot water for 30 minutes. Then drain 

500 Gms bag of frozen spinach or one kilo fresh baby spinach or regular chopped.
same for the remaining ingredients .
and follow the same preparation after boiling the chicken and meat add the drained Mloukhieh and fresh spinach and cook for 30 minutes and when it starts boiling
add the minced garlic and cilantro mix after frying them to the stew and continue cooking.
follow the same steps.

 

No meal is complete without Dessert!!

White Genoise with Buttercream and Strawberry
 

You can cook it with Chicken & Meat


Many prepares the Mloukhieh with Chicken or Rabbit meat only




In the Winter Season, I prefer to use frozen spinach from Belgium .
During the Summer Season I buy it locally from my F. Market



1- Bag of dried mloukhieh
2-dehytrated in hot water
3- chopping and mincing the cilantro and garlic
4- fresh lemon juice

Note: During the Summer Season, I through some seeds in my garden and within couple of weeks the plants starts to shout... and within couple months you will taste your fresh Mloukheih out of the garden.... by the end of the season, the plants will starts seed on the top, and i collect them and use them from year to year.

Enjoy

Nia's Birthday Cake

As I shared in my previous posting, that we were celebrating seven birthdays in the family. We choose Valentine Day February 14^th, for the big celebration, as my sister in law lives with her family in Mississauga which is the next big city after Toronto, and they are part of the celebration party. Mississauga is almost four hours driving to North Bay.

It was a simple choice for the birthday cake, the Landry's love love love chocolate, I choose a double chocolate cake with chocolate ganache frosting, check the earlier posting for the recipe.

Now when it comes to a child birthday cake, you have to very careful with what you are using… my plan was doing an Ariel Cake and cover the cake with homemade fondant as well as the doll, also make fondant under the sea characters. To be honest, it will be a gorgeous cake, but do you really want a five years old girl to eat all that sugar even if its her birthday cake, who cares if the cakes is gorgeous or not… It’s covered with sugar. I know for surel that Lorraine will not be happy giving Nia all that sugar, and the cake will stay in North Bay for someone to eat, and will not go with them to Mississauga…

For sometime I wanted to try Farida’s Zebra Cake www.azcookbook.com/zebra-cake/ it looks great the recipe doesn’t include lot of sugar … I still wanted to go with under the water theme, and I wanted to use a nice icing which will stay perfect on the cake, light and not overly sweet… and my seven minutes icing is perfect for the job... it never failed me before. The candy store has a big variety of jelly candy, I found several under the sea characters , I grabbed couple of each and went back to assemble the cake.

By the way when we carried the two cakes we left Nia’s cake in the truck, I wanted to surprise her… and oh boy, she was surprised for sure, she yelled, cried from joy and hugged and kissed me then hugged me again... I leave the rest for the photos.

The big surprise on Miss Nia... She new there is a big cake for all of them but didn't expect a special one for her!!!!

P.S. my husband is after me now to bake him some Zebra CupCakes for his lunch box.

H2OPE FOR HAITI & A Double Chocolate Cake

It’s been snowing since last night; the ground is covered with snow… I was sitting on a bar stool in the kitchen, waiting for the coffee and looking outside at the falling snow , I felt happy to see the white powder again, funny for someone who hates the winter cold snowy season, I felt happy to see the snow…

We didnt have a bad winter season this year. It was mild in comparison to earlier years... Especially in Northern Ontario where we will be covered with snow till mid of March…It didn’t snow all January, and this is the first snow in February.

In just the past two years alone, there have been major food and fuel crises, a global recession, and climatic disasters. There have also been other natural catastrophes, like the earthquake in Haiti which wrought so much pain and destruction. Last week Madeira landslide changed the map of the City, taking with it several victims, hundred of families lost their homes.

The devastating magnitude 7.0 quake that ripped through Haiti last month, reportedly killing thousands of people, the severe shaking which was so damaging, leaving thousands homeless without a safe shelter, the infrastructure is completely destroyed leaving the victims without food and water.

From Sunday, February 21 to Sunday-March 7th, 2010

BloggerAid Changing the Face of Famine (BA-CFF) will be launching H2Ope for Haiti, an online raffle to raise funds for Concern Worldwide relief effort in Haiti.

They selected Concern Worldwide because of its long track record and quick response after the quake to provide clean drinking water and water purification tablets.

Concern Worldwide estimates that its initial response to the emergency will last at least six months. The money raised by this raffle will be paid directly into Concern Worldwide's account by Justgiving and will be used exclusively for the Haiti relief effort

Although the donation is small ; coming from a warm sincere heart will make a difference, and penny over penny will reach the target

Go to the Justgiving donation page and follow the instructions on how to win. You will find the list of great raffle prizes donated such as an I-Pod Shuffle, artwork, autographed cookbooks and so much more!!! You can also see the list of prizes on www.cooksister.com/2010/02h2ope-for-the-haiti-the-prizes.html for a complete list of prizes

One raffle ticket will give you the chance to win your choice of wonderful prizes donated by some fabulous bloggers. How's about an I-Pod Shuffle, an autographed copy of David Lebovitz's latest cookbook, Indian artwork or many more exciting prizes.

Also I got a $50.00 shopping spree from http://www.csnstores.com/, they have over 200 stores. you can shop online from Baby & kids, Home Decor, Home Improvement, Housewares , Outdoors, and many more PRIZE CODE: HFH35

Double Chocolate Cake

I've been using the Epicurious Double chocolate Layer Cake since some years now, and every time I make the cake, I try to add a new flavour. The original recipe of this cake make two 9 " round cake pans. Because I made this cake for a big birthday Party I doubled the recipe using two 12" cake pans, and four pounds of Callebaut Chocolate between the cake the ganache and the the chocolate flowers which were my first time trial. "the birthday party was on Feb 14th - what's better than chocolate on this special day"

For cake layers

• 3 ounces fine-quality semisweet chocolate such as Callebaut
• 1 1/2 cups hot brewed coffee
• 3 cups sugar ( use 2 1/2)
• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 cups unsweetened cocoa powder (not Dutch process)
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 1/4 teaspoons salt
• 3 large eggs
• 3/4 cup vegetable oil
• 1 1/2 cups well-shaken buttermilk
• 3/4 teaspoon vanilla

For ganache frosting

• 1 pound fine-quality semisweet chocolate such as Callebaut
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 2 tablespoons light corn syrup
• 1/2 stick (1/4 cup) unsalted butter

for my cake I have to use 2 1/2 pounds of chocolate.


Note: I added 2 cups of toasted sliced Hazelnuts , this is optional
I use a strong brewed Melita Coffee, then add extra tbsp of Nescafe to the mix.


All I can say, this is the best ever chocolate cake you will ever eat PERIOD

Once again I remind you to check the justgiving and bid on one of the prizes.. there are plenty to choose from. and remember your money is going toward a great cause, God will bless every penny paid . Thank you so much every one for your support.

Apples Apples Apples - An apple a day keeps the doctor away

Who said eating a cake is fattening. This is a healthy way to eat an apple cake and enjoy the full flavour without feeling guilty:

Ingredients:

1 cup homemade apple butter or good quality jar (I use my own)

1 cup of sugar

1/4 cup of butter

3 eggs

3 cups cake flour or all purpose

1 cup raisin

1 cup chopped nuts

2 tsp baking soda

Dash of salt

1 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp spice mix: nutmeg, cloves, cardamom (or use one kind you like)

2 apples chopped

Streusel topping (optional)

Perfect in a lunch box

Square cake pieces

Mini cake loaves

Baked in ramekins

In a silicon cake pan

Orange Cake with a Twist

I guess every one has his favourite recipe for an orange cake. Mine is a very simple recipe , was my late Aunt Juliette favourite cake... Every time I like to do a simple cake with lots of flavours I return to this recipe , also it became a hit at the North Bay Farmer's Market (the customers were used to lemon cake flavour and not to the orange)

This time I made the cake and played with the recipe and took it to the next level, (this is a habit of me, playing and testing recipes all the time)

Original Recipe:

2 cups of flour
1 1/3 cup of sugar
2/3 cup of orange juice (pls use fresh for real flavour)
2 extra large eggs
1/2 cup of butter (my aunt used Crisco)
1/4 cup of water
1 tbsp of orange rind
2 tsp of baking powder
bake in a preheated 375F oven for 30 - 35 minutes

the twist:
instead of 1/4 cup of water I prepared orange curd and used 1/4 cup
instead of tbsp of orange rind, I added a cup of candied citrus which were prepared earlier for the fruit cake
bake at preheated 350F oven for 50 minutes or until it tested done

I leave you with the photos.... the flavours are awesome, spongy texture, rich, beautiful color and the candied citrus gave it the extra bite of orange in your mouth with I love so much....
the original recipe is awesome by itself, but if you like to get a richer flavour try the new twist...

Fresh Fruit cakes - Upside down Plum Cake

During the Summer Season, I like to take advantage from the fresh fruits I can find in the market , I like to eating them fresh, and more enjoy baking them and highlighting their wonderful flavours.

Upside down fruit cake is one of our favourit cakes in the Summer and Plums are one of the fruits I really enjoy caramelizing and baking them. Specially if accompanied with Frangipan or toasted Almond and Amaretto liqueur.

Upside down plum cake using two kinds of plums & toasted almonds and amaretto liqueur

Ultimate Carrot Cake - Birthday Cake

We had several birthdays falling between the months of January and February, its hard to gather the whole family every time for celebration , specially for the ones who live outside North Bay. It was decided that we will make a big birthday party for all on Sunday Feb 1, 2009.



I am taking this chance to wish you all and again a big Happy Birthday with lots of love

Princess Nia with her flower
Since I am make a big cake and one of birthdays is for a child who loves flowers I tried decorating the top of the cake with sweet peas and roses , then added red sprinkles on top .
it didn't show much... but I gave Nia some extra flowers !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Yields 12 serving - cooking time 35 min

Ingredients for cake
2 cups all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup milk
1 1/2 teaspoons lemon juice
3 large eggs
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 can (8 oz) crushed pineapple , drained
2 1/2 cups shredded carrots
1 cup coconut flaked (preferred unsweetened)
1 cup chops nuts ( i used walnuts)
*** you can add 1 1/4 cups pure pumpkin for a nice taste (decrease the milk to 3/4 cup and carrots to 2 cups ******

Cream cheese Frosting
COMBINE 11 ounces softened cream cheese, 1/3 cup softened butter and 3 1/2 cups sifted powdered sugar in large mixer bowl until fluffy. Add 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, 2 teaspoons orange juice and 1 teaspoon grated orange peel; beat until combined.
****I used one cup of sifted sugar + 5 oz of white chocolate melted****

Directions:
preheat oven to 350F. Grease two 8 inch round cake pans
combine flour, baking soda, cinnamon ,nuts and salt in small bowl. Combine milk and lemon juice in liquid measuring cup (mixture will appear curdled)
Beat eggs then add granulated sugar ,brown sugar, by hand add oil, pineapple carrots and milk mix well to combined. Gradually add flour mixture stir by hand until combined,stir in coconuts . Pour into prepared cake pans
bake for 30-35 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pans for 10 minutes , remove to wire racks to cool completely before frosting.

Note: **** I doubled the above recipe and baked each in an 11'' cake pan and doubled the amount of frosting

ULTIMATE BANANA CAKE

I used to bake my Banana Cake Following an original recipe, until

one day I decided to adjust the recipe to my taste and waist.

Recipe can be used as cupcakes also

serves 12

Ingredients

2 eggs well beaten

1/3 cup buttermilk or apple sauce which bring the flavour of banana

1/4 cup Avocado oil + 1/4 cup unsalted butter

1 cup of mashed bananas (around 4)

3/4 - 1 cup organic cane sugar

1 3/4 cups all purpose flour

1 tsp baking soda (sifted with the flour)

1/2 tsp salt

1 cup chopped pecans or walnuts plus 1/2 raisin

1/2 tsp cinnamon, 1/2 tsp nutmeg

Preparation

Preheat oven to 325F degrees, spray a loaf pan or bundt pan with non stick spray oil , or line your muffin tray with cupcakes papers.

beat the eggs then add the sugar and continue beating

add the buttermilk, oil, apple butter and bananas mix with a spoon

add the nuts, salt and spices to your sifted flour. Mix by hand until well combined.

pour into your prepared pan, and bake in a preheated oven for 1 hour and 15 minutes depends , on your oven, or until a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean.

p.s.: the cake come out darker than the original recipe .

Note: for the bundt cake pan, I made a recipe and half to fill my cake pan.