My Lasagne

Have not had this for a long long time

Ricotta and spinach puffs

Ricotta and spinach puffs

i used puff pastry (frozen from the supermarket)

Fudge

decided to make some FUDGE that Stranger has been making and had hope for it myself as EID parcels to give as gifts inshaAllah but that all soon went out the window lets see why.


So far so good!


OK not to bad now still

now it started to go wrong


They were very hard to remove from the tray and not solid as i had been expecting , Stranger what did i do wrong ?

not one to be defeated esp in the kitchen here it is take two!


Much better but not good enough for the parcels!

Coconut bites

If you like Bounty chocolate then this one is for you, i adore coconut in various forms. I wanted to make these , well something similar but don't know how


As in Algeria i had cakes made for Eid to share with family and neighbours for EID , here i guess peep's give one another gifts but this is too costly and i am not to happy about all this pressure to buy gifts. So here is one tradition i will keep for my Algeria experience.



sorry ladies i didn't mean to forget to post , i just didn't! Umm Hibaat glad you recognised them as i forgot the name!

Ok So you will need

Coconut i used 3 measures
1 measure of sugar
1-2 table spoons of melted butter or marg
1 tablespoon of lemon juice
egg white to bind

Method

Put all in a bowl and mix well
tightly shape golf ball sized balls and place on oiled tray , top with half a cherries, some times you can put into the cup cases and bake in them as the are fragile and fall apart but as i wanted to coat in choc i didn't.

Now bake at gas mark 5 for a very little time like 7 Min's , keep an eye on them as they burn quick. allow to cool and coat in melted chocolate.

It's really easy.

Corn with chilli

Try this with your corn next time all we had to say last night was yummy!

You will need

Whole corn (skin and silk removed) cut each whole corn into 3 pieces.
salt, pepper, Cayenne peer, creme, tom puree and butter
Boil, in a bowl mix 1 table spoon of Tomato puree, finely chopped coriander, salt ,butter, pepper and Cayenne pepper to taste.

In a pan over a low heat for a few Min's combine all this, toss in the corn kernel and add a dollop of creme serve warm.

Butternut squash & Corriander Soup

Things you will need

squash
Onion
Butter
Veg Stock
Coriander
Garlic to taste
Creme Frachie
Method

Peel the squash and remove seeds.
Saute the squash with the onions,butter and garlic for a bit then boil all in pot expect creme when tender blend to liquid and stir in creme.


sorry forgot to picture the finished soup maybe try later.
here is a variations to this soup

Tagged

I have been Tagged by Stanger In The Dunniyah no i mean Seeking Tawqa so here is how it works as stranger in the dunniyah explains it she asking the following question on her blog: “Am I the only blogger out there that sometimes thinks of other bloggers?” She’s also asking if it is even healthy to wonder about our fellow bloggers… in answer to that, probably not but nevertheless I do!

So she came up with a new way to keep us occupied and it is as follows:

I’m gonna tag all you guys and start up my own little game of tag. Post at least five blogs that you read and tell us what you wonder about with them! And that goes for everyone else not listed too

So here are my 5 , mind you can i mention someone who's been tagged already? Well i am going to have to.

First up Happy Muslim mama wondering how she is doing juggling work and the home not to mention Ramandan MashaAllah. A real inspiration and all her lovely crafts, with her latest projects for Eid.

Second up the infamous STANGER IN THE DUNNIYYAH wondering what she has to share with us from her apartment in Saudi and her newly created dishes from her kitchen for me to try , although that fudge looks tempting.

Third up is my dear Seaking Taqwa wondering what she is creating and going to post next, an inspiration no doubt mashaAllah. wondering how she is entertaining her household while the intent hijrah appears.

Forth Ameena wondering when her or where her next adventure will be , knowing the return to the UK looms and praying it will be smooth for her as she starts a new era in her life!

Last up Umm Abdur-Rahaman not a frequent poster but a down to earth one , who i wonder when the authorities will allow to be re-united with her DH? How her son is settling inti Kindergarten (Nursery) for us Brit's!

There are loads more Mi Mundo , sister in south Africa and more and more to many too post .

Assuming and Assumptions

Assuming and assumptions ,this is my rant, i feel so sad that others have to judge me. Why because i choose not to disclose details about my hardship! Why do others feel they have to know everything about ones life? if i choose not to disclose then they make there own assumptions.
I have returned to the UK as being 3yrs alone without a husband , kids without a father and a husband without a wife was enough for all so we re united alhamduilah..

Now i am getting assumptions made by others that my being away was likely to make my DH unchaste, astfirillah i have heard it all now!
others assuming i left coz i hated it , why can't my hardships be my pain , why can't my hardships be more intense in Algeria? Why does hardship mean i am unhappy?

So just for the record yes i am glad i went to Algeria it really made me , made me spiritually and mentally, the hardships were and are a test and without them, however did i think i was going to come closer to Allah.

I went to Algeria because i wanted to, not forced by a dominate , DH or otherwise all my doing alhamduillah.

Choose to come back to be togehter and tackle life's test TOGETHER inshaAllah.

Learnt a lot from Algeria yes , about me about others, good and bad.

i a just sick and tired of hearing '' i told you so'' and 'you should have never have left'' ''the UK is better ''

GET A LIFE PEOPLE and LEAVE MINE ALONE

More Iftar Nibbles

A change from fried samosas , boreks and pakoras or any other fried delight frequenting the Iftar table.

Vaulvents stuffed with tuna, spinach, prawns and ricotta cheese.


Savory pastry squares topped with tomatoes , spring onions and ricotta cheese.

Tart's

I don't have a sweet tooth but my Algerian counterparts on the other hand have very very sweet tooths generally subhanAllah. Here are some Tarts my dh brings home , i like looking but can't eat. which one are you? I quite like the rum baba but have not been able to sink my teeth in yet! Often i scrape the filling and eat the pastry cases!

Pakora's Desi Style

Happy Muslim mama http://www.happymuslimmama.com/2008/09/pakoras.html here they are my own Punjabi Pakoras , similar to your recipe only i add lemon juice and all kinds of veg and do different variations, here are my Aloo palak.. Potatoes, onions, spinach

I add Natural yogurt for softness and fluffiness.


When there is left over batter and no veg left i cut up sliced bread into triangles and coat in batter and fry they make a great filling snack for the kids and well elders like em too.

An Old Shorba , New style..............

This is Stranger in the dunniyah's shorba take two for me http://strangerinthisdunya.wordpress.com/2008/09/01/ramadan-recipes-algerian-shorba/
I must say the second attempt has come out better and more taster, like they say practice makes perfect. you have a look

Ramadan Sofar

Alhamduilah its the 7Th of Ramadan and alhamduilah the fasting has settled well in to the home and family members are all into the Ramadan spirit. We as a family are trying to make the most of our guest as we know on the 29th or 30th day Ramadan will leave not to return until next year and maybe we won't be alive to reap its benefits. So lot of Quran rectiation going on in different rooms at different times of the day. some translation of the Quran being read and relayed to the younger ones. Islamic knowledge quizzes while the younger ones feel the pangs of fasting. lots of helpers in the kitchen this Ramadan inshaallah it will last beyond.

There is a certain vibe in the Muslim home at this time of year that creates a peace a kinda spiritual peace that only comes when the heart is attached to Allah subhan Allah. Another blessing is the Devils are chained up this month and the gates to Paradise are open and the Gates to hell are locked!
It was narrated from Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: “When Ramadan comes, the gates of Paradise are opened and the gates of Hell are closed, and the devils are put in chains.”

Too much zucchini?

My DH came home with a big bag of zucchini and well seeing its Ramadan and not much cooking going on...........i decided to try something else have a look

Zucchini fritters
At Sonya's request here is the recipe, well i made it up to be honest! Here is what i did, Grated the zucchini's and in a bowl mixed 2 eggs added spices , like salt , peper and chilli powder, added some flour. mixed in well with all the mixture . Heat a little oil and form round flat cakes with your hands squezzing out the water a little and put into hot oil, allow to brown on both sides.

Zucchini omelete

Fruit Salad

For my Iftar table alhamduilah chop any friut of your taste and sprinkle with a little sugar pour in some fruit juice orange is good and mix well. chill and serve at iftar.
A salad for my iftar table my son made this mashaAllah

Vingerette for salads

" teaspoons of vinger, salt and peper to taste, 1/4 cup olive oil and 1 teaspoon mustard. blend well a lovely dressing for salds.

Carrot & Potato Salad

Steam the carrot and potatoes chop the spring onion mix in bowl and add some chopped parsley.

Chack Chuka Beatenjam (Aubergine Starter)

Prick some aubergines and bake in the oven till soft allow to cool a little and peel.

Mean while heat a little olive oil and crushed garlic to taste, add the chopped aubergine to the pan and stir , add salt and pepper and 1 table spoon of vineger or to taste.

sprikle with some chopped parsly and mop up with bread.

Hem Halow

This dish when i first came across it was sickly sweet to me but over the years i have become accustomed to cooking it my way and omitting the meat as that's just too rich for my table, also the idea of sweet meat some how does not digest well. Apart from the fact my DH loves this dish in Ramadan, bear in mind small amounts are eaten at the time of breaking fast and i now like to have some as i suffer from low blood sugar and after a day of fasting and little of this before i have my soup is just right for the body's balance and i now see the benefit in this for our table alhamduialh.
make a sugar syrup i used 1 cup of sugar and 1 1/2 cups of water i added Cinnamon sticks, green cardamons, dried ginger and ginseng for a spicy flavour. Allow this to simmer to a thickish syrups stirring when you can. Add 1 table spoon of ghee and the fruits in the bowl allow to simmer further for 5-7Min's and allow to cool.

I some times use fresh pears or apples and change the fruits but for this one i used figs, apricots , prunes, almonds and sultans

Foods for Ramandan On My Table

As this is our first ramandan together in 3yrs as a family alhamduilah mashaAllah. We making the most of things we can do together as a family and encourage one another inshaAllah. I will post some of the dishes i cook through out Ramandan to share with you inshaAllah.
This is what our shur table looks like , its more for my dh and its typically Algerian suhur


Cous cous with sultans and home made Laban and dates.

Myself i have a glass of water and 3 dates normally or sometimes a hot chocolate and toast.