Swedish baked potato

If there's one thing I love about cooking it would be that you can never stop improving; your signature dish can get even better when you find a new little twist to add to it, if you are more of a cook than a baker or vice versa then you can correct that with a little practice.

Another aspect I enjoy about cooking would be the variety that you can bring into your kitchen when you open it up to other world cuisines...It really is sad when a skilled cook limits himself in the kitchen because he doesn't have the confidence or open mindedness to try new exciting things. Different can be good, different can be delicious!

I made these Swedish baked potatoes after I had seen them on google images the other day and let me tell you...This is one elegant baked potato that makes for a great presentation.

Ingredients

Baking potatoes

butter

salt

pepper

paprika

garlic powder

olive oil

Directions:

Mix the softened butter with the spices (you can use any spices you like)

Wash the potatoes and dry them, cut a thin layer from the bottom so that they can sit flat

cut each potato into thin sections all the way across without going all the way to the bottom (You need to keep them attached see pic)

add the butter mixture between the sections

Drizzle with a little olive oil and bake at a 425 degree oven for 45-50 minutes or until the inside is tender.

Enjoy! 



Eid cookies 2 and our Eid breakfast

Today is Eid al Fitr; the celebration of the end of the fasting month of Ramadan. I had posted some pictures of the cookies I made to celebrate and here are some more that I made yesterday.
I've also included pictures of ou breakfast table as it is the most important meal of this celebration... having breakfast again for the first time after one month is something worth celebrating you know! :-)

I will be posting the recipes for Eid cookies as soon as I get out of my sugar coma LOL

On the table, semonlina pancakes/mssamen/cookies, cookies and more cookies :-)

                                                         

                                                              chocolate cookies

                                                               Chewy almond cookies        

Pecan cookies and chocolate pecan cookies (Sugar free)

Enjoy!

Eid cookies

After fasting for a whole month from dawn to dusk Ramadan is almost over and the Eid celebrations will start in a couple of days to mark the end of this big religious event.
Eid is a truly loved holiday by the big and small; the adults feel spiritually fulfilled and excited to go back to the regular rythm of life that they found a new appreciation for. Children are given money, new clothes and are happy to wake up to the ultimate breakfast...Cookies!! lol a big collection of cookies and semolina pancakes and other delicacies are served with mint tea and coffee to celebrate. That was the cultural bit of the day :-)

I am sharing with you here some cookies  that I've prepared for Eid, I will be posting the recipes on a later time.

Snow balls with shredded coconut

Almond cookies and sesame cookies

Coconut semolina cookies

Flour cookies or Moroccan shortbread cookies

My kids' favorite cookies because they can use the cookie cutters :-)

Enjoy!

Potato gratin

Easy and very presentable when entertaining; that would sum up this potato gratin. I love to find ideas of dishes and appetizers that can be either made ahead of time or prepped for and only assembled at the last minute. I cut the potatoes and cook them ahead of time so the only thing I need to do is add the egg/cream mixture and pop them in the oven right before serving.

Adorable heart shaped gratin

Ingredients:

3 Potatoes

1 chopped onion

2 eggs

1/4 cup of heavy cream

1 tablespoon chopped cilantro

Salt/Pepper

2 tablespoons shredded cheese+a handful for sprinkling on top

Directions:

Peel and cut the potatoes into small cubes, cook them in salted water until tender then let them drain and cool down.

Sautee the chopped onion in a little oilve oil and let it cool down completely.

Mix the eggs, cream, cilantro, salt/pepper, shredded cheese and cooled onion.

Distribute a first layer of potaotes in the bottom of the mold and pour some of the eggs mixture over it, then spread a second layer and cover with the remaining mixture.

Cook in a 375 degree oven for 20-30 minutes. Once cooked, add shredded cheese to the top and turn the oven off until the cheese is melted.

Important: I have used a silicone mold because it's easier to take the gratin out of it.

Enjoy!



Beef briwates

The term "briwates" refers to a number of appetizers and desserts that use a very thin pastry sheet filled with a sweet or savory mixture and shaped into either cigars, rectangles or little triangles.  The sky is the limit when it comes to the types of filling you can use but the most known ones are almond briwates, beef briwates and shrimp briwates.
These beef briwates were baked but they are traditionally fried; of course they would be even tastier when fried just like anything else lol.
 I suggest baking them for a beginner until you master the folding part because you'll have to have the pastry sheet tightly wrapped around the filling so it doesn't open once it hits hot oil. I bake them to keep the amount of fried food under control.

Ingredients:

Spring roll sheets

Thin chinese rice noodles

Hamburger meat

Green peppers

Cilantro

Onion

Salt/pepper/paprika/cumin

Melted butter and an egg yolk for the folding part.

Directions:

The mixture doesn't have to be what I listed; if you don't like peppers don't use them and you can use as little or as much meat as you want. Taste your mixture (once the meat is cooked) and season to your taste.

Cook the rice noodles by placing them in a bowl full of boiling water and let them soak for about 5 minutes. Drain and cut into small pieces.

Add 2 tablespoons of oil to a hot skillet and add the green pepper cut into very small cubes. Add the finely chopped onion. Once the pepper and onion are tender add cilantro and all the other seasonings. Mix quickly and add your hamburger meat in chunks.

Using a wooden spatula work quickly to make sure that the meat is combined with all the other ingredients and that there are no big chunks of meat.

Once the meat is cooked add the noodles and mix very well. Let the mixture completely cool.

Grab your spring roll sheet, and cut it to the size of your preference. I like my cigars medium sized so I cut 2 inches off the width. Brush the sheet with melted butter (This will make it crispy once cooked) place an amount of the mixture in the center and fold as shown in the picture

Remember to fold the sides so that they cover the mixture.

Add egg yok to seal the bottom, brush each cigar with melted butter and bake at a 400 degree until golden brown and crispy.

Enjoy!

Sweet rice

This sweet rice is a favorite in my house and is super easy to make, it is best when served just a little warm or at room temperature.

Ingredients:

Rice

Sugar

Cinnamon

Orange blossom water

Butter

Directions:

Cook rice until tender, drain it. Heat up a little butter in a skillet, add some sugar/cinnamon/orange blossom water. Add the rice and move it around the skillet for a few minutes to coat every grain in the sweet butter mixture.

pour in a mold and flip on a plate, decorate with some more cinnamon and powdered sugar. You can add some soaked raisins to the rice mixture.

Enjoy!

Apple almond tart

The combination of warm apples and almonds is one of my favorites so I was very hesitant to make this dessert because I knew that things could get ugly very quickly :-) but I was a good girl and didn't eat it all at once lol
This tart keeps very well in the fridge for 3 days, just heat it up and enjoy it for breakfast or as a snack...The whole family enjoyed this treat. I made two versions of it; one shaped as a turnover and one as an open faced tart. Both were great but I leaned towards the tart because you don't waste the puff pastry as you would when cutting out the round shapes for the turnovers.

I was able to only make four medium turnovers out of one puff pastry sheet so I chose to use the second sheet in its entirety for the open faced tart. Tip: If you prefer the turnovers, use the pastry sides by sprinkling them with Cinnamon and sugar and shaping them into twists. (The kids didn't give me a chance to take a picture of those lol)

Ingredients:

Almond paste (finely ground blanched almonds+sugar+cinnamon+enough butter to make it a firm paste)

Mascarpone cheese (Use half the amount of almond paste)

2 puff pastry sheet

Apples softened in a little butter, sugar and Cinnamon in a skillet.

Directions:

Mix the Mascarpone cheese with the almond paste (taste for sweetness). Keep your thawed puff pastry sheet in the fridge until the last minute so it's still cold and easy to handle when you work with it.

Unfold the sheet on a floured surface, poke the dough all over using a fork, spread the almonds mixture and top with an even layer of the softened apples.

Bake in a 400 degree oven until golden brown on the bottom.

Enjoy!