Birthday Cake

I made this cake for my hubby's birthday last month and since he's not a big fan of sugary birthday cakes I always make his sugar free and to be honest there's no way you can tell that it's sugar free, we all enjoyed it including the kids.

I don't make sugar free birthday cakes from scratch, instead I use Pillsbury's sugar free cake mix as it yields a better result. There's something that happens when I try to make a sponge cake using Splenda that doesn't allow it to get as puffy and moist as the ones I make using regular sugar.

You can find the recipe here just use the chocolate cake mix instead of the yellow mix. The chocolate mix tasted so much better especially since I added a handful of finely chopped pecans. I used raspberries this time.

Nice and moist inside

Coconut Shrimp

I made this dish a few days ago and it was enjoyed by the whole family, especially my son who is a big shrimp fan but when I added the crunch of Panko and coconut to it he said that it's the best shrimp he's ever had!

The coconut I used is the unsweetened kind and not to be confused with the variety found in the baking section of most grocery stores which is too sweet to be used for this dish...for my taste anyway.

Ingredients:

Shrimp
Flour+ salt+pepper+paprika
Panko(Japanese bread crumbs) +unsweetened coconut flakes
1 whole egg or more depending on the amount of shrimp

Directions:

Prepare 3 deep dishes as follows:

One with the flour, salt, pepper and paprika
The second dish will have one beaten egg
The third dish will have the mixture of Panko and coconut flakes

Pass the shrimp in the flour mixture then the egg and finally the Panko and coconut mixture and fry in hot oil in a deep pan or fryer until golden brown.

Enjoy!

Roasted Almonds

Almonds are my favorite nuts; I eat them sweet and savory, in baked goods or just on their own...I never say no to almonds no matter what! UNLESS they become a little chewy or stale .The bagged stuff bought from the store tends to loose a lot of the flavor before it gets to us (imagine how long it takes that bag to make it to your shopping cart).

I had once bought a huge bag of roasted almonds from a bulk store thinking that it would be worth it since they are a favorite snack in my house but by the time we consumed half of the bag the second half was rancid so we just tossed it out. I decided to start making my own in smaller amounts that would last for a week and when it's done make a new batch; that way the almonds are always at their freshest. There are many fancy recipes to make different flavors but I always stick to the basic one.

Ingredients:

Almonds

Salt

Water

Directions:

Line a baking sheet with some aluminum foil (you will love me at clean up time) in a bowl pour enough water to completely wet all your almonds and this will depend on the amount you're making but the goal is NOT to soak each almond but rather wet your whole batch in a uniform manner. Add Salt to your water (depends on your preference of how salty you want the almonds to be). That is it! Almonds wet with some salted water and spread in one layer on the baking sheet. They bake in a 400 degree oven for 20 to 30 minutes, keep checking every 10 minutes to move the almonds around so all of them roast at the same time.

Enjoy!

Moroccan Shrimp over Rice

I am a big seafood lover but shrimp is a bit of an exception for me; I don't hate it but i don't really love it the way I like fish or oysters...This recipe is one of very few that transform shrimp to something I really enjoy. I prepare it using shrimp that's still in the shell for two reasons; it produces a lot of flavorful juices for the sauce and it's so much fun to get messy with it when it's served. Of course you can take the shells off before cooking if you're serving it to guests.

Ingredients:

20 jumbo shrimps

2 minced garlic cloves

3 tbsp chopped cilantro

1 tbsp butter

salt/pepper

1/2 teaspoon cumin

1/2 teaspoon paprika

1 tbsp olive oil

Saffron

4 to 5 tbsp water

Rice (according to preference)

Directions:

Cook the rice in some salted water until soft and let it drain. Save on the side

In a sauteing pan add shrimp and all ingredients (except for rice) and cook on a low heat until shrimp is cooked. Don't forget to add the water in the beginning of the cooking process and if more is needed add a little at a time, the goal is to have cooked shrimp and enough sauce left for the rice.

Remove the cooked shrimp from the pan and set aside, add your rice to the pan and mix around until it absorbs all the sauce that is left behind.

Serve Shrimp over rice and enjoy!!

Krachel or Moroccan Brioche

I had made these Krachel rolls a while ago but haven't had the chance to post the recipe.
These are sweet rolls that you wouldn't serve with a meal like a regular roll; they are meant to be served for breakfast with some jam and a nice cup of coffee or as a snack. the aroma that the anise and sesame seeds give the roll, transport you to the spice and seeds markets in Marrakesh. The brioche like texture is irresistible especially when the rolls are right out of the oven.You don't have to add the sesame seeds and anise seeds if you're not a fan.



Ingredients:

1 tbs yeast diluted in 6 tbs of warm milk

3 cups of flour

1/2 tsp of salt

6 tbs of sugar

4 eggs

2 sticks of butter at room temperature

1 tbs anise seeds (toasted on a pan to bring out aroma)

1 egg+1tbs water for egg wash

some sesame seeds to sprinkle

Directions:

Add the yeast and milk mixture, salt nd anise seeds to the flour, mix and add the sugar. Add the 4 eggs one by one mix a little and add the 2 sticks of butter little by little until all combined. A standup mixer will be perfect for this recipe, otherwise just mix with your hands really well until you achieve a very soft dough.

Let the dough rest for 1 hour until it doubles in size and then flatten it on a smooth surface and start making little rolls with your hands and place on a butterd/floured cookie sheet cover with a clean cloth and let them rise for 1 hour.

Brush with some egg wash and sprinkle with sesame seeds (if desired) and bake in a 360 degrees oven for 20-30 minutes.

Enjoy!!