Ma3moul for Eid al-Adha

This was our first attempt at making Ma3moul for Eid al-Adha. We borrowed from this recipe [click here].

We only used the date filling on this occasion. We used a wooden mould for the shape and the pattern (pictured).

It is difficult to get the size right - the thinner biscuits tended to have too little filling. Further, the dough needs to be quite dry yet strong enough to seal in the filling. We were certainly not disappointed, but next time we might try this recipe and see how it works out [click here].

Chicken & Okra

This is my wife's recipe for a quick, easy, healthy meal:

Ingredients:

• 1kg chicken thigh fillets (skinless)


• 2 onions (feathered)


• 6 cloves garlic (bruised & roughly chopped)


• 2 tins canned Roma tomatoes


• 3 x 313g packets frozen baby okra


• a dash of crushed chilli


• salt & pepper to taste


• olive oil as required

Method:

1. In a large pot, fry onions and garlic until translucent


2. Add chicken and brown. Add chilli


3. Add tomatoes and salt & pepper


4. Add okra and allow to melt down into pot


5. Cook for about 20 minutes and serve with rice

Garlic, Chilli & Lime Dressing

I was craving garlic so much that I thought I'd knock up some mackerel fillets with an ensemble of vegetables, but I wanted to add some garlic to the mix. We happened to have a whole stack of limes, so after searching the Net for options, I put together the following mix and it seemed to work well as a dressing for the veges:

• 5 tablespoons of fish sauce
• 1 tablespoon of soy sauce
• 2 teaspoons of raw sugar
• Juice from three limes
• 1 tablespoon of white wine vinegar
• 2 tablespoons of white wine
• 7 tablespoons of water
• 1 red chilli chopped rough
• 5 garlic cloves bruised and then chopped rough

I put this all in a 500ml Pyrex measuring jug and used the whizzie stick on super-low speed to whiz it all up, and then let people spoon it over their veges. It was so good I'll do it again!

Scones - best recipe so far...

Ingredients:

500g baker's flour

80g butter (not melted, but at room temperature)

80g caster sugar

2 eggs for mix, 1 egg for wash

5 tablespoons baking powder

250ml full-cream milk

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 220°C.


2. Rub butter and flour.


3. Mix in sugar, 2 eggs and baking powder with wooden spoon.


4. Add half the milk and turn, then the other half (may not need all).


5. Flour on bench, turn twice, then roll twice, to about 1" thick.


6. Add egg wash, top only or scones will rise unevenly from run-off.


7. Oven for 15 minutes and Robert's your mother's brother...