'Southern' Sweet Potato/e Bread

Potatoe VS Potato? I guess really i should have labelled my photos with 'Potato' as the recipe is from America after all, oh well.

I am not sure how authentically southern this recipe actually is, my friend who is from the south had never even heard of it before mashaAllah

After googling pics i discovered not only mine had huge cracks in the surface, this is more than likely due to the high sugar content, my oven running too hot or a combination of both factors.

Once you taste this quick bread you will definitely feel your in autumn, even if in fact you are in the hot desert.

http://mad.ly/6b8113

Please check if using pumpkin spice for nutmeg as it is haram, both in the small quantity aswell as the large quantity Masha Allah

Chickpea and Lentil Soup With Homemade Wholemeal Bread

Salam Alaikum / Greetings readers,

Today I present to you a simple and comforting meal which is suitable for the plummeting temperature that comes with the change of season here in England.      

Homemade wholemeal bread can be heavy but not if you follow my recipe i promise! the only 'out there' ingredient that the original recipe called for, was a vitamin c tablet... as i didn't have one of those to hand i missed it out completely and still ended up with a loaf which was light, tender and a good nutty flavour comes from using wholemeal / wholewheat flour which is more expensive but healthier than bleached white flour.
 
You do get what you pay for in this instance although i should think processing flour to make it white would end up costing the manufacturer(is that the right word?) more in the long term?  
 
Now soup, my children are not yet lovers of spicy food. Even a pinch of black pepper is pushing it with my 3year old son but alhamduillah my daughter seemed to enjoy this while he stuck his nose up at it and ate the bread. I know it's common thing for toddlers to be picky eaters so i try not to worry too much, some days i will cater to my son's picky ways more than others because at the end of the day i don't want to be cooking separate meals for everyone for the rest of my days...am i alone on that?
 
Let's get down to the nitty gritty the recipes, peace until next time inshaAllah
 

Wholemeal Bread

Makes: 1 loaf (i use a 30x10x5cm loaf tin but you can use any you have but you will need to adjust the baking time i.e. keep checking after 3/4 of the time is up)

Ingredients

425g / 3 ½ cups strong wholemeal bread flour

50g / ⅓ cup plus 1 tbsp strong white bread flour

1 x 7g / 2 ¼ tsp sachet easy blend fast action yeast

1 ½ tsp salt

3 tsp brown sugar

up to 400ml / 1 ¾ cups warm water

1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

 
Measurments in green colour are estimates.

You may need extra olive for work surface if kneading by hand

Method

1. Put the flours, yeast, vitamin powder (if using), salt and sugar into a bowl and mix well. Add 300ml water, and stir in well, then pour in the olive oil and work in well. You should have a soft, sticky dough: if not, add a little more water. Cover and leave for 10 minutes.
2. Tip out on to a lightly oiled work surface, if using a stand mixer leave it in the bowl! Knead for 10 seconds, then put back in the bowl and cover. Repeat twice more at intervals of 10 minutes, then leave the dough to rest for 15 minutes.
3. Flatten the dough into a rough rectangle about the length of your baking tin, then roll up tightly, and put into a greased tin, with the join facing downwards. Cover and leave to rest in a warm place until it has doubled in height (at least 1½ hours).
4.  Pre-heat the oven to 220C/200C Fan/430F/Gas Mark 7 then turn the temperature down to 200C/180C Fan/390F/Gas Mark 6 and cook for a further 15–20 minutes, until the crust is a deep brown, and the loaf sounds hollow when tapped. Turn out on to a cooling rack.

Chickpea And Lentil Soup

Serves: 3 adults or 2 adults and 2 toddlers

Ingredients

2 tbsp olive oil

1 medium onion, finely chopped

½ tsp fennel seeds

1tbsp tomato puree

½ tsp ground ginger

½ tsp turmeric

½ tsp ground Cinnamon

1 tin chopped tomatoes (400g)

2 cloves of garlic, minced

1 tbsp brown sugar or to taste

1 stock cube dissolved in 2-3cupswarm water

¾ cup lentils that have been rinsed, soaked over night

1 ¼ cup canned chickpeas,drained and rinsed

3 sprigs coriander

1 dried bay leaf

salt and pepper, to taste.

Method

In a medium sized pot with a lid, heat the olive oil at medium heat and add onion and fennel seeds, cook gently for about 10minutes or until onions are translucent, stirring occasionally.

Add tomatoe paste, spices, garlic and a tiny amount of water to prevent spices from burning, sauté for a few minutes before adding chopped tomatoes, bay leaves and sprigs of coriander. Turn up the heat to high and bring to boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer.

Add your stock (the cube mixed with water), lentils and chickpeas (you can leave the chickpeas out until 10minutes before the end but i like to add them now).

Season with a little salt, pepper and sugar remember you can add more once the soup has reduced a little and the flavours have melded together. Cover pot and let simmer for about 40 minutes or until the lentils are tender. Check for seasoning, add more of salt, black pepper and sugar as you like. Remove bay leaf and coriander sprigs before serving.

at home with asmaa is becoming invite only very soon inshaAllah

Salam Alaikum, greetings ladies,

I just want to let you know my blog will become invite only very soon inshAllah /God willing

Sorry for the inconvenience of it all but it's a choice I have made something I have thought about for a while now after having just 1 man comment on my blog it set me thinking how many others read and just don't comment, inshallah non and allahu alim/God knows

If you are a woman (only) and would like to have an invite drop me a quick email athomewithasmaa@gmail.com when you have time to spare inshAllah i will keep the settings as they are for a few days. In your email to me, please tell me who you are or give me your blog link / other social media so I recognise you instantly or can verify your indeed female.

Sorry again for the all the recent changes around here.

1975: Burger & Chips Followed By Tulumba

Asalamu Alaikum, Greetings blogosphere,

In 1975, did frozen burger and chips even exist? As I was born in the late 80's I wouldn't have a clue!

Ok, so the photos are 1975 style but definitely worth eating in 2012 I promise.

You see I do have days where I don't home make every meal. Sometimes I'm just not in the mood or like today the fact I decapitated, gutted, stuffed and pan fried sardines for my husband was enough time spent in the heart of my home so the quick dinner was perfect alhamduillah

I want to know why I can never make burger, chips/fries that good! seriously you would think chips are easy but no, i must be using the wrong type of potatoe, that's my excuse. Oh and don't get me started on the tulumba... it is just the right sweet to eat at anytime of the day, for me that is.

Tulumba or Tulumba tatlisi i believe is a Turkish sweet, made with choux like dough. Instead of been baked it is pushed through a special mould, deep fried, then soaked in sugar syrup, delicious!

Sadly, I have never been able to recreate this favourite of mine not without trying but I either haven't come across the right recipe or maybe it's the fact I haven't the specific mould required, I've always used a pastry bag and the largest nozzle I own which is quite small really in comparison.

Tulumba should be hard and quite crunchy (if fresh) on the outside, soft and oozing syrup inside. My versions have always always been nothing but soggy if not at first then after an hour.

Do any of you out there have this elusive tulumba recipe I've been searching for? If your in the UK and know where I can get the mould please let me know in the comments inshA Allah / God willing.

I almost forgot, how do you like my new blog & name? MashaAllah / as Allah willed, I eventually thought, thought and thought a lot more finally deciding on this simple and cute name. May Allah reward all of you that gave your suggestions, sanna your suggestion 'Asmaa in da house' was the inspiration behind my choice <3

Very Vanilla Cupcakes With Vanilla Buttercream Roses

If you follow me on instagram you have already had a sneaky peak at these very vanilla cupcakes i baked for my twin sister.

The rose buttercream swirl on each cupcake i promise you isn't as hard as it looks, honestly! for me it's the easiest piping technique i have come across so far in my cake decorating ventures.

The rose is flowing with natural beauty and you don't have to worry about every rose being identical or symmetrical, for me that is what is so appealing about using this technique for decorating cupcakes or cake.

The next time you and your children are baking together be confident and give it a try, what's the worst that could happen? that you have to remove the buttercream and start again? Take 1 cupcake  use it to practice, keep piping, scraping off and piping some more until you are happy, then you can have the peace of mind that you are able to decorate the rest of the batch.

I would always recommend you use a 1M wilton icing tip for this, other closed star tips are said to work too but i have never tried anything else because of the fab results i get each time using the 1M.

The texture of buttercream should not be so stiff or you won't be able to pipe, on the other hand if your buttercream is too runny/wet then the design will dissapear.

The icing recipe below was enough for me to pipe buttercream roses on 18 cupcakes.

I adapted Nigella's vanilla cupcake recipe by firstly x2 all the ingredients, hoping i would make 24 cupcakes out of the batter when infact i got 18! I replaced the vanilla extract with 2 lots of seeds from 2 vanilla pods and baked them at 160C/140C (Fan) for 15minutes

Vanilla Buttercream Icing Recipe

Ingredients

150g  unsalted butter, softened/ room temperature
300g icing sugar, sieved
4-5tbsp Milk
1 vanilla pod, seeds only

Method

1. Place butter and vanilla into a large bowl and beat for 30 seconds
2. Add icing sugar, starting Slowly!
3. Whilst beating the butter/sugar mixture, add Milk one tablespoon full at a time until the mixture just drops of the wooden spoon/beaters when lifted.

Here is a video that shows the buttercream rose technique amongst others.

Specific ingredients, bakeware, decorations i used

• Self raising flour (Mcdougalls brand supreme sponge self raising flour i believe is it's long winded name)
• Gourmet Indian vanilla pods - available from vanilla mart (germany, uk, usa).  I chose the indian variety as they are the cheapest and well my palate was pleased
• Blue baby cupcake toppers - available from designer cupcakes with love seller on e-bay ( please always ask for the ingredients list before buying decorations online something i forgot in this instance so i asked the seller after the arrival of my purchase and alhamduillah they were made with fondant that is suitable for vegetarians and without alcohol.
• Green sugar crystals - i purchased these directly from Quality Sprinkles UK Ltd who normally only deal with retailers, as i couldn't get hold of another product from their range of halal sprinkles from their stockists Farmfoods, 99p Stores, Home Bargains, TJ Morris or Iceland in my area/South Yorkshire (they are or were at the time of purchase, still stocking the older haram version which contains E120 and shellac so beware if your on the look out) it took a long time to process my order from start to finish but i am but not literally (doesn't make sense i know) a small fish in a big pond and they did me a massive favour by even dealing with me in the first place.

Until next time, Salam Alaikum / Peace!

Let's Vote!

/ greetings,

I'm taking my blog name change to a vote! 

You will see the pole at the top of the side bar, please help me decide as I like them ALL. 

Change Is Better Than A Rest, Right?

Salam Alaikum or hello,

Firstly if you haven't read/watched/listened to http://salaf-us-saalih.com/2012/09/20/the-correct-stance-of-every-muslim-on-the-film-about-muhammed-peace-be-upon-him-shaykh-saalih-as-suhaymee/ I really recommend you do, please spread the link so both Muslims and non Muslims may benefit, inshAllah /God willing.

I've kinda been thinking, maybe I should change the name of my blog.

Reasons:-

1. Although i admit a lot/majority of my posts will be baking related i don't want to feel confined to posting topics about baking only.
2. I like change and I mean a lot!, it's better than a rest right? I would gladly change my avatar everyday of the week if I found the time/remembered.

I got a few ideas from my new avatar courtesy of noor over at Ya Salam Cooking who also owns and writes the blog Little Pink Strawberries....I'm sure many of you are avid readers as am i mashAllah/as Allah willed

So names I'm thinking of

Baking Muslimah
Muslimah Baker 
Muslimah That Bakes 
Muslimah Who Bakes
Muslimah's Bake too!
Muslimah, Bake It!

If any of you have the above blog names, let me know so I can remove the name from the list and check out your blog inshAllah/God Willing.

 I want your opinion on the above please, although I like change it means I'm not a very good decision maker, the two qualities character traits go hand in hand!

Which name do you like best? Or give me your ideas as I'm up for suggestions.

I probably wouldn't make the name change over night because well my designer is sooo busy and maybe I could take this design project on myself IF I take things sloooow and steady as me and photoshop aren't the best of buddies oh and I don't have a clue how HTML works lol


Until next time Salam / Peace,

Test Bake : Vanilla Cupcakes

 

3 days ago i baked cupcakes in my new oven for the first time, as you can probably see it didn't all go according to plan, oven problems again!

Now if you read my previous post you will note, i wanted to buy a conventional  / regular oven apposed to convection / fan oven, as they are known to be better baking ovens and fan ovens always run hot, always! well at least in my experience they do.

We bought yet another convection /fan oven (Alhamduillah / All praise be to Allah) as it was the only one within our budget and isn't new persay but reconditioned like the one we had before.

I have a oven thermometer so i thought it would be no biggy,  i set my oven to 140 degrees centrigrade on the dial but for some reason the oven just kept getting hotter and hotter and hotter 150, 160, 180.... i had to switch down the oven part way through baking but of course by then it was too late, the damage had been done! the cupcakes had risen too quickly, causing cracks in the surface and a few had erupted like volcanoes, thankfully the taste and texture underneath the crust were delightful, smooth fragrant vanilla and very airy and light due to using Mcdougalls self raising supreme sponge flour definitely going to be buying more of that.

Baking is a science as we all know, it's only easy if you have the right equipment and recipe, i will be making these again tomorrow (i must remember to reduce the oven temperature to 120 on the dial / 160 in a conventional oven) they are going to be a gift to my sister who has recently had a newborn, that's when i eventually get to visit inshaAllah (God willing) Friday, you see my children have been ill for what seems like forever,  it's only been a couple of weeks but one still has a runny nose.

The recipe i used to make my cupcakes can be found here  

The Nutella frosting i used can be found here, i halved the recipe quantities and it iced 12 cupcakes, with some to spare. I substituted half the butter for cream cheese which added a nice sour note to cut through the rich, sweet chocolate.  If you want to use the butter cream frosting to pipe high on your cupcakes then use the original recipe quantities, again substituting half butter for cream cheese (Philadelphia is the brand i used and in my opinion it's got to to be full fat)

I let my son help in piping on the frosting as it was the perfect opportunity with the cupcakes not being quite up to scratch,  the piping work didn't have to be either and well i had already bought him his own decorating bag and nozzles a few months ago that he was yet to use, we had lots of fun and  frosting left over that we speedily took 2 spoons to.

The cupcakes liners i bought on e-bay and although i will be using them again, they are not greaseproof as i thought, i would suggest you bake your cupcakes in regular white greaseproof cases (I'm all out) and then for display place them inside these baking cups, also the cups would be great for ice cream or other snacks such as small portions of pop corn.

Until next time, peace!

Knowledge is Power: The Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) cannot by defended by oppression and misguidance

Salam alaikum sisters & hello to my non Muslim readers

Please take a few minutes from your day to read the following article, inshAllah (God willing)


Knowledge is Power: The Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) cannot by defended by oppression and misguidance

The Creamiest Nutella Ice Cream!

I know i shouldn't...i really shouldn't but what do you do when your in the ice cream making mood, there is no milk left in the fridge and a big pot of double cream? Yes, make the most creamiest nutella ice cream there as ever been.....FOR REAL!

I have come across other more, more healthy versions of nutella ice cream like this one which mine is based on but instead of using unsweetened evaporated milk i used double cream, oh yes.

You start off by warming nutella in the microwave on 10-15second boosts until it becomes well melted chocolate, then you pour in the double cream give it a whisk, have a quick taste, your checking it's sweet enough?! add a tablespoon at a time of icing sugar if needed. Pour into your ice cream maker and in less than 15 minutes you will have the creamiest nutella ice cream you will have ever tasted!

Another reason i shouldn't have made this ice cream as whilst i were busy taking snaps in the kitchen, my 2 children got out their play doh ice cream maker and made lots of ice cream themselves that stuck right onto my carpet! That'll teach me.

Recipe

 

Ingredients

1 cup nutella, slightly warm
2 cup double cream, chilled (To be fair, you could substitute 1 cup for whole milk or single cream if you want, as the nutella itself thickens the ice cream as it churns and freezes anyway)
Icing Sugar * to taste

Method

Melt the nutella in a microwavable bowl on 15 second short bursts, stirring in between then pour contents into a large heat proof bowl.

Pour the double cream into the nutella and whisk until you see a sea of light brown, check for sweetness and add icing sugar if needed.

Freeze according to your ice cream maker manufacturer instructions, should take no longer than 10 minutes.

 Eat or freeze in a suitable container until required.

As this ice cream is extra thick, you will need to leave it out on the counter top for at least 15minutes before the desired consistency for spreading between wafers for an ice cream sandwich.

Use sprinkles to decorate or even some chopped roasted hazelnuts.
 
optional: - Melt a heaped teaspoon of nutella in the microwave and spread on top of your ice cream sandwich, use a cocktail stick to make a nice swirl pattern.

Grating Butter

freedigitalphotos.net

The next time you get the urge to bake, don't panic! You don't have to wait many hours for your butter to get up to room temperature, oh no.

Simply grate your butter, the be on your marks.....get set.....BAKE!

It is grate great for speeding up the time it takes to rub/cut in the fat when making pastry, to make your favourite cake or even put then spread on top of your toast followed by a layer of jam for breakfast.

Date & Sesame Makrout

My husband as been away from his home country, Algeria for just over 3 and half years. I try my hardest to transport him back there whenever i can, through cooking / baking the delicious cuisine the country has to offer,  makrout are one of his favourite sweet so it's a no brainer that i bake some up to try to impress him and one day my inlaws will enjoy these from me too insha Allah(God willing)

Makrout is not specific to Algeria but is common throughout the whole of North Africa and no suprises there are many versions, fried or baked,  fillings of nuts and / or dates, etc this particular version is baked and the filling consists of dates and sesame seeds.

I would say these cookies are somewhat similar in texture to a fig roll / newton, which according to wiki was probably invented by the early Egyptians as a way of preserving the beautiful and nutritious fig.

There are numerous benefits of the date fruit but today i will mention only one - easing labour pains and shortening the birthing process and it just so happens as i write this post my twin sister is in a local hospital giving birth to her second child mashaAllah (as God willed).

Before, any study showing the benefit of dates for the woman giving birth, Our God Allah blessed us this verse of the quran about Maryam's birth to Isa (Jesus) peace be upon them both, which mentions the date palm.

Translation of the meaning:-

The pains of labor drove her to the trunk of a date-palm. She exclaimed: "Oh, if only I had died before this time and was something discarded and forgotten!" A voice called out to her from under her: "Do not grieve. Your Lord has placed a small stream at your feet. Shake the trunk of the palm toward you, and fresh, ripe dates will drop down to you. Eat and drink, and delight your eyes. If you should see anyone at all, just say: 'I have made a vow of abstinence to the All-Merciful, and [so] today I will not speak to any human being.'" (Surah Maryam: 23-26)

 

 

 Recipe taken from couscousandpudding with slightly more details

Makes: 30-40

Ingredients

3 cups fine semolina
1 cup of melted butter or margarine (margarine will result in a softer dough)
1/2 tsp salt
60 ml Orange blossom water
120ml* Lukewarm Water

filling:

500g dates paste
100g of toasted sesame seeds
2 tbsp of butter
1 tbsp Orange blossom water
1/2 tsp cinnamon

Oil for hands, work surface

plus:

150ml  honey or golden syrup
1-2 capfuls of orange blossom water **

* depends on the absorbency of the semolina

Method

Melt the butter over a low heat and leave to cool slightly.

Mix the semolina and a salt in a large bowl

Pour the melted butter into the semolina, rub the butter into the semolina as you would if making shortcrust pastry ensuring every grain is coated, it all should be a lovely golden sandy beach colour.

 Leave to stand at room temperature for 1hour minimum.

Slolwly moisten the enriched semolina grains with the orange blossom water and water bringing the dough together with your hands, without kneading. You want to use enough water so a soft dough is formed, neither dry or too wet.

Cover with plastic wrap or a clean tea towel and leave to stand for a few minutes while you prepare the filling.

Pre-heat oven to 180C / 160 Fan

Mix the date paste with butter, orange blossom water and cinnamon, using a butter knife  mix together until a smooth consistency similar to that of the dough. Add the toasted sesame seeds.

Divide date mixture into 3 balls of equal weightWith oiled hands form 3 long logs about 30cm in length.

Make 3 balls of semolina dough the size of oranges, all the same weight.
Take one ball of the dough, make a sausage shape about 30-35cm long and form a tunnel in the centre running from one side to the other or as the author on coucousandpudding says "dig a trench" in the middle with your finger.
Place a log of date paste in the 'trench' shut it well by pinching the dough.
Roll again to reform the sausage shape, then flatten a bit with your hands as i did or use a special makrout mold, if you happen to know where i can get those in england, let me know!Using a knife cut into diamonds/lozenges/rhombus shapes each about 3cms wide and 2cm deep (a ruler comes in handy)

Place the makroutes side by side on a baking parchment lined tray.

Bake in oven until a light golden color, about 20 minutes.

Let cool completely before removing from the tray

Warm your honey mix in some orange blossom water ** to taste then immerse the makroutes for a few minutes. I used a large pan so it meant i had to turn my makroutes after 1 minute to enable the honey to coat all sides.

Drain in the basket of a coucousier (over a pot) or simply place back on baking trays.

Optional extras: sprinkle with sesame seeds/sugar sprinkles.