The proposal cake!

So its been some time since I last blogged but due to circumstances I have been extremely busy and yesterday my boyfriend and of two years proposed to me (smiling like I just won the lottery) so in the even if that my aunt actually made us a beautiful cake! A two tier, fresh cream frosted chocolate cake with strawberries and chocolate! The strawberries were decorated as cute grooms and brides which was an extremely thoughtful touch to my amazing cake! I am so thankful to have family who went out of their way to bake me the most amazing treats! Here are the results of the of my proposal cake

Meat buns hun!

The meat bun is very understated but tastes delicious! This blob of golden hot delicious goodness can be served as a snack or even eaten as a starter or for a high tea. Meat buns are an excellent way to rustle up a quick meal. You can just add it go a soup and you have a cold winters day meal! Meat buns are legend and have been around since the Victoria era so you can imagine how much history this bun packs! Today I was feeling so a steak meat bun and yes I made the dough myself! It's actually quite easy and the result was a moist soft tender meat bun that just leaves you wanting more and more!

Recipe:

2 large potatoes peeled and mashed

2 tbsp butter

1 and a half cup of milk

4 cups cake flour

20 g dry yeast

1 tbsp white sugar

1 tsp salt

2 large eggs

Method: sift the dry ingredients and then add all the wet ingredients. Mix till a dough consistency and leave in a warm place for an hour. Mould and bake when done.

The Bunny Chow

For a cold winters dinner a warm spicy curry or comfort food is ideal! Though where I live we are famous for something entirely different! The Bunny Chow! It may have an odd ring to it but let me tell you a little about it. It is basically an unsliced loaf of bread where the middle has been taken out and a curry of your desired flavour is added to it! let me tell you that this is a delectable feast! There is tons of gravy to mop up with the bread and the bread actually acts as a container for the curry but its an edible one! Durban is famous for their bunny chows especially the mutton curry bunny chow! Tonight as I feast on this delectable cuisine I will be in heaven!It is a must try whether you make it yourself or buy it! I made it myself!

Recipe

1 Kg mutton

3 tomatoes
Half an onion
4 potatoes
2 tsp chilli powder
Half a tsp turmeric
2 tsp dhana jeera
1 tsp salt
1 tsp ginger garlic 
A few cloves and cardamon pods 
enough oil to coat the pot 
Cinnamon stick
Half a tsp whole jeera
Method: Add the onion chopped and the whole spices to the pot with the oil. When the onions have browned add the rest of the spices, tomatoes and meat and let it braise. Add a cup of water and add your potatoes and let it cook.

The Biscuit Baking Begins!

It's that time of year where all the muslim start producing their finest baked goods to eat because eid is just around the corner! So I have decided to diverge a bit and blog about some of the baking that I am doing at the moment and oh my word the smells emanating from the kitchen is soooo grand! The smell of freshly baked biscuits is enough to drive oneself to distraction and the fasting obviously dosent make it any better hey! The 2 biscuits that I am blogging is the most famous ones that you usually see every year and are extremely tasty! They are my moms basic biscuits and are a treat for everyone! I just adore decorating these biscuits it's always so much fun!

Recipe for the flower biscuits:

500g butter

1. 1/2 cups icing sugar

Beat this until creamy and white.

Add 2 cups maizena and beat for another 10 minutes.

Recipe for the elachie sugar biscuit:

250g butter 

3/4 cup castor sugar

Beat until creamy

1/2 cup maizena

almonds

2 tsp elachie powder

3 cups flour

Add this to the first mixture to make a dough. Cut and bake for 15 minutes and when baked dip in castor sugar.

Healthy Rice Dish....That isnt so healthy but absurdly yummy!

This is a healthy rice dish with an unhealthy twist! When I looked it up in the recipe book I wondered how on earth could one dish have so much butter and still be healthy! But let me tell you that this dish is so tasty that you forget that it has so much butter and it's so good to eat on a cold day! It's not spicy and it's quick and easy for that sunday lunch kind of meal. It's a great hearty meal for the family and everyone will enjoy it because it's of everyone's taste for sure! My family enjoys it thoroughly and they always rave out its flavour and yet so little actually goes into making it! Here's the results!

Recipe:

half a red pepper

half to 3/4 cup of mixed veg

1 whole chicken

1 tsp crushed red chillies

1 tsp crushed green chillies

1 tsp ginger garlic

1 tsp salt

1 tsp aromat

3 tblsp butter

2 cups rice

a pinch of saffron

salt and pepper to taste

Method:

marinate your chicken with the ginger garlic,salt,chillies and aromat. Fry your chicken in a pot with the butter. add the veggies to the pot and let it all cook adding some salt and pepper and a little more butter if desired. boil the rice and strain it. add a rice layer to the top of the cooked veggies and chicken and top of the rice with some saffron and blobs of butter. steam it in the oven till its abit golden brown.

Sweetcorn Lagan

When I was little my mom used to make this all the time as it's the most easiest recipe to follow and to make! It a great plate to take to someone's house for dinner or as a snack and everyone is sure to enjoy it! It is not too spicy but it packs some mighty flavour. It is an understated that is rarely given the chance to show off its flavour! But I love it and it makes a nice afternoon snack with a bit of sauce and some tea. ...A delectable treat indeed!

Recipe:

3 tblsp mealie meal 
3 eggs
1 cup milk
Quarter pound of butter 
1 tsp salt
2 tblsp ground green chillies
1 tin cream style sweet corn
Half a bunch of chopped dhaniya
1 cup self raising flour 
Method:
Mix all the ingredients in a bowl and make sure there is no flour lumps in the batter. Grease a baking tin and pour in the mixture and add sesame seeds to garnish. Bake in a hot oven at 180 degrees until golden brown.

Moms custard tart!

So when I'm in the mood for something sweet my moms custard tart is a real treat and so easy to make! It's very similar to the milk tart which I adore but the colouring is different! Today was the 1st time I baked a proper tart and I must say it was very simple! The one thing I learnt is that you have to grease the baking tins! Otherwise your tart will stick to the baking tin and won't budge! Luckily mom was there to remind me to grease it otherwise I would have had very brown tarts stuck to the baking tin!

Recipe:

Base :

3 cups of flour

1 egg

3/4 cup castor sugar

250g magerine

1.1/4 tsp baking powder

2 tblsp oil

 Method for base: beat butter, sugar and oil. add the egg and then beat again. then add the baking powder and flour and mix till it forms a dough. roll the dough thin so that you can layer the dough as a base in your baking tin making sure to grease the baking tins 1st!

Egg custard:

2 eggs

1 cup milk

1/2 tsp vanilla

2 tblsp sugar

Method: beat the above ingredients and add it to the baking tin with you base. sprinkle some cinnamon powder and bake.