Tag Archives: Tea time perks

Chocilla (Chocolate – Vanilla) Marble Cake

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Today we are making a cake that is not only popular in Morocco but also in Europe and in the U.S.: Marble Cake! It is a cake with vanilla and chocolate mixed together in a swirl! It’s super easy and super delicious!

Ayesha's Kitchen

Ayesha’s Kitchen

Ingredients:

  • 5 large eggs
  • ½ cup and 2 tablespoons (125 grams) granulated sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • Pinch of salt
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 113 grams butter
  • 1 cup (128 grams) all-purpose white flour
  • 125 grams dark chocolate
  • 125 grams white chocolate

Procedure:

-The first step is to beat the 5 eggs with the sugar, using an egg beater. You want the eggs to become double in volume, fluffy, and have a withish color. This is an important step to make the cake moist!

-The eggs are ready when they become very thick – you can actually create a ‘ribbon’ with the batter when you pour some of it with a spoon over the rest of the batter!

-Add the vanilla extract, a pinch of salt, and the baking powder to the egg mixture.  Continue mixing for a few seconds until well incorporated.

-Melt the butter (either in the microwave or in a sauce pan).

-Add the melted butter to the egg mixture while continuously stirring.

-Sift the flour over the egg mixture and gently fold all the ingredients together using a spatula, until well incorporated.

-Split the batter, equally, into 2 separate bowls. In one portion we are going to add melted dark chocolate, and the other one melted white chocolate. If you dont like white chocolate you can skip it, or you can replace the dark chocolate with cocoa powder. You can even create your own flavors, for example, strawberry and chocolate, or green tea and white chocolate!

-Melt the dark chocolate and white chocolate separately.

-Preheat your oven to 180 C.

-Add the melted dark chocolate to one portion of the batter. Then add the melted white chocolate to the other portion of the batter. Mix well.

-Butter your cake mold, then place parchment paper in it (I am using an 8″ rectangular cake pan). The reason we need to butter the pan before the parchment paper is to get the paper to stick to the pan, otherwise, the paper will not stick! Cut the border of the parchment paper with scissors to get even borders.

-First pour half of the white chocolate batter in the pan. Then cover it with the entire dark chocolate batter, use a spatula to spread evenly. Finally pour the rest of the white chocolate batter on top of the chocolate batter.

-Insert the knife in the batter and move it around to create swirls

-Bake the cake for around 45 minutes or until it is done. It will become golden brown, and when you press the top of the cake it feels firm.

-Remove the cake from the pan and let it cool down.

-Slice it and serve with tea.

Triple Chocolate Caramel Brownies

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A teeni tiny piece of heaven…… decadent, chocolaty and ultimate….. Try now 😀

Ayesha's Kitchen

Ayesha’s Kitchen

Ingredients:

  • ¾ cup of All Purpose Flour
  • ¾ cup of Cocoa Powder
  • ½ cup of Unsalted Butter, at room temperature
  • 1 cup of Granulated Sugar
  • 3 Eggs
  • ¼ tsp of Salt
  • 2 tsp of Vanilla Extract
  • 1 cup of Chopped Walnuts
  • 1 cup of White Chocolate Chips
  • 1 cup of Semisweet Chocolate Chips
  • 2/3 cup of Caramel Sauce (Ayesha’s Kitchen recipe/ Store bought)
  • ½ tsp of Instant Espresso Powder

Procedure:

-Grease a square non-stick brownie pan and line the sides and the bottom with baking paper.

-Preheat oven to 175 degrees Celsius.

-Combine all-purpose flour, cocoa powder, salt and coffee granules in a bowl and sift it. These are your dry ingredients.

-Now in a big mixing bowl cream butter and sugar with spatula or you can use electric hand mixer to do this job for you.

-Switch to hand whisk and whisk in one egg at a time until the mixture is creamy in texture. Add vanilla and your sifted dry ingredients.

-Whisk until the mixture is combined (DO NOT OVER MIX, WE DON’T WANT BREAD DOUGH).

-Divide the mixture into two parts.

-Pour one part into the greased pan, making it even.

-Now in a separate bowl combine your chocolate chips and walnuts and spread them over the brownie batter in the pan. Pour over some caramel sauce.

-Now lay the layer of the other part of the brownie mixture on the caramel and nuts. Patiently, spread it as even as possible. Please make sure all the caramel and chocolate is covered.

-Bake for 30 – 35 minutes (depending on the oven).

-Take it out and let it cool completely for 30 – 40 minutes because we have caramel inside and if we will cut the pieces now it’s going to be a runny mess.

-Peel off the baking paper and cut it into squares. (Probably 9 squares)

-Serve as it is with tea or coffee and if you are like me (don’t drink coffee or tea), serve it with a side of your favourite ice cream, some whipped cream and strawberries or any other berries.

-Enjoy!

 

Dupatta Gali Lahore Pakora (Hawker Style)

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My favorite pakoras!!!!!! I remember when I used to shop at Liberty Market, Lahore (Pakistan), these pakoras were always on my “shopping snacks list”. I love street food and Thank GOD I don’t have any immune system issues. I can eat, drink, digest and sustain all this food easily, I never get sick after having them and whenever I go out for shopping (no matter what shopping; clothes, books, shoes anything) I always choose the markets with best street food.

The thing I like about these Pakoras is that they give veggies a lite coating of flour mixture, just to give an extra crunch and to hold them together which makes them lite otherwise Pakoras people make at home during Ramadan are just so dense and cake like. So here is the recipe……. enjoy!

Ayesha's Kitchen

Ayesha’s Kitchen

Ingredients:

  • 1 ½ cup besan
  • 1 tspn baking powder
  • 1 tbspn yogurt
  • 2 large potatoes (cut into thin lengthways slices)
  • 8 – 9 green chillies chopped
  • 2 large red onions sliced
  • Salt to taste
  • 2 tbspns red chilli flakes
  •  1 tspn cumin seeds
  • 1 cup spinach leaves (roughly sliced)
  • 2 tbspns whole coriander seeds
  • 1 tspn garam masala
  • Some cold water ( ½ cup) to make the paste
  • 4 tbspns chopped fresh green coriander
  • Some chaat masala to sprinkle afterwards
  • Oil for deep frying

Procedure:

-In a deep mixing bowl combine besan with all the spices, green chillies, baking powder, coriander and yogurt and stir. Gradually mix in some cold water and make a medium consistency paste (not too thick like dahi bhalle mixture nor too thin like gram flour paste, just like pancake batter)

-Make sure the batter is smooth, no lumps of flour.

-Now add all your sliced veggies and mix with your hands.

-Keep aside for 30 minutes.

-Heat oil to 180 degrees Celsius. (I am sure that hawker does not have a candy thermometer 😀 but the oil should be hot enough that if you drop a tiny bit of the batter it should not sink to the bottom of the wok. The mixture should rise and splatter on the surface of the oil.)

-Now drop tbspns of the pakore batter into the hot oil and fry until the pakoras get crisp and brown. Take them out onto your wire rack or any strainer BUT NO PAPER TOWEL. We don’t want our pakoras to get soggy. So put them on anything that is 1 cm above the surface of your bench top and has holes in it.

-Sprinkle some chaat masala for extra kick and serve hot with tamarind sauce or mint chutney.

Coconut Biscuits

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One of my favorite biscuits. I don’t drink tea at all but when I make these biscuits, I make myself a special cup of Tea to dunk these babies in …….

Ayesha's Kitchen

Ayesha’s Kitchen

Ingredients:

  • ½ cup butter
  • 1 egg
  • 1 cup self rising flour
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 cup dried desicatted coconut
  • Few drops coconut essence

Procedure:

-Combine all the ingredients in a mixing bowl and mix to make a firm dough.

-On a greased baking tray, place tspn full of dough leaving 4 inches spaces between them.

-Bake in a preheated (180 degrees Celsius) oven for 12 – 13 minutes.

-Take out and allow to cool for 10 minutes.

-Serve with your favourite hot drink.

Banana Walnut Muffins with Maple Butter Glaze

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Banana Walnut Muffins …….. a warm delight in winters and spring season. Whenever it comes to banana bread or banana muffin, I like it with Cappuccino or mocha. Try this easy recipe and enjoy….

Ayesha's Kitchen

Ayesha’s Kitchen

Ingredients

  • 2 cups (250g) plain flour
  • 1 teaspoon bicarb soda
  • pinch salt
  • 115g butter
  • 115g dark brown soft sugar
  • 2 eggs, beaten
  • 500g (3 – 4 large bananas) mashed overripe bananas
  • 200 gms chopped walnuts

FOR MAPLE BUTTER

  • 100 gms Melted butter
  • 100 gms maple syrup

Procedure:

-Preheat the oven to 180 degrees C. Lightly grease and line 24 cup muffin tray.

-In a large bowl, combine flour, bicarb soda and salt.

-In a separate bowl, cream together butter and brown sugar. Stir in eggs and mashed bananas and chopped walnuts until well blended. Stir banana mixture into flour mixture; stir just to moisten. Pour mixture into prepared loaf tin.

-Bake in preheated oven for 15 – 25 minutes, until a knife inserted into the muffins comes out clean. Leave to cool in tin for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire cooling rack.

-For butter mix in all the ingredients given for maple butter and glaze the hot muffins with it.

Banana Bread (LEGENDARY)

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Banana bread…….. What comes in your mind when you hear “Banana Bread”?

Monkies, Bananas, Sweet, Cinnamon, Walnuts, Warmth, mmmmmmmm yummy….. that’s everything coming in my mind rite now…..

My home is filled with banana and cinnamon fragrance and my banana bread is just out of the oven resting on the bench top waiting for me to slice it and enjoy it with a cup of steaming hot cappuccino.

I don’t like keeping things waiting, meanwhile I enjoy my treat, here is what you have to do next to get the feeling I am getting rite now….

take care 😉

bubbye!

Ayesha's Kitchen

Ayesha’s Kitchen

Ingredients:

  • 1 ¾ cup All Purpose Flour
  • 1 cup raw Sugar
  • 1 Stick of Unsalted Butter at room temperature
  • 4 Ripe Bananas, lightly mashed
  • ½ tsp Ground Cinnamon
  • 1 tsp Baking Powder
  • 1 tsp Baking Soda
  • 1 tsp Salt
  • 2 Eggs
  • 2 Tbsp Whole Milk
  • ½ tsp Vanilla Extract
  • A handful of chopped walnuts

Method:

-Preheat your oven to 176 degrees Celsius.

-Grease a 9’ by 5’ loaf pan and line the bottom with parchment paper.

-In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream together the butter and sugar. Add the eggs and whisk to combine. Add the mashed bananas and vanilla and mix to combine.

-Add the flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, walnuts and salt and mix together until just combined. DO NOT OVERMIX!! Add milk wile mixing in the dry ingredients.

-Pour batter into the prepared loaf pan and bake for 1 hour. At the 50 minute mark test it by inserting a toothpick in the center and if it comes out really wet than let it go until 1 hour and 10 minutes, if it comes out with a little wet batter than cook it for only 1 hour.

-When ready, let it cool for about 20 minutes.

-Slice and smear with butter so you can feel like you are in heaven!

TO STORE

To store, simply wrap tightly in aluminum foil and pop it in the fridge, whenever in the mood for a piece just slice away and stick in the microwave for 20 seconds. Smear with the maple butter and you will think that it just came out of the oven. It’s a yummy thing to have on hand for last minute breakfast, or after school snack or just simply reward yourself whenever in the mood!