Will be back soon

Hello everyone,

I know it’s been a while..& I miss blogging so much. The good news is that

I’ll be back soon & would be sharing more recipes with you. I want to thank

everyone for visiting & leaving comments. It’s always a big pleasure to

interact with foodies &  readers  from around the around.

Lovefrom1stbite

A healthy spinach & strawberry improvised salad

Yesterday, I had no plans as to what to make for our salad. Because we were still feasting on some salmon leftovers (it will be my next post inshallah) that I made the day before, I couldn’t really think of something. So when it was almost time for dinner I opened the fridge & grabbed few ingredients mix them. The result was out of this world. I was telling hubby: “if you don’t like it don’t complain, because I made it up & it’s not a recipe”. He nodded & stuck his fork in the salad. I kept looking to see what was his reaction. Me: “You liked it dear?”. “Yes, it’s good. I liked it”. He said.

In a bowl put spinach leaves, strawberry, brown rice (boiled & drained beforehand), green onion. Now prepare the vinaigrette: cube the fetta cheese, add some olive oil & mix together it will get lumpy but you can fix that later, add apple cider vinegar, garlic salt, & black pepper to taste. Add the vinaigrette to the salad. Mix & enjoy. (You can garnish with some nuts if you like). Really I loved it, & I felt I could have more of this.

Eat your oranges the Moroccan way!

Luckily the Moroccan oranges are one of the best in the world. They are juicy, and sweet and are widely consumed by Moroccans. They’re grown in the Haouz region in the south.  And as one of the top producers of orange in the world, Morocco exports this sweet watery fruit to Europe as well. Anyway, if you need a vitamin C boost, try the Moroccan salad/dessert, (could be both) there’s no specific time to eat this. It’s yummy & good for you. Peel an orange, slice it up & dust it with cinnamon & enjoy.

Things you can add: (Powdered sugar, vanilla extract, almonds or dates)

Homemade cinnamon pancakes mix

Toady’s breakfast was pancakes. And the recipe I’m sharing is a real time saver, because you can keep it in a jar in your pantry up to 6 month. So whenever you feel like having pancakes for breakfast, you don’t have to make it each time. All you’ll have to do is take 1 + 1/3 of the mix (dry ingredients) & add the wet ingredients to them the minute you want to make the pancakes. Your pancakes will be on the table in about 20 minutes.

Ingredients & directions:

3 cups all-purpose flour (I used whole wheat flour)

2 tbsp sugar

2 tbsp baking powder

4 tsp cinnamon

1 1/4 teaspoons salt

Mix these ingredients and store them in a jar. Once you want to make pancakes, take 1 +1/3 cups of the mix and add 2 tbsp of oil, 3/4 cup of milk (You’ll probably need more if you use whole wheat flour), 1 egg. Mix it together until it gets moist. Heat & grease with little bit of butter, a griddle or skillet. Using a ladle pour the batter & flatten it with the bottom of the ladle. Cook it for 3 minutes on one side, then for 1 minute on the other side. Serve them with jam & few strawberries.

Cheese & curry crackers

Today I was in a baking mood, and since I was craving the cheese & curry crackers. I thought I would share this recipe with you. You can make them thinner than the ones I made here.

Ingredients:

2 + 1/2 cups (250 g) all-purpose flour

1 tsp of salt

2 tsp of curry powder

1 cup (100 g) of softened butter

1 cup (100 g) grated cheese

1/2 cup milk to combine the dough (could be more)

Directions:

Mix the flour, salt, curry powder, and the butter. Then add the cheese, milk bit by bit. Once the dough is combined . Dust a surface with flour to work the dough. Flatten it with a rolling pin & use cookie cutters to form the shapes you like. Grease a cooking sheet & bake it in a medium low temperature for about 20 minutes or until they get golden.

Kabab..The Moroccan way!

The mouth watering smell coming from the grill could be detected even if you’re blocks away. It’s one of those things that makes you want to eat even if you were full. What I like about this though is that it’s so easy to make, yet so tasty..& couples very well with lamb & veal meats. I usually would marinate the meat & freeze it. The marinade soaks in & it’s ready any time. Just grab, thaw, give it to your man to grill it, watch it sizzle & eat it immediately. No measurements for this ( I eyeball it): chopped onion, cumin, salt, paprika, olive oil, coriander & parsley (chopped). Add the meat in & mix. Let it soak in at least 30 minutes, before grilling it.

Enjoy!

Thumbs up to the Moroccan flat bread

Vive le khobz Marocain!

Doesn’t it deserve a cheer? lol

Khobz is the Arabic word for bread. The first two letters “kh” are pronounced the same way the Spanish would pronounce the name: José

Morocco is where people consume lots of bread, bread is always on the table dear friends & readers. I guess because it goes well with tajines, stews, soups, & even with a spoonful of jam & butter. What’s staggering though is that most women (when I say most I mean all women, lol) make their bread at home, sometimes daily! superwomen, huh?. So it comes fresh & tasty. I personally wouldn’t complain. A Moroccan motto that is worth mentioning here is: The best meals are not in restaurants, but are made at home. Anyway, I was thinking of what my next post should be & thought you might enjoy this. Making this bread may sound difficult if you compare it to baking a loaf of bread (because that need a longer period of time to rise). This flat bread doesn’t take as long, don’t worry. You won’t have to engage yourself the whole day to bake it.

Yay! I’ve been featured on the Finest Foodies Friday

OK now I got something to brag about, LOL. Don’t you think?. Well, couple days ago, I saw an incoming link to my blog. So, I clicked on it to check it out, only to find out that my blog was picked this week to be featured along with some other great blogs on the Finest Foodies Friday. Isn’t that cool?. I’m really excited about it & thought I would share the good news with you. Go check it out: here

(Just wondering) Are you going to congratulate me?

America’s favorite: Meatloaf

Look at that!!!! the Moroccan cook made meatloaf (YUM). I just thought it would be nice to tease my sweety’s taste buds with this American specialty. And I was so pleased with all the hmmmmmm sounds I heard after the first few bites were taken. So, I’m certainly going to adopt this recipe!. I know the shape doesn’t look perfect. lol! I don’t know why, but at least you realize that I could never be an engineer. Anyway, I don’t want to sound like I’m exaggerating, but the taste was a hit & I wish there was a way you could have a bite. The credit for this recipe goes to Mark Bittman.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup plain bread crumbs

1 kilo (2 pounds) lean ground meat (I used beef)

1 egg, lightly beaten

1/2 cup milk

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese (optional)

1/4 cup minced fresh parsley leaves

1/2 teaspoon minced garlic

Salt/ black pepper to taste

Directions:

Preheat the oven (350 F). Soak the bread crumbs in milk for 5min. Add the rest of the ingredients & shape into a loaf. Bake it for about an hour. The meatloaf should be slightly brown & firm when done.

Morocco’s most famous salad. Too good to be true!

OK I know some of you are going to say: are you kidding me? This looks like salsa to me, besides salads are much advanced these days to just have two veggies in it & still call it salad. Well, I know that but I have to tell you that this is a Moroccan smart salad. First, because it’s wearing the Moroccan flag’s colors; red & green which is very patriotic of this famous salad . (Forgiveness is highly expected from you when it comes to one of those silly ramblings of mine.(Blush). Yeah, I was saying it’s a smart salad. First, because it comes in many versions for different seasons: (either fresh & that means raw veggies, roasted veggies or roasted & then cooked) & each one of them is different in flavor even if they almost have the same ingredients. And sorry to tell you that you’re not lucky enough to see all versions today. I made this one a while ago & now it’s ready to show up!. Anyway, what makes it very famous in my Morocco is because it’s easy, cheap, & very yummy. Really sometimes I wonder how you could get something so tasty & refreshing out of such a short list of ingredients! I don’t want to forget to mention that a plus with this one is that even kids can make it!

You’ll need Tomato + green pepper + minced garlic + coriander/parsley ( better chopped) + salt + cumin + olive oil. Mix together & taste. What I do is just mix all & add garlic, cumin or salt if needed or until it tastes perfect! Oh by the way, mom used to add a jalapeño to this sometimes. (I can’t tolerate it)!

Express all-purpose (10min) dough

This dough can be one of your best friends during those (I don’t have time) situations. I tried it over & over to make pizza, mini-pizza, panini bread, finger rolls or mini sandwiches..No need to make something fancy when you could get the same result. Right?

Ingredients:
1 cup all purpose flour (120 grams) + 1 cup & 1/2 flour (190 grams) in a separate container.

1/4 cup vegtable oil (40 ml)

1 tbsp powdered milk

1- 1/2 tbsp sugar

1 tbsp instant yeast (in 4 tbsp of lukewarm water)

A dash of salt

1 cup of lukewarm water (160 ml)

Directions:

In a mixing bowl, put the ingredients together except the oil & the 1 cup & 1/2 of flour (these would be added later). Whisk the mixture until it’s lump free. Cover & set it aside in a warm place for 10 minutes. Then add the oil & the remaining flour (1 – 1/2 cup). whisk together & knead it well for 5 minutes. & shape it as you like. Bake it in an oven over 300 F until it’s slightly golden. Here I made mini-pizza with tomato sauce, & cheese. hmmmm lovely!

The High-five leftover: Salmon/avocado pasta salad

My man is not really a big fan of fish & since Gordon Ramsay’s salmon recipe found its way to his tummy lately. I had one more chance the following day, to make him eat the leftovers in a way where the salmon won’t be really highlighted . That’s when I came up with this salad. I didn’t have something planned really. I just opened the pantry, then the fridge & combined the ingredients together. By the time I was finished, I was quite impressed with what I came up with. LOL I don’t know why but whenever I improvise a recipe or something I feel like I accomplished something or done something unheard of. Ok I know : “How pathetic!”

I just eyeballed the following ingredients & trust me when I tell you my hubby gave me a 5 star for this salad (which I believe always a plus), & now it’s on our favorite food list.

Any type of pasta (Boiled/drained)

Cabbage (shredded)

Tomato (cubes)

Avocado (cubes)

Onion (Green onion preferably)

A hard boiled egg cut into wedges

Cooked salmon preferably since it’s flavorful

Lemon bars

I made these darlings yesterday for some friends coming over & boy were they good?. These lemony bars are sinfully irresistible. I guess I just can’t recommend them enough. Yet, I warn you because they can be really addictive (wink), so if you’re on a diet! Please this is not the type of treat you want ( simply because one square won’t be enough) lol. By the way, I forgot to take pictures when I was making the crust, so all I got are pictures of the process of making the filling.

Ingredients:

To make the crust:

1 stick of butter (113 grams), unsalted (room temperature)

1/4 cup (25 grams) powdered sugar

1 cup (140 grams) all purpose flour

A dash of salt

To make the filling:

1 cup (200 grams) granulated white sugar

2 large eggs

1/3 (80 ml) lemon juice

What’s left of our surviving plants!

Growing up in a house with a garden, surrounded with plants & trees makes it feel like your life is missing something if you don’t have plants in your place. So we decided to buy plants & that was about two months before our annual vacation. Honestly, I just wanted plants in my living room, even if I knew it was going to be a problem if we decided to go on vacation. Of course, I ignored that thought! I was so happy with the way they looked & made sure to ask the man at the store every question in the world about how to take care of them. The last thing I needed is taking them home to watch them die!

Tips, tips, tips..(Avocado)

Oh yes! an avocado is meant to be green, so I assume nobody wants to eat an avocado that is anything but green, right? Last time we had our guacamole, I made sure not to fix it was just about time to serve dinner. What stopped me then, is that I really like my salads to be fresh rather than tired & unappealing. Now I can make it in advance, because what I found out lately is that even if you peel an avocado, it won’t turn brown if you place the pit in the middle of its flesh. And of course I had to try that one. So, yesterday I cut the avocado into wedges, put them in a bowl & placed the pit in the middle of the bowl. The avocado wedges stayed green even after being exposed to air for more than an hour. Isn’t that amazing?. And guess what! only now I remembered that when we were visiting, my mother in law served us the guacamole with the pit in the bowl, & I wondered why she did that. But for some reason, it just didn’t happen to me to ask her why she did that! I guess I was too busy eating my food. LOL

The other tip is for freezing the avocados. So if you buy many avocados that you are not going to consume anytime soon. You’ll have to peel & puree them to prevent the browning. Also make sure to add little bit of lemon juice, before freezing them. I tested these tips myself & the avocados are greener than ever!

Mini button bracelet project

I know I have been really lazy in posting my crafts projects (or at least I think they are). Anyway, the previous post (Crafting up candles) & this one are my latest projects, and I’ll try to post the old projects I have made already. What I do like about these easy to do little projects is that it’s a way to relieve stress, & it makes me feel like I have created something out of nothing. It’s just wonderful when you see the result even if it’s not something really extraordinary, like knitting or crocheting (for me it’s extraordinary because I don’t know how to knit..) . These little projects gives you the chance to be creative little bit, make something with your own hands, & that should always be welcomed. For this project you won’t need much, & the nice thing is that you can use it as a napkin ring or simply a little gift for your daughter,niece…

Gordon Ramsay’s baked salmon with herbs & caramelized lemon

I can’t tell you how happy I feel when I try a recipe for the first time & it turns out perfect. Easy, healthy, full of color, Gordon Ramsay’s baked salmon with herbs & caramelized lemon is the one of those successful fish recipes, you can ever bake. If you like fish you have to try this, the taste is mild & the salmon texture comes out really flaky. So if you want the recipe you can check it here!

Oven baked zucchini & carrot fritters

Ingredients:

3 medium zucchini

2 to 3 medium carrots

2 scallions

3 tbsp chopped fresh parsley

3 eggs

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

Salt/ black pepper

Crafting candles up

This is a real easy way to spice up plain candles to give them a lively look. I just glued little embellishments in the form of flowers with matching colors. It’s not a lot of work, but I was happy with the results.

The Moroccan mint tea

At any given time of the day, the Moroccan mint tea gives a promise to lift up a low, stressed spirit. It’s widely consumed in Morocco. It’s also a sign of generosity, a crowd pleaser, brings family & friends together and it would simply make your day much better. I have had different tea types from bags & stuff but my Moroccan tea satisfies me the most. And really sometimes, I feel bad for those who never had the chance to enjoy it. So, here is the step by step illustrations for you guys, if anyone needs to feast on some tea. And what’s better than a cup of tea and cookie?!

Meloui

Ingredients:

2 cups flour (250 g)

2 cups fine semolina (360g)

A dash of salt

1/4 teaspoon yeast

How to make chicken stock

So here we go. I have tried the chicken stock recipe (Method 1) from simply recipes website, & it turned out pretty good. To check the recipe, CLICK HERE. It’s always better homemade of course, first it’s fresh, healthier & of course tastier & saves you money too. What I like about it is that you get to use your whole chicken carcass, so no room for waste.

Mom’s vegetable soup

This is one of my mom’s best veggies soups. Very simple, healthy & irresistibly delicious, I have to admit that it makes my day whenever I make it. I always wonder how you could get something so delicious from very ordinary ingredients..

Ingredients:

2 carrots

Half an onion

1 medium potato

Broccoli (about 200 grams)

2 zucchini

1 liter of chicken stock

1 tsp black paper

Salt to taste

Obama’s victory speech.

Obama’s victory speech. (Chicago, IL)

Ohio goes Obama & celebrates the CHANGE!

One of Obama’s best rallies in Virginia

Under the rain, a very strong speech that, I believe, helped shape the decision of the State of Virginia.

The Americans opted for the blue!

Thanks to the tough to win states of Ohio, Virginia, & Florida. Obama has made it to the white house as the first black president. Obama was successful in convincing those major Republican states to vote for Change. It is a big historical day for this nation. Obama’s Electoral College landslide & the long awaited for victory, mean a lot to the Americans who are craving “Change”. The change that (according to Obama’s campaign) will bring a reconciliation with the major issues of this nation, the change that promise a better & secure future for the next generations. “The American people have spoken, and spoken clearly,” McCain told disappointed supporters in Arizona. Louder than anytime in the American history, the Americans said: “Yes, we can” and surely enough, yes they were able to welcome the first step towards the Change. Now I believe that the national & international expectations are set up high, & Obama needs to tackle very challenging issues, & clean Bush’s mess in the Washington DC.

I’m back!

The vacation was such a soothing treat. We relaxed, had fun, enjoyed being with

loved ones, indulged ourselves in good food & had lots of ice-cream! I surely

don’t feel guilty about it We brought home lots of good memories and lots of

pictures too. The weather was really nice & very pleasant most of the time, unlike

what I’ve expected it to be! So, hit the road & go for vacation. You deserve it!

From the battleground state of Ohio:

Cincinnati museum of history & science

To check out the pictures of mouth watering food

from my MIL’s kitchen, landscape, & more CLICK HERE

A funny video for cat lovers like me!

2 quick notes on the run!!

First, I want to apologize to my readers for yesterday’s messed up post,

due to some problems in my blog & internet connection; which for

some reason was extremely slow. That’s why I couldn’t fix the problem,

& I had to take it down until I could fix it. & oops I forgot there was a

comment there so apparently it’s been wiped So I don’t want you to

think things..It was by mistake!

Second, our stove is going to enjoy a deep sleep for a while! Our vacation

count down started & gosh I have plenty of things in my head buzzing me.

One of them is packing for the trip!! A long trip across the Atlantic to the new

continent..& who knows maybe I’ll meet you at the airport. So if you see a

Moroccan lady wearing a cute jellaba with an easy on the eye guy talk to

her it could be me! I’ll be more than happy to tell you about the sad

broken tajine story AGAIN LOL

Unfortunately I won’t take my laptop with me this time, but hopefully I

would be able to blog from time to time & share the recipes in stock!

Keep the comments coming, it will make my day when I check the blog

Black olives charmoula

It could be a little appetizer besides your dinner or could be a little evening snack. Before we go any further, I want to explain the word “Charmoula or tcharmila”; we use it in Morocco to refer to any mixture of spices used for a specific dish (ex: Fish charmoula). It doesn’t refer to the dry spices only but all the mixture including oil & the herbs used in it.And apparently, Italians also have something similar to this. We had it at an Italian restaurant. It didn’t have cumin or paprika, but it was garlicky as well. This olives charmoula is good with crackers, French bread, & toast slices could be also topped with cheese & sweated in the oven. That’s how I make it sometimes. Yummy!

Chicken noodles soup

Someone sent me an email asking about a chicken soup recipe

that they enjoyed in Morocco. I didn’t know exactly what was it

but from the description that was given I thought it was this one.

So I hope you’ll try it & like it whether it’s what you’re looking for

or not, because it’s really really a yummy soup & let me know how

do you like it!

The story of a broken tajine in a sad kitchen

In one of today’s comments, somebody was wondering why I don’t

have any Tajines in my blog. Well, there’s a sad story behind that.

Back in Morocco, I spent a long time searching for this tajine, because I

don’t believe in glazed tajines for cooking. This type (unglazed tajine)

tastes wonderful & obviously nothing is added to it!!

I was happy & excited to get this one even if it is small but it’s more than

enough for me & my hubby. I remember wrapping it with care & placing it

happily in my luggage while thinking that in a couple of days I’ll be cooking

in it & we’ll be enjoying tastes from home. After all the emotional moments

with my family at the airport, I flew back to our place. I unpacked & this is

what I found..

You have no idea what a tajine means to Moroccans, really I almost cried

You must wonder why I still keep it, right? Well, I’m planning get creative

with it, since I can’t use it in my kitchen!

Honestly I can’t lie & cook something & call it tajine while it’s not (Even if it

has the same ingredients used in making it).

Tajine should be cooked in this earthen pot or forget about it! Because the

taste would be so much different. You’ll find plenty of people who don’t

necessarily follow this rule. But trust me a tajine should be cooked & serve in

it that’s why everybody loves it & that’s why I almost cried.

But here’s the good news. I’ll have my family send me one & I’ll share as many

tagine with you as you like.

Tip: If you are lucky enough to have a tajine, try to get a brazier. The best way

to cook a tajine is on charcoal to have a smoky delicious result.

Guess who’s happy??

Yay!! My sweetie got me the slim Cybershot Sony Ericsson C902.

He said I needed better pictures for my blog! How cool is that??

But you’ll have to wait, because I still have plenty of pictures from

the old phone that I didn’t post yet,lol. So, I’m writing this only to

let you know that my blog pictures are gonna get better & much more

enjoyable hopefully!

The 5 Megapixel is awesome, I ve been taking pictures of everything

since I got it lol..I guess that’s normal when you have had a 2 megapixel

for a while, ya? (Please don’t think I’m a freak), I just love taking pictures

& enjoy it a lot! Too sad, I always wanted to study photography, but there’s

no such a thing in my Morocco.

I don’t like those pink & girlish phones, they look weird to me. So, when we

went to the store they didn’t have the black ones in stock. So the dude

working there wanted to convince me to get the red one, because I’m

a female. I frowned at him & said, I just need a phone, something standard!

So the next day we got it in black. Hmmm, so gorgeous.

Here’s a video to check out in case you need to buy a new phone.

You should tell me “Bssaha” like Moroccans say when you get or buy

something new!

Baked potato pancake

Since the potato pancakes are generally fried, I came up with another

version of these. That would be baked potato pancakes. They taste so

much lighter & you don’t feel as guilty as you do when eating the fried

ones. And if you’re too busy to play the cook that day, you can still

pretend you are.

These are not time consuming! I’m saying these because they were

supposed to be made into the shape of croquettes but I was busy

so I ended up shaping them this way instead!

It brought tears to my eyes!

I was navigating the web when I found this picture, if you’re interested

to know the story behind it.. click here

Cinnamon & vanilla custard

If you like custard, here is a quick recipe with two wonderful flavors (Cinnamon & vanilla).

Ingredients:

2 cups of milk (about 236 ml)

1/3 cup of sugar (50g)

3 eggs

A dash of cinnamon

Few drops of vanilla extract

A pinch of salt

Directions: – Preheat the oven (300 F). Mix the ingredients and pour it in three or four little ramekins. Put them in a large baking pan & fill it with hot water until the ramekins are half way submerged. Cook for 40-45 min. Let them cool & then put them in the refrigerator for a couple of hours to finish the cooling process.

Almond milk!

Just another way to drink your milk!

1 cup peeled almonds

Sugar to taste

1 liter milk ( you can use more or less, depends on how you like it)

1 drop of almond essence (don’t use more than that.it’s bitter!)

- Blend all the ingredients & serve it cold

Guacamole..hmm what a Mexican invention!

Yeah, I like to call it invention! Who else would have thought avocado would

come out so tasty? I remember the first time I had guacamole I was trying

to behave myself in front of this green good looking, & delicious dip.

Honestly, I tried my best to be polite, I just couldn’t resist. It was not my

fault though, it was my brother in law’s. I was quite impressed with his

recipe! because we had it elsewhere & it wasn’t as good as his.

(Don’t get too excited though because this is not his recipe, next

time I’ll ask for it).

So, that’s why if ever I’m going to join any cooking classes, Mexican

cuisine would be in the list. Because if the guacamole is only a dip

& taste so good..I guess there’s more of that to be tasted! (that’s not me!

that’s my stomach talking, lol)

So for now we’ll stick with a basic recipe of guacamole, my sweetie

enjoyed it a lot. So for me, that means a successful guacamole..don’t

worry about me OF COURSE I loved it too

To make this beautiful creamy avocado dip:

1 ripe avocado

1 tomato diced

1 tbsp lemon juice or lime juice

1 clove of garlic minced

salt to taste

1/2 small onion minced

Cut the avocado in halves & peel it or even better scoop it out.

Mash it with a fork. Add all the ingredients, mix well. Serve it

with tortilla chips. Enjoy & forget about the world!!

Lemon cream crepe in the house!

It has been a while since I made crepes. So, I was fighting the idea of making

them because like everybody else I thought I would screw it up, especially that

I don’t have a crepe pan! But as you can see they’re not bad & with lemon cream

the taste is heavenly

Don’t be thinking WOW, because they are not as difficult as they always sound.

You can try them because if they worked with me, why wouldn’t they work with

you?! And by the way, from the very first one, I was quite surprised myself!

Well, I think I like this picture better than the first one!