Shtit'ha Batata: Potato Dance

By Za, 

All right, this looks nothing like a dance!.. more like worn-out potatoes. 
Sometimes you get home after a long day of running errands all over the country (well ..at least that's how it feels).. and the first thing you want to do after changing your clothes and washing is EAT! (that's if you haven't already thought of grabbing a take away meal on your way, or you're too broke to opt for a home delivery meal) 
Then you find yourself in that awkward moment when you hit the kitchen and find out you're run out of groceries because you didn't realise sooner that it was the end of the week. yeah.. cr** 
But then your eyes spot the brown-beige-ish color of something hiding in a bag you've started to wonder where on earth it came from.. so you----- piercing the air like an arrow. (your kitchen feeling larger all of the sudden) on to attack the vulnerable confused bag (that suddenly looked so big in your eyes it convinced you it contained of a least about 20 potatoes) only to realise you're crouching with a huge bag in your hand *tight grip* with only 1 potato in it! and another medium one of which half's gone rotten. .. .. 
But you don't despair (you're starving you've started thinking about all the poor hungry people and orphans around the world, and you're now cursing the governments, famine, greed and so on) so your next automatic reflex is to open the fridge. And you're there standing in front of it. It's full of boxes, bags and bottles that aren't edible. they're empty too. (yea, I have this habit of returning bags, packs, bottles, cartons, tins, jars ..etc to the fridge after using the last bite/drop.. i'm working on getting rid of it, but well). You spot the eggs carton- it looks empty- so you decide to chuck it (so you remember next time to buy eggs on your way home and not be fooled by the presence of a carton) anyway, you grab the thing to throw it away when you realise it feels heavy on the other end! your heart beats fast! could it be... *ba dum tsss* !!!! AN EGG !!!!!!! now you remembered there is a god and you don't know or when but you're thanking him like forever. 
So here we go, a potato (and a half) and an egg! what to do? cook them duh!
Except, the issue is not whether to cook them or not. It's is about WHICH cooking method is faster! (with nice results! goes without saying) you don't want to wait for other 20minutes to go! if you can think of way to cook everything ready in 19mins and 58 seconds you'd opt for it. 
the issue's become a dilemma, and your stomach has taken over your brain, you can't think straight.. Alright, that's it..time to use your 3 lifelines. 
The 50-50 seems useless at this point.
The audience opinion is out of the question.. 
You're left with the "call someone"! hell yeah! 
You spin around and run to the phone, unlock, go to contacts, look for M! yesss MUM! *calling* 
You get frustrated .. why isn't she picking up!! only to hear the line ringing for the first time. 
As you're speaking on the phone - Indian drama - you catch sight of some garlic and you welcome the idea of adding that on today's Menu. 


Found it. (thanks to lifeline #3) the quickest and easiest way to get this "bunch" of veggies ready is to lead them straight to the dance floor. The POT! 

Peel and cut the potatoes (into big pieces) 
Grate the garlic (or press it/crash it) 


In the pot, heat 2tbsp of vegetable oil, add the garlic and stir well. 

Add the potato pieces and mix. Add your favourite spices. ( I used Paprika and mixed spices, a small leaf of bay (stir))  and warm water (1 glass and a half) 


cover the pot and go busy yourself with something distracting. (facebook, twitter, TV..anything) by the time you come back, the food will have cooked. 

Don't forget the last surviving egg you found by accident! USE IT! 

Break it on the ready potatoes in sauce, and close again. Let it simmer for 2 mins or so until you see the egg pouched. mix.. do whatever you like with it.. but just make it quick and serve it on a dish! 

PS: you can add a bit of tomato pasta if you've got any. 

Bsahatkom - Enjoy - Bon appetit

Croquet: got Marbled

By Za, 

This croquet is very similar to the original one I had previously posted. 
So, I used: 

A

• 2 eggs
• 3/4 mug sugar. (the typical British mug) 

mix well until cream. 

• 1/3 cup of oil. 

Mix more. 
1/2 tsp of Vanilla 

B

Take some of the mixture out separately and add 2 tbsp of cocoa to it. Mix well until you get something like a chocolate cream, then, start adding flour ( and 1tsp of baking powder) to it to turn it into a dough. See picture ===> 

do the same to the other half. Add flour and baking powder and make a dough out of it. 

you'll end up with two small doughs, a black and a white one. 

Mix them however you like. Bring the two doughs together to mingle. what I did was, I spread the white dough and shredded the chocolate one inside it. Then, I closed the white dough and kneaded it one or twice to make sure it doesn't open. So, I got this result. 

Flatten the dough on a dusted baking tray. Grease with egg yolk and scratch with a fork. Then put it to bake! 'Tadaa'! 

Bsahatkom - Enjoy - Bon appetit. 

Kesra

 By Za, 

This is an Algerian traditional type of bread. It's typically made my in region of Kabyle-land. It's crunchy, smells of olive oil and and is eaten with anything e.i. dips, stews, soups, fish, cheese, Chakchouka, with butter, jam, honey, Nutella, or just plain.. etc. Also known as: Aghrom Aqoran. (which means: hard bread in Tamazight Language) 

It's extremely easy to make. There are many other kinds of Kesra made in different other regions.  We have 48 states, and each one of them has up to 4 different kinds of Kesra/also called khobz tajin . Some people make it with flour, some add herbs (such as, mint, fennel grains, thyme ..etc). Other people add eggs, or they simply knead it for longer and add an extra portion of yeast to make it puff up 1inch (or 1inch and a half= 3cm) thick. Moreover, there are people who bake it in a masonry (stone) oven and others who put the dough to cook in hot ash or hot sand. However, most Amazighs in the north use what we call a tajin - a Tajin base made of clay. Some people, also, use iron Tajin base or Tawa nowadays.

This one is fairly thin. It's about 1cm thick only. 

For my simple Kesra you will need: 

• A bowl of semolina (fine or medium) 
• 2 to 3 tbsp of olive oil. 
• A pinch of salt.

( I always add a tsp of yeast to make it fluffier) but it's optional. I prefer with. 

• Warm water - enough to assemble the mixture into a dough. 

The method: 

put all ingredients together and mix. Rub thoroughly the semolina and oil between your hands and enjoy the smell of olive oil. 

Add the yeast - optional. 

Mix well. 

Then, start adding water bit by bit to make a dough out of it. Once you grab everything in your hand. knead it for 30seconds. (not a lot) and let it rest for 5 to 10 mins. 

Flatten it down to 8mm (millimeters) with a rolling pin or with your hands if you're good at flattening and round-shaping dough. 

Lay it on a hot tawa or a large pan. ( I used the pan this time.. got a better result Alhamdoulillah) 

let the bottom side cook brown/red-ish before you flip it over. 

Here are the steps in Picture: 

Semolina + salt + olive oil <3 

HAHA this one here underneath I absolutely couldn't be bothered to knead and roll it properly! it looks pair-shaped but it tasted good! : p

et voila!!! 

Bsahatkom - Enjoy - Bon appetit.  

Chak-Chouka

By Za, 

recipe coming sooooooooon xxx