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. 

Baghreer (Algerian Crepes)

By Za, 

1 baghreer cooking- Almost done. 

I dedicate this recipe to one of my sisters. 


Baghreer are Algerian traditional crepes. They are healthy, tasty and easy to make. 
Unlike normal crepes which are plain, Baghreer are characterised by the huge funny number of holes that pop up on the surface during the cooking. 
If the holes are big and numerous, then consider your baghreer to be a success. (see picture above). 
The baghreer only needs to be cooked on one side, no need to flip it over. 


The ingredients and measures I used were the following: 

• Fine semolina (medium will also do): 1 British mug. 
• Flour: 1 British mug. 
• Yeast: 1 tbsp. 
• baking powder: 1 tbsp
• Milk: 1 british mug. 
• Water: 1 British mug. if the batter is too thick, add more water to obtain a consistency and a texture similar to the one of normal crepes - slightly thicker than liquid) 
• 1 egg. 
• A pinch of salt.

The method: 

Mix the semolina and flour in a big bowl. 
Add yeast and baking powder 
Pour milk and water in small quantities, at a time, while you mix continuously until all lumps melt. I usually use a blender at the end to make sure no lumps stay roaming about (for the peace of mind hehe) 
Let the batter rest 15 to 30mins. 

The final result

Preheat a non-stick frying pan. (= between medium and high) 
before I start ladling the thick liquid onto the pan, I add 1 tbsp of oil to the baghreer to help it not stick to the pan, then I add salt. (you can grease the pan otherwise) 

Ladle the first portion of the batter onto the pan and spread it around by tilting the pan in a circular motion to allow the batter to spread, evenly, covering the base of the pan. 
PS: Do not flip over. Just wait for a few seconds for it to cook. check the bottom side. It should have a very light red-ish / brown-ish color and the surface has to be entirely covered with holes. 

This is the back of a baghreer! Not sayin who took that bite! 

Remove the baghreer, put in a flat plat spread on it some butter (just a tiny bit of butter at the tip of a knife) I'll melt on the holes making them look shiny golden and smooth. Then cover it with a bag/another plat or foil wrap. Repeat the same process with every ladle until you've done all the batter.






The serving: 

Olive oil & sugar 

On a plate, pour some olive oil (1 tbsp). Then lay 1 baghreer upside down on it! (the holed surface on oil. Wipe the oil with the upside down baghreer (in circular motion) for all the holes to be covered in oil. Then, turn it back on the other red-cooked side and sprinkle some sugar on the holes. roll and eat
PS: Baghreer is eaten with olive oil and sugar in the region where I come from. Many Algerians from different regions eat it with different things, for example, instead of olive oil, you can eat with with sugar only, or 'Sharbaat' - a home-made syrup we have made of orange floral water + butter + sugar and other stuff- (I'll post a recipe someday). Or even plain with salted butter. 




Bsahatkom - Enjoy - Bon appetit. 






Demo clip of a cooking Baghreer - dance dance little holes - hehe 

PS: I should have waited for it too cook properly before lifting the edge. It was a bit ruined, but well, the point was to show the color of the cooking base. 

Algerian Mhajeb

By Za,

Recipe come up soon! 

(they are a bit of a project -far from being easy peasy) 

Croquet: Crunchy Breakfast

By Za,  

Croquet is very popular in Algies, lots of people love it. Women and bakeries make it almost regularly for breakfast or afternoon coffee/tea.. 
It goes fantastically well with 'coffee with milk' in the morning. quiet filling.
It looks a bit like Biscotti but they are not bread. They belong to the 'cake' family. 

Ingredients: 

• 1 yogurt pot of eggs (I used 2 eggs) ( you can use a bowl, a cup, a glass of water, a mug or a yogurt pot just like what I used today.)
• 1 yogurt pot of sugar (I used the same yogurt pot for measuring most of these ingredients) 
• 1 yogurt pot of oil
• 1 tsp of vanilla
• 1/2 sachet of baking powder. 
• 1 tsp of lemon zest
• Flour (just add till the dough's no longer sticky but far from being hard.) 

This is the result 

In a big bowl,

Put the eggs and sugar and mix well. 
Add the oil and mix more. 
Add the vanella, baking powder and lemon zest and mix. 
Now start adding the flour bit by bit till you have an extremely soft and non-sticky dough. 
Dust your tray with flour and flatten your dough a little bit length-ways (lengthwise). (see picture= 2 to 2.5cm/=1 inch high) 
Glaze with egg yolks (I only used one and I don't add any milk to it in order to get a mahogany golden shire glaze, But you could thin down the egg yold by adding a tiny bit of milk.You could also add a tea spoon of coffee) use a brush to coat your dough first then a fork to lightly scratch the surface forming multiple parallel rail-like looking lines. ( see picture) 

Chuck it in your preheated oven (I put it on 150C) 

Take it out when it's doubled in size and the glaze's gone golden ( I leave it baking 15- 20mins)

 cut it width-wise  
Leave it to cool 

It should be dry and breaks easily into crumbs/ crispy.


Bsahatkom - Enjoy - Bon appetit