As we look at the end of Ramadan, the heart is aching and there is a feeling of sadness. We always wait for the best 30 days of the year, but the way it goes is like sand in between your fingers. You don’t even realize how quickly it passes. Alhamdulillah, I am grateful to the Almighty for giving me a better Ramadan, when compared to last year, where I really struggled with everything, thanks to the hectic schedule in my last work place. At that time, I had decided that I wouldn’t be working this Ramadan anywhere, and before I knew it, Allah opened up the doors to keep me as free as possible for this Ramadan. As always, I am not sure if I have done good to do the most I can during this month. There is always a feeling of “not doing enough” while the month slips through your fingers. However the feeling is, let us make sincere dua that Allah accepts all the little things we do, knowingly and unknowingly, and give us the due reward, as we await our fate on the Day, when He assembles all of mankind from start to finish.

This is also the time to appreciate and be grateful for all the blessings He has showered us in our life, the small and the big, and make sincere duas for all the people going through hard times, those in private and those in public, thanks to the world that seems to be very unfair at the moment. But we as people of faith, know for sure that nothing lasts forever, and just like Firaun met the most unlikely death that he never expected and how Allah kept him for us as a reminder till the end of the world. all those who think that the world is theirs have already their fate sealed and ready, Bi’iznillah…

Even though mine is always a food blog, those who are consistent readers know for sure how I pour out my feelings and thoughts in this little space of mine. It has been a long time since I have literally done that in this space, thanks to writer’s block or whatever is called. But the mind is muddled and the heart aches immensely at the situation of the world. The feeling of helplessness just chews the inside and we are unable to do anything. Alhamdulillah ala kulli haal…

Meanwhile, something that I have been wanting to make for a really long time and never got around making is the Arayes. It is a shamelessly easy recipe, but I have always been worried about multiple things going wrong in this recipe. Sometimes, I really wonder when I will ever stop my overthinking. This quality of mine has taken away a lot of my precious time and space in my life and head, that sometimes I really want to beat myself. What do I say? After a huge level of procrastination, I made this recipe, and I was shocked beyond at how easy it is and how difficult it is to screw it up.

Arayes is a Middle Eastern appetizer which is made in Lebanon, Jordan, Syria and other Levant countries with small variation. The pita can be thin or thick, the meat filling can be a couple of spices more or less, but nonetheless, the essense is the same – pita with a slice of meat mixture in it, toasted to perfection and enjoyed immediately. I have placed it as an “entree” but it can be an any-time meal basically – a lazy lunch or dinner, or as a snack, like we enjoyed it after our simple Iftar of fruits and tharikanji. Please don’t forget to pair it with the dip for a delicious layer on top.

I kept the filling thin in each pita, so that I wouldn’t be worried about the meat not cooking. But if your pita is the thick ones, it is better to keep the filling thick as well, and cook for a longer time till the filling is done. Otherwise, this is a no fuss recipe. The bottom may get a little soggy when you bake it, but toast it on a stove top to get it crisp. Hmm… I guess that are all the tips I can think. Let’s move to the recipe…

Print

Arayes | Middle Eastern Pita Meat Pockets

Course Appetizer

Cuisine Arab

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Author Rafeeda AR

Ingredients

• 500 gm beef mince
• 1 onion
• 3-4 cloves garlic
• 1/2 bunch parsley around 50 gm
• 1 tsp paprika powder
• 1/2 tsp cumin powder
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon powder
• 1 tsp black pepper powder
• 1/4 tsp ground all spice optional
• 1 tbsp pomegranate molasses optional
• Salt to taste
• 4 pita bread meduim
• Olive oil as required

FOR DIP

• 1/4 cup tahini
• 1 tbsp yogurt
• 2 cloves garlic
• One squeeze of lemon juice
• 2 tbsp cold water
• Salt to taste

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 200 degrees. Line a baking tray and brush with olive oil.
• Mince the onion, garlic and parsley in a processor.
• Add into the mince along with the rest of the ingredients except the pita and olive oil.
• Give a good mix. Divide into equal portions, for a total of eight.
• Cut each pita into half, making a total of 8 peices.
• Spread each portion of the meat into center of the pita. Spread as thin as possible.
• Repeat for all pita and set aside, arranging on the tray.
• Brush with some olive oil on the top.
• Bake for 15-20 minutes, till the meat is cooked. Grill the top for 1 minutes to brown the top.
• Serve hot immediately with the dip.
• For making the dip, blend all the ingredients together till smooth. Add 2 tbsp water first and add more to make it as per your required consistency. Keep aside in the fridge till the time of serving.

Notes

I have used thin pita bread. If you are using the thick pita bread, please make the filling thicker. 

The post Arayes | Middle Eastern Pita Meat Pockets appeared first on The Big Sweet Tooth.

We are fast approaching the last ten days of Ramadan, SubhanAllah… I can’t fathom how fast the month is flying. It is always the case during this month. May Allah make us reach the final ten days of Ramadan, and let us observe Lailatul Qadr, in the best way possible… After all, it is the night worth more than 1000 months (Surah Al Qadr), which is huge! Sharing a beautiful Hadith regarding this night:

Are there times when you crave for sweets during Ramadan? Usually my sweet cravings during the month of Ramadan is limited to a dosage of custard and jelly once or twice a month. But this time, I had this very strong craving to have chocolate cake, and I took that chance to bake a cake that I had bookmarked for a really long time. It is a moist chocolate cake but with a dose of malted drink powder like Horlicks, Ovaltine, or the likes. I learned a fact that the origin of this cake is from Nandos in Pakistan, which serves a chocolate malt cake in their dessert range. They don’t have it here.

Horlicks is something I always have in my fridge. It is my guilt pleasure. So when I had an Iftar at my brother’s place, I baked and took it along. We ate the whole cake over two days, since it is a little heavy yet so fulfilling, Alhamdulillah. One word of warning though – don’t expect it to have a heavy malty taste, it just has a small edge to it. However the cake is quite moist. Please keep your slice out for it to cool and the buttercream to be a little melty, that is when it tastes the best. Off to the recipe…

Print

Chocolate Malt Cake

Course Cakes and Muffins

Cuisine International

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 1 hour hour

Servings 12

Author Rafeeda AR

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cup all purpose flour
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/3 cup cococa powder
• 1/3 cup malted milk powder Horlicks, Ovaltine, etc.
• 1 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 eggs large, room temperature
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1/2 cup buttermilk refer notes
• 2/3 cup boiling water
• 1 tbsp instant coffee powder

FOR FROSTING

• 120 GM butter softened
• 1/4 cup cocoa powder
• 1/3 cup malted milk powder
• A pinch of salt
• 2 cups icing sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 - 2 tbsp cream or milk
• Chocolate for topping

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 180 degrees. Grease and set aside 2 x 9 inch baking pans.
• In a big bowl, sift the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
• Add in the sugar and give it a good whisk.
• Make a hole in the center. Crack in the eggs and add in the oil, buttermilk and vanilla extract.
• With an egg beater, on a low speed setting, beat till the batter is combined.
• Melt the coffee into the hot water and pour into the batter. Just beat till combined. The batter will be runny.
• Divide equally into both the pans and bake for 20-30 minutes till the center comes out clean.
• For making the buttercream, beat the butter till soft.
• Add in the cocoa and malted milk powders along with the vanilla and salt and beat.
• Now add in the icing sugar and beat in slowly till it combines. Add in the cream or milk to loosen the icing.
• Refrigerate the icing till use.
• Once the cakes are baked, flip them onto a cooling rack and allow them to cool completely.
• Ice the cake as per your liking. I spread a thin layer in between both the cakes, did a thick layer on top and used the remaining to cover the sides.
• Top with pieces of chocolate and enjoy.

Notes

The cake is moist at room temperature. 

If keeping it in the fridge, bring to room temperature and enjoy. It tastes better then. 

The post Malted Chocolate Cake | Chocolate Malt Cake {One Bowl} appeared first on The Big Sweet Tooth.

Can you see that I am struggling to actually do something on the blog? After posting the Coconut Milk Rasam, I came back to the blog several times to start a post, but somehow other activities would take priority and the blog would be left behind. But I have to say I really miss this little baby of mine. Spending time thinking what new recipes to try, to cook it, plate it and click it in the simple lazy style of mine gave me a particular high for a really long time. For the past couple of years, though I was at home, somehow my interest in cooking and baking took a deep dive and I struggled to even cook simple meals. There were so many reasons for it, from my teen girls being extra picky with eating to feeling absolutely lazy to make new meals. It then started reflecting in the speed I did things. It started being very tedious for me.

And now, I am back to working. Yes… For the past almost two months, I am back in the job market, and working five days a week. Work is good, Alhamdulillah, but the traffic has been terrible and I am really struggling to doing a lot of things, especially cooking. Alhamdulillah, I recently got a lady to take care of the home, but then cooking is something that I haven’t been doing as such. Currently, with the way things are, I am only looking at finishing off whatever drafts I have and then think my way forward with the blog…

Can you believe that this baby is 12 years old? Such a long time… Just a couple of days ago, my human baby completed 13 years of life. Now I have two teens and I am just grateful, to say the least. Sometimes, instead of thinking about how much of a headache they can become at times, it is best to see the bright light of having them around and how they make you grounded. Alhamdulillah… It also makes me sad that years are passing by so quickly and the girls growing up faster than I can accept… I guess all mother’s feel the same way…

Now since it is a celebratory blog post, I decided as always to post something special. You can check out all my previous posts here. I have written very long posts but this time, my fingers and my mind don’t seem to be coordinating much. But I am still trying… Just because I want to do it…

Some recipes go viral on TikTok for a reason. I have tried a few and they were all hits, like the custard yogurt toast and the feta tomato pasta and they were really good. I have marked a lot of them to make, but then time has its constraints now, and it hasn’t been easy. But this phyllo custard tart was something that was playing in my head and when I got a chance I made it. The recipe was quite easy but I had never worked with phyllo pastry before. Usually this is used to make dishes like baklawa and Turkish borek, which are all on my list, but may take its own sweet time to get done.

I bought a box and kept it in my freezer for at least a month. Finally I gathered up my courage and made it. The first step is to crinkle the phyllo and arrange in a 9×13 pan. The folded sides need to be facing on the top. It is baked for a little time. Then melted butter is poured all over and baked again. A custard is then made, poured over and baked again till done. Yes, it is a little tedious but worth the effort. While it bakes, make the sugar syrup and allow it too cool slightly. Make sure to pour it all over the pastry till soaked. Wait for some time patiently and finally dig in. A word of warning: please make sure you have somebody to share. The dessert can be absolutely addictive. You can add toppings like chopped pistachios, dried rose petals, etc. and use more flavoring like orange blossom water in the sugar syrup.

I would love to make this again when I have a potluck or an opportunity when a lot of them can eat. It is quite a calorific dessert, to say the least. Hehe… Maybe as you read, you can feel that I am struggling to even do a proper post with proper words. I am just glad I managed to put down this much. Leaving it with a footnote – do you know this dessert is called “Mukacha”? It is an Arabic name for the word “wrinkled”.  I wish I could find which country this belonged to.

Print

Phyllo Custard Tart | Phyllo Crinkle Cake

Course Dessert

Cuisine International

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time 1 hour hour

Servings 10

Author Rafeeda AR

Ingredients

• 500 gm phyllo pastry
• 240 gm butter melted
• 1 cup milk
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup sugar adjust as per sweetness
• 1 tbsp vanilla extract

FOR SYRUP

• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup water
• Juice of one lime
• 1 tsp rose water optional

Instructions

• Grease a 9x13 inch pan generously with butter. Preheat oven to 200 degrees.
• Take two sheets of the phyllo pastry sheet and crinkle it. Place in the pan facing the crinkles on the top.
• Place them tightly to make sure that all the phyllo sheet is accomodated in the pan.
• Bake for 10 minutes.
• Take out and pour melted butter all over the phyllo. Bake for 10 minutes.
• Meanwhile, whisk together eggs, milk, sugar and vanilla. Beat well till nicely combined.
• Pour the custard mixture onto the semi baked phyllo. Return it back to the oven for another 30-40 minutes, till the phyllo is crisp on the top. (refer notes)
• During this time, prepare the sugar syrup by combining the sugar and water in a saucepan and cook till the syrup thickens. Add the lemon juice and rose water if using and switch off.
• As soon as the phyllo cake cames out of the oven, pour all the sugar syrup over the phyllo custard. Allow it to sit for sometime.
• Enjoy it warm.

Notes

Do not skimp on the butter. It is the butter that will keep the phyllo soft.

Do not overbake the phyllo custard tart. It tends to dry. So keep it for 30 minutes, and then grill the top for a browned appearance. 

 

All I would like to do at this moment is to thank you all from the bottom of my heart for sticking out to me and coming to this page from time to time to check out the content. I feel absolutely blessed… Alhamdulillah… I may go absolutely slow on the blog, but nevertheless some day, some time, I will get back to being more regular, In Sha Allah…

The post Phyllo Custard Tart | Phyllo Crinkle Cake appeared first on The Big Sweet Tooth.

Sometimes, you stare at super simple recipes, but because you are not sure if it will be eaten up by your folks, you tend to keep it at the back of your mind. That is exactly what happened when I saw many of my fellow food bloggers trying it across various platforms. Finally, when I signed up for the theme “Don’t be Cheesy” in the Blogging Marathon #151, I decided to make it. My initial plan was something else, but as always, I end up going against my plan A.

The beauty of this dish is the ease of making it. All you need to do is bake the tomato and a block of feta cheese with some basic ingredients till done, cook the pasta till el-dente and then mix both together before you eat it. It is too simple to be true… Hehe… Just as I expected, my girls nitpicked on the tomato skin and ate the rest. I was actually surprised by how delicious it tasted. Since feta cheese is salty in itself, I didn’t add any additional salt, and it was seasoned well enough by itself. I feel it will be a lovely recipe to make as a nice side dish if you have guests for dinner, simply because it tastes different in a nice way. If you haven’t tried it yet, do give it a try… It is definitely a one-time must try, that may become a regular… And can I tell you, that this is my first recipe on the blog with feta?

Print

Baked Tomato Feta Cheese Pasta

Course Main Course

Cuisine Italian

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time 45 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Author Rafeeda AR

Ingredients

• 200 gm feta cheese one block
• 350 gm cherry tomatoes 1 box
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tsp red chilli flakes
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 1 tsp dried basil
• 1 tsp dried parsley
• 1 tsp black pepper crushed
• 3 garlic cloves peeled
• Salt to taste
• 200 gm pasta

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 200 degrees.
• In a baking tray, keep the feta cheese in the center. Sprinkle the tomatoes all around.
• Sprinkle ingredients from olive oil to black pepper all over.
• Bake for 40 minutes.
• Meanwhile, boil the pasta in lots of water, little salt and a little olive oil, till done. Drain and set aside. Reserve the pasta water.
• Take out the tray. Using a spatula, mash the cheese and tomatoes, and give the whole mixture a good stir. Add salt if needed.
• Add the cooked pasta, give it a good toss. Add some pasta water if the mixture appears too dry.
• Serve immediately hot and enjoy.

The post Baked Tomato Feta Cheese Pasta appeared first on The Big Sweet Tooth.

Life has been a crazy rush, Alhamdulillah, that the blog is clearly taking a back seat. I am travelling home next week, and I am trying to see if I can squeeze in at least a couple of posts before I give the blog a break till we come back, In Sha Allah. The summer this time is really hot and uncomfortable. I read somewhere that this is the hottest the earth has become ever since mankind has come into existence. Allah knows best… We already had very hot months of May and June, and these two months aren’t going to be the easiest. It is a relief that we are going home, but back home, it has been raining very heavily. Rains are beautiful till a level but after that they start invoking a little fear in your hearts. The invocations prescribed during those times are quite heavy – from asking Allah to make the rain beneficial to asking Him to let it rain around us and not on us… SubhanAllah…

Coming to today’s recipe… My brother bought in a bottle of chocolate fudge sauce that was expiring in a couple of months. I usually don’t buy stuff like that, because we hardly use it in our routine. A bottle of Nutella, OK, but not fudge sauce… Hehe… As he got it in, I was wondering what I could do with it. Hersheys being the “baap” of chocolate syrup – though I used a local brand – I ended up searching on their website and found this link. I further found in the same link that the recipe was updated from what it used to be on the pack ages ago. I decided to try the old recipe. The only changes I made was to reduce the sugar and add a little salt. Lots of eggs, the whole bottle of syrup and just lots of gooeyness – that is how I would rate this recipe. It is soft inside, with a little caky texture. It reminded me of the sticky brownies I baked sometime ago. So if, like me, you end up with a near expiry bottle of chocolate syrup, you know what to do.

Print

Chocolate Syrup Brownies | Easy Chocolate Sauce Brownies

The brownies to make when you have an unused bottle of chocolate fudge sauce...

Course Brownies

Cuisine American

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 45 minutes minutes

Servings 16

Author Rafeeda AR

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup butter softened
• 4 eggs room temperature
• 1/2 cup sugar increase upto 1 cup
• 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1 cup all purpose flour
• A pinch of salt
• 1 tsp vanilla essence
• 1 bottle chocolate syrup 16 oz

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 180 degrees. Line and grease an 13*9 inch pan.
• Beat butter, eggs and sugar till well combined.
• Add the rest of the ingredients and fold in till the batter is moist.
• Pour into prepared pan and bake for 25-30 minutes till the top is firm to touch.
• Take out and cool completely before slicing and serving.

Notes

You may add nuts and/or chocolate chips in this brownie. I didn't use. 

The post Chocolate Syrup Brownies | Easy Chocolate Sauce Brownies appeared first on The Big Sweet Tooth.

I saw the recipe for shortbread cookies made with brown sugar on a pack of brown sugar – obviously! – when I bought it from US, while wanting to bake something with it. Since then, the idea is stuck in my mind. Shortbread can be called the world’s easiest cookie – hardly three ingredients, sugary, buttery, deliciousness! The only thing this recipe does is to use brown sugar instead of regular sugar, and therefore you get a delicious caramel flavor when baked. What better time to make this the second cookie in the theme “Kids Delight – Cookies” for this week of the Blogging Marathon #147.

Like I mentioned, this recipe is a little no brainer. I chose not to add any flavoring to the cookie, though you may add an extract of choice to it. I did add a pinch of salt to balance out the sweetness. The amount of sugar used is quite minimal in my recipe. I have used light brown sugar, but if you use the dark variant, the color will be even more pretty. This batch made around 12 cookies that disappeared in no time. Next time, I will try to make a bigger batch, In Sha Allah… Hehe… Off to this recipe…

Print

Brown Sugar Shortbread Cookies

Course Cookies

Cuisine American

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time 2 hours hours

Servings 4

Author Rafeeda AR

Ingredients

• 120 gm butter softened
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• A pinch of salt
• 1 cup plus 2 tbsp all purpose flour

Instructions

• Beat the softened butter, sugar and salt till fluffy.
• Fold in the flour till all combined.
• Shape the batter into a log and wrap with a clingfilm.
• Chill the dough for at least an hour or more if possible.
• Preheat the oven to 180 degrees. Line a baking pan with parchment paper.
• Take the dough from the fridge, remove the film and slice them into 1/2 inch thick cookies - makes 12 cookies roughly. Line them up on the tray.
• Bake for 12 to 15 minutes till just set. The cookies will still be soft. Allow to cool on the pan for five minutes before transferring them to the rack to cool completely.

Notes

The darker the brown sugar used, the color of the cookie will change. 

The post Brown Sugar Shortbread Cookies appeared first on The Big Sweet Tooth.

I have always mentioned that even though I love to eat cookies, I am not very fond of baking it. I feel the whole task of making cookies a bit cumbersome. Hehe, yes, I can attribute it to my laziness. So when Valli declared the theme of “Kids Delight – Cookies” for the Blogging Marathon #147, I decided to take it up, and add a couple of more cookies to my little stash of cookie recipes on the blog.

Azza has this habit of baking when she gets bored, and she relies on TikTok for all her ideas. I am an anti-TikTok person, but Azza and HD totally love the app. I agree that the app is home to many viral recipes these days, like the Dalgona and the Custard Toast. So I shouldn’t be writing it off completely. Hehe… Anyway, she made these sprinkle cookies from this link and they turned out to be really delicious. The recipe uses cold butter instead of softened butter, so beating it is a little bit of work, but the cookie dough comes together really quickly and bakes equally fast because of the size. It is a small batch and hence takes such little time. The girls literally gobbled it up. The recipe is different from the sugar cookie I have posted earlier because of the use of baking soda instead of baking powder. Off to this easy recipe…

Print

Sprinkle Sugar Cookies | Small Batch Easy Sugar Cookies

Course Baking

Cuisine American

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time 25 minutes minutes

Servings 2

Author Rafeeda AR

Ingredients

• 1/3 cup butter cold, slightly soft
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 egg yolk
• A dash of vanilla
• A pinch of salt
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 3/4 cup all purpose flour
• 2 tbsp sprinkles

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 180 degrees. Line a parchment paper.
• Beat the butter and sugar till combined. You can use your electric beater or with a spatula.
• Add the egg and vanilla, and mix in.
• Add the rest of the ingredients and fold in till you have a dough. Divide into 6 cookies and keep on the parchment paper with an inch spacing between each of the cookies.
• Bake for 10-12 minutes till it is spread yet soft. Cool on a rack till it hardens.

The post Sprinkle Sugar Cookies | Small Batch Easy Sugar Cookies appeared first on The Big Sweet Tooth.

The month end means it is time for the Shh Cooking Secretly Challenge. This is one challenge that I have been participating in since the inception of it years ago, and still enjoy doing the posts for it. Somehow, my blog seems to be having content only because of the Blogging Marathon and this challenge. Otherwise, I wouldn’t be making an attempt to make new posts. Somehow, cooking has become something that just needs to get done, as long as the folks eat what is being made. I haven’t even baked in a really long while, which explains a completely spoiled cake that happened in my kitchen over the weekend, that I wanted to cry. It is funny sometimes how I am still a “food blogger” when I hardly cook…

Anyway, this month, the theme for this challenge was “Cook what you like”. I loved the theme, because it kept the whole challenge open for everyone to choose what they want to. This time, I was teamed up with Priya Vijaykrishnan, with whom I am doing this challenge for the first time. Her blog is a treasure of vegetarian and vegan recipes. Even though I was very tempted to try push an idea of having a theme, I kept it to myself. I am sometimes known to force upon my ideas onto my teammates, which of late, I realize was not the best thing that I have been doing. Anyway, after a little discussion, she gave me the secret ingredients of mixed herbs and cream, while I gave her mustard and cumin. While I go on with my post, do check out what she cooked with her secret ingredients…

Ever since I found this way of making pasta, I have given up on making it the traditional way. I can attribute that mainly to my laziness to wash more dishes. Hehe… Then I discovered a way of just putting pasta along with all other ingredients into a baking tray and just allowing the oven to work on its magic. I actually wasn’t sure when I landed up on it. I had all sorts of questions – would the pasta be cooked, would the sauce be too runny, would the chicken be cooked, am I sure I want to do this, so on and so forth… But the ‘keeda’ in me really wanted to try it for myself and see how successful it would be. If you notice, I love my one-pot baked meals like this rice casserole and this chicken n veg casserole. They make absolutely easy and fulfilling meals. Now I add this pasta onto the list. It was a huge success and will be a must try for the pasta dinners – or lunches.

The prep time for this dish is absolutely minimal. All ingredients used are store cupboard ingredients, except the protein you end up using. I used boneless chicken breasts and cut them into small pieces to ensure that they get cooked. The tomato sauce, broth and cream are ingredients we would otherwise use. Once baked, you may feel that there is a lot of liquid in it, but when the pasta sits, it thickens and the texture becomes nice and creamy. I am sure that once you try it, you will be hooked onto making it each time you crave for pasta, without messing up your hands too much. Off to the recipe…

Print

No-Boil Baked Pasta {One Pan}

Course Main Course

Cuisine Italian

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 1 hour hour 20 minutes minutes

Servings 6

Author Rafeeda AR

Ingredients

• 300-350 gm boneless chicken breast
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp paprika powder
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 400 gm macaroni of choice one pack
• 1 tin chopped tomatoes 400 gm
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1 cup chicken broth refer notes
• 1 tsp mixed herbs
• 200 gm mixed parmesan and mozarella cheese I didn't use

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 200 degrees. Keep a baking dish ready, greased with olive oil.
• Cut the chicken into small peices. Toss with the garlic powder, paprika powder and salt. Spread on the tray.
• Open the pasta pack and spread on top of the chicken.
• Now layer in the tomato sauce, chicken broth and cream one on top of the other. Using a spatula, give a slight mix.
• Sprinkle in the seasonings. Cover the tray with two layers of aluminuim foil and pock at a few places for steam to escape.
• Bake for 50 minutes. Take out and remove the foil. Be careful of the hot steam.
• Sprinkle the cheese if using with more seasonings of choice and bake for another 10-15 minutes till the cheese melts.
• Serve hot...

Notes

I made the chicken stock by combining 2 cubes of stock into one litre of warm water. 

Instead of using one whole cup of cream, you can use milk for half the quantity. 

Be creative with your seasoning.

I used chunky tomato passata, you can use any tomato sauce of your choice. 

I didn't use cheese since I ran out of cheese in my pantry. But remember, cheese makes pasta better, so use it...

The post No-Boil Baked Pasta {One Pan} appeared first on The Big Sweet Tooth.

As much as I am not fond of doing things at the last minute, these days the frequency of it has increased quite a bit. I am somebody who likes to get things done as early as possible and be ready before hand, but I guess the old saying of “time and tide waits for none” seems to be even more probable now. How much ever I plan, things just don’t seem to go its way. I try my level best not to feel disappointed, because we as human beings are not in control of a huge majority of our life. We can only plan but Allah is the Best Planner, so He calls Himself in Surah Aal-Imran: 54. I am trying to not panic when things don’t get done and go with the flow. It is a long lesson indeed, yet I am trying, Alhamdulillah…

You must be wondering why this big lecture before beginning the post. I am doing the second post for this week’s Blogging Marathon #146 theme of “Trending Recipes”. Just like the tortilla wrap, my mind fluctuated between many easy recipes that I came across online. But this toast tugged my heart and I had to try it. The only thing is that I made it on Wednesday for breakfast, clicked it, ate it and still struggled to finish off the post.

I used Luisine brioche bread for this recipe. I love it while making French Toast – it gives a totally different vibe altogether. Since the bread is thick, it is easier for it to hold on some amount of liquid. But if you use regular bread, try using two slices together stuck together with a little water or maybe indenting it and pouring very little liquid so as to not soak. The custard used in this is very interesting – Greek yogurt, egg and a little sugar. If you don’t have Greek yogurt, of course you can use regular yogurt, but do make sure to remove some of the whey before using it. I was really wondering how it would taste. Once it baked and I had a bite, it was really mind-blowing. It somehow reminded me of the baked yogurt dessert on the bread.

Topping are totally your choice. As you can see, I used chocolate chips and almond slices on one, and blueberries on the other. I loved both the toppings, please don’t ask me to choose. Hehe… The quantity of custard made was perfect for the two loaves of brioche use. You can airfry the recipe at 180 degrees for around 8-10 minutes till the custard settles and the bread is crunchy. Just make sure that the custard is set. My oven takes a little longer time than usual, so I baked for almost 20 minutes, though 15 minutes should be more than a good enough time. Make this as a lazy weekend breakfast and enjoy!

Print

Custard Yogurt Toast

A viral TikTok recipe of baked toast with a delicious yogurt custard filling

Course Breakfast

Cuisine International

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes minutes

Servings 2

Author Rafeeda AR

Ingredients

• 2 brioche bread slices refer notes
• 1/4 cup Greek yogurt or really thick yogurt
• 1 egg
• 1 tbsp honey
• 1/2 tsp vanilla or flavoring of choice
• Toppings of choice I used blueberries, chocolate chips and sliced almonds

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 200 degrees. Line a baking tray with parchment.
• Place the bread slices on the tray. Using fingers dipped in water, create an indent into the bread without making any holes, just enough to hold the custard filling.
• In a bowl, whisk together the yogurt, egg, honey and vanilla till well combined.
• Divide them equally onto both the slices.
• Bake for 10 to 15 minutes, or even more dependent on the oven heat, till the bread looks toasted and the custard is set.
• Enjoy warm as is or with an extra dousing of icing sugar, whipped cream and fruits.

Notes

The bread has to be thick to ensure that it holds the liquid. If you use regular bread, try to use more bread with lesser filling, or layer on two slices of bread. But for sturdiness, brioche is best and tastes best too... 

The toppings are entirely your choice. You can leave it plain, use granola or fruits like banana, peach, etc. to top. Or even make it savory by skipping the honey and topping it with seasoning of choice. 

The post Custard Yogurt Toast appeared first on The Big Sweet Tooth.

Ramadan and Eid came and went in a blink of the eye. I don’t even know how to express my feelings over the past one month. Nowadays, it is like by the time you accept the way you feel, it is already time for the next event to happen. The way that time is flying is crazy and even more makes us realize that maybe things are set to change soon. May Allah make it easy for all of us… Aameen…

I first baked this cake when I was with my sis in US in the summer of 2021. I guess you realize that I am very much not over it. With my parents there B with family on a very short trip – they are expected to be back in a couple of days – I miss it even more. Anyway, while we made apple cakes to distribute to our neighbors for the Eid-ul-Adha that time – which I have to bake one very soon and post it on the blog sooner than later… – we baked this sheet cake to carry with us to the last destination for that day, which was their first set of friends when they landed in the US. The group has around 11 families, and I must say, what a friendly and fun group that is! Each time we would meet up at somebody’s home, I always had a really good time, Alhamdulillah… The cake literally disappeared after dinner. I then baked it again when going to B’s house and we all ate the cake up. They had the leftover over the next couple of days. Hehe…

I adapted the recipe from here. It is a nice all-butter banana cake with a mildly sweet cream cheese frosting. It is perfect for get togethers and just the perfect cake to go with tea for your evening parties. Since baked in a 13×9 pan, the thickness is perfect for those who don’t want to eat a lot of cake. If I could, I would have baked and had this all the time, but alas, I don’t have a bunch of folks who enjoy banana bread… Hehe… Off to the recipe…

Print

Banana Sheet Cake | Banana Butter Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

Course Tea Time

Cuisine American

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time 1 hour hour

Servings 8

Author Rafeeda AR

Ingredients

• 125 gm butter softened
• 1/2 cup sugar can increase for sweetness
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 2 eggs large, room temperature
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp cinnamon powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 large ripe bananas mashed, roughly one cup
• 1/2 cup yogurt

FOR FROSTING

• 200 gm Philadelphia cream cheese one tub
• 50 gm butter softened
• 1 cup powdered sugar refer notes
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 180 degrees. Grease and flour a 13x9 inch pan and set aside.
• Sift together the floor, baking soda, cinnamon and salt and set aside.
• In a bowl, beat the butter and sugars till light and fluffy. Add one egg at a time and beat.
• Add the vanilla and banana and beat.
• Add half the flour mixture and the yogurt. Fold in well.
• Add the remaining flour mixture and fold till batter is all moist and there are no lumps.
• Spread into the pan and bake for 25-30 minutes till the skewer comes out clean in the center.
• Cool completely before frosting.
• To make frosting, beat all ingredients till well combined and light. Spread over the cooled cake.
• Slice and enjoy!

Notes

The sugar quantities mentioned make a mildly sweet cake. Add more if needed.

You can use sour cream instead of the yogurt. 

Add more icing sugar if you feel the frosting is not sweet, can add upto 2 cups. 

The post Banana Sheet Cake | Banana Butter Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting appeared first on The Big Sweet Tooth.