Pound Cake

The first ever thing I baked and that also at the tender age of 10 years was a pound cake. My younger sister and I did it together in fact with the help of our mom. She gave us all the ingredients along with the measurements and there we go, both of us got busy on one long hot day of our summer vacations and thoroughly enjoyed that activity :) My sister measured out all the ingredients under my Mom's supervision and I was the incharge of the mixing department; I was operating the stand mixer. She brought all the ingredients to me one by one and I mixed the batter with the help of that machine. The batter was poured into a greased loaf tin and in it went to the oven to get baked and both of us waited anxiously till its done and couldn't wait it to be ready :) My Mom obviously was doing that step and the moment it came out of the oven, looking fluffy and spongy, both my sister and I exclaimed with joy and wanted to decorate it right away. My Mom then gave us some grated chocolate to sprinkle it on top of the warm cake and I remember, both of us said that we won't cut it till our Dad comes back home from work and look at our piece of art :) My Dad has always been a person who compliments genuinely and always appreciates and encourages; whether it is on our achievements, dresses or cooking, he'd always tell us that you did or look best. So how could he not liked the cake that my sister and I baked for the first time :) He generously praised our attempt and enjoyed a slice of it with a cup of his evening tea :) I wish my Mom took a photo of that cake with the camera as there were no mobile phones back in the day or else I would have taken it myself and would have posted it on the social media like the kids now-a-days do :P But considering the strictness of my Mom, no way I would have owned an iPhone if I was 10 today and Facebook would have been a far-fetched idea! I am honestly glad about that. I really am quite happy about my childhood and all the fun we used to have back then :) But times change and so does the behaviors and parenting styles too maybe. I will know that once I become a parent in future, In Sha Allah (God willing) :)

So back to the cake. From that day onward, my sister and I have made cake together a number of times but she being the studious one and although has a little interest in baking but has never been passionate about it the way that I have been. She's into a medical profession now so, do not get time to even go into the kitchen and I took hold of that department entirely as I am the baker at the house :) Whether its a plain pound cake or a fancy birthday cake, I'm the one who makes it at home oh, and I still use those same loaf pans that my Mom owns and I baked my first cake in :) I shall be sharing more of my cakes in the future posts but I have already posted a recipe of my Victoria Sponge Sandwich Cake that you can find the recipe of here.

Pound cake, which is often referred to as plain cake, has gotten it's name cause of all the main ingredients used in making this cake weighing 1 pound. The cake recipe that is of my Mom's was in tablespoons instead of the cups and she used butter. Now, I converted them into the cup measurement and replaced butter with the oil as I got more into practice of baking and got familiar with the right texture of the perfect pound cake. You can use any oil such as corn, sunflower, canola, coconut and even light olive oil. Oil makes the cake moist and light and the texture doesn't come out dense also but if you want, you can use butter by all means; no hard and fast rule but a personal preference mainly :) I've tried using all of them at different times. We never buy a cake from the bakery unless it was extremely necessary or I was not around to bake one :D I even use a homemade pound cake in the desserts such as Trifle and feel that the texture and flavor of the homemade is always better than the store bought one. Check the recipe of this classic English dessert, Trifle here.

Let's get some baking Unleashed today! :D

Pound Cake (Plain Cake)

Ingredients:

Plain Flour: 1 1/2 cups 

Eggs: 3 medium sized (at room temp)
Caster Sugar: 1 cup 
Oil: 1 Cup (you can use butter if you like but I use oil in my cakes)
Baking Powder: 2 tsp 
Salt: 1/4 tsp.

Vanilla Extract or Essence: 1 tsp.
Milk: 1/4 cup

Method:

1. Preheat the oven at 180 C/350 F/Gas Mark 4.
2. Grease and flour a 9 x 4 1/2" loaf tin/mold. Set aside.
3. Sift the flour and baking powder together and put aside.
4. In a stand mixer's mixing bowl or any other regular medium sized mixing bowl, beat together sugar, oil, salt and vanilla essence with the help of an electric beater on a medium speed.
5. Once mixed well, add eggs one at a time beating well after each addition.
6. Now add milk and flour and beat on slow speed till all of the flour is incorporated. Do not over beat.
7. Pour the batter into the greased mold and bake into a preheated oven for 30 mins or till the cake tester/skewer/knife inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean.
8. Let it cool down a bit before taking it out from the mold and cooling it completely on a wire rack. 
9. Cut into slices once cools down and serve.
10. Keep it in an airtight box. Will stay well up to 2,3 days.

Makes 1 cake

That's all bakers! :) Baking time can always be adjusted according to the type of your ovens. I hope you enjoy making and eating them. Until next time, keep sharing the goodness of this greatest blessing, that has been bestowed in abundance upon us the lucky ones, with the less fortunate ones.
Thank you and please remember in your Du'as/prayers! :)

*Not be duplicated, rewritten or published without permission- Thank you! 

2 Min. Fudgy Mug Brownie

Now-a-days, everyone is in a hurry and want to do everything in a jiffy. Not many of us have time and most importantly, patience to spend hours in the kitchen to prepare our favorite meals esp. desserts. For that reason, many smart people out there have created shortcut recipes to make the favorite desserts for those times specially, when you're craving for something sweet and neither have time nor the patience to make and later to wait long to have it. I'm one of those impatient people too, who would crave for a dessert at an odd hour and have to have it at that very moment too hence, the recipe of this 2 Min. Fudgy Brownie came upon me during one of those bad craving moments. 

I was working late at night and at around midnight, I had a sudden urge to get up and make a quick brownie in the microwave and satisfy that stubborn craving that wasn't leaving me at peace for a couple of days. Now, you'd find thousands of mug cake recipes on the internet easily and that's something which almost everyone has tried making at least once by now. I've read and watched and even tried a lot of mug cake recipes but I didn't want any of that spongy, leathery stuff that goes hard upon cooling down a bit (based on personal experience) Plus, for not being an egg fan, I didn't want it in mine as adding one whole egg into a single serving of cake is something that's not a comfortable idea for me besides, I wanted a hot, ooey-gooey, fudgy brownie and was not finding what I was looking for. I looked at some ideas on Pinterest but almost all of the Pins I came across were of the recipes that either added Nutella or peanut butter or banana in them. I didn't want any of those ingredients in mine so the quest was getting tougher and I was getting more eager to whip up something of my own. 

I then checked my pantry and took out the simplest ingredients needed to create my quick-dream-brownie. Mixed Cocoa power, plain flour, brown sugar, white sugar, a pinch of salt and bi-carb of soda and then added just 3 wet ingredients; water, oil and a drop of orange essence (because I wanted a hint of orange flavor in it) to this dry mix. Mixed until everything was just well combined, microwaved it for 2 minutes and Ta Da! A delicious looking and divine tasting brownie was ready for me to savor! I made the brownie batter in a bowl and let it bake in the same bowl and once it was ready, just sprinkled some desiccated coconut on top and indulged myself into the goodness of this wonder I created just under 5 minutes! 

I have made it a number of times ever since and have topped it with different toppings such as my homemade orange marmalade, banana slices, icing sugar, chocolate sprinkles and again with the desiccated coconut. The first fudgy brownie I made was enough for two people that I shared with my sister cause no matter how greedy I could be, I still feel guilty and stopped myself from eating that sinful dessert all by myself therefore, I halved the recipe for the single serving later. I have even tripled the original recipe for my whole family yesterday and both my Mom and Dad really loved it! My Dad is really picky about his food choices so if he liked it, I can vouch for its deliciousness with full confidence ;) One of my sisters ate this brownie cold and was singing its praises for long! So folks, I'm sharing with you the secret to making a wonderful brownie in no time not just for yourself, but serve it to your guests too with some ice-cream and get ready for future requests ;)

Let's get some brownie making Unleashed quickly! Shall we? :D

2 Min. Fudgy Brownie in a Mug

Ingredients:

All-Purpose Flour: 4 tbsp.

Unsweetened Cocoa Powder: 2 tbsp.

Brown Sugar: 2 tbsp.

Granulated White Sugar: 2 tbsp.

Baking Soda: a pinch
Salt: a pinch

Oil: 2 tbsp

Water: 4 tbsp

Orange Essence: a drop (can use Vanilla instead)

Desiccated Coconut, Icing Sugar, Chocolate Sprinkles, Orange Marmalade, Bananas: For garnishing.

Vanilla Ice Cream: 1 scoop (to serve with)

Method:

1. Mix all the dry ingredients in one coffee mug and set aside.
2. Add oil, water and essence to the dry ingredients and mix everything together.
3. Microwave for 2 minutes. The time can vary depending on the power of your microwave but start with 1 minute and increase the time if its not cooked in 2 minutes.
4. Take out and garnish with the topping of your choice and serve. 
5. Can be served hot with vanilla ice-cream or let cool completely if you want to eat it cold.

Makes 1 serving

That's all dessert lovers!:) Baking time can always be adjusted according to the 
power of your ovens. I hope you enjoy making and eating it. Until next time, keep sharing the goodness of this greatest blessing, that has been bestowed in abundance upon us the lucky ones, with the less fortunate ones.

Thank you and please remember in your Du'as/prayers! :)

*Not be duplicated, rewritten or published without permission- Thank you! 

Chicken & Cheese Stuffed Bread

Ramadan Kareem! to all the Muslims around the globe and Cook Unleashed's followers along with those who aren't Muslims and do not observe this month. Islam is the religion of peace and harmony and Ramadan (the Muslim month of fasting) came upon us as a message of patience, tolerance and universal brotherhood so greetings of this scared month to all :) May Allah accept our Ibadah (prayers), forgive our sins and transgressions and bestow His special blessings upon all of us. May Allah show and keep us all on the right path. Ameen Sum Ameen. Kindly remember everyone in your du'as (prayers) esp. all the Muslims who are suffering in different parts of the world. Jazak'Allah Khair! (May Allah reward you)

It was the 4th day of fasting here in this region while I was jotting down these line and my oh my, apart of all the excruciatingly hot days, its going well, Alhumdulilah (thanks to Allah) and The Greatest of all has been so kind to send down the shower and the day is milder and cooler today, All praises to Him. The thirst does bother you in the day but its nothing that unbearable besides, the purpose of this month is not only to train your body physically but to spiritually as well and that's the real essence of this month. After going without any food or liquid intake, for the sake of Allah, for as long as 21 hours in some places, the breaking of the fast time would arrive at sunset and we break our fast by eating and drinking from the amazing blessing Allah has bestowed upon us in the form of food! We are advised to share not only with our neighbors but esp. with the ones who cannot afford to have on their own thus, the message this month of peace gives is of harmony and sharing and caring. So those of you who didn't know what this month is about, I tried to explain it a little :)

Since Iftaar (breaking of the fast meal) is a kind of a celebration time for the Muslims therefore delicious and rich food mostly prepared in every household. The most common Iftaar snacks prepared in the South Asian countries specially Pakistan is fried and spicy hence, continuing that tradition, I have so far prepared the similar dishes like Pakoray, Aloo Pakoray, Dahi Bharay Chaat, Kalay Chanay kee Chaat and few others but we try to stay away from the fried food therefore, I baked my Mom's favorite Chicken & Cheese Stuffed Bread as well. The recipe of the scrumptious dishes I have mentioned above are already on my blog and today, I'll be sharing the stuffed bread :)

Italian Stromboli inspired bread

The type of stuffed bread I make  is basically inspired by the Italian Stromboli in which meat and cheese is stuffed in a turnover and then baked. My very first attempt at making it was quite similar to the Stromboli that I made in the Ramadan of 2013 and since then, it has become a regular part of our Iftaar menu, This bread is a complete meal in itself yet so light that you can have it at even Sahoor time (pre-dawn meal before fasting) My recipe is quite simple plus, I use whole-wheat flour to make it therefore its light on the stomach as well. I always make extra loaves so that we share them with our neighbors as well along with the other people of Allah :) I'm sure after trying out this recipe you'd like to do the same but I would love to know that what do you like to make for Iftaar and love sharing with your family, friends and the other fellow Muslims and believers :)

Shall we begin some baking for Iftaar with the religious fervor Unleashed today? Here we go! :D  

Chicken Stuffed Bread

Ingredients:

Whole-Wheat Flour: 2 1/2 + 1/2 cups (you can use all-purpose flour instead)

Yeast: 1/2 tbsp. (use according to the package instructions)

Salt: 1 tsp.

Sugar: 1 tsp.

Olive Oil: 2 Tbsp + 1 tbsp. 

Water: for kneading

Sesame Seeds: 1 tsp.

Nigella Seeds: 1 tsp.

For the stuffing:

Chicken: 1 cup (boiled and shredded)

Onion: 1 small sized (finely chopped)

Bell Pepper/Capsicum: 1 medium sized (finely chopped)

Cheese Slices: 2 (you can use shredded Mozzarella instead) 

Tomato Ketchup: 1/2 cup

Chicken Stock: 1/4 cup (reserved from boiling the chicken. Can use milk or plain water instead)

Salt: 1/2 tsp.

Black Pepper Powder: 1/2 tsp.

Oregano: 1/4 tsp.

Dried Basil: 1/4 tsp.

Rosemary: 1/4 tsp.

Butter: 1 tbsp.

Method:

1. follow the instructions on the package to activate the yeast if you are not using the instant yeast but the dry active one (I used dry active)
2. Mix all the dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl (reserve the extra 1/2 cup of flour for dusting) 
3. Keep mixing with the help of an electric mixer and slowly add the liquids. Mix till it turns in to a dough. 
4. Remove the paddle and replace it with the hook attachment and knead the dough until it becomes elastic. 
5. If using hands then make a well in the middle of the mixed dry ingredients for the dough and slowly add the liquids in it. Mix with the help of a wooden spoon until a smooth dough is formed. Knead well with the help of your hands on a floured surface for a few mins. Add extra dry flour to prevent sticking.
6. Form the prepared dough into a ball and place it in to a greased bowl (use the remaining 1 tbsp. of oil) Cover with a damp tea-towel and place the bowl at some warm place to let it rise (can take up to 2 hours depending on the region/temperature)
7. For the filling, heat 1 tbsp. of butter in a cooking pan and add one chopped onion till little soft and translucent.
8. Now add the chopped bell pepper. Sauté for a few seconds and add a tbsp. of flour to it. Mix well.
9. Add 1 cup of the boiled and shredded chicken with 1/4 cup of its stock (or milk/water) and cook for a minute or two.
10. Season with salt, black pepper, oregano, dried basil, rosemary and give a good mix.
11. At this stage, the stuffing should be a bit sticky but not wet.
12. Turn off the heat and let it cool for a while
13. Take out the prepared dough, which have been fairly risen by now, on a floured surface, after punching out the air from it.
14. Roll it out in an oval shape to approx 12 inches long, 10 inches width and 1/2 inch in thickness.
15. Spread the ketchup in the middle of the rolled out dough by leaving approx 1 inch on the top and bottom and 3 inches of the dough plain on each side. (shown in the photo below)
16. Put the topping over the ketchup and the cheese slices cut into half on top of the it.
17. Now cut slanted strips of 1/2 inch thickness of the left out plain dough starting from the edges of the topping till the end of the dough (shown in the photo below)
18. Fold the top end of the dough over the topping and start overlapping the cut strips so that all the topping is covered but you can still see it through the folded strips.
19. Tuck in the bottom of the left out plain dough before the final overlapping.
20. Transfer the bread on to a greased baking tray and cover it with the damp tea-towel for 10-15 minutes to proof it again.
21. After the 2nd and final  proof, brush the prepared bread dough with a beaten egg and sprinkle the sesame seeds and/or nigella seeds on it.
22. Bake it in a preheated oven at 200 C/390 F/Gas Mark 6 for 20-25 mins or until the top of the bread turns golden and sounds hollow upon tapping.
23. Serve warm as a whole or cut in to slices. Enjoy.

Makes 1 loaf and serves 6 approx.

Note:

If you wish to make the bread like an Italian Stromboli, after the dough is ready, knead it well and roll it out on a flat surface, preferably into a square shape. Now place the toppings as instructed above. Join both the edges of the rolled dough together and seal it well. Now flip the prepared stuffed dough over and transfer on to the greased baking tray. Make some slanted slits on it with the help of a knife and follow the instructions above to bake it. 

That's all bakers! :) The spice level and the baking time can always be adjusted according to your taste buds and type of ovens. I hope you enjoy making and eating it. Until next time, keep sharing the goodness of this greatest blessing, that has been bestowed in abundance upon us the lucky ones, with the less fortunate ones.
Thank you and please this Ramadan do remember everyone esp. The Ummah-e-Muslimeen (Muslim Nation) in your Du'as/prayers including me :)

Jazak'Allah Khair! (May Allah reward you)

*Not be duplicated, rewritten or published without permission- Thank you!

  

     

Bread Kebabs

Bread Kebabs?! Yes, Kebabs made with bread that you can never tell are made with anything else and not meat! The vegetarians would definitely find them a unique and different recipe as well. 

How I came to know about this recipe? Well, I was visiting me youngest Khala (maternal aunt) living in another city and one day at teatime, along with other scrumptious munchies, she made these Kebabs too. While she was preparing to make these Kebabs in her kitchen, I stood there watching her while chatting and got astounded and intrigued at the same time that how they'd taste like. She did all the preps within a few minutes and started shaping and frying them in front of my very own eyes and I was like, wow! They look like a real thing and by the real thing I mean Kebabs made with meat (no offence meant to the non-meat eaters/vegetarians as we have one non-meat eater at our household too; my youngest sister) So, my Khala served these sizzling, spicy and hot Kebabs with Tomato Ketchup and just by taking one bite of an appetizing looking Kebab, I uttered "WOW" involuntarily! 

These Kebabs are easy and quick to prepare with the ingredients already at hand.

After coming back home, I prepared Bread Kebabs for my family on the same day and they all approved of them, esp. my dad who is a fussy eater; a Kebab fan and a connoisseur! Besides, the non-meat eater really enjoyed eating them so what more did I need to get motivated and to make these regularly?! :D I then made these Kebabs during last Ramadan as well and again received lots of appreciation. Thanks to my Khala for teaching me these and here I am forwarding this recipe to you all so that you too can make Bread Kebabs at home quite easily and enjoy eating them with your friends and family. This recipe is going to serve as a savior for the last minute visit of those unannounced guests also ;D 

Bread doesn't have to be fresh, you can use a day or two old bread as well plus, those left-over slices of bread can be happily incorporated into making these Kebabs that no one eats and those slices are normally the top and the end of the bread loaf. By the way, I do not understand that why people leave them out as I love eating those pieces, either they are of the bread, pound cake or rusks; I feel a delightful feeling upon finding those pieces esp. in the packet of rusks. I know, just innocent small happy moments for the child in me :D Getting back to the Kebabs, let me share with you that how easy-peasy it is to make them.

Let some innovative cooking gets unleashed today! :D

Bread Kebabs

Ingredients:

White/Brown Bread: 8 slices (ground into fine crumbs)

Onions: 1 medium sized (minced)

Cabbage: 1 cup (shredded)

Fresh Ginger: 1 tsp. (finely chopped or use 1/2 tsp of ginger powder instead)

Garlic Cloves: 1/2 tsp (finely chopped or use 1/4 tsp of garlic powder)

Green Chilies: 1,2 (finely chopped)

Fresh Cilantro/Coriander: 1/4 cup (chopped)

Fresh Mint Leaves: 1/4 cup (chopped)

Salt: 1 tsp.

Red Chili Powder: 1/2 tsp.

Turmeric Powder: 1/4 tsp.

Coriander Powder: 1/4 tsp.

Garam Masala Powder: 1/4 tsp.

Dried Pomegranate Seeds Powder: 1/2 tsp.

Cumin Seeds: 1/4 tsp.

Coriander Seeds: 1/4 tsp.

Carom Seeds: 1/4 tsp.

Dried Fenugreek Leaves: 1/4 tsp. (optional)

Egg: 1 large (or use thin slurry made by dissolving 2 tbsp. of corn flour/starch in 1/4 cup of water)

Oil: for shallow frying.

Method:

1. Put all the ingredients in to a large mixing bowl except for the egg/slurry and oil.
2. Mix everything together and let it stand for a few minutes so that all the ingredients mixed together leaves out some moisture and it becomes easy to combine them.
3. Once everything is well combined and turns into a dough like texture, start shaping it into Kebabs by taking little dough in to your moistened hands. (The shape and size of Kebabs depends on your personal choice)
4. Prepare Kebabs and lay them on to a platter. At this stage you can cover them with a cling wrap and refrigerate them for later use. They can stay well up to two days if only well covered and refrigerated. The same way prepared dough can be saved for later use in the fridge.
5. Heat oil into a frying pan over medium flame.
6. Dip Kebabs in to the beaten egg or slurry, coat well and gently put into the hot oil to fry.
7. Fry all the Kebabs in the same way till they are golden brown.
8. Take out on an absorbent paper. Serve hot with any sauce of your choice but they go quite well with Thai Sweet Chili sauce. Enjoy.

Makes 16 approx

That's all foodies! :) The spice level can always be adjusted according to your taste buds. I hope you enjoy making and eating them. Until next time, keep sharing the goodness of this greatest blessing, that has been bestowed in abundance upon us the lucky ones, with the less fortunate ones.
Thank you and please this Ramadan do remember everyone esp. The Ummah-e-Muslimeen (Muslim Nation) in your Du'as/prayers including me :)

Jazak'Allah Khair! (May Allah reward you)

*Not be duplicated, rewritten or published without permission- Thank you! 

Homemade Spinach & Cheese Patties (from scratch)

Chicken Patties have always been a must on our Iftaar (breaking of the fast meal) table therefore, puff pastry packs were one of the main items on the Ramadan grocery shopping list. My Mom would always keep ready-made puff pastry in the freezer and would just fill it up with different fillings and shape them into either triangles or rectangles as they were already available in cut up squares, and freshly baked them just moments before the Iftaar time. The lovely aroma of the buttery, flaky pastry and the succulent savory or pleasant sweetness of the filling was enough to make us not stop on just one! My mom not only made chicken and beef mince patties but she also made, strawberry jam and dates & nuts filled patties. Another one of her filling creations was to make thick sugar syrup and then add lots of chopped nuts into it; it kind of turned into a mixed nuts jam and she filled the pastry with that and baked. You can then serve it dusted with some icing sugar. There you go, you got some different ideas plus a bonus recipe :D Those sweet and nutty patties are one of our most favorite type of sweet snacks :)

Just fill up with whatever filling you desire to

After moving back to the home-country, we came to know that the availability of the puff pastry is not that easy as it used to be back in the K.S.A besides, the ones available at some leading stores weren't up to the mark hence, we used to buy ready-to-eat patties from the bakeries but still, they were of no match to the ones we were used to making at home and loved eating. Last year during Ramadan, I assigned this task to myself of making puff pastry at home by using very simple ingredients and the effort turned out to be fruitful! Yes, you heard me right, successful attempt of making homemade puff pastry from scratch! You can simply prepare it at home but the process is a tad bit time consuming yet totally worth it! The filling I used was totally vegetarian and am going to share that with you but you are free to use any filling you want to. Once you start making puff pastry at home, the filling would become secondary as you'd be free to fill your homemade puff pastry with whatever you have on hand and enjoy freshly baked, hot out of the oven patties at home and will thank me always :D

Let's get some buttery aroma unleashed in your kitchens today! 

Homemade Spinach & Cheese Patties

Ingredients for Puff Pastry:

(For the Dough)

All Purpose Flour: 2 cups 

Unsalted Butter: 2 tbsp. 

Salt: 1 tsp.

Lemon Juice or White Vinegar: 2 tbsp.

Chilled Water: 1/2 cup 

Corn Flour/Corn Starch: for rolling the dough. 

(For the Butter Filling)

Unsalted Butter: 300 grams (at room temperature, not melted. Keep it out of the freezer an hour prior to starting the process)

All Purpose Flour: 2 tbsp. 

Lemon Juice or White Vinegar: 1 tsp.

Salt: 1 tsp

Ingredients for the Patties Filling:

Spinach: 1 cup (chopped)

Cottage Cheese: 1/2 cup (crumbled)

Onion: 1 small sized (chopped)

Oregano: 1/2 tsp.

Salt: 1/2 tsp.

Black Pepper Powder: 1/2 tsp.

Butter: 2 tbsp.

Egg or Milk: for brushing the tops of the patties.

Method:

1. Mix all the ingredients for the dough in a large mixing bowl. Knead for a few minutes (you can use the food processor too for this step) Cover the dough with a cling wrap and refrigerate till used.
2. Grate or mash the butter with the help of a spoon, add all the remaining ingredients for the butter filling and mix gently. Keep aside.
3. Roll the prepared dough into a rectangular shape and roll it out as large as possible but not too thin. Use plenty of corn flour/starch to avoid stickiness.
4. Now put one part of the butter filling on 2/3 part of the rolled dough, leaving the 1/3 of the surface without any fat. Fold it into 3 folds, folding the empty side first. Wrap it with a grease-proof paper or with a plastic wrap and then with a damp tea towel. Refrigerate for 20 minutes.
5. Take out the rolled and folded dough from the refrigerator and repeat the process of rolling it, spreading of the butter, folding and refrigerating (this step shall be done at least 3 times)
6. The final rolling and folding of the dough will be done without using any butter. Refrigerate the prepared pastry for at least 1 hour before using. This puff pastry can stay well in the freezer up till a month.
7. Prepare filling by heating butter in a cooking pot over medium flame.
8. Now saute onions in the butter till soft and translucent. Add chopped spinach and cook till wilted. 
9. Add all the seasonings and mix well. Turn off the heat.
10. Let the filling cool down a little before adding the cottage cheese. 
11. After adding the cheese, cool down the filling completely.
12. Take out the puff pastry and roll it out a bit so that you are able to cut around 8 equal sized square of the pastry.
13. Put some stuffing in the middle of each pastry square, fold and close them to shape as desired.
14. Seal the edges to secure the pastry well. You can do it with the help of a fork.
15. Now brush some beaten egg or milk on top of each prepared patties.
16. Bake in to a preheated oven for 20-25 min at 180C/350F/Gas-Mark 4.
17. Serve hot/warm with tomato ketchup or any sauce of your choice. Enjoy.

Makes 8

That's all bakers! :) The spice level and the baking time can always be adjusted according to your taste buds and type of ovens. I hope you enjoy making and eating them. Until next time, keep sharing the goodness of this greatest blessing, that has been bestowed in abundance upon us the lucky ones, with the less fortunate ones.
Thank you and please this Ramadan do remember everyone esp. The Ummah-e-Muslimeen (Muslim Nation) in your Du'as/prayers including me :)

Jazak'Allah Khair! (May Allah reward you)

*Not be duplicated, rewritten or published without permission- Thank you! 

                                   

Stuffed Rice Balls

I love rice and anything made with rice is my favorite! Let it be a regular comfort-food like Daal Chawal (Lentils curry with steamed rice) and Chicken Pulao or a bit fancy like Biryani. Even I love Oriental cooking for rice being a major part of their cuisine. The desserts made with rice are my favorite as well like Zarda, Kheer and Firni (rice pudding). I can eat rice when I'm not even hungry so imagine how it is like when I am famished! Talking of rice and esp. Pulao got me craving for it now and just as I am typing these words, I've requested Mom to cook Chicken Pulao for dinner tomorrow :D and when you're hungry after a busy and long day, a steaming hot plate of Chicken Pulao comes in front of you with chilled Raitha (yogurt dip), you forget about the rest of the world and thank Allah SWT for this wonderful blessing while eating every spoon of your succulent dinner! Alhumdulilah! (Praise be to Allah) 

Sesame seeds can be omitted in making these balls

The story of creating this recipe is very interesting. My Mom cooked plain boiled rice during Ramadan of 2013 and by mistake she doubled the quantity of rice that's regularly cooked at ours. For that reason we were left with a lot of leftover rice that no one wanted to eat the next day. So for the love of rice, I had to try some snack made by using rice as a main ingredient. After some brainstorming and by using some ingredients at hand, I came up with Stuffed Rice Balls that my family so loved and have now become a regular snack on our Iftaar menu (breaking of fast meal) So, if you have leftover boiled rice or simply making boiled rice for your meal, add a little extra amount of rice to your cooking pot to try this appetizing snack later that I'm sure will become one of your favorites too, In Sha Allah (God Willing)

Let the love of rice get unleashed today! :D

Stuffed Rice Balls

Ingredients:

Boiled Rice: 2 cups (leftover works best)

Egg: 1

All Purpose Flour:2 tbsp.

Corn Starch/Flour: 2 tbsp.

Salt: 1 tsp.

Red Chili Powder: 1/2 tsp (optional)

Garlic Powder: 1/4 tsp.

Italian Herbs: 1/2 tsp.

Baking Powder: 1 tsp.

Milk: 4,5 tbsp.

Sesame Seeds: for coating 

Oil: for deep frying

For the stuffing:

Chicken: 1/2 cup (boiled and shredded)

Potato: 1 medium sized (boiled and mashed)

Onion: 1 small sized (chopped)

Bell Pepper: 1/4 cup (chopped)

Mozzarella Cheese: 1/2 cup (shredded)

Salt: 1/2 tsp

Black Pepper Powder: 1 tsp

Method:

1. In a large bowl, add the rice and mash them well while adding the milk. 
2. Now add all the seasonings, baking powder and both the flour and corn starch and egg. 
3. Mix everything together well. The consistency of the mixed ingredients should not be too sticky but doughy just like soft kneaded dough. Refrigerate it covered for some time.
4. In another bowl, mix all the ingredients for the stuffing together and keep aside.
5. Now comes the forming and stuffing of the balls part.
6. Take some rice dough in your moistened hand, flatten it on your palm and place the stuffing in the middle, roll and close to seal just like meatballs. Roll into the sesame seeds to coat them all over the balls. 
7. Prepare all the balls following the same procedure and place on a dry tray. Refrigerate again so that they are firm before frying.
8. Fry in batches till golden brown. take out on an absorbent paper.
9. Serve with the sauce of your choice. Enjoy.

Makes 10-12 approx

That's all rice fans! :) The spice level can always be adjusted according to your taste buds. I hope you enjoy making and eating them. Until next time, keep sharing the goodness of this greatest blessing, that has been bestowed in abundance upon us the lucky ones, with the less fortunate ones.
Thank you and please this Ramadan do remember everyone esp. The Ummah-e-Muslimeen (Muslim Nation) in your Du'as/prayers including me :)

Jazak'Allah Khair! (May Allah reward you)

*Not be duplicated, rewritten or published without permission- Thank you!