I am baaack  I am sorry I haven’t posted new recipes for a long time, but things were a little crazy around here and my laptop was out of service for quite a long time. Now it is back safely, and I am back too. I hope you all had a good weekend outside in this beautiful weather. Let’s just hope it continues to get better so we can have a pleasant Eid outdoors. Speaking of which, wishing you all a happy and blessed Eid wherever you are

We had a good weekend ourselves, hung out with friends and had amazing food 3 days in a row; at my mom’s, my in law’s, and finally at slider station. I don’t think it could get any better

Now, we are back to work and back to quick and easy meals. Although I enjoy cooking and spending time in the kitchen so much, with my very long working hours, this kind of fun is considered a luxury I can’t afford all the time. Lucky for me, my hubby is not very demanding when it comes to food (well ,,, not all the time), but generally he is easy to please by any food that comes with Extra Cheese (which makes my life a lot easier).

Cheese Steak sandwich is always a good pick; easy to prep, very comforting and extremely delicious. All you need is a good loaf of French bread, good quality meat, and some Extra Cheese. 

You will end up with soft bread (from juices of the meat), oozing with delicious melted cheese sauce and filled with juicy tender meat. This will satisfy your carb, meat and cheese cravings for about a week enjoy!

 

 

 

Recipe from The little kitchen

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here it is!! My first quinoa experience! I am finally giving in to the food trend of the year: Quinoa. It is pronounced “KEEN-wah” btw, in case you don’t already know (we’ve all been there, it’s OK)

Usually I am not the type of girl who is first to try new trends, whether in food or fashion. I usually give the trend some time to sink in while I observe quietly from a distance, until I am ready to try it myself. But the flood of quinoa recipes all over the internet websites, food blogs, and cooking shows, made it very difficult for me to wait for so long, especially after this trend has also invaded the local Kuwaiti Instagram community.

 

 

For my first quinoa attempt, I decided to incorporate it in one of my favorite salads; Mexican salad. I had some cooked quinoa in the fridge which I have prepared earlier, so the salad did not take more than 15 minutes to prepare. I chopped some bell pepper, added corn and beans, grilled a couple of jalapenos for a kick of smokiness and sweetness to the salad, mixed all together with the dressing, and voila! Pretty, colorful, healthy, and packed with protein and fiber salad in less than 15 minutes!

It was lovely, refreshing, and delicious.  A light meal, yet very filling. I had it for lunch 3 days in a row and still enjoyed it every single time. As for the quinoa itself, it did not taste odd at all, I found it tasting a bit like couscous, but slightly more nutty. Now I can say that I am officially into quinoa, so expect a few more quinoa experiments soon.

 

 

How to cook Quinoa:
Rinse well, mix 1 cup quinoa with 2 cups water in a sauce pan, boil, reduce the heat, and let simmer for 10-15 minutes until all the liquid is absorbed. See tutorial video below on how to cook quinoa.

 

 

 

 

 

I’ve been trying to figure out some sort of a system for posting recipes on the blog. I try to plan ahead next week’s menu and schedule the date of posting each recipe so that I am prepared and I know what’s next. However, I am starting to realize that this system will not work all the time.  Sometimes a good recipe will happen spontaneously, miss up my recipes schedule a little bit, and get ahead of other planned recipes! (but I am totally OK with that ) . After all, best things in life happen unplanned, right? This apple crisp recipe is a good example. It was never a part of my schedule for the next blog posts, but it did manage to take over the planned chocolate mousse post and kick it out of the line

Earlier this week, we were having lunch at our friends’ house, and I was planning to bring chocolate mousse for desserts, but due to a tiny technical error (I will tell u about it later in the chocolate mousse post) it did not turn out the way I wanted it to. So, in my attempt to save the situation, and knowing that our host is apple dessert lover, I decided to make this quick Apple Crisp instead.

It was delicious. The apples were moist and sweet, but not too sweet. The pecan added a great texture and flavor to the dish, and the scent of cinnamon and apple was just wonderful. I think apples, cinnamon and pecan are always a delicious combo. We served it with vanilla ice cream, and the last of the caramel sauce we had left in the fridge.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I wasn’t sure if I should publish this recipe as a post by itself or wait until I can include it in some kind of cake or dessert recipe, but the longer I wait, the less caramel sauce is left in our fridge! I am eating it with almost everything. Dipping strawberry, banana, and apple in it, drizzling it over ice cream or cheesecake, or straight from the jar!

The ironic thing is; growing up, I have always assumed that I don’t like caramel. I considered myself a chocolate girl all the way and I tried to avoid anything caramel, whether it is candy, caramel syrup, caramel flavored coffee, chocolate or anything. Until someone once accidentally got me a McDonalds Caramel Sundae instead of a chocolate one, and surprisingly found myself enjoying it very much! That’s when my love for caramel sauce began

Did this happen to you before? Have you ever assumed that u don’t like a certain type of food, and later on you discovered that you have missed out on a lot? Let us hear about it!

 

So, how was your weekend, guys? I hope you all had a good and relaxed one!

The highlight of mine was baking those delicious Biscuits for Friday’s breakfast. They were a huge success! I had this recipe bookmarked for months and never got a chance to try it. This weekend we had plans to spend Friday with my mom, so I decided to bake something special for an early breakfast treat. Nothing beats freshly baked goods accompanied by a cup of tea for breakfast in my family.

 

 

The recipe is quite simple. However, some guidelines have to be followed in order to get fluffy and light biscuits (I’ve done my research!):

• You need to keep all your ingredients (butter, sour cream, water) very cold, this will insure light and flaky biscuits.
• You must try to work with the dough as quickly and lightly as possible.
• When you turn the dough into floured surface for shaping and cutting, keep the kneading very light and minimal. The more you knead, the denser the biscuits will get.

 

Preparation took from 15 to 20 mins and baking took less than 15. The biscuits came out of the oven soft and fluffy. We made some into delicious cheese and scrambled eggs sandwiches. They were DELICIOUS! This recipe is definitely a keeper. You have to give it a try, trust me.

Biscuits vs. Scones

In order to make this post a little more informative (and hopefully more fun too), I made this interesting comparison for you between biscuits and scones (in case you were wondering about the difference between the two, just like I was)

• Biscuits are American while scones are British (originated in Scotland)
• Scones are usually sweet and contain fruits like blueberries or raspberries, while biscuits are mostly savory
• Scones are served with tea or coffee as a brunch or a tea treat, while biscuits are served next to breakfast more like bread
• Some people say that scones should be made of butter while biscuits should be made of vegetable shortening, but that is not always the case. There are hundreds of biscuit recipes out there that are made with butter, including the one below. So whether you decide to call it a biscuit or a scone, it doesn’t really matter. Because it still tastes DELICIOUS

 

 

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 200° C and place rack in middle to upper third of the oven.

2. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.

3. In a large mixing bowl, sift together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking sugar, salt and pepper.

4. Add cold butter to flour mixture and mix with your fingers until mixture resembles coarse crumbles.

5. In another bowl, combine egg, water and sour cream. Beat lightly with a fork.

6. Add mixture to flour mixture and stir with a wooden spoon enough to make a soft dough.

7. Fold in the green onions and feta cheese.

8. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface, and knead as few times as possible until dough comes together.

9. Pat to form a 1-inch thick rectangle. And cut biscuits using a round cutter.

10. Transfer to baking sheets, brush biscuits with egg wash and sprinkle with salt, pepper and paprika.

11. Bake for 12-15 minutes until lightly browned. Serve warm.

 

 

 

Recipe adopted from Joy the Baker