Whisky Sweet Tea

The sun has come out to play and this sweet tea is a quick way to enjoy your whisky especially this holiday season. It is ideal for when you have friends over for that slow breezy afternoon seated by the balcony or garden chatting the afternoon away.
Its easy to make,doesn't take long to concoct and above all its absolutely delish! So mix it up real quick and take it down slowly though we don't want anyone to get too loud around the relatives do we?CHEERS!!

Ingredients
- 3cups water
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 2 or three blacktea bags (I used ketepa lemon tea bags,I only had flavoured tea bags,plain could do as well) 

- 1teaspoon pinapple essence

- 1 lemon sliced into wedges

- 1 orange sliced into wedges
- 1 lime sliced into wedges
- 1 cup whisky (I used Singleton,because its sweet and fruity so it goes well with the citrus)
- sprig of mint for garnish

Method

To make the tea: Combine water and sugar in a small saucepan and bring to a boil,stiring to dissolve the sugar.Add the pinapple essence.

Pour the sugar water into a jar,add the tea bags and let it steep for 5 to 10 minutes depending on how strong you want your tea.
Remove the tea bags add the lemon,lime and orange wedges.
Pour in the whisky.Cover the jar and chill for an hour
Serve in mason jars or tall glasses garnished with orange wedges n mint leaves.

Crépe with fresh fruit filling

CREPE WITH FRUIT FILLING 

Crepe

Ingredients

• 1 cup all-purpose flour (spooned and leveled)
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon coarse salt
• 1 1/2 cups whole milk
• 4 large eggs
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

Procedure

1. In a blender, combine flour, sugar, salt, milk, eggs, and butter.
2. Puree until mixture is smooth and bubbles form on top, about 30 seconds. Let batter sit at least 15 minutes at room temperature (or refrigerate in an airtight container, up to 1 day; whisk before using).
3. Heat a 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat. Lightly coat with butter. Add 1/3 cup batter and swirl to completely cover bottom of skillet. Cook until underside of crepe is golden brown, 2 to 3 minutes.
4. Loosen edge of crepe with a rubber spatula, then with your fingertips, quickly flip. Cook 1 minute more. Slide crepe out of skillet and repeat with remaining batter. (Coat pan with butter as needed.) 
   
   

   Filling

   Ingredients

   •  1/2 cup whipped cream
   • 6 large strawberries
   • 1 banana
   • 1 slice pineapple 
   • 1tspn shaved chocolate(for garnish)
   • 1tspn roasted and salted peanuts   
   
   1. Dice the fruits into bite sized pieces. Whip the cream  and add the chopped fruits folding into the mixture with a spatula.
   
   Assembling.
   Place about 1 table spoon of the filling on one corner of the crepe and wrap into a diamond quarter shape,sprinkle with the shaved chocolate and the roasted nuts.
   Chill for 15 minutes in the freezer and enjoy!
   
   

Thai Fried Green Bananas with Mango Chutney

      Bananas and mangoes are typically fruits that we know to eat raw and in the special occasion when bananas are green we make the usual matoke. A friend was once very shocked that i cooked ripe mangoes instead of eating them. Well variation is important in different foods, otherwise, we would be stuck with the same recipes and food combinations all our lives.Who wants to live like that?Live a little dangerously,take your taste buds on a trip,experiment and it will sing you praises for years to come.( Thank me later)
      Now in this case cooked mangoes are a common occurrence at the Kenyan coast,but for those who are not acquainted with our coastal cuisine prepare to be blown away. Mango chutney is my favorite way of pickling my mangoes and peppers(i am a majooooor pepper fan) So any given time its never missing in the fridge; except in the sad no mango season .
      As for bananas there's usually a time when you have had matoke a number of times and they still don't seem to get depleted so what to do? Most of the time we know how to prepare it how our mothers did it and we hardly try to find out what else to do with them.I bring you good news! There are a dozen or so ways of preparing the bananas,as a desert,a main meal,a snack,drinks, the list is endless. My new favorite is the fried bananas.I remember my home science teacher used to mention banana fritters so often and i went and tried it one day,it backfired so bad i never attempted it again, and my mother wasn't very amused i wasted food too,lol. This is a variation of the fritters only 100 times better and it all got eaten.
Below is the recipe for both . Adiamo a Mangiare!

MANGO CHUTNEY
Ingredients
- 2 large ripe mangoes
- 10-15 peppers
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 10ml white vinegar
- 1 red onion
- 2 ripe tomatoes
- 1 sprig rosemary leaves
- 1tspn black pepper
- 2tspn salt
- 2tspn garlic powder/4 cloves garlic
- 3tbsp vegetable oil
- 2tbspn masala powder (optional)

Method 
1.Peel and chop the mangoes ( size doesn't matter provided its minus the seed) and set aside.
2. Wash and chop up all the other vegetables, i.e peppers,garlic,onions and tomatoes.
3. Place all the chopped vegetables plus mangoes into a saucepan add the vinegar ,sugar, black pepper , rosemary, salt and masala powder.
4. Set on a flame ,leave to cook for 15 minutes whilst stiring  till the contents are tender and soggy .
5. Add the oil and leave for an additional 1 minute  (the oil is to preserve it )
6. Turn off the heat, pour into a blender and blend till smooth.
Mango chutney is ready to serve.

THAI FRIED GREEN BANANAS
Ingredients
- 12 peeled and boiled firm green bananas
- 1 cup all purpose flour
- 1/2 cup sugar
-1/2 cup unsweetened dried coconut,or freshly grated coconut
- 3/4 cup water mixed with 1/2 tspn baking soda
- 1/2 tspn salt
- 1tbspn untoasted sesame seeds
- 1 tspn curry powder
- 500 ml vegetable oil

Method
1. Slice the banana lengthwise into 1/4-inch slices, set aside
2. Whisk together the rest of the ingredients except the oil.
3. In a frying pan heat up the oil, keep the temperature steady.
4. Put the banana slices into the batter. Ensure they are thoroughly coated in the batter.Carefully lower into the hot oil one slice at a time.
(Do not fry too many at a time as this will lower the temperature of the oil and make the bananas soggy)
4. Cook for a minute on either side,or till evenly brown.
5 Once brown, remove them and place on a plate lined with absorbent paper to drain off excess oil.
Serve while still hot with the mango chutney.

DOUBLE CHOCOLATE CAKE WITH STRAWBERRY TOPPING

 This is one for the very sweet toothed.I can have just a slice and then a litre of water should follow cos lets just agree a sugar rush on a grown woman isn't so cute. Regardless,it is a simple recipe and the strawberries bring in a bit of tangy. The ingredients can vary depending on how much sugar one can take and a slight variation can create a totally different flavour,hence the coffee part, so you substittute the cocoa for the
 coffee at that point only...*drumroll*. without further ado lets get down to the nitty gritty

INGREDIENTS
 4 Eggs
1 cup milk
1 cup sugar
1 cup vegetable/olive oil  (keeps the cake moist for longer as opposed to butter)
2 1/2 cups self raising flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
100gms cocoa powder/espresso coffee
2 tbsp vanilla essence (use the clear one it is stronger than the brown one)

2 tbsp chocolate brown color

Icing 
200gms icing sugar
3tbsp butter
50ml MIlk
50gms cocoa powder
100gms dark compound
1tsp vanilla essence
1tsp chocolate brown color
200gms fresh strawberries

METHOD
1 Pre-heat oven at 180 degrees,butter a baking tin or sufuria,(the sufuria should not be very heavy though)
2. Mix all wet ingredients, ie eggs,milk, oil, and vanilla essence ,whisk till its all smooth.
3. Add sugar and continue whisking.
4. Sift in all dry ingredients gradually while folding in the mixture.
5.Keep mixing till all ingredients have been incorporated.(Ensure to whisk only in one direction, that is either clockwise only or  anticlockwise only.This is so that you don't loose the air that has already been folded into the batter)
4. Pour mixture into the baking tin,it should be able to slide off the whisk easily. If not its too thick.Theeeen bake in pre-heated oven at 180 degrees for 30-40 minutes.
5. check with a toothpick or fort by poking through the cake,if it comes out clean it is ready.
let it cool on wire rack for 10 minutes .
   Icing
1. Mix the butter and icing sugar till it forms a dough like mound .
2. Add the milk a little at a time as you stir till the consistency is light but firm.
3. Add vanilla ,cocoa powder and chocolate color. Continue stiring till it mixes completly.
4. Microwave the dark compound for 1.5 minutes and add to the mixture.
-Cut cake in half ,spread half the icing mix on the cake.place the other half on top and spread the remaining icing.
finally slice the strawberies and place on 
-Slice strawberries and pour on top of the cake ,dust off with icing sugar and garnish with mint leaves.
                                 
                                           BON APPETITE!!!!

CHOCOLATE/COFFEE DELIGHT

DOUBLE CHOCOLATE WITH STRAWBERRY TOPPING.

A HOBBY IS GETTING EXHAUSTED ON YOUR OWN TIME

 THE BEGINNING

So this is my go at blogging im sooo EXCITED! What i love most is cooking,and of course eating and now id like to share these pleasures with you all. I will be posting recipes, final results on my trials and errors,pics and reviews of good foods that i may happen to encounter...the list is endless,trick is keep.checking the blog and i hope you will enjoy it.
I would greatly appreciate your feedback and also pointers on dishes you would like me to make or experiment on on your behalf and eat on your behalf too,lol

Here is a link to an Instagram page where i will be posting pics https://www.instagram.com/torta_cibo/
which is a collaboration with my sister,she is the pastry wizard while i the savory dish guru, it is not to say we cant fit in the others specialty,we can, but we both chose what warms our hearts and that;we pursue.We  both have day jobs so this is a productive use of our free time,which isn't much but then again when its all love for the kitchen,time shall be found!
also heres my Instagram page that has a few pics of some foods that i made and posted over the years,before i decided on the blog  https://www.instagram.com/mme_ladydee/ that is @mme_ladydee
I  hope this adventure will be worthwhile for you,and it shall definitely above all be fun. LETS COOK!

Recipes will be up soon.Comments highly appreciated :-)