Rosy Red Rose Cookies

I love beautiful clothes, likes to look my best, loves high heels, sandals & nice flats  a somewhat fashionable women I must say. I love all the clothes & every other thing in Victoria’s secret…So today just I want Something rosy , something red, something cute & girlish  to make…below is what I created …so tell me what you think…hum………….

Ingredients:

1/2cup unsalted butter

11/3cup flour

1cup icing sugar

1/4tsp baking soda

2tsp strawberry essence or rose essence

1large egg

Red food color

Method:

Prepare baking tray lined with parchment or baking paper, set aside. In a bowl or in an electric mixer beat butter and icing sugar until creamy, add egg beat to combine well. Now add food color (add color until bright red) beat again to mix well, add flour and baking soda mix to combine very well. Dough will be sticky, scoop the dough in to an icing bag fitted with a Wilton 1M tip,(this tip I used to make these rose cookies). Carefully pipe roses from inside to out in circular pattern on to the baking tray, about not bigger then 2inches, leave 1inch in between each cookie as when baking cookies will expand.

When you have finished piping enough for the tray, put your tray into the refrigerator for at least 4hours to chill. So that when baking the cookies will hold its shape. Mine gave a little shape, I think that is because I capt only for 2hour’s I should have capt the tray for about 4hour’s or may be overnight. When you want to bake preheat your oven to 140C for about 7minutes. Use the third upper rack of your oven to bake these cookies for 15 to 20minutes. Mine took this time, different ovens may take a slight time difference, so check if your cookies are slightly golden on the sides, if so your done……………………enjoy!

Kanamadu Gulha (Sea Almond balls)

Each Friday I try to prepare a special lunch at my home, today I prepared Masbai, Theluli Rihaakuru (spiced fish paste), cucumber & carrot salad and as a sweet  Kanamadu Gulha. Something totally new & so yummy…………. 

Ingredients:

1cup Kanamadu (sea Almond)

1/2cup sugar

1/2cup maafen (Jasmine flower infused water) or 1/2cup water and 1tsp of rose water

Method:

Powder the Kanamadu or Sea Almond (without adding water) in a blender/food processor. In a pan add powdered kanamadu & rest of ingredients, if using water do not add the rose water yet. Mix everything & start cooking on low flame. Stir constantly, when the mixture leaves side of pan at this stage add the rose water if using water otherwise keep on stirring when you see some dry powder sticking on the bottom of pan take the pan out of flame leave to cool until you can handle the dough. Now oil your hand very well & start making balls out of dough until all dough is finished. If you want the kanamadu Gulha not to stick on your plate powder some Kanamadu & roll the balls one by one in it  & serve with a cup of tea or coffee or just as a dessert………enjoy!

Chocolate Cookies

Chocolate is the most favorite flavor at my home. My daughter will be always searching something to nibble. Something sweet, ya she is now seventeen but still my sweet baby girl..hehehe so I decided to bake some chocolate cookies. This recipe turned out so good that I wanted to share in my blog, happy baking and below is the recipe.

Ingredients:

1cup unsalted butter

3cups all purpose flour

1/2tsp baking soda

2/3cup granulated sugar

1/2cup brown sugar

2tbs strong coffee

2eggs

1tsp vanilla essence

1/2cup cocoa powder

pinch of salt

Method:

Sift flour, cocoa powder, salt & baking soda. Set aside. With your electric or hand mixer cream butter with granulated sugar and brown sugar until fluffy. Beat in eggs, coffee and vanilla, now add flour/cocoa powder/baking soda mixture 1/2cup at a time. Mix until all the flour is finished mixing. Now take the dough on a slightly floured working area (like your kitchen counter or a big bowl) knead the dough not much little bit until the dough turns in to one ball. Divide the dough in to three portions, wrap each portion in plastic wrap or put in a zip bag. Chill in refrigerator for 1/2 hour, roll each portion about 1/2cm thick (It is better if you can roll out cookie dough without much flour so what I do is spread a plastic wrap piece on to the working area then I put the cookie dough on the center, take another piece of plastic wrap and spread on top of the cookie dough then roll the dough and I don't have to use any flour at all) cut out shapes with your cookie cutters, place the cutout shapes in a baking tray lined with parchment paper. Bake cookies in a 160C preheated oven for about 10minutes. Cool completely before decorating..........................enjoy!

Marshmallows

I may be the first women to make Marshmallows in Maldives. Some may think why to make when it is available at the stores but for me making a confection at home gives more happiness than buying from a store. When we think broadly in Maldives everything is imported nothing is made other than fish cans so if something like a world war starts (I pray it never happens) but if something like this happens than we may run out of confections, than what to do? so If we know to make something we love to eat so much we don’t have to worry and wait until war finishes hehehe… ok enough of my silly writing back to recipe.

Ingredients:

2cups of sugar

11/2cups water

4tbs unflavored gelatin

2egg whites

1tbs glucose syrup

1tbs vanilla extract

1/3cups Corn flour

1/3cups icing sugar

2tbs vegetable oil or shortening

Equipment’s:

Candy thermometer

Large Stand mixer

13x9inch pan

One medium size deep sauce pan

One normal sauce pan

Aluminum foil

Method:

Mix corn flour and icing sugar in a bowl, Cover the pan with aluminum foil, rub oil or shortening on aluminum foil and give a generous sprinkle dusting of corn flour/icing sugar over the entire pan.

Divide water in two sauce pans equally, in the deep pan put sugar and glucose syrup.

In the normal saucepan put vanilla extract give a stir and sprinkle gelatin on top leave it aside so that gelatin will bloom. Put the egg whites in a large bowl of stand mixer and start whipping, actually this have to be done while sugar syrup is cooking but if you’re making marshmallows for the first time better do the work one by one. Even in hand mixer this can be done. Whip the egg whites until it holds firm peaks, stop mixer until sugar syrup is ready.

Start cooking the sugar mixture on low heat stirring until sugar is dissolved stop stirring and let the syrup come to a boil, insert the candy thermometer and let it boil until candy thermometer reads 260 degrees. This will take some time.

Start cooking the gelatin mixture and stir until gelatin is completely dissolved. Take away from flame set aside.

When candy thermometer reaches 260 degrees (hard-ball stage) take the candy thermometer out, switch off flame add the gelatin mixture give a stir. Now this mixture needs to be poured into the egg whites. If your sauce pan have a handle it will be easy to pour hot syrup otherwise pour the syrup in to a measuring cup or a pitcher or a jug so that it will be easy and safe to pour. If sugar syrup hits your skin it will create painful burns from experience I am telling so be very careful. Start the mixer low, from a side start pouring the syrup slowly. If you are using a hand mixture pour a little syrup from a side beat the mixture stop again pour some beat like this if you are using a hand mixer.

Once all the syrup is poured start the mixture on medium high. First the mixture will be runny, Keep on beating until the mixture holds its shape and opaque, about 5 to 10 minutes.

Oil a rubber spatula and scrap the Marshmallow in to the prepared pan.

Spread and smooth the marshmallow with the spatula.

Leave the Marshmallow to set over night or at least five hours.  When set dust a working area with a generous amount of corn flour/icing sugar mixture and on top of marshmallow also dust with this powder. 

Take the Marshmallow from the pan lifting the aluminum foil and flip Marshmallow on your working area, remove the aluminum foil.

Oil a sharp knife and cut the Marshmallow in to 1inch cubes.

Roll the cut squares in the corn flour/icing sugar mixture so that it will not stick to each other……………………………enjoy!

Note: I have put this recipe under kids fun label too but  kids cannot stay near while making marshmallows because if sugar syrup scatters it will create painful and serious burns. So just only to roll the cut marshmallows in sugar/flour mixture kids have to be allowed. To cook sugar syrup use a deep pan as sugar while cooking also scatters.

Hithala fu

Hithala is a kind of root vegetable or fruit belonging to the Pachyrhizus erosus or Jícama family. Fu in Maldivian language is flour, but Hithala fu is not in flour form, if you rub Hithala fu particles between your fingers, then it will break very easily to powder form. My mum use to make different kinds of desserts, cakes using hithala fu. Even she put Hithala fu rubbed little between her fingers in to hot tea, after sometime hithala fu will turn translucent. My mum says when it turns translucent that means the Hithala fu is cooked in the hot tea and it is ready to drink adding a pinch of pepper powder and sugar. This tea is called "Hithala fushu Sai". I too love this tea.

It has been sometime since I bought a small bag of Hithala fu from a local shop, which is not much available these days in the local market. I love anything made from Hithala fu so I thought I will make one of the dessert or cake and post in my blog, but I had a problem because I didn't know how Hithala fu was made. If I am posting or writing about a new product which will be new to the world I like to give a small explanation about what it is, so I asked my mum and the way she explained nothing was getting into my head.

This morning I was sitting with my mum & her sister for morning cup of coffee. My aunt does not live in Male' but some of her children lives in Male', she came for her eldest son's wedding. I asked my aunt about how Hithala fu was made because I knew she will be more familiar to these kinds of local products then my mum as she is the second eldest and she has been living at the island since childhood up to now. She did explain to me briefly how Hitala fu is made.

First the Hithala or Pachyrhizus erosus or Jícama is dug out from the ground, then it is washed properly and skin is peeled. A rough stone call "hiri gaa" is used for grating Hithala, the stone is cleaned and washed properly and placed in a container full of water, then the Hithala is rubbed on the stone so it will get grated roughly. After grating is finished, the stone is taken out and water is strained again new water is put into the grated Hithala container and left for several hours. Changing water like this will go on for three to fifteen days until the impurities (impurities they say the water turning to reddish color) are gone from the Hithala, at this stage Hithala will be grind or rubbed on a stone grinder to make a fine paste, then this paste will be mixed with water and left for several hours until the powder goes down the water container (Powder & water separates). If water is not clear again the washing with water will continue until water gets clear. When the water gets clear, water is drained properly from the paste. Now the Hithala will be in a dough paste like texture, then an aluminum sheet is put under the sun and the Hithala dough is pressed inside a holed coconut shell to make small rod like pieces, then left to dry under the sun for several days. Below is the picture of final product which we call Hithala fu.

 Hithala Fu (Used to make sweet desserts or teas in Maldives)

 I have given this information about Hithala because my next recipe is Hithala fushu Folhi

Meringue kisses

I love to bake these cookies as these are the cutest & most delicious cookies to make. The crunchy & marshmellowycentre just love it. I made these cookies for my Nephew's birthday party, the kids & the parents loved it. Some capt on asking me what it is & whether these cookies were made from ice cream.

 Ingredients:

2egg whites

1/2cup super fine sugar

Pinch of Cream of Tatar

1/2tsp vanilla essence 

Method:

Preheat the oven to 120 C. Line a baking tray with parchment paper or greased paper, set aside Beat egg whites with Cream of Tatar until very stiff or stiff peaks. Add 1 tbs of sugar at a time and beat until thick and glossy, add vanilla mix well. If you want color, add the amount of color and fold gently to corporate. Transfer the meringue mixture into a piping bag or a plastic zip bag and pipe on the parchment lined tray as small circles or you can drop heaped spoon on the tray. Bake in the preheated oven for 35 to 30 minutes. After baking, leave the tray inside the oven for the meringues to dry for 1 hour. After baking meringues can be taken easily from the tray. You can keep meringues in an air tight container for weeks...........enjoy!

Sugar cookies

If I bake cookies I have to bake two batches as my kids will start eating and I can't say no to them. The sweet smell of baking cookies mmmm, my sisters will come running wondering what I am baking. They will keep on asking " Dhontha miadhu koche hedhee "  what did you make today? They will check my fridge and inside oven. So after I bake or cook something special I send them each some as we all live separately in our own apartments. Here is a easy sugar cookie recipe and after this post I will post in a new label "my crafts" these cookies decorated.

 

Ingredients:

3 cups all purpose flour

1/2tsp salt

1tsp baking soda

3/4 cup unsalted butter, room temperature

1 cup sugar

2 large eggs

2tsp vanilla extract

Method:

Whisk flour, salt and baking soda, set aside. In the bowl of your electric mixer or hand mixer, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs and vanilla extract, beat until combined. Add flour mixture and beat until you have a smooth dough. Divide the dough in half and wrap with plastic wrap or put each half in a zip bag. Keep in fridge for one hour.

Preheat oven to 177 C, place rack in center of oven. Line baking tray with parchment paper.

Remove one half of chilled dough from fridge. To roll and cut cookies prepare your kitchen counter by lining working area with plastic wrap. Sandwich your cookie dough by lining another peace of plastic wrap on top of dough than roll the dough to 1cm thickness. This technique made work easy for me. Cut to desired shapes and arrange on the parchment lines tray and chill again for 15minute.