Author Archives: Hajra

27

Bread Rolls

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A few weeks before Ramadhan us Mums, wives, sisters (I’m sure some of you brothers too 😝) start to fill up our freezers with savouries ready to be baked or fried. Some people start a couple of months before Ramadhan but I tend to start just a few weeks before. My family needs fried or baked savouries at Iftaar.  We tend to break our fast with dates and Zam Zam and have a few snacks, pray our salah and then enjoy our main meal, Alhumdulillah.

This recipe is for bread rolls, to be honest I’ve only started making these a few years ago, the recipe was given to me by a close friend…there’s only one thing I’ve changed and that is that I don’t dip in egg and breadcrumbs although this is optional if you do want to try it out. 

INGREDIENTS:

2 and half pound Chicken Fillets (large cubes)

2 tbsp butter

2 tins sweetcorn (drained)

2 Tubs 300g Philadelphia cream cheese

Half bunch coriander 

1 tbsp ground green chillies

1 and half tsp salt (or more to taste)

2 tspn coarse black pepper 

1 and half tspn ginger and garlic (blended)

1 and half tsp cumin powder

Egg and breadcrumbs (optional) 

4 packets white bread (I used Hovis medium)

Paste made with plain flour and water (to seal edges)

METHOD:

Clean and wash the chicken fillets and cut in to large cubes.  In a large pot melt the butter and add the chicken fillets with the salt and pepper and cook on medium heat until all of the water burns off.  Keep stirring every so often. While chicken is cooking in a food processor chop the coriander with 1 tin of sweetcorn. 

Once chicken is cooked and water has completely burned off, turn off cooker and let it Cool slightly and by hand shred the chicken. Once shredded turn on cooker again to medium heat and add the green chillies, the chopped coriander/sweetcorn mix, ginger/garlic and cumin powder. Let this all cook together making sure it’s not sticking to the bottom of the pot. Once any moisture has disappeared, turn off cooker and while still warm add the Philadelphia and the other tin of sweetcorn (drained) and mix all well until everything is nicely combined and creamy. Taste for salt and add if necessary.  Let the mixture cool completely before filling. 

I will also show you in pictures how to fill the bread rolls.  Any questions please feel free to ask. 

 Cook the chicken in butter and add the salt and pepper

  Once cooked and slightly cool shred with your hands

  In the meantime chop the coriander and sweetcorn in a food processor 
  Add the coriander/sweetcorn mix and the other spices and mix well
  Cook again on medium heat until all moisture has evaporated
  Once you turn off the cooker add the Philadelphia cream cheese and the other tin of sweetcorn and mix all together until well combined and now it’s ready to be filled

Now the pictures will show you how to fill the bread rolls 

  Cut off all crusts of the bread, I take 3 at a time and then heat in the microwave for 10 seconds 
  Take one bread and roll it completely flat making sure the edges are completely rolled flat
  Put a couple of teaspoons of the creamy chicken mixture into the middle of the bread slice and generously apply the flour paste on the edges of the bread (not on the bottom edge)

  Fold over the bottom half of the bread one third of the way so it covers the mix
  Fold over the top half to overlap and seal the edges properly ensuring no gaps 
  All prepped and ready to be frozen or deep fried 

  Obviously I had to sample a few 😜

0

The beautiful Month of Ramadhan…

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Salams all…I pray that all my sisters and brothers are well..The beautiful month of Ramadhan is not far away now…Ramadhan is the month I crave and need.  This month, I feel for myself is a spiritual cleanse..and I’m sure others feel the same.  As humans we become so weak spiritually and we need that boost back. It’s a time to reflect too and I feel it also brings the family closer to each other.

I live in a predominantly Muslim area and the sense of community spirit feels so much more alive in Ramadhan.  Everyone is doing the same…everyone is fasting, everyone praying together, everyone turning towards Allah SWT and repenting.  Although Fasting is the main part of Ramadhan it is also a means of getting closer to Allah SWT.

In the UK the fasts will be longer, but Allah SWT gives sabr (patience) to his servants.  It’s just a month out of twelve months that we need to make a few sacrifices and our reward will be very great Insha’allah.

We all need to try and make the most of this blessed month as only Allah SWT knows if we will get to see it again.

I pray you all have a beautiful Ramadhan and also humbly request you all to remember this servant of Allah and also my family in your precious Duas during this blessed month and you all are in mine Insha’allah.

  

4

Pizza Samosas (Filling) 

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Salams all hope you’re all well..I wasn’t planning on making this one a blog post…but have had a few requests for it…I’ve just started my Ramadhan preps today and thought to start off with something easy to get into the swing of it..the fact that these are 2 favourites combined and that there’s no cooking involved will appeal to a lot of people…these actually do taste like pizza as it has all of everyone’s fave pizza toppings…you can omit or add any other ingredients if you like…I found that spring onions made the mix a bit soggy so don’t add that anymore…also there’s no specific measurements..add more or less of whatever ingredient you like the most.

Enjoy 🍕🍕🍕

INGREDIENTS:
3 coloured peppers 1 red, 1 green and 1 yellow (cubed small)

1 jar Sundried tomatoes (chopped)

Olives (chopped)

Polony (cubed)

1 tin Sweetcorn (drained) 

Grated Mozzarella and cheddar cheese (as required)

Black pepper/salt/oregano

Cheese & onion crisps (optional)

Spring onions (optional)

METHOD:

In a large bowl mix all the above. Season well. Fill samosa pastry as usual.

  All ingredients in a bowl before seasoning and adding the cheeses 
  Pizza Samosa filling after adding seasoning and cheddar and mozzarella cheese 

4

Mediterranean Roasted Vegetable Lasagne

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Salams my fellow cooks, hope alls well..I was planning on posting a recipe last Friday but ended up with a massive migraine and needed to sleep that off. To be honest although I love Lasagne I’m a bit lazy to make it 😳 and the fact that hubby doesn’t eat cheese and the girls are not to keen on mince meat always puts lasagne making on a back burner.  I love Veggies and so do the girls so why not a vegetable lasagne.  This one is loaded with lovely colourful veggies and makes you feel like summer is on its way. 

INGREDIENTS:

For the filling:

1 large courgette (sliced thick)

1 red pepper (cut into large chunks)

1 green pepper (cut into large chunks)

Half yellow pepper (cut into large chunks)

1 small aubergine – optional (cut into large cubes) 

1 large red onion (cut into chunks)

12-15 Olives (chopped)

Olive oil

2 cloves garlic (crushed)

Salt and pepper

1 tspn mixed herbs 

1 tbsp capers (optional)

Half a jar pasta sauce (any you like)

Half a tin chopped tomatoes

Lasagne sheets (no pre-cook)

For the Cheese Sauce:

40 g butter

2 tbsp plain flour

1 pint milk

Handful grated cheddar cheese (any you prefer)

Salt and pepper to taste

More grated cheddar cheese for the topping

METHOD:

In a large baking tray arrange the chopped vegetables and drizzle some olive oil and sprinkle salt and pepper, mixed herbs and garlic.  Toss all this together so all the vegetables are coated with the seasoning.  Bake in the oven on gas mark 4 (180) for about 30 minutes until the veg is slightly brown.

Once the vegetables are roasted put them in a saucepan and to that add the pasta sauce and the chopped tinned tomatoes.  Also add the olives and capers. Taste again for seasoning and add if necessary. Cook this on medium heat on cooker for around 7-10 minutes.

In the meantime make up the sauce, melt the butter in a sauce pan. Whisk the plain flour into the milk until there’s no lumps.  Once the butter has melted pour the milk into the saucepan and heat on medium heat until the sauce has thickened.  Keep stirring all the while while sauce is thickening. Add the handful of grated cheese and let that melt into the sauce, add salt and pepper as required.

Now all the components are ready we can start layering. On the bottom of a large rectangle Pyrex dish spread a couple of tbsp of the cheese sauce. Arrange the lasagne sheets and spread another couple of tbsp of cheese sauce on top of the sheets.  Spread the vegetable filling on top, you can also sprinkle some grated cheese and then another layer of lasagne sheets and repeat this one more time. On the last layer of lasagne sheets pour more cheese sauce and sprinkle some grated cheese and mixed herbs or oregano.  Bake in oven on gas mark 4 (180) for 30 minutes until the top is slightly golden and the lasagne sheets are cooked. I prefer mine soft so take it out before it’s too golden. This is lovely with a side salad.

TIP: You can make this in advance and cover with cling film, this softens the lasagne sheets and results in a lovely soft lasagne. This dish can also be frozen so if there’s a lot of filling then just make up a foil container and freeze for a lazy day.

This recipe has been adapted from Delia Online.

Any questions please feel free to ask.

Enjoy 😋
  The vegetables all prepped and chopped ready for the oven

  The roasted vegetables just out the oven

  First Layer of the lasagne sheets and filling

  Second layer, you can sprinkle grated cheese on top too
  The last layer before the cheese goes on
  All layered and ready to go in the oven

  Baked and ready

  A moist slice of lasagne with some salad 

1

Chicken and Veg Chinese Noodles

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Salams my fellow cooks, hope your are all well and feeling refreshed after the Easter break, the last 2 weeks have been a bit hectic for me, no holidays from work (cry with me 😭) family weddings, work commitments and the usual everyday life things hence I’ve not been able to post any recipes. I have a few days off this week so I thought I’d best get onto posting something.  This recipe is pretty straightforward, not only does it taste good but it can be whipped up quite quickly.  I tend to put less chicken and more veg as I love my veg but you can add more or less of either depending on your own preference. 

INGREDIENTS:

1 large chicken fillet (cut into bite size strips)

2 tbsp olive oil 

1 tspn ground garlic

1 tspn ground green chillies

1 tspn salt (add to taste)

2 tspn coriander/cumin powder

Quarter tspn turmeric

1 large carrot (cut into thin strips)

Half a white cabbage (shredded)

Baby Sweetcorn (cut into strips)

1 red onion (sliced)

Half green pepper (thin strips)

Half red pepper (thin strips) 

Tomato ketchup 

Chilli sauce 

Soya sauce

1 and half pack Medium egg noodles

Spring onions chopped (for garnish)

METHOD:

In a non stick wok heat the olive oil and then add the chicken strips, to that add the garlic, green chillies, salt, coriander/cumin powder and turmeric. Mix well and cook on medium heat until most of the water has evaporated.

Now add all the veg and mix well. Cook all this until all the water has burned out.  The Veg should not be soggy but have a slight crunch to it. 

Add the sauces as much as needed to make the noodles saucy.

If I want it very saucy then I sometimes add a jar of sweet and sour Chinese sauce or any Chinese sauce which u like.

Garnish with spring onions and some toasted sesame seeds.

Enjoy 😊