Crumpets

My Dad loves crumpets and generally used to make these a lot on a Sunday afternoon, in the time between lunch and dinner when we felt a little peckish and wanted something sweet. He enjoys them with a nice blob of margarine covered in golden syrup and can put the whole thing in his mouth in one bite. I can do without that additional fat and enjoy it just with the syrup, and sometimes even plain. I'm not sure if other families do the same... but we can stand around the kitchen eating them hot out the pan. Good memories.

Ingredients:
250ml (140g) flour
10ml baking powder
1ml salt
30ml sugar
1 egg
200ml milk
15ml margarine, melted

Method:
Sift flour, baking powder and salt together. Add sugar
Beat the egg, milk and melted margarine together and add to dry ingredients
Beat until smooth and leave to stand for 30 minutes
Fry spoonfuls of batter on a hot, greased pan
Fry until golden brown, turning when bubbles appear on surface
Serve with butter, jam, honey or my favourite... golden syrup!

*Makes 12-15, depending on size

Homemade Garlic Pizza

I had prepared a delicious tomato base while the dough was proving, but when it came to making it, I felt like having a "starter" beforehand. Everything was done by hand, from working the dough to its rustic shape to rubbing it with olive oil. I sprinkled some salt, garlic, rosemary and a little Israeli feta and popped it into the oven for around 10-15 minutes on 180ºC.

The end result was far more scrumptious than I could have imagined. I landed up making two of these before the traditional margherita.

Mock Chopped Herring

I love a good helping of chopped herring (and when it's eaten on Kigel it's even better) but it's not always the easiest thing to get a hold of. When I tasted this and was told it was mock chopped herring I had to have the recipe. Thoroughly delicious with crackers too and very easy to make. I substituted the Matza meal with breadcrumbs.

Ingredients:

400g drained tuna
3-4 peeled green apples
1 medium onion
4 hard boiled eggs (2 go into the mixture, 2 for decoration)
1/2 - 1 cup Matza meal
1 tablespoon salt
1/4 - 1/2 cup sugar
1/2 - 3/4 cup vinegar

Method:
Grate or blend the apples, onion and eggs and mix together with the tuna
Slowly add the other ingredients
Keep tasting and add the liquids according to taste and texture

Malabi

I was introduced to Malabi on my last visit to Israel. I've seen signs for it on little stalls in the street markets, outside this little "hole in the wall" shop at the port in Jaffo and it can even be bought from the dairy section in most supermarkets. "Cold Malabi" is generally all you need to attract the people. The best way to describe it is a milk pannacotta, that is generally served with a squirt of rose water, a sprinkling of coconut and a few chopped nuts. I opted for mine without nuts this time, but either way it is delicious. I cannot get enough of that rose water flavour, there is something so soothing about it. An awesome street dessert that must be tried by anyone visiting!

Sun Downers and Snacks

After a long walk around old Jaffa with views of Tel Aviv, we found a relaxed spot to have sun downers along the beach. Now I am not the biggest drinker, so I prefer to choose things where the taste of alcohol is masked nicely. I ordered a frozen strawberry daiquiri thinking that maybe it would be similar to what I have had back home. It wasn't... but I was pleasantly surprised. This was more of a strawberry smoothy made with frozen yoghurt and I suppose a shot of something somewhere. It was good! After a long day it is never good to drink on an empty stomach so a few starters were ordered. I remember having fried cauliflower back home, made by our Israeli friends... but my goodness were these delicious. Served hot out the pan with sweet chili sauce, I don't think I went too many bites without saying YUM! Chumus with techina and chickpeas came along with pita bread of course and lastly were some spicy chicken wings. I know you can see cutlery in the picture, but trust me this was far better eaten with your hands ; )

 

Frozen Yoghurt

One of my favourite things to eat on a hot Summers day (even though Israel is currently in Autumn, but yet it's still sweltering outside) is Israeli style frozen yoghurt! What I love about this yoghurt is that there is no artificial colouring or flavouring in the actual yoghurt itself. What you decide to add on top of it though is all up to you... there are all sorts of toppings from sweet things like chocolate, chalva and nuts to the healthier option of fruits like melon, sabre (prickly pear), pineapple, berries and peach to mention a few. When you are done choosing your toppings you are able to add syrups, I generally like to stay away from these but they have things like caramel, chocolate and strawberry. My best is to select a few fruits and then add jelly babies which need to be squished down into the frozen yoghurt where they get all hard and extra chewy : )