Dalia's Kitchen: cake

A crocodile cake, a weekend in bed and a Lentil Yoghurt Soup...

Image By Sukaina Rajabali. Recipe from "Food, Love and Life in Dalia's Kitchen"

I wish there was a prettier reason for me having to be in bed, but alas, I caught a severe tonsillitis that caused dehydration, which led to exhaustion. I'm completely ok now, but no, not my funniest weekend.

It all started out with Phares turning two last Monday. As much as I love this age of new discovery and character, I was crying my eyes out the last night of him being one. Time simply flew by too fast. Phares will never be this tiny again, and inshAllah grow up to be a happy, healthy man, but knowing that he says "thank you" instead of "teng teng" now, and that he has become this little person who knows what he wants now, made me realize that he's just not going to be my baby forever. And that of course made me very sad/happy. I guess that some part of this sadness is also related to me being a working mommy, and maybe I may have missed too many of the "teng teng" moments, or could I even ever get enough of these "teng teng" moments? I'm not sure.

So my little boy asked for a crocodile cake for his birthday. Much to my astonishment as I expected him to want a Barney or Mickey Mouse cake. But Phares is absolutely obsessed with alligators and crocs. When we go to the supermarket, we always pass by this pet supply store. They have a fake little croc in an aquarium and he always says hello and goodbye to Mr. Croc. Maybe that's the reason. So we made him a croc cake. And the good side of mommy owning a bakery is that I insisted on making Barney and Mickey Mouse cupcakes too, since I had imagined them for his second birthday ;)

After a very last minute, cozy birthday party, Phares did not feel well. I wasn't sure if he just had too much cake initially, but once he ran a fever, something was up. He wasn't well for a few days, but hamdellah, nothing too bad. And then I got sick.

So since I can only have soups I thought I would post the one, which brought me back to life these past few days. My famous Lentil & Yoghurt Soup that is also in the cookbook. There simply is nothing like lentil soups to get you back on track. The fact that it is absolutely delish and is by no means a "sickly soup" makes it all even better. Lentils are rich in iron, and believe it or not I went from feeling lifeless to not so terribly sick within minutes. Truly!

So not the most exciting weekend for me, i.e. my rambling, but actually a bit of calm and apple TV that was much needed :)

Much love from my bed,

D xx

Red Valentine's Cake♥

Image by Chris Mejorada for CPI Publishing

This is the first year with two loves in my life.. Phiras and my baby boy Phares.. What a feeling!! My little one is now starting to be really interactive, has a feisty little character and must be the cutest I've ever laid eyes on. Yes, I am indeed blinded by LOVE!!

But on this day dedicated to love in all its shapes and forms, I want to say thank you to those who have made me feel the love not just today, but during this past year. From my dear family, amazing friends, great team at work, the lovely customers at Kitsch Cupcakes, the teams at Harper's Bazaar Arabia, BBC Good Food ME, Dubai TV's Mashaheer, and last but not least, the incredibly kind readers of D's Kitchen. Happiest Valentine's Day♥♥♥♥♥

Red Velvet Cake with Dark Chocolate Icing & Raspberries

2 1/2 cups flour
1 ½ cups sugar
2 eggs
½ cup softened butter
1 cup milk
1 tbsp white vinegar
2 tsp vanilla
¼ cup cocoa powder
½ tsp red food color
½ tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt

Chocolate Icing:

¼ cup melted dark chocolate
½ cup unsweetened cocoa
1 cup icing sugar
½ cup butter
2 tsp vanilla essence
pack of raspberries & chocolate shavings to garnish

Preheat the oven to 180C. In a large bowl, whisk the butter, sugar, vanilla, vinegar, coloring and add one egg at a time, mixing well after each egg.

In another bowl, sift the flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder and salt, then set aside.

Using an electrical mixer, alternate adding the flour mixture and the milk to the egg batter. Combine well but do not over mix.

Pour the batter in three nonstick pans (~16cm) and bake for about 30 minutes or until a toothpick or cake tester comes out clean. Let the cakes cool down.

In a stand mixer, whip up the butter until creamy, add the melted chocolate, cocoa and vanilla, then add the icing sugar gradually until well incorporated and creamy.

Now place one of the cakes on a rotating cake stand and spread a generous amount of icing on the cake. Place another cake on top and do the same, and with the last layer, turn the cake round side down and cover the entire cake with icing.

In the center place the raspberries, and sprinkle a little chocolate shavings on the side of this sumptuous chocolate cake. Decadent!

Raspberry & White Chocolate Cake

Decadent Sticky Date Pudding

Mini Pecan Nutella Cake

Steamed Little Pumpkin Cakes

D's Decadent New York Cheesecake

I'm at my in-laws home in lucsious green Yarze, overlooking Beirut.. They love a baked New York Cheesecake so I decided to make one last night.. The thing about this type of cheesecake is that it needs to be refrigerated for a while, so that you get that yummy dense and creamy consistency.. Many people think that baking a cheesecake is a hassle, so I found a way to simplify it as much as possible by reducing some steps yet still making a lovely bake! I like my cheesecake not too sweet or lemony, it has to be a balanced, smooth, velvety and incredibly rich one.. I also like it quite thick so I'm doubling up on the filling quantities..

For the crust:

180g digestive cookies

60g butter

½ TBL sugar

For the filling:

1400g philly

350ml single cream

250cl sour cream/ crème fraiche

350g sugar

2 1/2 tsp lemon juice

Zest of 2 lemons

2 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

5 eggs

2 yolks

4 TBL of flour

Preheat your oven at 160C.

In a food processor, blend together the digestive cookies, butter and sugar.. Then use a 26cm round spring form and press cookie mixture on the bottom of the form (basically make a thin crust).. Place in the oven for about 10-15 minutes to brown the base, then remove it and set aside..

In a bowl, add the eggs, yolks, sugar, vanilla, lemon rind & juice and mix until you have a creamy consistency.. Use a hand whisk to not overbeat.. Add the cream and sour cream..

In another bowl, cream the Philly cheese until it's soft and add it to the other mixture combining well (NOT overbeating).. Then gently whisk in the flour..

Pour the filling in the spring form and place in the oven for 15-20minutes.. Then lower the heat to 110C and bake for another 50-60 minutes.. Basically you should have a little color & firmness around the edges, but still have a little wobble in the center..

Remove from the oven and let it cool.. Then refrigerate for at least 12hrs.. Voila! You're own, home baked NY Cheesecake :) Serve plain or with a fruit coulis.. Enjoy!

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