Happy Birthday to Me!!

22 years ago today, I was born on a cold February day. 

I cannot believe how fast time passes....subhanAllah. 

This past year has been a wonderful year, alhamdulillah. It has been full of endings, new beginnings, happiness, and wonderful memories. 

This post will be a sort of year in review, high lighting all the best times of the past year. So here it goes (not in any specific order): 

1. I graduated from Boston University with my bachelors in Early Childhood Education. I had 4 amazing years at BU, and they all came to a close last May. I miss my amazing professors, wonderful friends, and Comm Ave! 

2. I became a certified teacher!! I got my MA state license after graduating and passing 3 tests! I am now a professional =) 

3. I saw 9 more U.S. states!! Over the summer my mom, sister, cousin, and two aunts went on a road trip around the south and the midwest. We hit up sites in Tennessee, Kentucky, Missouri, Nebraska, Iowa, Arkansas, Kansas, Alabama, and Mississippi! We saw some things I had heard of prior to the trip and some things I had never heard of in my life! All in all, it was great! 

Rocking out at the Grand Ole Opry - Nashville, TN

Gateway Arch!! - St. Louis, Missouri

Little Rock, Arkansas

Catching up with Rachel on Beale St - Memphis, TN

4. Two of my best friends got married!! 

My friend Rachel tied the knot first at a beautiful inn in Connecticut. Rachel and I met freshman year at BU. We both studied early childhood education and had most of the same classes. She and I would meet once a week for dinner during our student teaching, catching up, bouncing ideas off each other, and offering any support we could. I cannot imagine what BU would've been like without Rachel. It was an honor to attend her beautiful wedding. I could not have been happier for her and her husband. 

Then two months later in October, another one of my best friends, L.S.D., got married. She and I also met while attending BU. She is one of the most amazing women I have ever met. She is the epitome of strength, hard work, and beauty. (Check out her blog http://appledaysarmynights.blogspot.com/ She is amazing!) L.S.D. gave me the honor of being a bride's maid in her wedding. It was a wonderful day, a wonderful weekend, and a time I will never forget. 

5. I started teaching 2nd grade! I am currently teaching 22 seven and eight-year-olds. They are amazing, smart, and exhausting! Everyone says the first year is the hardest....we shall see... I will report back next year ;) 

6. My best friend in the whole entire world had a beautiful baby daughter!! My friend Fatimah gave birth to her first daughter on October 25th. She is the most adorable little girl I have ever met mashaAllah, just like her Mama! I am looking forward to some amazing times with her inshaAllah. She is probably the best thing to happen in the last year! I love her so much already and I have known her less than 4 months! I guess since her mom means so much to me, I feel so connected to her.

7. My cousin is moving to New England! My cousin Kristen has lived in Atlanta her whole life. I have seen her probably twice a year since I was born, but we have never lived in the same area for a long period of time. But that is all changing come August! She recently got a job to teach in Connecticut and will be moving up here!! All I gotta say is...bring some warm clothes....

8. I have made two amazing new friends, both of whom are amazing women. I met Rusha a few years ago, but in the last year we have become very close. She is a gorgeous, extremely caring, good-hearted person who I am lucky to have in my life. I am also lucky to have met Heba! Heba and I met at a BBQ last summer and have been friends ever since. She and I have realized we're soul mates. It always amazes me when you meet someone and there is an instant connection subhanAllah. I love you both!!

There have been many other great times in this past year alhamdulillah. I am very thankful for all God has blessed me with. I look forward to a year full of more great times and inshaAllah next year I will have even more wonderful memories to recount. 

Jammies!!

Last weekend my mother and I were driving home from Sunday breakfast at my uncle's house when we saw a sign for a farmer's market in our neighborhood. We were both kind of skeptical, because we had never heard about a market in our neighborhood in the 6 years we have lived in our house, and also because it is February in Massachusetts! What kind of produce grows locally at this time of year?! Despite our skepticism, we decided to follow the signs to the local garden center and investigate.

We walked into a little indoor store, which we never knew existed, and saw a market. But much like I expected, no fresh produce. There were tables set up with different people selling things like granola, decorated cookies, spices, cheeses, and JAM! You may be wondering why I wrote the word jam in capital letters...well, let me tell you... I recently found a recipe for little jam filled heart cookies that I wanted to try out, and I had found one of the key ingredients! I did have regular, brand name jam in my refrigerator at home, but the delicious, real fruit taste of this homemade jam was too good to pass up.

I decided to buy the sugar free strawberry jam, because it was extremely sweet, fresh, and tasted like real strawberries.

Here is the jam I bought:

This jam was delicious! If you would like to buy some, follow the web address on the jar! The company is out of Plymouth, MA. 

I paid my 5 dollars and clutched my jam tightly the whole way home. I have never been more excited to buy a jar of jam in my life! The jam sat on my counter all week just waiting to be used in the delicious cookies, and today it finally fulfilled its destiny.

In the cookbook I have, the cookies are called Jammie Bodgers, but I hate that name. I have never heard the word bodger in my life, so I decided to cut it out and just call them Jammies! The word jammies reminds me of my mom, because that is what she calls pajamas. So this new name makes me happy =)

So here you go: Jammies!

Dice up 3/4 cup of unsalted butter (1 and 1/2 sticks). 

Add the butter to 2 cups of flour in a food processor. Pulse until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. 

Then add 1 egg yolk and 2/3 cup sugar. Process until this resembles a dough. 

If you do not know how to separate an egg yolk from the white, watch this video to learn! 

Here is what the dough should look like! 

After the mixture resembles a dough, dump it onto a lightly floured surface and knead until it forms a dough ball. 

Cover the dough ball in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes. 

 After 30 minutes, remove the dough from the fridge. Roll out on a lightly floured surface until it is all one thickness. Then use whatever cookie cutter you would like. I wanted circular cookies, but do not own a circular cookie cutter, so I used the top of the the cup in the picture. It worked wonderfully! 

Once you cut out all the cookies, remove the surrounding dough carefully. 

Then use a smaller cookie cutter to punch a design in the center of half of the cookies. In honor of Valentine's Day (which is on Monday), I decided to use a heart. Once the heart is cutout, carefully use either a spatula or a dough cutter (which I used) to remove the pieces from each other. 

You will need an even number of cookies, half with hearts cut out and half that are complete. You will be making sandwiches, so you need a mate for each cookie. 

Place all the cookies on an un-greased cookie sheet and bake at 350 degrees for about 10 minutes. You want the tops to be slightly golden. 

Remove the cookies from the oven and let cool. They should look like the ones below. 

 I made very large cookies, so I only had 6 sandwiches total. (12 sides + 1 extra that we ate by itself). If you made smaller cookies, like the recipe said to, you would have many more cookies. 

Once the cookies are completely cooled, you can assemble them. Make sure you let them cool, because if you do not, the frosting will melt and make a big mess! 

While you are waiting for the cookies to cool, you can make the buttercream icing! 

In a bowl, mix 1/4 cup unsalted butter (1/2 a stick), 1 cup powdered sugar (also called confectioners' sugar), 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract, and 1 tablespoon of milk. With a hand mixer, mix until it looks like icing. That's it! The buttercream icing is done and you're ready to assemble your cookies!

Begin by frosting the sides without the hearts cut out. You should completely cover the inside of the cookie in buttercream. (Remember you are making sandwiches, so don't frost the tops!)

Next, place about one spoonful of jam on the cookie. Spread out until it covers the entire inside of the cookie. 

Last, place the other cookie on top and press down lightly. There you go, your jammy is done! 

Let sit for about 30-45 minutes to let the jam set a bit. 

The cookies were delicious! The combination of the lightly sweet cookie, the fruity jam, and the buttercream icing is perfect! 

I brought each of my 3 cousins a cookie to try, and with full mouths, they all gave me overwhelming approval! It sounded something like "mmm....so good....mmmm" =) 

Jammies (Written Recipe) 

Ingredients: 

Cookie Dough: 

2 cups flour

3/4 cup unsalted butter

2/3 cup sugar

1 egg yolk

Buttercream Icing: 

1/4 cup unsalted butter

1 cup powdered sugar (confectioners' sugar)

1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 tablespoon milk 

Filling: 

Strawberry Jam 

1. Put the flour and butter in a food process. Process until it resembles bread crumbs. Then add the egg yolk and the sugar. Process until it resembles a dough. 

2. Dump the dough onto a floured surface and knead into a ball. Cover the ball with plastic wrap and let sit for at least 30 minutes in the refrigerator. 

3. After 30 minutes, remove and place on a lightly floured surface. Roll out until the dough is all one thickness. Use a cookie cutter to cut out 12 cookies (more if your cutter is smaller than mine was). Use a different cookie cutter to punch out shapes in the center of half of the cookies. 

4. Carefully place all the cookies onto cookie sheets and bake at 350 degrees for about 10 minutes or until the tops look slightly golden. Then remove from the oven and let cool. 

5. Combine all the ingredients for the buttercream in a bowl. Use a hand mixer to mix until it looks like frosting. 

6. Once cookies are cool, assemble. Frost the halves that do not have shape punched out. Then place 1 spoonful of jam in the center. Top with the other cookie (with the shape punched out). Press down lightly. Let sit for 30-45 minutes. Then enjoy!

Fruit Tart

I have always loved fruit tarts! A fruit tart is a really balanced dessert, featuring a sweet cookie-like crust, a vanilla custard, and succulent fresh fruit. And it must be healthy....it's covered in fruit, and fruit is healthy! (I am going to continue telling myself this!)

I decided to make this after seeing it in a baking cookbook I own. I made it for Heba, my coworker's birthday. I work in an elementary school, and for each teacher's birthday we all do something special to celebrate. So in honor of our preschool teacher, I made this tart.

It may seem like a lot of steps, but just give yourself some time and take it slow =)

I began by making the pastry crust. Begin by preheating your oven to 400 degrees. Then sift together 1 1/2 cups flour and 1/8 teaspoon salt. You sift flour to put air into it and to remove any lumps. This makes your baked goods lighter and fluffier. Once you have sifted these together, set the bowl aside.

 In a different bowl beat together a 1/2 cup of unsalted butter (which is 1 whole stick) and 1/4 of a cup of sugar. I used a hand mixer to do this. You should mix until it becomes fluffy.

 Then add 1 beaten egg to the butter and sugar mixture. Mix this only until combined. 

Now add the flour you have already sifted to the egg, butter, and sugar mixture. Work to combine this until it forms a ball. Be careful not to over mix!

Flatten your dough ball into a disk, cover with plastic wrap, and put in the refrigerator for 20 minutes. 

After 20 minutes, take it out of the fridge and roll it out on a floured surface. Rotate and flip every now and then to prevent it from sticking. When you roll out dough, you should do so from the center outward to get uniform thickness and shape. 

Turn your tart pan over above the dough to measure what size you will need. Your dough should be an inch wider on all sides of the pan.


Put the dough into the tart pan and press into the sides to fit. Remove any excess dough. Then use a fork to prick holes in the bottom. (This lets steam escape when it is cooking, so your tart doesn't get bubbles.) Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 20 more minutes.

Take it out of the fridge, and then here is a weird step to me, but the recipe said to do it, so I did. You need to cover the pastry dough with aluminum foil and fill it with either pie weights or beans. I do not own pie weights, but I had lentils...so that is what I used. The recipe didn't given any explanation, but I am assuming that you do this so the middle doesn't rise up...It looks funny to me though!

Bake at 400 for approximately 25 minutes or until it is slightly brown. Remove from the oven and let cool.

Now for the pastry cream! This has a few steps that you kind of have to do simultaneously, so be organized!

Begin by sifting together 1/8 of a cup of flour and 2 tablespoons of cornstarch. Set this aside. 

Bring 1 1/4 cup of milk and 1 teaspoon of pure vanilla extract to a boil over medium heat. Make sure you watch this! Milk boils over very quickly! 

While the milk is coming to a boil (remember to keep an eye on it!), mix together 1/4 cup of sugar and 3 egg yolks with a spoon. Make sure not to let this sit, because pieces of egg may begin to form. Once this is mixed completely, add the flour and cornstarch mixture. Combine until you have a paste.

After the milk comes to a boil, remove from the heat and add slowly to the egg mixture. Whisk constantly to prevent curdling! 

Pour the cream back into the sauce pan and whisk constantly until it thickens! 

When it has thickened, pour into a clean bowl and immediately cover with plastic wrap. Place in the refrigerator to cool and set. 

Almost done! 

To make the glaze, put a 1/2 cup of apricot jam and 1 tablespoon of water into a sauce pan. Simmer on medium until it thins out to a syrupy consistency. Turn off heat and remove any chunks. 

Now it is time to assemble!! You can use any kind of fruit you want. I used strawberries, kiwis, and blueberries. 

First remove the tart from the fluted sides of the pan. Place your hand under the pan, touching only the removable bottom not the sides. Gently push the tart straight up, away from the sides. The fluted tart ring will fall away and slide down your arm. If you want to remove the bottom of the pan, run a knife or thin metal spatula between the crust and metal bottom, then slide the tart onto a cardboard cake round.

Next fill with the pastry cream. When I make this tart agin, I will double the amount of cream. So if you like cream, like I do, double it!!

Once the tart is filled, begin putting the fruit on. You can put it any design you would like! 

  When all the fruit is on, brush the apricot glaze on. You want to cover the entire tart. The glaze will make your fruit look shiny and delicious! 

Here is my finished tart!! It was delicious! I brought it to work and it was a big hit! 

Fruit Tart (Written Recipe)

Ingredients:


     Sweet Pastry Crust: 
     1 1/2 cups  all purpose flour
      1/8 teaspoon salt
      1/2 cup unsalted butter
      1/4 cup granulated white sugar
      1 large egg, lightly beaten


     Pastry Cream: 
     1 1/4 cups milk

     1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

     3 large egg yolks

     1/4 cup granulated white sugar

     1/8 cup all-purpose flour

     2 tablespoons cornstarch 

Apricot Glaze:      1/2 cup apricot jam or preserves      1 tablespoon water       Topping:      Any fruit you want! (I used strawberries, kiwi, and blueberries)

Grocery Shopping

Ever since I was a little kid, I loved grocery shopping.

See....I even loved to pretend I was grocery shopping!

As much as I love wandering through the fluorescent lit aisles, staring at all the food, trying to think of what delicious things I could make with it....I do not like doing this everyday. So I have decided to be more disciplined and plan all my meals for the week before I go to the grocery store. This will allow me to not only save time, but also give me direction in my cooking escapades.

...and those of you who know me, know I love lists. So this is right up my alley ;)

Last night I sat down with a stack of cookbooks, a pen, and a blank piece of paper. By the end of an hour I had 5 dishes planned, the ingredients written down, and a sense of giddiness in my chest. I did not anticipate loving this blog so much, but it has already brought me so much joy!

A Homemade Life

Last spring, I did my student teaching with Liz, an amazing first grade teacher. She was not only an inspiring mentor, but she was also a great friend. I spent many mornings sipping chai lattes that she brought me, as we got ready for the kids to come. Numerous times were spent doubled over in laughter from her hilarious jokes and animated stories. And many lunches were spent sampling her delicious recipes. Liz was a foodie at its best. She knew the best restaurants to visit in the city, and she always seemed to find the best recipes to cook. She often brought me some of her left overs from dinner the night before, because she knew how much I loved to cook.

When it was time for me to leave her classroom, I was extremely sad. Not only was I closing one chapter in my teaching career, but I was also leaving behind a person who I had come to admire, respect, and care for. As a parting gift, I gave her a copy of one of Bon Apetit's cookbooks, and she gave me a book called A Homemade Life. Earlier on in the semester she turned me onto a cooking blog called Orangette. From the moment I first read it, I loved it. The author of the blog told a story through her food. Each recipe had a memory or experience attached to it. I loved the way she regarded food as an integral part of life and family. I saved many of her recipes and stored them away in my gmail "recipes" folder. The blogger had received so much support for her blog that she was given a book deal and thus came about A Homemade Life.

I read the book over the summer and put little blue sticky notes on almost all the recipes. It has been sitting on my bookshelf since then, but today when trying to decide what recipes to feature next on my own blog, I pulled it down off the shelf and looked through it. Both the recipes in this post can be found in this book. I highly recommend that anyone who loves cooking, food, and the way they add a richness to life, read this book! 

As I was going back through the book, I was once again struck by the title: A Homemade Life. To me, that means a life full of rich foods that not only satisfy and delight people, but also carry with them a story and a sense of love. I truly believe that if you put love and care into the food you cook, your cooking will make all who eat it feel better. It has always been my dream to have big family dinners, to be the house where everyone wants to come to eat, and to always have something filling and comforting for my future family and guests to enjoy. InshaAllah this dream becomes a reality. 

The two recipes I will be featuring today are Bouchons Au Thon and Red Cabbage Salad with Lemon and Olive Oil Dressing.  

Bouchons Au Thon are essentially baked tuna cakes. I know to some of you that might not sound like the most appetizing thing, but believe me, they are good! They are one of the things that my mentor teacher shared with me and now I am sharing them with you. 

First put the tuna in a medium bowl and use a fork to break it up into small pieces. There should be no chunks!

Next grate the Gruyere cheese until you have 1 cup. Cheese is always easiest to grate when it is cold, so keep the cheese in the refrigerator right up until you want to grate it. 

Then finely chop 1/4 of a cup of a Spanish (yellow) onion. It is very important that your onion is very finely chopped so it cooks fully when in the oven. Also chop about 2 tablespoons parsley. (I am not a huge fan of measurements, so I just eye-balled it. I used the amount you see in the picture.) 

Add the cup of Gruyere cheese, the onions, parsley, 1/3 cup of creme fraiche, and 3 tablespoons of tomato paste into the bowl with the tuna. Mix thoroughly until everything is combined. 

Then add three eggs to the tuna mixture. Use the fork to thoroughly mix everything together. 

After greasing 8 muffin tins (I used cooking spray to grease them), fill each tin to the top with a heaping spoon of the mixture. If you get any of the mixture on the sides of the tin, wipe it off, because it will burn in the oven. 

Put the muffin tin in the oven at 325 degrees. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until the bouchons look set on the tops and around the sides. 

Remove from the oven and use a butter knife to loosen the sides. 

Let the bouchons cool then carefully remove each from the tin. Do not try to remove them too early, because if they are hot, they will fall apart. 

The bouchons were very good! I am not quite sure what bouchon even means (I don't speak any French), but I know they sure taste good! 

To accompany my bouchons I decided to make Red Cabbage Salad with Lemon & Olive Oil Dressing. This salad is perfect for winter, because during the colder months cabbage is at its sweetest. 

I do not own a garlic press, so I grated the garlic cloves instead.
Make sure not to grate your finger!!  

To make the dressing, mix 2 tablespoons of olive oil with 2 tablespoons of fresh lemon juice, the grated garlic, and some salt. Make sure to whisk the mixture so you are able to combine the oil and lemon juice. 

Then chop the cabbage into small pieces. I hate salads with big chunks of vegetables in them! I tried to make all the pieces bite size. 

After you chop the cabbage, toss with the dressing and 1/4 cup of Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese. 

Then, enjoy! 

Bouchons Au Thon (Written Recipe)

Ingredients:

One 6-ounce can tuna packed in water, drained well

1 cup lightly packed finely shredded Gruyere

1/3 cup creme fraiche

3 tablespoons tomato paste

3 large eggs

1/4 cup finely chopped Spanish onion

2 tablespoons finely chopped parsley

1/4 teaspoon salt

1. Set oven to 325 degrees and grease 8 cups of a standard-sized muffin tin. 

2. Put tuna in a bowl and mash up into small pieces. There should be no large chunks! Add the remaining ingredients and stir well, mashing a bit as you go, until the mixture is thoroughly combined. 

3. Divide the mixture evenly among the 8 muffin cups. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until the bouchons look set on top and around the edges. 

4. Transfer the tin to a rack and let cool for 5 minutes. Carefully run a small knife around the edge of each bouchon to make sure it isn't stuck, then carefully remove them from the tin. They will collapse a bit as they cool. Serve warm or at room temperature. 

Red Cabbage Salad with Lemon and Olive Oil Dressing 

(Written Recipe)

Ingredients: 

2 tablespoons olive oil 

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

1/4 teaspoon pressed garlic

1/3 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 pound red cabbage

1/4 cup finely grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese

1. Make the dressing first. In a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, and salt. Set aside. 

2. Pull away the bruised leaves from the outside of the cabbage. Cut the cabbage into quarters. Use one quater and put the rest away. Slice the cabbage as thin as you can (think cole slaw size). 

3. In a large serving bowl, toss the cabbage with the dressing. Add the Parmigiano-Reggiano and toss to distribute evenly. Taste to see if there is enough salt (add more if you would like). Then enjoy!