Algerian Bread

Assalamu alaykum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh

I’m posting the recipe of the bread I showed you HERE

I’m having problems to log in the forum where I took this recipe from, so I’ll give you a slightly modified one … basically, the way I make it

• 300 gr strong white flour
• 200gr fine semolina
• 300/350 ml warm water
• 7 gr instant yeast
• 1 tbsp salt
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• some extra semolina (if coarse it’s better)

Place the flour, semolina, salt and olive oil in a large mixing bowl, set aside. Add the yeast to the warm water and mix well to activate it. Then add slowly the water to the dry ingredients, mixing with the other hand. Start to knead the dough… it should be done for at least 15 minutes. Add flour if it’s too wet or water if too dry but always add in small quantities. You can also add some nigella or fennel seeds to it. Once you get a nice and shiny dough, make it as a ball, cover it with a wet kitchen towel and place it in a warm place (under some covers it would be better ) for at least 1 hr.

Once the time has passed, take the dough, punch it to let the air go away and knead again separating it in 2 parts. Take a big oven pan or two individual once and sprinkle with semolina. Set aside. Push gently each dough until about  5 cm thick and pass them in some coarse semolina before placing them in the pan. Cover them again and let them have a rest for about half an hour. Then, add some olive oil on the top and place them in the pre-heated oven at 230°C for about 30/40 minutes, until golden brown.

Let me know sisters

Free travel & Free food

Assalamu alaykum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh

I’ve kind of promised HERE to write different posts about my last trip to Algeria. I feel like I’ve been there loooong time ago subhanaAllah, instead, it has been just 2 weeks ago or  so!

This time I’ve seen the country with different eyes. I’ve seen it as a Muslim planning his/her Hijrah, checking the places, mosques and Islamic courses… it is a bit scary to be honest, who wouldn’t be but I think I have to re-new my intention, why I want to move there insha’Allah!

It’s true, there is lots of bad there, I’ve noticed lots of changes. Lots of women in the street, not shy at all to look at you from top until down, not shy to cover what they like to cover, not shy to speak with men. On the other hand, (I don’t know if it’s because of the way I look – I mean ALL covered), I was very happy and honored by the manners that Algerian men had with me: sooo polite masha’Allah! If entering a shop, they would let me go in first, if crossing the road, the same… if standing in queue (I was without my son) they would let me go first… alhamdulillah, still good manners!

Something, related to the sweetness of having good manners, happened to my family and I when, one day, we decided to go to the town centre. Our car broke down few days earlier so we took the bus. We entered the bus and sat down in the back. My husband gave his salam and recognised “someone” of his neighborhood, they know each other just like this, they never talked or something. Anyway, when it came the moment to pay the bus fee,  that “someone” paid for us masha’Allah! I know it’s not much but it’s the action that was so nice… forget something like this in London!!!

After that, we went around the town, lunch time and you know what? We ate very well alhamdulillah and the owner of the pizzeria, (who knew my husband), didn’t want to take our money LOL! I was having a big smile behind my niqab when I saw those dinars going right and left near the till…. friend > dh … dh > friend…. then add the algerian language and their behaves … masha’Allah!

So I can say that there’s still some good in those countries, we just need to have a different intention when going there… maybe… wa Allahu a’alam!

 

An Algerian Behave

Assalamu alaykum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh

I’m back to write sooner than expected, alhamdulillah! I’ve decided to devide my “thoughts” about my Algerian Adventure in different posts, so I won’t mix up everything and I’ll try to explain you clearly how things “work” and “worked” over there (insha’Allah!)

Well, I’ve given to this post the title of “Algerian Behave”, yes, because that’s the first thing that had a big impact on my nerves me when we arrived at the airport! And before continuing I want to say that I don’t want to judge anybody or any country but just share my good and bad thoughts with you all! Just thoughts of a muslimah living in London and visiting Dz!

I was saying, the “behave”. We travelled from Heathrow to Algiers. You can immagine how things work in Heathrow: lots of people but at the same time a very organized athmosphere. When we arrived to Algiers well….. a slow queue to get our passports checked, some nurses (or doctors – not sure) checking every single passenger with a x-ray (or something like that) due to the swine flu alert etc. One of them also thought that we had high fever…. but she let us go… what’s the point of all that then???

We finally took ALL our luggage and GET OUT from there… just yet… we had to face all those people waiting outside for relatives and friends… WOW! Few kids on our way too… while I was holding my son and pushing my luggage (dh had all the rest… you can just immagine ) and they were taking it veeery easy in moving out of the way… GRRRR!!!! Anyway, an area full of people walking very slowly, while you try to make your way out with luggages and baby…  plus, you have the “londoner” attitude of moving fast to catch the train….and it’s harder ’cause the weather is too hot for you!!!

My bil came to take us and while they were putting things in the car a woman (a beggar) came asking for some change… my bil gave her some, then she came closer to me and asked for some EUROS!! … that was funny!! SubhanaAllah!

I’ve noticed the same “take it easy” behave during all my stay. I’ve also asked a dear sister that I met there if that was “normal” in Algeria or “I” wasn’t normal. She agreed with me, that’s one of their characteristics, masha’Allah!

But you know what, sometimes I’ve wished to be like that. I guess my job had an impact on my life style, on the way I do things at home, on the way I organize myself before starting to do something… I don’t know, I just think that sometimes I should only take it easy and don’t stress myself too much! Insha’Allah I hope, one day, if Allah will give us the chance to go to live there, I will learn and slow down a little bit, after all, this is just dunya.

Back from Dz

Assalamu alaykum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh

Here I am, after a 3 weeks holiday in Dz (Algeria) to visit the family alhamdulillah! I haven’t taken lots of pictures to be honest but I have lots to write about insha’Allah!

At the moment I’m still getting used to the weather change. It might sound strange but we passed from 40°C to 16°C (Algerian weather to the English one) within hours, so I still feel “strange” And since my brain is still not working properly, I’ll leave the post about my Algerian “adventure” for the next time, insha’Allah in the next few days… come back

take care!!!

Harira with Olives

Assalamu alaykum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh,

Harira, shurba, shurba frik, soup… I think I’ll never understand the difference among them, they call them in all the possible and different ways…

I’ve tried for the first time a soup that I love! An harira with olives, a couple of years ago, while I was passing the Ramadhaan in Algeria masha’Allah. They told me it was a soup they make in the city of Setif… wa Allahu a’lam, I like it anyway!

Here the ingredients (remember you can make it with any kind of meat, I just prefer it without, so it’s lighter):

• 1 potato
• 1 carrot
• 1 courgette
• 1 large onion
• half cup of passata (sieved tomatoes) or a tin of plum tomatoes
• 1 and 1/2 tsp of paprika
• 1 and 1/2 tsp of cumin
• 1 tsp of chilli powder (I use chilli flakes)
• 1 cup of pitted and cut green olives
• 1 veg stock cube
• 1 espresso cup of frik
• coriander
• salt & pepper
• olive oil
• lemon (to serve)

Add the olive oil in a large pan (I don’t know the quantity, about 4 tbsp I guess) and then the onion cut in big chuncks, leave it to cook on a medium heat for about 5 mins. In the meantime cut the veggies in big pieces (as you’ll have to blend them, so no need to waste time in cutting them in small pieces ). Add them to the onion, stir, add cumin, paprika, chilli, stock cube and some coriander, stir and leave them for few minutes, then add the tomatoes. After 5 minutes, add some hot water, enough to cover all the ingredients. Take the frik and leave it to soak in the espresso cup with some water (it will double in volume). When the veggies are soft and ready, blend them, then add the frik and the olives. Finish the soup adding some salt and pepper to taste and some fresh coriander. Leave to stand for about 15 minutes. Serve with some lemon. ((I hope I haven’t forgotten anything))

I personally like this soup ’cause it’s very refreshing (in my opinion) and then I love chilli

Missing it…

Assalamu alaykum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh,

The 50°C reached in Algeria are the only reason that stops me to wish to be there! I do miss it to be honest!

Insha’Allah Allah will plan everything for me and my family but I’m sincere: I miss my mother and father in law! I would like to stay there and see new “faces” masha’Allah and have some relaxing time with my sisters in law!

I would like to see my son with his feet in the sea and my dh and I relaxing with the family.

Khayr insha’Allah! Alhamdulillah it’s nearly Ramadhaan and we had a long year ….

…. can’t wait to leave London anyway!