Category: Dessert’

Dessert’

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Original Yogurt Thiakry

Original Yogurt Thiakry

Thiakry (also called dégué, thiacry or chakery) is a West African dessert that originated from Senegal. The Thiakry consist of millet semolina of the size of couscous. The millet is tasteless therefore, it soak up the taste of the yogurt. My Yogurt Thiakry is made with homemade yogurt, milk, sugar, sour cream and or heavy cream. I also added nutmeg or vanilla extra for aroma.

Unlike my husband, I prefer the “Thiakry Couscous” to the “Yogurt Thiakry”. What make the “Yogurt Thiakry” different from the “Milk Thiakry” is the difference in milk to yogurt to milk ratio. The Thiakry is sold on the street in West Africa and in some supermarket. You should also try my “Rum Thiakry”

The Thiakry can be cook in a saucepan on the stove but I take a shortcut and I add enough boiling water to cover the millet semolina, cover and let the millet absorb the water for about 20 mins and heat in the microwave for 3 mins. The cooked Thiakry should be fluffy and moist.

The Yogurt Thiakry should be served cold.

5 cup of milk

1 cup plain yogurt

1 cup of powder milk

2 cup dèguè (Thiakry)

1/2 cup commercial plain yogurt

1 tablespoon vanilla extract 

1 teaspoon nutmeg 

Warm the milk to right below boiling, about 200°F. Stir the milk gently as it heats to make sure the milk doesn’t boil over.

Cool the milk. Let the milk cool until it is just warm to the touch, 112°F to 115°F

Add the yogurt and powder milk and whisking gently. Place in warm water overnight

Cook the millet with steam or microwave

When it is well cooked, put in a calabash, crush, because the small grains form a single ball, work until the small balls are detached from each other.

Add nutmeg, sugar and vanilla extract

Pour into bowls, put in the fridge. Serve as Cold

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How to Make Thick & Creamy Yogurt without yogurt maker

How to Make Thick & Creamy Yogurt


1/2 gallon milk — whole or 2% are best, but skim can also be used
Warm the milk to right below boiling, about 200°F. Stir the milk gently as it heats to make sure the bottom doesn’t scorch and the milk doesn’t boil over.
Cool the milk. Let the milk cool until it is just warm to the touch, 112°F to 115°F
Add 1/2 cup commercial yogurt containing active cultures and 1 cup of powder milk
Then whisking gently
Transfer the to storage containers
Place in warm water overnight

Serve with some sugar (or honey) and some fruits
You can also use to make this beautiful “Blueberry Lemon Yogurt Cake”

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Chin Chin recipe

Chin Chin

Chin Chin

These African croquettes are also known as “Atchomon” or “Achonmon” in Togo and Benin; “Chin Chin” in Nigeria, Ghana or “cakes” in other African countries. They are very easy to make and very appreciated during an aperitif with friends! Chin Chin is similar to the Scandinavian klenat snack, a crispy dough of cooked or fried donuts made from wheat flour and other traditional bakery items.

  • 3 cups 450g all purpose Flour
  • 2/3 cup 150g of butter (or margarine)
  • ¾ cup 150g of granulated sugar
  • ½ cup of milk
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
  • 1 teaspoon nutmeg
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • ¼ teaspoon Salt
  • vegetable oil
  1. Measure and mix dry ingredients in a bowl and set aside.
  2. Measure and mix the wet ingredients together except the butter.
  3. Add the butter to the dry ingredients and mix with your fingers until everything is combined.
  4. Pour in other moist ingredients and mix until dough is obtained. It should form a perfect dough, but if it feels a bit stiff, add a tablespoon of water or milk. If you feel too sticky, add a tablespoon or 2 more flour. Do not overwork the dough.
  5. Let stand on the counter for about 5 minutes. Unpack the dough and lay the dough about a quarter of an inch thick because the dough will increase when you fry them.
  6. Using a knife or pizza cutter or even a dough divider, cut the dough horizontally and vertically, forming small squares.
  7. Put the small squares in a bowl and sprinkle some flour on them and shake to prevent them from sticking.
  8. Heat the oil. Fry until the light is golden brown. Remove with a spoon to drain and spread on a tray lined with paper towel to cool. Chin Chin will be soft to warm but will harden as it cools.

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How to make the best brioche?

BEST BRIOCHE RECIPE

1/2 cup warm milk
2 teaspoons active dry yeast (not rapid rise)
3 cups all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1/3 cup butter, Softened
1 teaspoon vanilla sugar

1 egg yolk beaten with 1 teaspoon of milk

Whisk the milk, 1 tablespoon sugar and yeast in a small bowl. Let stand for 10 minutes. Set aside

In the bowl of a stand mix together all-purpose flour, remaining sugar, and the milk mixture.Turn the mixer on low and add the eggs to the bowl 1 at a time beating well after each addition.


Continuously beat at low speed for 5 minutes. When the dough becomes hard to stir add the butter cubes 1/3 at a time, beating for about 1 minute after each addition. Once the butter has been added, beat for 10 more minutes until the dough is smooth.
Transfer the dough to a lightly oiled bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let the dough rest in a warm place until doubled in size, approximately 3 hours.


Turn the dough out on a well floured surface and gently knead out the air bubbles.
Shape the dough into round balls and place into two buttered h loaf pans.

Allow the dough to rise, uncovered, in a warm place until it rises about 1/2 inch above the top of the pans, approximately 2 hours.


To gaze, brush the brioche tops with egg yolk – milk mix
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Bake the brioche until it is golden brown on top, approximately 30-35 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 2-3 minutes.

Turn the bread out of the pans and cool completely on a cooling rack.
If not serving immediately, wrap the hot bread in foil and set aside at room temperature for up to 2 days.

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DIY Cream Tart – Africa cake – EASY RECIPE!

DIY Cream Tart!

 

I wanted to represent my lovely Africa therefore instead of making a heart shape, number or letter, I choose an African shape cookie

Valentines Day Layered Cookie Tart Cake – How to make a Number Cake – Valentines Day Cake Trend 2018! – Birthday cookie cake in number shape recipe

This cream tart is bursting with flavor! The cookie layers are crisp on the outside, yet soft on the inside. The filling is a rich and creamy mascarpone whipped cream. Top it with your favorite fruits and you have a perfect mouth-watering dessert.

This dough and filling makes enough for one double-layer letter. The Number Cake (Alphabet Cake) trend is everywhere on Instagram and Pinterest and I’m obsessed! I wanted to get in on the Number cake trend by making a Valentines Day, X and O, inspired version! This would be the perfect Valentines Day dessert to make for that special someone. A lot of people make Valentines Day cookies to give out to their friends and family but this is even better because it is a GIANT Valentines Day cookie decorated with a bunch of gorgeous treats! I love how this Valentines Day Layered Cookie Tart turned out, let me know in the comments down below if you try this out for yourself!

Ingredients

Tart Dough:

2 egg yolks

4 tbsp very cold water

2 tsp vanilla extract

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour

2/3 cup granulated sugar

1/2 tsp salt

16 tbsp (2 sticks) cold unsalted butter, cut into ¼” cubes

Cream Filling:

16 oz mascarpone (1 cup)

2 cup chilled heavy cream

1/2 cup granulated sugar

2 tsp vanilla extract

Toppings:

Fruits

Cookies

Fresh or gumpaste flowers

Candies

Jam (strawberry or apricot) (for optional glaze)

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a small bowl, stir together the egg yolks, water and vanilla; set aside.

In a large bowl, stir together the flour, sugar and salt. Using a pastry cutter, cut the butter into the flour mixture until the texture resembles coarse cornmeal, with butter pieces no larger than small peas. Add the egg mixture and mix with a fork just until the dough comes together. Mix with your hands, if needed.

Transfer the dough to a piece of parchment paper, and sprinkle the paper with flour. I first rolled my dough out to ¼” thick, but that was too thick, so I went a little thinner.

Use a template to cut out the 2 Africa shape, letters or numbers with a sharp knife. Transfer the dough to a cookie sheet and bake for approximately 12 – 16 minutes or until the edges start to brown.

While the cookies are cooling, prepare the filling.

 

Beat mascarpone and heavy cream with sugar in a large bowl until the mixture begins to thicken. Add the vanilla extract. Continue beating until the mixture holds a stiff peak.

Place the filling into a piping bag and pipe dollops of the cream beginning with the inner and outer edges of the cookie. Place the second cookie on top and repeat the process with the filling.

Add your favorite toppings! Brush the fruit with watered down apricot jam for shine.

Recipe Notes

*Keep refrigerated. Best eaten the day it’s prepared.

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CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIE DOUGH ICE CREAM

CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIE DOUGH ICE CREAM

For the Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough:

¼ cup (1/2 stick) butter, softened

¼ cup brown sugar

2 tablespoons white sugar

½ teaspoon vanilla

2 tablespoons milk

¼ teaspoon salt

¾ cup to 1 cup flour

6 tablespoons mini chocolate chips

For The Ice Cream:

1 cup sugar

6 egg yolks

2 cups heavy cream

2 cups whole milk

For the Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough:

Cream together your butter and sugars until mixed and light.

 

Add in your vanilla and milk and stir to combine.

 

Add in your salt and flour until all combined. Start with ¾ cup and add additional flour by the ½ tablespoon if needed to get mixture a little drier. Add mini chocolate chips

 

Spread your cookie dough out on a piece of waxed paper in a thin layer.

 

Place in freezer for about 30 minutes.

Remove from freezer and chop into small squares.

 

For The Ice Cream:

In a medium sized saucepan whisk together the egg yolks and sugar very well for about 7 minutes until the mixture is pale and fluffy.

Combine the milk and cream and heat

Whisking constantly, add about a cup of the scaled milk to the egg yolk mixture. This tempers the egg yolks so that they do not cook and scramble. Whisk in about another cup and make sure it is well blended with the egg yolk mixture. Finally add the remaining scaled milk and cream and make sure it is well blended in.

Place the saucepan over medium heat and stir constantly but slowly for about 5 minutes until the mixture slightly thickens. At this point you should be able to dip the wooden spoon in the custard and draw a distinct line with your finger on the back of the wooden spoon. Do not boil or mixture may curdle.

Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla extract. Chill the custard very well for several hours or overnight.

When completely chilled, stir the custard well and pour into your ice cream maker. Process for 20- 30 minutes until the ice cream becomes as thick as possible.

Sprinkle some of your cookie dough pieces on top of your ice cream mixture. Swirl the cookie dough pieces through, so they are spread throughout the ice cream. Add a few more pieces on top if needed.

Repeat with final layer.

Cover with plastic wrap or foil and place in freezer for 6 hours, or overnight.

 

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Puff puff

Ivorian donuts (Bofloto or Gbofloto) are very popular in West Africa. Bofloto or Gbofloto is called Botokoin (Togo), Puff puff (Nigeria and Cameroon), Mikate (Democratic Congo), Bofrot (Ghana), BHB (Cameroon). The long list of name is proof of its popularity. The ingredients are the basics of the pastry of wheat flour, sugar, yeast …

Unlike donut balls, which are prepared with baking powder, Bofloto or Gbofloto are prepared with yeast. Bakery yeast must be activated before use. To do this, mix warm water, sugar and yeast stirring vigorously to ensure the complete dissolution of the yeast. Cover and reserve in a warm place for 5 to 10 minutes. Once the foam forms on top, your yeast is activated and ready for use. The other ingredients (wheat flour and salt) are added to the activated yeast. Nevertheless, salt in high concentrations can kill yeast.

When I was a child, I often looked with astonishment at how the women who sold the Bofloto or Gbofloto took the mixture with their fingertips, placed it in the palm of their hands and dropped the mixture into oil. I tried several times to imitate them but I failed, so I use the ice cream spoon. When the Bofloto or Gbofloto are golden, they are transferred and white sugar.

2)

1 + 2/3 cups warm water

2 + 1/4 teaspoon active dry yeast (1 packet)

3 cups flour

2/3 cup sugar

1/2 tablespoon salt

1 teaspoon Nutmeg (optional)

1 teaspoon vanilla

Oil for deep frying

Mix sugar, water, and yeast . Set aside for 5 minutes in a warm place to activate the yeast.

Add flour.

Let the mixture rise for approximately 1 hours in a warm place.

Add nutmeg, vanilla and salt and mix thoroughly

Heat your oil.

Using your hands grab a little bit of mixture at time and drop in the oil.

Fry for a few minutes until the bottom side is golden brown.

Turn the ball over and fry for a few more minutes until the other side is golden brown.

Use a large spoon or something like that to take it out of the oil. Place them on napkins right away to soak up some of the excess oil.

You can roll the finished product in table sugar or powdered sugar to make it sweeter

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Rum Raisin Ice Cream

Rum Raisin Ice Cream

1 cup raisins
4 ounces dark or amber rum
1 cup sugar
6 egg yolks
2 cups heavy cream
2 cups whole milk

Soak raisins in the rum overnight in an airtight container.
In a medium sized saucepan whisk together the egg yolks and sugar very well for about 7 minutes until the mixture is pale and fluffy.


Combine the milk and cream and heat in the microwave
Whisking constantly, add about a cup of the scaled milk to the egg yolk mixture. This tempers the egg yolks so that they do not cook and scramble. Whisk in about another cup and make sure it is well blended with the egg yolk mixture. Finally add the remaining scaled milk and cream and make sure it is well blended in.


Place the saucepan over medium heat and stir constantly but slowly for about 5 minutes until the mixture slightly thickens. At this point you should be able to dip the wooden spoon in the custard and draw a distinct line with your finger on the back of the wooden spoon. Do not boil or mixture may curdle.


Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla extract. Chill the custard very well for several hours or overnight.
When completely chilled, stir the custard well and pour into your ice cream maker. Process for 20- 30 minutes until the ice cream becomes as thick as possible.


Add the soaked raisins and any rum that has not been absorbed by them.


Transfer the ice cream quickly to a bowl and place in an airtight container and freeze in the coldest part of your refrigerator freezer or deep freezer overnight before serving.

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GLAZED ORANGE BUNDT CAKE

GLAZED ORANGE BUNDT CAKE

For the Cake:
1 1/2 cups flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 cup sugar
2 eggs
3 tablespoons milk
3/4 cup freshly squeezed orange juice from about 3 oranges
1/2 cup oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
5-6 tablespoons orange zest from about 3 oranges
Pinch of salt

For the Glaze:
1 1/4 cups icing sugar
2-3 tablespoons fresh orange juice
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the Cake:
Preheat oven to 350 F (176 C) and prepare a bundt cake pan by greasing it well.
In a medium large bowl, sift together all the dry ingredients, and mix until combined. Set aside.


In a separate bowl, combine the wet ingredients and whisk until combined.


Slowly add the dry ingredient mix to the wet ingredients, and lightly whisk until combined. Do not over mix.


Pour the batter into the bundt cake and bake for about 30-40 minutes until lightly golden brown on top and a toothpick comes out clean.


Remove from oven and let cool till room temperature and then gently take out the bundt cake. Cool completely on baking rack.

For the Orange Glaze:
Mix all the ingredients until fully combined.
Drizzle on completely cooled cake and serve.

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STRAWBERRY PINEAPPLE POPSICLES

STRAWBERRY PINEAPPLE POPSICLES

2 cups pineapple chunks + 1/2 cup pineapple juice + 1 Tbsp simple syrup

10 raspberries

3 cups sliced strawberry + 2 Tbsp simple syrup

In a blender, or food processor, puree pineapple chunks with 1/3 cup of pineapple juice. Taste and sweeten with 1 Tbsp simple syrup, if necessary. Transfer pineapple puree into a liquid measuring cup with a spout and set aside.

Wash and clean out blender. Puree strawberries with remaining 1/2 cup pineapple juice. Taste and sweetened with 2 Tbsp simple syrup, if necessary. Transfer strawberry puree into another liquid measuring cup with spout.

Pour strawberry puree into molds, filling mold half way. Next, slowly pour pineapple puree into mold. Since the pineapple puree is more dense than the strawberry, it will cause that swirling/marble effect.

Place a layer of foil over the popsicle molds, followed by the popsicle mold cover. Insert wooden sticks into the mold and then remove popsicle mold cover, leaving only the foil. In my experience, I have had difficultly removing the plastic mold cover, so I prefer to use foil. Place mold in freezer for at least 3 hours until the popsicles are solid.

To remove popsicles from mold, submerge mold into room temperature water for 60-90 seconds. Remove from water and pull popsicles out. Enjoy immediately!

Simple Syrup:

1 cup water

1 cup granulated sugar

Simple Syrup:

In a small sauce pot, combine water and sugar. Bring to a boil until sugar has dissolved. Let cool to room temperature. Store in fridge until ready to use.