Chipsi Mayai

I first had this delicious dish in Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania a couple of years ago. My friend, a local, took me to a hole-in-the-wall restaurant and ordered this for me. I must say, I was really skeptical at first, I mean fries with eggs???? After the first bite, I was hooked! 2 years later I attempted to make this for myself and was very pleased with the results.

Chipsi Mayai

Peel one large potato

Cut the potato into fries

Heat up oil then fry potatoes until done. Set aside.

Mix 3 eggs.

Empty the oil from the frying pan and add butter instead.

Put half of the egg mixture and the fries into the frying pan.

Use a plate and flip the chipsi mayai

Rebutter the pan and add the rest of the egg mixture

Slide the chipsi mayai on top of the egg mixture. It should be kind of like a sandwich with the fries mostly in between the omelette.

Cook until ready. Best served warm. Enjoy :)

The Winter Olympics Are Coming!

Only 12 days until the start of the 2010 Winter Olympics!It's so nice to see the city all decked out! We're having nice-ish weather for a change so hopefully things stay like this during the games!

Chocolate Truffles!!!

It had been almost 5 years since I made my last batch of chocolate truffles and I decided they would make great Christmas gifts for my friends! A little messy to make, but rewarding (not to mention delicious!). I decided to make more non-traditional ones, hence the matcha and banana flavouring added. Next time I'd like to try to make orange or raspberry flavoured ones.

Chocolate Truffles (from http://chocomap.com/chocolate-making-truffles.php)

Ingredients:

8 oz 250g Chocolate (chopped fine and set aside in a 1 quart bowl)
1/3 cup 75mL Whipping cream
1 cup cocoa powder or finely chopped chocolate or nuts to be used to coat the truffle balls.

Recipe:

1. Bring cream just to a simmer (not boil) in a heavy saucepan. Remove from heat.
2. Stir cream slowly into the chocolate by hand with spatula or spoon until all chocolate is melted. Beat by hand or using hand-held emulsion blender until smooth and emulsified.
3. Chill in refrigerator until firm (approximately 1-3 hours).
4. Scrape spoon or melon-ball cutter across surface of mixture; quickly press with fingertips into 1-inch (2.5cm) balls. Roll immediately in cocoa powder or chopped chocolate.
5. Store in refrigerator well wrapped in plastic bag for 1 week, or freeze in plastic freezer bag for 1-2 months. Bring to room temperature in the bag to prevent condensation and serve.

Happy Birthday Han!

One of my roommates, Han, holding up the pineapple upside down cake I made for him. Believe me, it was yummy! Here's the recipe I used.

Pineapple Upside Down Cake Recipe

1 - 8 1/2 ounce can sliced pineapple
3 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
4 maraschino cherries (halved)
1/3 cup butter
1/2 cup sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup flour
1 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt

Melt butter in a 9" circular pan. Stir in brown sugar and mix well in the pan. Arrange pineapple slices in the bottom of the pan. Place 1/2 a cherry in the middle of each pineapple ring.

Drain the pineapple, reserving syrup. Add water to remaining syrup to make 1/2 cup.

Cream together shortening and white sugar until light. Add egg and vanilla. Beat until fluffy. Add dry ingredients plus 1/2 cup reserved pineapple syrup. Beat until all is well mixed.

Preheat oven to 350ºF.

Bake for 40 to 45 minutes. Cool for 5 minutes in the pan then invert the cake on to a plate.

Watoto Children's Choir

I had the honour of seeing these Ugandan children perform at Church today. It was amazing! I rarely see so much energy on stage. The kids were all between the ages of 9 and 13 and had lost both parents to the AIDS pandemic yet they managed to have big smiles on their face and spoke of their hopes and dreams for the future. It was truly inspiring!

http://www.watoto.com/