The Seed-To-Ash Cycle of Cooking in Africa (Jiko's and Tree's)

Safari cookbook

Grilled Veggies

Mais

Put it on the grill till its gold brown

Take it off, add butter and salt

Ready to serve

Zucchini, Paprika, Tomato, Potato, Sweet Potato, Eggplant, Bitter Greens, or any Vegetable of your choice

Slice it

Add salt, peppers (herbs); Oil

Put it on the grill

Add cheese if you want to

Grill it until it is soft

Ready to serve with bread, pasta or even rice

Baked Pureed Carrots

6 Carrots
1 c Water
Salt & pepper to taste
1/2 c Margarine or butter
1/2 c Brown sugar

Cook carrots with water and margarine until done, puree in blender until thick. Add brown sugar and bake in oven on 300 for 45 minutes.

Italian Spinach

2 lb Bulk spinach or 2 (10-ounce) bags prewashed spinach, prepared for cooking
3 tb Olive oil
1 ts Salt
1/8 ts Pepper
1/4 Crushed garlic clove (optional)

Place spinach in a large pot, add no water, cover, and steam 3-5 minutes over moderate heat until slightly wilted but still bright green. Drain, add seasonings, and toss to mix.

Burschetta

Bread, thickly sliced
Cove garlic, cut in half
Olive oil
Handful continental parsley, shredded

Example for Toppings:

For porcini mushroom topping:
Frozen porcini mushrooms

For cherry tomato topping:
1 onion, finely chopped
2 handfuls cherry tomatoes
Basil leaves, freshly picked

Toast bread in a dry chargill pan.

For mushroom topping, heat oil in a large fry pan, add mushrooms and sauté until golden.

For cherry tomato topping, sauté onion gently to caramelize, then add cherry tomatoes and stir briefly to just warm through.

Remove pan from heat.
Rub garlic over one side of toast and sprinkle with parsley.
Drizzle with olive oil and spoon over tomato or mushroom topping. If using tomato, sprinkle with basil leaves to finish.

Italian Spinach

2 lb Bulk spinach or 2 (10-ounce) bags prewashed spinach, prepared for cooking
3 tb Olive oil
1 ts Salt
1/8 ts Pepper
1/4 Crushed garlic clove (optional)

Place spinach in a large pot, add no water, cover, and steam 3-5 minutes over moderate heat until slightly wilted but still bright green. Drain, add seasonings, and toss to mix.

Herbed Potato Bake

1/2 c Butter
2 Envelopes onion soup mix
1 tb Rosemary
6 lg Baking potatoes

Preheat the oven. In small saucepan over medium heat, melt butter,
stir in onion soup mix & rosemary until blended. Cut potatoes in 1/2
inch slices, place in a baking dish. Toss with onion
mixture. Cover with foil & bake for 1 hour or until potatoes are
fork-tender.

Different Sweet Potatoes

Sweet potatoes; peeled and quartered
Oil
Equal parts sugar and flour

Dip each potato quarter in oil. Roll in sugar and flour. A little salt may be added if desired. Bake on well-greased pan bake it until it is done, approximately 25 minutes.

Potato Omelet

250ml (1 cup) olive oil
4 medium-sized potatoes, peeled, quartered and thinly sliced
6 eggs
Salt

Heat the oil in a large frying pan and gently fry the potatoes until almost soft, stirring from time to time so that they don't burn on the bottom of the pan. Drain the potatoes in a colander to get rid of the excess oil. The potatoes should be soft but not crisp. Remove oil from pan.

Beat the eggs in a bowl and season with salt. Add the potatoes, mix well and check seasoning.

Heat the frying pan on a moderate heat. Pour in the potatoes and eggs and shake the frying pan from time to time so that the omelette doesn't stick to the bottom.

Once the bottom of the omelette has set turn the omelette by placing either a flat plate on the frying pan and quickly turning over. Gently slide the omelette back into the frying pan and continue cooking, once again shaking the pan from time to time so that it doesn't stick to the bottom.

When omelette has set slide out of pan onto a plate to serve.

Ugali

4 cups Corn Flour,

White Cornmeal or Ground Maize

8 cups water

Heat water to boiling in a saucepan, slowly pour the corn flour into boiling water. Avoid forming lumps. Stir continuously and mash any lumps that do form. Add more corn flour until it is thick. Cook for three or four minutes, continue to stir. Top with a pat of butter or margarine, if desired. Cover and keep warm.

Serve immediately with any meat or vegetable stew, or any dish with a sauce or gravy.

Engurma

6 cups of couscous (not "instant couscous")

2 cups warm water, mixed with two teaspoons salt

1/2 cup cooking oil (olive oil, melted butter, or similar)

Vegetable stew (or any chicken broth or meat stew)

Put half the couscous in a large bowl. Sprinkle half the salted water over the couscous. Add the oil and water into the couscous. Let the couscous form small pellets, but break any lumps. Add the remaining couscous and continue the process, adding more water and oil to make the couscous uniformly damp, but not wet.

Cover the couscous with a cloth and leave it to rest for an hour or two.

Bring the stew broth (or chicken) to a very gentle boil in the bottom pot. Place the couscous in the top pot, cover, and let the couscous steam for about an hour over the stew (or simmering broth).

Remove the couscous from the steamer and place it in a clean bowl. Add some more oil or butter into and let it cool for about fifteen minutes. Return the couscous to the steamer and let it steam for another half hour.

Pizza (dought)
1 tablespoon active dry yeast,
or 1 oz (25 g) brewer’s yeast
1 1/2 cups (350 cc) warm water
3 1/2 cups (500 g) flour 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
pinch of salt likewise a pinch of Sugar too
Add warm water in a small bowl and dissolve the yeast in it. Let it stand until it Is creamy (10min). In a large bowl you combine the flour, olive oil, salt (and sugar). Add the yeast mixture into the large bowl, stir it well to combine. Beat it well until a stiff dought has formed. Cover and rise until dought in volume rised (30min). Preheat the oven. Turn dought out onto a well floured surface, form it into a round and roll out into pizza crust shape. Now you can cover it with sauce (normaly tomate sauce) and add toppings. Bake it until it is golden brown (around 20min).

Orange Cake with a hint of Olive

6md Oranges

1/3c (Extra-) virigin olive oil

4 Eggs

½ ts Salt

½ c Sugar, (indepense of your own tast you can add a bit more)

1 ¼ c Flour, (high gluten preferred)

1 tb Baking powder

Preheat oven then remove the orange zest and juice from one, the rest set aside for another use. Get a large bowl and put the eggs, beat the eggs for a while. Slowly add sugar and salt until it is frothy and light. Sift the flour and baking soda together and gradually add to egg mixture. In a side bowl, mix olive oil, citrus zest and juice. With the help of a spoon you stir this into the egg mixture (all of it). Pour butter into prepared pan and place in oven and bake 50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in center of cake comes out clean. Cool to room temperature, cut into wedges and serve.

Banana Chocolate Muffins
1 3/4 c All purpose flour
1/2 c Granulated sugar
3 ts Baking powder
1/2 ts Salt
1/2 c Semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 Egg
1/4 c Cooking oil
1/4 c Milk
1 c Mashed bananas (3 medium)
Measure first five ingredients into large bowl. Mix thoroughly and make a well in center. Beat egg until frothy. Mix in oil, milk and banana. Pour into well. Stir only to moisten. Batter will be lumpy. Fill greased muffin tins 3/4 full. Bake in 400 degree oven for 20 to 25 minutes. Yield 12 - 24 muffins (depending on size).

Walnut Spice Cake with Lemon Curd

2 c All-purpose flour
1 1/4 ts Baking soda
1 ts Ground ginger
1 ts Ground "cinnamon"
1/2 ts Pepper
1/2 ts Salt
1 Egg
1/2 c Sugar
1/2 c Butter, melted and cooled
1 tb Grated lemon peel
3/4 c Hot water
1/3 c Unsulfured molasses
1/3 c Honey
1 c Chopped walnuts
Purchased Lemon curd

Preheat oven to 350F. Butter 8-inch square baking dish. Sift first 6 ingredients together. Whisk egg and sugar in large bowl to blend. Whisk in butter and lemon peel. Combine hot water, molasses and honey in large cup.

Add to butter mixture alternately with dry ingredients,beginning and ending with dry ingredients. Mix in walnuts. Transfer to prepared dish. Bake until springy to touch, about 50 minutes. Cool cake slightly on rack.

Cut cake into squares. Serve warm or at room temperature, spooning lemon curd over each piece.

A Pineapple honey bread
2 tb Oil
1 c Honey
1 Egg, lightly beaten
2 c Flour
2 ts Baking powder
3/4 ts Salt
1 c Whole bran
1 c Pineapple juice
1/2 c Finely chopped pineapple
3/4 c Chopped Macadamia nuts or other nuts
Grease it in a loaf pan. Mix the oil, honey and egg together in a large bowl. Stir in the flour, baking powder, salt, whole bran, pineapple juice and pineapple then mix it until just blended. Fold in the (Macadamia) nuts. Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Bake in the oven for a hour.

Gingerbread

1 c Sugar (white or brown if you like you can replace it also with honey)
1/4 t Salt
1 t Ginger
1/2 t Cinnamon
1/2 t Cloves, powdered
1 c Vegetable oil
1 c Syrup (light)
2 t Baking soda
1 c Water, boiling
2 1/2 c Flour, all-purpose, unsifted
2 Eggs
Mix the sugar, salt, ginger, cinnamon and cloves together in a bowl. Add the vegetable oil and the molasses, stirring until well-blended. After that mix the baking soda into the boiling water and immediately stir into the mixture, add the flour gradually, mixing well after each addition. Beat the eggs then add the mixture into it.
Pour into a greased baking pan and bake it for 40 minutes.

Zucchini Bread
2 c. grated Zucchini
2 c. Sugar
3 Eggs, beaten
3 c. Flour
1 c. chopped Nuts (your choice of nuts)
1 tsp. Cinnamon
1 tsp. Salt
1 tsp. Vanilla
1 tsp. Baking Soda
1 tsp. Baking Powder
1 c. Oil
Mix dry ingredients, then beat in oil, and eggs, after that zucchini and nuts. Bake it for 50 to 60 minutes.

Potato Breads
250 g Potatoes; unpeeled (8oz)
175 g Plain flour; plus extra for rolling (6oz)
A pinch of salt
Concentrated butter or vegetable oil for frying

Cook the potatoes in boiling water for about 15 minutes, until just tender.

Drain it, leave it to cool slightly, then peel and grate into a bowl.

Add the flour to the potato with the salt and mix to form a soft dough, adding a little water if necessary.

Divide the dough into about 15 small pieces and dust with flour.

Roll out each piece thinly on a lightly floured surface, to about 15cm (6inch) rounds.

Heat some butter or oil in a large frying pan and fry shallow the potato bread pieces for 1-2 minutes, until tinged with brown, turning once.

Buttermilk Corn Bread
1 Egg
2 c Buttermilk
1 c Water
1 ts Baking soda
2 ts Salt
Corn meal
Combine egg, buttermilk and water; add salt and soda. Stir in enough corn meal until of cake batter consistency. Bake it for 15 to 20 minutes in a well greased pan.

Crusty Rye Bread

2 c Rye flour
2 tb Vegetable oil
1 tb Dry yeast
2 tb Cider vinegar
1/2 c Warm water
1/2 c Unbleached white flour
1 ts Salt

In a deep bowl, measure the rye flour. Make a well in the centre. Dissolve the yeast in the water & add to the bowl. Add salt, oil & vinegar. Stir vigorously. Add the white flour. Knead well till the dough is pliable.

Form into a round bread. Use a brush to oil the surface & set in a 9" round pan. Allow to double in size.

Preheat oven to 350F & bake for 1 hour 15 minutes.