English Af-Soomaali عربي Chocolate Cake & Torte www.xawaash.com Good chocolate cake reminds both of us of La Baguette in Jeddah. It was one of those places we liked to frequent during our stay in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. It was without doubt the best Patisserie/Cafe in Jeddah. We remember the owner, a young Saudi gentleman, who…
English Af-Soomaali Français عربي Crostata www.xawaash.com This recipe has its origins in Bardera, Somalia. There, a Somali cook trained by Italians used to prepare a ricotta crostata using a delicious, buttery dough. A few years later, my mother, Hooyo Fadumo, replaced the ricotta with jam and our Doolsho Malmalaaddo was born. It was prepared in…
English Af-Soomaali Français A sponge cake was the first cake we baked in Somalia. The ingredients were: 6 eggs, 1 cup sugar, and 1 cup flour. The steps were: separate the yolks from the egg whites; beat the egg whites with the sugar until foamy; beat in the egg yolks, then gently add the…
We had to bake this cake three times for this post. It wasn’t because it did not come out right the first time. When we first baked it last Friday, we could not resist and we had it with tea while still warm and without the glaze. We then baked it on Saturday, poured…
In Somalia, this was the closest thing we had to a fruitcake. Raisins were always special and were reserved for decorating and topping the festive rice as well adding to cakes. Apart from this cake, the only other cake we remember that had fruits was Panettone, which was sold in an Italian specialty store…
Pound cakes were some of the few cakes that were popular in Somalia. They were second in popularity to sponge cakes. Pound cakes were sold in teashops but they were not baked there. They were sold to the teashops by ladies who baked them at home and the recipes were closely guarded secrets. There were…
The Bravanese call this cake Mkate wa Khamiiri. They also know it as Ja, Teka (Eat & Smile). Yes, it will bring a smile to your face but it will also test your patience. In my opinion, this cake benefits from being cooled completely and let to rest for a few hours before eating it. Actually, I…
This is the Bravanese (Brava, Somalia) take on the honeycomb rice cake that has different versions that are made all over Asia. It is sweet, soft and springy. The yeast gives it a spongy texture that lends it the ability to soak sauces. The name comes from the deep dish it is served in. In some…
