የሙዝ ኬክ

የሚወስደው ግዜ:- አንድ ሰዓት ከአስር ደቂቃ (አስር ደቂቃ ዝግጅት፣ አንድ ሰዓት ማብሰል)
መጠን:- ለአስራ ሁለት ሰው የሚበቃ


2 ሙዝ
300 ግራም ስኳር
200 ግራም ቅቤ
2 እንቁላል
3 የሾርባ ማንኪያ ክሬም ከተገኘ
400 ግራም የፉርኖ ዱቄት
አንድ የሻይ ማንኪያ ቤኪንግ ሶዳ
አንድ የሻይ ማንኪያ ቫኒላ

በመጀመሪያ ኦቭኑን/ማብሰያውን 175 ዲግሪ ድረስ ማሞቅ።

ተለቅ ያለ ጎድጓዳ ሰሃን ውስጥ እንቁላሉንና ስኳሩን አብሮ መምታት። ቅቤውን ለስለስ ቀለጥ አድርጎ ወደ እንቁላሉ መጨመር። ሙዞቹን በሹካ በደምብ መፍጨትና ከክሬሙ ጋር ቀላቅሎ ከእንቁላሉ ጋር ማደባለቅ።

ዱቄቱና ቤኪንግ ሶዳውን ካቀላቀሉ በሗላ በአንድ ግዜ ሁለት የሾርባ ማንኪያ ያህል እያደረጉ ወደ ሊጡ መጨመርና በደምብ ማቀላቀል። ቫኒላ ካለ ጨምሮ ማደባለቅ::

ማብሰያውን ትሪ በቅቤ መቀባትና በተፈጨ የደረቅ ዳቦ ዱቄት መሸፈን። የትሪውን 2/3ኛ በሊጡ መሙላትና ወደሞቀው ማብሰያ አስገብቶ ለአንድ ሰዓት ያህል ማብሰል። የተለያዩ ማብሰያዎች የተለያይ ባህሪይ ስላላቸው የሚያስፈልገው ሙቀት ወይም የማብሰያው ግዜ ሊለያይ ይችላል። ኬኩ ከማብሰያው ሲወጣ በጥርስ እንጨት ወይም በተመሳሳይ ነገር ወጋ አድርጎ እንጨቱ ንፁህ ወይም ደረቅ ሆኖ ከወጣ ኬኩ በስሏል ማለት ነው። ኬኩን ለማሳመር ከፈለጉ በደቃቁ የተፈጨ ስኳር በማጥለያ ውስጥ በማሳለፍ መነስነስ። እንደፍላጎትዎ ኬኩን በሞቃትነቱ መይም አቀዝቅዘው መመገብ ይችላሉ።

ጥቁርና ነጭ

ክፍል አንድ


መልዕክት መቀበሌን የሚያበስረውን ፉጨት ሰማሁኝና ስልኬን ብድግ አደረኩኝ። 'ናፈቅሽኝ' ይላል። መልስ ሳልሰጥ ስልኩን አጠፋሁትና አጠገቤ ያለው ጠረዼዛ ላይ አስቀመጥኩት። አቅፎኝ የነበረውን እጁን ሰብሰብ ሲያደርግ ቀና ብዬ የጠቆረ ፊቱን ተመለከትኩና በረጅሙ ተነፈስኩኝ። የጠበኩት ንግግር ወድያውኑ ተጀመረ።

'ማርክ ማነው?'

'አንድ ጓደኛዬ ነው...ያለፈው ሳምንት አባቱ መሞታቸውን ነግሬህ ነበር'

ፀጥታ ሰፈነ። ሁለታችንም ቲቪው ላይ አፍጥጠናል። አስተነፋፈሱ ምን እያሰበ እንደሆነ ያሳብቅበታል።

'ለምንድነው በዚህ ሰአት መልዕክት የሚልክልሽ? ምንድነው ካንቺ የሚፈልገው?'

'አላውቅም ሚኪ... የሚያዋራው ሰው ፈልጎ ይሆናል'

እውነቴን ነው። ማርክ ከዚህ በፊት እንደዚህ አይነት መልዕክት ልኮልኝ አያውቅም። ሰሞኑን ከአባቱ ማረፍ በሗላ በስልክም በአካልም ተገናኝተን ብዙ ተጫውተናል። በሁለታችን መሃል ግን ከንፁህ ጓደኝነት ውጪ ምንም ነገር ኖሮ አያውቅም።

'እኔ ግን ለምን እንደዚህ እንደምታደርጊ በፍፁም አይገባኝም ሃኒ!' የደም ስሮቹ ግንባሩ ላይ ተገታትረው ወጥተዋል። 'ሁሉ ነገር ላንቺ ቀልድና ጨዋታ ነው... አንቺኮ ህጻን አይደለሽም...እንዳዋቂ ማሰብ ጀምሪ እንጂ!'

ደሜ ሲፈላ ይሰማኝ ጀመር። ምንድነው እኔ ያደረኩት ነገር? ማርክን እንደዚህ አይነት መልዕክት እንዲልክልኝ አላበረታታሁትም። እንደጓደኝነቴ በሃዘኑ ግዜ ከጎኑ ሆኜ ከማጽናናት ውጪ ያጠፋሁት ነገርም አይታየኝም።

'እንዴ! እኔ ምን እንድልህ ነው የምትፈልገው? እኔ የመልዕክቱ ተቀባይ እንጂ ላኪ አይደለሁኝም... ሌላ ሰው ላደረገው ነገር ደግሞ እኔን ተጠያቂ ልታደርገኝ አትችልም... ማርክ ፍቅረኛ እንዳለኝ ያውቃል። አንተ የምታስበውን ያስባል ብዬም አላምንም... ደግሞ ወዴት ነው የምትሄደው በዚህ ሰአት?'  ተነስቶ ጫማውን ማጥለቅ ጀምሯል።

'ወደቤት... ጠዋት ስራ መግባት አለብኝ'

ነገ እኮ ቅዳሜ ነው ልለው አሰብኩና ከአፌ ላይ መለስኩት። ይህ አዲስ ነገር አይደለም። ሁሌም ጭቅጭቅ ሲነሳ የልቡን ከተናገረ በሗላ ያባረሩት ይመስል ሰበብ አስባብ ፈጥሮ ተሯርጦ ከአጠገቤ ይሸሻል። አሁንም ቀና ብሎ እንኳን በስርዓት ሳይመለከተኝ ደህና እደሪ አይነት ነገር አርጎምጉሞ ወጥቶ ሄደ።

እምባ ያቀረሩ አይኖቼን አደራረቁኝና ስልኬን አነሳሁኝ። ማርክ ምን ማለቱ ነው? ደጋግሜ ባነበው ግልፅ የሚሆንልኝ ይመስል ለብዙ ደቂቃዎች አፈጠጥኩብት። ማርክ ሚኪ እንደሚያስበው ከእኔ ሌላ ነገር ይፈልግ ይሆን? እኔስ እንደዚያ የሚያስብበት ምክንያት ሰጥቼው ይሆን? የማይመስል ነገር ማሰቤ አሳቀኝና ስልኬን መልሼ አስቀምጬ ከመተኛቴ በፊት ሰውነቴን ለመለቃለቅ ወደመታጠብያ ቤት አቀናሁ።

ተጣጥቤ ስወጣ ለሚኪ ደወልኩለት። እንዳሰብኩት ስልኩን አያነሳም። 'ይቅርታ ካጠፋሁኝ... ደህና እደር'  ብዬ መልዕክት ላኩለትና ወደመኝታዬ አመራሁ። 

ሰላምታ ለሁላችሁም


የመፃፍ ፍቅር አብሮኝ ያደገ ነው። በተለያየ ወቅትም አጫጭር ድርሰቶችን ለትቤትም ሆነ ራሴን ለማስደሰት ሞካክሪያለሁኝ። ትችት በመፍራት ግን እስካሁን ድረስ ድርሰቶቼን ለሰዎች አሳይቼ አላውቅም። በዚህ ረገድ ጥቁርና ነጭ የመጀመርያዬ ነው። እንደምትወዱት ተስፋ አደጋለሁ። እነሆ ክፍል አንድ፣ ቀጣዩ ክፍል ደግሞ በሚቀጥለው ሳምንት።


የእናንተው
ውቢት ኢትዮዽያ

Visiting Ethiopia? Learn the proper etiquettes: Part I

You probably consider yourself a polite person until suddenly you are amongst strangers in a new culture where some or most of what you say and do seems to upset someone. Here are a few things you should consider to make your stay in Ethiopia more pleasant.


Greetings

It is considered polite to lightly touch your right elbow with your left hand while shaking the other person's hand. If the other person is significantly older than you bow slightly at the same time. In case you're meeting more than one person, always start greetings with the oldest one.


On the street

If u meet someone you know on the streets, it's only polite to stop and greet them properly. Family is the most important relationship in Ethiopia so ask about their family. This may take up to 5 minutes. And don't be confused if people ask you repeatedly how you are doing, that's just Ethiopian culure.


Dining

We Ethiopians are very fond of injera and eat it almost daily. Injera is eaten with fingers so wash your hands before. Sure you can ask for a fork or some other cutlery, but you can count on somebody laughing at you or making a comment. Always use your right hand for eating (btw this rule also applies for lefties). In communal eating, which is very popular, you eat what's infront of you. Only when your side of the plate is empty, that you reach further. Keep your mouth closed and don't make noise when you chew. Others will most likely take offence. No matter how good the wot (stew) is, do not stick your fingers in your mouth and lick. At least not in public.

Gursha (someone else feeds you with their fingers) is a sign of hospitality and respect and it's only polite to gratefully accept it. I personally don't like gursha so I try to politely decline the offer. This doesn't always work though.

Eating on the move is very uncommon. This is nowadays changing in Addis. Sharing food is very traditional and people often say 'enibla' which is an invitation for another person/s to join them.


Coffee

Yes, coffee was first discovered in Keffa, Ethiopia. So don't offend us by saying that this is news to you. We also grow some of the best quality beans in the world. Coffee ceremony often includes the roasting of beans on a charcoal oven and burning of incence. If the incence makes it difficult to breathe, appologize and leave the room for a while. Or ask if it's possible to open the door or window. The roasting of the coffee beans also produces an aromatic smoke which guests are often offered to inhale.

Coffee almost always follows a meal. We are not big on desserts, so with coffee we offer popcorns, peanuts, 'kolo', sesame halva, or freshly home made bread. Cookies have also become popular lately. Don't worry that the 'sini' or coffee cup is too small, you'll be offered a second and third round. Coffee may be taken with sugar, salt, or even clarified butter in some regions.

Reviewing Taste of Addis


The six of us and a little boy made it to the event on october 25th, 2014. From the main road, finding Tropical Gardens was not that hard. Once we arrived at Elephant Cafe, we asked strangers for directions. Crossing the road we walked for a while in what seemed to be a quiet residential neighbourhood. There were no posted direction guidance to Tropical Gardens. When we saw a group of caucassians walking ahead of us we decided to tail them. I mean that's where they're heading to, right? Organizers of this event pleeease do something about directions, may be put up a few signs. And so we were there around 3pm.

At the enterance we paid an enterance fee of 50Birr each. Once inside, the first thing we saw was a paid children's play ground. Walking past, we came across the first food stands. And walking down the stairs there was a lot more.

                                  Image borrowed from Taste of Addis Facebook page


It was a very hot day and all the seats under the umbrellas were taken. We managed to find a spot under the shadow of a tree. Although it was cool and refreshing to sit on the grass, we would have preferred to have had a picnic blanket with us. By then we were all famished so we went to get something to eat and drink. That day the price cap per dish was 50Birr.

Our first stop was Burger Shack but we were told because power is out they couldn't make burgers or fries. We looked around and the only place that was putting out warm food was Santorini, the greek restaurant. From there we bought a couple of the moussakas (which btw turned out to be AMAZING) and souvlakis. We found the beef in the souvlakis to be very chewy and lacking in flavor. But I have to say we ate it all since we were famished.

The power kept going out. And so our choices were limited. To get drinks we stopped at Ambo's stall and bought a bottle of Flavored Ambo. We were offered a five minute foot massage for each bottle bought, my cousin accepted the offer (oh and yes she enjoyed it very much). The rest of us moved on to the tej stand, where a disposible glass of tej cost 30 Birr. For me, this could be because it had been a while since I last had any tej, but I thought it was a little too sweet.

When we passed by, the Yemeni stand caught my eyes. I hadn't tried Yemeni cuisine before. So we got a plate of what I now assume was Mundi, marinated lamb with rice and spicy sauce on the side. The lamb was well seasoned and very tender. Inspite of the sauce being a little to hot, the dish was delicious.

The music was constantly on and off. So the next time it was on (which meant that the power's back), the younger ones in our group went to get Burger Shack french fries and came back with two plates which cost 30 Birr each. But of course we all had to taste. I have to admit, having heard so much about this place, I had higher expectations. The fries were crunchy on the outside, as they should be, but too cold on the inside as if they were still frozen. We had to give them a break though, it must have been tough enough to put out anything with power outage every few minutes.

We didn't have much room for desert anymore, but we had to try the smoothies we saw on our way in. The guava (perhaps mixed with mango) smothey was rather impressive and very refreshing. Another positive from this event was that the bathrooms were tidy and had sufficient supply of toilet paper.

Unfortunately verything comes to an end and we had to leave. On our exit, we came to realize that the party was just starting. The crowd was getting thicker by the minute and it was almost impossible to find a parking spot by 6 p.m. I was genuinely surprised by the huge turnout and for a moment considered staying longer and to enjoy the evening. We had heard there'd be a concert. As we finally left, we decided that the next time we attend this event, there won't be any underage children in the mix :) 

Beg Tibs (Ethiopian Sauteed Lamb) Recipe

This is probably the least time consuming Ethiopian food to prepare and one of the tastiest. I often make beg tibs to go with vegetarian wots (stews) or on its own to eat it with injera or some other bread. Tibs may also be accompanied by a spicy paste called awaze.

Ingredients - 2 portions

300g of lean lamb cut into 1inch cubes
1 red onion thinly sliced
1 tbs of sunflower oil
2 garlic cloves very thinly sliced
1 seeded green chili pepper strips or diced
1 stalk of fresh rosemary shredded
1 tbs of kibeh (spiced & clarified butter)
1 tsp berbere (optional)
1 tbs soy sauce
1 tomato diced


Preparation

Heat up the oil in a skillet/wok pan on meduim high heat. Add the garlic slices, slightly brown them, and then add the lamb cubes. When the lamb starts to get color (if you choose to use berebere, I recommend adding it at this stage) add the soy sauce followed by onion slices. Once the onions look softer add the tomatoes and chili pepper. You should not overcook the lamb. It's important to remember that the longer you cook the lamb in this recipe, it becomes chewy. From the time you added the lamb, 8 minutes of cooking is generally a good time.  Add the kibbeh and rosemary and remove pan from heat. Salt to your own taste.

Try it out and let me know how you find this recipe :)

Injera Recipe

This is a recipe for injera made from wheat flower. Where teff injera is not readily available, this is a popular substitute. I usually prepare the dough the night before and make the injera the following morning 1-3 hours before serving.

Ingredient list-4 portions

1kg (2.2lbs) plain wheat flour
1 packet (11g or 0.6oz) dry yeast
warm tap water

Preparation

Pour the flour into a big bowl. Note that the dough will grow tremendously, so make sure the bowl can accomodate it. Add the yeast and mix with well the flour. Get your hand held electric mixer ready. Mix while adding water gradually. You only need enough water so the mixer runs without difficulty. The consistency should be similar to that of a thick pancake dough. There should not be any lumps left. Cover the bowl with a kitchen/cling film and leave it in the kitchen sink over night (in case the dough rises a lot and spills out, the kitchen sink is easier to clean).

To make the injera, you'll need a non-stick frying pan, no greasing needed. Mix the dough one more time using a spatula or with clean hands. Make sure the dough hasn't settled in the bottom. You'll need a clean kitchen towel spread over a surface (we will come back to this later). Heat the frying pan on medium-high heat on the stove.  Once the pan is warm enough (you can throw a drop of water & if it sizzles then the pan is warm enough) take a small amount of dough and spread it on the pan. The best technique for this might be placing the dough in the center and rotating the pan so as to spread it evenly.
Cooking time should not be long. As soon as the uncooked dough disappears, remove the pan from the stove. You should be able to get the injera off the frying pan easily. Place injera on the spread kitchen towel for cooling down. Give each injera 5-8 minutes cooling time before pilling them up. Once you're done making injera, cover the pile with towel. The edges of injera tend to dry up quickly, so if you have left overs wrap them in plastic and keep in cool place.