Serve delicious African snack with spiced tea

THANKS this week go to the people at Age & Opportunity, who have put together a cookbook called The World at My Table. Made up of contributions from students in English as an Additional Language for Older Adult classes, the recipes come from all over the globe. This week, in honour of our special edition, we have two recipes from Africa, one for spiced tea and one for maandhazi, a wonderful sweet fried bread, from Hawa Abdulahi of Somalia. The cookbook is a fundraiser for the organization and can be purchased for $20 through Age & Opportunity at 956-6440.

Donna Riguidel would love a recipe for spinach salad like Grapes restaurant used to make, and she's also hoping that a Mennonite cook out there might have a recipe for summa borscht (or potato borscht). If you can help with a recipe request, have your own request, or a favourite recipe you'd like to share, send an email to recipeswap@freepress.mb.ca, fax it to 697-7412, or write to Recipe Swap, c/o Alison Gillmor, Winnipeg Free Press, 1355 Mountain Ave., Winnipeg, MB, R2X 3B6. Please include your first and last name, address and telephone number.

Maandhazi

950 ml (4 cups) all-purpose flour

15 ml (1 tbsp) baking powder

125 ml (1/2 cup) white sugar

30 ml (2 tbsp) butter, very soft

2 eggs, room temperature

500-750 ml (2-3 cups) warm milk

vegetable oil for frying

Have all ingredients at room temperature before mixing. In a large bowl whisk together flour, baking powder and sugar. Mix in butter and eggs. Add enough milk to form a soft but not sticky dough. On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough until about 0.6 cm (1/4 in) thick. Cut into triangles measuring about 6 cm (2 1/2 in) a side. In a deep heavy pot, heat about 8 cm (3 in) oil to 150C (300F). Drop in triangles of dough, being careful not to crowd, and fry until golden brown, turning once, about 3 minutes on each side. Remove from oil and drain on paper towels.

Tester's notes: Maandhazi (or mandhazi or mandazi) are a popular anytime snack in many parts of East Africa, where they come in all sorts of shapes and sizes. These are delicious served warm, with a light, tender middle that's not too sweet and crisp golden edges. The recipe calls for 750 ml (3 cups) milk, but of course a lot depends on the flour, and I found I had a nice consistency at about 500 ml (2 cups) of milk. If you don't have a thermometer to gauge the temperature, heat the oil over medium to medium-high heat: It's at a good temperature when a small bit of dough dropped in begins to sizzle right away.

Spiced tea (chai)

500 ml (2 cups) water

4 whole cardamom pods

4 whole cloves

1 cinnamon stick

20 ml (4 tsp) loose tea leaves or 3 teabags

250 ml (1 cup) whole milk

sugar to taste

Mix together all ingredients in a large pot. Bring to a boil over medium heat, then reduce heat and simmer for a few minutes until brewed. Strain and serve warm.

Tester's notes: Really good. If you enjoy premade chai, you might want to consider the homemade version. The flavours are intense, and you can tinker with the spices and sweetness and milkiness to suit your taste. I used plain strong black tea because I didn't want other flavours to intrude on the cardamom, cloves and cinnamon mix. Chai is the Swahili word for tea and a common term for tea across East Africa, the Middle East and Asia.

Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition January 18, 2012 D4