I got the idea of this simple and easy dessert while my mother was describing another apple dessert she saw on Food Network. My mind completely blocked what she was saying and wandered off.
The night before Ramadan I already knew I was going to experiment with this idea.
With the help of my mother and her suggestions, this is the result…
For the past two weeks, my head is about to EXPLODE with desserts ideas for this Ramadan.
So many ideas, so little time and so little energy. I will try my best to make something at least every 2 days. I hope my laziness disappears and my love of the kitchen kicks back in!
Until then, Ramadan Mubarak and happy Feasting.
With love,
The Oven Experiments team
So you know how I am obsessed with my new cookbook and how I have different kinds of flour stacked in my fridge? Well about two weeks ago I saw a chocolate chip cookie recipe in the whole wheat flour section of the book. I still had plenty of whole wheat flour but I had no chocolate.
I went down to the kitchen determined to make a plain cookie but then I saw a bowl of dates leftover from lunch earlier and remembered that I still have a large container of oats. And this is when I decided to make oats and dates whole wheat cookies. I didn’t change much in the recipe except for reducing the amounts of sugars (brown and white) as the dates are sweet enough.
I made my first batch, just added a handful of oats and chopped whatever dates I saw in front of me. I made them thick and when they baked, they were almost cake-like and the baking powder after-taste was overpowering.
For the second batch, I measured everything correctly, reduced the amount of baking powder and made them smaller and thinner.
photo credit: Noaf Nackshabandi
If you like a no non-sense apple pie, then this is the recipe you want. A thick flaky pastry encases a generous amount of apple filling that becomes slightly ‘jammy’ after baking. We use a little bit of sugar here since we want a pie that is not overly sweet. Besides, apples have enough natural sugars, which condense and give the pie a natural sweetness. And, by no means waste time trying to make the top crust look perfect. Unevenness and imperfections will give the pie a rustic look, which is very becoming of this old-fashioned dessert. If you still feel you need to fuss about something, then go out and find yourself a presentable deep 9-inch pie pan. Continue reading
Marron glacé. This is a treat I had to accustom my palate to. All my life up until 3 years ago I assumed I did not like marron glacé! Why? Because as a child I tried it and hated it and so I grew up thinking I didn’t like it.
My mother, on the other hand, loves it and always has. Three mother’s days ago, I decided to change the routine and make her marrons glacés instead.
When I had my BDesserts business I got some of my supplies from a local company that imports French products called FAMECO and they sent out recipes on a monthly basis and one of them was how to make marrons glacés. It seemed fairly easy and it was. This is when I had my first bite as an adult and fell in love with it.
I made it again yesterday and this what you need: Continue reading
My cousin’s birthday was last weekend and I wanted to be the cake person! I already knew that I was going to have a simple chocolate cake with whipped white chocolate ganache filling and white buttercream as frosting. I have done this combination many times, which is inspired from November’s Jude cake, but little did I know that I would find ready-made marzipan at Sultan. And oh the excitement! I was going to make made-from-scratch marzipan for a certain somebody’s birthday later this month so initially I bought the packets for that project. Continue reading
I recently discovered a fabulous, fabulous salad…
A delightfully, refreshing Moroccan orange salad with sugar, cinnamon and mint! And my addition of roasted thin shavings of almonds!
While I was leafing through my copy of Flavours from Arabia, published by Thames and Hudson, I found this simple orange salad recipe. I got my copy from our al-Maidan Cultural Centre shop in case you want to grab a copy of your own!
First you need to prepare the dressing:
Bring all the ingredients together in a small sauce pan and heat until you reach a simmer. Leave the dressing to simmer for 3-5 minutes. Remove from heat to cool.
Peel 6 oranges using a sharp small knife. I’m in love with my ceramic knives. They do a fantastic job! Then cut the oranges into thin slices and arrange in a deep platter.
Grab a handful of sliced almonds and lightly toast them in the oven for a few minutes.
When the dressing has cooled, spoon it oven the oranges and then add the almonds. Using a sifter or ideally a shaker, sift both cinnamon and icing sugar over the oranges.
Wash and dry a handful of mint leaves and roll them up. Taking a sharp knife, cut into thin strips (julienne). Scatter over the oranges and enjoy it as a starter for your next gathering or have it as an afternoon treat!
When my parents arrived in Singapore, it was also their Anniversary date!
So it was a win-win trip. I get to have them as company and they get to celebrate their anniversary!
I was dealing with the Hotel a lot, since we had an official delegation coming. I told them that my parent’s were coming for their anniversary and they generously offered to have a bouquet of fresh flowers and a cake delivered to their room on their arrival.
And this was the cake. It was De-Li-Cious! It reminded me of Opera chocolate cake with the crispy cereal inside. Although it does seem small but it was quite filling. We were eating it for two days!
In case you’re wondering, we stayed at the Fullerton Hotel. I highly recommend it.
Today was my day off!
Although I woke up 2 hours later than what I had planned for, I still managed to do everything on my list for today. I was quite impressed with myself as I have no sense of time management.
First on my list: museum hopping
I went to the Singapore Art Museum and National Museum of Singapore. Both were fantastic but the national museum made me envious, it was so beautiful!
National Museum of Singapore
I went to Little India afterwards to go to this veggie eatery that’s part of an art project.
It’s called Food #03 and it’s part of the PostMuseum project, which the website explains more.
They only served pizzas this week, so I ordered the mixed vegetables one.
It was light and crispy. I quite liked it! It’s also a very relaxed place to just go hang out, read a book or meet up with friends. I would go back if I have an unplanned afternoon.
And then I finally went to Max Brenner. At first, I was disappointed about the size of the place. It was tiny, in comparison to the one in New York and so was their menu but the dessert was still very satisfying.
I had chocolate-filled crepe with caramel sauce, vanilla sauce, bananas and crystallized nuts.
Needless to say, it was yum-mee!
The shop was located at the Esplanade Theatre mall, Singapore’s main theatre, close to the marina bay. Since it was the weekend, they had a band playing outside, just by the bay. It was lovely.
I stayed for a few hours, listening to them play and just enjoying it. At around 9, I decided to head back to the hotel. I had a very long day so I picked up food from the nearby thai restaurant, ThaiExpress.
I was honestly not expecting it to be good but to my surprise, it was! I ordered spicy beans fried in a shrimp paste sauce (left) and seafood pad thai (right).
Back to work tomorrow at the museum…
But on the brighter side, my parents are coming in tomorrow! Now I can’t wait to finally try Singapore’s fine dining restaurants.
The Oven Experiments 