oranges, cinnamon, almonds and mint!

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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:

  • Juice of 1 orange
  • 2 tablespoons orange blossom water
  • 2 tablespoons sugar
  • 2 cinnamon stick

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!

pumpkin stew/curry

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Sometimes when I’m hungry (and in the mood), I pop into the kitchen and see what’s available. I usually give up within 5 minutes but when I’m really in the mood, I’ll see what vegetables are available and make up something.

That one day, I saw pumpkins, actually butternut squash, and they were already peeled! It was calling for me. I took them out and starting chopping them into small pieces. I still had no idea what I was doing. Pumpkins and sage is marriage made in heaven so I took a few dried sage leaves. I took out a pan. I also saw an already chopped onion and grated garlic and ginger. I fried about half an onion in olive oil for a few minutes, until browned and then added a pinch of mix of grated garlic and ginger and fried it for one minute.

I crushed the  dried sage leaves and mixed it with a few cumin seeds and fried it with the onion and garlic mixture for about a minute also.

I added the chopped pumpkin and poured some warm water. Keep adding water until you have a thick sauce consistency and the pumpkin is soft.

This took me about 30 minutes.

You can have it with warmed pita bread (خبز لبناني) or brown rice. And there you go! A filling sweet soulful dish!

My Parent’s Anniversary and Cake in Singapore

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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.

Singapore: Brunching (Final)

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My last weekend in Singapore, my sister was with me and fortunately was also my only full free weekend.

On that Saturday we went to have brunch at Jones, mix of grocery store and cafe.

And now let’s take a look at their mouth-watering display of  tartlets

And best of all they make all their pastries right in front of you!

The pastry chef here was preparing pastry to make croissants.

Since it was a weekend, it took us at least 30 minutes to get seated but it was worth the wait!

My cappuccino!

My Eggs Dish which was fantastic! The tomato sauce, the bread the perfectly cooked eggs and the spinach…all beyond excellent!

My sister’s dish: Poached eggs, mushrooms and bread. You can never go wrong with perfectly cooked poached eggs but my dish was far more superior and yummier!

Although I just had lunch, I am salivating as I remember my egg dish. It was THAT good. So if you happen to be in Singapore be sure to check this place out. It’s located at the top floor of the Mandarin Gallery on Orchard Road.

And oh yeah! I have a brunch post coming up soon!

Singapore: Day xx (part 1)

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I know this has been long overdue and I will stop with the excuses.

I will start posting only my interesting and worth-mentioning food experiences in Singapore (which won’t be many as I was crazy busy my last week there)

So we finally went to the hawker’s center to try their satay. It looks and feels like the Singapore version of the Mubarkiya food-area.

let’s take a closer look…

Made me very hungry!

And I present to you the star of that night.

I overdosed on the chicken and the beef satay. We also ordered shrimp satay. I didn’t take a picture of it which kind of says a lot. It wasn’t that great. We also ordered a leafy green dish that is drenched in garlic! My breath was garlicky all night, even after mints and brushing my teeth.

We walked back to the hotel and saw the other side of the hawker’s center.

This was where all the Chinese food stalls are and this being Singapore, there was a band playing.

Those Singaporeans know how to have a good time!

Singapore: Episode 12

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For some reason, all I had today was Italian, except for my breakfast and my afternoon cheese platter.

Lunch:

Very cute cafe/bookshop/music store

Of course I forgot the name of the place but it is right next to the museum.

This is what I ordered:

spaghetti with prawns in olive oil and chili sauce

I wanted to take my parents and sister to the Malaysian restaurant for dinner but when we got there it was already closed, which was a shame because I was really looking forward to it! I will have to take them there for lunch.

We went to an Italian restaurant instead that was just around the corner from the Malaysian one. I had lunch there once before and I knew they had good pizza.

I ordered a pizza and a green salad to share with my sister.

A very satisfying day especially that it ended with chocolate and coffee gelato…

Singapore: Episode 9 (11)

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I almost gave up on documenting my trip through food.

I miss home. I miss home-cooked meals. I have breakfast, lunch and dinner and I just feel like I lost my enthusiasm for taking out my camera and snapping pictures.

…. Until today!

This is where we (thats me, my parents and my sister!) went: Eastcoast Seafood Centre

I went there 10 years ago with my family on my first trip to Singapore. It has changed quite a bit but the food is still very fresh and exciting!

It’s a strip of seafood restaurants right on the beach. We picked the largest and busiest one, Jumbo!

This is what we ordered:

For larger view, please click on the image. I didn’t want to upload one by one, I would shoot myself by the time I am done.

After leaving the restaurant, the taxi driver showed us this area, which is very close to our hotel, with a line of food street vendors and it’s open till very late at night!  Can not wait until we explore that street! Very excited!