Yes I’m back again..
It’s been a few busy weeks and yet still more to come! Do I just have to stop staying “I’m busy”, as this always seems to be the case? I know.. from now on I’ll only mention it if it’s been fairly quiet, how about that? Whichever the case, “Determination, perseverance and patience”, I always tell myself. Continue reading
This post is a much over-due promise to a friend who has requested the recipe a long time ago! Ma’moul or ma’amoul (معمول ) are delicate cookies/pastries widely common with Middle Easterns. They are usually filled with dates, walnuts, coconut or pistachios and are served on occasions such as Eid, Christmas or Easter. If you search this recipe online I’m sure you’ll find many hits, each one adding the author’s unique touch. Some are hand-me down recipes from many generations, others slightly tweaked to personal taste. Continue reading
If there was a spice that I can’t live without, then cardamom would be it. Hang on, not exactly true. Well, alongside cinnamon, cumin and turmeric. I absolutely love them.
The sweet and fragrant notes from cardamom are similar to vanilla, both of which leave a slight bitter eucalyptus citrus and pleasant after-taste at the back of the tongue. Cardamom is the vanilla of Middle-Eastern and Asian cuisine and if you use it as much as I do, then you’ll understand why I’ve dedicated a whole post just for it! Continue reading
There are certain habits you naturally inherit from your parents. Some may be good, others, well not so. Food usually features quite strongly in that. Sometimes I wish I hadn’t inherited my sweet tooth from both my parents, it would have made life a lot easier! However to be fair, they did teach me that sweets should be consumed on special occasions or as treats. A piece of cake used to be a true luxury, compared to the common tea-time ritual that has become so common nowadays. Continue reading
Prepare yourself for a long post. Why? It’s about my dieting experience, the latest scientific research about fasting and a quick recipe for a traditional lentil soup, I can’t help it.
Thankfully, I’ve never been overweight, don’t have any food allergies or intolerances and never restricted myself from anything in particular. I’ve even been tested for caeliac disease due to my ongoing struggle with anaemia, tiredness and sometimes bloatedness. As you age, weight slowly and devilishly starts creeping up, then you realise you are no longer the teenager who ate whatever they wanted. In the quest to shed a few kilos I have put my body through the following: Continue reading
If you ever get invited to a Middle Eastern dinner, you will be amazed at the elaborate banquet displayed on the table. A large platter piled with with a mountain of rice usually topped with nuts and raisins, two to three kinds of meat dishes consisting of lamb, chicken and sometimes fish, a couple of stews filled with pulses and vegetables, many mezzes and side dishes, salads, and heaps of flat bread which is seen as essential. For a food lover such as me, I find it very difficult to try to enjoy the dishes prepared to their full potential because as you can imagine, there is no way you can stomach it all, even if you were starving to death. You just have to get ready for many buttons popping, or simply wear loose clothing. Continue reading
I have always been into reading about health and nutrition; frankly, I find the whole process of eating, digestion and the impact it has on our bodies, on a molecular level, quite fascinating. Not that I think of it all the time, but that got me reading about how our food has changed over the past century. One of the most noticeable changes has been cross-breading, refining and bleaching wheat, which has made wheat so different from its original ancestor. This fact has opened up my eyes to other various facts regarding mass-produced commercial manufacturing of grains, which I had no idea about. I wouldn’t like to argue about the ethical issues involving such practices, this blog is certainly not the place for it; however, it has made me conscious about the source of my food.
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