mayurisjikoni

A filling satisfying snack    Packing is all done, finally cleared out the fridge and after breakfast we will be leaving for the airport. Really excited. There's much talk about the new terminal at the Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport.Also will get to pass through the new terminal at the Jomo Kenyatta Airport after it got burnt and is now renovated.Who wouldn't be excited to go to India? I know of many Indians born and brought up in Kenya who really don't have such a strong feeling for India. There are times when the crowds and noise get to me. However after a good night's sleep, that is all over and I am ready for another exciting adventure. Shopping, eating out, movies, spending time with family and getting pampered.    As I had mentioned before, the cuisine in the coastal region of Kenya has a strong Indian, Arabic and local influence. One such dish is Mombasa Mix. People coming from upcountry don't want to leave Mombasa without having the famous egg kim...

 Magic box cooking   Travelling is exciting but what I don't like is all the preparations I have to make before the travelling. I leave for India on Sunday. Excited that I will spend some time with my daughter. However, all these little chores that I have to get through before we travel is stressful. Clear the fridge, make sure lentils are stored away properly, must pack up all the different flours and store them in the fridge, check out the masalas, make sure no perishable stuff is left in the kitchen otherwise on my return will find a stinking kitchen! So the last few days are actually like the magic box they offer to the contestants on Masterchef.  Odd ingredients have to be put together to prepare lunch or dinner. I get so tempted to buy other ingredients but actually have to stop myself. The minute Esther or Amena (our daily veggie ladies) ring the bell, I get a wee bit excited but quickly have to come back to reality. To top it up today my househelp Julius reminds m...

very nutritious - grandmother's remedy          What is raab? Raab is like a soup or porridge made from millet flour. I remember my grandmother having this when she would not feel like eating a normal meal. Lactating mums are given raab everyday, its a remedy for sore throats and colds. Its given to people recovering from an illness. Its a filling dish for elderly people who don't feel like eating a normal meal or cannot eat spicy food. Raab has loads of benefits. Its a comfort food and wards off cold. Prepare it when you feel like having something sweet and hot. Its nutritious so you can sip through it without any guilt.I love raab and find any excuse to make it. Here are some of the benefits of the ingredients used in making raab: Millet flour : easily digested, has alkaline properties, rich in magnesium, rich in protein and niacin, gluten free, the serotonin in millet has a calming effect on ones mood, it has low glycemic index, good for the heart, keeps chol...

yippeee got it right!         Last month Priya challenged the Home bakers Challenge group to quick breads. Carrot and zucchini, chocolate and an apple one. Chocolate and apple ones were struck off the list immediately as I have already baked those ones. So the choice was between the carrot zucchini one and the sweet potato one. Since I have not made many dishes using sweet potato I wanted to bake the sweet potato bread. Got all the ingredients ready and baked the bread. After one hour, the bread was still raw from inside. The top was beginning to brown too much. I covered with foil and lower the temperature slightly and baked it further for 15 minutes. The skewer came out clean, so I thought its all done. I let it cool for 1 hour. When I sliced it to take photos, much to my horror the texture was just too dense and it tasted as though I have steamed flour. Couldn't even see a tiny hole in the texture. Felt so disappointed and left the bread in the kitchen and sat do...

 amazing kids   Last Saturday our Lions Club of Mombasa Bahari hosted yet another successful poetry recital competition for children between the ages of  4 to 7.  Please do take some time and visit the website. Poetry recital not only helps a child to develop confidence, but also improves their diction, voice control, helps them to learn new vocabulary, helps with memorization skills and prepares them for public speaking.Like reading, poems too are the mind's adventure for the children. Reciting and understanding the poems also helps them to pretend and perform actions and expressions accordingly. This year the poems given to the 6 -7 year olds were a bit long, but surprisingly they managed to memorize it within 2 weeks. We tend to underestimate a child's brain. There is always room to learn new things. Recently, friends and cousins sent a video on whatsapp showing  how toddlers are able to tell you the capital cities of many countries. When I saw the clipping,...

bread with semolina?      Aparna of My Diverse Kitchen's challenge for the We Knead to Bake group was a semolina bread. I was surprised as how would it really hold together. Then as I read the recipe further down realized that I needed to add wheat gluten. Thank God I had brought that back from India with me. Most breads baked in India require you to add the gluten as the plain flour available there is not as glutenous as the flours available in the western countries or here in Kenya. My daughter was not using it so brought it back here with me.       When I was getting the ingredients ready, I still had that little doubt in my mind about using only semolina. I decided to add wheat flour and was really glad with the outcome. Pane Siciliano is usually baked on 13th December to celebrate the bravery of Santa Lucia. It is said that Santa Lucia or Lucy came from a wealthy family and she carried food for the persecuted Christians hiding in the dark undergro...