Tag Archives: lebanon

Expressing love and gratitude

Posted on February 12, 2017 | Leave a comment

This is the third year in a row we enjoy this beautiful game of love. This year we revisited it as per Nady’s request, who is so proud and happy of what we love and appreciate in him.

The beautiful part of this game this year is that he was teaching his youngest brother the rules of it and he was expressing his recognition to us (mom, dad and brother) through words that were my daily serotonin and immunity dose; lets say i was waiting impatiently for his heart everyday. Trust me you never expect the attention to details and the quantity of emotions kids can express. And yes the recognition to the smallest things you do to them!

It’s so important to tell your children “I love you” everyday. Knowing that they are loved unconditionally, develops their secure attachment to you. Strong closeness to the family will lead no doubt to positive relationships in adulthood and high self esteem.

So the aim of this game is to put the reasons i love him (mainly appreciating the good things he does and expressing my big love and pride) in written words on cutout hearts to celebrate love.

As i always say, many of you stopped celebrating valentines for how commercial it became. Don’t lose faith in this beautiful occasion and teach your children about love in deep and expressive ways.

This year we are hanging the hearts as a garland. Last year we did a frame of love, and the year before it was a wheel of love. You can click on the hyper link to review them.

If you like this game and wanted to do it with your kids, click here, to download the file of hearts to use. Enjoy writing on the hearts the many and endless reasons why you love your children and husband/wife too 😉 It’s not just for kids! Do it to your significant other and let love flourishes in your hearts and homes! You can do it over a week until valentines day comes or even extend it as much as you want to enjoy.

Don’t forget that love is not only words, it should be followed by actions, and the most important the presence. Be present for your kids, in love, protection and service. Happy valentines xx

My PRECIOUS part of me

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A heart warming broccoli cheese soup

Posted on January 31, 2017 | 1 comment

So full of flavors and warming the heart, exactly what i needed today! The weather is going crazy here (doha), calling for a hearty soup to tame the cold!

It’s an absolutely perfect comfort food, if you like soup, you’ll be rewarded with the best, creamiest and richest one.

-“What’s that amazing smell?”. It’s broccoli and cheddar cheese hun.

It’s an easy soup to make and is ready in half an hour. To serve 4 generous portions you will need:

50g butter
1 medium onion finely diced 0r 1/2 cup
1 large carrot chopped (small pieces) or 2/3 cup
1 tsp garlic salt\ powder
1/4 cup flour
3 cups vegetable broth
1/2 liter or 2 cups milk
1 medium head of broccoli florets chopped
225g or 1 cup of freshly grated sharp cheddar cheese
salt and black pepper to taste

Heat the butter until melted. Add onion and carrots and saute until onion is translucent and fragrant (about 3-4 minutes). Stir in the garlic salt and flour and saute for another minute. Whisk in the vegetable broth, (you can use chicken broth also but i liked to keep it vegetarian) and milk. Combine well before adding the broccoli florets. Don’t cut them too small, keep some as medium chunks. When the soup reaches a boil, reduce heat to low and simmer for 15 minutes or until broccoli is cooked. Use salt responsibly as the stock and the cheese will do the job. Stir in the freshly grated cheddar, i said freshly grated because the ready grated ones that comes in bags are coated and doesn’t melt easily. Whisk until cheese is completely melt (2-3 minutes) and serve immediately.

Even people who don’t like broccoli will love it when bathing in a creamy and cheesy broth. It doesn’t just warm your body but your soul too!

There’s a few optional spices, that makes it not taste boring, like paprika or mustard powder, they’re not mandatory if you don’t keep them on hand, but they do add extra depth of flavor. I wanted to serve my children so i kept it mild.

Don’t forget to give it some likes and shares to spread the joy. Like marmite et ponpon facebook page and follow on twitter. More posts are yet to come.

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Posted in appetizers & salads

Tagged broccoli, broth, carrots, cheddar cheese, comfort food, cream, doha, easy, food blog, food blogger, food photography, food porn, hearty soup, jaymmy, lebanon, marmite et ponpon, milk, no fail, qatar, quick, recipe, soup

Turkey and red fruits jam with brie dip

Posted on January 17, 2017 | Leave a comment

Cold weather is the perfect excuse for eating, especially comfort food that warms the body and the heart. At the end of the day and when kids go to bed, all i want is to relax on the couch, enjoy a nice dinner with hubby while watching tv.

By this time i am out of energy, i need a quick dinner served with no preparations. Turkey, red fruits jam, brie and basil olive oil… did i grab your attention? All you need is 5 minutes of preparations, and this is exactly the time you spend to make a sandwich.

How to do?

Roll out a ready puff pastry into 2 circles (almost 8″ or 20cm).
Place the first circle of dough onto a parchment-lined baking sheet.
Brush the surface lightly with red fruits jam leaving the center, the size of your brie cheese.
place the cheese in the center and lay around turkey slices, i chose turkey with herbs, my favorite.
place the second circle on top, after cutting off the circle, the size of the cheese.
divide the dough into 16 equal parts, starting from the edge till the center, without touching the cheese.
twist each two parts in different directions to meet. Take each pair of twisted slices and press the ends together firmly to seal the dough.
brush the surface with olive oil
make several cuts in the cheese to not burst in the oven
sprinkle some basil
bake on 180°C for 15-20 minutes or until the surface is golden brown

Is your stomach rumbling by now? Don’t wait till the night, you can have it as an appetizer for your lunch, it could also serve as a breakfast too! i hope you get the chance to try it.

Dip in the cheese and savour!

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Galette des rois a la frangipane et chocolat

Posted on January 6, 2017 | Leave a comment

Today we are celebrating the Epiphany, Christ’s baptism by John the Baptist (Eastern churches) and the day on which Les Rois Mages (the Magi), the three kings Gaspard, Balthazar and Melchior came to pay their tribute to the world famous baby born Jesus (Western churches).

La Galette des rois is a typical french tradition celebrated on the Epiphany, the tradition is to discover who will be the king or the queen for a day by having “la fève” hidden in the galette, historically a dry fava bean (hence the name) but now it became a little porcelain figure. The ritual says; the youngest child of the family hides under the table, an adult divides the galette in even slices, and the child decides which slice goes to whom. Whoever gets the fève in his serving is named King (or Queen) for the day, gets to wear the paper crown and picks who the Queen (or King) will be.

La Galette des rois is a traditional confection consisted of puff pastry pie garnished with butter with infinite options of stuffing. Today’s recipe is the galette à la frangipane et chocolat which is a blend of crème d’amande and crème pâtissière (pastry cream) and chocolate. With kids, chocolate is always a winning option!

You will need:

500g puff pastry (thawed if frozen), divided and rolled out to 2 circles, one is slightly bigger than the other (30cm diameter).

Filling:

1/4 cup unsalted butter softened
1/4 cup sugar
2 eggs
1/4 cup almond flour
1 tbsp liquor of your choice (rum, grand marnier, bourbon….)
1/2 cup crème pâtissière
1/3 cup chocolate grated or cocoa powder
1 egg + 1 tbsp water room temperature for eggwash

Accessories:

la fève or porcelain trinket
2 crowns

galette-des-rois-frangipane-au-chocolat-marmite-et-ponpon

Beat the butter until creamy. In a bowl combine sugar and almond flour. Add the butter to it and mix until smooth. Stir in the liquor and eggs one at a time and mix well at each addition. Add the crème pâtissière and finally the chocolate.
Place the smaller of the 2 circles on a piece of parchment paper. Pour the prepared filling in the center and spread it inside the circle leaving a ring by a width of 2.5cm (about 1 inch) around. Using a pastry brush, brush the outer rim with water to serve as glue when you place the second puff pastry circle on top. Place a porcelain trinket of your choice in the crème, not in the center but closer to an edge, or your knife will keep running into it when you divide the galette. Press it down gently to bury it. You can put 2 trinkets to increase the chances if you have more than one kid, ditch the rules and let’s have some fun;)
Lay the second round of dough precisely on top of the first, smooth it out gently over the crème to remove any air pocket, and press it down all around the sides to seal. Using the back of the tip of your knife, draw a decorative pattern on top of the galette. Holding your knife upright, blade down, and using the dull side of the blade, push the dough inward to create a festooned pattern.
Brush the top of the galette lightly with egg wash: Make sure it doesn’t drip over the edges, or the eggwash will seal the layers of the puff pastry and it won’t rise. Let it rest a minute then brush it lightly again with the eggwash. Using the tip of your knife, pierce the top dough through the pattern you’ve drawn to ensure an even rise. Transfer to a baking pan and bake for 30 minutes on 180°C and until puffy and golden brown.
Let it cool to room temperature before serving.

galette-des-rois-frangipane-au-chocolatmarmite-et-ponpon

galette-des-rois-frangipane-au-chocolat-marmite-et-ponpon

Happy Epiphany everyone! دايم دايم

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Savoury Christmas tree – feta and thyme filling

Posted on December 23, 2016 | 1 comment

I bet on a Lebanese Christmas dinner table you can find 10452 kind of food, it’s not that we eat a lot, but we love and cherish good food. And since it’s a night for family reunion, all tastes should be satisfied!

I am someone who likes entrées, amuse bouches, salads…. and i like to add the festive look on the presentation for this special night that i believe it’s like no other! This year, I will be celebrating with my small family as we are not going home for this Christmas. My tiniest fans who are the most sincere fans and speaking the truth straight forward; it’s either yummy or yaki. So i had to try this feta zaatar (thyme) tree to see how many thumbs up i will get from Nady and Joud to avoid disappointment on Christmas eve! And lucky me I got 6 thumbs up counting in my husband 🙂

It’s very easy to prepare and can be presented in less than 20 minutes, to be eaten in 2 minutes 🙂 Few ingredients are needed, as: puff pastry, zaatar, olive oil, feta cheese crumbled or cut in small cubes, and one egg for the wash.

Roll out the dough on a parchment paper and cut 2 equal tree shape. Brush one tree with zaatar and olive oil, sprinkle the feta and cover with the second tree. Cut parallel and equal lines on both sides of the tree as the photo shows. Twist each part to do the branches and press it down to the parchment paper. Brush with the egg wash and bake on 200°C for 15 minutes or until golden brown.

There is no accurate amount for the ingredients, as you can make the tree the size you want, and put zaatar and cheese as per your taste! I told you it’s very easy and quick. Try it, i am sure it will add more fun to your Christmas table, and more yummy to your tummy.

Don’t forget to add some decoration on the side. Beauty is in details!

If you really like this post give it many likes and shares to spread the joy. Don’t forget to like marmite et ponpon facebook page and follow on twitter. More festive posts are yet to come. Ho Ho Ho!