Tag Archives: qatar

Moving water experiment and color mixing – My Little Scientist

Posted on September 16, 2015 | Leave a comment

My precious Nady is experiencing many changes in his life. He has been promoted to big brother and started his first year of school. I believe it’s a lot of changes for a kid of two years and eight months, and for me as well honestly!

I’ve done all i should do to prepare him for his new sibling, and once arrived i did my best to split my care and attention to both equally.

Being home the afternoon with both of them and without any help is the big challenge. I have to take care of the newborn Joud and entertain the older Nady after school. It’s not new for us to enjoy our time together; we play, cook and craft… But nowadays he seems more demanding and seeking for more attention to make sure that maman is still all his!

I had to make our playtime more interesting and captivating. We are experimenting! It’s science time with Nady, for him it’s more of magic 🙂

A fun science experiment and in the same time a good lesson of color mixing. This experiment is very interesting since he can see the two different colors going along the tissue paper to form a new color.

You need 3 jars (containers) i used empty jam jar, water, food coloring and paper towel.

Choose the colors you want to mix. We did blue and yellow (to get green) and then we did red and yellow (to get orange).

Fill a jar with each color you chose (with the help of your kid certainly) and place the empty one in the middle. Fold a paper towel lengthwise. Soak one end of the paper towel into the first color jar and the second end in the empty jar. Same thing goes with the other color jar. Now let your kid watch the colored water moving through the paper towel to reach the empty jar (thanks to capillary action). The middle jar fills up with both colors to form a third one.

Blue +yellow = green! yayyy

Actually we were both enjoying this science experiment! I love his reactions, i love his face 🙂 Now lets try another color:

Red + yellow = orange

After we were done, there was no way for him but to introduce his cars to the experiment. He decided to soak in his small cars to the next day to see what will happen!

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

A lip smacking beef stroganoff

Posted on September 14, 2015 | 4 comments

What a flavorsome savory dish that will grace your table and leave you with enjoyment and comfort. So quick that can be prepared by the time of boiling your tagliatelle. I can promise to soothe your hunger in less than 30 minutes!

It’s a classic russian dish with many variations. My recipe calls for:

500g lean beef strips
1 big onion finely diced
100g butter
2 tbsp flour
1 1/2 cup beef broth (or water)
1 tbsp mustard
1/3 cup wine
200g mushroom
1/2 cup heavy cream
salt to taste

In a large skillet over medium heat, melt the butter and cook the onions slowly until tender (3-4 minutes) , then add the beef strips and brown (3-5 minutes) stirring constantly. Sift in the flour and cook for another 2 minutes. Pour in the broth (or water) along with the mustard and wine. Let it simmer together for 10 minutes. Finally add the mushroom and cream to cook for 5 minutes all together.

Serve on a bed of tagliatelle or rice. Some people likes it with roasted potatoes too. Sprinkle with chives or parsley and wow your family/guests. I promise you lots of murmuring between them and a another visit sooner than you think.

Having baby Joud with long nights deprived of sleep and living the experience of brotherhood and first year of school for Nady make us need this type of comfort food. I can say at this stage and where we live, good food is the enjoyment for my husband and I.

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

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Posted in main dish

Tagged beef broth, beef strips, beef stroganoff, cream, food blogger, heavy cream, jaymmy, lean strips, lebanon, marmite et ponpon, mushroom, qatar, recipe, tagliatelle

Watermelon slush – Say goodbye cheers to Lebanon summer days

Posted on August 31, 2015 | Leave a comment

Our vacation has come to an end, it’s time to pack and go back to Doha!

I became so damn professional in packing, i can fit a whole house in my bag! It became as easy as drinking watermelon 😉

A perfect watermelon slush to beat the heat and say goodbye cheers to beautiful summer that brought me a lot.

This refreshing drink comes together in just 5 minutes. All you need is:

3 cups diced seedless watermelon (or almost 500g)
1 cup ice (7-8 ice cubes)
1 1/2 tbsp sugar
one lime juice optional

Place watermelon, ice, sugar and lime (optional) in a blender and blend until smooth. This quantity serves 4 cups.

You can replace the lime with lemon, it also works and gives the tanginess you need in your drink, or keep it simple and sweet as is without any addition.

To booze it up, add vodka and enjoy!

There is another way of making this slush, if you have time, by putting the seedless diced watermelon in freezer a day ahead or overnight. This way you eliminate using ice cubes, you only blend the watermelon, sugar and lime (optional) until smooth! I like this method, the flavor turns out stronger!

Watermelon is in season now, you find plenty everywhere you go. Now i find a way whenever i have extra in the fridge, how to make use of them and enjoy.

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

Upside down peach cake

Posted on August 20, 2015 | 10 comments

I’m currently having a very busy and sleepless summer especially after delivering my baby. But being in Lebanon with the abundance of fresh fruits, I couldn’t but turn the oven to bake this upside down peach cake.

A very easy and quick recipe, and doesn’t require too much ingredients. I am sure you all have them at home even the peaches, it’s the season and it is at its peak (in July and August).

Who can resist this mouth watering cake. Preheat your oven and go ahead do it, trust me it took less time to prepare it than writing the post 🙂

You need:

3/4 cup softened butter, divided
1/2 cup brown sugar
4-5 peaches sliced
3/4 cup sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp baking powder
1 1/4 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup milk
pinch of salt

Preheat oven to 180°C. Grease a 9″ pan with a quarter of the softened butter. Dust it with the brown sugar then layer the peach slices over.

In a deep bowl beat the remaining butter with the sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the egg and vanilla. Add the flour, baking powder and salt, beat well then add the milk. Spoon the mixture over the peaches.

Bake for 30 mns or until an inserted wooden skewer (or toothpick) comes out clean. Let it cool before inverting onto a serving plate.

Serve it warm or cold, as per your taste. I personally like it cold. If you want to jazz it up, serve it with ice cream to beat the heat, especially it’s too hot nowadays!

I am sure this cake will be the center piece of your table, whether for dessert after lunch or when snacking. It’s fairly sweet and fruity, quenches your thirst on summer days or warm your hearts with a cup of tea. Enjoy!

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

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Posted in dessert

Tagged blog, dessert, food blogger, how to do, jaymmy, lebanon, marmite et ponpon, peach, qatar, recipe, upside down peach cake

Meghleh (floured rice pudding)

Posted on August 7, 2015 | 4 comments

Meghleh, is a traditional Lebanese sweet, served on a special occasion such as the celebration of a child birth or christmas. It’s a floured rice pudding spiced with caraway and cinnamon, and garnished with shredded coconut, assortment of nuts (almonds, pine seeds, walnut, pistachio) and dried raisins.

The word meghleh in arabic means boiled, knowing that this dessert is served cold, after being boiled for almost 45 mns.

If you are expecting a baby or simply you want to enjoy a quick, easy and flavorful dessert, don’t hesitate to give it a try.

You will need:

1/2 cup floured rice
1 cup sugar
1 1/2 tbsp ground caraway
1/2 tbsp cinnamon
5 cups water

To garnish you will need shredded coconut, almond, pine seeds, pistachio, walnut and dried raisin. All the garnish is optional and depending on your taste. Personally i like them all, and i soak the nuts in the water before serving to become softer.

In a deep pot add the water, floured rice, sugar, caraway and cinnamon. Stir to combine. Stir over medium heat until the mix comes to a boil (20-30 minutes) Continue to cook the pudding while stirring over medium low heat for 5-7 more minutes, or until the pudding is thick. You know it’s done when it drips from the spoon as a sharp line.

The secret of success of meghleh is in the continuous stirring over medium low heat. Make sure to stir continuously and scrape the bottom of the pot to prevent the pudding from sticking.

Remove the pudding from the heat and pour it into ramekins and set aside to cool completely before garnish.

This pudding should stay put, try not to shake the ramekins so the surface doesn’t get cracks.

It is said that this brown pudding is symbolic of the fertile rich soil, and the nuts on top are like seeds that will sprout and grow on this soil – a perfect symbol for birth. Welcome my baby boy Joud!

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