Wandering spice and arabian food

Ikävöin Dubaita.. Yritän lievittää ikävää kokkaamalla arabialaista ruokaa. Löysin ihanan blogin etsiessäni arabialaisia reseptejä, nimeltä Wandering Spice jota kirjottaa Arabia-Amerikkalainen Yasmeen joka asuu Melbournessa. Blogin ulkoasu on tosi kaunis, helppolukuinen ja kuvat ovat taidokkaasti otettuja. Onnea tämän lukemiseen nälkäisenä… 

I miss Dubai! I'm trying to relieve it by exploring the secrets of arabian food. I found this wonderful blog called Wandering Spice, which is kept by Yasmeen who is Arab-American living in Melbourne. The layout is very well done, it is easy to read and the pictures are great. Good luck reading it when hungry…

Löysin herkullisen ohjeen kyseisestä blogista nimeltä ''Mausteinen kofta paistettujen pähkinöiden kera''. Tuo on vapaa suomennos minulta… Sovelsin alkuperäisen ohjeen suomen oloihin sopivaksi. Ohjeen maustesekoitusta minulla ei ollut, joten tein oman. Manteleiden sijaan päätin myös käyttää pinjansiemeniä. Tässä siis minun versioni  tästä arabialaisesta herkusta! 

I found a delicious sounding recipe ''Spicy kofta with roasted nuts''. I made my version from the original recipe to share with you! For example I didn't have the spice mix that was used in the recipe so I made my own. I also decided to use pine seeds and not almonds as in the recipe. So here's my version from this arabian delicacy! 

SINÄ TARVITSET / YOU WILL NEED

- oliiviöljyä / olive oil

- jauhelihaa / mince 400g

- mausteita / some spices

- 2 valkosipulin kynttä / 2 gloves of garlic

- 1 pilkotun tomaatin / 1 diced tomato

- tomaattipyreetä / tomatopaste (70g or less)

- 1 kanaliemikuutio / 1 chicken stock

- tuoretta persiljaa hienonnettuna / fresh parsley finely chopped

Tässä on oma maustesekoitukseni. En mitannut sen kummemmin miten paljon laitoin mitäkin, vaan maistelin vähän ja laitoin fiiliksen mukaan. Ei kannata laittaa Cayennea kovin paljon, jos ei halua tulista, kaneli pehmentää ihanasti ja niin edelleen. 

Here's my spice mix. I didn't really measure them, I just did what felt good haha. For example don't put much Cayenne if you don't want that spicy food. Cinnamon makes the food nicely softer and so on. 

VALMISTUS / METHOD

Laita raaka jauheliha esimerkiksi isoon taikinakulhoon, ja ripottele päälle mausteet makusi mukaan. Mainitsemieni mausteiden lisäksi lisäsin hiukan suolaa. Sekoita mausteet huolellisesti jauhelihaan puhtain käsin ja sen jälkeen pyörittele jauhelihasta pieniä palloja kämmentesi välissä, kunnes olet käyttänyt kaiken jauhelihan. 


Laita pannulle oliiviöljyä ja paista lihapullia pannulla hiukan keskilämpöä kuumemmalla kunnes ne ovat kauniin ruskeita, noin 7-8 minuuttia lihapullien koosta ja pannun tehosta riiippuen. Varo laittamasta liikaa lihapullia kerralla pannulle! Itse paistoin lihapullat kolmessa osassa. Kun valmiita, aseta lihapullat sivuun odottamaan.

Laita samalle pannulle (nyt tyhjä) lisää öljyä ja hienonna valkosipuli. Paista valkosipuleita hetki oliiviöljyssä, ja hienonna silläaikaa tomaatti. Lisää valkosipulien joukkoon hienonnettu tuore tomaatti ja tomaattimurska. Voit lisätä tässä vaiheessa vielä mausteita jos halut. Itse lisäsin Cayennea ja Kurkumaa.  Lisää joukkoon kiehuvaan veteen liuotettu kanaliemikuutio ja sekoita. Käännä levy pienimmälle mahdolliselle teholle, peitä paistinpannu kannella ja anna hiljalleen kypsyä levyllä noin. 20-30min, kunnes kastike on hiukan paksuuntunut. 

Laita osa lihapullista lautaselle, ja kaada päälle kastike. Asettele loput lihapullat päälle. Paista pannulla hetki pinjansiemeniä, ripottele ne kastikkeen päälle ja koristele tuoreella persiljalla. Tarjoa heti! 

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Place the mince into a mixing bowl and gently combine the spices into the mince with clean hands until very well mixed. I also added some salt. Pinch small bits of mince from the mixing bowl and roll between your palms into meatballs. Continue until all the meat is used. 

 In a large saucepan, heat a teaspoon of olive oil on medium heat. Fry the meatballs until they're golden (brown and well done) on all sides for approximately 7-8 minutes depending on your saucepan and on the size of the meatballs. Avoid crowding the pan! I did this part in 3 batches. When done, remove the meatballs and set aside. 


Add another tablespoon of oil to the pan and saute the minced garlic for 2-3 minutes. Don't burn the garlic! Pour in the diced fresh tomato and the tomato paste. At this point you can add some more spices. I added some Cayenne and Turmeric. Now add the (liquid) chicken stock and stir. Partially cover the pan and let cook on a very low heat for about 20-30 minutes until the sauce has thickened a bit. 


Set meatballs on a plate and pour the sauce over it. On the same pan, cook the pine seeds for a minute until golden.  Decorate your plate with fresh parsley and the pine seeds. Enjoy immediatly!

Toivottavasti nautitte tästä yhtä paljon kuin minä, ja jos kokeilette valmistaa tätä niin kertokaa mulle ihmeessä, miten onnistui!

I hope you will enjoy this as much as I did, and if you try this at home, definitely let me know!

Arabian adventures may continue..

x Dora

Greetings from Dubai

It's lovely here. It's sunny and the temperature is near 30 degrees celsius.

Our hotel is a bit out of ''the center of Dubai'' but we still get quickly everywhere by taxi. Taxis aren't expensive here, because oil is so cheap. So we go by taxi everywhere. Our hotel does not have it's own beach though they have a free shuttle bus service every day to a private beach club, which is free for the hotel customers. It's about 15 minutes away, (food there is super expensive and that's a big minus) the staff is nice, there's pool, the ocean is just a walk away and the view is amazing. 

We have already tried the metro, visited quickly the world biggest shopping mall, eaten on a rooftop, swam on the ocean, got some tan and of course, have done some shopping. We also visited the palm island's magnificent aquarium. 

Yet we are still going to see the souks (market place), visit the world tallest building and try abra, which is kind of a boat.

The food here is great. We have eaten the local food, but also asian food and other. There is a shopping mall opposite from our hotel and there's a 5 minute walk there. We have gotten breakfast from there every morning, and I've of course gotten my daily Starbucks ;) 

This was just a small post, I am now off to lunch! 

I'll post more later 

x Dora

“Every hundred feet the world changes”

I will be traveling to the united arab emirates in the end of this week!

Finally I can get away from this coldness. (And use all my savings)

I promise to keep you updated. Remember to follow me on instagram for more pictures! 

x Dora

Taking it easy / Our living room

Well, what can I say. Here is the room, where we sit down after work and relax watching television. And as you can't see television anywhere, it is inside the black cabinet you'll see in the last picture. It's hidden there! As you open the doors, you can watch television. When you're ready, just hide it again by closing doors. Perfection.

 I think the pictures will tell you more than my words. So search through our living room!

Flowerbag from / H&M home

These birds (wall stickers) were the first thing I bought here. They're my favourite. Birds from / LightInTheBox

I like the sofa being very wide. There fits 5 people at the time, so if we have quests, we can gather around the living room table. It was also very important to me that it is a corner sofa, because that way it marks out when the living room starts. 

His guitar has it's own place. Though I have noticed that somehow it never ends up at its own place after he has played it… Very weird. 

 As you may recognize, there's the bedroom wallpaper. So there is no wall between living room and the bedroom - only this massive cabinet. During summer it's a bit difficult having no wall, because it is very hard to get a dark bedroom in the evening. Also, you can't watch television if your other half is already sleeping. Because we have no walls. So whatever you do, you will be heard. 

That little ram sheep is one of my favourites. I got it as a heritage from my grandfather. I remember sitting on it and 'riding' it as a child and I have many good memories from it, so I was happy to have it. It is finnish design and made by Aarikka.  

This little fellow also likes our living room. 

(Mostly) During summer we get to enjoy beautiful sunset straight to our living room. 

What do you think? Looking comfy? 

I really like our living room and I'm happy how I managed to decor it. It's open, bright, and I managed to 'separate' it from the apartment as it's own room quite well. It's clearly a living room. Please have a seat. 

x Dora

Liebster award! Get to know me better

Yes, I got nominated! This award is created to discover new blogs, with not so many readers. I got nominated by Jasmin, who is writing Little things with Jassy - Thank you!

Rules

1. Post 11 random facts about yourself.

2. Answer the eleven questions by the person who nominated you.

3. Nominate bloggers with less than 200 followers to do the same

and

4. Let the bloggers you have nominated know, that they're nominated. 

11 random facts about me

1. My eyes have yellow in them. And I've always hated it. 

2. I hate doing dishes. I just hate. That's why I'm so lucky we have a dishwasher!

3. I used to live in Germany. We moved back to Finland when I turned 3 years old. 

4. Everyone in my family speaks fluent germany, except I. Yes, I am frustrated. Sometimes I suddenly understand a word or another when someone speaks - but I can't answer. I only know few sentences and you don't really make a conversation out of them. 

5. This is weird, but every single time I go to Germany - no matter where, Cologne, Frankfurt, Hamburg, Ahrensburg.. - I get this ''I'm home'' -feeling. Every time. And I don't even speak the language. Way to go!

6. I am super travelsick. I get travel sing swinging, and when sitting on a bike when someone else is biking. Not to forget cars, trams, trains, buses, subways, airplanes.. and so on. And boats are the worst. This sucks. Nothing really helps me, and I get reeeeaaaallyyy sick. So if you're traveling with me, I'm pretty much such a pain in the ass. 

7. On my normal workdays I need to wake up 4.20am. Yes, I get early off from work. Yes, it's tiring. No, you don't actually get used to it. Yes, it's quite easy for me. No, I don't like it. Yes, I'm very efficient between 6-8am. 

8. I'd like to wear a dress and heels everyday, have nice dinners and look pretty. You know like the duchess of cambridge? On the other hand, it would be though very tiring. But at the moment I have too many dresses and not enough events. 

9. I don't drink cider, beer, or long drinks. I don't like them. 

10. I hate bubbles. For the first time I could actually swallow soda when I was 13 or something? It's still very difficult for me, so I never buy lemonade, or drinks with bubbles. It kind of burns my throat and tongue and I can't handle it! Nowadays I sometimes drink flavored soda water. Little by little.

11. I'm a morning person - yet my morning does not start until I get a cup of good coffee. 

Answers to Jassy's questions

1.Why do you blog?  I started a blog to have a place where to throw rest of the pictures that don't go on facebook and on instagram. Soon I realized, I liked to take photos actually for the blog. Writing has always been nice, and I like to plan and make collages, so that's why I kept blogging. Now I do it, cause I like to share my photos and it's a way to for me to express myself. 

2.What is the greatest obstacle you've had to overcome in your life?  Long story short,  I'd say it was my whole exchange year. It really didn't go as planned. I had very hard time, too many sad days and in the end no one supporting me. It was time when I had to be very alone, survive alone and I was still just a child. Not to make anyone involved in my exchange to feel bad - I of course did have good days too. 

3.Who do you love the most? My family. Dad, mom, my brother and my sister, and her baby. My boyfriend is now part of my family too. 

4.What do you want to be when you ''grow up''? An opera singer. And a mom. 

5.Who've had the best influence in you? I don't know. I've learned a lot from both of my parents. 

6.Have you done anything bad as a child? A lot of probably. Haha! I remember cutting my friend's hair and lying that she fell and the hair fell off. Very believable.

7.How many children would you like to have in the future? Four. 

8.What is your favourite animal? I guess a dog. But I love so many animals!

9.What is your favourite high street fashion store? I have no idea. Never though about this! I don't really look the brand, if I like the shirt, it doesn't really matter what brand it is. 

10. What are your favourite shoes?

Bought these this summer! Used them everyday. My favourite shoes from this summer! But well, I have a lot of shoes, and it's pretty hard to say which are my favourite… 

11. How do you define love? I think the word family defines love quite well. My family makes me feel loved. They have taught me what love is. Now as I think my boyfriend as part of my family too, and me and him as our own family, I think nothing defines love better than our life together.

My questions to the next blogger: 
1. Missä haluaisit asua tulevaisuudessa?
2. Mitä vaatekappaleen merkitystä et ole ikinä ymmärtänyt? 
3. Jos saisit lähteä juuri nyt minne päin maailmaa vaan, minne menisit?
4. Miksi aloitit blogin pitämisen?
5. Keitä perheeseesi kuuluu?
6. Lempivuodenaika?
7. Mitä haluat joululahjaksi?
8. Mitä ruokaa et voi sietää?
9. Kerro kolme asiaa, jotka ovat sinulle todella tärkeitä.
10. Lempipaikkasi?
11. Jos sinun ei tarvitsisi käydä töissä, minkälaisen päiväohjelman haluaisit laatia itsellesi? 

Haastan Jonspan! eli Just flow of my life -blogin pitäjän :-) heheee! 

x Dora 

Setting the table is half of dinner

Meille on tärkeää kotona, että syödään yhdessä aina kun pystytään. Ja nimenomaan keittiön pöydän äärellä (eikä esim. television). Pöytä katetaan nätisti ja huolella myös arkisin, ja valmisruokapaketteja ei meidän jääkaapista oikeastaan löydä. Tykätään molemmat laittaa ruokaa ja kokeilla uusia reseptejä, vaikka yleensä mies onkin maailman onnellisin juuri silloin kun olen tehnyt ihan tavallista kotiruokaa, vaikkapa makaroonilaatikkoa.
 Serviettejä ei laiteta vain juhlahetkiin, ja pöydästä ei nousta (poikkeushetkiä lukuunottamatta) ennenkuin molemmat ovat syöneet. On ihanaa istua alas, jutella rauhassa kaikesta mieleentulevasta - minulle yhteinen ruokailuhetki pöydän ääressä on yhdessäoloa parhaimmillaan. Se on sellainen yhdessä rauhoittumisen hetki.
 Kun laitetaan yhdessä ruokaa, mietitään yhdessä, ja syödään rauhassa niin silloin tulee myös syötyä. Yksin saattoi helposti jättää lounaan väliin, kun ei vaivautunut vain itselleen ruokaa laittamaan. Kiireessä nappasi vain jotain mukaan, eikä päivässä ollut edes yhteisen ruokahetken vertaa rauhoittumista ja nimenomaan sitä, että istuu alas. Olin myös usein tosi nälkäinen, koska ei ehtinyt syödä rauhassa.
 Pöydässä ei lueta lehtiä (myönnän kyllä että poikkeuksena tähän on tosin iltapalat/aamiaiset joilla joskus saan Helsingin Sanomat käteeni) tai pyöritä internetin ihmeellisessä maailmassa. Aamuisin tapahtuva puhelimen pakkoselaaminenkin pyritään toteuttamaan jo sängyssä ennen nousua, eikä kesken yhteisen aamiaisen. Tästä tosin joskus lipsutaan. Mutta vain, jos molemmilla on puhelin.

For us, it is important that we eat together at home whenever we can. And specifically around the kitchen table (instead of eating in front of television for example). Table will be set nicely and carefully also on weekdays, and those ready-to-eat food packages do not have place in our fridge. We both like cooking and trying new recipes, though generally I always have the happiest man in the world when I've done something very common home-cooked food, for example macaroni and mince in the oven (it's food around here with a finnish name - kind of like macaroni and cheese, but then again, not). 
  Napkins are not placed only for special moments, and we don't get up from the table (except some moments) before both have eaten. It is wonderful to sit down, chat in peace 
about everything that comes into your mind - for me, a dinner together around the kitchen table, just has that something. It is such a calming moment together. 
  When cooking together, figuring out what to eat together, and eating in peace - that is when you also remember to take the time to eat. When alone, I could easily leave out the lunch because I couldn't bother cooking food only for myself. In rush, I just used to grab something, and the day didn't even have that moment to enjoy the food and to sit down for a moment. And I usually found myself hungry.
  Our dining moments do not include magazines (I do admit that the exception to this is, however, evening snacks / breakfasts when I sometimes get Helsinki news magazine in my hands) or wondering around the magnificent world of Internet. In the morning, the i-have-to-go-through-my-phone is located to the bed before the getting up, and not among the breakfast. But I admit, it does not always happen. But only if we both have our phones on the table, it is allowed to do so. 

Mausteinen porkkana-omenakeitto/ Spicy carrot-apple soup

Tämä keitto oli todellinen lämmike syysiltaan. Mausteisuutta oli minun makuuni ehkä jopa hiukan liikaa, mutta tämä onneksi laantui hyvin raejuustolla ja turkkilaisella jogurtilla. Keiton resepti löytyi pienestä Helsingin Sanomien 'herkutellaan!' vihkosesta, jonka sain, kun tilasin Helsingin sanomat (vihdoin!) itselleni. 

 Keitto oli todella yksinkertainen ja helppo valmistaa. Se koostui pääasiassa porkkanoista ja omenoista, minkä lisäksi siihen tuli valkosipulia, tuoretta inkivääriä, turkkilaista jogurttia, sekä erinäisiä mausteita mm. muskottipähkinää ja cayennepippuria. Rinnalle teimme tomaatti-mozzarella lautasen, ja pilkoimme patonkia. Keitto oli yllättävän täyttävää hyvässä mielessä (varsinkin raejuuston kera) ja sillä olisi pärjännyt ilman lisukkeitakin!

This soup will definitely keep you warm on a cold September evening (well, in finland where the weather is already cold as). The spiciness was maybe even a little too much for my taste, but this fortunately could be 'saved' well with some cottage cheese and Turkish yoghurt. The soup recipe was found in a small booklet I got when I (finally) ordered the Helsinki news magazine for myself.

  The soup was really simple and easy to prepare. It was mostly just carrots and apples, but also some garlic, fresh ginger, Turkish yogurt, as well as various spices mm. nutmeg and cayenne pepper. Alongside, we made tomato and mozzarella dish, and chopped baguette. The soup was surprisingly satisfying (especially with cottage) and it would have been enough without them too.

Varustautukaa villapaidoin ja -sukin, nyt se talvi tulee. Viime yön yöpakkasten jälkeen tämä keitto olisi tehnyt tosi hyvää! Pysykäähän lämpiminä, ja jos syysflunssa vaanii, niin tämän keiton caynnepippurin pitäisi kyllä karkottaa kaikki hiipivät syysflunssan oireet (ainakin hetkeksi). Uskaltakaa kokata, ja nauttikaa hyvästä ruuasta! 

If you're feeling that a flu is coming to you - all the cayenne in this soup should definitely help! (At least for a moment). If this inspired you, I can only wish happy cooking to you all! 

x Dora