Danderma's Blog, page 155

Making a cup of Hazelnut French Coffee

When I recieved the Gloria Jean's Coffee Hamper two nights ago I thought the coffee beans that came with it were for filter or drip coffee machines. My sister insisted that it was french coffee and I was calmly explaining to her over and over through gritted teeth that you needed a special coffee machine to make this coffee. But Guess what? I saw this video…

When I saw it I grew suspicious, so I emailed Ms. Salma Arab from Gloria Jean's coffee asking her if the coffee beans are for French coffee or for filter coffee? She confirmed it was for French! When she did I had already imagined my self with my mama's favorite turkish coffee set making this post at our post futoor gathering :D

The beauty of Turkish or French coffee is that it can be made anywhere. So while hanging out with the family and apologizing to my sister Shosho on not believing her the night before I made this coffee and post. That's how easy it is. I really wanted to try the Hazelnut french coffee so I tried that…

 You take your cup of turkish coffee, that's your measure for hot water.

Fill it with hot water to save time.

Pour the water inside the Kanaka over the stove.

As you wait for the water to heat up you take your coffee beans and with Gloria Jean's coffee measure you take one spoon.

As soon as the water boil you must drop your spoonful of coffee beans.

Add sugar to taste. I used 3/4 a teaspoon and it was quite sweet tra.

Add the sugar to the coffee and water in the kanaka and mix well.

Wait until it boils. If you like your coffee with "wesh" take it off the heat the moment it boils. If you like your coffee without wesh place it several times on the stove again to reboil it so the wesh disappears before pouring it.

Pour and enjoy the aroma

A perfect cup of Hazelnut French coffee that smells and tastes divine. Done in a few minutes

Accompanied by a slice of my homemade strawberry cheesecake (recipe).

I drank more than one cup that's for sure! I loved it

Announcement: Dathra Book is now sold in Dubai!

A fan of Dathra? Then I have AWSOME news to share with you all.

You see if you are in Dubai, or will be in Dubai next week for Eid, you might want to stop by a book shop in a mall to check out my book, Yawmyat Wa7da Q8ya Dathra, and take a picture of it for me.

Where is that book store you say? Well its… Kinokuniya Dubai Mall!

Yes you read that right. KINOKUNIYA! My favorite spot in Dubai, my favorite book store in the middle east, is now STOCKING my book! Alf el 7md le Allah rab el 3alameen

I still cannot wrap my head around it as I am typing now. Me? Dathra? Walk into Kinokuniya and find it? me?

I was just informed today by this amazing piece of news from my publishers in Dubai. They say they will be stocking more stores with my book but for now it can be found in both Kinokuniya Dubai Mall and Dar Hikma bookstore in Al-Dhiyafa Road.

When I heard the news I wanted to board the first plane out of Kuwait to Dubai just so I could see with my own eyes. I still cannot believe it. I still cannot wrap my head around it. Me? Dubai? KINOKUNIYA!

So please please PLEASE if you can snap a shot of my book in Kinokuniya please do and send it for me! It is because of you, my Dathra fans, that the book is there. Please say hello to my book. If I have any fans in Dubai, well please take good care of my baby and don't let it be lonely.

P.S. Mo china No3man wayha khair 3lay?

My No3man Dolly

Ever since I've seen Zain's Efta7 Ya Semsem TV ad I've been tweeting that I wanted a No3man dolly, the one the little girl is hugging in the end. I've always loved Efta7 Ya Semsem and I still do. I still have the tapes I have recorded for me when I was 1 years old. My parents watch the ad -and me jumping to it- and remember my baby days. So you can understand why I wanted the dolly so much!

 

After futoor I tweeted again that I wanted a No3man Dolly. Not an hour later did the door bell ring and this white bag was delivered to me?

When I saw what's inside I went mad with happy surprise! I grabbed No3man dolly, hugged him, and began jumping up and down to the bewilderment of my mother, cousin, and sister! I was sooooo delighted!

Reading the card I wasn't surprised at all! It was from my sweet friend Alnoury! I don't really know what I did to deserve this but she has been spoiling me ALOT! Thank you sweetheart, truly truly thank you! Getting the No3man Dolly will go down in the list of the fastest wish I've been granted EVER!

Isn't my baby No3man adorable? I've been playing with him all evening and just now did he settle down to watch me post! Look at him, checking out a tiny perfume bottle.

He got himself a tiny little Alarm clock so he could wake up and go to work with me tomorrow y7leelah

Here he is trying his luck with our Financial Magic 8 Ball. It didn't look that good I tell you.

Ee he said he wanted a car so I got him a model of my Touareq. He loved it 7bebee has the same taste as his mama :*

He wasn't so happy with the Rubik's cube though, unlike his uncle -my brother- who can solve the thing, or most of it anyways.

But my No3man has a thing for coffee although I think he is too young to have any still.

I did allow him near my candylicious bucket and look what he did! Naughty No3mano!

The last straw came when he began a staring match with Um Khamas. I had to stop shooting and pull them apart. Wayed Shai6oon No3man ybeelah shwaya discipline 3lshan ma y9eer daloo3 :p

O guess what? Everyone in Twitter was asking me min win No3man dolly! 7arraaaaaaaaa :p Ele ybi No3man dolly lazim yes2al Alnoury min wain. Bs ana 3ndi no3man dolly

Thank you again, lovely Alnoury, for making my wish come true. You cannot imagine the happiness my No3man dolly has bestowed upon me. Thank you :*

10 Nemayen We Always Find in Every Ramadan Seriese

1- Lazim a couple can't get kids and they hide that fact from each other and either want to marry another woman or want to have the woman leave by treating her badly.

2- Lazim fee a poor bad father who is abusive and hits his wife and kids 24/7. They all live in an old house with a 7oosh.

3- Lazim fee a submissive wife for the father in #2 who will say nothing and won't stand up to the father's abuse.

4- Lazim fee a handicapped person. Either they become handicapped or they are born handicapped. They are always the best most angelic person in the series. Parkinsosn and MS are very popular diseases now adays.

5- Lazim fee a crazy jealous wife or husband who follows their partner 24 hours and turn their lives into hell.

6- For the jealous partner #5 they must be matched with an angelic overly patient loving partner who would take the abuse gladly and repeatedly announce "I love you I love you" and doesn't have enough dignity to leave. Especially the wife when the husband is repeatedly accusing her of having an affair. Mako karama?

7- There used to be a cheating husband. Now its either a cheating husband or a cheating wife having an affair or both. Must keep it modern and match the tempo of the world.

8- Lazim fee a kid who is lost or abandoned or orphaned and people take pity on him and try and raise him. Someone should always yell within his earshot that he is a burden and must be left to die in the street or something so we would shed a tear or two. Ele ysm3 ygool el yahal grow on trees!

9- These days lazim fee someone ey3areth wayha o yetsalaf floos. Most likely they get turned down rather rudely and they won't utter a word to defend themselves. 100 KD is a popular salaf amount by the way.

10- Lazim khala om rayel kawliya o most likely she is a widow excessively using the term ebgara now adays. Laish inzain mako 3am obo rayel or obo mara moz3ej or eybared el chabd? ta'3yeer y3ni? Malaina!

My Saher El Layl Inspired Su7oor!

I was watching Saher El Lail episode yesterday and Ali was making breakfast while Maha nagged on his head. He was making eggs, he then took his eggs, two discs of alma6a7en white bread, one cucumber and one tomato and stormed out of the kitchen.

Then Maha calls him back because he forgot the salt, and I am hit with an amazing irrisistable craving for the meal he was having. It was on my mind all night long so I have decided to have it as a su7oor even thought I have a strict no eggs during Ramadan rule.

The first thing I needed is a bag of the Ma6a7en bread he was using. I haven't had fat white bread for years now but today I craved it. It was all hot and steamy and smelled like my childhood

Next was tea with semi skimmed milk and lots of sugar. Just like I used to drink it as a kid in the 80′s.

Then two fried eggs with only salt and pepper! Its been years since I had eggs and bread for dinner. Maybe since 1997.

Voila! My su7oor is just like Ali's breakfast without the cucumber and the tomato. Its not my fault that they eat all episode long!

You know what? It tasted good. Familiar. Like something we had long stopped eating and now we had just rediscovered. I wonder why I ever stopped having just fried eggs with bread for dinner or lunch, I used to have it all the time. If I don't get sick tomorrow I will have this amazing simple basic yet delicious meal as my su7oor again insha2 Allah

The Lgaymat Day

All I could think of yesterday was having some really good Lgaymat for futoor time. I wrote this post (link) asking for help, I also went on Twitter asking for help on where to order really good Lgaymat -and NOT from Lgaymat 3washa-. To my surprise guess who answered me? You won't believe it!

Yes you saw the bag right. The Baking Tray answered me on Twitter saying they do make Lgaymat! Imagine! I just had to order their lgaymat and try them since I am already a big fan of Baking Tray and believe they sell the best chocolate chip cookies in Kuwait, Period.

The Lgaymat are sold in a portion of 8 Lgaymat for 1.500 KD. I ordered five cups and they had them delivered at our home at 6 PM. My mother said that when they arrived they were tightly shut in the plastic cups and they were getting a bit soggy so she opened the lids and took them off to air them a bit.

My mother who breaks her fast with a tea estekana was hovering over the Lgaymat. The moment she heard Allaho Akbar she drank her tea while eating a Lgaymat. Her verdict? '3jeeba'! Here is her tea estekana placed by a Lgaymat cup!

See that lovely strand of Saffron

I drank my cup of water, prayed, then took a cup of Lgaymat to the futoor table to have as a futoor. Yes, that's how much I adore Lgaymat and how much I loved baking tray's lgaymat.

Now if you like you Lgaymat entirely crunchy then don't order from the Baking Tray. If you like them with a hint of crunch and doughy on the inside then they are the ones for you

If there is anything that could make the Lgaymat better is to cook them for a minute longer and to change the packaging so they don't get too soggy. Other than that they are the perfect Lgaymat PLUS they come in a portion of 8 pieces which is more than enough to satisfy our cravings without having to be stuck with a big bowl of Lgaymat which we have to finish.

Guess what? Since I also complained today on twitter to Baking Tray that their chocolate chip cookies yesterday weren't all that they sent me a complimentary box of their amazing chocolate chip cookies and they tasted divine -ashwa!- Thank you Baking Tray for making my day! Truly thank you! Keep up the good work guys.

Guess what? As we were having tea later on and still sprawled on the couches in a food coma daze state our door bell rings and this arrives.

It was from giggles, a dear reader and avid follower of my blog who had a Lgaymat noq9a for me when she saw how much I was craving them today. Its really so sweet of her

Check them out… golden, shiny, and sprinkled with powdered pistachios.

They were GOOOOOD! Again like I love the, crunchy from the outside and doughy from the inside

Thank you so much dear giggles for such a lovely noq9a! I alone ate half of the Lgaymat you sent.

Min ygool 6ofa7t lgaymat ams? But I have decided inah I am allowed one Lgaymat day in ermothan so yesterday was it. No more Lgaymat till next Ermothan insha2 Allah

Tboon ta6lboon Elgaymat Baking Tray you can check their website here (link).

Tboon takloon Elgaymat giggles… well tough luck. They are so good they deserve to be sold wallah bs shensawee b3d mako elnoq9a bs 7aggi ana :p

Help: Min wain a6lob Lqaymat?

Abi Lqaymat!

Bamoooot 3la el lqaymat! Ma en3arf ensaweehom fe beetna. Awal kinna na6leb min arth el qemma bs ekhtarab. Lqaymat 3awasha mo thak el zood. Nbi el yoom na6leb elqaymat latheetha mentafkha min barra crunchy o min dakhel feha 3yeen o drenched in syrup.

Min gemt min el noom o mokhi goes "Lqaymat lqaymat" o mo ratheen ye6l3oon min my mind… ermothan bdoon lqaymat may9eer yoba may9eer!

Please help, abi raqam ma7al a6leb minah lqaymat 3jeeba latheetha jedan -la7ad yegol le 3washa please- Min wain? Help!

Danderma the Sniper ;)

Be afraid, be very afraid, for I have taken a liking to big and heavy rifles, bullets, and the smell of bullet smoke or powder or whatever that comes out of it!

Last week the amazing Anony & Zowey called me up saying they have a surprise for me. Just be ready and bring your camera! I couldn't wait for my surprise of course and I had a million scenarios in mind. When I got into their car and they drove me towards the shooting range I was super excited! At last I will get to try shooting! They have decided to take me there since its on my list of birthday wishes

I must be the last one in Kuwait to to go to the shooting range so everyone is probably already familiar with the place. I however want to document my surprise! So first they took our civil id's then we went downstairs and had to fill our information in a form.

The girls had tried the smallest bullet before. Not me. I  said I wanted to try rifles and not little guns. I wanted big fat bullets. So we choose three big rifles and the girls paid for them

We went to the shooting range which had this warning on the door.

Thag kholgi awal shay but the instructors we had said it was OK to take pictures. They were very funny and helpful as well

We grabbed out ear muffs and the rifles we brought out and loaded with bullets.

A little guidance and Voila! I was on fire  See how far the targets were?

My favorite rifle was the one below… the one that didn't need reloading. It was also the strongest. The moment you fire and the smell of burning smoke hits your nostrils… ya salaam!

Guess what? I got a bull's eye!

Nice mo? Not bad for a beginner!

Even though I was mocked and nicknamed Rambo for the rest of the night I didn't mind at all. I happen to love Rambo and Rocky and they are my two favorite movies. Also learning to shoot is an Islamic teaching y3ni fa I was kinda doing something Islamic in Ramadan

I also found a store that sells rifles later on that night in Kuwait city! Now if that is not a sign I don't know what it is. I love shooting. I will go back insha2 Allah and practice some more until I am allowed to buy my own rifle. I want to keep it with me to protect me. Ma tadroon b3d the guys up north ga3deen yargeloon hal yomain. At least we learn self defense.

Thank you girls, Anony & Zowey, for the lovely and amazing surprise :* You truly made my day

Napket's Amazing Ramadan Noq9a

Yesterday after futoor as we were lounging around the TV hugging our tea estekana's our door bell rang. I was in the mood for some dessert but I had to ransack the Gerge3an stash and had just produced a miniature bounty and milky way when this lovely box arrived in front of us!

A little card with a poem and a miniature menu was attached bearing Napket's signature logo.

What do you think was inside? Lets open it and see shall we…

A heavy elegant black woven box with a lid. My mother confiscated it saying she has stuff to put inside :p When you open the lid you will find golden tissue paper.

Within the folds of the gold tissue paper there are 3 covered cups and a black cube that smells so good.

My sister grabbed the Um Ali and flew to the kitchen. She is an Um Ali freak! My mother asked what was the black cube and it turned out to be a very good smelling candle. She said she wanted it o took it right away :p

It seems like it had Napket's logo on top but it was all melted maskeena from the heat. Don't blame her. Now what else was inside? Um Ali, Sahlab, and Apricot Muhalabiya.

I wanted to try the sa7lab since I've never tried it before. It tasted like m7albiya only with a more liquid form. It had a stick of cinnamon swimming inside. It was good wallah. Why I have never tried it before is beyond me!

The apricot M7albiya was my favorite. It tasted amazing. Really really good! I am not a fan of apricots usually but I love to have it with M7albiya. I know my father would love to try it but he wasn't there.

Last but not least came the Um Ali. My baby sister went a bit gaga wanting to eat the Um Ali.

She also took my camera and began taking pictures and asking me to take pictures next to the pot of tea!

Maskeena she took that picture, and many other pictures. 3ashat baby toome

How did the Um Ali taste? Really good indeed! My mother thinks this is how Um Ali should taste like. It had no raisins which is a big turn off in our family and we were happy. My sister & I thought it had a little too many nuts though but my mom says it is supposed to be this way. Then again ana o my siblings are ed3al fa I would take my moms word for it. It is amazing!

Thank you Napket for such an amazing noq9a! It came just in the nick of time and it made me and my family very very happy! 3asakom min 3owadah insha2 Allah

If you want to try those dishes which I highly recommend you do you can visit Napket in the Avenues Phase II first floor above Caribu Coffee.

To contact Napket you can visit their facebook page (link) or contact them on twitter (link) or by phone tel: 22597754

The driver who nearly killed me this morning!

Do you know the real reason behind the deathly accidents in our streets?  Its not speed, drivers all over the world speed all the time. Its arrogance. The driver's pride and arrogance which leads to his reckless driving. All a reflection of how they were brought up and how they deal with people in real life.

This morning I was very sleepy, my stomach was churning, it was boiling hot, I am dead tired as I've been since Ramadan started for some reason. The roads from home to work were as crowded as ever. All I wanted was a simple sip of water to ease my stomach pain which has been acting up again lately.

At last I get closer to work. I've been standing in an overly crowded street waiting for the slow traffic light to open and close FOREVER. It was in the long street the passes by Keifan's post, City Center, Zain, BMW, and ends with Shuwaikh Port. The traffic light opened for the millionth time, cars barely passed when it closed again. The bus in front of me stopped, I stopped behind it waiting patiently like I've been doing for the entire drive for the traffic light to open. All I wanted was to go to work.

Chorbik chorbik comes the brother in the car shown above. Em'3ayem elsyara o plastered an "Apple is cool" stickers all over his car -thought they don't show in the picture-… driiing and he stands in front of me with all the confidence in the world. Never mind I've been waiting forever. Never mind I've been feeling like hell for an entire two weeks. Never mind that I have no energy left in me to function or post or tweet let alone drive to work. He just felt he was entitled to pass all the waiting cars and take my place. MY PLACE!

Hell no. He wasn't going to pass before me. Light turns green, I put down my camera, put my foot on the gas pedastal, and lung forward in front of him, taking my rightful turn and driving away.

The story should have ended here, but it had just started. You see the arrogant guy who was driving was so astonished at my lack of manners, at how I wouldn't let him take my place and pass in front of me, he actually became enraged. He swerved to the left lane in rage almost colliding with a red car, sped up until he was level with me, then he swerved in front of me trying to ram into my car! To save my self I had to swerve to the left sharply to get away from him, cars honking behind us. He swerves again on my car in the middle lane and I barely have time to brake, my car screeching with a strange sound and for a moment I lost control on my car but I pressed the brake harder o I continued on my way.

Cars behind us were braking, honks were blaring. It was crazy! Like a little war zone!

The poor red car behind me who got swerved on twice so took the leftmost lane and sped up then went in front of me, lowered his window and a shouting match ensued between him and the apple is cool guy, sas el bala! Both of them now drove very slowly as they fought and the entire road behind them was blocked as they fought.

I moved along. I didn't wait to watch the end of that fight. I reached work very glad to have survived that car mania. I was almost crushed between those speeding cars. I was lucky! Alf el 7md le Allah I wasn't hit, I don't know how but I was certain I was going to be in an accident.

All because of one lousy arrogant driver who thinks he is better than every one else. I should have let him pass you say? Maybe. But I didn't. Just because I didn't let him pass doesn't mean he has the right to attack me and cause this mayhem, period.

7esbya Allah 3leek wa ne3ma el wakeel. Nass tekhaf ma tekhtesheesh.