In my kitchen…
…is a bag of Syrian za’atar. The gentleman in the Arabic nut and spice store convinced me that it was better than the Jordanian product I normally buy, and I couldn’t resist the artistic presentation – reminiscent of the coloured sand in glass bottles that were all the rage when I was a child…
In my kitchen…
…is a bottle of Canadian maple syrup, a gift from our friends Kevin and Carol who were over there for a holiday a couple of months ago…
In my kitchen…
…are three loaves of sourdough fruit bread, made to a new formula I’ve been playing with – a variation on the one I made last year.
The dough has 500g of fruit to the 1kg of flour (800g flour/100g rye/100g spelt) and contains a mixture of dried cranberries, Turkish figs, sultanas, currants, golden raisins and the wonderful candied peel I found at Harkola last Christmas…
The peel gives the bread a festive fruit cake touch, although I didn’t make my own like Heidi does…
In my kitchen…
…is a plate of greens from the garden, including basil, Italian parsley, purslane and sorrel..
In my kitchen…
…is proof positive that my friend Marty loves me! He spent six months sourcing this kopi luwak as a surprise for me. The coffee beans are a rare delicacy – eaten and then shat out by civet cats, whose digestive processes ferment the beans (which come out whole), resulting in an incredibly smooth and mellow coffee…
I took a handful to Manny, the world’s best barista, and he ground the beans and made them up for us to taste. It was a sublime and perfect way to spend an easy afternoon…
. . . . .
Tell me, what’s happening in your kitchen this month?
If you’d like to do an In My Kitchen post on your own blog, please feel free to use this format, and to leave a comment here linking back to your post. We’d all love to see what’s happening in your kitchen every month too!
Fig Jam and Lime Cordial 
Definitely I will try “in my kitchen”. I am so happy to have found your blog…so much fun.
Now about the coffee…those civet cats are used for a lot of things…I remember someone telling me that.
I love these posts of yours!
I think I will do one from my kitchen here in Chincoteague!
(I’m calling it my test kitchen from now on.)
I tried that coffee once- it IS good, really good- but I keep thinking about the mellowing process and it is a real turn off for me!
I have stacks and stacks of dried fruit left over from Christmas, I didn’t make the cakes I thought I was going to and three small tubs of home made peel in the fridge, so maybe your fruit bread is just the thing to have a go at. It looks light and moist for a bread with all that fruit in. Just the ticket!
[…] I borrowed this idea from Celia, at Fig Jam and Lime Cordial. […]
Your kitchen looks more interesting than mine. When I am here alone I don’t feel all that inspired to cook. Jim will be here next week, so I will have to try a bit harder.
I love that you gave the Kopi Luwak beans to Manny to make a coffee!
Celia I’m so excited you have that coffee! How on earth did your friend find it and how much did it cost I wonder?! I had heard there was a cafe on the North Shore somewhere that was using it, about $7+ for a cup. I’m not sure why a coffee bean that has been through the digestive tract of a cat sounds appealing, but it does… and how, oh how does someone come up with the idea?!
Norma, thank you! :) Look forward to seeing what’s happening in your kitchen too!
Heidi, I LOVE your test kitchen post! Thanks for playing! :)
Jo, the loaf was quite dense, but not stodgy, if that makes sense. The peel made a fabulous addition and changed the flavour a lot, making the whole loaf a little citrussy. I was really happy with it! :)
Deb, I don’t know when you’d have time to cook, with all the magic floats to watch and cars to dodge.. hahaha
Lorraine, I had to! Marty had gone to all that trouble to get me the beans, and I wasn’t about to grind them in my spice infused grinder and then stick the grounds into a plunger! And of course, Manny is the king of coffee… :)
Brydie, that really IS an interesting story – here’s the history from the Wiki article I linked to the post:
The origin of Kopi Luwak is closely connected with the history of Coffee production in Indonesia. In early 18th century The Dutch established the cash-crop plantations in their colony in Dutch East Indies islands of Java and Sumatra, including Arabica coffee introduced from Yemen. During the era of Cultuurstelsel (1830—1870), the Dutch prohibited the native farmers and native plantation workers to pick coffee fruits for their own use. Yet the native farmers desired to have a taste of the famed coffee beverage. Soon the natives learned that certain species of musang or luwak (Asian Palm Civet) consumed these coffee fruits, yet they left the coffee seeds undigested in their droppings. The natives collect these Luwak’s dropping coffee seeds; clean, roast and grind it to make coffee beverage.[2] The fame of aromatic civet coffee spread from locals to Dutch plantation owners and soon become their favourites, yet because of its rarity and unusual process, the civet coffee was expensive even in colonial times.
Sorry, but I know I’ve tried some fascinating cultural eating in my travels, but this one’weasel coffee’ you guys win hands down.Although you know what they say if it looks good try it!
I guess the mild aroma of any coffee bean would smell good!….? Interesting label..’Sharing the Passion’
I always enjoy your kitchen antics, with wonderful and interesting products. That fruit bread looks delcious! x
You’ve got some good stuff in your kitchen. In my kitchen is a box of hydralyte!
:-), I can now say officially I know someone who has kopi luwak…..we have seen more than a few features on tv about the unique beans! Enjoy. And I think the za’atar looks great too.
Ever since I read it in some magazine,I’ve been very intrigued by Kopi Luwak. Have to look for teh North Shore cafe that sells it for $7 a cup… Have heard that one cafe sells it for $50 a cup…
Your kitchen is always so much more exciting than mine but here goes
In my kitchen
– are my lemon and lime infused tiny bottles of oil from my trip to Sydney
– is a loaf of freshly-baked multigrain/wholemeal bread
– are a few of my recent sewing creations that have spilled over from the living room
[…] all love Celia’s In My Kitchen series so I thought I should also join in and do one too. It is most appropriate that I should link this […]
That fruit loaf looks yummy. I have started making hot cross buns again so might have to try a fruit loaf as well soon.
The kopi luwak are all yours…I can’t get my head around the whole processing angle. I have tried it in a cafe and it was very mellow…but not sure I will be rushing out to buy a bag of those beans.
Hmmm, here in Brisbane you have to know your coffee shops to be sure of getting a good coffee because too many do indeed taste as if they have been shot out of the rear end of a feline! Some time ago I went to a “conversation” evening at the State Library where the topic was food and one participant suggested that much of what passes for coffee in Brisbane was in fact fried flour with milk! I do so enjoy a good cup of coffee – it’s like a mini-holiday, a bubble of contentment.
yum – I love za’atar!
My first experience was eating it at a cafe on the side of a hill in the north of Lebanon last year. The location alone made it spectactular but the taste was divine!
We loved it so much we brought a pack home with us – you can imagine the look on the customs fella’s face at Bangkok airport when we pulled a cry-vacced bag of green stuff out of our bag – he thought he’d hit the major drug smuggling jackpot! And the dumbest smugglers ever, I’m sure!
We laugh about it now but at the time all we saw were men in uniform carrying guns coming from all over the airport towards our checkpoint table…..eeek!
Jealous I am! I have been hearing about these coffee ‘pooped’ beans for years, was the taste as wonderful…. hmmmm… gets me every time I think about the process in creating these beans??? But was it as wonderful as I hear?
Drooooooool, love Canadian Maple Syrup. I could drink the stuff. Not sure my thighs would be digging it as much, but ya only live once hey?!
Hmmmm…. Whats cooking in my kitchen this month? The list is so long, was out at the markets the other day, came across a radicchio, so recreated a prawn dish I used to make, found some figs that baked up a treat, going to make individual triple layered choc cakes on the weekend, and Mom and I are gonna have another Cookie’s Diary ‘Cook-Off’ next weekend too. Isn’t cooking just the best fun. :)
Have a wonderful week Celia!
You always have the most fun and interesting things in your kitchen.
:-) Mandy
Over here, the hub is cooking corned beef and cabbage for Saint Patrick’s Day.
I made crepes the night before last with a Béchamel sauce. Veg for me, asparagus, broccoli and mushroom, chicken for the guys, Delish!
I bought baskets of blueberries and blackberries. Any suggestions?
Maz.
I was really taken with the peel. For a citrus lover like me, it seems like the perfect way to use leftover peel. And it looks like it just might convert the ‘peel’ haters in this family. Who would blame them? The storebought hard orange little lumps are just awful. Thanks for posting.
I’m experimenting with my bottle of verjus
Yvette, thank you – civet coffee is the food equivalent of bungee jumping – it’s not for everyone! :)
Oz, I’m not surprised, since the coffee has Dutch origins! It’s very nice if you ever get a chance to try it!
Soy, I’m pretty sure they sell it over in Singapore as well.. :)
Oooh, Claire, I’m excited to see more of your sewing projects, hope you’re going to post photos for us!
SG, Harkola had really nice candied peel last Christmas – sooo much nicer than the stuff from the supermarket. Might be worth calling them and seeing if they have more for your HXBs?
Jan, how lovely to hear from you, I was wondering if you were back from your little holiday yet! Is coffee in Brissie really that bad? ;-)
Shelley, you made me feel anxious and laugh at the same time with your story!
Anna, it’s nearly the weekend, girl, and I hope you have a great one planned! Look forward to the Cookie cookfest!
Mandy, thank you! :)
Maz, blueberry and yoghurt cake? Or the blackberry crown I posted a couple of weeks ago? It all sounds wonderful, hope you have a lovely night!
Mariana, I didn’t make the peel (although lots of people do), but this was really good French stuff, and it tastes superb. Last Christmas I was dipping it in dark Belgian chocolate for gifts and they were very popular!
Frances, have fun! Interesting thing to play with! :)
Was the coffee really unbelievable? Not convinced either! I’ve never had The real true maple syrup either -is it dense? In my kitchen are ten packets from Herbie’s including Native Aust BBQ mix, roast wattle seed and Akudjura -ground bush tomato. The bush tomato smells amazing with a caramel note. Of course – I haven’t actually used any of them yet.
I love your website :-)
How do you cook/prepare the sorrel?
Thanks.
What a great eclectic mix!
I’d love to try that coffee too, I don’t think anyone sells it in Canberra, I think I’ll put in on my birthday list.
The herbs are fantastic too. My philosophy is that herbs should be ingredients, not just garnishes.
In my kitchen today are a dozen Zumbo macarons!!! I’m pacing myself, and nibbling s.l.o.w.l.y…..
Great idea – I enjoyed seeing what’s in your kitchen. I love this type post and will join in one day soon.
[…] Celia’s collection of ‘In the Kitchen‘ Almond Croissants and Custard Tarts from Hart's Bakery Nils's recipe – still the […]
I love peaking into people’s kitchens and yours is always so interesting. You know what I’d do first if I stepped into yours though? Look at the cook books on the shelf. I cannot help browsing book collections.
Anna, not incredible, but very nice indeed, and very mellow and smooth! Looove Herbie’s Spices!
Jean, we either eat the sorrel in salads, or we chop it up and serve it over boiled and buttered new potatoes. The chickens love it too! :)
Becca, hope you find some kopi luwak in Canberra – the only tip I heard was to check your sources carefully, as there are some forgeries out there (and obviously they would be hard to pick!)
Joan, thank you! Look forward to seeing what’s in your kitchen too one day…
Sally, the cookbooks aren’t all in the kitchen, they’re scattered throughout the house! My friend David is actually writing a blog just about his cookbook obsession: http://cookbooksanonymous.wordpress.com/
I have heard about those beans before. I would be really interested in trying them. A bit like the pigs that eat the acorns.
Susan, the coffee was really lovely, hopefully you can track some down in Canberra! :)
Ha! You can count on Marty to sniff out (no pun intended) the ‘poo coffee’!!! Hope you enjoyed it.
LOL! You said it, Cathy! And it was delicious… :)