Live & Learn..

[Who2]

Saturday, shopping over the 'dark-side.
I must say I never have liked going over for essentials, especially now I don't even chill for a cold libation.

We went to Aboudi bookshop looking for any book on Tagine recipes, nada, zilch but did chat with
the old man's widow..

Round to Ace Charity Shop 2 streets away, ex-pats love cooking. "G long time no see".."Hi girls yes I'm back,
where's the cookbooks ? " Bought three nice hardback 'Croqu Menus' bloody things in French.
Oh! and a pair of shorts, they had my name in them, asda/primark ?

As I had bought a new base for my tagine, having dropped it,
So 2 days soaking then 'curing the base then 'flavouring it..
I decided to get some recipes...Oh! well nothing on Amazon EG, but since lockdown and 5 years in blighty
I'm an Amazon freak here it's changing my life. Fertilizers, grass seeds, allen keys, dead sea bath salts,
charger for my old macbook, fly taps, plus Mo the Amazon man needs help amazon workers worldwide
are paid a pittance.

Now, my mate was telling me a story, as we were talking about the new mosque next to
The Camp. He 'reckons he has it on pretty good authority they built the mosque to block the view of the villa opposite.
He must mean the old/new Africa plot that flooded annually, next to our camp.
( we built an island,at night time)

'So they say. He's a Christian and they say he wanted to build a church overlooking the Nile.
They say,
He's a clever artistic/rich window wood designer never heard of him, but he has a place over the canal.

True or not love these local stories, anyhow another 2 day wedding in our 'house of the dead tonight.
Another invite avoided with the ol Tagine on the go excuse, oh! and the gammy leg...la whaala.

Ps: Just watered the street for them mind you the youth could party till 2, I'll be akip.

[HEPZIBAH]

Tagine Recipes - there are lots of recipes on line, quite a lot (of the better ones I've read) are in French, but that's when Google(or whatever) is your friendly translator. I believe you use Facebook and I think there are a number of groups dedicated to all things 'tagine' there.

[Teddyboy]

When we lived on the East, we occupied the apartment on the roof of our building. It had a nice view over the rooftops to the West Bank mountains, I loved sitting in our livingroom and gazing over to Meretseger. (She who loves silence! Hahaha.)
The only fly in my ointment was the five mosques which each had a hi-level speaker (in view!) aimed directly at us. Mind, we soon became inured to it! Perhaps that could be one of their ideas with the new build which you mention, Dear Dr?

[Who2]

The old man who used to run the 'pot shop, down the Aswan Cairo road is now run by his son.
They have expanded over the 20 plus years to a huge open-air showroom.

Loads of clay lampshades, pots, tagines decorated and undecorated, glazed, it's so good I went back
and bought more stuff and another smaller tagine. Oh! he's also dirt cheap, if he likes you.

You can't miss him the pots cover both sides of the road now, towards Abu Salon ( booze man)...


"Decisions decisions, decisions."

It's as much fun a kitchen freak like me can enjoy. In the pic, I'm only half way down the displays...

Ps: I also love collecting cookbooks, starting from Mums' Mrs Beeton through to my Larousse..

[HEPZIBAH]

I wonder if LAROUSSE GASTRONMIQUE is still on top of the essential reading list for those entering catering college. A classic it may well be, but it's format likely does not make easy reading for young folk brought up with simple text and coloured photographs. (If they've seen a book at all in this techno age!)