Kaya – the real decadent Nonya egg marmalade recipe

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The Nonya Kaya, or coconut egg marmalade, best eaten spread on toasted bread, with butter.

The Nonya Kaya, or coconut egg marmalade is best eaten spread on toasted bread, with pure dairy butter.
Photo © JE Nilsson and C M Cordeiro-Nilsson for CMC 2010

When I was first introduced to this green coloured kaya egg marmalade, generously spread on toasted white bread with butter, I was about three years old. Some time later, my eyes opened towards the brown coloured kaya, made with gula Melaka, a coconut palm sugar that originates from Malacca, Malaysia.

The former version takes its green colour from screwpine or pandan leaves, whilst the latter takes its colour from the caramelized brown of the coconut palm sugar. Untill today, I haven’t decided which I like better. It seems like mood dictates which version comes off the stove when whipping some up for my family.
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Fabrics of Southeast-Asia

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Cheryl Marie Cordeiro-Nilsson, in batik and sari / saree shawl.

In various shades of pinks – traditional silk dyed batik and batik sarong with a sari shawl. Outfit is by Francis Louis Ler of Amor Meus, Purvis Street, Singapore.
Photo © JE Nilsson and C M Cordeiro-Nilsson for CMC 2010

Colours of the cultures of Asia never fail to bring a smile on my face and put me in a festive mood, from the colourful saris of India, to the brightly hand painted silks of the Chinese qipao and the intricately patterned, waxed drawn batiks of Indonesia and Malaysia. Even the colours and texture of raw silk from Thailand draw my attention when I see them.
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A taste of ancient Maya and Aztec Mexico in Casa Latina, Singapore

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Cheryl Marie Cordeiro-Nilsson, Azul Osman Ogazon and Janice Lee at Casa Latina, Singapore

In the Colours of Mexico!
Photo © JE Nilsson and C M Cordeiro-Nilsson for CMC 2010

I think my experiences with Mexican food prior to Casa Latina in Singapore, with the girls Azul and Janice, were mostly American Tex-Mex style limited to tacos, salsa, guacamole, tortillas, quesadillas and tequilas! Azul herself is from Mexico City, having lived in Singapore for some years now, and I couldn’t be happier or more grateful for this excursion on Mexcian culture via food when she introduced us to some Mexican fare right here in Singapore! And recently in November of 2010, Mexican cuisine was added by UNESCO to the list of world’s “intangible cultural heritage”.
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