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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La Vie En Rose at The Astor House Hotel, Shanghai

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Cheryl Marie Cordeiro-Nilsson, at La Vie En Rose, the Astor House Hotel, along the Bund, Shanghai.

Breakfast at La Vie En Rose, the Astor House Hotel in Shanghai, along the Bund.
Photo © Yina Huang, P O Larsson and C M Cordeiro-Nilsson for CMC 2010

Every New Year most people will find themselves writing new resolutions for the year ahead – a healthier year ahead, a more successful year ahead, new goals to be attained or renewed interests in old goals previously unattained – but for me, as 2010 passes and this night welcomes 2011, I can’t help but go back to what has been there for a very long time. A time when I was growing up, of photographs now a natural sepia in family albums.

One such place where time has seemingly stood still, and which now come to mind from my travels in the past year is The Astor House Hotel along the Bund in Shanghai.
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An Italian Saturday lunch, in Singapore

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Janice Lee, Azul Ogazon, Cheryl Marie Cordeiro-Nilsson, La Braceria, Singapore.

The Girls!
Janice, Azul and Cheryl at La Braceria, Singapore.
Kevin D Cordeiro, Julie Choo, J E Nilsson and C M Cordeiro-Nilsson © 2010

In the past month of December 2010, I had the pleasure of organizing an executive education program delivered in Singapore for the Asian wing of a large Swedish multinational. The three moduled program that launched in Singapore focuses on the topic of Doing Business in Asia and the Singapore module in particular, focused on the Challenges of Leadership.
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Christmas food in Sweden and Singapore

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Christmas ham, honey mustard baked.

Honey mustard baked Christmas ham, fresh out of the oven. Nowadays this is the centerpiece of most Swedish Christmas tables. I olden times, this place was taken by a complete, baked pig’s head with a red apple in the mouth.
J E Nilsson and C M Cordeiro-Nilsson © 2010

While living mostly in Sweden when the opportunity presents itself I occasionally find myself back in Singapore to celebrate the festive season with parents and relatives. On these occasions even solid institutions such as Christmas celebrations and the types of food put out on the Christmas table, becomes a mixture of what we all love the most of the Nordic and the Singaporean Eurasian traditions.

The Swedish “Christmas” table has its roots in old Viking mid-winter sacrifice rituals or even older than that. Then a few centuries ago the East India trade brought the Swedes to South East Asia over the Christmas where they had to wait for the monsoon winds to change before it would bring them back to the North, and today I found the traditional Nordic Christmas ham dressed up to look like a tropical pineapple fruit. Coincidence or not, traditions are built up over time to somehow keep long lost memories alive and who knows what people long after us, will have on their Christmas Mid winter tables. Chicken Mc Nugget?

Here are anyway a few pictures from my Christmas in my two homes, in Sweden, and in Singapore.
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Il Borro Wine Dinner with Salvatore Ferragamo, Singapore

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Cheryl Marie Cordeiro, Salvatore Ferragamo

At the “Il Borro Wine Dinner with Salvatore Ferragamo”.
Salvatore Ferragamo and Cheryl Marie Cordeiro,
Ristorante Bologna, Marina Mandarin, Singapore.
Text & Photo © J. Lim and CM Cordeiro-Nilsson 2010

It was an evening of intrigue, to wine and dine in the combined master efforts of the Family Ferragamo, prior to this evening, better known to me for their craftsmanship in shoemaking than wine making, and Chef Carlo Marengoni of Ristorante Bologna at the Marina Mandarin in Singapore.

The evening’s conversation, despite the rounds of wines, revolved around the internationalisation of small niche businesses, such as the Il Borro portfolio of wines. And as I found out in conversation with both Salvatore Ferragamo and Franco Russo, who is the Sales and Marketing Director of Il Borro wines, the intention was to move towards an integrated experience of a luxury culinary tourism. Previously, wines were brought into dinner for just that specific context and event. Not much was explained about its background and where it came from, rather the focus was more on the wine making processes and the taste of it as set on the table. The aromas, flavours and tones were then strictly marked on a scorecard and the wine ranked according to the panel of diners that evening. Continue reading “Il Borro Wine Dinner with Salvatore Ferragamo, Singapore” →

Tagliatelle with pork fillet medallions and Parmaggiano sause

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wsauce

Tagliatelle with pork fillet medallions and bacon crisps
with rosemary and whisky flavoured parmaggiano sause.
J E Nilsson and C M Cordeiro-Nilsson © 2010

This is long time favourite of mine. It is quick and easy to make, not that expensive, and can make up a the main course of a really nice home cooked dinner for quite a number of guests with no big effort.

Water for the pasta

All in all it takes about half an hour to make, provided that you have the ingredients prepared and at home of course. If so, the first thing to do is to get the water for the pasta started.

Getting the sauce going

Next is actually the sauce since it will need a little while to mature. This will take about thirty minutes, so we estimate the time on this. Basically you just make a white sauce with butter, wheat flour, milk and a few tbs of full cream for flavour. Add freshly ground white pepper and stir in a teaspoon (tsp) of sea salt flakes. Now stir and slow cook this for at least a quarter of an hour while adding milk and cream as needed so that you arrive at the thickness you want. Then add about a cup of loosely ground parmaggiano cheese and melt in while stirring.
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Swedish Lucia in Singapore

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Cheryl Marie Cordeiro-Nilsson, SBAS julbord in Singapore.

Choice of dress for the evening, a gold champagne gown by my good friend and favourite designer Francis Louis Ler of Amor Meus, 36 Purvis Street in Singapore.
J E Nilsson and C M Cordeiro-Nilsson © 2010

The one thing that strikes you when you land coming into Singapore from the Swedish west coast which is right now experiencing one of its coldest winters in a century at -11 C and several inches of snow, is the wall of humidity and the tropical warmth that surrounds your very being. I was instantly relieved and even reveled in the tropical thunderstorm that greeted me when touching down in Singapore.

But as events go, I was not going to miss Sweden this Christmas because I was just in time for the Swedish Business Association of Singapore (SBAS) to host their annual Julbord and celebration of Saint Lucia.
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The ultimate hot chocolate milk

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cup and candle

The ultimate chocolate milk.
J E Nilsson and C M Cordeiro-Nilsson © 2010

My pursuit of the perfect chocolate milk has a long history. Over the years in Singapore, I visited coffeeshops, kopitiams and cafés and ranked what I found as best, second and runners-up like best National, Most Photogenic, and one, well, for Congeniality.

Then a few years ago we visited the Tate Gallery of Modern Art in London. I don’t know how you feel about modern art. Personally I have a difficult relation to it since I seem to be a bit overly sensitive to strong visual communication, or maybe I get distressed about people getting paid for pouring garbage on the floor, or spilling paint on a canvas.  Eitherway, my unfortunate disposition has also made me spend quite some time in various museum cafés when I need, hot chocolate.

Among these the Tate Gallery of Modern Art in London has a special place in my heart. Their exhibitions are filled with visually strong pieces of art that could well emotionally pass as an alternative to one of those really insane roller coaster rides that tosses you upside down in mid-air and then eventually leave you hanging there head down due to some malfunction of the machinery. They are all there, Francis Bacon, Joseph Beuys, Andy Warhole, you name it. A virtual crash course in mass communication and visualizations of strong and complicated ideas.

So, after a quick look around I made it to the café and in an attempt to make my stomach calm down I ordered a Hot Cup of Chocolate.

The place is called Café 2 and is actually a recent winner of the Time Out Eating & Drinking Award as the Best Family Restaurant. It is at Level 2, overlooking the Thames riverside.
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