cooking class under the banana trees

An enthusiastic and colorful crew on the way to the local vegetable market, to buy fresh ingredients for the cooking workshop, armed with baskets and Arabic shopping lists.

Upon return to the riad everyone gets a cooking apron for the cooking class under the banana trees on the patio, led by chef Nadia and interpreter Fatiha.

Cutting, grinding, peeling, rolling, stirring, cooking, baking, tasting, zesting and meanwhile taking notes in the green little cooking notebook. Well, preparing a Moroccan lunch is a serious matter.
At the same time it starts to smell delicious on the patio of Chambres d'Amis.

While the other dishes are slowly cooking, the sweet desserts are being prepared and the table on the roof terrace is set.

Applause for the whole team and bon appetit! Time to enjoy a delightful, healthy home cooked meal. A feast for all senses!

aubergines

Homegrown aubergines in the backyard.

Almost ready to be harvested. It's the first time this year that I have tried to cultivate an aubergine plant in my garden. After years of tomato- and pepper plants, I wanted to try something different and this vegetable plant turns out to be a good choice.

The deep purple veggies have grown so fast during the past tropical weeks. It was interesting to monitor the growth of the eggplant closely and to see how the attractive lilac flowers turned into aubergines.

It reminded me of the artistic aubergine paintings by Erik Mattijssen from an exhibition a year ago. The paintings are so colorful and inspiring. The Pacifico painting from 2009, with eggplants in food cans, was my favorite masterpiece.

If only i would have planted the plant in a tin... I have to remember this for next year.

Next week I'm going to try the Zaalouk recipe, a delicious Moroccan aubergine salad with eggplant as the main ingredient.

souk breda

Saturday morning by surprise in the souk.

On our city walk in Breda we came across a brand-new place in town by chance, when we walked in the St. Janstreet.

Souk Breda recently opened their doors! Soulimane and Yassine are the young and proud owners, who shared a dream. A unique shop with Mediterranean delicacies and home accessories inspired by Marrakech.

Their dream has come true. You can now experience the moroccan vibes and food at Souk Breda.

We brought some moroccan food and pottery from the souk in Breda and had a delicious dinner in the backyard. Bismillah!

djemaa el fna rotterdam

The Museumpark in Rotterdam has been transformed this weekend into a gigantic open-air restaurant during the Djemaa el Fna festival.

The food festival is inspired by the eponymous square in Marrakech, world's largest open-air restaurant. More than 40 chefs cook for you in the classic white stalls. The food is fragrant, colorful, tasteful and prepared with love. We had a delicious Pastilla and brought some Moroccan cookies back home.

However it is not just about food at the Djemaa el Fna. The festival has moreover a small souk and an extensive cultural program, with literature, music and theater. Artists and musicians are inspired by the atmosphere of a Thousand and One Nights.

We went to the storytelling Kalief by Abdelkader Benali in the tower in the middle of the festival site. Benali shows a Thousand and One Nights Night of our time presents, in an up-to-date and playful absurd look at the old stories in which he shares his fascination for his grandmother, the power of the oral narration.

On this beautiful late summer day in September, all in all an appropriate foretaste of my trip to Marrakech next week.

PS: The top photo was taken in the Depot Boijmans van Beuningen 'mirror' building under construction. Can you spot me?

cooking class for all senses

Strolling around the vegetable market is a feast for the eyes, the abundance of fresh fruits and vegetables always makes me feel very happy.

That's the reason why there is a cooking workshop included in the program every time. The 'Marrakech experience' of doing your own shopping in the souk, is something that gives your visit to Marrakech an extra dimension. The wonderful scents, intense colors and pure beauty of daily Medina life on the market, is something you have to undergo with all senses.

A veggie cooking class with fresh and organic vegetables from the market therefore is a memorable happening!

During the Marvelous Marrakech workshop we will organize a veggie cooking class. After breakfast we take our baskets to shop our vegetables, fruits and spices at the local market in the Medina. When we return to the riad with baskets full of groceries, our chefs Rachida and Malika will show us the tricks and help us to prepare some mouth-watering Moroccan dishes in the courtyard of Chambres d'Amis.

After we have upgraded our culinary skills and our home cooked Moroccan meal is ready, lunch is served on the rooftop terrace. It's time to try and taste all the lovely flavors and enjoy a luscious lunch.

I'm eagerly looking forward to October...

Photo: april 2014

organic, what else?

Green goal of another Green Gardens workshop day is buying our own food and cook our own Moroccan lunch.

With its bounty of organic vegetables on the market in the medina, today's 'green is the theme' was all about veggies. At the local vegetable market everything is organic. For the people in the medina eating organic is not a trend. To us it's a conscious choice to eat healthier. This pure market is a return to tradition and makes you realize, once upon a time all food was organic.

A team of 12 cooking students with arabic-french shopping lists went into the herbs- and vegetable souks. When we arrived back home with our baskets full of fresh ingredients, chef Rachida of Chambres d'Amis was ready to give us a Moroccan vegetarian cooking class on the patio in the shade of the banana trees.

We made ourselves a delicious Moroccan lunch and enjoyed the tasty and pure dishes together on the roof terrace.

After a siesta at the plunge pool, we continued our Green Gardens journey and left at the end of the afternoon to the Secret Garden. The light is so beautiful at the end of the afternoon and the garden with water fountains and wildlife, is a peaceful oasis hidden in the bustling streets. After closing time we walked from the Jardin Secret to Le Jardin.

Concluding this food themed day in Le Jardin, the greenest restaurant imaginable, with a small dinner on the rooftop in the dusking sky certainly is the best way to end this day!