Fateera

This is my daughter's favorite food, after pizza and moloheya (see an upcoming post for moloheya).

Fateera is made by this ultra thin buttery pastry cooked in layers (a bit like phyllo), with lovely cheese, vegetables and olives stuffed inside it. There are so many variations on this - with chicken, beef, tuna or sweet versions filled with apples. You can also eat thick layers of fateera on its own, as a nice (fattening) breakfast, dipped in honey or molasses (what they call black honey here in Egypt).

Turkish Coffee

Turkish coffee is fabulous. Next to it, Nescafe (or American coffee) seems like flavored stale water. As they prepare the Turkish coffee in Egypt, it is so incredibly flavorful and strong, they add amazing spices which include delicious cardamom in the coffee grind.


The best made coffee has a nice little thick bubbly layer on top, called wissh (or face in English). You can put a few drops of cold water into this with your finger - I am not sure why this is done, but I think it has something to do with getting the grains to settle at the bottom.

Be careful, do not drink the cup to the bottom! Leave the grains behind!

Interesting facts:
- in Albania they drink the same coffee but with milk

- if you get tummy troubles while traveling in Egypt, be sure to ask for a cup of Turkish coffee prepared with lemon - all of the Nile cruises are well acquainted with this natural remedy.

- Egyptian fortune-telling is done by turning the remains of a clear glass of coffee cup upside down and reading the patterns in the grains.

Unexpected Greenery

In Cairo so many streets are lined with beautiful trees. In the springtime, the trees are at their most fabulously beautiful, particularly in the month of May, when the flowers are in full blossom and a lot of the trees have gorgeous red, pink, orange, yellow, blooms.

Juice Shops

The fresh juices in Egypt are faaa-bu-lous!

For any inductee to Egyptian juice stands, there is one which is very delicious and a must-try is a drink called Fahfahina, which features a blend of seasonal fruit (but usually something like banana and strawberries, mango juice, guava juice, melon, apples, maybe pomegranate seeds, even some crushed nuts and icecream)

My personal favorite is Asab juice (sugar cane). (This guy has captured an awesome photo of it here: Shawnbaldwin.com) They literally take the whole sugar cane stalk and push it into a big juicer that churns out this green yummy sugary and refreshing drink.

Amazing fruits and vegetables year-round

I grew up in Canada. Then I moved to rainy Europe. I can really say, that I don't think I ever really tasted a tomato until I went to Egypt (for more reasons on why North American tomatoes are so bland read this nice article on how "industrial farming has destroyed the tasty tomato". Compared to Egyptian tomatoes, all other tomatoes taste like water, really. In the past, I used to be dazed by people who could just eat a full tomato like an apple, but after living in Egypt I can start to understand why.

Palm Trees

 

Gorgeous. Love them. Palm trees always make me feel like I'm on vacation, even when I'm not.

Egyptian Bread

Egyptian bread tastes so good once you start eating it is really hard to stop.

It is super delicious with hummus, baba ganouj, cheese, pickled lemons, and even nutella.

It is also fascinating to watch them make the bread in the outdoor stone fired ovens. Another fabulous thing is to see delivery men riding on bicycles in the busy streets of Cairo, balancing large wooden racks on their heads as they ride with loaves upon loaves of bread stacked on top.

source: dailytravelphotos.com