The Foodscape turns TWO!

Today, The Foodscape celebrates its Second Anniversary! I can’t believe it’s been two years since my first post on The Foodscape. Little did I know then that it would become my life. 🙂

The Foodscape has had a tremendous year indeed. It started out with the routine five working days and blogging over the weekends, survived a big move to another country, launched its logo, travelled to Thailand and had an incredible Christmas, filled with the season’s best. Then 2016 rolled in and I worked hard to put many wonderful recipes out for you. Happy Days!

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Food Review: Brio Cafe, M’lore

It’s been a few days since we first dined at Brio Cafe, Mangalore; and in short, the experience was a blend of hits and misses. Situated right outside the Lighthouse Hill entrance of St. Aloysius Pre-University and Degree Colleges, one would imagine that this little cafe would be bustling with students bunking class and gorging on some scrumptious fast food. But one look at the prices on the menu, and it’s clear why the place is not filled with enthusiastic young chatter. But the exorbitant prices are not all that’s off about this place…

Here I share The Foodscape’s experience at Brio Cafe, Mangalore. Brace yourselves, it’s a long one. 😛

 

When we walked in to Brio Cafe, we quite liked what we saw. It is a chic cafe dressed in tones of cream, beige and chocolate, and a splash of colour here and there. While dining tables surrounded with high chairs provide for a comfortable dining experience, the cute sofa-coffee table seating arrangement that the cafe sports is great for a coffee and cake break.

The brick walls add a homey vibe to the experience, while neatly set tables topped with candles bring with them an air of warmth. The carefully picked wall decor is also pleasing to the eye; though I’m not quite sure if there’s any symbolism attached to the bicycle themed decor. Something we didn’t quite like were the paper menus; they were crumpled and worn, certainly not something that complements the ambience.

Chilled and laid back, it wasn’t hard for me to be at leisure here. Also, I must mention that the cafe plays some great music! 🙂

 

Cheesy Garlic Bread

Priced at Rs. 100, the Cheesy Garlic Bread was quite nice. It came with six pieces of soft bread topped with semi-melted mozzarella. It was well seasoned and looked great too. However, as the boyfriend put it, ‘It just wasn’t cheesy enough!’ It lacked that blast of cheese that we all love when we sink our teeth into some velvety cheesy goodness.

Baked Stuffed Potatoes

When browsing through the menu, the Baked Stuffed Potatoes caught my eye. I instantly pictured skin-on baked potatoes, filled with chicken or sausages topped with oodles of cheese. But when we asked the server about the stuffing, he didn’t know just what it was. He told us they were stuffed with cheese, carrots and vegetables. It would have been lovely if the server knew exactly what he was serving; it provides a reassurance of sorts to diners, that they’re in good hands. We went with the potatoes anyway.

When the stuffed potatoes arrived, they looked lip-smacking. Priced at Rs. 150 and tossed in a gravy oozing with earthy flavours of paprika, the potatoes were cooked until crunchy and stuffed with as assortment of veggies like carrots, peas and baby corn. The cheese was nowhere in sight. I found that the earthy flavours of the gravy overpowered the gorgeous potatoes, the stuffing didn’t do justice to the dish and the potatoes themselves were a little too hard for my liking. The goodness of that mushy bite that is characteristic of baked potatoes was missing. All in all, the brother, the boyfriend and I were not fans of this dish.

 

Then came our drinks, which I think was the best part of the meal. The boyfriend went with a Pomegranate Cooler, the brother with a Chocolate Milkshake and I with a Mojito. While the former was a wonderful dance of pomegranate and lemon on the taste buds, the milkshake was smooth creamy and chocolicious; and my mojito was refreshing! However, I didn’t quite understand just why the Mojito was priced at Rs. 110. That’s crazy expensive for a drink as simple as a mint and lime concoction! The Chocolate Milkshake was Rs. 120; pricey, but edging on worth it; and the pomegranate cooler was priced at Rs. 80, quite reasonable.

Pomegranate Cooler

Chocolate Milkshake

Mojito

 

Lamb Burger

For main course, the brother decided to have the lamb burger. Priced at Rs. 170, it looked inviting when it arrived, with the bread being all soft and pillowy and a side of fries. But upon tasting it, we were disappointed. The flavours and textures of lamb are beautiful and cooking it is an art. To be able to work spices in, to complement the meat’s strong flavours is definitely difficult but when done right results in something magical. This was not the case with the burger. The lamb patty was cooked in bland spices, and was then coated in a batter and some semolina before it was deep fried (why burger patties are batter fried, I will never understand). All this just took away the beauty of the meat, leaving it drab and unappetizing.

 

Chicken Steak

Priced at Rs. 210 (way too expensive!), the Chicken Steak was dry, overcooked and edged towards boring. The chicken breast cooked in a mushroom and garlic sauce spiked with lots of paprika, didn’t play well on my taste buds one bit. I enjoyed the fries and the buttery sauteed vegetables much more that I did the chicken. A thumbs down from me.

 

Grilled Prawns

The boyfriend went with the Grilled Prawns and my were they delicious! They had this smokey hot flavour coming through which worked spectacularly for the sweet meat of the prawns. And the best bit, the amazing seafood-ness of the prawn that all us seafood lovers crave, was only amplified by the marinade. And the dish was reasonably priced at Rs. 210 as well!

So, here’s the deal about the main course at Brio Cafe. All three dishes that we ordered tasted somewhat similar, if not the same. While the marinade worked splendidly for the prawns, it didn’t work for the chicken one bit. And, that both the prawns and the chicken were cooked in the same marinade was a huge disappointment.

 

The desserts at Brio Cafe, were the biggest letdown. The three of us are huge fans of dessert and what we had at the cafe was extremely unpalatable, to put it lightly. The Nutella Cheesecake was the most edible from the lot but was a huge disappointment in itself. The base layer of oreos was gluggy and lacked the crackle of the biscuit layer, the cheesecake layer lacked that wow factor and the Nutella topping was just not Nutella. It was a thin layer of simple chocolate that really took away the draw factor of delicious Nutella. To pass that off as Nutella is a crime in the dessert world!

The Fudge Brownie was hard, and crispy, lacked the gooeyness of a brownie, had a weird cookie layer at the bottom and the aftertaste was soapy and unsavoury. The Red Velvet cupcake was really bad. It was not red enough, not velvety enough and the frosting was crisp and hard (obviously made with shortening) and had an incredibly distasteful flavour to it. Probably the worst end to a meal I’ve ever had. Here’s hoping they really step up their dessert game!

Nutella Cheesecake

Fudge Brownie

Red Velvet Cupcake

 

All in all, we didn’t really enjoy our experience at Brio Cafe. We went in with high expectations and came out feeling really letdown. There were way too many negatives and just too few positives to counter them. There is room for some serious improvement and I only hope they work harder to please the evolved taste buds of foodies, both young and old. If I had to give my experience an overall rating, I would give it 2 stars out 5.  Would I dine here again? Quite simply, no.

The Foodscape Logo Launch

I cannot begin to tell you just how exciting it is to finally launch The Foodscape’s logo! The past couple of weeks have been absolutely crazy, what with shifting base to a new country and everything that goes with it. But through it all, this lovely logo coming to life was one of the sweetest bits! 🙂

The Foodscape’s logo was created by my wonderful childhood friend Aroushka Jinelle D’mello (we go way way back; to kindergarten, to be precise! 😛) She is an extremely talented artist with great work to her credit, and I must say I’m super happy that I approached her to design The Foodscape’s logo!  You can take a look at her work on her Behance portfolio here.

As you can probably tell, I’m elated. And I’m so glad I could share this with you guys, my lovely readers and fellow foodies! As for a new recipe, one will be up real soon, I promise. 😀

Food Review – The Yellow Chilli, Muscat

On August 30, (clearly, this review has been a long time coming!) I had the pleasure of attending a bloggers’ food tasting at The Yellow Chilli in Muscat. Located at Al Mouj, Muscat (previously called The Wave), this newly opened restaurant serving Indian cuisine is a branch of The Yellow Chilli chain set up by one of the most famous Indian chefs and TV hosts – Sanjeev Kapoor.

Peru Pyaala

Growing up, I watched a lot of Khana Khazana. On the show, Sanjeev Kapoor whipped up one delicacy after another; blending cuisines and creating fusion dishes which looked pretty simple to replicate in the home kitchen. While I watched in wonder when he cooked up dishes that I thought back then were the kind that were only served in restaurants and couldn’t be made at home (yea, silly me), I sometimes cringed when a food combination he came up with didn’t appeal to my senses. I must be honest though, I was far too young to try out any of his recipes back then; and when the cooking bug bit me in my late teens, I had long since grown out of my enthusiasm to watch Khana Khazana.

My evening at The Yellow Chilli was quite delightful. Simple ambiences, casual atmospheres and fun company always make my foodie adventures so fun. But of course, the most important part is the food… 😉

Peru Pyaala in a mason jar

First up, we were served the signature Peru Pyaala – a sweet and tangy guava drink with a hit of red chilli on the rim of the tumbler. I must tell you, this was the perfect welcome. The flavours were aptly blended, and the real hero was the kick of the chilli powder complementing the drink! It was pure bliss to my very Indian taste buds. Simply refreshing!

Warning: If your palate is not accustomed to high levels of spice, please be informed that the chilli in the Peru Pyaala brings with it quite a distinct punch.

When ordered off the menu, the Peru Pyaala is served in mason jars. I would have loved it if we were served a regular serving  (yes, I could drink all of that!) but I think, with the chilli on the rim, it is incredibly hard to drink directly out of a mason jar and if you use a straw, you would miss out on the chilli kick! Dilemma!

Dahi Puri

We were then served two kinds of soups – a Coconut and Shrimp Shorba and Tomato Basil Shorba. While the former was creamy and coconuty with a succulent shrimp on a stick, the latter is among the most loved dishes on the menu. Light and healthy, the Tomato Basil Shorba is bursting with flavour. Definitely a must-try!

Next up was the Dahi Puri. A less messy take on the Mumbai street-food classic, these little crispy puris were filled with mashed potatoes, yogurt and a minty and sweet chutney. A great combination of flavours and textures.

And then came my favourite dish of the evening. The Palak Pattha Chaat! This was simply amazing. An appetizer of crispy fried spinach topped with a yogurt sauce, mint chutney, date chutney and garnished with pomegranate seeds, the Palak Pattha Chaat was out-of-this-world-delicious. The crackly crunch of the spinach paired with the the creaminess and tang of the yogurt and the sweet and spicy chutneys not to mention the little pomegranate pearls was a mesmerising dance of flavours and textures on my taste buds – an experience I very much enjoyed! 😀

Palak Pattha Chaat

Here’s another look at my favourite dish at The Yellow Chilli… 🙂

We were then served a host of other appetisers. Here are a few that I enjoyed. 🙂

Chana Jor Garam Tikki – Mildly spiced yet flavourful, these tikkis were crispy on the outside and mushy on the inside. Quite yum!

Chana Jor Garam Tikki

Lemon Grass Chicken Tikka – Succulent cubes of chicken marinated in fragrant lemon grass and yogurt; reminded me of a comforting Thai curry. 🙂

Lemon Grass Chicken Tikka

Papaya Peanut Kachumber – Sweet, tangy and crunchy, this salad was heartening! 🙂

Papaya Peanut Kachumber

Khastha Kaju Chicken – This was another appetizer that I really loved. These little chicken patties were coated with crushed cashews and tossed in Indo-Chinese spices; sweet, zesty and delicious! 🙂

Khastha Kaju Chicken

Raan Buzzkazi – This dish tasted wonderful – slices of lamb leg cooked well until tender and bursting with flavours. The downside, I felt it was too heavy for a starter.

Raan Buzzkazi

By the end of the starters, I was near full and I could barely stomach the idea of eating main course. But I tried my best to get a taste of everything. We had the Mangalorean Fish Curry that I did not enjoy very much owing to the fact that I’ve had plenty of that over the years, thanks to my Mangalorean roots. The Lalla Mussa Dal (black lentil gravy) was just okay; a little too sweet and overly creamy for my liking. While the Mushroom Mutter Hara Pyaaz (mixed vegetables cooked in spices) was quite nice, I found the Shaam Savera (spinach koftas stuffed with creamed cottage cheese in a buttery gravy) to be a little odd tasting. Being a The Yellow Chilli signature, I expected to love it, but I didn’t enjoy it; the texture of the koftas didn’t appeal to me and the gravy was too sweet. The Murgh Noormahal Biryani (chicken biryani) was okay; the saffron was a tad bit overpowering and since I love myself a good spicy biryani, I was not very pleased by it.

Shaam Savera

While I did have a great time at The Yellow Chilli, I was a little disappointed by how uninspired the main course seemed as compared to the appetizers. While the first course was an array of innovative takes on Indian classics, the main course didn’t wow me. As for dessert, well, I missed out. By the end of main course, we had already been two-and-a-half hours into the dinner and it was late, hence I couldn’t stay. I will be back though, hopefully…

The Foodscape’s quick take…

Location: Al Mouj – since I live all the way in Wadi Kabir, it’s much too far. But for those living around Seeb, it’s great.

Cuisine: Indian   Food:3.5/5   Ambience: 3/5

Recommended: Peru pyala, palak pattha chaat, khasta kaju chicken, lemon grass chicken and raan buzzkazi.

Naughty et Hottie

Let me start with the truth – I never thought I would bake erotic cakes. During my college days, I remember my roommates, friends and I laughing at pictures of erotic cakes and being all, “Ewww, how can someone even eat that?!” Back then I didn’t know that there would come a day when I would bake erotic cakes on order and that I would have a complete blast doing so! 😛

Meet Naughty – Vanilla & Nutella cake filled and frosted with Nutella Cream Cheese Frosting and finished with Fondant Accents.

Well, after my first attempt at baking a penis cake for a bachelorette (that turned out pretty well, if I may say so myself) and the great feedback I received for it, I’ve gotten a little more confident in this area of err… baking. So when a second order for two erotic cakes came in sometime in May, I didn’t feel quite as jittery and woozy as the first time. But I could swear I felt a little twinge in my tummy. And then there it was – one of the cakes needed to be shaped like a woman’s breasts! It’s really one thing to bake cakes shaped like the opposite sex’s private organs but to bake one which is shaped like those of your gender is as weird, as weird gets!

Meet Hottie – Dark Chocolate Oreo Cake, filled and frosted with Oreo Ganache and finished with a Fondant layer and Fondant Accents.

But soon the baker in me kicked in and I was all set to make this happen. First things first, I created an entire cake brief full with drawings (terrible ones) of what the cakes would look like, flavours, weight and the like. I was to bake a penis shaped cake for a bride-to-be and a breast-shaped cake for the groom-to-be. Sounds pretty normal when I say it like that, eh? Well, it was; until I started baking.

Cake Day: I woke up early. I remember well, it was earlier than 6 am; something of an impossible feat for me to accomplish on weekends. The base cakes had been baked the previous night – two and a half kilograms of Vanilla-Nutella sponge cake and two and a half kilograms of Dark-Chocolate-Oreo cake sat within layers of foil in the chilled living room. The parents were away; I had the house all to myself. I quickly frosted the cakes and got around to shaping them.

The Penis shaped cake was a breeze; I had done it before and it was easier to put together than the first time. Shaped with the help of a template, frosting on and covered with a sheet of skin-coloured fondant, I worked on details to make it look more realistic. (I know, I know; that sounds really wrong!)

Just when I was getting around to shaping the Breasts shaped cake, the boyfriend came over. He was curious about what the cakes would look like. As I shaped the breasts and draped sexy lingerie made of fondant on to them, I heard him ‘ewwww’ quite many times. (For the record, it is so very awkward to make a breast-shaped cake in front of your boyfriend!) I have to admit, I was a little mortified. But then with all his confidence in me, he said, “These cakes are sure going to make the party all the more fun. Everyone’s going to love it!” 😀

As I waited for the cakes to be picked up, I was incredibly proud with the newest additions to my erotic cake repertoire. Though I was a tad bit worried that I might get a reputation for baking such cakes, now I think – what’s wrong with that? I get to do what I love and give people a reason to laugh with their friends; sounds like a win-win to me! And as the boyfriend predicted, the cakes were enjoyed by all at the party! Here’s what the girl who ordered them had to say. 😀

So, if you’re ever looking for someone to bake an erotic cake to prank a friend, you know who loves baking them! 😀 Here’s wishing the bride and groom tonnes of happiness and a blissful life together! 🙂

Looking Back…

For today, June 26, 2015, it’s been a year since The Foodscape came to life. And my, has it been a wonderful year. To be honest, when I first started on my food blogging journey, I had no idea that a single year could entail so many wonderful – some absolutely wacky – experiences.

The past year has been an eye opener of sorts. Though somewhere within me, I’ve always know that food is my calling, I now know for sure that I want to be writing about food, creating recipes and doing some fab food photography for the rest of my life. (Apart from setting up and managing my own tiny bakeshop, of course!) 😀

I’ve grown tremendously over the year. Be it the kind of recipes I’ve attempted to cook/bake, to the amount of technique they involve, combining different flavours and textures to create masterpieces, some very embarassing kitchen mishaps and quite a few flops, I’ve learnt a lot.

The highlights of my year have been many. Yet, some memories from The Foodscape kitchen stand out. For starters, I baked a few erotic cakes this year! Remember that penis cake and all the craziness around it? Well, that was not the only naughty cake I baked this year. Be patient, a new post will follow soon… 😉

This year also saw me expanding my baking repertoire. I’ve always watched the contestants on Masterchef bake perfect tarts while practically drooling! Now, I can too; and I have! I got around to baking some pretty kickass Sausage Rolls too; and I plan to do plenty of savoury baking in the near future. I also tried out recipes from various cuisines – Thai, Egyptian, Cajun, Italian and Indian. As I write this, I can’t wait to get back into the kitchen and cook some more!

Apart from cooking-clicking-writing-posting, I’ve also come to enjoy the craziness of getting a post accepted on Foodgawker and Tastespotting; a pleasure I discovered only in the past month. The anticipation is killing, the victory sweet, and the declination, a challenge I take very seriously! If you’re a food blogger, you should try it out too.

On a whole, this past year has been a whirlwind. The memories, both sweet and sour, I will cherish and hold as stepping stones to my future adventures in The Foodscape kitchen! Trust me, things are going to get a whole lot more awesome in here. I hope you’ve enjoyed the beginning to this story as much as I have.

It’s safe to say, that food blogging has becoming something of an addiction to me. And I’m certainly not going to stop!

Here’s a glimpse of the year that was in The Foodscape kitchen. 🙂

Celebrate with Cake!

A cake to celebrate the grandparents’ anniversary last year 🙂 Eggless Vanilla cake filled and frosted with Vanilla Buttercream, topped off with Kiwis, Strawberries and Mangoes

I truly love celebrations! Close friends and family getting together to celebrate a special occasion, watch a sport, sing and dance or just to share a lovely meal or evening together is absolutely lovely. As much as I love the quiet and staying in, curled up on a weekend, once in a while it is nice to spend time with like-minded individuals, munch on some good food and do fun stuff together (or maybe just sit around and crack tonnes of inside jokes. 😉 )

Mommy’s birthday cake back in February 🙂 Lemon Cake topped with candied Lemon Rind (she hates frosting!)

But I’m not the one to be found downing drink after drink at a social gathering (I dislike alcohol like a child dislikes medicines… I dislike medicines as well!) I’m the kind of person who’ll be searching the room for food. Be it anything, – fries, sausages, chicken nuggets, canapes, chicken tikka, vegetable cutlets, or crispy namkeen (Spiced Indian fried eatables) – I’m always gobbling up the good stuff, making sure to keep space for the dinner to follow (and most importantly, DESSERT!) But if a celebration or gathering involves cake, I can skip everything and damn by stomach to a spell of starvation until the cake arrives! And then I behave like a happy kid in a candy store; I could eat it all! Wait, what kind of social gathering doesn’t involve cake?! That’s just ridiculous! A celebration without cake is no celebration at all!

A guitar shaped Chocolate Cake filled and frosted with Chocolate Ganache and finished with Vanilla Buttercream accents

My earliest memory of baking a cake for a celebration was years ago for my cousin’s birthday party. I must have been 13 or 14 then. I wish I had a photograph of it; I remember exactly what it looked like – it was a round chocolate cake, frosted with melted chocolate, sprinkles on the side and decorated with red, green and yellow marzipan spheres, the size of Maltesers. He had a few of his friends over for a kids-only party and he proudly announced to everyone that I baked his birthday cake. This triggered a lot of startled and surprised reactions; with their eyes wide open, some of them asked me, “You baked this cake??” I wasn’t sure if it was a good thing or if they were worried if it was safe to eat! A few minutes later, when the cake was gone, I knew it was a job well done! I remember feeling immensely proud of myself at the time! That feeling never gets old… 🙂

A birthday cake I baked for my brother four years ago 🙂 Red Velvet Cake filled and frosted with Cream Cheese Frosting

This is what it looked like on the inside! Red and Velvety!

Over the years, I’ve baked quite a few celebration cakes – for family, friends and on order. I’m lucky to have had the opportunity to hone my skills and to grow with every cake I’ve baked. Every different cake has been a super fun challenge and I’ve enjoyed outdoing myself every single time.

A cake I baked when the boyfriend got his driver’s license 🙂 Eggless Chocolate Cake frosted with Kitkat-Chocolate Ganache

A special cake for a wonderful woman 🙂 Oreo Chocolate Cake filled and frosted with Oreo-Cream Cheese Frosting, topped of with Chocolate Buttercream, crushed Oreo and Fondant accents

This post is all about the cakes I’ve baked for several celebrations. Different shapes; unique flavours; crazy combinations and crafted carefully to suit the needs of my dear ones and customers. It’s a passion I take very seriously and I hope you enjoy my work! 🙂 Feast your eyes awayyyy 😛

Tiramisu Cake – Layered Vanilla, Chocolate and Coffee cakes filled and frosted with Mascarpone Cheese frosting

Dark Chocolate Cake frosted with Ganache and finished with Buttercream Fondant

My personal favourite – A beach holiday themed birthday cake for the Boyfriend 🙂 Eggless Chocolate Cake filled with Coffee-Toffee Buttercream, frosted with Vanilla Buttercream, Shortbread ‘ sand’ and fondant figurines

If you like my work and wish to order, buzz me on +968 93878634 or shoot me a message through my Instagram account @thefoodscape or via the The Foodscape’s Facebook page!

Christmas 2014

The Crib. Mom’s Handiwork.

First off, here’s wishing you and your family Compliments of the Season! Hope you all had a beautiful Christmas and that the holidays are going blissfully 🙂

Festive Splendour

The Mini Tree with Edible Ornaments

Here in The Foodscape kitchen, the past month has been nothing short of a roller-coaster ride. With orders rolling in and my oven going ‘tick-tick-ding!’ all day, everyday, I think it’s safe to say that I’ve been very busy. Christmas truly is my favorite time of the year and my family and I had a lovely one this year; however, quite honestly I’m a bit relieved that the month has gone by and that I made it through without a scratch. (With dodging a full time job and coming home to bake an average of four cakes a day, I was a little worried that my body was going to give away any moment. Thankfully, I’m hail and hearty and slowly catching up on the sleep I’ve been missing.)

Christmas was extremely special for me this year. We had our entire extended family in town to celebrate, and my, was it a party! I got to spend quality time with my brother and cousins, and them including the boyfriend and treating him like one of their own was heart-warming, to say the least. What better way to spend Christmas, than with the ones you love most?! ❤

Christmas Sweets

One of the reasons why I particularly love the holiday season is the large number of sweets that are made and shared to commemorate the true essence of Christmas – the spirit of giving! From chocolate fudge to coconut toffee, kulkuls, milk-sweet, and lots of traditional rich fruit cake, I’ve been gorging and hogging enough to have put on a couple of pounds in the last week! (I can’t seem to stop! Don’t judge me, Christmas only comes once a year!) The counter in my kitchen is stacked high with boxes of sweets that I can’t wait to rummage through. *Droool*

Traditional Rich Fruit Christmas Cake

The Christmas season is considered the best time of the year all over the world, and for me and The Foodscape, this is so very true. Having made over 20 Traditional Rich Fruit Cakes, plenty of Red Velvet mini-cupcakes, a few Date Cakes, some delicious Chocolate Fudge, trays filled with Tiramisu and Cake Pops that still require a bit of my attention, this has by far been the most blissful and fruitful Christmas season for me and The Foodscape in terms of the amount of time I spent doing what I love most. I’ve loved every moment of it all!

Festive Candlestick

The Crib All Lit Up

As I leave you with glimpses of Christmas on my side, here’s hoping you’re excited and prepared for the New Year and I do hope it will be one that is filled with lots of surprises and good times for you!

Meet the Cousins! From Left – Chris, Steffi, Winston (my brother), Me, Shannon

Goofies! From Left – Akash (the boyfriend), Chris, Shannon, Winston, Steffi, Alka and Jude

All Smiles! From Left – Me, Chris, Shannon, Winston, Steffi, Alka and Jude

Meet the Boyfriend

Let’s make the most of 2015!

Love

-Winola 🙂

A very special feature in The Woman Magazine!

For those of you who are expecting another recipe, I’m sorry, this post isn’t about the food I’ve cooked (be assured that a new recipe will follow soon). This post is about the blog itself; it is about The Foodscape.

More than a year ago I was given an opportunity to write a food review for a magazine I was interning for. That was the first piece on food I had ever written, after which I was desperately in search of a platform to write about food. I dreamed and furnished extensive fantasies about how I would work as a writer for a food magazine, slowly set up my own little bake shoppe, eventually become a renowned food critic (though I would always be kind and not of the confidence-crushing nature) and someday have my own cookbook. Quite a dream, eh?

A couple of months ago, I took my first step towards making my dream a reality. No, I didn’t get a job as a writer for a food magazine. However, I did begin writing for Oman’s leading women’s magazine – The Woman, published by United Media Services. It’s been two months since my stint with The Woman began and I’ve loved every bit of it – from writing pieces about  food, fashion and health, to meeting inspiring people, to working with a bunch of amazing colleagues and helping with the coordination of work events, I’ve enjoyed every minute!

The November issue of The Woman was incredibly special. Food-centered that it was, I had the opportunity of writing pieces on the best dishes in the world and the relationship between the colors of food and health. The best bit; my boss asked me to write about my experience as a food blogger. And that’s how The Foodscape got featured in The Woman magazine. 🙂

 

I cannot express just how happy I am that the November issue of The Woman is out! I’m ecstatic and incredibly grateful 🙂