Book review: Utopia for Realists by Rutger Bregman

We are halfway into 2022 and I have finished reading 16 books folks. I'd say that is pretty good by my standards. I have been stuck on One Hundred Years of Solitude by Colombian author Gabriel García Márquezfor the past few weeks that has arrested my reading pace. But a few more books to go and I'm sure to achieve my reading goal for this year 😊

Utopia for Realists: The Case for a Universal Basic Income, Open Borders, and a 15-hour Workweek (alternatively subtitled And How We Can Get There and How We Can Build the Ideal World) is a book by Dutch popular historian Rutger Bregman. It was originally written as articles in Dutch for a virtual journal, De Correspondent, and was since compiled and published. It went on to become an international bestseller and has been translated into 23 languages. 

This book came heavily recommended in the non-fiction category and so I had put it on my reading list. Once I was done reading it, I was so glad that I did.

Utopia for Realists offers a critical proposal that it claims is a practical approach to reconstructing modern society to promote a more productive and equitable life based on three core ideas:

• A universal and unconditional basic income paid to everybody
• A short working week of fifteen hours
• Open borders worldwide with the free movement of citizens between all states

A map of the world that does not include Utopia is not worth even glancing at, for it leaves out the one country at which Humanity is always landing. And when Humanity lands there, it looks out, and, seeing a better country, sets sail. Progress is the realization of Utopias.

Oscar Wilde (1854-1900)

Synopsis

The book starts with a brief history lesson alluding to how everything in the past was worse. It highlights the stupendous progress that humanity that has made over the last 200 years. In just a fraction of the time that our species has clocked on this planet, billions of us are suddenly rich, well nourished, clean, safe, smart, healthy and even beautiful. Compared to 1820, where 84% of the world's population still lived in extreme poverty, by 1981, that percentage dropped to 44% and now, just a few decades later, it is under 10%. In today's world, we often work long and hard hours in jobs we don't particularly like, we buy things we don't need, we constantly compete, we struggle with anxiety and obesity among other things so the real question is, even if we are wealthier, are we happier? 

This is a compelling book that provides many valid arguments, put forward in simple language addressed to the wider public, and backed by a wealth of evidence to challenge ideas that were previously deemed radical. In short, a collection of revolutionary ideas that can potentially change our world for the better.

Baker's Corner: Dulce De Leche Cupcakes

This post came about rather unexpectedly. The twins and I made these Dulce De Leche Cupcakes for Father's Day last weekend and it was quite the success. I foresee making them a lot more often in the future so I decided to blog the recipe. 

First off, if you haven't heard of this ingredient before, dulce de leche (also known as caramelized milk or milk jam) is a sweet, gooey confection from Latin America. It is prepared by slowly heating milk and sugar over a period of several hours. It is used in cakes, cookies, churros, brownies, flan, waffles, crepes and toast among other sweet foods. 

To be completely honest, dulce de leche is not an ingredient that I use in my kitchen. Until quite recently, it wasn't even readily available in Singapore. I remember seeing it once in a specialty grocery store on Orchard road many years ago. I had grabbed a tin back then and made something with it (don't remember what). In the past few years with online grocery delivery platforms like Amazon and Redmart offering ingredients from various parts of the globe (the more obscure, the steeper the price!), it has become slightly easier to get a hold of. 

A few years ago, I had a burning desire to make banoffee pie, a popular English dessert. Banoffee pie is basically bananas and toffee. This indulgent dessert is a combination of different textures and flavors consisting of a biscuit or graham cracker crust with silky dulce de leche, bananas, and homemade whipped cream. I couldn't get my hands on store-bought dulce de leche so I tried making my own at home by pouring the contents of a can of full-fat condensed milk into an oven-safe dish, covering with foil and baking it in a preheated oven for more than an hour. Although the color did turn darker, the consistency was slight runny as opposed to a thick gooey caramel which is what I wanted. I probably should have left it in the oven longer but at the time, I didn't know any better. I used the homemade dulce de leche to make the banoffee pie but it didn't really work that well and I was sorely disappointed with the final result. 

I got two tins of dulce de leche from the US, late last year. My main agenda was to use it to make banoffee pie because of my previous failed attempt. There were so many occasions to make the pie but it never happened. The dulce de leche tins went to the back of my pantry and lay there forgotten. 

While tidying up my pantry the other day I saw the tins and was relieved to see that the expiry was still two months away. Father's Day was coming up so I thought I should use it to make a dessert. The bananas that I had at home were a bit too ripe for my liking (I ended up turning them into banana bread 😛), I didn't have graham crackers and I didn't have a whole lot of whipping cream in the fridge so I decided to simplify things and make cupcakes with a dulce de leche frosting. Cupcakes are a huge hit in my household so if you are new to my blog, you can checkout several cupcake recipes that I have posted in the past such as carrot cupcakes with cream cheese frosting, raspberry chocolate cupcakes, strawberry cupcakes with strawberry buttercream, tropical mango cupcakes, fudgy chocolate cupcakes and vanilla cupcakes with raspberry coconut buttercream. 

The girls were super excited and they helped me make the cupcakes for their beloved daddy. What I love about dulce de leche is the mellow sweetness and the thick caramel like texture. I cored the vanilla cupcakes and put a little bit in and I used the rest to make the frosting. The vanilla cupcakes were soft and fluffy, the dulce de leche in the middle made for a nice surprise and the frosting was sweet, luscious and caramelly. 

If dulce de leche in a tin is readily available to you then I suggest you try these cupcakes if you haven't already. And hopefully, you can expect a sinful banoffee pie recipe coming your way soon.

Recipe of the month: Tzatziki, Beetroot Hummus, Moutabel & Muhammara

I have not one, not two, but FOUR recipes for you guys today. All these recipes have been long overdue, so I thought I'd put them all together in one post under the culinary umbrella of Meze (or Mezze). 

If you have been following my blog, you would know that I love Middle Eastern food. If you follow me on Instagram, you would frequently see pics of homemade mezze platters that my husband and I enjoy putting together. 

Mezze (which is pronounced 'meh-zay'), is a style of dining that is popular in the eastern Mediterranean, North Africa, the Balkans, Western Asia, and the Middle East. This includes countries such as Greece, Turkey, Egypt, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Lebanon, Iran, Dubai, Armenia and others. 

Mezze resembles Spanish tapas and other small plates and finger foods that are meant to stimulate the appetite. But unlike those appetizers, mezze is meant to make up the entire meal. Served with or without alcohol, this style of eating features a combination of cold and hot foods, including vegetables, meat, dips, and breads. It is fairly typical to see dips such as hummus (made with chickpeas, tahini, lemon juice & garlic) and baba ganoush or moutabel/mutabal (made with roasted and mashed eggplants), flatbreads such as pita or lavash, salads, crudités, kebabs and finger foods such as stuffed olives, grape leaves stuffed with rice (dolma), hard cheeses, cured meats and falafel to name a few.

So, in my household, we usually make 2-4 dips depending on the day of the week. On weeknights, our mezze is much simpler and usually consists of hummus and moutabel with toasted wholemeal pita bread, crudités and small portions of whatever fresh and/or dried fruit and nuts we can lay our hands on after rummaging in the fridge.

On weekends, we go all out, and more so when entertaining. We make a minimum of 4 dips - hummus, moutabel, tzatziki (a cucumber and yogurt dip with Persian roots) and muhammara (a spicy bright red Syrian dip made with red pepper and walnuts). We serve these dips with toasted pita bread, crackers, crudités, grilled halloumi, tabbouleh (a Levantine salad made of fresh herbs, tomatoes, onion and bulgur), dolma, falafel, feta cheese, olives, an assortment of dried fruit (dates, apricots, prunes, figs) and nuts (almonds, pistachios, pine nuts, walnuts and pecans), pomegranate arils, grapes and fresh figs. 

Yes, a homemade mezze platter does entail some planning and preparation but the best part is, a lot of the steps or the dips in their entirety can be made ahead of time. I usually make the hummus and moutabel and my husband takes care of the tzatziki and muhammara so it doesn't feel like too much work. And keep in mind, not everything needs to be homemade. We usually order fresh Cajun or garlic pita bread, pita pockets, tahini and falafel mix from Pita Bakery Singapore and dolma from Redmart or Amazon which makes things much easier. Also, since this mezze platter is an appetizer and main course rolled into one, it is everything you need to do to have a complete meal. It is hearty, colorful, wholesome and delicious. Arrange the ingredients in whatever fashion you like on a portable platter that can be transported anywhere you like. And most important of all, it appeals to both adults and children alike.

I like to serve either baklava (a layered pastry dessert of Ottoman cuisine) or Aish el Saraya (Lebanese bread pudding) at the end of a mezze and my husband makes a refreshing and delicious iced Moroccan mint tea which I feel goes really well with this meal. If you want to throw in alcohol, I suggest a good white wine or rosé. So, in case you need ideas for throwing a dinner party, you can always revisit this post. 

You know, our children who can be categorized as fussy eaters, let out a whoop of delight when they see a mezze spread on our dinner table. We give them complete freedom in choosing what they want to eat and being fairly predictable, they always go for the pita bread, crackers, cucumber and carrot sticks, feta cheese, dried fruit and nuts and fresh fruit. Of all the dips, they like hummus and tzatziki the best. They don't like olives and halloumi cheese, so they tend to steer clear of it. While they don't like absolutely everything on the platter, we are glad that they get excited by the wide array of choices and enjoy the DIY eating experience. I feel like our job as parents is to indoctrinate our children to good food at an early age and trust that they will grow up to make smart choices. I am hopeful that our children will grow up to appreciate different textures ad flavour combinations and have a healthy respect for all cuisines. My husband and I love everything on the mezze platter so overall, I would definitely consider this a family favourite meal. And of course, it always feels wonderful when we sit together as a family for a shared dining tradition 😊

I made this mezze platter last Sunday after getting muddled up with the date for Father's Day. Turns out, in my over enthusiasm, I realized the day before that I was a week too early *facepalm*. Since I had already obtained most of the ingredients, I proceeded to make it regardless. I figured who in their right mind would complain? 😜

These are tried and tested recipes that we have been making for years. I made sure to take a lot of pictures so I could feature all four dips at the same time. I really hope you try one or more (or all) these dips. You can always tweak the taste and consistency based on your preference. Check out the notes section at the bottom of the recipe for tips, substitutions and storage conditions. 

Happy Father's Day in advance to all the protectors, fixers, mentors, anchors and real life heroes out there! 💖

Fun Family Day Out at Coney Island, Singapore

 
Two years of stifling restrictions that we have all endured, courtesy of the global pandemic has altered our perspective on a lot of things that we do in our daily lives. This year, when things are looking up, I've decided to be more intentional and purposeful with the places I visit and take my children to (among many other things). 

Coney Island, also known as Pulau Serangoon, is a 133-hectare island located off the northeastern coast of Singapore within the town of Punggol, between Pulau Ubin to its northeast and the mainland to its southwest. From the 1930s to the 1940s, it was known as Haw Par Island, because the Haw Par brothers owned it.

I'd heard of Coney island for years but hadn't bothered to check it out (which is quite unlike me). A trip was long overdue. My original plan was to take our twins cycling since I had read that it was a great outdoor spot for cycling. But then I thought, for the first time exploring the little island, it might be better doing it by foot so we could get a better idea of what to see and do.  

Managed by the National Parks Board, the 81 hectares (0.81 km2) nature park is home to a wide variety of habitats, including coastal forests, grasslands and mangroves. The park was officially opened in October 2015.

On a Saturday morning, we drove to Punggol and parked at the Punggol Settlement. From there, we took a stroll along the Punggol Promenade Nature Walk to reach the West Entrance of the island. 

The weather was rather gloomy that morning and I was fervently hoping that there wouldn't be rain to ruin beach day for us! 

That little clump of land that you see in the distance is Coney Island as viewed from the mainland. 

We had packed some light refreshments which was a good thing because the island is uninhabited and there are no stalls or shops there. You don't even get water. My advice would be to either pack from home or stop at the Punggol Settlement for a bite before heading to the island. 

If you don't want to lug your own bicycles, you can also rent bicycles at Jomando Adventure & Recreations located at Punggol Settlement. 

Make sure to get a pic at the iconic Coney Island green gate.

I was quite pleased to note that the walking trail was flanked by a canopy of trees. It instantly made the walking experience more pleasant. With 86 species of trees and more than 157 species of animals, it was quite apparent that this place is home to a wealth of flora and fauna. 

The rustic Coney Island Park is an ecologically sustainable park with many environmental initiatives. It focuses on conserving energy and water, recycling and retaining of the natural elements in the park. 

This little island is where you can explore forest, mangrove habitats, boardwalks and a two-kilometer long beach. 

We first came across a nature play garden known as Casuarina Exploration. The timber from uprooted Casuarina trees have been collected and recycled into park signage, seats, benches, boardwalk, and exhibits at Casuarina Exploration. The ground material is from sand recycled from the nearby beach. Besides being environmentally friendly, the use of these materials gives the adventure area a distinctly rustic and natural feel.

The girls had a fun time here. One can weave through the 'Millipede', balance on the 'Earthworm' or hop across the 'Caterpillar'.

There are lots of interesting sights to spot along the way.