It's all about KAYA today. Everyone wishes to be kaya, even those who are already kaya wish to be more kaya. So what is kaya?
Kaya is a Malay word which literally means rich. As in wealthy rich. However, this post is not about wealth or riches - someday, perhaps. But today, I'd like to share about this absolutely wonderful jam that I've made, which I didn't even plan to make in the first place but having spent a week scouring a bunch of Asian groceries in Paris with no results and being in dire need, I've come to the conclusion that the solution is simple:
make it myself!
Kaya or coconut egg jam - I call it a cross between jam and custard - is a popular breakfast staple in South East Asia, usually eaten with toast, much like strawberry jam or raspberry jam or any of your favorite preserves. When I was working in Penang, Malaysia many moons ago, I would have kaya toast with half-boiled egg for breakfast before I started the day. The bread would be sliced very thinly once they are toasted, a special skill in and off itself - try halving a slice of toasted bread horizontally without breaking it! The toast would be buttered, then smothered with a generous amount of kaya, sandwiched with another thin slice of toast and finally, a sprinkle of sugar would be added on the toast. Mr. KayaToast would then slice the bread into narrow strips and serve with a soft-boiled egg that was always cooked to perfection. Dipping my narrow strips of kaya toast into the silky soft egg (to which I'd usually add pepper and a tiny drop of soy sauce) was sheer bliss and a great way to start the morning.
Did you know that the croissant originated from Austria and not France? The history of the croissant dates back to the 17th century, during the seige of Vienna by the Turkish Ottoman army. The story goes that since bakers had to work during the night when everyone else was sound asleep, they were able to hear the noise made by the enemy attempting to attack the city. The bakers then sounded the alarm, alerted the Viennese army and the Turkish force were then repulsed as a result. The Viennese bakers were given the honor of creating a pastry to commemorate this victory and they invented the "Hornchen" (little horn in German) which becomes the croissant we know today. Marie Antoinette, the Austrian princess who became King Louis XVI's wife, introduced the croissant to France in the 18th century.
I'm very much an impromptu traveler. Spur of the moment - that's pretty much how my travels are planed and defined these days. I booked the trip to Amsterdam just earlier this week, having felt somewhat "stifled" after a long weekend in Paris. If it wasn't for an earlier commitment that I had made, I would've taken a getaway trip last weekend as well. There're plenty of weekend travel offers in France; they're not exactly cheap if you're a 
