Experiences

These pictures have a funny meaning to me - talking about stereotypes.

Plenty of lockers…

…. to squeeze in plenty of stereotypes

Have a shot at it.

While being squeezed in, shot at, and locked up you still have to fulfill your duties.

The only exit is to see through

Stereotypes behind glass in aluminum frames - for everyone to see.
Feel free to give them any personality traits you see fit.
I am sure you will find instantly behavior patterns for some of these characters - it is almost inevitable.
Is this acquired or trained habit we have a good or bad thing?
When you cry tree times ””wolf”” no one will come to help you if by the fourth time it is real.
The question is do we force/ project personality traits onto other people and what are the consequences - for them - for us - for society?

Did you ever wonder why there is always a matching sock missing?
In the childrens book Sock World, by Eunginia Torres, this secret is being uncovered.
I really enjoyed illustrating the story and hope you can see it.
You can visit: www.shamsea.com/the-sock-world.html - to view the whole book

Recently I came across some sketches I made about Miami. They portrait typical scenes you””ll see everyday in the different ””zones”” of Miami.
What all the sketches have in common though is the unpleasant - egomaniac feel you automatically get when you are enveloped into the Miami jello.

What a beautiful, elegant bird the crane is.

Mint in tabbouleh?
Matthias Conradi makes it possible.
Mint gives the original dish an uplifting feel.
Since Matthias gave me the idea to use mint as an herb in recipes I have been using it frequently in salads, stews and sauces.

Since I choose Africa to be the continent of origin for all the recipes I used local textile patterns for the frames around each recipe.
Every country has its peculiar patterns and I liked the idea of using them to emphasize the location where the recipe is from.
Again of course Matthias put some ingredients into the cheese croquettes that gives you even more pleasure eating them - cinnamon and nutmeg.
Cinnamomum zeylanicum was one of the most expensive spices dating back as far as 2000 B.C. Its origin is from Sri Lanka, and it was said that when sailors approached this island and the wind was blowing from the land they could smell the fragrance of the cinnamon trees.

Here I want to thank Matthias Conradi for all his help suppling me with recipes in his rare spare time.

Every recipe he gave me has some sort of surprise in it - a little extra - which makes all of them a new experience.
And I also have to apologize for making it so hard for Matthias to limit the range of recipes to the continent of Africa and my limited art in photography years ago.
The basic idea to create this cook book was to emphasize on the spices which we take for granted today, but just 100 years ago it was a rare luxury to include spices in cooking from faraway countries. The spice trade route from Europe over Africa to India made some countries like Egypt a hot spot. Until today you can find every spice in the bazaars of Egypt.
Enjoy this first recipe from Egypt - the red lentil soup.

The sour-tangy-sweet taste of the passion fruit combined with sweet whipped cream - a winning combination.
And I love the pistachios as decoration giving the smooth texture a little bite.

Matthias told me several times to change the picture in this recipe and I should.
I used the tofu version for the recipe, but honestly the chicken version has much more taste and looks better too.
Also the bay leaves round up the chicken stock and makes it perfect for combining it with the tomatoes and peanuts.
Enjoy!

Orange fritters are a treat and just like donuts they taste better fried.
But if you prefer a low calorie version try the baked orange fritters.

A true Matthias recipe: who would combine bananas with shrimps?
It works, this shrimp cocktail gives your palate a new sensation and it is lovely.

Dates are the potatoes of the east.
Phoenix Dactylifera - every part of the date tree is usefull - is an amazing plant.
Dates are very nutritious and have also medicinal use just like the seeds, the gum from the trunk, and the roots. The leaves and trunk can be used as building materials for boats or housing.
Date cake or djamilah is a delicious, light, sweet treat not to be missed - especially interesting is the combination with vanilla and oranges:

A classic, hummus, is always a good addition to any dinner party.
The extra taste twist is provided by adding sour cream.
I probably drove Matthias crazy finding recipes from Africa. The idea behind choosing Africa as the continent of interest was that the spice trade route went from Europe to Africa to India. Countries like Egypt flourished during the Indian-Ocean-Trade (beginning ca. 115 B.C.) and remained an important part in the spice trade.