I have to fill my kitchen with wonderful aroma of food to compensate for those painful days. Don´t you think so?
Thanks to all of your lovely comments, I get better now. Sure I still have runny nose but at least my senses of taste and smell are back. With the warmer weather, hopefully my full recovery is just the matter of time…
As you see, I make something to celebrate the return of my senses! The inspiration for these puffs comes from a lovely blog called Arabic Bites, which is run by two sisters Zainab & Hameeda”meedo”. The original recipe is for Khanfarosh, a traditional Arabic sweet. Since I want to get a combination of fragrances for my puffs, I adapt the recipe a little to include orange zest, cardamom and some poppy seeds.
I really love these puffs. With the combination of three types of flours, its texture is very similar to a Vietnamese deep fried pastry called `drumstick´ (literal translation). It is a little chewy but not too heavy or overly sweet. Drizzling with some good honey and almond flakes, I just pop the whole thing to my mouth and savour not only the taste but also the fantastic aroma! Isn´t it just so good to be able to taste and smell good food?
Fried Zesty Spiced Sweet Puffs
Recipe adapted from here
Ingredients (I didn´t count how many puffs I got, but enough as snack for 3 people)
1/4 cup fine semolina
½ cup cake flour
1/8 cup wholemeal flour
1/2 cup castor sugar
½ tsp baking powder
1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
Zest of ½ large orange
1 Eggs
3/4 cup milk (I used low fat)
2 tsp poppy seeds
1 tsp instant yeast
Pinch of salt
Pinch of saffron
Honey & almond flakes, to serve
Method
Mix all ingredients in a bowl. Cover let it rise for 1 hour up to 5 hours. (I left mine to rise for about 3 hours)
Using 1 tablespoon as measurement, drop the dough into hot oil and fry until golden brown and cooked through. Drain on paper towel. Serve with honey and almond flakes.
PS: I dropped that beautiful leaf plate and broke it yesterday. So sad! Now I have to find a store that still sells such plates to get another one. 
Ooooh, I don’t know how you can feel like cooking when you’re not feeling well. I usually just want to crawl into bed and drink chicken soup until whatever ails me goes away. Hope you feel better soon.
What bite-size goodness! I’m sure saffron honey puts it over the top! I am so sorry about your plate!
but I’m glad you’re feeling better 
Glad you are feeling better. Wonderful photos in this post, and thanks for steering us to Arabic Bites. I love that type of food and there are so few blogs that specialize in it.
Not being able to breath through your nose or smell is hell. Hugs! The sweet bites look gorgeous. I just love Zainab and her sister. Their site has taught me so much about Arabic culture. :D
Wish I could help!
Isn’t that worse? Not smelling the aroma of food we eat? Specially for foodies like us!:D
Glad you are feeling better Anh! I am down with a terrible cold this week and have not cooked or even had a good wine to post about! But your post has given me hope that my taste and smell should be coming back to me in a few days. Lovely looking treats, those puffs. Sorry to hear about your plate. I am sure you will find something new!
What a wonderful looking snack to treat yourself (and your returned senses) to!! I don’t think I’ve ever had anything like this, but they sound and look delicious!
Even if my comments sound monotonous, I have to say how beautiful and refreshing that photo and presentation is……can we bake this? I dont want to deep fry 😛 Hope you find a similar plate again :)
Sorry about that lovely plate. Glad you are feeling better today. The flu bug is going to hit us soon when winter comes.
Hi anh,
woah lovely looking sweet. I first thought it was falafel.
This recipe looks so delicious. Can you please pass me one of those? I would love to try them. Sorry about your plate. I hope you have luck finding a replacement. The photos are wonderful too
Bummer about the plate!
Beautiful food! I find it so hard to make myself eat when I’m sick because I can’t smell anything and it all sounds unappetizing.
Hope you are well your way to recovery. I hate it when I have stuffed nose – can’t smell, can’t taste, it’s a terrible feeling.
Hi Anh! I’m glad to hear you are feeling better, and I see you are cooking up wonderful little treats! These sound so intriguing, with the exotic blend of ingredients. And they look beautiful in your lovely photos. I’m so sorry about your pretty leaf plate, and I do hope you can find another to replace it. Take care of yourself, and don’t overdo things while you are recuperating.
Hope you are feeling better!
Lydia, I am just too bored sitting or lying down and doing nothing. Besides, my body calls for sweet fried food so I just go for it!
Peabody, thanks! I love the honey with these puffs!
oh poor you, I hate it when I break a nice plate too.
These aromatic gems are calling my name… you know I crazy for fried food.
good to hear you’re on your way to recovery. i am still not so inspired to eat/cook. after a cold, it’s now hayfever that’s dulling my taste buds:( but your puffs sound so exotic. all those wonderful flavours. your presentation also makes whatever you make extra special
I’m glad to hear you are feeling better. Your puffs look lovely. Really light and fluffy.
Nabeela, I guess accidents happen in the kitchen so… :)
Nice to know u’re felling better now. And …. oh wow these look so exotic !!! my i really want to try these .
Printing now your recipe… I have to get semolina though. Glad you are feeling better, this recipe seems very comforting. Hope you can replace your beautiful dish… Pictures as usual, are stunning!! Oh, Anh, I tried the pear pudding with apples and heavy cream instead, so yummy! I still want to make changes to make it more like a flan. Will let you know…
I’m sorry that the plate broke. It was such a pretty one, so I hope that you’ll be able to find one to replace it.
oh you take so beautiful pics!! Its so sad you broke that beautiful plate. Sweet puffs looks yummy.
You make it almost worth getting sick, if you’re going to make wonderful food like this! :):) I hope you feel completely well soon.
Gosh, those puffs look and sound amazing – I’m so glad that you’re starting to feel better.
Wow, I’m truly amazed, at first sight, I thought they were baby potatoes but I was wrong. They’re so cute Anh!
Sorry to hear you broke your plate!
But at least you can smell and taste food now. Your puffs look so very delicious. I think it’s a bad idea for me to be looking at food blogs when I’m so hungry!
A stuffed-up nose is so dreadful.
Fantastic!!! Well done.
They look very nice..A lovely treat.