Mmmm... doughnuts

     Ever since I was in Johor Bahru a couple of months ago, I have been borderline obsessed with the doughnuts I bought from a little old lady in an alley near the train station as I was rushing to catch the train back to Singapore. I didn't think to take a picture. I didn't know they would be so good and so different. 
     Last week, I found a source for my obsession in Geylang Serai, which is considered the Malay district of Singapore. In this part of town you can find all-manner of Muslim food, which is how Malaysian and Indonesian food stalls usually identify themselves unlike most cuisines that are more nationalistic about it.

Would Homer approve?

     As you can see in this picture, they look pretty similar to doughnuts you might buy at a Winchell's or Dunkin' Donuts. The one on the left has the texture of a classic cake doughnut except it's made with all-purpose flour and yams. The only sweetness in this doughnut is supplied by the most excellent coating of sugar applied the moment they come out of the oil-filled wok. Pretty standard stuff.
     The doughnut on the right is the one I fell in love with in JB. There's nothing cake-like about it. The outside is deep-fried and crispy and covered in sugar just the way you'd want it. But the inside -- the less-cooked part of the doughball -- is dense and chewy. I believe it's made of rice-flour and coconut. It might also include tapioca. I'm not sure.  

Mmmmm...

     This gooey gem was labeled Getas Getas. The other more typical doughnut was Kueh Keria. Kueh is kind of a universal Malay word for cakes, cookies or puddings. There seems to be no English translation for Getas. I have since corresponded with the operator of a cooking school in Singapore who said that Getas Getas is "a very traditional kueh from my childhood days that is uncommon these days. I will keep you posted when I teach it in a class." 

     And I will keep you posted when I learn how to make them. I will include a picture of myself weighing 400 pounds (181 kilograms).

Post Script
     Today is a national holiday in Singapore to celebrate Deepavali, the festival of lights that marks the beginning of the Hindu New Year. 

Taken last year on Serangoon Road, the main drag through Little India, lit up for Deepavali (a.k.a. 
Diwali, Dewali, Divali, Dipotsavi, Dipapratipad, Depawali, Dipavali -- depending on the country). 

Flying high in October

     This is the view from the top of the Singapore Flyer, 42 stories above the city. It's the world's tallest Ferris wheel, but not nearly as scary as it may look to those of you who suffer from acrophobia. For my money the elevators on the Space Needle and the Eiffel Tower are more frightening experiences. Perhaps if they had "Champagne Flights" you could reserve as we did for our 37-minute, single-rotation ride, they wouldn't be so bad either.
     It helped knowing that the flyer's operators reversed the direction of the wheel several months after it opened in 2008 on the advice of Feng Shui masters.
     Better safe than sorry.