Out of this world sugar...

It was only when I arrived in Indonesia that I first saw sugar in block form. I remember going to the market in Bali and seeing these smooth blocks of brown sugar shaped like half spheres and learnt that they were coconut palm sugar. They looked so delicious with their rich brown colour. The brown sugar here tastes entirely different to brown sugar back home. It somehow seems more earthy and rich here and looks much less processed. So recently in the supermarket I spotted this jar...it's called 'gula semut' which literally translates as 'ant sugar' but I think te real reason for that is the fact that it is being sold ground up as opposed to in it's block form. This sugar is flavoured with vanilla and is 100% organic, which generally makes me feel like I'm having a healthier spoonful or two of sugar (yeah, right!) Nevertheless, the truth about this sugar is that I don't care if it's healthy or not because a couple of spoonfuls of this in my coffee in the morning sends my mediocre cup of coffee over the top. The sugar makes it aromatic and rich with that hint of vanilla flavour coming through. Who needs Starbucks when I can create a delicious cup of joe with this stuff right here...