Happy 15th Anniversary...1998-2013

There's something special about 1st Syawal this year..... 8th August 2013 is our 15th years anniversary.... on the day we were solemnized way back in 1998.... time flies and I didn't believe that our marriage ticker has reached 15 years ... for me there was no special plan for celebration, or fine dine or even a gift for him except for a wish.... I kept reminding my self and him that our anniversary will be on the first hari raya this year. But not more than just a reminder.....

To my surprise, upon his willing, enche hubby has a little surprise for me.... he handed me this tiny box right after I seek for his forgiveness after Solat Eid-Fitr....after the confessions of all my wrong doing to him....I got a  gift in return...I was speechless and trying very hard not to let my tears drop... and he was saying that "sorry dear for no special "baju raya" that  I could find for you but I have this for you... hopes you like it".... lagila rasa nak nanges.. Syukur Alhamdulillah dengan nikmat yang kau anugerahkan, Ya Rabbi... 

Frankly I don't really care what's inside the box ... I just felt so happy whenever he bought something for me... yesss... it's a gift from him....thank you Bi for the lovely thoughts........

To my dearest enche hubby..... thanks for the 15 years of happiness, may the Blessings of Allah fills our marriage with peace, barakah and happiness till Jannah....thanks to Allah for granting us these 5 adorable kids that fills our life with endless happiness...I am contented for these boon granted to us and our hope that your Mercy will always be with us to guide our kids to succeed dunia dan akhirat... ameen.....

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*Picture was taken on the day of our 15th Anniversary.... 8 August 2013

Blueberry muffins

Thinking of what to bake yesterday after work..... actually,  I am so tempted to make blueberry muffins since monday.... all the ingredients required I have it at home except for the fresh blueberries.... Have been looking for this at nearby supermarket but none of them have it on shelf.... Until I cannot stand anymore, walk through the fruit wholesaler behind my office and got it..... yes I'm baking a muffin.. so what's the big deal....there isn't a big deal at all...except that it's my first time baking muffin... I must thank my mum who lent her kitchen aid mixer...making baking easier that I thought how it should be...

Got the recipe from Simply Scratch....

Blueberry Muffins

Ingredients

1/2 butter (125 gm) unsalted

1 cup sugar

2 eggs

1tsp salt

1 1/4 tsp vanilla essence

2 cups multipurpose flour

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 cup fresh milk

1 cup blueberry

 Methods

Beat butter and sugar 

Add egg, one at a time

Add vanilla essence, salt and baking powder

Add 1 cup of flour

Then pour in milk

Add the remaining flour

and lastly add the blueberries which has been powdered with 1 tbs of flour.

Put the mixture into the paper cups...

Sprinkle brown sugar on top (optional)

Bake 15-17 minutes at 160 degree

Makes : 20 cups

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freshly baked from the oven

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not bad for my first attempt...not bad at all

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fluffy

not sweet

smells good

I just love it

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How I wish I have a vanilla ice cream to go with this... look at the melted blueberries.... so fresh and yummy

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Here's my little munchkin with 2 muffins in her tiny hands....

Thank you mum

Phalaenopsis Blooms of Purity

Finally, I managed to have a pot of White Phalaenopsis featuring hints of blush pink on the flipside of the petals in my house.... it's my dream pot and special thanks to my friend who bought this for me from Floristika, Bangsar.... the blooms has been there for almost 15 days.... and it keeps blooming each day..... some call it a Moth Orchids...

Some descriptions on Phalaenopsis that I googled..........

"Pure white Phalaenopsis, featuring hints of blush on the flipside of the bloom, presents unequivocal beauty for the beholder. With its charm, purity and brightness, it makes a perfect piece for the elegant home, which will make heads turn at the next house party"

 

"Nothing can compare to the graceful elegance of pure white Phalaenopsis in full bloom.  Phalaenopsis white orchids are among the easiest plants to grow indoors. Placed next to a simple piece of furniture, their subtle glow will illuminate the room."

"White Phalaenopsis Orchid blooms with exquisite white flowers to create a stylish simplicity and grace. A stunning white single stem Phalaenopsis Orchid plant showcases its gorgeous exotic blooms which  creates a look of natural elegance that conveys sweetest sentiments"

I have nothing to conquer on the above statements.... very true and very me... haha.... if possible I want everything in my house to be in white colour.... with a hinge of grey ...

If anyone ever interested to get this pot of purity, you can visit Floristika in Bangsar.. contact detail provided below....

Floristika.Com.My Sdn Bhd

16, Jalan Liku, Off Jlan Riong, Bangsar

59100 Kuala Lumpur

Tel: +603-2287 6113

Fax: +603-2287 7213

Enquiry:
General: info.my@FarEastFlora.com
Sales: custsvc.my@FarEastFlora.com
Service Feedback: feedback.my@FarEastFlora.com

Website: here
Location map: here.

(From highway along Jalan Bangsar to KL - after Tenaga National Berhad, look out for Wisma Dicklin, turn left into Jalan Riong where you will pass by China Press. Take the first turning into Jalan Liku. Floristika's building is just behind NST).

Back to my Phalaenopsis..... I placed it at the entrance corner of my house... the stalk is a bit lengthy and slanted... it's quite difficult to capture the full length of the plant..... somehow , it matches my poster which we bought in Bali.... but it is frangipani...or the scientific name for it is Plumeria... I love that flower too... plant it in my garden as well....

Bought this too for my dining........

Sent the canvas for framing.. may be I should consider to get the painter to paint the phalaenopsis for me.... good idea....

and this my frangipani plant in my tiny garden......

I just can't  help eying on these petals..... it somehow gives me the calmness effect to me.....

wherever I go.... if ever I saw the Phalaenopsis.... I will not get away from it before I snap some photos with it.... these photos were taken in Hotel Aryaduta, Medan... the Phalaenopsis is everywhere .... every corner.....

 

us with Phalaenopsis.......the Blooms of Purity.................

Morale..... as i wrote more than 10 times for the word Phalaenopsis.... I shall try by hard to memorise the word forever..... Phalaenopsis.......................

Cooking Class at Dapur Magika Kak Lin

It was never cross my thoughts having cooking class in my house... what more if the class is leaded by myself.... it was all started from friends personal requests to have a hands on cooking experience in my house....  they prefer to try preparing foods on their own for food they ate during their visit to my house occasionally....sometime its their kids who requested for the same dish over and over again....so mummy has no choice except to learn and repeatedly do this again and again....

For whatever reasons.... I take this as a challenge.... I am more than happy to guide through step by step cooking... it was an informal session.. they agreed to buy all the ingredients and I'll share with them the techniques.... I have once referred them to my blog for recipe... but to them that is very theoretical..... they prefer to have a practical hands on so that they can pick up the tricks and tips along the way......better way of learning too....

For this session , the first ever livecast from Dapur Magika Kak Lin....we'll be preparing two all time favourite dishes

1. Lasagne

&

2. Mini Chicken Pie

I have two friends on board.... Fieza and K Sally.... thanks to both of you for the trust.. I felt honoured and thanks to Icah for accompanying us for morale support....

I let the two ladies to take charge and lead their show from the beginning till then end of the session. 

Step 1 : Preparing Ragu and Bechamel Sauce for Lasagna

 

Step 2 : Layering the Lasagne sheets with the sauce

 

Step 3 : While baking the lasagne, prepare the filling for mini pie...

Step 4 : Mould the pastry roll and place them on the baking tray

Step 5 : Happy faces after successfully baked the lasagne and mini pie

and the outcome being........


Soooooo goooood!!!! thumb up ladies..... we'll try more recipes together.....


Mini Chicken Pie.....

and the Lasagne.....

Well done ladies..... next to go Cheesy Chili Crab with Mantao Bread and Blueberry Muffins....opps not forgetting Icah's request for Mini fruit tart

oppps before I forgotten.... special thanks to K Sally for the yummy chicken rendang... memang terbaekkkk... must learn the secret from her also....

Tonight, I'll be making Lasagne and Chicken Pie again...this time not for class but for my order...... Alhamdulillah rezeki bulan Syawal.. tak putus-putus orang order....and making this again the following day for my pot luck dish.

Halal Wantan

My daughter has a special request for her friends coming over for raya... she wants me to prepare steamboat.... quite easy to get the ingredients from local supermarket... but I didn't normally buy the wantan... reason being... the Halal status that I'm concerned.. 

What option do I have then? answer for this is to make my own wantan....

First.. you need to prepare  the filling... it can be anything you desire...... I like to add some vegetables for the crunchiness ..... you may add chinese cabbage , canned button mushrooms.... etc

Ingredients

Prawn

Chicken

Dried Shitake Mushroom

Water Chestnut

Carrot

Capsicum

Garlic

Salt and pepper

Spring Onion

and a must have ingredient... 

Sesame oil

and don't forget

a pinch of love

Methods

Chopped all the ingredients and mixed well. Wrap in a wantan sheet....

 

 excuse for the upside down photo.... try rotating but still the same... very irritating...

I just bought the ready made wantan which cost less than RM2.00 for 100 sheets...Wantan sheets is made of flour, water and egg....

There are many ways to wrap the wantan... but I opt for the simplest version because this is what doable by my little tiny hands who assisted me... Put about 1 tsp of filling in the centre of the sheet.... then..

 

fold the sheet and meet the two edges together to form a triangle.... Add a water to make it sticky

Repeat the steps..... and that's it... keep it frozen or you may fry it first..... very very easy

Upholstery Project

Hi hi all... still in your raya mood? me tooo.... feeling ghheee* in the office after 6 days of raya holiday....too short if you ask me... raya is a bit special for us this year... celebrating in our new home...thanks to Allah....

I am lucky coz my parents had offer us some of their pre loved furniture to be placed in our house.... but a bit of dilemma for us... as the fabric or design may not suit our taste or our home decor theme... theme la sangat kan????... but really, we like to keep it simple, possibly... we appreciate space more than the furniture.... 

So DIY upholstery is the best solution for us..... in fact. when we moved in, we have not purchase any new sofa or arm chairs, we sent for upholstery and it look perfectly good...the useful life expanded with a minimal cost. How do we do it...... in a blink second...

Step 1 : Dismantle the cushion from the frame

 

Step 2 : Cut the fabric of your choice... of course  my choice of design would be Dot Dot.... my mom choose this for me.... and I like the teal colour..... 

Step 3 : Staple the fabric ....

Step 4 : Fix the cushion back to the frame.....

 

and that's it..... ready for use.

 

 

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it matches my dot dot cushion* at my entrance corner

 

*p/s : cushion sewn by my mum...custom made to any shape I requested...

 

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and dot dot scattered cushions on my sofa.... I just love it......

that's what I call

Home Sweet Home

or

Rumahku Syurgaku

Ayam Ingkung

Salam hujung  Ramadhan semua..... pagi ni longlai je untuk melangkah ke ofis... mungkin dah mood raya... tapi apakan daya.. demi mencari rezeki, ai kuatkan semangat untuk bertugas...... sekarang dah waktu lunch... masa untuk menyiapkan post yang dirangka malam tadi....

So topik kali ni tetap berkisarkan resipi dan resipi pilihan hati Ms Dot kali ni ialah Ayam Ingkung

What???? Ayam Ingkung?? apa tu... mungkin bagi sesetengah u all memang tak pernah jumpa resipi ayam macam

ni...ai pun tak pasti asal usul ayam ingkung ni... tapi kebiasaannya kalau ada special occassion contoh macam dapat masuk U , dapat kerja baru, naik pangkat dsb.... yang diraikan tu kenalah belanja seisi keluarga makan ayam ingkung ni....

Ayam ni biasanya dimasak seekor seekor .... ai tak de apa special ocassion pun, kebetulan MIL datang berbuka di rumah, so ambik kesempatan untuk menuntut resipi dari dia... hands on , terus - terus praktikal, teori2 tak main la.....mana real... mudah-mudahan, dengan rasa ikhlas hati untuk belajar, ilmu ni kekal dalam ingatan dan dapat dimanfaatkan untuk generasi akan datang.....

Jom kita tengok apa bahan-bahan yang diperlukan.....

Ayam Ingkung

Ingredients

2 whole chicken

Shallots

Garlic

Ginger

Lemongrass

Coconut Milk

Curry Powder

Salt and a bit of sugar to taste

drop of love

 

Methods

Sliced shallots, garlic, ginger and lemongrass.

Mixed curry powder with water and sliced ingredients

Stuffed chickens with mixture

Tie chicken 

Cook chicken with a bit of water until soft

Add coconut milk, salt and sugar to taste

 

Tips

Untuk rasa lebih enak, tumiskan asing bahan-bahan hiris dan serbuk kari (tmuis darat). Masukkan ke dalam masakan apabila ayam dah empuk...

Ayam ni memang best makan ramai-ramai.... cara makan dia kata orang jawa cuil je dengan tangan.... barulah ada kemesraan ikatan kekeluargaan..... sedapnya sampai ke tulang.... lagi best kalau di masak dengan ayam kampung.... barulah kaw namanya.

Salted Egg Prawn

What could be the best dish for prawn? or how you like the prawn to be cooked? Nowadays, most affordable and available  prawn in market is the breed species from shrimp farming.... after a while , somehow I felt sick of eating them...

Solution for that? hmm every time ai balik kampung, mesti singgah kat Pasar Sungai Besar... kat sana sampai rambang mata tak tentu arah nak pilih udang... banyak sangat udang laut, segala macam saiz ada... harga very reasonable... bayangkan.. biasa ai beli udang belaan ni pun dah RM29 sekilo yang kononnya size XXL... tapi kalau kat sana dengan size yang sama, ai boleh dapat udang laut dengan harga RM30 sekilo.... cumanya kat Sungai Besar memang tak ada can nak pilih... peniaga biasanya main kaut je..alasan diorang.."semua segar la amoi... apa lagi mau pilih"...yang nyatanya diorang tak nak kita pilih yang besar-besar je.....

Pasar Sungai Besar ni kadang-kadang can be beyond your expectation... hari tu ai ada nampak sepasang lobster... harga RM70 sekilo...geram je nak beli... tapi tak tahu nak siang and masak apa..kalaulah ada restaurant yang boleh masakkan untuk kita memang ai beli..... tak pe .. lepas ni buat research cara nak masak lobster....mungkin seumur hidup ai , baru 2-3 kali makan lobster.... yang paling best masa my friend belanja ai kat Mr. Lobsterman.... memang best... nak tau kat mana Mr. Lobsterman ni.. Click here for Mr. Lobsterman

Kalau dah beli udang laut ni, biasa ai selaku chef DMKL akan refer kat enche hubby sebelum masak... benda susah dapat la kata..nanti kalau salah resipi or tak kena selera rugi bahan mentah... tak dapat menikmati rasa udang sebenar......lebih baik dapatkan mutual agreement dari big boss.... so dapat consent boss untuk masak resipi yang ai propose...

So untuk kali ni ai propose untuk masak Salted Egg Prawn... hmm tapi tak berapa nak jadi sebab tumis pakai minyak instead of butter... so tak berapa nak lemak....

 

Resipi ni boleh dimasak dengan ketam... and bahan dia sangat mudah

Ingredients

1/2 kg Prawn

Oil for frying

Butter

Garlic chopped

Evaporated milk

Salted egg (yolk)

Curry leaves

Chilli Padi

Salt and sugar

A pinch of love

Methods

Pre fry the prawn (set aside)

Melt butter

Add garlic, curry leaves and chilli padi until it turned yellowish

Add salted egg and milk (I blend these two together)

Add sugar and salt

and finallay

Add prawn

Rasanya jangan cakapla..memang sedap.... ai suka rasa berpasir telur masin tu...... manis, pedas, masin lemak.... makan pulak dengan nasi panas and baby kailan masak garlic.... terangkat di buatnya..

Kalau nak tahu rasanya... cubalah sendiri.... hasil air tangan sendiri tentu lebih baik....