To my readers who may be surprised to see this ‘new’ layout of my blog:
I actually intended to close this page due to unforeseen circumstances, but then decided to keep the recipes. As with my other page, I realised too late that my food pics & posts were of no interest to (that particular person), and so I have this page as you see it.
Thank you for your support and visits all this while. I really appreciate it!
~Aliza~
…Again, at TokMi’s house.
Mom had asked me to bake peanut cookies for her, and so I decided to do it at her place.
I’ll start making cookies for my own household next week.
And so we had a buffet again, totally spoilt for choice!!
Fruits... some from Dad's orchard
Laksa (forgot to take the pic of the gravy!!! LOL)
Cempedak Goreng
Nasi Ulam
Fish Curry, Beef Kurma & Sweet & Sour Crabs
Steamed Buns, Kangkung Belacan (w/out belacan) and Stir-Fried Kailan with Garlic & Oyster Sauce
Mom’s been hankering for seafood since she got back from Umrah but because of Munirah’s injury (a gaping hole of a wound in her knee!!!) Mom has been putting it off till today. And so we had the crabs and steamed buns specially orderd from Lala Chong 😀
As I’ve mentioned before, Mom’s iftar affairs are always beat any 5-star hotel offering, and if her tables could speak, they’d be hoarse from begging for help by the end of the meal… LOL LOL LOL
But these days, her ‘buffet spread’ has reduced tremendously, since it’s just her and Dad with the maid now with all kids out from the house. Still, once in a while, when we go over for iftar, she runs a bit amok in the kitchen 😀 😀 😀
Thanks, Mom!!
Cheers!
~ am ~
Our iftar menu for today ~ Baked Pasta with Salad and Fresh Homemade Mushroom Soup.
My simplified versions of the above are as follows:
Baked Pasta with Sauteed Mushroom Salad
BAKED PASTA
1 cup pasta of your choice ~ macaroni, shell, fussili, etc.
1 pkt. beef mince
1 large onion, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
1 pc. dried bay leaf
1 can chopped tomatoes
1 1/2 cups total chopped carrots, celery, mushrooms (your own preferred variety of veggies)
Grated mixed cheese (ready packed pizza topping is also fine)
BreadcrumbsHow to:
1. Boil the pasta till nearly done. Bear in mind it’ll be cooking again in the oven.2. Heat oil in a pan and fry the mince. Once browned, set aside. Drain the pan, then add a bit more oil. Fry the garlic, onion and bay leaf until onons start to soften. add in the canned tomato and veggies and simmer until veggies are almost done. Add in the beef and simmer another 5mins. Season and set aside.
3. Mix the pasta + mince together, give it a good stir to combine. Pour into a heat proof deep dish, top with cheese and breadcrumbs and bake in a pre-heated oven at 180’C for about 30 – 35 mins.
Mushroom Soup
FRESH MUSHROOM SOUP
2 Tbs. olive oil
1 clove garlic, minced
1 shallot, minced
1 pc. bay leaf
1 1/2 tsp. all-purpose flour
1 cup sliced mushrooms
100ml water + 100ml fresh milk or cream (I use low fat milk)
salt and ground white pepper, to tastehow to:
heat oil in a saucepan and fry the garlic and shallots until soft, then add in the bay leaf and mushrooms. cook untils mushrooms are wilted and soft. Add in the flour. STIR WELL to avoid the flour from burning. add in the water + milk and bring up to a boil. Simmer for 4 – 5 mins. Season with salt and pepper. Use a hand blender to liquidise the soup, or use a blender ~ make sure you do not cover and hold a cloth over. Pour back into saucepan, reheat; serve hot.
WARM SAUTEED MUSHROOM SALAD2 Tbs. olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 onion, sliced into wedges
1 1/2 cups mixed mushrooms, quartered or halved, depending on size
3 Tbs. grape or orange juice
salt and pepper, to taste
Salad greens, to serve
Grated parmesan, to serveHow to:
heat oil in a pan and fry the garlic and onions till almost wilted, then add in the mushrooms. Cook for about 5mins, then add in the juice and simmer on high heat till done. Season with salt and pepper. Arrange the salad greens on a plate, top with the sauteed mushrooms, then sprinkle with parmesan. Serve up!
It was a most wonderful meal, something different indeed 🙂
Cheers!
~ am ~
I finally got around to making air katira which I have heard A LOT about.
The recipe that I found claims to be the original, and so I am sharing it here with my readers. I know one particular reader who LOVES this beverage so I am looking forward to her comments (*hint* to the kitty).
AIR KATIRA
1 Tbs. katira, soaked overnight, rinsed with boiled drinking water and drained.
10 – 12 kembang semangkuk, soaked in drinking water
1 Tbs. biji selasih, soaked in drinking water
1 can evaporated milk (410ml)
6 cups water
1 cup simple syrup (or to taste)
1 tsp. rose essence
Mix all of the above in a large jug and add crushed ice. Ready to serve.
And for iftar, I prepared beef slices fried in turmeric, mixed veggies with anchovies and steamed silken tofu with oyster sauce.
I had asked Ana to make bubur keledek, but dunno why the bubur came out to be quite runny. Maybe she didn’t thaw out the coconut cream enough, I don’t know.
Anyway, we will be having guests tomorrow evening, so I have to make sure I plan a nice menu that can be enjoyed by all.
Cheers!
~ am ~
And, the weather remained cloudy ALL day.
It was good because I had to go on a walking tour of Little India, Brickfields at 10:00am!
Yes, it’s Ramadhan, but ‘someone’ didn’t bother to consider that little tiny detail and so it was trudging-the-streets-in-absolute-thirst we go….
But, as I said, it rained in the morning, and weather was cloudy and not too hot so it turned out to be quite acceptable and not too punishing :p
No pics from the walk, though, as I coudn’t really be bothered to trudge around with the “darn thing” hanging of my neck :p
We got back to the office around noon, and I had to run an errand at the bank.
Having settled that, it was back to work, and at 4.30pm, I clocked out (I leave at 4.30pm during Ramadhan). Road was haywire and topsy-turvy with traffic as usual, but I wasn’t driving so it wasn’t too stressful.
Oh yes, Ramadhan month I carpool with a neighbour who’s also a colleague.
Anyway, got home around 5.45pm, then settled what I had to ~ Asar prayers, connect the internet, etc. ~ then headed to the kitchen.
murtabak from the bazaar, sirap selasis, asam rebus ikan kembung, baby kailan with egg tofu and condiments 🙂
It was past 6.45pm by the time hubby got back and I thought her was stuck in traffic.
I was ‘almost’ correct.
He’d stopped by the bazaar to look for murtabak for me, but the line was REALLY long. Suddenlt he saw the usual man selling the roti canai near our place calling and waving at him. Turned out, it was his murtabak stall 🙂
The poor guy was swamped with orders he wasn;t able to cope with. And so hubby stepped him and helped man the stove while the seller kept making the murtabak. Finally, for all his ‘hard work’ hubby’s order of 3 pieces became 5! The seller was very thankful for the help!!! LOL
And so the balance of the murtabak will be our sahur tomorrow 🙂 Alhamdulillah….
Dinner was very simple, yet satisfying.
…with sirap selasih to wash everything down 😀 😀 😀
Cheers!
~ am ~
Hubby was out with friends for iftar, so it was just me, Ana and Aina.
Our menu plan dictated beehoon soup, and since I’d text Ana telling her hubby will not be eating in, she tried making soto based on a recipe she’d learned. It was OK, and she also prepared the little potato cakes i.e. bergedil to go with it. We had the traditional shredded cabbage instead of the more popular beansprouts.
The ‘light’ item was deep fried battered sweet potato, which I ate with the sambal kicap. Yummmyyy….!!!
Tomorrow I have to join a walking tour around Brickfields, and I am worried that the heat and me walking around will result in a sudden drop in my sugar levels. So far, Alhamdulillah… my fasting has been uneventful and no unwanted episodes, and I hope to keep it that way!! We’ll see….
Cheers!
~ am ~
I got sick of Blogger because they have not sorted out their “issues” and numerous help requests have gone unheeded.
And so I have moved to a new home which hopefully will remain (relatively) trouble-free 🙂
I guess it could be symbolic, together with Aina turning three so maybe the change is good. But, since this place is totally new to me, I do hope my readers (if any!) can bear with the hiccups as I learn the ropes.
Thank you.
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