Yellow, Yellow, Make Me Mellow

Hi all! It has been ages since I last blogged. Among my close friends, it is a known fact that I am without a helper so it is clear that this is a reason why this blog is left abandoned for quite some time. As time passes by, I can say that I am getting accustomed to the daily routines that I am now able to find the time to start blogging again.

As a start, here's a recipe for a dish that I've prepared before the month of Ramadhan, for everyone who ventures this blog. This dish is another outcome of my attempt to finish up whatever is available in the fridge. Perhaps, you can try cooking this dish as it is a very economical way to clean your fridge! Anyway, here goes.......

'MASAK LEMAK KUNING UDANG DENGAN PETAI DAN BUNGA KANTAN'

Ingredients:

400g of medium size prawns, shelled and cleaned but leave the tails intact

10 bird's eyes chillies

5 shallots

3 pips of garlic

2cm piece of ginger

1 stalk of lemongrass (bruised)

1 ginger torch (bunga kantan) quartered

1 piece of turmeric leaf (sliced thinly)

20 pieces of 'petai'

1/4 cup of thick coconut milk

1/2 cup of water

1 piece of 'asam keping'

salt to taste

Method:

• Pound the shallots, garlic and ginger till fine and put into a pot.
• Put in all the other ingredients and cook over a low fire, stirring at all time.
• Season with salt.
• Serve hot with plain boiled rice.
• Savour the taste!

When Cikyah Turns Thirty-four

Hiya peeps! As I've mentioned in one of my earlier entries, birthdays carry different meanings to different people. This year, I am officially thirty-four years old. As the saying goes( hopefully), one year older and one year wiser.Usually, my birthdays were celebrated with beautiful sms from siblings and relatives and much awaited calls from Mak. Since I'm married to one who claims that he is unromantic, I never expects anything from him. It was kind of sad during the early years but I've grown accustomed to it. After all, Mr K did have a point when he said, "Why must we wait for certain days to celebrate love? Shouldn't it be ongoing?" Well, coming from an unromantic, I have to say yes to that statement.

Although Mr K has never been enthusiastic with birthdays, this time, he managed to remember mine. He mentioned that my birthday gift would be chocolates (as he is a choc addict) and I just kept quiet. When I came on from school last Saturday, Mr K, being unromantic as always, simply pointed at the plastic bag near my sewing machine. "Hmm..that's your birthday gift", and he continued reading. Since he rarely gives present, I grabbed the plastic bag and there it was! My dream item! Want to to what Mr K got me? Here it is.........

Can you see the writings on the box?

Tadaaaa! My New York model GreenPan!

Note: Although this means that Mr K expects me to cook more for him, I would rather take this gift as his token of appreciation for what I've done in the kitchen all these years. Hehe...syok sendiri kan?

Ahlan Ya Ramadhan Al-Mubarak

Good morrow peeps! How's your Monday? I bet, most of us find it rather hard to accept that it's another Monday. Why must the weekend be so short? The usual claim of not having enough rest, I suppose.

Anyway, personally, I'm looking forward to this Saturday because the Muslims will be celebrating the blessed month of Ramadhan. The best month in the Islamic calendar. I sincerely wish that the Almighty grants me the chance and strength to sail smoothly throughout this much awaited month. I have actually planned to ask my Atush to have a try at fasting- just like how Mak trained the six of us. She believes that a child should learn how to fast when he or she is six! I started fasting for a half day and within a week, I was able to complete fasting for the whole day. Nurturing is always best done at a tender age.

Ramadhan, to me, is forever a month full of memories. I can stil picture out Mak preparing wonderful dishes for iftar (the breaking of fast). I'm not talking about elaborate preparation. The dishes were still ordinary, daily dishes but they tasted good. Perhaps, this is why Ramadahan is called 'the month of barakah'. You don't only taste the food but you are being thankful for what the Almighty has given at the same time.

Talking about food, I want to share this recipe from the talented Mat Gebu but I have reduced the amount of chillies. It's easy to prepare and I feel that it would make a good side dish.

KERABU TELUR NYONYA

Ingredients:

4 eggs

2 red onions

2 ripe tomatoes (cut into quarters, deseed and chopped into small pieces)

2 ginger torch (bunga kantan)

a handful of 'laksa' leaves shoots (pucuk daun kesom)

juice from 5 calamansi lime

1 and 1/2 tsp of sugar

1/2 tsp of salt

2 red chillies

5 bird's eye chillies

1 pip of garlic

1 inch shrimp paste (toasted)

Method:

1. Fry each egg as an omellette, roll and slice thinly.
2. In a pestle and mortar, pound the red chillies, bird's eye chillies, sugar, salt, garlic and shrimp paste till fine. Put into a mixing bowl and pour the lime juice and mix till fine.
3. Shred all the other ingredients thinly and put into the mixing bowl with the pounded ingedients.
4. Put in the sliced omellette and chopped tomatoes and toss well. You may add, salt, sugar and lime juice according to your taste. Serve with hot rice and fried salted fish on the side.

Do I have to do IT just because I ate a piece of cheesecake yesterday?

Good evening peeps. Already looking forward to the weekends? Lucky you. Not me, though. Tomorrow, I HAVE TO GO TO SCHOOL! Yes! You read it right. Tomorrow, the world will see me exercising my whale-size body doing aerobics. Surprised? I was too! Actually, this programme is part of the school's campaign to collect funds to upgrade the existing facilities.

Just a question. Why aerobics? Why? What can exercise do to a whale? Ask my students. they will definitely agree that puan shah and exercise do not go hand in hand. Don't they know I have a COOKING BLOG? Don't they know that all excellent chefs are big-sized? Don't they watch the movie 'Ratatouille'? Is Gusteau the Chef thin? Why must it be aerobics? Why can't it be a canteen day? A day that I will enjoy tremendously. Tell me!

Well, so much of me being petty. In the name of preparing better facilities for the children, I will have to keep sane and Godwilling, drag my whale-body to school at such wee hour next morning. Wish me luck peeps. Anyway, moving to something so much better, let me share my cheesecake recipe that I have ammended from the recipe on the cream cheese packaging just because I want my vegetarian friend to enjoy it too! I was really glad that my other colleagues loved the outcome of my experiment. What about the taste? It was lip-smacking, baby!! And to think that I have to pay a dear price doing aerobics tomorrow just because I enjoyed it, certainly won't stop me from cooking and baking. Perhaps, the exercise would do me good. Should I pack my choc chip cupcakes for sale tomorrow? Good thinking, ay? What say you?

SIMPLE CHEESECAKE WITH CHOCOLATE SWIRLS

Do you like what you see? You do? Then.......

Have a closer look!

To enjoy this scrumptious delight, you need:

For the base:

• 20 pieces digestive biscuits
• 4 oz butter (melted)
• a 10 inch x10 inch square cake tin with loose base

For the topping:

• 2 x 250g packets of cream cheese ( I used Tatura Brand cream cheese- it's cheaper)
• 300ml condensed milk
• 100ml evaporated milk
• 2 tsp gelatine ( I used Halagel brand- easily available now at leading hypermarkets)
• 1/4 cup of boiling water
• 1/2 tsp of chocolate emulco

For the delectable palate:

1. Put the biscuits into a plastic bag. Using a rolling pin, crush till fine.
2. Pour in the melted butter and mix well and put into the cake tin. Use a potato masher, level the mixture.
3. Put your cake tin in the freezer.
4. Next, pour your gelatine powder into the cup of boiling water and stir till dissolve. Just a note. DO NOT pour liquid onto gelatine for it will never dissolve. It should always be gelatine into water and not the other way around. I learn it the hard way!
5. Next, cut your cream cheese blocks into small pieces and put into a mixer fixed with a pedal. Beat your cream cheese till light and fluffy.
6. Put in your gelatine mixture, both condense and evaporated milk and stir till smooth and well-mixed using a balloon whisk.
7. Save 2 tbsp of this mixture and mix with the chocolate emulco into a smooth paste. Put into a piping bag and keep aside.
8. Pour your cheese mixture onto the chilled based.
9. Pipe your chocolate paste across the cheese topping. The more lines you have, the finer your swirls will look.
10. To create the swirl/ feathery look, use a toothpick/ cake tester against the drawn lines.
11. Refrigerate overnight. Then

*This cake melts if it is left at room temperature so it is best to be kept refrigerated.