Orange Poppy Seed Cake

Ingredients:

50g poppy seed
60ml milk
185g unsalted butter
225g castor sugar (I reduced to 200g)
1 tbsp finely grated orange zest (omitted)
3 grade A eggs
175g self-raising flour, sifted
50g plain flour, sifted
50g ground almond
100ml orange juice (I used Sunquick)

1. Butter a kugelhoft tin (the cake cooks more thoroughly) but you can use any baking tin and preheat the oven to 180C. (I reduced to 170C using Healsio Steam Oven to bake).

2. Combine poppy seeds and milk. Leave to stand for 20 minutes.

3. Cream butter, sugar and zest(if using) till light and fluffy.

4. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, until well combined.

5. Stir in sifted flours, ground almond, orange juice and milk with the poppy seeds. Mix well. (I combined almond to flour; orange juice to poppy seed/milk. Then I stirred dry and wet ingredients alternately, starting with flour, then liquid and finished with flour.)

6. Pour batter into prepared tin and bake for 50 minutes or till a skewer comes out clean. (I baked at 45 minutes using Healsio Steam Oven.)


Results:

The cake 'fluffed' up nicely to about 6cm ! Although I had reduced the sugar from 225g to 200g, I still find it too sweet for my liking. I'll reduce it to 175g next time.

I don't know if I should reduce the baking time to 40 minutes (Healsio Steam Oven), the sides are a bit too 'brown' for me (though Faiz says the cake is perfect as it is).
Oh, well ....

Mills, Grinds, Pulverises & Grates
- All Grains eg. wheat, barley, buckwheat, oats, rice
- Coffee Beans
- Chocolate
- Parmesan & other hard cheeses
- Sugar into icing sugar
- All Seeds eg. linseed, sesame, poppy, sunflower
- All Nuts eg. almond, walnuts, hazelnuts
- All Spices eg. peppercorns, cinnamon, lemon zest, nutmeg, vanilla
- (make Garam Masala)
- Breadcrumbs


Kneads
- All Breads, Pizza, Foccacia and Brioche
- Pasta Dough
- Pastries including Choux


Minces
- All meat including chicken & fish


Chops
- Fruit
- Vegetables
- Onion, Garlic, Ginger & Chillies
- Herbs


Prepares
- Drinks eg. juices, lemonades, cocktails & milkshakes
- Pâtés, Dips, Pesto & Tapenades
- Salads Dressings including Mayonnaise
- Ice creams, Sorbets & Desserts
- Cakes & Pavlovas
- Jams, Marmalade, Preserves & Spreads (eg. peanut butter, hazelnut)
- Cappuccino, Caffè Latte & Ice Coffee
- Yoghurt


Cooks
- Soups
- Sauces & Pastes eg. tomato, seafood, hollandaise, curry
- Curries, Stews & Casseroles
- Pasta
- Risotto
- Custard
- Baby food


Whips
- Egg whites
- Cake frosting & fillings
- Cream
- Butter


Crushes
- Ice


Steams
- Fish & other seafood
- Vegetables
- Meat & chicken
- Dumplings & buns


All that in one appliance that will even wash itself!


I've got my eyes on her ....










Technical Specifications
Motor
- Maintenance-free, Vorwerk reluctance motor, 500W rated power
- Speed continuously adjustable from 100 to 10,200 rpm (Gentle stir 40rpm)
- Special speed setting (alternating mode) for making dough
- Special safety feature: electronic motor protection to prevent overload

Heating system
- 1,000W power consumption
- Protected against overheating

Integrated scales
- Measuring range from 5 to 100g in 5g increments; 100 to 2000g in 10g increments (to max 2kg)

Housing
- High-grade plastic material, food compatible

Mixing bowl
- Stainless steel with heating system and temperature sensor integrated
- Maximum capacity 2 litres

Connected load
- Only for 230V alternating voltage
- Maximum power consumption 1,500W
- 1m retractable cable

Dimensions & Weight (excluding VAROMA - a steaming attachment)
- Height 30cm
- Width 28.5cm
- Depth 28.5cm
- Weight 6.3kg



Sample of Malaysian recipes using TM31.

There was a time when no-one would have expected computers to be a part of everyday life and something which we now depend on.

Thermomix TM31 would be my ‘new computer’!

18 April 2011

Happy 76th Birthday, Mum

Took my parents to TGIFriday, Queensbay for lunch. Invited my good friend, Yusmayati to join us. Oh! She's brought a gift for my Mum... how sweet!

Mum having a Chicken and Prawns Combo

Dad with his usual Steak

Yus and I had Grilled Salmon

Waiters singing birthday song to a tearful "Birthday Girl"

Vanilla icecream topped with whipped cream

Mum enjoying her "Tower of Icecream". Couldn't finish it even with the four of us sharing.

Blueberry Cheese Tart

Yasmin's project :





Ingredients For Pastry:

1 egg
100g butter (she used Anchor butter)
75g icing sugar
200g plain flour

1. Using wooden/rubber spatula, mix butter and icing sugar well.
2. Add egg and continue to mix.
3. Add in flour and knead.
4. Scoop 1 tbsp of dough and roll it in your hands.
Then press dough into tart mould.
5. Using fork, prick a few holes at base of dough.
6. Bake for 15 minutes at 160C.


Ingredients for Cream Cheese:

250g Philadelphia Cream Cheese
60g icing sugar
1 egg
1/2 tsp lemon extract

1. Beat all ingredients until smooth flat.
2. Add in lemon extract.
3. Take out 1 tbsp of cream cheese filling and add blueberry or any colour paste that you like ( X - this will be used to draw patterns on the cream cheese later).
4. Spoon a little blueberry filling and pipe cream cheese filling to cover each tart.
5. Draw patterns on your tart using (X). (My mum, Faiz, Yasmin and I had a fun family bonding time 'designing' the tarts).
6. Bake again for a further 5-10 minutes.







Special note:

The pleasant and helpful gentleman at Bonjour Trading, Pulau Tikus where both Yasmin and I bought our ingredients, recommended a small container of 'jelly' to brush on top of the tart. He said this would give it a 'fresh shiny look' and prevent the tart from being 'dry' when we keep it in the fridge.

We were supposed to keep it in the fridge for about 2hours before serving. "Taste better that way", he said.

But ....

as always ...

we never got round to that final step!!

Coz once it's out of the oven...

Baru bulan April, tapi tailors dah tak mau terima tempahan? Raya nuuuuuun hujung bulan August. Adoih!

Nasib baiklah Yati's tailor sanggup terima the three pieces of material I bought at Jakel Alamoda, Sg Petani tempoh hari. Itupun, merungut tak habis!


Semoga my baju kurungs turn out nicely. Amin.

Lunch with parents at Eden, Hutton Lane yesterday. Dad enjoying his Yokohama Sizzling Steak and Mum having Grilled Fish Set Lunch.

Berseleranya diorang makan, especially my Dad.

burrpp! Alhamdulillah..!

Me? I had lamb laaa, of coz. Roast Lamb.

Balik dari lunch, he was walking with a slight limp.

"Kenapa pulak tu?".

"Kaki lenguh, lutut sakit".

Called my friend. Katanya there's a place in Permatang Damar Laut for urut treatment. Took the number from her and called for appointment. Oh good! he's free now!

"Bapak, jom nak pi urut.. kot-kot boleh lega".

We went out again after Zohor prayers. Appointment at 3pm. Finished at 4.30pm. Dah macam ikan bakar jer dok menunggu sorang-sorang sitting at the car porch.

"How was it?"

"Uih, baguih la. Lega sangat. Tadi dah rasa macam nak demam".

"Oo.. ok... (in my heart, "Alhamdulillah...")".

Pagi ni, taking Mum to Hospital Lam Wah Ee for her medical check-up appointment at 10am. It's gonna be another long day, better go charge my iPhone. Sekurang-kurangnya can entertain myself with the games.

Sekarang ni... cuaca semakin panas terik, kan? Uishh! Pedih kulit when exposed to the sun, terutamanya between 11 - 3pm. That prompted me to goggle about sunblock :-

What is the best sunblock brand?
Cream or lotion?
SPF berapa?
Sesuai untuk kulit yang macamana?
... haish! ...


Last week, I bought satu jenama (tak berani nak sebutkan di sini, kang tak pasal-pasal kena saman pulak!). SPF 30, for normal to oily skin. Didn't work for me. Muka nampak putih semacam jer! OK, dah letak sebelah dah!


Yesterday, I bought ...


Neutrogena Ultra Sheer Dry-Touch Sunblock for Face and Body


... from Watsons.


Pagi ni, I tried it on. Wah! Finally dapat yang sesuai with the specification I was looking for!

- SPF 50+ (haaa... ambik engkau!)
- Broad spectrum protection against skin-aging UVA dan burning UVB rays.
- Ultra light, clean feel, non-shiny finish.
- Leaves skin soft and smooth, muka tak nampak "putih".
- Waterproof, sweatproof, resists rub-off.
- Non-comedogenic (won't clog pores)
- Oil free


Tak semestinya beli produk mahal tu yang terbaik dan yang sesuai untuk kita. From my own experience, banyak dah produk berjenama yang I have given away atau tinggalkan begitu saja disebabkan 'ketidaksesuaian' (muka jadi gelap lah, tumbuh jerawat lah, berminyak lah.. etc etc).


Yang dok kempen pasal sunblock ni bukannya apa... I always believe in "Prevention is better than cure". So, to all kakak2.. adik2.. students (boys & girls).. makcik & pakcik, rajin-rajinlah pakai sunblock to prevent pigmentation and sunburn. Mustahak tu!



There's another product I want to share here. Haa... yang ni, tak wajib beli! Sesaja nak bercerita jer..

Last week masa beli sunblock 'beep' tu, I also bought "IN2IT Twister Lip Gloss". How I love using this product! It's so convenient and most importantly, very compatible with my dry lips. Betapa susahnya nak dapatkan lipstick yang sesuai for myself. Like I said just now, jenama mahal tak semestinya boleh 'ngam' dengan kita. Alang-alang dah dapat yang sesuai, I'm gonna go get more of it in different shades.


Now it's time to do some ...

spring cleaning !!

Meet my new family member ..

SAMIR FITRI BIN SAIFUL FITRI born 3 April 2011, at 10.40am weight 3.3kg

Samir, anak kedua kepada pasangan Nur Izzati Hafiz (my niece) & Saiful Fitri.

with Sophie Izzana Bt Saiful Fitri and Julia

eeemmm.. bila laaa nak dapat cucu sendiri ni?

proud Tok Chak Dolly

psstt... psstt... Min, pikir apa tu?

ada gaya tu, my luv

Hikayat Merong Mahawangsa

Dibintangi oleh Stephen Rahman Hughes sebagai Merong Mahawangsa, seorang nakhoda dan pahlawan yang dikatakan berasal dari keturunan Iskandar Zulkarnain. 70% of the dialog is in English dan selebihnya dalam bahasa Melayu klasik.

Alkisahnya, seorang anak raja dari Rom nak datang berkahwin dengan puteri dari negara China dijanjikan di suatu tempat bernama Langkasuka. Kapal-kapal si anak raja tu, teruk terkena ribut taufan sewaktu belayar.. hinggakan semua kapal karam dan tinggallah kapal si anak raja tu (of coz la, kan?).

So, depa pun singgah ke Goa, India to repair kapal and nak sewa kapal2 lain serta kelasi untuk teruskan pelayaran. Tapi pasal no money, no deal lah.


Haaa... masa ni la diorang dikenalkan dengan 'si dia' ni.























So, si hensem ni pun terimalah tugas untuk escort and protect putera raja untuk pastikan selamat sampai bertemu si puteri.


Lepas tu ...


eh! pi la tengok sendiri!


Takkan nak tulis karangan pulak kot?























Wah! macho aih!!




















isy! isy! isy!





alamak! nyanyi pun boleh ke, u? waduh!




Sungguh berbakat ... eh! bukan.. chop! chop!


Sungguh handsome dan berbakat!

If you love someone... tell them, spend time with them.

Have been putting off going to the movies with my girls because of the chronic cough I was having. Yesterday, confident that the cough was somewhat 'controllable', we decided to go watch Hikayat Merong Mahawangsa.

My brother, who is back from Pahang for a few days, heard us discussing our plans during lunch and invited himself to join us which also prompted my parents to tag along!

peace!

Sitting in the cinema, waiting for the movie to be screened, a question suddenly crossed my mind, "When was the last time I went to the movies with my brother, eh??".

+
-
x
/

... ceita "Star Wars", tahun 1977 lebih kurang macam tu lah!
Uish! Laaama tu!!
If only my sister was here too,
it would have made this 'reunion' complete!

My siblings

To the outside world, we all grow old. But not to brothers and sisters. We know each other as we always were. We know each other's hearts. We share private family jokes. We remember family feuds and secrets, family griefs and joys. We live outside the touch of time.

-Clara Ortega

I perhatikan, begitu jugak hakikatnya with my three children. Dulu, masa ketiga-tiga ada kat rumah, asyik nak gaduh ja. Sorang macam ni, sorang macam tu... haish! But now, bila masing-masing dah besar... away doing their own stuff, they constantly keep updates about each other thru me.

"Mama, adik apa habaq? How's his studies?"
"Mama, how's abang's project? Ok ka? Dok tension lagi ka?"
"Mama, sapa ada kat rumah? Abang and kakak dok buat apa?"
"Mama, minggu ni adik tak balik ka?"
"Mama, I miss adik. Bila kita nak pi tengok dia?"
"Mama nak mai KL, bawak abang and kakak dak?"

... etc etc ...

No 1: Haih! Mai sini dok diam diam!
No 2: Isy! Tension la abang dok kongkong cheq!
No 3: 'The Adventurer' - Wanna go there, wanna try this, wanna do that..



The kids may not realize that they care, but if you separate them, they realize, "Hey, I miss my sibling." - Carl Douglas


As their mother, I want each of them to know that I couldn't possibly have a "Favorite child".

I love them all
- not equally -
but
Fully and Uniquely
coz that's who they are
- Special and Unique -
in their own ways.

Brothers and sisters can be best friends, making family life more enjoyable and fulfilling for all members. It may not be easy and they will likely still argue on occasions, but it is possible for them to have some fun along the way.

Someday in the near future, even with having their own families, I hope my children will still maintain the love and care that they have for each other. Mungkin occasionally plan their holidays together or even snuggle up (like me yesterday) have fun go watch movies together! (Don't forget to bring Mama along, eh?!)

Dalca Tulang Rusuk and Chocolate Cake

"Mamaaaa..., mama dah lama tak masak sejak Kak Ari keja kat rumah kita," komen si Farid with a cheeky smile on his face.

"Emmm... Farid nak makan apa?"

"Apa pun boleh, tapi Mama yang masak, ok?"

"OK laaaahh..."

Dalca Daging Tulang Rusuk

Peeped into the fridge. "EEmmm... bahan-bahan ada. Kalau buat chocolate cake, ok gak ni", I thought to myself. So dengan segala semangat rajinnya, I pun buat la chocolate cake.

eeiikk!! awat cake tak menjadik ni??!! (Buang.. buang..!).

Memang mencabar kesabaranlah!

I decided to bake another one. And ...




Faiz sorang jer dah 'hilangkan' 1/4 dari cake ni



Baked the cake using Healsio Steam Oven this time.

Ingredients:
170 gm butter
390 gm castor sugar
3 eggs

Mixed:
1 tsp vanilla essence
1 tsp chocolate emulco or chocolate paste
340 gm water (340 ml)

Sift together:
225 gm plain flour
65 gm cocoa powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp soda bicarbonate
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp Nescafe

Cara:
1. Using Healsio Steam Oven.

2. Prepare and grease 10 inci round or 9 inci square cake tin.

2. Cream butter and sugar.

3. Add eggs, one by one.

4. Fold in 1/3 of sifted flour, alternate with 1/2 of liquid till you finish with flour.

5. Pour into cake tin. I started baking using Convection Setting, with Preheat at 150C for 40 mins.

At the end of baking time, when checked, the toothpick inserted in the middle of the cake was still slightly 'wet'.

So, I continued baking, this time changing to Supersteam Setting, Without Preheat at 140C for 10 mins. The reason I used Supersteam was because the top of the cake was already very brown, I didn't want it to be burnt, crispy and dry whilst the centre was not fully cooked.


Results:

Cake was cooked perfectly, the top soft and spongy to the touch.
Texture of cake - Moist.