A NEW BEGINNING

the old book closes, and a new one opens.

here's to the new chapter in our lives, love.

cheers!

HAPPY SECOND ANNIV, HUBBSY!

what else for dinner???!!

yep, like i was in the novel phase, with every week had one review, i'm officially moving to 'cooking' phase.

this was our dinner night:

ANIS'S SPAGHETTI AGLIO E OLIO

u'll need

spaghetti, agak2 enough for two

2 cloves garlic, yg gemuk2 tau, crushed

a handful of medium sized prawns, buang kepala, ekor intact

3tbsp extra virgin olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

black pepper

oregano leaves

must have: dried chilli flakes

some grated cheese

1. cook the spaghetti in boiling water with a tbsp of EVOO and a pinch of salt

2. while the spaghetti is cooking, heat some EVOO on a nonstick frying pan, small heat. toss in the crushed garlic until its a little brown.

3. season prawns with salt and pepper, add into the garlic oil.

4. make sure the spaghetti isnt cooked al dente before the prawn is pink. biar keras2 sikit takpe.

5. add in the chilli flakes, toss the prawns n mix well. 

6. transfer the almost cooked spaghetti into the frying pan along with a ladle of water used to cook spaghetti tadi. mix, mix, mix!

7. kacau semua bagi sebati. season as you like with oregano leaves, black pepper and salt.

8. serve with some grated cheese on top. done!

super easy! dont let the lack of colour fool u  ( heck, it fooled me when i first tried aglio olio!)

but seriously, it doesnt cost me even 10 bucks to cook these for two. n ur actually paying at least 15-20 bucks for a dish of these (for ONE PERSON!) at a decent eatery. sikit pulak tu kekadang.

oleh itu, 

marilah memasak! :D

what's cooking, good looking?

having ran out of ideas what to have for dinner, i scanned through foodblogs that i've bookmarked. but then i found a nice recipe in ParisB's foodblog. i didnt realise she has one! she modified a bit on Jamie Oliver's Fantastic Roast Chicken, and i, modified it further.

here's my Spicy Roast Chicken:

u'll need

1/2 a chicken, skin intact
2 heaped tbsps of softened butter
2 cloves of garlic, chopped finely
dried oregano leaves (the recipe called for mixed herb but i only have this at home)
1 tbsp of blended cili kering
salt and pepper to taste
small russet potatoes, chopped
1 small carrot, chopped
a head of broccoli, chopped

1. preheat oven to 220degrees for 20 minutes.
2.clean chicken and rub dry with kitchen towel.
3. mix butter, garlic, oregano leaves and blended cili well. add a pinch of salt and pepper.
4. with the neck area of the chicken facing u, peel the skin inwards so u have a pocket between the skin and flesh.rub the butter mix inside the pocket, or like me juz stuff as much buter mix as i can into the pocket.
5. rub the remainder mix all over chicken.
6. put the chicken into ovenproof dish, cook for about 25 minutes. by then the butter already melted and the skin starts to brown.

7. remove chicken from the oven, and move the chicken into a plate. quickly toss the potatoes and carrot into ovenproof dish and mix with the melted butter. replace the chicken onto the bed of potatoes and carrot and pop it into the oven again for about 40 minutes.

8. about 15 minutes before the chicken's done, toss broccoli inside the dish.

9. poke a fork into the thickest part of the chicken, if the juice runs out clear, then its done.

as for the gravy, use the oil from the baking dish, put it in a pan with medium heat on stove. add half stock cube (crumbled and mixed with hot water) into the pan. add black pepper, and 1/2 tsp cornflour (diluted in some water). mix until it thickens.

not bad for a first timer,eh?

REVIEW: Bobbi Brown Perfectly Defined Mascara

so last night i had a go with Bobbi Brown's new Perfectly Defined Mascara. how did it fare to me?

so-so.

why?

well, its all good to apply, average-sized wand and the brush is like loose spiral which does the separating of lashes nicely. after applying one coat dah cantik dh. dont even need to use eyelash curler. but then again, my lashes are not exactly stick straight n pointing downwards, so no bonus there. it separated my lashes nicely though, n no clumping at all. good kan.

the main thing that bugged me was the fact that its waterproof. the SA said it can be washed off with warm water so oklah. balik rumah i normally clean my face with Estebel make up remover milk.

tak keluar ok mascara tuh.

only when i shower dgn warm water baru dia keluar. baru la paham, when she said wash it off with warm water, she meant ONLY warm water. pelik kan. i thought waterproof stuff kalo pakai makeup remover ok, ni makeup remover pun x leh pakai.

all in all, this is not gonna be what i'll pick up in the near future. leceh. pakai yg tak waterproof senang nak cuci, xcomot pun anyway.

but, by all means, try it while its free! :D

BOBBI BROWN free trimming session!

Hubbs has forgotten (again!) that he's on evening shift today, so i'm left with some time in my hand. luckily i brought along a novel, sbb kalo hariz x keja petang pun he'll be having volleyball game this evening, sama je..

while i was on fb, i found this ad on the sidebar:

In less than 5 minutes, lo and behold, i have an appointment tonight in Subang Parade!

Yeay!! i love freebies!

Un"fortunate"ly, mascara baru tu kalo best pun nanti2 lah baru beli, baru je stock up stuffs from stila, which by the way, mascara dia good enough for me :D

talk about stila, have u heard that they'll be having another 20% off on top of the discounted price??? read from a malaysian beauty blog somewhere tp x ingat yg mana. as if its not damaging to my purse already! it'll be up till 30th May i think.

hmmmm.... the last time i went to stila counter during workday (aku cuti la tapi) so counter dia sgt clear, tak la kena beratur mcm org nak beli tiket wayang wolverine tuh. kena ambik cuti kah? amboi3x si anis ni over nya hahaha

ok ok sudah2 la tu. as for tonight, miss, kasi i punya kening mcm u punya advert ni okeh! rupa kening i memang dah ala2 tebal mcm tu dah hahaha perasan gila

oh lupa nak letak link : http://www.bobbibrownmalaysia.com/smudgeproof/

cepat! offer ends 24th May!

toodles!

all better now

thanks for all well wishers. my mom selamat operated yesterday to remove her right kidney. she woke up around 10pm (malaysia time).

please pray for her speedy recovery ya. thank you loads! 

risau. risau sangat.

my mother baru admitted. kidney stone problem. the last time they checked, the doctor said if the kidney dah tak function then they dont need to take out the stone yaddayaddayadda.

by now my mother feels a mass on the right side of her abdomen. the uro people tolak ke surgery, surgery tolak balik ke uro, uro kata mass tu probably ovary pulak, o&g kata ovary no problem, tolak balik ke uro.

dah dingdong dingdong pegi sana pegi sini, rupanya memang kes uro. the kidney swelled.

so now my mom is scheduled for surgery. to make things worse, these happens while she's in saudi.

please pray for my mom's safety guys. thanks..

heartless

couldnt find the heart to blog these days. y ah?

not feeling very well since bali trip. nak p keje takde semangat langsung (as if la b4 this semangat sangat kannn), balik keje pun terbongkang tak ingat dunia dah.

i soooo need to detox.

n hair trimming wd be welcome too. panas nya, ya Rabbiiii. alamat bil letrik bulan ni melambung la asek pasang aircon.

later. tekak dah perit. baik la p togok air banyak2.

our new BIG BRO

no. last night i didnt cook. damn if i know whats wrong but i'm running out of ideas whats for dinner. sapa kata x penat pk nak masak apa.

ok, enough babbles. on a happier note, semalam p try makan at BIG BROTHER restaurant&grill near my house at dataran sunway. those yg gila tudung ariani tau la, kedai makan tu dekat je dgn galeri ariani in kota damansara.

ambience sgt cozy

anyway, from the signboard nampak perkataan halal so we were kinda curious to check it out. turned out owner dia malay! in fact he went from table to table asking about the service and food since dia baru bukak 4 months. the chef used to work in shangri-la so kalo x sedap tu tak tau lah.

my au gratin chicken charbroil

chicken au gratin is one of the house's must try. serious, sedaaaaapppp!! hidden behind the chicken is mashed potatoes yg superb gila.

as the owner said, try it while its hot! :D

gambar keji

hariz's chilli dory was something new for us. fish flaked nicely, sedap sangat.

fried dory served with chilli and fettucine

the menu's quite extensive, with pages of appetizers and mains, from tempura to western, pastas and asian food as well, and then there's some choices of desserts. pity it doesnt have creme brulee, or i'll be a fan for life! it also have kids' menu, if u have bouts of diet issues hahaha

all i have to say, italiannies, ur losing us out here eversince u chuck out that seafood pizza from ur menu. move over everyone, meet our new BIG BROTHER!

chicky meal!

nothing new. same old same old.

my favourite recipe n always a hit at home:

BAKED SOY CHICKEN

you'll need

chicken, cut to pieces (i use 1/2 a chicken)
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 inch ginger, crushed and minced
soy sauce, enough to cover chicken
1tbsp cili kering blend
2 tbsp honey (honey xde so i substitute with 1 tbsp sugar)
salt and pepper to taste

1. add all ingredient in a bowl and mix well.
2. marinade chicken at least 1/2 hour, lagi bagus kalo tinggal dalam fresh case overnight.
3. line baking tray with foil.
4. preheat oven 150degree.
5. susun chicken atas foil tadi. pop it into the oven for about 15 to 20 minutes, or sampai puas hati lah, nak ayam tu lembut2, or bake a bit longer for stickier crust on the outside.

marinating chicken

nampak tak the stickiness?

actually nak bake camne pun takpe. ikut suka sendiri. i juz like to line my tray with foil sbb senang je, tak messy, dah sudah, buang je foil. kalo tak all those marinade kering atas tray. pakai foil, tak payah susah2 tonyoh2 nak cuci tray tu sampai berpeluh2 ketiak. thats y i must have aluminium foil in my home.

PEMALAS! :D

ikan pulak

 come sunday, dah ke laut dah diet aku. hariz order nasik. pulaaaakkkk... sedih. 
menu utama: 

SIAKAP SWEET SOUR 

what u need, 

siakap sekor (obviously) 
1 biji telur (pukul) 
tepung jagung (untuk coat ikan) 
1 tbsp tepung jagung - campur dengan 3 tbsp air (untuk pekatkan kuah) 
yellow, green and red bell pepper, cut into squares 
carrot, cubed 
a cube of chicken stock, diluted in a cup of hot water 
1 clove garlic, crushed 
1 onion, sliced thinly 
3 tbsp sos tomato 
cili kering, blend - 2-3 tbsp 
1 tbsp cuka 
1 tbsp sos tiram 
salt, sugar and pepper to taste 

1. bersihkan ikan, kelar. season with salt and pepper. 
2. dip ikan into the beaten egg. coat with cornflour. fry the fish in hot oil. 
3. bila ikan dah masak, alih ikan tu from the wok. reduce the oil to about 2tbsp. 
4. tumis bawang putih and onion. 
5. dah wangi, add in cili blend. tumis sampai pecah minyak. 
6. add in sos tomato, sos tiram, cuka, chicken stock,and sugar. 
7. add in bell peppers and carrot. biar lembut sikit.
8. add in tepung jagung solution tadi. add salt and pepper. adjust sweetness and sourness according to your preference. biar pekat n mendidih.
9. tuang kuah atas ikan goreng tadi. garnish. siap dihidang!


are u enjoice (bak kata afdlin in AIM16)??? yumyum!

lagi lagi kari

apa angin ntah si wimax tu slow pulak semalam x sempat upload post. hmmmhh..

memang orang utara saja suka makan kari with bread, or is it juz me?

main menu on saturday:

KARI UDANG

2 cloves garlic - crushed
1/2 a bombay onion - sliced
1-2 inch halia
2 tbsp cili kering blended
1 packet serbuk kari ikan
1 tbsp serbuk perencah sup
as usual, bawang goreng sesudu
santan
udang 500g, kerat hujung ekor dan hujung kepala
kacang panjang as much as u want, potong about 1 1/2 inch
asam keping 1 potong kecil
salt and a bit of sugar to taste

this is not my usual kari, as i've added cili blend and asam keping, but its juz to add the spiciness and asam keping to balance it.

1. tumis bawang putih, bawang besar dan halia.
2. dah wangi, add in cili blend.
3. agak2 dah masak cili tu, add in serbuk perencah sup dan serbuk kari.
4. add in a bit of water to turn it into paste. biar simmer sekejap.
5. add in some more water and bawang goreng, let simmer again.
6. add about 2 cups water, add in kacang panjang.
7. then masukkan udang, garam, gula dan asam keping.
8. biar udang n kacang panjang masak. tambah santan. when it boils, turn off heat.
9. garnish. siap!

joining hugh jackman's swoonfest!

i'm back! guess where i've been?

but yeah... now back home, back to reality n routine. boooorrrriiinnnggg...

no matter no matter. dah tgk wolverine!!! weeeehhhoooo!! one down, dozens more to go :D

hugh jackman is seriously one hot married fella especially when u can catch glimpses of him lari merentas desa NAKED!! hahaha but seriously susah gila nak dapat seats bagus in the first week kan. sapa suruh cari pasal. we ended up lama gila kat kaunter tiket since there were not juz two of us so twin-seating is out of question. check punya check punya check, we ended up buying tickets for the next day's show. dapat la seat belakang skt kalo tak seats available was like three rows from the screen.

hmm.. now that i think of it, we might be better off with seats kat depan so i can drool over mr wolverine naked self closer up


ok ok i know. pervert!!! but with hugh jackman all is forgiven ;D

the movie is like an enlightening story of how wolverine becomes wolverine. well forgive me but i do love history. hahaha.. but for comic lovers like hubbs, he was like a bit tak suka la how a character differs from the comic.

the only down side for me though, logan's brother, victor (who later becomes sabertooth) were supposed to be very menacing n inhumane but his face is so similar to will farrell (a comedian, if u must know) n i juz couldnt take it.

sapa nak tgk hugh jackman's rippling, tanned muscles and fair butt angkat tangan!
pegi pegi pegi tengok!!!