Eid's biscuits

Home-baked Coconut Biscuits (Biskut Kelapa)

These "biskut kelapa" were very famous in the

80's.

Counting the days. Eid-ul- Fitri is quite near. So, it's time to head the kitchen. This year, I am baking the oldies. Those memorable biscuits of yesteryears, which I simply remember the tastes. The lingering tastes, not like modern cookies with fanciful names. It's all about simple method, simple ingredients, simple names. Names likes Coconut Biscuits (Biskut Kelapa), Suji (Sugee), Almond Cookies, Traditional Pineapple Tarts and so on... Maybe because I was born in the 70's, I have had the experiences of celebrating Aidilfitri in the 80's, 90's and the millenium. Things were different then. Friends compete on how many cookies' jars that your mum has arranged in the kitchen, (not the cookies that you have bought-but the ones that your mum has actually baked). Now, everybody is making money. Everybody is selling cookies, regardless how bad they would taste.

I personally think that baking, whether you are baking cakes, cupcakes, biscuits or cookies, pies, breads or buns, should be made with lots of love. When you love baking, you made your cookies taste nice and wonderful. When you are happy, the cakes would turn out very well. So, I am baking my biscuits with a lot of love. As I knead my dough, I remember my late maternal grandmother who married at the age of 12, and learnt by scratch all the finer things in the kitchen, but still she is the best cook I have ever met in my entire life. Ask any 12 year old girl nowadays, whether she has actually baked any cookies, she will difinitely give you a puzzled look. Simply because mummy orders everything. Yes, that is something missing in our modern millenium days, the lost of home-baked cookies. The lost of baking skills amongst girls... The lost of our identity and traditions... That is why I am longing for the "oldies" -they remind me when things were good, when money does not really matter, when the aroma of cookies show you that Eid is just around the corner. Yes, I am all for the "oldies"....

Missing pieces ....

With friends- I call them "friends of my life"-

Trafalgar Square, London, England

With college mates in Arundel, West Sussex

With housemates in West Sussex, England.

Time passed by without we realise it, but somehow rather ~ there must be some places that we long to go back to. It's been more than 10 years since, that I came back to Malaysia. But I am still missing the places that I've spent my youthful days. I don't know why, but one of the places that I have actually missed is West Sussex. The images of West Sussex, England, keep coming to my mind. Maybe because this is the place that has shaped and moulded me. I have come afar from the naive, carefree and single days as a student. Yes, I wished that I have a maturity of a 30 plus lady for a 21 year old then... things would be very much different now. There were many life decisions that I wished that I had done. Things that I should have done, things that I should have not done, words that I should have said, words that I should have not said. But that's life- we grow up, we make decisions that we regret... we wished for things that we have been dreaming of. However, I am glad that I have come afar, and made many mistakes in life, I am glad that I am what I am today simply because I had had many challenges in life, heart breaks and so on. Life goes on.... but we should not forget our pasts as our pasts have made us what we are today. That's true, indeed ...

Count your blessings

It's one week of Ramadhan today, Ramadhan being the holy month for the muslims all over the world. It's the time for self-reflection and self-purity. As I looked back, for all the things I have been through- I know for sure that God is Great. Life as we see it, has its own fair of judgements. We gain some, we lose some. When we become too selfish and self-contented, we forget the things that matter the most- the feelings of loved ones, the feelings of friends who have stayed with us through thick and thin, the siblings that we loved since we were once babies....We tend to forget that other people have feelings too, we expect people to accomodate our needs, we always assume other people do not have their own share of ups and downs, just because they don't talk about their private lives.

Often that I think, people could be very cruel, they give assumptions on you, they call you names, just because you have different views, just because you were just plain honest and do not have any hidden agendas. Yes, call it wishful thinking, call it cliche, but if you ever wonder why your life turns out to be like that, count your blessings., because when you hear the stories of others who suffer, such as ~ a teenage boy who works in a burger stall every night just to pay his own school bus' fees (due to his parents' divorce), a poverty-strcken 13 year old school girl who brings along her 7 year old little brother with dirty marks all over his school uniform, and buys food for iftar with the little money that she has , a single mother with two primary school children who scrapes through to make ends meet, please count your blessings. For there are people who suffer but prefer to keep their mouths sealed, they don't talk about their sufferings or hard lives, but as I looked at them, I could see the sadness in their eyes. Sometimes, we do not have to say things that could hurt others, and please e do not expect some people are rich and can just treat us with hi-teas in big, posh hotels just because they never complain to you about the balance in their bank accounts.

Yes, please count your blessings and appreciate what you have. You will never know the sufferings of others simply because some people do not really talk about their private lives. Count your blessings and be happy with what life has offered you and do not envy with whatever blessings that God has for the others because you may not know the sufferings and obstacles in life that they have been through. Yes, indeed....

What Is My Dream....

I have discovered this on the net.... and I think I share the same dream....

Do you have the same dream too?



Yes... dream on ;)

p/s: Who knows right......

Citrus Reamer

The Citrus Reamer


Close up view

Another reason to bake lemon cupcakes

I love Empire Shopping Gallery, Subang Jaya. Simply because there are just so many things that I like there. I have finally found the Citrus Reamer that I've wanted for so long. I've seen Nigella Lawson used it during one of her shows, and I kept dreaming of finding it in Malaysia. This useful Citrus Reamer was bought in Kitchen Shop, a shop selling all things you need in the kitchen. You just name them, baking stuffs, Corelle dinner set, can opener... etc. Yes, all kitchen stuffs. I would love to use this with my lemons and bake some lemon cream cupcakes.....

Sugar Buttered Buns

Rising time- buns before being baked

After 30 minutes-they are quite ready, but they need a little bit of make up

My beautiful buns or "Roti Paun"- as they come out beautifully after I've smeared some unsalted butter and margarine, and put them back in the oven for another 5 minutes
- My Golden Darlings

Yes, I've finally made it....After several attempts of baking Sugar Buttered Buns or " Roti Manis" or "Roti Paun" as we call them in Malaysia, I have successfully baked these buns. These buns are very famous in Terengganu- a state in the east coast of peninsular Malaysia. But in my childhood memory, I remember these buns or "roti paun" as "roti paun Muar". Muar is actually a nice, old town of Johor. It was once the capital of the state of Johor ( Johor being one of the southern states of peninsular Malaysia- apart from Malacca and Negeri Sembilan) . This memory still lingers on, since these "roti paun" Muar are really "something". It was a treat to have these sugar buttered buns if ever we came to Muar, since Malacca did not have these little sweet treats. Back to the recipe, having doing several experiments, and trying all sorts of recipes that I've gathered from the internet and baking books- I have come to one conclusion. Never give up on these little darling. In making these buns, don't ever use any regular wheat flour or all purpose flour. Use "red rose flour" (you can find this flour in baking stores) or "bread flour". In fact, please sieve the flour, let the yeast rise ( I have used 1/2 of a packet of 11g dry yeast) in a cup of warm milk and 1 table spoon of sugar, and put 2 eggs, instead of one and add some margarine/ butter ( 3-4 table spoons), 1 tea spoon of salt and not forgetting a table spoon of bread improver. In this recipe, I have only used 1/2 kg of the red rose flour and 4 table spoons of caster sugar. The way to do it- is to sieve the flour, put the flour in an aluminium bowl, make a well, add in eggs, add in the rising yeast, put in sugar, salt, margarine/ butter and lastly the bread improver. Knead it slowly, adding flour a bit by bit,(just a table spoon or two of extra flour) punch the dough , to let the air being released. Then, let the dough rise, cover it with damp kitchen towel. After 20 minutes, knead the dough again, let it rise again for another 10 minutes, punch it. Then, make small balls of the dough. Cover them, with the same damp kitchen towel, let them rise for about 10 minutes. Then, bake them in a pre-heated oven ( heat the oven first, for 8 minutes) and put these buns for 30 minutes of 120C. The final end- these little buns are simply divine. I have also managed to get the soft like cotton texture. Eat these little darlings with "kaya" and have a sip of a black coffee, and you will know what do I mean. And all these little things brought me back to my childhood days... Days of a simple life in a town used to be known as a sleepy hollow town- Malacca. Ooo.. I miss my old Malacca....

P/S: The memory of my childhood stays in my heart, as I become a "resident" in another city. A city with not many old buildings..hmmm

Scones in Cameron Highlands

Wonderful scones

The nice view

Strawberry Park, Cameron Highlands

Scones, strawberry jam, clotted cream

and tea

Nothing beats the smells of scones. I could say the best scones I've tasted so far were in Strawberry Park, Cameron Highlands. I could taste these Cameronian English scones (shortbread+biscuits) in every bite that I took. Taken with a cup of tea, clotted cream and Cameronian strawbery jam, these scones are simply marvellous. I have always admire the way the English have their afternoon tea and serve their guests. Twelve years ago, in a small resort town in West Sussex, UK, I have experienced the wonders of English afternoon tea in a quaint cafe.

Call it deja vu, I guess I have always got a soft spot for things of the British. Thus, having a late afternoon tea in Strawberry Park, Cameron Highlands brought back fond memories. Fond memories of the innocence of younger days...

P/S: Oh, I wish I could be young again. ;)