Ramadhan Datang Lagi

This year, the first day of Ramadhan fell on a Saturday.

I'd mentioned to hubby that it was probably a good idea if we berbuka with Mak (i.e. my mom-in-law) since it was a weekend. Turned out, my 2 other sisters-in-law also came down to KL for the holidays, so it turned out to be a big 'do with a LOT of home made food :-)


Aina was not well, in fact my plans to make capati for sahur that Saturday had to be scratched as Aina had a runny nose and was clingy since I got back from work on Friday :-s


After 3 days of taking her prescribed meds for the cold, and with no improvement, I decided to go back to nature so to speak and used a traditional remedy using fresh turmeric. Alhamdulillah that night itself the runny nose stopped. Her sneezing stopped the next morning.

For the gathering on 1st Ramadhan, my contribution was grilled beef and a seafood salad i.e. kerabu.

SEAFOOD SALAD

you need:
300g squid, cleaned and blanched
500g prawns, cleaned and blanched
4 - 5 strings green beans, blanched
to slice finely:
1 large white onion, quartered
1 large tomato, quartered
10 cili padi
2 fresh red chillies
a handful of mint leaves
2 stalks lemongrass, use the whites only
a handful of coriander leaves
pound:
2 Tbs dired shrimp, roasted
combine for dressing:
Juice from 2 limes
Juice from 4 kasturi limes or calamansi
1 Tbs fish sauce
sugar, to taste

how to:
combine all of the above and leave to rest for about 20 mins. before serving. can be served at room temparature or chilled.

Aina was in high spirits when the other little ones came, but she still wanted me to be near... It was not fun... :-)


On 2nd Ramadhan, I invited my sisters over to buka puasa. I prepared these....

NASI MINYAK

you need:
4 cups of basmathi rice - washed and tossed well
1 large onion, quartered and sliced
1/2 inch ginger, julienned
3 pcs. star anise
5 pcs. cardamom pods
1 pc. cinnamon stick
1 1/2 Tbs clarified butter (ghee)
1 pc. pandan leaf, knotted
100ml milk
300ml water
salt
a handful of raisins

how to:
heat ghee in rice pot at the stove. add in the dry spices and as soon as seeds start to pop, add in the onions and ginger. toss in the pandan leaf as well. fry until fragrant, then stir in the rice. turn off heat and continue to stir the rice to coat well with the spice and ghee. add in all other ingredients and place into rice cooker to cook as usual.

AYAM MASAK MERAH

you need:
1 1/2 chicken, cut into pieces
- sprinkle with salt & turmeric powder and fry till just cooked.
Blend:
2 large onions
6 shallots
5 cloves garlic
2 inches ginger
2 Tbs ground chilli
Sauce:
1/2 can tomato puree
3 Tbs sweet chilli sauce
4 Tbs tomato sauce
1/2 cup water
Dry Spice:
1 stick cinnamon
4 cardamom pods
2 star anise
5 cloves

how to:
heat oil in a large wok and fry the dry spices. add in the blended ingredients and fry till mixture becomes almost dry. add on the sauce ingredients. check seasoning. more or less of the ingredients may be added according to preference. mine is a bit more 'saucey' that's why a large amount of the sauce and puree goes in. if you like it drier, then cut back.

toss in the cooked chicken and stir well to combine. leave to simmer until you achieve the desired consistency, or add more water if you like to have a sauce.

Anyway, here are my two sisters playing with Aina :-)



After dinner, I packed up some leftovers for them to take home, then showed them the way to go home...

LOL LOL LOL

Yep, signboards and road signages are lost on them ok. The one studying in Sheffield can even get lost when she's travelling ON FOOT!! LOL LOL LOL





AM

p.s. made the HUGE mistake of giving Aina one of the donuts, she could not sleep and was playing until 11.30pm!!!! NEVER AGAIN!!!!