Anchovy writer

Last night I watched a movie about J K Rowling on Diva Astro. Magic Beyond Words, was the title of the movie.

Me, a writer wannabe was trilled to bits to be able to see the life of J K Rowling, a great writer, her life, her self, her background.

Apparently she was born with the talent and being smart and bright with her mother's enduring love and encouragement,  she had achieved great phenomenal  success.

How and how and how could she had created such a story in her head that took the world? MasyaAllah.
How and how and how could she imagined each detail in her head.  MasyaAllah.

As for me, as long as there are more then 3 readers of my blog,  I will keep on writing.  And the 3 have no choice but to read since I am their mother.

I am only a tiny fish in the sea of writers.  An anchovy.  Ikan bilis

But this anchovy, believes that a kind word can be a balm in this big big world.

All my life I find many answers, signs and enlightenment from what I read. I was not lucky enough to have many people guiding me with love.  I had to find my own answers and most times I learnt the hard way.

My greatest source is The Quran. The Miracle. There is where I chart my life from.

Many yesteryears I would look forward to read 'As I was passing' on the NST by the great Adibah Amin or Sri Delima as she was known, and relished her stories with all my heart.

My escapes were The Reader's Digests at my school library which I would always find in my hand instead of the school books even how hard I try to study.

Someone must write something nice to make this world a better place.There will be some lost person somewhere who is looking for answers to her sufferings, or maybe a very sad person who had lost her hope and found some solace in a few lines she came across and kept hanging on,  or someone who lost trust in everyone and felt safe and less lonely accompanied by a book.


Nevertheless, I have one thing in common with J K Rowling,  that is we read to our children.

I always read to the girls bed time stories when they were young and when I get too tired and sleepy, in that state of semi-consciousness the story would take a turn into 'utter nonsense' which the girls found very amusing and would laugh about it for a long time.

If only I can come up with a  magical story......I don't think I can.  My imagination does not get fired up enough.

I will just stick to writing from my heart.

Of being vulnerable.

This is uplifting I thought I should share with everybody :)

Hajar's cookies are back

While I cook low fat food, Hajar is baking her chocolate chip cookies. This time with hazel nuts.

Step 2 , substitute.

Actually the corn cake was not so popular with the girls.  They only eat one piece and do not go for seconds.  Maybe it is not to their taste. Maybe they are not yet into healthy eating.

This morning I am fasting.  Time is flying fast and I have many more days to pay back.  When I fast I am like a withered plant.  I read in a magazine, fasting 2 days a week is a good way to diet.  We all know that to fast on Monday and Thursday is a part of our Islamic practices.

I went into this gorgeous blog named absolutely beautiful things, and it is most interesting and colourful.  If only I can come up with something like that.  Unfortunately.....

When you want to cook something healthy, but no one seems to like what you cook or do not believe in your cause, you lose your enthusiasm to cook.  But I should not give up and keep doing what I believe in, that is substituting the sinful cakes for something less sinful ones. To go without, I cannot.  Food is my few pleasures in life.

As I have observed the people around me, they would naturally go off many foods as they grow old.  They suddenly cannot take the gamy smell of chicken, they do not like sweet cakes, biscuit and kueh, they find   fish too fishy.  What they  enjoy is ikan kering..

If only I can get hold of wholegrains, unprocessed wholesome ingredients and make Hajar turn it into bread since I read white rice and white bread is not so good. Bleached products are not good.  Maybe I should go scour the ingredient shop and see what is available. Maybe I should get a wheat mill. A small one.

If my advice on cutting down in the previous post  is step 1, step 2 would be all the substituting.  Difficult and just as challenging.

So far I have made low fat banana cake (Mimi made this actually), low fat carrot cake, low fat corn cake  and low fat zucchini cake.  And tried selling them too. Only half is taken.  Maybe not many are yet into healthy eating.

I shall not give up. InsyaAllah I will try out more low fat less suger  recipes.

Sweet corn cake

Sweet corn cake

420gm canned creamed sweet corn
1 cup dark brown soft sugar (use white sugar if you want a light colour cake
1/ 2 cup white sugar if you want it sweet. If not, omit this.
3 eggs
250ml veg oil
1 tablespoon baking powder
280 gm plain flour
1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon ( I omitted this to keep the corn flavour)
60 gm chopped walnuts ( no walnuts, expensive)
75 gm raisins

Combine corn, castor sugar, brown sugar together. Stir in eggs and oil.

Combine dry ingredients. Bake 180 C for 40 mins.

Start taking care of your health early

As we grow older we are more aware of the changes that is going on with our body. Seriously.

When we were young, we could run, juggle and multitask and repeat.

Now, we feel we cannot do so much.  We need time to rest.  I say we because my friends say the same thing.

I don't know if there are other reasons for feeling tired but I think growing older does play its part.

I advice everyone to take care of your diet from the age of 30.So that when you reach 50, you can sort of slow down the aging and changing trend. Seriously.

By now I have somewhat changed my diet and able to eat less and eat healthier.  But it took time. Quite long.

You either do it at your own accord or have your doctor tell you to.  One way or other, the day would come.  You either consult your doctor because you are health conscious or because you are already suffering from something.

Unfortunately when we are younger we are too busy to think about our health. We were invincible.  Some people stay invincible through out their middle age and hate it when we say the word old.  I don't know, to me, every age has its....its promises.

But for now its time to review our health.  The earlier, the better.

Of hand, I can advice this.

1.  Take less sugar
2.  Eat less rice
3.  Cut as much oil as possible
4.  Cut down on the portion of your food
5.  Exercise or move your muscles.  I believe humans are created to work their limbs.

This is the starting point.  And I have just achieved this level. Still poor on no.5

But......

Yesterday I continued this new bright idea of mine for everyone to eat healthy and cooked up some awesome low calorie cakes.   Used healthier oil and not butter.  I made carrot bread, zucchini bread and today, sweet corn cake.  Yep, vegetable cakes.  It still tasted like cakes but not as gooey and less sweet.  Full of fiber.

Will show the actual picture of the sweet corn cake I made this morning as soon as I find the necessary wires to upload. Its yummy.  Rasa dia macam apam balik pun ada.

Healthy eating

I was thinking...

I have many homespun therapy.  One time I did leg massage therapy for Aishah and Shaz when they were flat out exhausted interns in Kuching.  Quite recent I tried selling food therapy to make our problems go away. Did not quite achieve it.  I tried paint therapy for Bahrain and was only half successful.  Sewing therapy for Hajar has come to an end.

Cooking therapy, I could not do it for long since I am not allowed to eat alot of stuff. I am on a perpetual diet.  But...if it is healthy eating, I have not gone bored on this subject.

Lets get into healthy eating and see how long I would last writing about it.

Yesterday I cooked for my dad and my two brothers at their holiday house.  It was actually my desperate attempt to escape from having to join in their discussion so I volunteered to do the cooking. Even bundled up  my oven and pans and brought with me.  I grilled salmon, served with white rice, roasted vegetables, and cucumber soup.  All healthy. While they wait, I served them cubed fruits with melted chocolate fondue.  Not so healthy but I hope that when they dug into the chocolate, they would  forget I am there.

Then it got me and Mimi thinking, what to cook next if we are called to go there again.  And I just got the answer.  HEALTHY FOOD!

I share with you my cucumber soup recipe.

2 cups natural yogurt
1/ 2 cup water
2 medium cucumbers cut, seeded and dried with a towel.  Add salt to the cucumber before drying them.

Some dill
1 clove garlic
1/ 4 big onion or some chives.
1 tblspn sugar
1 tblspn lemon juice

Put all the above in the blender and blend till smooth.  If you like less tangy, add some milk. Serve cold.

Its cooling this recipe.  I like. Rasa sejuk dalam perut.