Shangri-La Abu Dhabi

For all of you who live in Abu Dhabi theres a new hotel in Town!

The Shangri-La has opened its doors. It is located in the between bridges area near Sheikh Zayed Mosque. It has a Spa and wellness center, beautifully decorated restaurants serving Vietnamese,French,Arabic, and Chinese. To see more details click on the link below.

http://www.shangri-la.com/en/property/abudhabi/shangrila

Watermelon Agua Fresca

I found this amazing recipe on another bloggers page, and her pictures and the name of this drink is what screamed for my attention. This was before I had tasted it....The taste is nothing I have ever tasted as I used to HATE the thought of drinking watermelon jucie, but this refreshing drink, courtesy of Nabeela at Trial and Error has converted me! Im VERY much a watermelon juice drinker since TODAY.... Everyone must try this drink.

note: I used a seeded watermelon because I wouldnt even know where to even look for a seedless one in Abu Dhabi.

Some of the benefits of Watermelon Juice are:

-watermelon also contains high levels of lycopene – a powerhouse antioxidant that may help the body fight cancer and prevent disease.

-this delectable thirst-quencher may also help quench the inflammation that contributes to conditions like asthma, atherosclerosis, diabetes, colon cancer, and arthritis.

-Recent studies have linked lycopene to reducing the risk of prostate cancer and lowering inflammation that may cause hypertension and heart disease.

-Watermelon juice is used for urinary difficulties, edema and to clear summer heat.

-Watermelon seeds and the fruit itself are a classic remedy for gout

This amazing recipe can be found at: http://trialsnerror.blogspot.com/2007/05/watermelon-agua-fresca_29.html

Enjoy!

Pistachio and Cream Pasta

Firstly, I would like to say thank you to the people who have viewed my page and taken the time to comment at least once on something, even if it was one word! I do appreciate it! Ive noticed I have so many people viewing my page from so MANY countries(scroll down to the bottom of this page to see them in the neat little box called "Where did you come from today")and I find that one of the great things I love about the Internet.

I might have inspired someone in China or Estonia(yes, someone visited from there!) in their choice of dinner tonight.. I do hope that whenever you do visit you find something useful here or if you try a recipe, let me know!

Drop by the comments section and let me know how it tasted,what you added or took away, and if it was worth the effort..lol....sometimes our escapades in food preparation can be tedious to say the least, and then a bland meal comes out of it, and that's when your ready to quit the kitchen!

Anyway, tonight we were late arriving home from an "excursion". Well to put it bluntly, I needed to buy new contacts because my bathroom 5 level shelf decided it was going to collapse. All my perfumes and lotions and potions fell to the ground in one big glass mess.

All the perfumes broke into a putrid scented puddle on the floor. Somewhere along the way my precious contacts(eyes to the world basically,I'm blind without them) got thrown into a parallel universe, because even after cleaning up i couldn't find them!

So, until Saturday I'm stuck in my Grannie glasses. I vow not to depart from my home till that day because of this fact. My glasses are stone age, coke bottle, scratched, chipped paint,Grannie spectacles....

OK, so we got home late, I threw some pasta into boiling water,decided 5 minutes later what to do with it, and also cooked some spinach and drizzled yogurt over it.

The pasta recipe is an influence from a few recipes i had seen before on different blogs but couldn't find again, Its not gourmet people, but it turned out tasty for those of you who like cream and Parmesan together,at least try it once!

It is basically 4 ingredients, but you could easily add more to it for different tastes, experiment with it and let me know!

Pistachio and Cream Pasta

1 pack linguine

1 carton cream

1 cup pistachios,crush them or blend chunky

Parmesan cheese to serve

salt

olive oil

Boil noodles, drain, sprinkle olive oil. Set aside.

Blend or crush pistachios,add cream to your desired consistency( i made it thickish),add salt.

Mix this with the pasta in a big bowl.

Serve onto plates,sprinkle Parmesan as you like. Voila! Done...

For the Spinach

Boil fresh spinach( I used 1 kilo) till soft,drain but leave a little water,put into serving bowls,add salt to taste. Pour yogurt onto it and mix to eat it.

Enjoy!

Lamb in Rich Sauce with Parathas

Before I begin.......Ahem....A short comical interlude pertaining to food...Feel free to think its cheesy...... ;)

A Pickle Limerick
There was a young man named Perkins,

Who was specially fond of small gherkins.

One fine day at tea, he ate forty-three,

Which pickled his internal workin's.

From the Great Food Almanac by Irena Chalmers (1994)

My dear, I love you ardently,

adore your charm, the way you look,

I'm captivated by your voice,I've read with pride your latest book,

And yet I will not marry you, Until, sweetheart,

you've learned to cook.

Martyno 'Ultimatum'

"If it looks like a duck, walks like a duck, talks like a duck, it probably needs a little more time in the microwave."

Lori Dowdy

Question: What did the grape say when he was sat on?

Answer: Nothing, he just let out a little whine. (ha ha ha ha ha ha, very corny)

And Lastly....For my own entertainment and some other people:

YOU MIGHT BE A CAJUN IF...

(This was forwarded to the list at chef net by Fred)

YOU MIGHT BE A CAJUN IF:.....
Watching "Wild Kingdom" inspires you to write a cookbook.
You won't eat a lobster because you think it's a crawfish on steroids.
You take a bite of 5-alarm Texas chili and reach for some Tabasco.
You pass up a chance to meet the president to go to the Crawfish Festival in Breaux Bridge
Your children's favorite bedtime story begins with, "First you make a roux..."
You're asked in school to name the four seasons and you reply, "Onyons, celery, bell peppers, and garlic."
You think the "Fab Four" are "Paul Prudhomme, John Folse, Justin Wilson, and A.J. Smith".
You let your black coffee cool and find it has gelled.
You describe a complete breakfast as some deer sausage, grits and a yard of boudin.
None of your favorite vacation spots are north of Abbeville.
You sit down to eat boiled crawfish and someone says, "Don't eat the dead ones" and you know what they mean.
You refer to Louisiana winters as "gumbo weather"
You gave up Tabasco for Lent.
You learned bourre' the hard way - holding yourself upright in the crib.
You don't know the real names of your close friends - only their nicknames.
You can look at a rice field and can tell how much gravy it'll take for that much rice.
Your high school's rendition of the national anthem begins with, "Jambalaya, crawfish pie, filet gumbo..."
You stand up when they play "Jolie Blon."
You consider Breaux Bridge the state capitol.
You think the Mason-Dixon line is at Bunkie.

And now after that brief comical interlude...Dinner!

Lamb in Rich Sauce with Parathas

1 1/2 lbs (750 gms) lean, deboned lamb chunks

2 teaspoons tomato paste

1 fresh tomato

1/2 cup corn oil

2 large onions

6 cloves garlic

1 tablespoon bezar

1 teaspoon turmeric

1/2 teaspoon cardamom

1 bunch fresh coriander

salt to taste

little water

Slice onions, crush garlic and chop coriander. Boil meat in water in medium pot until tender (approx. 45 minutes). Drain and keep to one side. Fry onions in a little oil until brown, add the spices and continue frying, stirring, for two to three minutes. Add remaining ingredients and just enough water to make a thick gravy. Continue cooking until the gravy goes almost dry. Serve warm.

From the book "The Complete United Arab Emirates Cookbook"by Celia Ann Brock- Al Ansari Copyright © 1994 by Celia Ann Brock-Al Ansari

Parathas Recipe(courtesy of epicurious)

Full recipe can be found at: http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/member/views/1224773

Flour 250 gms.

oil 1/2 table spoon

salt 1/4 table spoon

6 tablespoon full white oil to fry.

Add table spoon of oil and salt to the flour and make a dough with hot water. Be careful it would neither be too soft nor too tight. Make equal 6 small pieces of the dough and give them a neat round shape. Give them big round shape like pan cake. Fry each for 2 minutes. One table spoon of oil for each paratha. Heat would be medium all through.

Lastly, My Favorite.

Moroccan Mint Tea

1/2 bunch fresh mint

2 green tea bags

sugar to taste

Boil 7 cups water in a kettle, add mint leaves,boil till water turns yellowish. Pour into flask and add tea bags,close flask and let sit 5 minutes. Serve in small glass tea glasses with a sprig of mint in each glass.

**when pouring the tea for guests try to "put on a show" and pour the tea into the glass from close to the glass then moving up and away till almost full then back down towards the rim of the glass. Be Careful!

ENJOY!

Cashew and Vanilla Ice Cream with Date Syrup

My Indulgence Tonight :)

ingredients

3 scoops vanilla ice cream
1/2 cup crushed roasted cashews
drizzle of date syrup (I use liwa farm date syrup-support local farmers!)

Scoop vanilla ice cream into a bowl,sprinkle over cashews,drizzle date syrup over in a nice design. Indulge...

Spicy! Egg Roast

If you have been following my posts then you'll have read the one where i explain my awe for spice sections of supermarkets, and the one i recently visited. I purchased a spice mixture on that trip named Egg Roast Masala, and today i decided to give it a try.

The dish itself is deliciously hot and sweet, but once mixed with white rice it becomes mild and needs salt!

It was delicious...I have never tried to eat boiled eggs on rice before. The sauce is quick and easy to make, not alot of ingredients if you have the "masala" already mixed, not expensive to buy the products needed if you don't, and has a very distinct aroma once cooked...My whole house filled with the smell of boiled eggs(i will not say what that smells like!) but then, once i made the sauce, its aroma overpowered everything else. I think the whole building i live in may have been drooling, i would be! It smelled like a tropical coconut spice shop...

The recipe below is my own version for this dish. I have modified another recipe to suit my taste.

***the reason for so many pictures is because my husband saw my website and told me that maybe people would like to see more photos of the process of cooking a dish so they know their doing it right.. ha ha... so hence the photos above!

Egg Roast-Sultana Style

ingredients

6 boiled eggs, sliced in half

2 tsp egg roast masala(spice mix, i will give the recipe for this below)

3 med purple onions, sliced thin

2 med tomatoes, diced small

1 tsp blended ginger

1 tsp blended garlic

3 tbs oil for frying

a few fresh curry leaves

salt(to taste at the end)

1 1/2 cups thick coconut milk(i use the powder in warm water)

Make sure you boil the eggs first. Set aside.Also make white rice to your liking for serving with egg roast.

Heat saucepan to med heat, add onion,fry 5 min,add curry leaves,garlic,ginger,fry.

Lower heat to med-low(if sticking),add masala and little water and continue frying 5 min.

Add tomatoes,and coconut milk.

Put on med-low heat and cook until thickened.

Put serving of white rice in a plate,put egg on top,pour over the sauce,add salt to taste(may need quite alot).

serve.

Enjoy!

Egg Roast Masala(spice mix)

*equal quantities of each below

chilli powder

coriander powder

turmeric powder

cinnamon powder

clove powder

pepper

fennel powder

salt

Recipe 1

Mix together powders. Store in an airtight container,use as needed.

Recipe 2(recommended)

Buy these spices whole, dry roast them till aroma spreads,then grind to a powder. Store in an airtight container and use as needed.

Arugula Recipes

Arugula and Pancetta Salad with Parmesan

This recipe courtesy of epicurious.com

It can be found at http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/237091

*the only thing i changed is the pancetta. For Muslims you can use pepperoni or any seasoned thin sausage slices.

Ingredients

6 thin slices pancetta (Italian bacon; about 1/3 of 3-ounce package) * i used halal pepperoni

1 1/2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

4 cups (loosely packed) arugula

1/3 cup Kalamata olives, pitted, halved

Parmesan cheese shavings

Preparation

Arrange pancetta* in single layer in medium nonstick skillet. Cook over medium heat until browned and crisp (do not turn), about 8 minutes. Transfer to paper towels to drain.Whisk oil and lemon juice in small bowl. Season dressing with salt and pepper. Place arugula and olives in medium bowl; toss with dressing. Divide salad between plates. Top with pancetta* and Parmesan shavings.

Makes 2 servings.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

This next recipe is ABSOLUTELY delicious and refreshing! Everyone should try this recipe at least once...

This recipe below courtesy of http://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/black-cherry-iced-tea/print

Black Cherry Iced Tea

HEALTHY
MAKE-AHEAD
MAKES 2 1/2 QUARTS

ingredients

2 1/2 quarts water
1 pound fresh black cherries, pitted, or two 10-ounce bags frozen pitted black cherries, thawed
1 1/4 cups sugar
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
3 whole star anise
1/2 vanilla bean, split and scraped
16 green-tea bags
Mint sprigs, for serving

directions

Bring the water to a boil in a large saucepan. Add the black cherries, sugar, lemon juice, star anise and the vanilla bean with its seeds. Simmer the cherries over low heat for 15 minutes, crushing them against the side of the pan with a wooden spoon. Remove the cherries from the heat, cover and let stand for 1 hour.
Strain the cherry juice through a fine sieve into a clean saucepan, pressing on the solids. Discard the solids. Bring the cherry juice to a boil over moderate heat. Remove from the heat, add the tea bags and let steep for 5 minutes. Discard the tea bags and let cool to room temperature. Transfer the cherry tea to a large pitcher and refrigerate until chilled or for up to 2 days. Serve the tea over ice, garnished with mint sprigs.

Recipe by Danielle Custer

From Summer EntertainingA Porch Picnic

Enjoy!

Irresistable Italian

Tonight we had more take away...My fault...I just don't have the energy to cook or even want to be near a stove the last 3 days...Sometimes you get sick of your own food!

We had Il Forno in Al Wahda Mall for dinner.

I had the Insalata pepperoni e rucola, and the Cannelloni nizzarda.

The Cannelloni Nizzarda is Pasta sheets stuffed with Spinach,ricotta cheese,topped with fresh cream sauce baked in the oven. To put it bluntly, it had no taste but salt.

I think to make it better they need to make the spinach fresher and not cook it into oblivion, because the spinach's flavour wasn't there. The white sauce was the same. It need salt and pepper for seasoning.

On a better note.

The Insalata pepperoni e rucola was delicious. This simple salad is healthy,full of the good stuff, and filling.

You can easily make this at home. All you need is:

Arugula leaves

Lettuce(mixed kinds if you like)

feta cheese squares

cherry tomatoes

pepperoni slices

black olives

Ceaser Salad dressing

Tear lettuce and mix with arugula leaves, add cherry tomatoes,then feta,olives,pepperoni and lastly ceaser salad dressing sprinkled over. Serve.

I love the taste of the arugla leaves, they are peppery but not overpowering, and have many health benefits as well!

Weekend Diary:Oasis Chinese Food

I didn't realize it was the weekend already!

Last night I got take away from Oasis Chinese Restaurant in Abu Dhabi. I think my eyes were bigger than my stomach because I couldn't finish half of my food...This, although, could have had something to do with the disturbing problem I faced earlier in the day(blood pressure skyrocketed) or quite possibly the 3 cups of coffee I gulped down before dinner! I'm betting on the Coffee though....

Anyway, I ordered the Fried Shrimp and Steamed Dim sum...Well, the Fried Shrimp platter turned out to be those darn small shrimp that couldn't possibly be fried any smaller,yet, they were!.....There was more batter pasted on them than shrimp, or wait, "pawns" as the menu said....ha ha ha ha.....Those Chinese and their accent again! Adorable....

The Dim sum however ALWAYS comes out great, although, sometimes they are the size of a chicken egg...humm...I had the "chicken" dim sum with sweet dipping sauce. It was perfect...Even the egg sized ones,lol....

We(husband and I) had ordered Singapore noodles as well to share, but that didn't happen, we both were so full from the Dim sum. So, I refrigerated the noodles...

Here's a hint if you want to know how healthy these noodles are NOT.....

Refrigerate them, take them out the next day,turn them over onto a plate, and look at the cooled hard OIL that forms a rectangle around the base of the noodles. OMG! They are a Heart "DIE"-saster......not disaster!

The leftover (3 pcs) Dim sum however, again, pass the health test....

FeeBi the Cat had some Dim sum with me at lunch time, but my other feline(who is as finicky as they come) did not...Funny thing, FeeBi the Cat eats all kinds of dried fruit,she likes it more than fish or treats.

She was a rescued street kitten, and I'm assuming, the only food she had as a baby starving on the street was fallen smashed dates from the Date trees that line our Abu Dhabi streets. So i guess this is where her love of fruit comes from.

Anyway, my Cats and their antics are a whole other story! So, FeeBi the Cat had some Dim sum and then went to sleep VERY full..The little fatty....When she woke I snapped her pics because shes just to adorable.......I'm sure one day I'll have someone comment saying I'm a lonely weirdo because I talk about my cats so much...Let me just respond to that," Oh well! I love my Cats and that's that....nothing weird about it!" When you come to this part of the world and you see the amount of cats on the streets and how they are abused and tortured by the general population you might become a Animal Rights Activist yourself.

Anyway(word overused in this post)! Enjoy the photos and...

Have a Great Weekend or Weekday(lol) depending on which corner of the world your in!

Daily Food Buzz

Today I went to the newly opened Lulu Hypermarket in Al Wahda Mall. It opened for business this morning at 11:00 am. It is 2 floors. The first is really only a fabric and dress shop for Indian,Arabic,and Pakistani dresses and fabrics. It's the 2nd floor that i was DAZZLED by...

This floor has almost everything you can think of when it comes to food. They have many dairy products from USA, like for example a WHOLE ROW for different kinds of cookies to bake,croissants,biscuits, and french bread in the dairy section....This is something VERY hard to find outside of Spinneys.. now its not...

They also have ready to cook marinated chicken and meats, and I found a full lamb roast, rolled and ready for cooking for 60 dhs, and it was huge. The fish was reasonably priced as well, the hammour was around 22-24 dhs per kilo, and it was very fresh.They also had a dried fish and shrimp section. Don't get me started on the fresh fruit and Veg section. It had EVERYTHING. Most importantly, it was all very fresh.

I became mesmerized in the spice section. I love using exotic spices and mixes. I love to try new things. This, therefore, led to me being a dumbstruck idiot in front of the section for Indian and Pakistani spice mixes... I settled for two kinds in the end, as i was not prepared money wise for what my eyes feasted on..That diversion took me 10 minutes, the world zoned out in that time, all i saw was this shelf full of colorful boxes promising mouth watering dishes.

The Hot Prepared Food stations were nothing short of amazing. They had Filipino,Indian,Pakistani,Arabic,Chinese,Italian cuisine as prepared hot dishes of all sorts, and, at reasonable prices. I can easily see that this area of the store could quite possibly win competition against the food court area upstairs in the mall itself(if they keep up the good quality of food and selection).

You can get a full roasted chicken for 5 dhs only, and it came with a complimentary Pepsi, ha ha...They also had a live pasta cooking area, which i divulged in. I ordered Creamy Chicken Penne Pasta. To be honest, all the other foods I ordered were delicious, but this pasta needed some major spice loading when I got home and ate it. It was just "bland", and needed spicing up! I found some good quality tortillas, a pack is 5 dhs. It is VERY rare to find tortillas for that price. I bought some and made myself a treat. Tortilla and Nutella wraps...Yumm...

The staff were more than helpful,everyone had a smile and a good morning ready on their tongues. The center itself was the model of clean,except for a small OJ spill in the juice section which was cleaned up minutes later.Considering this was the grand opening i do hope this level of service doesn't change as the store becomes settled. We will see!

Anyway, im not going to babble any longer.

In Short,

If you want good value and excellent selection of foodstuffs, go to LuLu Hypermarket in Al Wahda Mall.

Enjoy the photos!

Dinner and Random Thoughts

This beautiful stitching belong to my grandmothers talented hands, she died, and was never able to finish ALOT of them. I, somehow, quite shockingly, have inherited her talent for needle work and crafts so, I've decided to finish them.

Today i have learned some life lessons i think....Maybe its things i already knew but never saw in action until today...

1)Kids will pee anywhere without embarrassment, especially on car wheels

2) Being nice to people doesn't mean you will get the same respect back, you could wear the soles of their shoe afterwards

3)I can be a good listener even if its something about my personal life that's not true

4)Street cats must never be pet, only because they might get used to being touched by humans, and all it takes is one cruel bastard to come along and give it the touch of death

5)10 extra dirhams can make a gentleman out of a taxi driver

6)Smiles don't cost a thing, but weigh heavy in the balance of good deeds

7)I can actually stay awake and be busy from 8 am to 1 am without a rest

8)I will never look as hot as the mannequin does in THE dress, no matter how much i wish it

9)Quiet husband=loud wife...there is always one to balance the others opposite

ex: The Chinese woman today yelling loud at the co-op guy who holds your bags while you shop and in the same second turning around and telling her British husband in the softest loud voice possible"Seh Dow Dah-nay"...Translates: Sit down Donny.....(it was adorable!)

and last, a question.....

Why the heck don't cats eyes cry or get even a little irritated when they smell a cut onion, but humans cry and go blind in the first slice??????

Anyway, tonight's meal was my FAVE...Enjoy the pics!

Chicken Marag with Raggag (Fa reed)

De-jaj murrag / saloona ~ Chicken Stew

Serves 6-8

In most homes throughout the UAE, murraq is made daily and is usually served with steamed rice or ra-gagg. It is also a popular side dish accompanying fish or any main course. During Ramadan it is served with bread only and tha-reed. Vegetables and spices can be adjusted according to personal taste. This is a traditional dish, eaten with the right hand or, in modern homes, with a spoon.

*(...) is what i use extra in blue...

1 chicken cut into 8 pieces

2 onions finely chopped(3-4)

1/2 cup corn oil

2 cloves garlic crushed(1 tbs blended)

1 1/2 teaspoons bezar

salt to taste

2 fresh tomatoes chopped(4)

2 potatoes cut into chunks(3)

1 carrot finely chopped(5)

1 bunch chopped coriander

6-8 cups water

1 teaspoon turmeric

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon(1 tsp)

1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom(1 tsp)

2 whole loomi (3 whole)

1 tablespoon tomato paste(1 carton)

2 tablespoons loomi( i don't use this)

(2 Maggi cubes chicken)

(5 koosa or small zucchini)

Put oil into a large pot, heat and add chicken, onion, bezar and salt. Brown chicken, turning frequently, then add spices, garlic and both loomi. Fry five minutes on a gentle heat then add all remaining ingredients except coriander, water and salt to taste. Boil slowly until chicken and vegetables are soft and tender. Sprinkle coriander over and serve immediately with white rice and salad.

MY WAY:

Same as above BUT, i add all the ingredients in parentheses, and when i put the water i add Maggi cubes. In the end, I put it in a bowl and add Raggag Bread(thin crispy bread) soak it through and add salt to taste. Then serve.....

From the book "The Complete United Arab Emirates Cookbook"by Celia Ann Brock- Al Ansari Copyright © 1994 by Celia Ann Brock-Al Ansari

Little Things make the difference

Today i went shopping with my mother, we were having a great time,talking,shopping,laughing at ourselves when we thought about the hours of "shopping" we had done without actually buying anything and my mothers habit of trying on alllll the most ridiculous sunglasses at the counter and laughing "big belly" laughs at each other...we were having a great time....So this last stop we made was a clothing store, we picked our items and continued to the cash register to pay.





A woman comes up and stands so close to my mother she knocked her purse off her shoulders, she doesn't say sorry, and she continues to stand there. My mother looks at me rolls her eyes as in "here we go again with the ignorant people" and moves over a little away from the lady. Then while my mother is paying for her items i watch as this woman slowly starts to look my mother up and down, then she turns and does the same to me, i look at her and smile a little,she doesnt smile back, she then goes back to staring non-stop straight at my mother,up and down, up and down like a photocopy machine.





I look at her again, she turns, looks at me, then continues staring at my mother, this moment my mother drops her purse and money to the ground, albeit because of that woman's eye(evil eye) and i say to her"Is there something wrong with my mothers face that you have to stare at her like this?"





She then looks me up and down and cracks a half smile, she does a little "humfh" laugh and stares at me....(As in"I don't care what you think, because i find you small and insignificant "...) I tell her that what she has done is rude, and i pay for my items and leave with my mother...





Now, this scenario happens almost every time i am out with my mom shopping...Whats wrong with these women that they think they can treat people like that? They think they are better than everyone else. What i really wanted to say OUT LOUD in front of her after she did that was "God please make me better than her in the heart, make my heart bright and happy, not envious and black, spare me and my family from the evil eyes of others like her, and give these women more compassion and mercy for others"....





What is important about this story is that, that woman was a Muslim woman, as well as i, but my mother is christian....This Muslim woman had no compassion, no light in her heart, and no utterance of Mashallah on her tongue when she looked at us...She gave a HORRIBLE impression to me and most importantly my mother(who i have had constant battles with to defend that Muslim woman are nice and compassionate) Ive found that women like this woman are many now a days, we Muslims judge each other SO harsh!





We have no mercy for others any more, well at least not like before some 10 years or so...Its VERY hard to find a Muslim woman who does not intentionally pass judgement on another Muslim woman when she walks by her,whether it be because of the height of her heels or lack of, the color of her hijab, or the style of abaya she wears...Yes, modesty and faith are intertwined and whats found in the heart will also be found on the body, i agree with this, but sometimes there are women who are showing they are good from the outside like that women by her way of dressing, but they have a black disease within their hearts...


People in general regardless of their religion are becoming selfish and cruel ...


Im at a loss for finding goodness in this world...





A Note to my Muslims Sisters:

Smile at your sisters in Islam, show them that you share their love for Allah and his blessings. A Smile to your sister in Islam or ANY woman for that matter is charity. Give non-Muslim woman the chance to speak to you, to ask about who you are as a Muslim, you never know, they might be guided by Allah and have you to thank as their mentor or the person who they will always remember as the one who gave them the good impression of Islam and Muslim woman with a beautiful smile...


Ibn Abbas(radiyallahu 'anhu) reported that the Messenger of Allah(sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallm) related from his Lord (subhanah wa ta'ala):

"Verily Allah has recorded the good deeds and the evil deeds."

Then he clarified that: "Whosoever intends to do a good deed but does not do it, Allah records it with Himself as a complete good deed; but if he intends it and does it, Allah records it with Himself as ten good deeds, up to seven hundred times, or more than that. But if he intends to do an evil deed and does not do it, Allah records it with Himself as a complete good deed; but if he intends it and does it, Allah records it down as one single evil deed."



[Al-Bukhari & Muslim]


Abu Dharr (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said,

“There is no person who does not have the obligation of (doing) charity every day that the sun rises.”

Whereupon he was asked, “O Messenger of Allah, from where would we get something to give in charity (so often)?”

To which he (peace and blessings be upon him) replied,

“Indeed the gates to goodness are many: glorifying God, praising Him, magnifying Him, saying ‘There is no god but Allah,’ enjoining the good and forbidding the wrong, removing (any source of) harm from the road, making the deaf hear (and understand), guiding the blind, showing the seeker his need, striving as far as your two legs could carry you and with deep concern to give succor to him who asks, carrying with the strength of your arms (the burdens of) the weak. All these are (acts of) charity.”





And he added, “And your smiling in the face of your brother is charity, your removing of stones, thorns, and bones from people’s paths is charity, and your guiding a man gone astray in the world is charity for you.”

Anyhow! On a lighter note, My Kitty gave me a face that melted away all the anger and dissappointment i had, and i captured it to share WITH YOU of course!

I also like the way the butterfly hanging thingie was catching light in the guest bedroom so i snapped that too...

Enjoy!

Ain't the TART cute...

Strawberry Tart that is!

(tisk tisk to those who had other ideas!)

Recipe for Strawberry Cream Cheese Tart:

Recipe courtesy of http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/recipe_views/views/234743

Make this tart the day before serving to give it enough time to set.

serving size
Makes 8 to 10 servings.

ingredients

Crust

14 tablespoons (1 3/4 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature

3/4 cup powdered sugar

1 large egg yolk

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 1/4 cups all purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

Filling

3/4 cup sugar

1 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch

2 1/2 cups whole milk, divided

3 large egg yolks

1 1/2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

3/4 teaspoon finely grated lemon peel

1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise

4 ounces cream cheese, room temperature, diced

Topping

5 cups whole strawberries (about 1 1/2 pounds), hulled, halved

1/2 cup sugar

1/4 cup water

1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

Fresh mint or tarragon sprigs (optional)

preparation

For crust:

Using electric mixer, beat butter and sugar in large bowl until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes. Beat in egg yolk and vanilla. Mix in flour and salt until just combined. Gather into ball. Flatten into disk, wrap in plastic, and chill at least 30 minutes and up to 1 day.Preheat oven to 350°F. Roll out dough on lightly floured surface to 14-inch round. Transfer dough to 10-inch-diameter tart pan with removable bottom. Press sides in firmly; trim overhang. Freeze until firm, about 10 minutes. Bake until golden brown, pressing any bubbles that form with back of fork, about 25 minutes. Remove crust from oven and cool.

For filling:

Whisk sugar and cornstarch in medium saucepan. Gradually add 1/2 cup milk, whisking until smooth. Whisk in remaining 2 cups milk, then next 3 ingredients. Add vanilla bean. Stir over medium-high heat until mixture thickens and boils, about 8 minutes. Remove from heat. Whisk in cream cheese, several cubes at a time, until melted. Strain warm filling through sieve into bowl; pour mixture into prepared crust. Refrigerate overnight.

For topping:

Place strawberries in medium bowl. Bring next 3 ingredients to boil in small saucepan over medium-high heat, stirring until sugar dissolves. Pour over berries and toss to coat. Let stand about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Pour into colander to drain excess syrup.Mound berries atop tart, leaving 1-inch plain border. Garnish with herb sprigs, if desired.

Bon Appétit, June 2006

Deborah Snyder

===Dinner Tonight===

The reason for such a quick unimaginative supper tonight was my "mother of all headaches"...I could barley open my eyes i was in so much pain, so, stuffing a chicken was the least on my mind tonight...Inshallah, tomorow the stuffed chicken will make its appearance here as my dinner...Enjoy the pics :)

Pasta with Meat Sauce

Ragu garlic pasta sauce

minced lamb meat

blended garlic

2 Maggi cubes

Pasta noodles(any)

Salt to taste

Boil spaghetti in Maggi cubes,drain,drizzle olive oil.

Brown blended garlic in a little butter, add meat, brown, add pasta sauce, simmer 10 minutes.

Serve with pasta noodles.

Enjoy!

Fruit Cream Salad

1 can of fruit in syrup(drain)

1/2 cup cream

crushed cashews

Layer fruit, pour cream,sprinkle cashews.

Enjoy!