WINNER OF CSN $50 GIFT CERTIFICATE !

First of all I would like to thank everyone who has left a comment for the giveaway. The response was overwhelming.  234 comments in all. I can't thank you all enough for taking part in this giveaway.

My apologies for the delay in this announcement. I have yet to figure out a way to copy and paste the random number generator with the winning number on it. I couldn't.

So I'll just announce the lucky number. It is number 147. The winner is Julieh!! Julieh do email me at enaharun@hotmail.com to claim your prize. I hope to hear from you soon. :)

And do be on the watch out for more giveaways in the future everyone. Have a wonderful day!

MALAYSIAN SCRAMBLED EGGS

First of all I apologize for the photographs. Don't you hate looking at things that are out of focus? I do. I almost did not post this. But sometimes ~ who cares. Nevertheless, I posterized it to make it more palatable to my senses. And hopefully to yours as well.

Brunch is a housewife's dream meal. Anything that would not require an early morning rise or the preparation of 2 meals within a matter of 3 to 4 hours. Of course what would be even more of a dream would be to be to be able cook only when one feels like it.

Which would be everyday if only we didn't have to. Or everyday if we were being paid handsomely for it or everyday if we didn't have dirty dishes, housework and child raising thrown in or everyday if cooking were, truly, like painting, an art. Where we  could chuck the wooden spoon aside like we would a paint brush when we are out of steam. Where everyone would be nodding in unanimous understanding and sympathy and be saying..."She needs inspiration.". 

Huffing and puffing and sweating it out in solitary confinement in an isolated corner of the home, talking to one's self with dirty dishes piling up behind you is nobody's idea of a dream job. 

Therefore I brunch. Therefore I blog. Therefore I am.

So this is a Malaysian scrambled egg. I call it brunch. Some may call it breakfast. But I may also call it dinner ~ when I'm tired. Heck, I'll call it anything I like.

It needs birds' eye chillies, spring onions and should be somewhat clot-ish rather than fluffy to be good. Which it is. And no milk in it please.

The recipe ~ 


3 eggs
1 stalk spring onion, sliced on teh diagonal, thinly
1 large red chilli or a couple of birds' eye chillies, chopped
salt
pepper
1 T cooking oil


Break eggs into a bowl and beat briefly but not too much. We don't want it thoroughly and evenly mixed.


Heat up the oil in a small pan, When hot throw in the spring onions and chillies and saute for a 5 seconds. Pour in the half beaten egg and allow it to set a little before starting to scramble. Clotty-ish is what we are looking for here, with clumps of eggs rather than a fluff of eggs. Add salt as you go along.  Once the eggs are almost set take it of the heat and scoop into  a plate immediately to prevent further cooking. We don't want it to be dry either.


Sprinkle with black pepper and eat with toast or do it the Malaysian way by tearing up pieces of namby pamby soft, ready sliced, white bread and using that to scoop the scrambled eggs up with. In short...eat with your hands. Like us. 


Very yum if you ask me.

BERRIES ON A CREAM CHEESE MARSHMALLOW CLOUD AND TWO GRADUATIONS

Do go for Shirley's of kokken69 CSN $60 giveaway here and My CSN Gift Certificate giveaway here too :)

At last our two older boys have graduated. Both with a Masters in Engineering, Second class, Division one from the University of Nottingham Malaysia Campus. Yesterday was their graduation ceremony and there they were sweating in their robes, dampened underneath but happy and excited on the outside. Truly, robes and Malaysian weather are not the best of friends. Nevertheless, it was a sweet moment to witness and cherish. Four down done and one to go. 

Having two sons graduating at the same time is like having two luscious ice cream cones in each hand, to put it mildly. We look forward to the ' get-a-job ' phase to be over as well. 

 N right, Z left in the Carousel Cafe at The Palace of the Golden Horses

We watched our boys, with the lightest of  hearts, literally frolicking, each with the other, dark heavy robes swinging, mortar boards tumbling off, roaring occasionally, their limbs entangled, poking tummies and laughing as they queued up to get their photos taken. Just as they did as seven and eight year olds. Men will always be boys. How time does indeed not fly. 

The graduation ceremony was held at The Palace of the Golden Horses, The Mines Resort, a 5 star hotel, (I wished the upkeep crew were made to work a whole lot harder at every square inch of its building so that it looks 5 star), 20 minutes from the city centre of Kuala Lumpur.


But the grounds were rather pretty and these young exuberant people had their group photographs and mortar board flinging sessions orchestrated on the lush green, palm tree fringed garden just to the side of the hotel. They were all being silly happy. For a dang good reason. 

N is front row third from right and Z is second row third from left in the grounds outside of the hotel


As I watched, my heart sang. I know that they will make our world a much better place. After all, as mothers, we deserve it. Don't you think? Listen to this Mom Song.......You just MUST. It's hilarious. :D




I feel like berries on a cloud.

The recipe ~ adapted loosely from Betty Crocker 

This is really lovely. Like a cream cheese pudding and a slather of syrupy fruits on top. I just loved it.

The cream cheese pudding :

8 oz cream cheese, softened
3/4 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla
2 cups whipping cream
21/2 cups miniature marshmallows

The berries : 


1 can pie cherry filling ( I used fresh cherries, 175 gm )
1 tsp lemon juice (I used lime)
2 cups sliced strawberries (I used almost one cup)
1 cup fresh peaches (I used fresh 1 fresh mango)
2-3 tsp of balsamic vinegar
some honey to the level of sweetness you'd like
a pinch of salt



Beat cream cheese and sugar and vanilla ina  large bowl with an electric mixer on medium speed until smooth. Beat whipping cream in a chilled bowl until stiff. Fold whipped cream and marshmallows into cream cheese mix. Divide the mixture between glasses. I made half the recipe. I think I got about 4 glasses depending on the size of your glasses of course.


Stone and halve the cherries. Place them in a pan. Add the strawberries, lime juice, a tablespoon or two of water and a little honey. Cook over medium heat until the fruits soften a little and there is some juice in the pan. Add balsamic vinegar. Stir for a second and turn off heat. Add the sliced mangoes just before you would pour the berry mix over the cheese pudding. Do adjust the mix to your taste. Allow to cool completely before spooning over the cheese pudding. Serve chilled. Oh so YUM. True.

DULCE DE LECHE MALTESERS ICE CREAM SLICES and a CSN GIVEAWAY!!

Thank you all for entering this CSN giveaway. I am very happy and overwhelmed by the response.... This giveaway is now closed and I will announce the winner in my coming post. I'm working on it right now. :) ~ 31st  July 2010

The promotion team at CSN Stores had contacted me saying that I have been selected as their preferred blogger. I was thrilled because it means another wonderful giveaway for my readers. This time it's a $50 gift certificate which allows you to purchase anything you like from CSN Stores. It also means regular giveaways at Cherryonacake in the future!

CSN is based in Boston, USA. It has been in operation for more than 5 years and was recently named to the HOT 100 List of online retailers for 2009. It has 200+ shopping sites with a numerous variety of products and has grown into a Top 3 online US retailer of home and office goods. It has also opened its online stores in Canada, the UK and Germany as well.

The kitchen and dining room have always made up a large part of my life. Can you tell? So when CSN told me about their dining rooms I went on a haunt immediately. Oy! I thought I had died and gone to CSN heaven. 

You wouldn't believe what I saw. This Linon Admore 3 piece white pine corner Breakfast Nook would change my life. I would repent. I would live an exemplary morning life. I would not be the sleepy grouchy morning head anymore. I'll actually be alive. I promise. 

If I had a Riverside Furniture Medley 7 piece Rectangular Dining Room Set I'd give it a hug every hour on the hour... Nom Nom Huggy Hug...

In fact I'll have so many hugs to giveaway I'd love this Home Styles Retro Soda shoppe 5 piece dinette. It's too cute not to hug. So Travolta.

I need racks. We need racks. We need an SEI Iron and Wicker Storage Baker's Rack because I'm a baker. 

 Oh honey! Did I tell you that I needed a Hillsdale Wilshire Black Sideboard Table...I do. Blink.

Oy! What's this?! I want a Butler Vintage Oak Chair Side Curio too. For my what-nots.

I know Seraphina the Fairy would love this Kathy Ireland Area Rug. Because it's like a little garden within.

I have just fallen in love with Bahama Blue. So it only makes sense that I want a Papila Design Sideboard in Bahama Blue ~

Be still my heart.....We need cash. Or a gift certificate...to start the ball rolling. So all of you lucky people in US and Canada only.....

If you would like to try for the giveaway just leave a comment and tell me what you would really like to get from CSN Stores if you won the $50 gift certificate.

If you would like to try for more entries tweet, facebook or blog about this giveaway. For each activity that you do leave a comment and the link. The choice is yours.

I'll keep this giveaway open for 10 days. I 'll pick the winner randomly. (I wish I could figure out how to use that random number picker. If anyone has an idea please let me know). I'll announce the winner on the 31st of July.

So my US and Canadian friends do leave a comment....


While I sit in a corner and suck my thumb dulce de leche maltesers ice cream slices....

Dulce de leche has been a big part of our lives since we met her. I've made 3 cans since. Bad. But this time I'm using it to make ice cream. Good.

This Ice cream slice is an Oz thing. So says Clare of Mrs. Multitasker. That was where I found it ~ On her lovely blog.


I had sandwiched the ice cream in between 2 slices of Ikea's Pepparkakor Cappuccino. Then Dulce de leche,  Maltesers and Cappuccino, they became the 3 great companions in these cool creamy slices of heaven.

This is an ice cream made originally from whipped cream and condensed milk straight from the can. Now we know why it's so good.

  
Here's the recipe ~ adapted from Mrs. Multitasker
600 ml heavy/thickened cream
1 can (395 gm) dulce de leche
1 large packet of Maltesers, crushed
1 packet of Ikea's Pepparkakor Cappuccino or any cookie

Grease a shallow 15 x 10 rectangular pan with butter.

Whip the cream using an electric mixer on high speed until it thickens and falls from the whisk in a thick clump. 


If your dulce de leche is very thick as mine was thin it down with a little of the extra cream first until it becomes soft, smooth and is the consistency of condensed milk. But make sure it is not too runny.


Fold in the dulce de leche and the crushed maltesers into the whipped cream until everyhting is evenly mixed. Pour into the greased pan and freeze.


When the ice cream has frozen use a cookie cutter the same size as the cookies you're using and cut out circles or squares and sandwich them in between two cookies.  Serve cold immediately.