Oryza sativa is the scientific name for glutinous rice aka pulut, a kind of sticky rice very popular in Thai cuisine. During our short CNY break recently, I saw the different versions of pulut eaten in many ways. But I only opted for the Pulut with Fried Chicken. My family enjoyed this meal, especially when the chicken is still warm. The pulut is eaten as if we eat the usual rice, but this pulut is eaten with fried shallots and fried chicken with a taste of Thai chili sauce. The more fried shallots you have, the better the taste.

Another version of how the pulut is eaten is with mango. Because Thais grow mangoes abundantly, you can see mangoes being sold everywhere in Hatyai or Songkhla. I didn’t try this as I wasn’t sure my liking for this.

Hubby says he grew up eating pulut durian. But my version of pulut durian is pulut eaten with durian cooked in coconut milk and palm sugar. He further adds that he would squash the durian, coconut milk and pulut in his hand before eating them. His description and the thought of uncooked coconut milk didn’t entice me into trying.

I first purchased my Baccarat Diamond stockpot in 2009 after a recommendation from a good friend, Ayu.


At first I was collecting the Baccarat Classic range and used 2 pots from the 10 pots I bought.
It was made of aluminium and heats up real fast. But I found it hard to maintain especially the cleaning part. Plus the handle breaks quite easily, leaving my pots handleless… (wrong word choice) Now, I still have unopened boxes of the Classic Range.

Baccarat Atlas. The Diamond looks exactly like this but a little wider, not deeper

My first instances with Baccarat Diamond was the stockpot which I made my Nasi Arab in. After using it, I fell in love with this range at once. It worked like a dream…My KFC chicken (my recipe) turned out yummy when deep fried in my Diamond. The chicken was tender in the inside and crunchy on the outside. Cooking chores became very smooth with Diamond. (Hey Baccarat, I think I should get some kind of commission for promoting your goods!)


Check out what a friend commented about the Diamond!!!!

• Nur Hafidzah Abdul Hamid

  K Norhanim AbdulSamat, cannot write on your wall lah?? ‘ diamond’ tu memang da bomb lahhh, accidently left kid’s bolognese sauce for 2+ hrs on med heat, bila teringat, panic den, kid’s lunch tomorrow, satu keja nak ken masak sekali lagi, dah nak pukul 10 mlm nii, tak hangus OK, x kacau lgsg obviously

  Like · · Sunday at 4:25pm ·

  • • 

      Norhanim AbdulSamat ye la…i deactivate my wall….mula2 ingat diamond hang kena BOMB!!!!!

      you see ladies & gentlemen…why i opt for diamond & chuck my vision…under my sink

      Sunday at 10:42pm · Like
    • 

      Nur Hafidzah Abdul Hamid hahahha, baccarat ler..tapi serious, mmg kalau periuk lain mmg dah hangus + kering kontang dah!

      19 hours ago · Like
    • 

      Rose Maria Mansor hai, ni yg makin bertambah2 keinginanku!!! 😉 ngeh ngeh ngeh… Khairul Anuar Shafie, did u read what Fid wrote? x hangus occay! kalo mzip, dah habis rentung kena buang dgn periuk2 skali. :p

      19 hours ago · Like · 1
    • 

      Nur Hafidzah Abdul Hamid rose – mmg, dulu mula2 bila k Ayu Omar and k nim , dok sing its praises, I thought I would never buy, sebab rasa mahal, then beli satu waktu clearance sale,mmg memudahkan kerja, what I like waktu tu was, x payah kacau selalu, so bila masak, boleh menyambil buat macam2 kerja, x risau sgt dia hangus ke hapa, but x sangka la sampai tinggal 2 jam lebih pun x hangus jugak! tu mmg terer lahhh tapi kalau api kuat sgt, hangus jugak laaa

      19 hours ago · Like · 1
    • 

      Ayu Omar ramai kawan2 kakyu kat sini gigit bibir je tgk diamond yang berkualiti dan cantik tu.. ada yg nk beli kat kakyu pun ada… hehe

      11 hours ago · Unlike · 1
    • 

      Nur Hafidzah Abdul Hamid K yu, tu la, for me cantik tu dah jatuh number 2, sekarang dah replaced all my daily pots dgn baccarat

      5 hours ago · Unlike · 1

The best of all, cleaning was easy pezzy. Over the last 2 years I have collected many Baccarat Diamond saucepans, stockpots and fry pans. These are not just collections. I use them daily and I love every minute using my Baccarat.

This cap is not from my Baccarat collection. Too lazy to snap each picture. They are all stocked up in my kitchen

The hard-anodised features make them more durable than other range of pots and pans. I was told that it’s even harder than stainless steel. Well, I will never trade my Diamond with anything else. This is my precious treasure I took home from the land of the long white clouds.

The Baccarat Roaster- bought but havent got a chance to use it yet.

There are so many fakes replicas handbags in the market today, especially the Longchamp Le pliage fakes which are sold almost everywhere. But the ME in ME hate wearing fakes. If I just can’t afford something, I wouldn’t buy it. I wouldn’t opt for fakes.

FOR EASY STORAGE

When I was at Changi Airport last year, I went into the Longchamp store and was stunned at the price of a Longcamp Le pliage tote. This tote is lightweight nylon with a leather snap flap and with leather shoulder straps. Even better is the fact that you can roll this bag up for storage. I want to have at least one from this range, I have to wait till we decide to go for a holiday over the other continent. I was lucky. A friend was on holiday in France recently, and I cheekily asked if she could buy me a tote, or two… :D.

These are not mine. But I have asked this wonderful friend to get me a long and short handle range.

The long handle Le Pliage

How to authenticate LONGCHAMP bags

• Serial no. (AA, AE or AB) at white tag inside and yellow & white s/n at plastic cover bag are the same.
• AA – Made in France
• AE – Made in China
• AB – Made in Tunisia
• Zips are made by YKK. Can be silver plate, gold plate or blue (depend on which model)
• Longchamp Pliages have round logo zipper pulls, which can be gold or pewter depending on what shape the bag is. The real one is extremely detailed, and on the fake the bodies of the jockey and the horse blend together.
• Zip shown “45” for size S and M, shown 5NO for size L and XL
• The material is thicker & smoother than fake onesThe fabric on fakes is too shiny and texture is much smoother compared with real. If a bag looks too shiny , you may want to double-check it’s other features.
• Inside, the plastic coating that lines the bag feels like plastic but not rubbery. For pastel bags (light blue, pink, so on), lining should be WHITE, not same color as outside. The tan fake above is lined in tan, when it should be white. Dark colors are lined with black or brown.
• Flap and strap are made from genuine leather and the leather is smooth, not rough & hairy
• Fake bag leather looks hairy and the edges jagged. Real one is also raw but is smooth and clean. On the snap itself, the fake has the words “guang tong” and real says, “ORIGINAL.”

The short handle range. Nice fuschia….

I just can’t wait to put my hands on 2 Longchamp Le Pliage tote bags which were flown all the way from Paris.

I should have written a review of Tentang Dhia right after the last episode was aired on tv, but I was then too preoccupied with other commitments.The last 3 episodes of Tentang Dhia were mind boggling. We (me, hubby & the kids who had been following the series from day one) were glued from 7pm to 8pm and rushed to do our Magrib during the advert breaks…(hehehe).

The saga ended really well but it was rather unexpected that both protagonists had their peaceful deaths. But hubby and I were not happy that bitchy Ku Salmi did not suffer as a punishment for all her evil deeds. Bravo to Liza Abdullah, her acting was real. We were also glued to the saga because of the “Melly” factor. Like Liza, Izreen made a good impression of a kampung bitch. Kudos to you both.

Overall, Tentang Dhia deserves compliments from us…9 out of 10 for a wonderful 1 hour tv gluing session…(I wish to comment more….but time is too short…I still have incomplete ‘business’ to do today)

I started falling heads over heels with cotton trending when Jakel first opened its outlet in JB many years back. I started buying a few pieces of viscose, one at a time. By then, I cleared my wardrobe, chucking away all other Baju Kurungs made of materials other than cotton and silk. I kept only cotton and silk. Of course, cotton is difficult to handle. I mean, I don’t look good wearing cotton. It crumples easily and you have to put in extra effort ironing. Being me, I didn’t put in much effort though. I don’t care if it crumples on my body but I do care that I feel comfortable in what I wear.

Lately, people are going crazy selling cotton over the internet or blogs. I am not quite sure of the origin but it could be from Vietnam, China, Bandung? Who knows? I bought a few from the internet, but in my personal opinion it is best if you can actually feel the material before buying. Most retailers don’t actually know the differences between Swiss Cotton, or such and such. When asked, they would either describe how the material felt on the skin.

There are many different kinds of cotton sold in the market. But I don’t have a clear picture of what each kind means. After wearing so much of cotton-wear, my preference go for cotton voile or kasa rubiah. When I was a child, my late mum used to buy kasa rubiah from Arab Street Singapore. Wearing a kasa rubiah kurung with kain batik jawa was a prestige for many Singaporean women. Mum would take so much care of her kasa rubiah, soaking it with diluted starch flour & water, and then she would spend ages ironing her kurung. Her kasa rubiah kurungs and batik jawa are still untouched in her room though she left us 6 years ago.

I only have a piece of voile which I bought from Arab Street Singapore and this is one good piece of material.

I love cladding myself with viscose, a very soft and comfy material. My wardrobe is filled with viscose of all colours and sorts.

Cotton Voile aka Kasa Rubia

The SB line is another range of cotton that I like.

Cotton SB Line

Cotton Viscose

This Italian Viscose feels soft. I have made this into a Baju Kurung but I havent got a chance to wear this yet. Well, there are plenty other cotton Kurungs which are awaiting to be worn.

Italian Viscose

Another version of Viscose

This is my first piece of lawn cotton. I don’t know what lawn cotton is, but after googling I learned that it came from India. However, i doubt that this piece of cotton came from India. I like the material though. Soft to the skin. But, it’s a little light in weight.

Lawn Cotton

I bought this piece of embroidered cotton from Bandung, but this is a slight costly version compared to the pink one I have here. Overall, I don’t like wearing embroidered cotton. Quite warm for me.

Embroidered cotton

This red piece came all the way from Bandung. I was informed that it’s a rare viscose, unlike the ones I bought from Jakel. The material is quite heavy, but not too bad. Not too warm for me.

Cotton Viscose

Another embroidered cotton that I bought from the internet. This is a cheap version compared to the lilac one. Why cheap? The thread gave away easily. That’s why i think it’s a cheaper version.

Embroidered cotton

Another piece of SB line. This is more expensive than the brown one but, my husband didn’t like it. He claimed that it’s too warm for him. When I bought this material, it cost me RM25 a metre, and I had to buy 15 metres in total for my hubby & my boys. Like me, hubby only wears the traditional outfits made of cotton fabric.

SB Line Cotton

This piece of cotton was bought from Arab Street in Singapore. When I bought this, I was told that it’s Japanese cotton. But I don’t like the feel of wearing Japanese Cotton.

Japanese Cotton

This one Swiss Cotton is silky like. Great feel on my body and I love this material.

Swiss Cotton

Cotton Viscose

Singapore Arab Street is a heaven for cotton fabric. There are loads of designs and types of cotton. Of course, the more expensive, the more comfort you get. In many years to come, I’ll never get tired of wearing cotton…If you take a sneak peek in my wardrobe, you will be amazed that I only stock up cotton fabrics for my own pleasure.

When did I ever start drinking coffee? I think it was when we had breakfast at Quality Hotel, KL..and we were served with roasted coffee. Then, I started having this craze for good coffee. I always remind myself to make a distinction between coffee, kopi, Nescafe. To some people Nescafe is coffee. Not for me though. Nescafe tastes yucky (cheh…berlagak..tu la yang hang minum dulu). & when I am making reference to “kopi” that’s kopi Malay style…that black, sweet coffee.

My vanilla latte at the Chocolate Lounge

I have to start my day with a mug of coffee. I normally have Moccona coffee which I brought home from New Zealand. Or the most “chaukia” coffee, I would make myself Nescafe GOLD. No Nescafe Classic, please. I just hate the taste! At around 10, I’ll make myself another mug of coffee (if I am at home). At the uni, Mazura is my coffee companion. We’ll slip into the staff pantry (of course postgraduates are invited) around 11 and make our favourite coffee from the dispenser. I would normally have either the Latte or the Mocha. Mazura on the one hand will have hot chocolate…And around 2pm, I have my next cup of coffee. My coffee craze ends till maybe 6 or 7pm? Now tell me. I am so immuned that coffee has no effect at all on me!

Flavour? I love caramel latte. I tasted chilli coffee at the Station, but it wasn’t quite to my liking. Mochachino is ok with me.

I go out for coffee once in a while. It’s the lifestyle actually that attracts me into going out for good coffees. Having coffee conversations is great. You can have a one hour conversation over a small cup of coffee! I remembered spending 2 hours at Urge, Hamilton having coffee with my hubby and Fid with Noorwan. We had a talle one each, and later before we left ordered another talle coffee.

Caramel latte & Mochachino at Esquires

My mocha with strawberry shot at Esquires Downtown

My caramel latte with carrot cake at esquires Manukau Chartwell

How I wish we have more cafes like those in NZ back home. This craze for coffee suddenly inspires me to open a coffee café one day…

Chocolate Vienna & Caramel Latte at the Gardens

Mochachino at the Rouge, Cambridge

My beautiful mocha at Pumice Terapa

My mocha at Mc Cafe 5 Cross Road

My mocha at Mc Cafe Frankton

My mocha at Jack’s Coffee Lounge

Coffee & Chocolate treat at the Chocolate Lounge

There are some Dermalogica anti-aging range that I have been eyeing, and I’m just waiting for the “right” time to grab some.

This is the toy I want to have, I want to hold….& I want to touch. It’s the NEW Blackberry 9860. The first time I laid my eyes on this beauty at Celcom Blue Cube, I fell head over heels in love with it. There was one night when I had a restless sleep (well, I could not sleep, actually)…this torch kept popping into my brain recurringly….I’m still wanting to have this very badly, but I hate signing up for mobile+phone package from the telcos. At the moment, I’m putting my passion for this toy on hold.

Well, today I’ll be sharing with you of my toys that I enjoy fiddling with….

My Samsung Digital Camera

My Nokia 5800 Express Music

Well, the best thing about this phone is the Garmin installed….I don’t use much of the apps…except trying on MyApps and this anti Mosquito app which I found it to be cute.
My NIKON SLR

Besides the compact camera, I sometimes hang around with this DSLR. I have had this for more than 3 years. No one actually wanted to toy around with this gadget anymore…so, I don’t know if it’s a practical idea to upgrade this to a D90.