Selamat Hari Kebangsaan!

To all Malaysians, Happy Merdeka Day, may we rejoice in peace and harmony, amidst this blessed Ramadhan, insyaAllah... :)

JulesAddiction Signature Tins 2010-2011

Alhamdulillah, JulesAddiction Signature Tins 2009-2010 made their final curtain call last Friday. I hope everyone who received JulesFudgyTins for their buka puasa were pleased... :)

Tins are indeed one of my greatest addictions, alongside boxes and baking pans :) Therefore, I am pleased to present the new range of JulesAddiction Signature Tins 2010-2011. It's a complete change from the signature black and white, but it's a perfect match to Jules Canisters this Raya 2010...



Top pix : top to bottom - Casablanca, Jordan, Petra

Stay tuned for more info on tin contents... :)

Jules in Baroque & Rococo...

I first took a liking to baroque style admiring Denise Huxtable's eclectic wardrobe on The Cosby Show. She was my fashion icon, and there was a time when she wore only baroque, with pearl strands, lace and vintage brooches, oh I so loved them. Then, when I visited the Nymphenburg Palace in Munich some years back, I saw for the first time, the exquisite beauty of baroque art and styles, and the palace also had some element of rococo towards the end of its glory years, oh I just fell in luuuuuurve...

This Raya, I share with you my latest Alexandria Box, which I am so happy to say has the essence of baroque and rococo, with a distinct touch of Jules. I had intended to introduce this circa my 40th birthday, but due to inevitable circumstances, it didn't happen. And originally for Raya 2010, I was planning to do something with a middle eastern feel, namely Esfahan, Damascus and Marrakesh, my jewels :) But since I had had to defer my latest Alexandria Box earlier, I figured I'd introduce it now, while I was still in my 40th year, for it to mean something... My jewels I will keep for next Raya, insyaAllah... :)

I hope you will love Jules Raya 2010 Offerings... :)

Selamat menyambut Ramadhan Mubarak

My family and I would like to wish all Muslim family/relatives, friends and patrons a very meaningful and blessed Ramadhan. Selamat berpuasa dan beribadah di bulan yang mulia ini, insyaAllah... :)

Jules' lates baking pan, Recipe For An Amazing Woman, is sold out, alhamdulillah... Delivery of JulesFudgyliciousness will resume next Friday, 20 August 2010. Thank you for your continued patronage, your kindest support and your undying faith in Jules :)

...A man in love...

...wants everything perfect for his engagement... :)

Yes, it's the sugar rush from Nadhrah's cake and muffins! I'm still wide awake! No, it's not my kopi 'o', caffeine does not affect me that way... :)

Anyway, yes, the engagement. May I say that, apart from my uncle, whose wedding I helped organise some 20+ years ago in Seremban, this is the second man I know who is genuinely involved in his own engagement; it was just so sweet... :) Oh, how fortunate his fiancee is... :)

A lot of hope and faith, and doa, were put into this special engagement brownie; because it would have really broken my heart had I not been able to give this young man what he had envisioned to be on his hantaran tray. Alhamdulillah, I feel truly blessed, that I was able to fulfill his request. Thank you Faisal, for the opportunity and for your faith in Jules... :)

Of Cinnamon & Vanilla...

...okay, so, when I'm on the roll, I'm on the roll! Hehe...

Got back from Nadhrah's about +2hrs ago. She made cake! And muffins! And I ate them all! Aaaaaaaaaaa!...Hehe... So, I'm trying to burn them off now (ya, as if!), by checking my mails, my fb, and checking out Chelsea Clinton's Vera Wang! Lovely, lovely, SO love that wedding dress... :)

...with my coffee, of course. And talking about coffee, I was watching "The Proposal" the other night, and Margaret (Sandra Bullock) actually likes her latte with cinnamon. Hmmm, and I like my kopi 'o' kosong with cinnamon too, and vanilla. But, in Jules' kitchen, you'll just get a stick of cinnamon and a vanilla pod plopped into your mug! Not daintily sprinkled over the fluffy milk froth! Hehe... I even plop them into my plain water; I have loads of water in a day, and the cinnamon and vanilla can be reused until you don't taste them anymore...




Again, this is me sharing the little bits of things I do to try to maintain a healthy eating habit. Try, that's the key word! Cinnamon and vanilla have a myriad of health benefits. Cinnamon, for instance, can help lower blood sugar, while vanilla can help prevent cancer and memory loss. Personally, I have always loved cinnamon and vanilla because of the beautiful scent; to me, the perfume itself is enough to make me feel good. I love cinnamon and vanilla even more now because they are the only scents I can have around the house, that do not cause my boys to start wheezing! You can browse to find out more about the health benefits of cinnamon and vanilla, I think you'll be amazed... :)

I make it a point to keep a good stock of cinnamon sticks and vanilla pods at home. So, on my trips to Bali, the first things I look for in Pasar Ubud are these two treasures... :)

Jules gets Personal...

...gladly!

...a much overdue JulesAddictionBox for Bella Bellina... :)



...for the sassy little diva, Myra... :)



So, I'm off to get personal with Nadhrah now, hehe... While the hubbys enjoy exchanging personal developments since the past month or so, and the young ones work on their interpersonal skills circa dinner, we'll ciao off to her work station to look into some cool personalised craft matters!

A piu tardi...Buona notte... :)

Oh, and please, please do stay tuned for my Raya offerings ya...coming soon, coming soon, insyaAllah... :)

Jules and the Magic Torch

Yesterday afternoon when I sent brownies to Wee Leng, she casually pointed to me and said, "You don't eat your brownies ha?". The night before, Yeanti had remarked that I may have lost a few pounds. I had told Wee Leng, "I have 3 monsters to deal with everyday!", while to Yeanti I had said, "More veges..."

Well, both responses are true. One, yes, my 3 boys really do wear me down, EVERYDAY!!! Two, since darling husband was diagnosed as type 2 diabetic a couple of months back, we've both been on a diet that has low sugar and more greens, the bitter the better.

I'm no pro cook, nor am I diligent in the kitchen, and cheat I always do. But, I would very much like to share this ultra simple dish with you. If I, the stay at home mom who successfully perfects the art of M.A.S.A.K. (Jules' definition : M=Mommy, A=Always, S=Stops, A=At, K=Kedai to tapau; thanks Aini!) can do it, so can you :)

Jules' Fried Bitter Greens
My basic ingredients are petai (parkia, but I prefer sticking to petai, more character!), bitter gourd (peria katak), red onions, green leaves (my choice is baby kailan), and the Magic element, Torch Ginger or bunga kantan. And, as in all basic cooking, you'll want salt, pepper, chilly and seasonings, which are all based on individual preference. I use anchovy granules and chilly flakes.

So I heat a bit of vegetable oil in the pan and sautee the onions. I don't use garlic here coz I personally don't like it with my torch ginger. Okay, then I put in some anchovy granules, blend well. Once caramelised, I dump in the whole load of petai, bitter gourd and kailan. I let it cook and soften slightly, adding a bit of water to keep it moist, and a drizzle of chilly flakes for taste. Then lastly, I slide in the Magic ingredient, very thinly sliced torch ginger, which on its own adds voluminously to the flavour of this very simple dish. Let it sit for a few seconds and then turn off the heat. Voila! Sap sap soey huh? :)



I also regularly add torch ginger to my salads, the young ones are the best; they make a simple combo of butterhead, romaine and iceberg taste ultra flavourful, and you won't even need any fancy dressing, just a dash of olive oil and vinegar (I use date vinegar) will do. Or when I'm dead lazy, I simply boil some good old tofu, then sprinkle in finely sliced torch ginger. It's all in the Magic Torch... :)

Torch ginger, bitter gourd and petai are traditionally believed to prevent or counter diabetes and other illnesses like high blood pressure and kidney problems, amongst others. You can read more about their medicinal properties in Healing Herbs of Malaysia, published by Felda. But if you are ever uncertain of anything, you must always consult your doctor first.

So yes, I do eat my own brownies, and all the other sinful stuff, durians for one, never do I say no to durians! And then, I find elements that would help to balance out all my unholy indulgence. I also try to eat systematically, meaning, I combine my foods accordingly, and follow the correct process, for example, having fruits first, followed by carbs, then proteins, etc. And, apart from chasing monsters everyday, I try to work up some aeorobics regularly, about 20 minutes everyday, and the simplest way for me is going up and down the stairs. That's all :) Basically, past 40 especially, a lifestyle made up of a balanced diet and regular exercise, is seriously essential. At the end of the day, size 6 or size 14, you must feel good about yourself. What is life after all, if you can't enjoy the things you love? :)

...Princess Muna Mariel...

...arrived safely yesterday, at 3.04pm, to add joy to all our lives, Alhamdulillah. Congrats Ridzlan and Margie, children are the greatest miracles, and I hope you will treasure parenthood as much as Tam and I do, insyaAllah :)

Jules & Antonio...

...my latest love... :)
...Highlanders Endurance, Team Janda Baik

Darling husband and I used to have our "date mornings" on Saturdays. But since the departure of our day help, we've not been able to go dating for so long, hehe... Until recently, when his friend called up to ask to join their outriding trail in Janda Baik. Oh, after so long of no dating, and me after almost 8 years not riding (after 3 boys n fulltime housewifing), this call was something both of us simply could not resist! So, we shipped the boys to Klang and off to the horses we went! Now we have our "Sunday date mornings", where we spend about half a day outriding, covering between 10km-20kms, sometimes more I think, but hey, when you're all worked up on the horse, you don't really count kms! A friend commented how romantic this was... I told her that if she thought horse sweat, horse drool, horse poop and some serious crotch ache are romantic, then romantic it is! He he... But it's something darling husband and I love... and we've managed to get my parents to accept goon shipment every Sunday, so it's worked out well for us thus far... :)

If anyone's interested, just let me know, I'll hook you up.

...darling husband & Angelina...

Jules' Recipe For An Amazing Woman

There are 2 women in my life whom I regard as "Amazing" : my mother and my sister :) Not because they are biologically related to me, but because how they elegantly overcame/overcome all the challenges in their lives...

And, may I say that it feels quite amazing to have your name actually listed in the Webster's New World Dictionary, ie. - Juliana/Giuliana, Julia/Giulia, Julie, Jules...Heh heh...

Hehehe...

But if I could say what makes a woman amazing, I think most importantly, it would be her passion for life and her ability to make everyone around her feel good about themselves and their lives.

Anyhow, finally, after a long dry spell, I find a cool new batch of baking pans to offer you, and I'm not overstating the fact when I say that I was literally jumping with joy in the store! Fortunately I'm no stranger to the staff there, so, they too joined in my jubilation :) I especially love this new pan because it is about "woman", and I hope you will love it too...

To summarise things, here are some pix for your eye candy...

Birthdays





Engagements




Special Occasions...


...This was specially for Medina, my eldest niece, to celebrate her last day at work at Forever 21, before she started college to study Fashion Marketing :)

Thank You...

...for your very kind comments to my earlier post, "JulesAddiction in White & Cream" of 16 June... Alhamdulillah... :)

I'm saying it here, coz for some reason, I haven't been able to respond in the comments box directly. Wiz, if I could have it my way, I'd have your cakes all year round! Tess, what can I say?...you,re my childhood bff :). Lileen, hmmm, planning something?...hehe, InsyaAllah, only sweet things for a real sweetie :)

To all Jules family, friends and patrons, thank you for your undying support and faith in me :) To those whose orders I'm not and have not been able to meet, I do sincerely apologise, I hope you won't give up on me! Managing things without any help at home, with 3 goons runnning and jumping around me and with real life going on as usual, has been really challenging, but it's helped me to grow, somewhat. I believe I've found a steady pace now and insyaAllah, God willing, I will be prepared to efficiently meet future requests, especially for the upcoming Raya, and all those special events in between.

...Alhamdulillah...Thank you :)

...Al-Fatihah to my cousin Dhar Pujangga...

Jules on Father's Day

I realise that I have not offered anything for this year's Father's Day. I do know that it is quite inexcusable, but well, on one hand, I have been ultra busy with wedding projects, and secondly, this time around I just couldn't figure out what DOES really make a fab offering for Father's Day?

I love my father, and I love my husband for being the father that he is to my sons. And though I've had my father for 40 years and my sons have had theirs for 4,5, and 9years respectively, I still find myself sometimes hitting a blank wall when it comes to finding the best gifts for a father.

I had in mind a new RC helicopter for my father, but that would take him even so much longer away from my mum, as he would then need more time to practise with his new toy. I thot about a new t-shirt for my boys' father, but his chest of drawers are overflowing with a myriad of "favourite" t's as it is. So, how? And what then do I formulate for the rest of the father population?

Er, would the World Cup do? Hehe...

So, in the absence of material offerings, I'd like to wish all fathers a very Happy Father's Day! I so love to see a father with his child/children, either at the movies, at the games, at the clinic, browsing at the mall, having a meal at the restaurant, or simply, at home lulling his babies to sleep. Like I always tell my boys, no one can love you guys more than Ayah and Mommy. Ayah may not manja and baby you like Mommy would, but Ayah surely loves you just as much, and there is nothing he wouldn't do for you guys. And yes, he is your best pal when it comes to hanging out at the arcade, or game/video stores, or McDonald's! Yes, Ayah always has you in his prayers...

Those who do not have their fathers next to them this Father's Day, you must know that you always have him in your hearts... :)

JulesAddiction in White & Cream

...This project was very dear to my heart as it was for my dear friend Tessa, and the man who finally won her heart, Amir...

She wanted everything white and cream, simple yet meaningful...a fusion between modern contemporary and traditional Malay.



The lead hantaran, which are the sireh bouquet and bunga rampai/ring...





The holy Quran inside a beautifully embellished box, and the prayer mat...


The groom's baju melayu and kancing, shirt and pants, toiletteries...




The sweeteners, which are fruits, exclusive JulesFudgyTins and a very special WizCake...




A great friendship is one that doesn't ask for much, but one that adds so much to the meaning of your life... :)

Life is precious...

In light of the recent Israeli fiasco, let us remind ourselves how blessed we really are, Alhamdulillah... I have so many things to say, but words will not be able to justify my true sentiment. So, I share with you the very beautiful, meaningful and soulful sound of Maher Zain...

I personally believe that all religions are good, and it is people who do bad things, not the religion...

I'm keeping my faith, InsyaAllah... A special song for all those fighting in and for Palestine, track #3 on this playlist...

Meantime, pictures of my recent work follows...a great thank you to all Jules family, friends and patrons, for your continued faith in Jules... :)

And for those tying the knot, enjoy tracks 8&9... :)

Something that feels like football :)


Yes, boss! (a double recipe)


When a girl likes a boy... :) (oh, how sweet... )



Izz Hazim turns 12...
(photo by Nora Khatin, thank you!)

60 candles for 60 fabulous years... :)




Something girly, sexy & fun for Heska's friend's hen party...you girls make me want to be 20something again! :)






A special double recipe birthday surprise...
(photo by Nora Khatin, thank you!)


Yes Boss 2!... Well, the boss did say he felt like a 14 year old again, from the thrill of opening the package! So, I hope this worked for the staff too, hehe...






For a fashionista...