DURIAN LUNCH

It is one of those humid evenings that hub sent home a large gunnysack full of thorns and drove Henry into a excited, frenzy fit (no, he's not the dog but our 5 year old charming). So insistent is he to devour the custard-like contents that he dragged that heavy sack from the front of the living room all the way into the kitchen !
Confronted by his dare devil action of throwing one small fruit out which rolled to one corner of the kitchen, garnered by incessant whines and and begging, I knew this is one task I would have to carry out without his dad now. Although this is not my first time ripping open the King of fruits, I've never fully assured myself of absolute confidence at the trial. Almost mission impossible.

However it is not as trying as it seems to be. All it takes is sharp assesment and strong hands. ( Don't forget that rag unless, of course you're Ben 10 Four Arms)

TOOLS OF THE TRADE


1) A sharp knife. I prefer a cleaver although one my friend claimed she can do it effortlessly with a screwdriver. I wonder.....

2) A piece of rag

3) Newspapers to line the surface ( sharp thorns can scratch your precious wooden or marble floorings. Also to prevent the sticky flesh from messing the floor/table)

TECHNIQUE

1) Turn the fruit to the bottom area to spot faint, brownish lines of a 5-pointed star. These are the sutures of the fruit or the lines that separate the different segments of the durian. Follow these lines for a stress-free durian spliting session !


2) As the picture above, carefully place the knife in the middle of the 'star'. In the event where you have an irregular fruit or the lines are not visible , try and area where it is most likely the center of the fruit ( all the best in figuring it out).

3) Hold the durian with one hand using the rag/cloth as a buffer to protect your hand from the thorns. Position the knife above the center and sink it in. When the knife has penetrated about 2 inches, twist it left and right until the segments open up.

4) When you see the gap, pry the segments apart. If you can't stand the pricks, continue to use the cloth to prevent any nasty scratches.

One piece of good advice : It was a sentence written 'as a matter of factly' by a blogger on 'Opening Durian' that I found rather amusing but after having seived through the truth , this can be a life saver, just in case you're not from this part of the world and has never eaten one before.

JUST EAT THE FLESH OF THE DURIAN AND DISCARD THE SEEDS.


Henry ate up his share like a puppy with sausages. See the big gunny sack (right)filled with durians that he lugged into the kitchen.

Hub always make us drink cold water from the cavity of the segments. It is an old wives tale that the drink can cool the 'heatiness' from the consuming the fruit. What diagnosis is 'heatiness' ? The Chinese would say it's anything ranging from sore throat to indigestion. Ironic. Perhaps it could be the enzymes from the inner frame of the hull that can supposedly work some magic.


The Aftermath

After the satisfying episode, everybody retired to bed for a very lazy, afternoon nap. Everybody that is, except mua, who worked as a 'hull collecter' till the floor is declared safe from any last piece of thorn that could potentially send any child screaming like there's no tomorrow...

Ref :

http://southeastasianfood.about.com/od/malaysianfruits/ss/ChooseOpDurian.htm
This is a must read. I've gone through a few blogs and websites before deciding that this Asian one is realiable and its step by step pictorial guides are well written with associated topics ranging from Choosing a Durian to Common Imperfections of the Durian.

http://www.thekitchn.com/thekitchn/ingredients-fruit/how-to-open-a-durian-fruit-044038
This was top on the googled list so I curiously clicked on it. Written by a Mat Salleh (white), it quoted what one of them wrote the durian to be : ' its odour being best described as pig-shit, turpentine, onions and garnished with a gym sock.'

Probably the odour that matured, European cheese is to Asians.
One man's delight is another man's poison. Again the step by step pictorial is a most wonderful guide.

However 'chopping' the durian like he did is not what most wise,skilled opener of durians would do...

You are who you are today in large part due to the impact your parents had ( and still have ) on your life.

So many of your behaviours, as a parent and otherwise, can be traced back to your growing-up years, when you lived with your parents. Actively deal with it and don't parent with blinders on.

So how about you? Are you parenting on autopilot?

Dr. Phil Family First

Mama Mia, here I go again! How can I resist you???
How can I resist not posting these very cute lunch creation , adults and kids alike will be thrilled to discover in their bento boxes!

Slices of bread roll decorated with stripes of sea weed. Add on fruits for your wholesome meal of fibre and antioxidents.

Mmmm, I just love those slices of ham, eggs, carrots and cucumber. Marinade the cucumber and carrots for a while in apple cider or sweet vinegar for an appetizing salad.

Mr. Egg says " Eat Me..eat me..."

You will need shape moulds to cut out pretty little Sanrio rice cakes like those in the picture.

I will be on a look out for koala sandwich and egg cutters . What a sweet and picture perfect combination!

I doubt my kids will eat this...something about the green hues... (incredible hulk)

Wow, my boys will lap this all up, for the sake of Captain Jack Sparrow !

Now, now, can anyone enlighten me on the ingredient that makes the parrot and skull ?

This story was shared by Kalimullah Hassan, one of those on my list of favourite authors . Having believed it encapsulated the gist of a mother's extraordinary love for her child, it was published in The New Sunday Times of April 27th., 2008 ( A Homecoming Delayed, pg. 21 )

A Mother's Love
A little boy came up to his mother in the kitchen one evening while she was fixing supper, and handed her a piece of paper that he had been writing on.

After his mom dried her hands on an apron, she read it, and this is what it said :
For cutting the grass : RM 5.00
For cleaning up my room this week : RM 1.00
For going to the store for you : RM 0.50
Baby-sitting my kid brother while you went shopping : RM 0.50
Taking out the garbage : RM 1.00
For getting a good report card : RM 5.00
For cleaning up the yard : RM 2.00
Total owed : RM 15.00

Well, his mother looked at him standing there, and the boy knew that memories were flashing through her mind. She picked up the pen, turned over the paper he'd written on, and wrote :

For the nine months I carried you while you were growing inside me : No charge
For all the nights that I've sat up with you, doctored and prayed for you : No charge
For all the trying times, and all the tears you've caused through the years : No charge
For all the nights that were filled with dread, and for the worries I knew were ahead : No charge
For the toys, food, clothes, and even wiping your nose : No charge
Son, when you add it up, the cost of my love is : No charge

When the boy finished reading what his mother has written, there were tears in his eyes, and he said, " Mum, I sure do love you. "
And then he took the pen and wrote in great big letters : " Paid in full ".

The lesson , I suppose, is that you will never know how much your mother means to you till you become one. You will never know how much your parents love you until you become a parent youself.

To my mother and mother in law, thank you for all your acts of kind gestures, for being listening ears and shoulders to lean on. For the pillar of strength you possess, for being an examplary figure, for babysitting my children, for preparing my favourite food, for doting your grandchildren, for caring for me during my post-natal confinement periods, for the fine organic vegetables you planted and etc. etc. etc. This endless list commands my utmost gratitude.
Happy Mothers' Day!

Thinking back, I'm not even sure now where to begin my tale of the chaos. A month before the party, hub and I agreed upon this jamboree to celebrate our sons . Sam has had hers almost every year and surely it would be most unfair if the boys do not have their share of the fun and carousal of excitement.

Mummy only managed time a few days before the auspicious day, very hopeful that she'll be able to print a Transformer Birthday Invitation somewhere from the magical treasure trove of free online printable freebies. Little in her knowledge would she realize Bumblebee and Optimus Prime cards had a price tag on them. My good friend, Mr. Peter Parker, would be the next best hero available. Spiderman in all his glory, posed in a web swinging, hand slinging stance graced the invites and of course, wooed and awed all of Ric's and Henry's classmates .

To be continued...

























Welcome to my Party !













































How in the world did the balloons get up there?Bumblebee was summoned from Transformerland for my birthday by Mom and Papa.















Sam with best pal, Sin Dee and the glamourous boys of the evening.
















A game of Transformer Chess before the crowd arrived.




















Baker's Cottage Chocolate Vanilla sponge,fresh cream
creation.



















Auntieeee! I can't find my shoes !!!

I'm absolutely thrilled at my new found gem to thrive on my words treasure : Mollycoddle. India Knight whose brilliant write up on pg. 6 of Sunday People, NST seems to indicate the mollycoddled brood are overprivileged wimps with no social skills who are desperately in need of exposure to the real world if they are to become fully rounded adults.

Here's the checklist :
1. Kids who are chauffeurered everywhere for all occasions .
2. Maids waiting hand on foot to feed, bathe, tie the shoe laces of your 5 year old !
3. Outdoor camps,jungle trekkings,mountain climbings is a sin due to the lack of air-conditioning and the risks of Enchephalitis.

No,I dont have a 'kakak' and I'm all for the great outdoors to prevent kids morphing into Shitakes in the air conditioned comfort of their security alarmed, CCTV protected abode. How can we not be cautious in this Stranger Danger age when even allowing your kids to play in the local park under supervision would spark illusion of lurking paedophiles armies, jumping out and snatching them?

Gone with the wind were the luxury days when childhood wasn't considered to be a kind of risk-laden illness and we could have faith in the intrinsic-goodness of other people.Well, to quote the author, Mollycoddling may be farcical, but at least it's safe.

Where do we draw the line then? How do you raise responsible, independant children without having to brood & attend to their every hardships and trials of lives?

For now, my stand is this, although allowing them to take the bus occasionally(just for fun) with my 63 year old mom would precipitate acute cardiac arrythmias in me but it would broaden their horizons of their views on people, not only with their own kind in the church or school or family and not to be dysfuntional as a person once out of their narrow, native perimeters. I dont want them to hang in the ghetto but : I want them to know how to behave with all sorts of different people,not just ones like themselves- how to practise gratitude anywhere, anytime irregardless of social status, age or colour, how to be kind in gestures and words , to maintain their intergrity at all times and care for the dignity by respecting without showing prejudice.

This ,to me, matters as much as academic achievement.