Ma Jeunesse - My Youth

In my youth there are dangerous roads
In my youth there are sullen towns
Impulses in the emptiness of silent nights

In my youth when the night falls
is the swift passage of all hopes
I dance all alone in front of my mirror

But my youth looks at me seriously and says to me:
"What have you done with our time? What have you done with our precious hours? Now the winter wind blows."
In my youth there are beautiful beginnings
My heart trembles with the slightest glance
uncertainty at the end of the road

In my youth there are cracks
gliding flights in a state of drunkeness
landing in distress

But my youth looks at me severely and says to me:
"What have you done to our nights? What have you done to our nights of adventure? Now time is folding."

In my youth there is a prayer
a feat to say or do
a promise, a genre of mystery
In my youth there is a flower
that I picked with gentleness
that I grabbed hold of, frightened

But my youth looks at me cruelly
She says to me: "It is time to go"
I am returning to other stars
and I leave you at the end of your story.

Carla Bruni "Ma Jeunesse",
translation taken from lyricstranslate.com

Could you handle some heat? Let's have Spicy Thai Beef Curry then!

Hi! Hello~

Lately I've been quite into cooking. Well, I did enjoy cooking, but never have I really fall in love with it like I do now. I don't know what started it, but before I realized it, I happen to have tried many recipes from books and cooking magazines (my favorite one is FineCooking) and also asked my mum and grandma to give me some real dishes recipes. ;)

And better, I started to cook my own meal on daily basis instead of just in some occasion. Well, still not everyday, I admit, but it's an improvement for me who kept having take outs like my life was depended on it (well, actually it was) before.

So, this is what I had for last dinner. Easy and quick to make, yet very satisfying! That's why I decided to post this for all of you to try it yourself. All the credits goes to Fine Cooking Magazine, from the 34th Best Issue: Soups and Stews. Maybe I'll try to post more from this magazine later, 'kay~

Spicy Thai Beef Curry
(serves four)

1 tbs. vegetable oil
1-1/2 lb. beef sirloin tips
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup thinly sliced shallots (about 2 medium-large)
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh ginger
1 to 2 tsp. Thai red curry paste
1/2 cup low-salt canned chicken broth
1 13-1/2-oz. can unsweetened coconut milk
1 Tbs. fish sauce
1-1/2 cups frozen sugar snap peas
1 large lime, zest finely grated and fruit cut into wedges
1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro

*If you like spicy foods, use 2 tsp. curry paste; otherwise, use 1 tsp. curry paste—the curry will still have a kick to it.

Heat the oil in a 10-inch straight-sided sauté pan over medium-high heat. Season the sirloin tips with salt and pepper and sear the meat in batches until nicely browned on two sides, 1 to 2 minutes per side. Transfer to a plate.

Reduce the heat to medium. Add the shallots to the pan and cook until just tender and lightly browned, 2 to 4 min. Add the ginger and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 1 min. Add the curry paste and cook, stirring, about 30 seconds. Stir in 1/4 cup of the broth, scraping up any bits that are stuck to the pan. Add 1/3 cup of the coconut milk, stirring until the curry paste has blended in completely. Stir in the remaining coconut milk and broth. Add the fish sauce.

Increase the heat to medium high. Return the beef to the pan (along with any juices), stir, and simmer until the meat is just cooked through, 8 to 12 min.

Take the pan off the heat. Remove the meat and transfer to a cutting board. Stir the sugar snap peas into the sauce and cover the pan. Let the meat rest for 1 min., then slice it thinly across the grain; return it to the pan along with the lime zest. If necessary, return the pan to medium heat until the peas are thawed and heated through.

Portion the curry into 4 warm bowls, sprinkle with the cilantro, and serve with the lime wedges.

(credits: finecooking.com)

Spicy Thai Beef Curry recipe in Bahasa Indonesia:

- 1 sdm. minyak sayur (minyak kelapa/zaitun/canola)
- 3/4 kg potongan daging sirloin (has luar)
- garam dan lada hitam
- 2 siung(ukuran sedang-besar) bawang merah, rajang halus
- 2 ons jahe segar, iris
- 1 sampai 2 sdm. bumbu kari merah Thailand (banyak dijual di supermarket bagian bumbu Asia)
- 1/2 cup (0,1 liter) kaldu ayam
- 13,5 oz. (0,4 liter) santan
- 1 sdm kecap ikan
- 10 sampai 12 ons kacang kapri
- 1 buah jeruk nipis, parut kulitnya dan potong buahnya memanjang biasa
- 2,5 ons daun ketumbar (cilantro/coriander) cincang

*Jika Anda menukai rasa yang lebih pedas, gunakan 2 sdm bumbu kari; Jika tidak, 1 sdm sudah memiliki rasa yang cukup 'menendang'.

Panaskan minyak pada wajan dengan menggunakan api tinggi sedang. Tambahkan garam dan lada hitam pada daging secara merata lalu panggang hingga berwarna kecoklatan di kedua sisinya, sekitar 1-2 menit untuk tiap sisi. Pindahkan dari wajan.

Kecilkan panas api hingga api sedang. Masukkan bawang merah ke dalam wajan dan masak hingga sedikit kecoklatan lalu tambahkan jahe dan aduk hingga harum . Masukkan bumbu kari dan aduk sebentar hingga rata lalu masukkan 1/2 bagian dari kaldu ayam dan 1/3 bagian santan, aduk hingga bumbu menyatu dengan sempurna. Masukkan sisa kaldu ayam dan santan, tambahkan kecap ikan.

Naikkan kembali panas api hingga api tinggi sedang. Masukkan kembali daging ke dalam wajan, aduk dan biarkan hingga daging masak seutuhnya.

Matikan api. Pindahkan daging ke talenan/papan pemotong. Masukkan kapri ke dalam saus yang ada di wajan dan tutup wajannya. Biarkan daging selama 1 menit, lalu potong tipis sesuai seratnya. Kembalikan daging ke dalam wajan bersama dengan parutan kulit jeruk nipis. Jika perlu, hidupkan kembali api hingga panas sedang hingga kapri menjadi empuk dan panas.

Bagi kari ke dalam 4 mangkuk hangat, taburkan daun ketumbar/coriander dan sajikan dengan potongan jeruk nipis.

I used FRESH sugar snap peas instead of frozen ones and put two spoonful of the paste since I am quite the hot dishes lover. I let the sauce reduce a bit more to get the thick curry I like. Other than that, I follow it exactly as it is, and it's amazing! Oh, and I served it with rice, too. ;)

Well then, enjoy the meal!

Another Day in My Little Paradise :)

'Allo guys! How have you been? :D

It's a quite lovely day today~ Woke up pretty early before the sun even rose and managed to spend my morning time watching Pride and Prejudice for the n-th time (I believe it's already my fifth or sixth time this year lol) while doing my elevenses tea-time 'ritual' as always. Then I chatted with my friends and did some blogwalking, and ended up entering three giveaway contests. Quite a great way to enjoy my life, eh? ;)

Btw, today I wore Molton Brown's Cool Buchu Eau de Toilette after shower. That kinda reminds me of the story about me and this 'lil fella. My dad brought it along with him when he went back from his work at Qatar (and I was also staying at my hometown for a while that time). I, being an ignorant person at times, didn't even see the packages and asked him if I could have it. Dad said yes and it fell right in to my possession.

The fragrance is really fresh, clean and, well, cool that I instantly head over heels with it even though it was quite a different addition to my collection (most of my perfume have these floral and other feminine traits). Later I know that this fragrance was actually made for MEN! Oh well, It already caught my heart and besides, I don't mind the tiny details. xD

Contains Guatemalan cardamom, zingy Italian tangerine and West Indian sandalwood. Visit here for more info.

Btw, I just bought three new books to keep me company this week, two Julia Quinn's and one Barbara Delinsky's. Here are what I got:

1. (Julia Quinn) Ten Things I Love About You
2. (Julia Quinn) Dance at Midnight
3. (Barbara Delinsky) While My Sister Sleeps

Quinn has been my favorite author since some month ago and her works are getting more and more crowded on my bookshelf. It might not be a long time 'till I have all of her works, I think. *lol* I, on the other hand, have never had any chance to know Barbara Delinsky's work before, and that's why I'm giving her a try. I hope this one can make me go all awe to her works. :)

Currently I'm reading "Ten Things I Love About You" and I might finish it this night. ;) Okay then, I'm signing off now~ See you on the next post! :D

Hugs and kisses.

Hi guys!

So it's quite a time since my last post. Been thru a lot, but I can proudly say that I have achieved my title in Bachelor of Science last October (so I didn't graduate on July as I planned, but hell I don't care anymore). I am thinking of continuing my study to a master level but on the other hand I also need to try getting a real, I mean, REAL job now. You know, life expects me to do that as much.

Or maybe I could try doing stuff like freelancing or even start a small business so I can have the time to study? I don't know, yeah, maybe I can do that.

I'm thinking of starting a doll business actually. Preferably teddy bears. :)


but I think designing and making shoes for living also sounds great.

Ahem! Enough with the ramblings, a bit random here: I came to realize that I actually never have a real theme for this blog. I mean, how much people out there who want to read about rambling girl with no clear idea about what she talks about?

Now I can feel a frown forming on my face every time I visit my friends' blogs: they're doing fashion blog,techno-information, crafty-ideas, some of them talk about education and even politics! And they're doing great about it. You said I'm envious, yeah, I admit I am.

But, I really can't decide on what I should make this blog to be. Oh well, think I'll just try putting more useful posts starting now, not just some mere ramblings.

All the love and kisses. :)

Imagine

Imagine there's no Heaven
It's easy if you try
No hell below us
Above us only sky
Imagine all the people
Living for today

Imagine there's no countries
It isn't hard to do
Nothing to kill or die for
And no religion too
Imagine all the people
Living life in peace

You may say that I'm a dreamer
But I'm not the only one
I hope someday you'll join us
And the world will be as one

Imagine no possessions
I wonder if you can
No need for greed or hunger
A brotherhood of man
Imagine all the people
Sharing all the world

You may say that I'm a dreamer
But I'm not the only one
I hope someday you'll join us
And the world will live as one

(John Lennon - Imagine)

Okay. I'm definitely watching Glee too much. Yay Glee, yay! lol *beams*