Reminiscing over my first year of marriage

Last year this time I was so nervous and excited about my wedding day. This year I am just as nervous and even more excited about spending our first anniversary together. The only thing I’ve ever wanted after I got married was to visit the holy cities of Makkah and Madinah with my beloved. I just feel like I’ve got so much to be thankful for and standing beside my husband in the court of our Prophet was just one of them. Mr Baig secretly booked and surprised me with what I would say is the best anniversary gift ever. With the grace of the almighty I have started prepping for the journey and the excitement has officially kicked in.

Pondering over my first year of marriage… The first year of marriage is often considered the year of adjustment. It is a tremendous time of discovery. There is so much to learn about each other and so much to express to one another. Coming close to celebrating my first anniversary I have realized that during the newly wed stage of marriage you can both build a foundation and set the stage for a life long meaningful marriage.

A few points I’ve learnt during what I would call the best year of my life !

The first year is a transition period so be sure to learn compromise and adjust to each other’s lifestyles. Always keep in mind it’s WE and not I

There will be conflicts but make your goal to go to bed happy. Never go to bed angry !

Marriage is 100/100 and not 50/50 !

Share your feelings and make sure to show your love and care for each other.

Be appreciative of the little things your spouse does for you.

Understand that you take on a new family and trust me this has been a great experience. Just be yourself and your new family will love and appreciate you just the way your family does.

Never allow others to interfere in your marriage the moment you start feeling negativity from others remember that you and your spouse are in this together so cut out that negativity.

Connect and make time for each other. Your spouse and marriage comes before anything it is priority!

Last but not least be happy, strive to make yourself happy and in doing so you will achieve making your spouse happy. Laugh as loud as you want and as much as you can it’s what makes a marriage. Be silly with each other and never change the person you are.

This year has taught me so much and allowed me to instill values my parents had passed on to me which I truly am greatful for. Reminiscing about my pre wedding adventures and feeling so nostalgic. Bringing me to another point before I share the delicious green beans and potato curry recipe.

Keep having adventures. Continue to have adventures with your spouse whether it’s trying something new or taking a risk. Book a weekend away or plan a day trip out. The excitement towards that is something you cherish and will truly appreciate.

Now for that delicious Vegetable curry (green beans and potato) served with roti or paratha.

Taken from the green food with flair with slight changes that I’ve made to it.

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I added a Tbsp of Najmas Masala, 1tsp of ginger garlic masala and instead of 2 tsp chilli powder I used 1 tsp of Kashmiri chilli and 1/2 tsp of red chilli powder when it was time to add the remaining ingredients.

To many more adventures and a lifetime of love.

Sakina

Brides guide to being the best wife…

Disclaimer: I am no marriage counselor nor am I a religious scholar this is based on my personal experiences only ! 

In recent times I’ve been getting a lot of requests regarding the way to prepare yourself in order to be the best wife and how did I go about doing it. I decided to take you on a journey of my personal experiences. 
Towards my big day every single soul I met asked the dreary question of are you ready for marriage ? 

What does that even mean I thought to myself ? Should I be feeling like I’m ready ? I knew I could cook and prepare a meal for my husband does that make me ready to get married ?
In all honesty you are never ready for marriage. You never know what to expect and in my opinion you should never have any expectations because expectations always leads to disappointments. 

So how did I prepare myself ? 
Preparing for marriage is more than just searching for a spouse or finding the ideal spouse. It begins with discovering who you are as a person and what you will bring to a marriage. 

I was given the book A gift to a Muslim bride by my family which I paged through every evening in bed however I am not much of a reader so I never managed finishing it. Having said that there were a few fundamentals I learnt from there. 
“Lead a life of contentment be content with even the simplest foods. The dry bread and water eaten with contentment is even better than a sumptuous meal eaten after your persistent complaints forced him to grudgingly provide it for you” 
“My beloved daughter! Always listen attentively to what your husband says, give importance to what he says and do as he says in this manner you will soon win a place in his heart” 
“Be his confidante and never disobey him. If you disclose his secrets he will lose trust in you” 
“Be happy when he is happy never spoil his happiness because you will then be counted amongst those who bring sadness to his heart”
I also read up the importance of marriage in Islam and the ways of our beloved Prophet Nabi (SAW) and that was enough to inspire me to be the best wife I can be. 
“And from his signs is that he has created spouses for you from your own species so that you may find solace with her and he has placed love and mercy between you” Surah 30, verse 21 

Getting closer to my Nikaah I felt the nervousness and I started realizing the actual meaning of forever and yes I experienced fluttering in my tummy but I never gave it a second thought because I knew marriage had been ordained for us and Allah ordains only the best for us. 
With that in mind I went into my marriage with committing for the sake of Allah (SWT) and with a positive mind. Shukr Alhamdulillah it has been bliss and even forever seems too little now. 
Been married for 7 months I’ve realized just one thing. Never change who you are, be yourself. It’s your personality that makes you the person you are and trust me that’s who your husband truly loves. 
Initially I thought there was a lot I needed to change when I married because I can be very loud at times, I also laugh for every silly thing, I sometimes even talk too much ok maybe all the time but that’s me and i am still me. I never had to change any of that and you don’t need to as long as you exercise love and respect for each other. Don’t overthink marriage and just be prepared to have the best time of your life. Put away all the negative connotations associated with marriage because i can guarantee you it is the best decision you will ever make. 

Marriage is a learning institution You will learn as you go along, I am still learning. The fun part about marriage is learning new things about your spouse new characteristics, habits and so much more. Always give off your best and try hard but never forget who you are and just have fun building memories together.
I believe a healthy marriage begins with a strong practice of Islamic tradition. Dhikr (remembrance) of Allah is a regular part of marriage and my husband thankfully emphasizes on this fact. 

If you’re getting married make dua, continue making dua that Allah blesses you with a great husband ! I am an example of Duas been granted Allah has surely blessed me with a gem… Alhamdulillah 

And now for a recipe so easy you’ll thank me 
Garlic lemon and black pepper chicken 

Lemon rings 

Potato wedges 

Yellow pepper cut into chunks 

Sprigs of rosemary and thyme 

1 chicken into 8 pieces 

Squeeze the juice of one big lemon onto chicken pieces 

1/2 tsp salt or to taste 

Fresh garlic
Make a marinade with the following ingredients: 
Innaparman spices : 

1 tsp Vegetable spice 

1 tsp Garlic and herb 

2 tsp lemon and black pepper 

1 tsp Gorimas green aromat 

1/2 tsp crushed green chilies 

1 tbsp crushed garlic 

1/2 tsp grated ginger 

1/2 tsp Robertsons garlic flakes 

Crushed black pepper

1/4 tsp white pepper 

1 tsp lemon zest 

1 tbsp mayonnaise

1 tbsp sour cream 

1/2 tub double thick yoghurt 

Make slits in the chicken pieces and stuff with dried garlic flakes. Marinate chicken overnight. Place into baking dish. Place potatoes, green pepper and fresh herbs over. Grill on 280*C or until chicken is juicy and tender. Enjoy the aroma that lingers in your kitchen ! 

With Love 

Sakina 

My first ramadhaan

As I lie beneath the blankets having had a sumptuous iftaar. Next to me lie a few tablets a bottle of water and a box of tissues. We seem to be experiencing extreme temperatures this year. That only meant my immune system taking a knock and the influenza virus got the better of me and this time associated with a mild case of bronchitis. 
As a new bride you look forward to your first ramadhaan together, then your first eid even your first vacation apart from your honeymoon of course. I clearly remember every day last year at the sehri table my sisters would go on and on about it been my last. My last ramadhaan, my last eid, our last road trips together. This year however been sick really got me down I had no energy to even think about it been my first ramadhaan. My husband however tried his very best in creating that atmosphere in our home. Bringing me gifts in celebration of ramadhaan helping me prepare for sehri and making sure I’m well taken care of. With all the excitement about it been your first ramadhaan there also comes difficult moments. Moments you just miss your family you miss being home with your parents and you miss being a part of a big family. I cried a little bit but felt better after spending some time with them and then realizing that Allah has created this life for us taking into account the following verses ” and he created you in pairs” Allah has also blessed me with an amazing husband and soon we too will have a family of our own. Thankfully we make iftaar at my inlaws home and then go to my parents over the weekend making it lots of fun and allows us time to spend with our families. A few days have passed and I prepped nothing for iftaar and one day my husband says I can’t wait for Monday I’m sure you’ll be well by then we’ll be having tzatziki and all those goodies. It was that day I realized this flu can’t get me down any longer my husband needs me. Feeling a whole lot better and thoroughly enjoying my first Ramadhaan. So many memories in the making and lots of fun creating them. 

My husband loves snacking post taraweeh so I always try making something even if it’s as simple as custard and jelly. Ghawla as I’ve mentioned is one of my favorites and we have memories of my granny making them fresh and sending them to our house at the very first roza. May The almighty grant her the highest stages in Jannat. 
Recipe taken from Indian delights 

Ramadhaan Mubarak have a blessed one and remember my family and I in your duas ❤️

A seafood duo: Tandoori Fish & Prawn pasta

A lot has been happening recently just recovered from been ill and with all the functions we have been attending time just seems to be flying by. A weekend no longer feels like a break. It’s just been so hectic. You’ve probably noticed there’s no lunchbox posts the past few weeks and it’s because I haven’t been making lunch. I was out of it for almost a week and my husband refused to take lunch because I wasn’t allowed to get out of bed. I will resume lunch boxes only until he deems me fully recovered. However I pack fruit and some snacks just to get him through the day. I haven’t been cooking either. We either dining at my mums or my mum inlaws and it’s not intentional. In 3 weeks I probably only made these two dishes of which I promised to post the recipe so here goes. Abit delayed but I had to sit back and gather up exactly what ingredients and measurements that I used to put up these dishes. 

Tandoori Fish 
1 tsp Amina’s Fish masala 

1tsp Najma’s all purpose masala 

1 tsp fish masala ( depicted in picture) 

1/2 tsp salt 

1 tsp Kashmiri chilli powder 

2tsp Dhana powder 

1 tsp cumin powder 

1/2 tsp tumeric 

1 tbsp crushed garlic

Few slices of ginger 

Juice of 1 lemon 

1/4 tsp sugar 

1 grated tomatoe 

1 tbsp tomato purée 

3tbsp oil 
Mix all the above to make a masala that should be rubbed on and inside the fish. I asked for my fish to be cut butterflied so I could stuff the inside with lemons and herbs. I used stumpnose. 

Wash and tap dry fish. Marinate the fish for an hour before baking however I just marinated and immediately placed in oven. 

Prepare oven at 200*C and bake for 20minutes or until cooked through. I don’t like over cooking fish as I feel it becomes rubbery and prefer it falling off the bone.

Prawn Pasta 
2 cups Fettucine Pasta 

1 fresh cream 250ml

*1 tbsp Amina’s prawn masala 

*1/2 tsp Dhana 

*1/4 tsp Jeera 

*1 tsp Kashmiri Chilli powder 

*2 tsp wet seafood masala (Spice emporium)

*Salt 

*Lemon pepper 

*2 tsp ginger garlic masala 

Red peppers julienned 

Baby tomatoes 
Boil Pasta until al dente. Marinate prawns with the ingredients that are asterixed. Heat up some olive oil in a pan add the red peppers and tomatoes into the pan until slightly softened then add in prawns and flash fry for about 3 minutes. Once done, throw prawns in to the already boiled Pasta thereafter add a few blobs of butter and fresh cream. Cook on medium heat until Pasta is well coated. Serve as desired


Have a splendid weekend. Until the next cook off 

Much love 

Sakina 

Butter beans: The recipe that mimics that amazing Durban Bunny Chow

Days are passing by so quickly. Can’t believe I’m married for 3 months today! Where has the time gone ?? 

Settling into my new home has been such a blessing and so much fun. Being a new bride comes with so many perks. Firstly, you’re spoilt rotten, not only by the husband but by the families too. Taking for example, last week I never had to cook at all. Everyday of the week we were invited out and weekends tend to be buying lots of take outs or easy to prepare meals. Ever since December, I forgot what being “healthy” means. Hence the lack of exercise and an unbalanced diet. This week I’ve come to realize that even though I’m loving life this way my body seems to be lacking a few important elements. Firstly exercise, I never do hardcore exercise, I never did even when I was a member at a well renowned gym facility. It’s just enough to keep my body happy. I use to attend Pilates and oh my, I loved it. It kept me going twice a week and gave me an incredible feeling of satisfaction. With exercise comes a balanced diet. Honestly, I don’t know how one diets but I certainly can’t. If I couldn’t diet in preparation for my wedding there’s no way I’m dieting now. However I have introduced more greens, fibre and legumes into our daily diets. I never drank fizzy drinks previously and after honeymooning I became addicted and choose sugary drinks over water. I now make it a point to drink my 2l of water with a slice of lemon and a few mint leaves. Here’s to hoping that the slight change makes a big difference. 

Healthier food choices

Many of you asked for the Butter beans recipe I posted not too long ago. I can’t believe how simple it is. Took me about 10min to prepare and 10min to cook. 

Butter beans: 

1 tin Butter beans 

2 tbsp sunflower oil

1 Tomato grated 

1 Onion (1/2 grated, 1/2 sliced)

1 bay leaf

4 mint leaves 

Star anise 

Pinch of jeera seeds 

1 green chilli slit 

1 sprig thyme 

1 sprig of curry leaves 

1 cinnamon stick

2 tsp ginger garlic 

1/2 tsp chili powder 

1/2 tsp Kashmiri chilli 

1/2 tsp leaf masala ( Spice emporium) 

1 tsp Dhana powder 

1/2 tsp jeera powder 

1/4 tsp haldi 

Salt to taste 

Chopped coriander 

Method 
Add oil to cover the base of the pot. Stir in sliced onion, bay leaf, mint leaves, star anise, jeera seeds,green chilli, thyme, cinnamon stick and curry leaves. Let onions simmer until translucent in colour. Thereafter add in the rest of your spices to pot and ginger garlic masala. cook for about 2 min. Lastly add in grated tomato and onion and leave to cook. At this point you can add a few chopped mint leaves if you have any extra and another chilli if you want to spice up the heat. Garnish with chopped coriander, serve piping hot with rotis and Sambals on the side. However the best way to enjoy this is get that loaf of unsliced bread and make it a heart warming bunny chow. 

Taking advantage of the public holidays and Celebrating the 3 month anniversary in style at the airport over coffee. Love the vibes here, travel is my passion. If you’re traveling or just staying home this weekend be safe and have fun. 

With Love,

Sakina

My fairytale wedding

Yes the day has finally come! I’m talking about the day my phone automatically connects to Wi-Fi when I get home what were you thinking?

 

The deal is done… I am officially Sakina Khan_Baig

 

December 17th a day I treasure, a memory so special that it lives within my heart as if it were just yesterday. The advice I received from young and old couples prior to my wedding was so amazing I actually realized that people knew exactly what they were talking about. I heard a few say “Enjoy the moment because it will seize before you know it” Guess what?

They were spot on.

 

It’s over the wedding day has come and gone…  It literally flew by, I wish that day lasted all week. All that hype, preparation, fun and tons of planning just vanished in a matter of a few hours!

Stage

Dessert Table

Reserved Tables

Main Table

I’ve got dozens of pictures to share with you so you too could share in the beautiful moments experienced on that day hence I want to keep this post short and sweet.

My favourite part of the day was the moment I caught a glimpse of my husband through my bedroom window. So this is what happened on the day. Nikaah (Islamic wedding ceremony) was after Zohr Salaah which is the midday prayer. I was fortunate enough to have had my Nikaah live streamed so we could watch everything that happened via our cell phones and laptops. This link was shared to the ladies of the family so they too could witness the Nikaah ceremony which took place at the Mosque. My husband visited me at my home after the Nikaah as we were only meeting at the venue a few hours later. That for me was the favourite part of the day. We spent some time together and when I say time I mean a few minutes. We joked, we laughed and we prayed together before I left to get my makeup done and be on time for the reception later that evening. It was the most beautiful moment in my life I was left in awe. My advice for any Muslim bride is please follow this Sunnah it is so fulfilling and an experience even words cannot describe.

Greeting my dad just after my Nikaah

 

 

 

 

 

All dressed and ready to leave to the venue when my tummy released a cage full of butterflies. We decided on instrumental music at the wedding just so it blends in well with all the cluttering of dishes and voices in and around the venue. However I walked down the aisle to a pre-recorded song sung by my beloved husband. How I wish I could have that clip attached here. It was beautiful and extraordinary. 

 

The wedding day went by with photographers taking up most of our time. I felt like I wasn’t at my wedding. We planned to interact with the guests but with the amount of guests that were there it was impossible. I didn’t know what the guests were thinking or feeling. I didn’t know what the food tasted like and I only had a slight prevue of the decor.

The note on each plate read : Thank you for sharing our first meal as Mr and Mrs Baig

 

I hired out a selfie box so guests could have fun with and Oh boy, was the que long for that one. I think the que was longer at the selfie box than at the stage.

 

I never gave out souvenirs because the picture printed at the selfie box was intended to be the souvenir.

 

The ring fitted on the letter “O” of love

The ring was placed in a glass jar that had hot ice giving off that smoky effect

 

To tell you how I feel right now I would say it hasn’t even registered that I’m married as yet. Feels like I’m having sleepovers with the love of my life. It’s an exceptional feeling so much fun learning about each other making each day a better one. I look forward to the next day and now the weekends too because there’s so much to do. I also feel like I’m playing house-house with my husband. Experimenting in the kitchen, trying out new ingredients and striving to be the best wife I could be.

Hair by Farhana Adam : 0827977272

Dress by : Iqbal Osman ( Durban ) 0828551412

Just a note to let you know the best decision I made was having my gown sewed by Uncle Iqbal. I went for one session which was when giving him the fabric and the next time I saw him was when I picked up my gown. My gown was literally a princess ball gown it was stunning beyond words and expectations. Thank you Uncle Iqbal for allowing me to live the moments of my  dream Fairytale wedding.

Make Up By : Tasneem Bamath ( Cakeface) : 0728388928

A soul that even the dullest person to walk the earth will admire. She is so full of life and makes every brides day a total success. She is a work of art and her work of art is just mesmerising.

Décor and Wedding planning: Unusual décor by Aadil: 0827355559

Thank you for following me on my bridal journey it was so much fun, this unfortunately is the last chapter of Baigels Bride Diaries. However, we may have a start to a new adventure Baigels Wife diaries maybe ?

Until the next post lots of love

Sakina

 

It’s my wedding day

As I leave the comfort of my home. I realize that I am entering a new world with roads I have not yet travelled upon and paths that I do not know. In taking on this new role I will invite the blessings of his parents by making them my own by respecting him in the same way I would want him to respect and love my parents.

My home shall be beautified with the love and compassion that we share. Love based on piety and character not beauty and splendor. I will work hard at helping him to become a better Muslim as I will expect him to do the same for me. I will learn to love what he loves and hate what he hates. He has chosen me as his anchor of support with which to hold the four walls of his home. I will become his secret diary concealing his thoughts through trust and sincerity. I will build my home on piety inculcating the obedience of Allah in every member of my family.

On this day then as I sadly say goodbye to the only life that I have known, I ask Allah to make this transition easy to be my guide throughout this journey to fill my heart with patience and love and allow me to attain Allah’s pleasure in this marriage that I am embarking upon.

Today is the beginning of the rest of my life ️️

-The Muslim Women

Thank you all for joining me on this journey to reach this beautiful day. Please remember my fiance and I in your prayers and keep us in your humble thoughts.

Lots of love

Sakina Khan

It’s my birthday 03-12-16

It all started the day of his birthday. He was determined to give me the best birthday experience, one that beat everything I had did and planned for him. That’s exactly what he managed to achieve the past weekend. I had smiled so much that my cheekbones hurt and it was probably some practice for the wedding photos too. Mr Baig had planned a birthday party for me and mentioned it to me a while back. Conditions for the birthday party was that we celebrate it with our immediate families. My dad was not available on my birthday and hence we had the birthday party last weekend. This made it one week earlier. I am so glad my fiancé had insisted on this as the day would never have been the same without my dad’s presence. My sister has exams going on and even she was to ditch coming for the birthday but my fiancé made sure to give her study space and she eventually came along. The plan was afternoon tea and then supper together as a family.

 

My fiancé had insisted on fetching me Saturday afternoon so my sisters and I drove with him whilst my parents left and met us there. When I got proposed I had no clue as to where I was going to be staying because my fiancé asked me to trust him. Everyone who knows him knows very well how passionate he is about building and designing. Just talking about it excites him and later I was told he was working on building us a comfortable home. Every time I visited my father in-law he was never home and was always “On Site” I never understood where that was until I realized it was where my house was being built.

 

 

On my recent trip to India I was so inspired by the palaces which were built in honour of the queen and royal families. The Taj Mahal too, such beauty and elegance that one day I said to my sister I wish I had someone build me my Taj. One that I could live in and make a home.

To those who haven’t been to India the Taj Mahal was built by Mughal emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his wife Mumtaz. It was built with such love using only jewels and precious stones. It was unfortunate that it was built after she had passed away and not whilst she was still alive.

 

All praises to the almighty together with my parent’s in-law, my fiancé had built my Taj. For months on end they had worked tirelessly and to my surprise after being blindfolded I was asked to remove the blindfold in my new home, my very own Taj the palace in which my king had built for the sake of my happiness. It was a feeling I couldn’t describe. I was overwhelmed by emotion. This was a surprise as I was under the impression we were having the birthday at my in-laws place.

I was told that there were 25 roses in the house and I was to collect all which was the sweetest idea ever.  I entered the house and was mesmerized, too stunned for words. We later cut a cake and had tea in the new kitchen of Baigels, little did I know there was another surprise in store. Sneakily they had got me to open the bin and inside was a little package, when I had seen the package I immediately knew that I was going on a holiday. Yes I’m honeymooning overseas. It’s eat, pool, beach sleep and repeat. I can’t wait to experience the culinary adventures of yet another country. Where am I going? Oh well, you’ll find out soon enough…

Be sure to follow @baigels_ on Instagram to experience it with me or just click below and subscribe to the blog!

Snapchat: sakina.khan

Happy Birthday to me…

 

Love Sakina

Simply Asia 514

So as enthusiastic as I was to get the Simply Asia 514 recipe up on the blog early Sunday morning my friends thought otherwise. I was treated to a surprise bridal shower. A delight indeed, my friends had planned a day out in honour of myself which ended up being a day full of giggles, smiles and heartfelt chatting. We’ve been friends since high school. Despite leading our own lives and busy schedules there’s always time for that coffee date or lunch every once in a while. It is very difficult to get everyone out at one go but it does happen and I am so grateful that it does. It allows us to catch up and reminisce about the days we practically lived with each other. Always so much fun and such a pleasure.

Simply Asia 514 Replica

So I’ve seen many recipes on this however I was never interested in making it because I always thought Thai food came with skill and too many ingredients until the Emmarentia store opened and I hurried over to get some lunch. Whilst standing and waiting for my order I watched the chef do his thing and there was literally no work in this. Everything was chucked in raw however there was this one thing he added which I had no clue as to what it was. It was a blackish jammy kind of ingredient that he added in before the soy sauce. I couldn’t wrap my head around it and I thought about what it could be and I knew I wasn’t going to get it right if it was a Thai ingredient. So after being so challenged by that ingredient I started thinking about what I have that I could use and I thought about Mrs Ball’s chutney. It resembled something so similar to this so I had to try out this recipe using Mrs Ball’s chutney as the mystery ingredient.

 

N.B I watched the chef make 514 in chicken but I usually prefer steak so I made it in steak. When making chicken its ok to throw in everything raw because it doesn’t take long to cook but with steak I precooked it before adding into the vegetables.

 

Here goes:

 

Ingredients

 

• 1 pkt 2 min noodles boiled without the flavouring
• Tri coloured peppers Julienned
• Onions quartered
• Spring onions
• 1 tsp Vegetable seasoning
• 1 tsp green aromat
• Salt and pepper
• Steak / Chicken/ Prawns
• 1 tbsp. Ginger garlic masala
• 1 tbsp. Mrs balls chutney
• 3 tbsp. soy sauce
• 1 tbsp. Thai sweet Chilli sauce
• ½ tsp red crushed chillies
• 1 tsp chilli powder
• 2 tbsp. olive oil
• 3 tbsp. butter
• Roasted cashew nuts

 

Boil noodles and keep aside.

 

Marinate steak strips in ginger garlic masala, salt and pepper to taste and 1tsp Chilli powder. Cook until soft. Leave aside.

Season the vegetables with Robertson’s vegetable seasoning, 1/2 tsp crushed red chilies, salt and pepper to taste.

Mrs Ball’s Chutney Original

Soy Sauce

In a wok add 2tbsp olive oil and 3 tbsp. of butter. Add the vegetables and let simmer then add in soy sauce, Mrs Ball’s chutney and Thai sweet Chilli sauce. Thereafter add in your cooked steak. Lastly add in your noodles and roasted cashew nuts. Give it a toss or two. Garnish with chopped spring onions.

 

 

 

Ready to serve. It came out delicious and a perfect replica.

This was proof that you can do even the things you feel challenged by. Just give it a try, don’t give up before you’ve tried.

 

“Nothing is impossible, the word itself says IM POSSIBLE”- Audrey Hepburn

 

With Love

Sakina

 

Baigels Bride Diaries Part 4 & Banana Bread Recipe

With just a month to go for the wedding I sit back and reminisce about the time that just flew by us. I remember saying there’s still 6 months to go and here we are just a month more till i become Mrs Baig. It’s been an exciting few months; the shopping, the events and the taste testing of many new and established food joints. It’s been so exhilarating. I haven’t posted in a while because the wedding invites were to go out and that certainly takes a lot of time. So, dearest brides, never leave inviting for the last minute, start it early so that you’re also able to get rsvp’s on time as well. I promised to share my wedding invite with you all and that’s certainly what I’ll do. When I laid my eyes on the invite which is round in shape I just thought it was extremely different so I had to have that one. Unfortunately, it wasn’t the best of ideas however I still got it to look absolutely beautiful. No one was able to print on round but I was adamant to find someone and that’s what I did. It came at an extra cost but was still worth it. I purchased the card then paper of my choice because no one was able to print on the already given rounded paper. I got my printer to print it on an A4 piece of paper but in a circle then I was sent to a company who specializes in wedding invites to cut out the circles for me. It was a lot of running around and hence my advice would be to keep to the regular shaped invites.

Order of events to help keep guests informed and on time !

The seal was my favourite. I wanted to seal the envelope and hence made a sticker using our thumbprints as a logo to stick at the back of the envelopes. Just so I could add a personal touch to each envelope.

The dress – I think I might have been the most chilled bride about my wedding gown. I decided to custom make it as I’m really tall and ready made dresses never gave me the full length I desired. I managed to find a designer and purchased the fabric earlier this year. The dress was given months before and once the fabric was in the hands of the designer I completely forgot about the dress until we needed to do the first fit. Oh my the night before the dress fitting I hardly slept and the morning of the fitting I couldn’t control the streaming down. I sobbed and it was the nerves and reality had just struck. My family managed consoling me with tears in their eyes too. After wiping away all the tears we left for the fitting. I was pleased to hear that I managed losing a few centimeters even though I put down a Smokinjoes beef burger and fries the night before. A few more alterations and my gown will be ready to be donned. Starting to feel like a princess already.

There was never a time I went to the ocean and left without writing on the sand !

The struggle of finding the perfect shoe. I always intended on matching my shoe to Mr. Baig’s suit however I needed a shoe before the fitting and the fiancé, well he never got his suit as yet. So I had to scrap that idea but I still never wanted a white shoe because I’m never going to wear a white shoe again. I just felt that if I was going to spend on a shoe I need to be able to use it again instead of wasting. I literally tried on about 10 pairs of shoes before I found the one. Well before my mother was actually happy with one. She never liked the idea of a different colored shoe from day 1 so I had to gradually pull her into accepting the idea. I’ve settled for a champagne colored heel simple yet elegant. After all, it’s not about what you wear but rather how you wear it. With just a month to go it’s all last minute preps, packing of bags, learning experiences and lots of excitement.

So I had to end off this blog post with a delicious recipe you might have come across on my Instagram and Facebook pages. The banana bread recipe. My first attempt at it but it was divine. Please try it out and give me a shout.

Banana bread

• 125g butter softened
• 250ml brown sugar
• 5ml vanilla essence
• 2 eggs lightly mixed
• 3 over ripe bananas (I used really vrot bananas)
• 500ml self raising flour
• 5ml bicarbonate of Soda
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon powder (optional)
• Chopped walnuts(optional)

Method 

Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius.

Grease a loaf pan with butter or baking spray. Cream the butter and sugar well, add vanilla essence. Add the eggs beating a little at a time then add in the mashed bananas and mix in.

Sift the dry ingredients into the bowl and fold the flour and bicarbonate in gently. Once everything is combined pour into the prepared tin and bake for approximately 50-60 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean.

Leave to cool for 10 min in the tin then turn out on a cooling rack and leave to cool completely. Serve with thick slices of butter and enjoy with a cup of tea.

Until the Next post…

Love Sakina