Ho! Ho! Ho! Merry & Blessed Christmas to you all out there. 
Hope you’re pigging out as much as I am. Lol. Tis’ a season to be jolly alright.
It started off with a bang with the office X’mas party and gift exchange. We bought the turkey from one of the nearby hotels to ensure it was fit to everyone’s religious requirements. And ordered some Domino’s just in case there wasn’t enough to go around. Lol. It was lucky we did as the entire turkey and all the pizzas (!) were quickly polished off.
The gift exchange was interesting as it truly showed the nature of the people. It was supposed to be an anonymous thing, where the presents placed under our Christmas tree were randomly picked out by the staff. The budget was at RM20 or thereabouts. Yet obvious recycled gifts (i.e.yellowed, dog eared box) and cheapo gifts (i.e. 2 sticks of Rexona deodarant -wtf?, box of RM5 candy canes etc. etc) kept popping up. what a slap in the face for those who actually put some thought into their selections. next year, we should consider having a sign up list so that only the truly interested join in. spare us the curse of the random gifts.
Anyway the family’s first Christmas gathering at aunt’s house was quite a scrumptious affair. as her domestic helper has gone back for the holidays, it was up to me to help out in the kitchen. We bought a cut of Ham with pineapple and had it sliced before being served. My aunt’s roasted turkey recipe has always been an “east meets west” thing where she uses a chinese inspired rice stuffing. The glutinous rice has to be soaked before being stir-fried in the hot wok with diced mushrooms and dried shrimps together with other accompanying seasonings. It has become my job to stir-fry the rice and one has to slowly add bits of water to ensure that the rice does not stick. When it’s half cooked, the rice is stuffed into the turkey (which has been rubbed with salt & pepper beforehand) and placed into the oven. Any extra rice is then steamed.
I then boil the brussel sprouts, baby carrots and baby potatoes whilst tossing the button mushrooms in a hot pan quickly. then when everything’s ready, i seasoned the vegetables with salt and butter.
it was really gastronomic heaven tucking into this dinner as the glutinous rice has soaked in the turkey’s juices and tasted so moist and tasty! Gravy and cranberry sauce only added to the richness of the turkey and ham. as I can never get enough of brussel sprouts and mushrooms, piled those on my plate quickly. Lol. Bottles of Pinot Noir and Cabernet Sauvignon quickly emptied throughout the evening.
Christmas day itself saw a further two feasts for me. The first was organised by my friend whose mother’s Nasi Dagang has been featured on telly. It was another scrumptious spread as the reddish rice was served with quite a wide variety of Kelantanese dishes featuring chicken, beef, fish, prawns etc. It was so delicious. Instantly craved to be in Kota Bharu to eat all the yummy Kelantanese fare again. I wanted to have seconds but as there was another family gathering later, it was best to save some tummy space.
To my friend, thanks for remembering me and inviting me. Was lovely seeing your parents again and felt so thankful to have them extend their hospitality to me once again.
There was of course more turkey with greens for the next family gathering. But it was the seafood spaghetti with white sauce that everyone raved about. the white sauce was laden with fresh seafood such as oysters, prawns, squid and fish, together with mushroom slices. It was so delectable that I asked for some sauce to bring home.
In light of the festive celebrations, bubbly was served. Mhmm. It was quite a nice family gathering as everyone stayed till nearly 6pm and we even had tea together, complete with English tea, minced pies, some German stollen and Italian Panettone etc.
A quick catch up session with an old friend ended the day in a warm manner. Hope you guys enjoyed your Christmas too. With the New Year’s celebration around the corner, have much to look forward to. May 2008 be one of your best years yet!
Won’t hesitate to come back should I ever be in the area again. However, I am still baffled as to why “Screaming Bananas”?? Heh. 
