Made in 1975 !

Hello everyone. First off, I would like to give you all my apologies for the long hiatus. My reason for not blogging is not that I have nothing to say, on the contrary, I have so much to tell that I dont know where to begin and how to summerize the past couple of months in one post.

A lot has been happening since I last updated this blog (almost an year ago???). From births to birthdays, travelling to work, house guests, new friends, anniversaries, meet-ups, from cars to planes and from planes to trains. Just to name a few! Life has seriously been taking my time all these months. But I am not complaining. Sure, there has been some rough patches here and there but in general, it has been a great year and although I havent been able to document it that well this time, life has surely been very kind, full, rich and fulfilling.

But my problem for now is that I have been trying to go through the huge gigapiles of pictures from the major events I was engaged in during the last ten months and I cant decide what exactly should I be writing about at this very moment. Sooooooooooooooo many things have happened and all equally interesting and blog-worthy....ok breathe....I think I am going to start off with the events I have already sorted through the images of. Itll make things easier and faster for me :)

So, here are a few highlights from the kids papa´s 39th birthday. Ofcourse, we are still married (may I add "happily" married :) But I think, when kids start helping you in celebrating your spouse´s birthday, its quite unfair not to acknowledge their contribution. The lunch invitation my five year old sent to his father at his work was way too cute to ignore.

At home, the boys helped me think of 39 different reasons why we love the man of our house so much. I wrote them on small papers and pasted on the wall of the dining room.

Zahid was so touched by his sons letter that he took the day off and instead of going to his favourite turkish restaurant, we ended up going to Naels favourite burger point in Cologne.

3h´s Burger Cologne

And then, later in the evening, there was a surprise visit from our friends Adeel, Mehru with their daughter Inaya who brought us cupcakes from the best cupcake shop in the town (Okay, before you ask, I couldnt manage to bake him a cake this year). Stop being judgmental, here are some clicks of what his wife made him for dinner.

Tapas, tapas, tapas  - some with a South Asian touch !!

Chickpea Pomegranate Salad served with Tortillas / Honey Lemon Chicken

Grilled Halloumi Cheese wrapped in Turkey Bacon and Figs

Bread Bites with Spicy Cream Cheese Spreads and Fresh Grapes

Spinach Tortellini

Stuffed Fungi

Chicken Meatballs in Tomato Sauce / Potato Wedges

And before you start wrinkling your nose that there is no new recipe, here you go


Honey Lemon Chicken 

Ingredients
6-8 chicken drumsticks
1 tbs soya sauce
2 tbs lemon juice
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
2 tbs honey
2 tbs oil
1 tsp chopped garlic

You need to begin by Frenching the drumsticks as in for lollipops where all the meat is pulled towards one end and the bone is free of any skin.
Tip: You can either ask your butcher to do this for you or google "frenching the drumstick" and give it a try at home.

Marinate the chicken lollipops with all the ingredients except oil and black pepper for an hour.
Heat oil in a non stick pan and put in the chicken. Fry for a few minutes. Reduce the heat to medium and cover the pan until the meat is tender.
Again, increase the heat. Add black pepper and stir fry until the drumsticks are coated with the sauce and turn glossy.

Enjoy and say a little prayer for me and my family, Amen!