A mighty Iftar plus dinner made by Tejani sisters for the family through Made Easy recipes

Hello readers! So I haven’t blogged about anything in a longgggg time (on my personal blog of course). Those 7 Minutes is on, just the way it should! :D Okay, so here is an experience I really wanted to share with you all. I have never been into cooking, not so much on the sugghhar side you know? So I’ve always been fond of ready to cook packets, noodles and mac n cheese type snacks.

It so happens that a friend introduced me to this recipe portal Made Easy by National Foods. It is a website plus an Android and iOS app which has a selection of fusion recipes. After me and Seema (my sister and partner in crime) browsed through the portal, we found some interesting easy recipes that we could make together.

We decided to dedicate an entire Sunday to make iftar (mommy needs a break too, you know). Shortlisted Peri Bites, Pizza Paratha, and Mint lemonade for the iftar. Here’s how it unfolded:

Peri Bites:

The recipe of peri bites was the easiest. All we needed was National’s Achaar Gosht masala, some big green chilies, chicken (cut in julienne) and cheddar cheese.

Preparation:
Chicken was fried in a tablespoon of oil in a pan. Added achaar gosht masala and let it cook for a few minutes then kept it aside.

Slit open and deseeded green chilles and then stuffed a chicken piece and some grated cheese inside. Closed the slit.

To coat and fry, we needed breadcrumbs and a viscous flour paste (flour and some water). Dipped chilies in the paste, coated with bread crumbs and left in the freezer to settle for about 20 minutes. After that, tried to cover the entire chilies properly with the coat and deep fried until golden brown.

It turned out amazing. Almost as good as Nandos’ peri bites.

Pizza Paratha:

This recipe would have been the easiest had we decided to use some ready-made parathas from Dawn or Menu etc. But since we seldom go to the kitchen, this one decided to make parathas herself too. Here’s how it happened:

Preparation:

Chicken:
Chicken – ¼ kg marinated with National Tikka Boti masala, ginger garlic paste, lemon juice for half an hour. Then cooked in a couple of tablespoons of Canola oil. Capsicum and Onions cut in thin slices added. Topping ready.

Parathas:
Kneaded 3 cups of white flour (maida) with 1 teaspoon salt, half cup milk, 3 tablespoon oil and some water to create a dough. Used a rolling pin to create big rounded parathas (shape matters lol). Fried the parathas in non-stick pan.

Final Product:

While frying the second side sprinkled some grated mozzarella and cheddar cheese. Added chicken topping and then created another layer of cheese to let it stick. Folded the paratha and ta-da! It was exactly what we wanted.

Had it with chilli garlic sauce and everybody in the house became a fan.

Bombay Biryani

We had to add something desi and a proper main course meal because people need food. Bomaby Biryani was the ultimate choice.

To make that we needed Mutton (1/2 kg), onions and tomatoes, green chilies, ginger-garlic paste, potatoes (cut in big cubes), rice (1/2 kg boiled), yellow food coloring, yogurt and National’s Bombay Biryani masala.

Preparation:

To make this, we heated oil in the skillet and fried onions in that. Then added mutton, ginger-garlic paste, Bombay Biryani masala and a glass of water. Let it cook for half an hour after covering it. Added tomatoes, yogurt and potatoes and let it cook for like 20 minutes. Then stirred in boiled rice and green chilies. Sprinkled food color on top and let it simmer on low flame for a while. Served it hot with raita.

Mint Lemonade

Now we tweaked this recipe a bit (because not such a garlic fan :p). Added sugar syrup (made with grounded sugar and water), mint leaves, National’s Fruitily (lemon flavor) and some tamarind (imli) paste to the blender. Added ice cubes and blended all of it to produce one refreshing drink.
It got all praises.

All of this experimentation was a delightful experience. Glad that cooking has made easy by the recipes on the portal. Safe to say that WE CAN COOK (even if it is every once in a while). :D

Inkompass offers the #BestInternshipEver

When we think about internships, we land at the idea that a university student will be going to a nice corporate setting, socializing with people around, do data entry and operational work etc. But some organizations make the experience of their interns better than the one of their employees, and focus not just on partying but also actually developing on-job skills by giving maximum exposure to their interns.
Inkompass has announced its internship program which will commence on the 11th July, 2016 and will go on till 26th August, 2016. The program is for the second year university students from any discipline or field of study. Inkompass is an equal opportunity provider and the best part is that anyone can be a part of the program as long as the student is in the second year of study at an HEC recognized university.

A few features of the program:

1) The program is 6 weeks long.
2) It is divided into 2 cycles. Interns get hired in the first phase when they’re in their 2nd year. Later in the 3rd year, an extension of the internship program is announced and the same students intern.
3) At the end of both cycles, students who perform great have an employment contract at hand. This means a job at a Multinational before you graduate.
4) It is a global program which guarantees exposure and a self-discovery.
5) The environment and the stipend are amazing. With such a good stipend, students always feel motivated and like a full-time employee, responsible for things. Intrinsic motivation gets real.
6) The students selected, work directly under the directors at PMI. This gives them a great deal of exposure learning from top executives and brushes their skills immensely.
7) The internship revolves around meeting deadlines, has rotation within departments and expects students to work on big company projects. The learning thus multiplies manifold.

All in all, it is the best Internship experience ever. We need more of such programs to foster skill building and development among students. With practical learning and being a part of a corporate, professional organizational set up like this, students are sure to come out as refined individuals when they graduate.

The good news is that there’s still time left for applying for the program. Click here to apply. Details and important dates of the program can be found here.

Also if you’re not eligible for this program but want to be a part of PMI, you can apply for their Graduate Trainee Program. Good luck!

Is Cadbury Dairymilk Marvellous Creations giving a different Chocolate Experience?

Don’t start drooling already! Read on. 

So you’ve had chocolate with mint, with nuts, raisins and hazelnuts, with honey and caramel, with grated orange peels, and with many other combos and add-ons. But have you ever tried it with jelly and candy popping sensations with the most heavenly piece slowly melting in your mouth? No? Here are all the reasons why you should try the new Cadbury Dairymilk Marvellous Creations:

• You’re bored with the traditional milk and dark and coconut filled chocolate etc. Even if you aren’t, who doesn’t like a new addiction, or a new ‘oh I’ve tried that also’ to the list.
  
• You like bubble candies popping in your mouth. This also means as a kid, you were addicted to bubble popper, and bubble wrap.
  
• You like chewing on sweet, flavored jellies combined with chocolate. The flavors might just give the tangy sensation with a choclate-y touch.
  
• It comes in a very nice attractive, colorful packaging. Purple with other fun colors is so the enticing factor. Admit it, you also loved the billboards.
  
• The after taste and the feeling aftermath is obviously very different and opens up your eyes, the moment you put that distorted, crooked triangular piece in your mouth.
  
  

Don’t know about the older lot, but kids are surely loving this new variant (for all the reasons above). The brand was a super hit in Australia for quite some time before Mondelez decided to launch it in Pakistan. It is believed that the brand is highly popular with kids for the fun element attached to the chocolate bar, instead of the traditional let-me-melt-in-your-mouth type of chocolate. 

Let’s just hope that Cadbury Dairymilk introduces other new flavors, because well, people get bored very fast. Also let’s hope that Masala TV chefs invent some good recipes out of this new variant in the next few days (it is bound to happen soon enough anyway)! :D  

Anyhow, happy chocolate season. Yeah baby, it is still February! :D

5 Reasons why I think Huawei P8 is the Phone for me

Here’s why I think a social geek like me who’s also the literary type would want to own a Huawei P8:

1. The optional E-book feature:
With this feature, similar to that of the world renowned Kindle of Amazon, a reader doesn’t have to pause reading her favourite book. The 4.3” E-ink screen on the side, allows readability even under direct sunlight.

2. The looks:

With a 6.4” thick body, Huawei P8 is one of the most beautiful and sleek handsets of our times. The range of colors and the slightly rounded edges make it a phone of choice for people who’re into looks. Obviously it is Poo's first choice too. 

Good looks, good looks andddddd good looks!

3. The octa-core Kirin 930 Chip:

With that sort of processor streaming becomes a 1000 times easier. So whether it is the latest episode of Game of Thrones or that AIB Knockout video that you want to stream, Huawei P8 does it for you.

4. The Find-My-Phone Feature:

With the Google powered voice recognition technology, finding your handset became much easier. So I guess now I can stop worrying about where I left it at. Finally :D

Huawei P8's Thin Metallic Body

5. Light-painting Feature:

So every other day I forget to take pictures outside and it occurs to me around bedtime for the most part to click a few selfies. With the light-painting feature, I will be able to take great pictures even in the darkest of environments. Yay! :D

If you've been looking for such features, the wait is over. Let me know what you think about the phone. Cheers! 

On God's unconditional love

Mom: No food for you before you say your prayers.

Me: Mom when God was sending down my meal, did He put that condition? When God doesn't ask anyone before providing food, why do you?

Mom: Does that mean you'll stop saying saying your prayers and take Allah's unconditional love for granted? Surely His wrath is to be feared.

Me: He might send down His anger for He wants us to repent but remember He loves each and everyone of us more than we can imagine. He was providing for me when I was in your womb. And if He were that stringent about His policies, none of us would've been here.

Top 5 Cafes in Karachi

The onset of the 21^st century saw a café culture explosion in the metropolitan that is parallel to the time of 1960s, when the city used to have an amazing night life. The implementation of Hudood Ordinance in 1980s took away the booming cafe culture, which only made its return under the last military regime.

These days, new cafes are popping up around the city nearly every day and are lacking any distinguishing feature, which can make them stand out. Based upon my experience and reviews, here the (current) top 5 cafes in Karachi:

5- Sattar Baksh

Not a personal favorite but according to reviews and hearsay, it is one of the ‘in’ places this season. The ambiance is no doubt great but the food is really overpriced; I mean who will pay Rs.300 (Rupees Three Hundred) for a Bun Kabab? For someone like me, value for money is equally (if not more) important than the ambiance or fancy names of dishes, therefore Sattar Baksh did not make it to my personal favorite place to eat at least.

4- Café Pink Cadillac

Although this café will not win any award on originality of its menu, the ambiance is truly novel and is not comparable to any other café out there. The food is a little overpriced compared to (Roasters or Arizona Grill) but considering the quality & quantity of the food, it is totally worth it. They took their name very seriously therefore the interior is designed based upon the pink theme and an actual Pink Cadillac is mostly parked outside its premise.

3- Euphoria

This cafe has the burgers to die and at a very reasonable price. The ambiance is not extraordinary but is good enough to have a decent outing with friends. If you are short on cash or really hungry, I would definitely recommend you to check this place out.

2- Bella Vita

This café is my favorite whenever I have a craving for something sweet. Bella Vita offers some of the most original flavors in ice-cream and is also in the business of producing their own magnum style bars. If you still have not visited this place, you are missing out on something really exotic.

1- Xanders

Whether you are pizza lover or in the mood of having Boba Tea, this place has it all. The food quality is amazing and the serving size is respectable (compared to other cafes located in the same line like Café Forty4. Majority of the times I have found this place to be jam packed and had to wait for a table. In terms of crowd, it is a ‘maila’ & ‘taru’ free zone. 

What do you think about these places? Did your favorite café made it to this list?