An apology first,and then… SWEATING THE SMALL DEENI STUFFS OUT!

I sincerely apologise for going awol these past couple of days,I have so much on my hands right now. I will really try not to be this long gone again,I enjoy being here and I have missed your lovely comments. So let’s let’s talk about sweating the small stuffs out!
I had a discussion with some lovely sisters which led to this. I just kept thinking about how we sometimes over look seemingly small issues in the deen and view it as not important.
When something is not allowed,it is as simlpe as it is not allowed! Its like deciding to still pick what we wish from the deen,like deciding to say this is what suits me and my circumstances,and that is exactly what I’ll do!
Eg,a muslimah should not wear tight dresses as an outer garment,yet she says,“oh,what that means is we should not let it be too tight,its all about moderation,all about our intention!”
I also find it strange when after doctors of deen say something is not allowed,we still find our way around it. However,when a doctor of medicine says don’t do this,we obey and take it,hook line and sinker(take this medication after eating. No one says water is just as good, I can choose to drink water instead of eating. We will eat something,even if its the killer fizzy soft drinks or just some biscuits,we know we are to obey the doctor and eat something! )! In fact,using medicine as an example here is too serious.
When a professor of english language who has spent several years studying the rules of grammar says, “commas don’t end sentences”,we agree!
No one argues it out,no one says I can end my own sentence with a comma,we know what that would mean,a fail it is! Same goes with issues on deeni matters. Unfortunately,deeni matters are more important but sadly given lesser value. With the deen,even one seem to be a faqii(one who gives judgement or rullings)it is not just about our lives,but our aakhirah,the purpose of our existence.
Maybe those small issues won’t determine our jannah,but who says that,how do we determine that?
Is it you and me who knows so little of the deen or the scholars who spent their lives studying it? So maybe,those small stuffs won’t determine our jannah,but if it’s part of the rule of our deen,we should pay more attention!
These rulings on those things make the bigger worship into a deficient ibaadah,and they are capable of ruining our ‘ibaadah and we know it!
We have not been created for fashion,play and amusement but for worship! We shall give accounts for every single thing,we shall be rewarded for over coming our nafs just to please our creator.
Do I sweat all the seemingly small deeni stuff out,maybe not! However,I ask Allah to soften my heart towards not taking those so called small issues as unimportant,but make it easy for me to take it all as an act of ‘ibaadah with great rewards.
No one knows which deed will be the one to tip our scale of goodness on that day we will need every single bit of good. I will advice sincerely,let us all pray we can sweat the small stuffs out,let us all pray we will not make our self into one who still has an opinion when a rule has been decided by those who know better than us.
We are sisters/brothers,we do owe one another sincere naseehah.
It affects everyone of us,Shaiton might be winning in the case of the disbelievers,and with the muumin,he strives to win over us too,falauthubillah! We won’t give the devil the chance to ruin our aakhirah,by making issues appear as small and insignificant.
May Allah ease and rectify our affairs,aamin.
With love,
~Your sister Shariifah~

SALT ACCIDENT,HELP!

Say,your husband’s boss and colleagues are coming to dinner in your house. In preparation,you have called in the professional home cleaners,you gave the house some sophisticated face lift,and got out your best china!

You then ordered Mama’s Delight exquisite spiced and flavoured 12Fruits bowl for appetisers, A red velvet cake with alternate Swiss meringue filling and German rich cream filling for dessert( hey,stop dreaming &drooling !).

Next you decided to make the main dish yourself. So your kitchen is smelling heavenly,some chicken roasting in the oven,a pot of jollof on the stove top. The guest are due in less than 30 minutes,and your jollof is running a bit late. Your hubby comes in the kitchen to give some moral support,(and steal a kiss ?) You’re getting a bit panicky,and ….the salt shaker spilled too much salt in the cooking jollof! Hubby’s trying to calm you,you getting hysterical(now calm down okay) ! He takes a taste,and well just as suspected,too much salt! What do you do? You don’t have enough time to start all over,very little extra pepper definitely not enough to make a new batch! 

So sisters and maybe brothers too,what would you do,or advice your wife to do at this critical time? Let’s have some help here… .

HELP THE NEEDY FEED DURING FEED & CLOTH!

Assalamualikum warahmatullah wabaarakatuh!
Your help is sort again,this time it is raw food stuff. A sister contacted me about the case of a brother who lives in Ikorodu,he has been Ill for the past 2years! Feeding his family among other things has become an Herculean task. This special month,things are more difficult, iftaar and sahur is almost just a wish for this poor ill brother’s family. What they want for their immediate need is food stuffs to feed their hungry fasting stomach! Please send your food stuffs,a brother has offered to help deliver.
Also,I am thinking too that as it is almost the time to start shopping for ‘eid wears and all,if you have cloths still in very good conditions we can donate to our sisters and their kids in need. Jelbabs, and hijabs for our sisters,dresses,and wears for boys and girls too. What ever you want to donate will be for ‘eid,so please don’t send cloths that you have condemned! If you can buy new ones too we will be most grateful .
I do not have a place to store junks,so please let your donations be good enough to give out. May Allah bless you,make you happy, raise your status fii yawmul qiyaamah fiihi jannah! Aamiin.
Your sister Shariifah(of Mama’s Delight).
You may call 08023637802 for further information.
Please re broadcast EVERY WHERE!
PS:
There are lots of brothers and sisters genuinely in need of food stuffs,it was not just the brother that was mentioned in Ikorodu. We have a number of very poor families,widows and orphans too. So if we have more than enough for the Ikorodu brother,innshaallah we will share the rest among the needy too.

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FEEDING THE FASTING: MAMA’S DELIGHT&YOU!

AssalamuAlaikum!
Ramadhaan is less than two weeks,have you heard the news?
How have you been preparing to meet the holy month? When a guest is visiting,someone we rarely see,someone we know we might not have the fortune to meet again,we go out of our ways to make the visit the best ever!
We want to work with you to start the preparations to meet the glorious guest.
Feeding the fasting is a great act in ramadhaan,one that gives us the same rewards as the one fasting,without diminishing the one fasting’s reward! Let’s make this act easy for you!
Our target is al miskin(the poor),the one who has no idea where his/iftaar will come from! The mother who is fasting,and her children who had nothing for sahuur(pre dawn meal). Also every single muslim who is away from where it is easy to get his iftaar.
Mama’s Delight with you will innshaAllah be feeding at least a 100people per day for the month of ramadhaan.
To feed a 100 people for a day we need=#35,000.
One person(350per person) (for 29days of the 29 or 30 days of ramadhaan) we will need =#10,150 only!
To feed one person for 15 days,we will need=#5250!
Please pay into account number(Yunus.I. Olokodana Gtb account no: 0140677998,and indicate Ramadhaan while paying.)For further information please call Shariifah on 08023637802,08172393525 or Nusrah on 08037819880,or Ibrahim 08178649669.
You don’t only have to be pregnant to feed,an old person,or a breastfeeding mother to feed,all you NEED to be is a MUSLIM!
May Allah spare our lives till then and beyond,may we reap all its benefits and rewards.
At Mama’s Delight,the cookware is our canvas!

 

Mama’s Delight monkey bread

A story on its own
I was browsing through my Facebook news feed when I came across a strange looking bread,or so it was called. Someone wanted to know why the bread was named thus, it did have a picture but I had never seen any thing like it. I kept looking at this thing called bread,for one the colour was too pale,and then no one seem to know why it was called monkey bread. The lady who posted the picture wanted to know if anyone had a tried recipe,aside wanting to know why it was called monkey bread.
Now this is a challenge for me,I liked the look of the bread(though I had no intention making mine as pale as the picture showed). Since I have a business whose purpose is to create delicious but also unique meals and snacks,I was about to go on a quest of why monkey and how tasty!
Well,as for the name,it sure had no monkey brain in the recipe(seriously though,l was half afraid I was going to see something bizarre!). I saw the usuals in bread, however a unique quantity and richeness in the ingredient.
I never like following norm so I decided I was making my own recipe. Abracadabra,I came out with the best,sweet buttery and rich tasting bread ever! It tasted even much better the next day(and we all know bread is infamous for tasting less nice the following day!)
I did discover on my own why it is called monkey bread,but shhhhhh I am not letting on. So who will be guessing why its called monkey bread by gazing at that picture up there of the very tempting,tasty buttery discovery up there:D ?
Let see whose guess will hit my home,no cheating in professor Google please ? .
With love,Shariifah.

THE WIND BENEATH ME (my fair princess)

If I need to fly,
I know who will blow air beneath my wings.
If I need to run,
I know who will give my feet the strength of the gazelle.
If I need to swim,
I know just who will make me a graceful dolphin.
My wonder is no sorceress,
But a little fair true.
Who is true in her love and devotion,
Who finds the best in everyone,
Whose belief in me,
Makes me able to do all things!
And as I soar high above the sky,
Run the longest race round the world,
Swim the highest tide,
Her true love,
Makes me a SUPER MUM!
Shariifah Y.I

MY SUNFLOWER GIRL

My sunflower girl is cheeky,cute and chic,
She gives me so much warmth i almost don’t need the sun
She learnt calling me mama just melts my heart,
So my little three years cheeky knows just when to use it!
And what fun she is this sunflower of mine,
And as i watch her each day,
Blosoom into the most amazing dear charmer.
I pray her life here and there is even more dazzling,
And her Lord showers her with mercy,
And as much joy,fun,and laughter she brings me,
May she also be blessed a dazzling sunflower,
Who will bring her even greater happiness,
More than she brings me and all those who who have felt her sunny warmth.
Shariifah Yunus
2009.

THE MOI-MOI TALE

  • Moi-Moi or Ole-le is a south west dish majorly. It can be taken with almost anything…with garri,pap,eko tu-tu,rice meals or on its own. Moi-Moi is made from peeled beans,pureed to a smooth paste with added peppers,and onion before being pureed.
  • Different things like fish,minced meat,eggs,shrimps,crayfish etc is added to it after being grounded. Not forgetting to add red palm oil or vegetable oil,stock water and salt to taste. It is steamed in coco palm leaves for most healthy cooking with the added bonus of the nice aroma that mingles with the moi moi while cooking! However,some cook their moi moi in nylon bags,rubber bowls(most dangerous and unhealthy),or stainless steal bowls.
  • Moi-Moi being majorly a South/ West,Nigerian meal has its fable. It is said that when it is cooked by a woman during menstruation,it will be undercooked! People also make a knot and add to the boiling water to cook the moi moi,it is believed that it is the only way to make it come out perfect and cooked! Of course these are only superstitions and old wives tales that has no basis! 
  • Moi Moi can turn horribly wrong(hence the several tales)! The trick to perfect cooked moi moi is getting the consistency right,lining the base of the cooking pot with the sticks cut off from the leaves and lining with some leaves,before arranging carefully the moi moi(this is to prevent the cooking water to get into the wrapped moi moi.
  • The moi moi is perfect when it is properly steamed for the correct cooking time. It should be well covered,not allowing the steam to escape,and cooked for NOT less than 45minutes!
  • Moi Moi is a very tasty,healthy meal,that may be used as a side dish,main meal or even snacked on. For people who react to the gas in beans,moi moi is a better alternative,as the gas disturbing element in beans is rid off when made into moi moi.(By peeling the skin off and soaking!).
  • Do you enjoy eating moi moi? What are the tricks and tips you have learnt while cooking this party favourite? 
  • Do share your moi moi stories and recipe with us here.
  • ~Shariifah~♥

The Conversation: sex and deen!

So my 10 years old daughter read my book “Etiquette of marriage,by sheikh al-Albaani”! I bought it some 12 or 13 years ago when I started thinking marriage. Goes without saying,it does have some inappropriate age passages for a 10-year! She came to the kitchen to ask me,“mummy is this book for adults?”,I answered yes. Then I asked her how what she thought of it. She said it has lots of rubbish(am sure it was the intimate sections). Well,I do feel kinda of uncomfortable,I told her she’ll tell me about it. What do you do when your young kid reads deeni books that has adult related sections?
By the way,its a wonderful book, mainly on the nikka’ itself!

Indeed,it was an interesting discovery,and yes education for her. Sex education is a topic I am not exactly comfortable with. Though I started my kids early on by buying them a book for children: “how I grow” which starts from conception till old age. I used to read it to them, while I was pregnant with my third child. That helped today thankfully,as she remembered some meanings there. Here is our conversation:

Me: so tell me about what you read from the book?
My Girl: hmmm,mummy it is rubbish ooo
Me: I don’t mind,I’ll like to hear
MG: okay,some people asked the person who wrote the book,his name is sheikh Al albaani some questions. They asked, “can a man and his wife take a bath together?”. He replied yes,the prophet and Aisha used to take their bath together,and Aishah would say,“leave some water for me”!
Me: hmmm mm,(in my head,I am like okay,here we go someone HELP!) so what did you read again(said confidently,non of my true feelings showing)?
MG: Mummy this one is very bad,it is so rubbish!
Me: never mind,it is me and you can tell me(like I mean it,God help me here ‪#‎gulping‬).
MG: okay (talking behind her hands and whispering). They asked if a man may have sex with his wife while she is menstruation.(Me further gulping real hard) He replied, no this is haram,he must wait till she is clean.
(She continues more quietly,I had to strain to hear her). When a man has sex with his wife,he should clean his private part before sleeping and his wife too.
Me:(now I am super uncomfortable,but pretending to be a super duper
cool mum ‪#‎eyesrolling‬@myself)
So I asked,what is sex,do you know?
MG: oh yes nah,its when a man and a woman have a special cuddle in bed.
Me: yeah,that’s correct(me very relieved,easy simple and innocent! she got the definition most likely from the book I read to them years ago!)
Me: you know its only married people that can have the special cuddle right?
MG: oh yes nah.
MG: I read good things there too mummy
Me: (‪#‎furthereyesrolling‬ from me!) Oh,so tell me more
MG: the prophet said men and women should not adorn gold,and he told his wife Hafsah,and his daughter Faatimah to remove their gold!
Me: hmmm that’s true
MG: mummy I have a question
Me: go on,ask.
MG: how can the prophet take a bath with a woman(she was really looking affronted and puzzled)?
Me: he is a man like everybody. He married,had kids,had friends,played with his grandson…he is a man,human
MG(looking very surprised,or maybe shocked)but he is a prophet of Allah,a prophet mummy!
Me: yes he is,but he said himself “I am just a man like you,I marry,I sleep and wake,eat and fast,…”. He is only a man,but a very special man,and there is nothing wrong with taking a bath with ones wife.
That was it! I was so glad it turned out well,and easy. She had not finished reading,but she said she’ll like to read till end(well,what do you think,should she or not?). The rest of the book has no intimate section,all that was at the beginning.
What I learnt here is,never shut the kids up,listen to them,its better they hear it from you than go out when it may all be wrong!
I should remember to tell her such topics don’t make open air discussions,so she should keep it to herself,abi?
Have you had such experience with your underage kid? What did you do? Have you spoken about sex with your kid,how did you do it? Please share your experience.

The beauty in nature,indeed there are signs for those who reflect!

The recipe I’ll be sharing has a story behind it. What’s a recipe without a story anyway? Makes the meal more delicious if you ask me,*winks*!
Here goes the gist.
I had a lovely afternoon with my kiddies,visiting a family friend’s fish farm. My girls picked wild flowers,I found a snail in a fish pond,& they tried catching fish while trying to feed them! If you don’t know,I have a morbid fear for water,still or running,I don’t care! As much as I enjoyed the lovely scene with the sounds of the fish splashing with mixed smell of trees,water, wild plants,fish and everything,I refused to move any where close to the water. The kids where braver walking on the ponds,feeding the fish and having wild nature fun! Guess what,my back was turned to them all through their daring adventure,with my heart playing wild music!
In all it was fun,and I got to take these lovely nature pictures,with one of my kids, holding the yellow lovely flower!
I saw beauty in the best forms,no pretence,no artificial ornaments,no dazzle of technology,just the beauty of wild nature with joy of kids laughter,and heart full of wonder,mingled with some fear of what this wild holds.
As we leave this beauty behind,I ponder on the greatness of the One who sketched this beauty,without a pen or eraser!
The starkness of nature made me realize more,indeed there are signs for those who reflect!
Now what better way to end a farm visit? Of course,we got some cat fish gift from our adventure!
You should expect something tasty from this trip,abi? But emmm,wait a second!
You are thinking I’ll be sharing the recipe to the very delightful,appertising and delicious:
FRIED RICE WITH PAN FRIEDCAT FISH? Haaaa ? I will,but that will be for another post,and we will call it :
“Dinning With Nature( 11)” ! So you just have to visit again to get theatyummy recipes ? .
Till then,be good and fear Allah where ever you are…
With love,Shariifah.