Today's blog post is on Chef Baini's Sirih Junjung Wedding Cake Homeclass; Chef Baini's first class on Norbaini Cakes lastest product. As explained in a recent blog, the Sirih Junjung is a wedding 'hantaran' or gift; it signifies good intentions and is a compulsory accompaniment in all Malay wedding and engagement delegations. So for the inaugural post for the Sirih Junjung Wedding Cake Homeclasses (hopefully there will be many more!) Chef Baini thought it might be fun if she included some photographs of her wedding that included an exchange of Sirih Junjung gifts with her husband's.
The above is a picture of the groom's delegation as they assemble for the approach to the bride-to-be's home. Look closely and you can see the Sirih Junjung being held next to the Best Man who is standing right in the middle. The delegation brings along with it a set of gifts for the bride, usually in odd numbers; 7, 9, 11 or 13. The gifts are carried by the ladies one apiece, and the lead gift is always the Sirih Junjung.
Here is a close-up of the groom and the Best Man. The delegation arrives to take the menfolk to the 'Akad' or the solemnisation ceremony according to Islamic rites. Sometimes the 'Akad' is held at the bride's home and sometimes at the nearest mosque.
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More on the wedding later. Lets return to the Sirih Junjung class. Chef Baini was as excited as her students, for this was a first for her. This homeclass is a first of sorts, too, for it was attended by a young man who wanted to learn how to make the cake! So today Chef Baini welcomed 6 students into her home studio: Kak Leen, Kak Faezah, Lily, Kak Fatimah, Kak Emma and a handsome young man of twenty-one named Lukman Hakim!
Since Lukman Hakim was the only male in a room of females, all the ladies decided to rename him 'Kim' - short for Hakim, so he won't feel so out of place! Poor Kim! Hopefully his school buddies won't find this out and call him Kimberly!
'Kimmy' is studying to be a Pastry Chef at a local institution. He loves to cook and ever since he was a little boy, his burning ambition was to be a chef. Well done, Lukman! The Babams mentioned that any man who can cook and bake can easily find a wife. Well, we'll see about that...maybe in a few years! Just take a look at Kimmy's, er, Lukman's creation below.....Mum would be very proud!
Next up is Lily, who is no stranger to Chef Baini's homeclasses. Lily is about Lukman's age and she definitely gave Lukman a run for his money! Nice to see that when it comes to baking and cake decoration, skills aren't fixed by gender, just attitude and enthusiasm!
Lily distinguished herself by putting together quite a creation. She chose a bouquet of red roses to plume her cake. The red flowers really make the cake stand out, don't you agree? Well done, Lily!
Next up is Kak Emma who may not be so young in age but makes up for it in spirit! Kak Emma came a little late due to her prior commitments, so to make up for lost time she hauled in two of her kids to help her catch up with the rest of the class. Clever girl!
Kak Emma opted a softer hue of colours: pink and white roses make for a delicate pairing. Mind you, Kak Emma ain't no delicate lady, she's one tough cookie believe you, me! Well done, Kak Emma; and thank you kids for volunteering to help mum out...make sre you get her to give you a reward, yeah!
Then we have Kak Fatimah...she took a careful approach to cake decoration...working things out in her head before putting it together....
Like Lily, Kak Fatimah chose the bold approach. Her bouquet of red roses crowned her Sirih Junjung cake gloriously....initially, Kak Fatimah was a tad afraid that her leaves won't be so outstanding and it took a bit of strength to press them...but Chef Baini thinks she did just as fine! Well done, Kak Fatimah!
The next two students Kak Leen and Kak Faezah set for themselves a time limit since they have a prior commitment in the evening, so they timed themselves to finish by 5 pm....and guess what? They did! The Babams did not believe that they can do it! By focusing in on their objectives, they achieved the optimum results in a pre-determined time frame! Well done, Kak Leen!
Kak Leen chose a combination of lavender and white flowers..that worked out sweet....below is a close-up0 of the details of her handicraft.
Faezah too had her own KPI for time keeping! She chose a light pink hue to top her cake...notice that her piece has pink buds that accentuate the verticality of the plume...nice effect, don't you think so? Well done, Faezah!
Chef Baini is pondering whether to implement a time deadline as her new KPI as well....probably not, because everyone learns and works at their own pace. Better not to hurry them up, better to ensure that each and everyone learns the fullest during their class with Chef Baini! Have a look at the details in Faezah's cake...
Chef Baini congratulates all her friends who made the Sirih Junjung Wedding Cake homeclass a big success today! She is as relieved as the rest although Chef Baini hasn't figured out when the next class for this cake will be but when she does, she will be sure to post it on this blog! Well, that's all for today's blog....hmmm let's see...has Chef Baini forgotten something?...Er....
Oh yeah! The wedding! Her wedding, that is!
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After the nuptials, the groom and his delegation make their way back to the bride's home where their gifts are formally presented. The picture above shows the groom's Sirih Junjung amongst all his other gifts to his new bride. The elderly man is the representative and spokesperson of the groom's family. He is seen here explaining the gifts and promises previously months ago at the engagement ceremony. To the left of the groom is the representative and spokesperson of the bride's family. The bride's representative is closely scrutinising the gifts and promises one by one, making sure that the bride and her family's interests are indeed secured...
All's well that ends well! The bride's representative declared to all present that everything is in order and all promises made by the groom earlier are indeed kept to the letter. The next item on the event's itinerary is lunch, which pleases everyone! The groom is a happy, happy man!
Now lets wind the clock back and see the 'Akad' or wedding vow solemnisation ceremony...it was held at a nearby mosque not far away from Chef Baini's home....
The Babams getting ready to solemnise his vows and acceptance....
Focus, Babams, focus...
Success! And on the first try too! Immediately a prayer supplication follows....
Which is followed by the groom presenting to his new bride the 'Mas Kahwin'...
witnessed by the groom's twin sisters lurking in the background!
Later, at the bridal chamber, the groom slips the wedding ring on
his bride's finger,signifying their bond as husband and wife.
Well, that's all for today's post, dear friends!
We hope you enjoyed reading today's edition!
Take care and see you again soon!
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