Not a Freaking Food Connoisseur

Food Adventures!

2009-12-15T13:05:00.006+08:00

Ham & Cheese Croissant. The Ham slice is thicker than usual.

Chocolate Chip Croissant

Blueberry Cheese Tart

Charcoal bun

One fine Saturday morning, we decided to make our way to Little India for some lovely croissants. Mirabelle makes one of the best croissants I have ever eaten in my entire life. Unless I have a better one, I think I would go all the way for their croissants. First time we had a plain one, second time we had a chocolate chip one, and third time we finally had the ham and cheese. Votes for ham and cheese and the plain ones. The charcoal bun with custard and the blueberry cheese tart is ok.

Had a hot steaming bowl of an ordinary looking prawn noodles. After sipping the hot soup, I proceeded to eat the kway tiao. Excellent. It tastes much better than it looks. Peppery and robust, we sipped the life out of the bowl until it is dry. *snigger*

Prawn noodle

Had an onion masala thosai at Sri Kamala's with some teh tarik before heading down to Crys' place for some cheesecake baking and try her lovely Indian dishes.

Thosai

Teh Tarik!

My first attempt at blueberry cheesecake baking

The dishes were ready. So was my tummy!

Pumpkin Prawn

Lady's Finger

Masala Chicken

Free Ice Cream anyone?

2009-12-14T16:53:00.002+08:00

Got a free treat whilst strolling down Orchard Road. Woohoo!

TeaDot at Iluma

2009-12-14T16:46:00.003+08:00

Earl Grey Latte

Matcha Latte

This was quite the refreshing change from the usual coffee that I crave for very so often. I was craving for their Matcha Latte the following day! The green tea taste does stand out although the drink could do with a bit more thicker. I had the Earl Grey Latte but I found myself drinking the Matcha Latter more. I'll return for more of their drinks. Thanks for the treat R! ;o)

Some lunch at SAFRA Yishun

2009-12-14T16:37:00.005+08:00

Congee

Har gow

I was craving for congee. Century egg congee to be exact. With a good sprinkling of pepper, this bowl was good till it lasted. The must order item for dim sum is always har gow for me. This shrimp dumpling was one of the better ones that I have tasted. Ended the meal with a decent durian roll. What a lovely day...

Decent Durian Roll

Hatched & Mortons

2009-12-07T14:03:00.007+08:00

It was a good cause for celebration! With some happy thoughts in mind, we trudged on to Hatched located at Evans Lodge. I must say it was a good start as we strolled and enjoyed the quiet, atmospheric surroundings. Almost like a nature walk.

We started with a more unusual offering of beer which proved to be stronger than the usual ones. In a good way of course. In a place that serves brunch, I could not resist ordering a cappuccino with an extra shot.

Burly Benedict

Spoilt for choices, we went ahead with Burly Bendict and Le Rossini as intended. One thing I noticed was the lack of salt/seasoning they had for their sides of sauteed potatoes and caramelised onions. It was rendered tasteless. Same goes for the thin slice of corned "wagyu" beef for the Burly Benedict. Perhaps it explains why salt and pepper are needed in this instance.

Le Rossini

The foie gras looked thick but it could do more with a better pan fry technique to make it more crisp and less chewy. I am guessing it might be duck liver. Truffle oil definitely helped in this dish. It is quite enjoyable to eat the toasted ciabatta with scrambled eggs, foie gras, drizzled with truffle oil. The idea for this place is good but perhaps they should select more quality ingredients to capture the attention of curious diners.

~~~~

Mortons Steakhouse! What can I say? It was excellent! Definitely the best place for steak. Personalised services and menu apart, the food was of a totally different league of its own.

Onion Loaf

The onion loaf is the size of my head. It is that big. Lighting here proved to be difficult for me to take pictures so excuse the quality.

Lobster bisque

This has got to be the most umami bisque that I have complete with fresh lobster meat.

Crabcake

Best of the best. No words could describe this.

Sauteed spinach and button mushrooms

I swear I could eat this everyday.

Steak

I think it was a tenderloin. The best cut and taste I have ever eaten.

Grand Marnier Souffle

The texture of the souffle is so soft and fluffy I could have finished the giant portion by myself.

*Burp* It's been a great day. Absolutely lovely. Makes me wanna stretch both arms in the air and yelp a triumphant "Yatta!"

Dinner at Astons Prime, Centrepoint

2009-09-25T15:19:00.006+08:00

I had a very good impression with Astons Specialties down at The Cathay Building. I cannot say much about the quality and food here. It did not go well with me at all.

Crap cake.

I wished it was a typo. And I wished the crap tasted better.

Steak with Apple sausage with sides of Cheesy pasta shells and potato skin.

Only sides were not too bad. No comments on the steak.

Why in the world would they give shitake mushrooms? Why? Does it enhance the taste of the steak?

It looks like it was cooked to perfection and was impressive but was actually tough and sinewy. Bloody ~~tiring~~ and tiring to cut the meat into pieces, I almost gave up eating the steak altogether. I would just go down to the Cathay branch for their steaks as this is not worth its price.

Would you eat this? KFC's Quadruple

2009-09-25T14:55:00.005+08:00

Source: Insanewiches

Following up on my previous post on crazy, artery clogging eats, I found this simply intriguing. This is something found in KFC in the States but they are testing out the response. Using the chicken patty as a bread replacement is actually not unheard of but what attracted me in this picture was the actual bacon being used. The last I've heard about beef patties having the same concept and using a fork to eat this messy meal.

So long burger buns. R.I.P.

Mega McSpicy

2009-09-25T14:42:00.003+08:00

This was round 2 of my dinner last night. Round 1 was at Carl's Jr. *snigger*

Well, I got what I asked for in this savoury, spicy, thick chicken burger that totally satisfied my craving. Sometimes I wonder which is better, KFC's Zinger or this. I need to do a comparison next time. This was super greasy and hot that I had 2 cups of tea to wash all that down. After which I proceeded to collect my mooncake. :o)

Its mine!!!!

Dinner at Sushi Tei, Raffles City

2009-09-23T13:56:00.008+08:00

I had dinner with Zobo at Sushi Tei after not meeting up for 2 years. I was pretty intrigued by the fact that they have otoros in their menu and even much so after finding out that its $28.

The obligatory group shot

Close up

Solo

Otoro was surprisingly good. Soft and oily. It left me with glossy lips. What was even more surprising was that my gf is not interested in the otoro so I ate them all. *pats belly*

Chawanmushi with loads of ikura (salmon roe)

Tastes like how it looks. Not bad.

Minced Squid Tempura

This was ok only. Not very good.

Garlic Fried rice

Any fried rice is good for me.

Some Japanese Steamboat thing with salmon belly and other fatty fish.

This was seriously too much for 2 but we just indulged and finished them all. This was the result of not meeting up for 2 years. I tried Sushi Tei at Paragon last night and I didn't like it. I suppose this was one of the better branches around.

Banana Cream Pie from PS. Cafe Paragon

2009-09-23T13:39:00.005+08:00

Finally, the settings for blogger has straightened out and I'm able to post again! After almost 2 months of hiatus, I have kept a lot of pictures and realised that I have eaten a lot. Totally forgot my "promise" to eat healthy but have no fear because I do not feel any guilt for eating more. *snigger*

First up is the Banana Cream Pie from PS. Cafe Paragon. This is one hell load of whipped cream. I think to myself why is the cream tasteless? Is it a fat free whipped cream? It does not taste sweet nor salty. Much less creamy. And they do charge a buck for extra cream so please ration them if you are a whipped cream freak.

Then the freshly cut bananas taste....like how it should be. Then followed by the caramel on top of the pie crust. This is the part where I think to myself again that this stuff is too sweet and I could make it at home. The caramel has done it for me. Overdosed on sugar because we had a key lime pie together with this. I should skip sugary stuff for the week.

Year Uno

2009-07-25T11:20:00.002+08:00

I thought of going fancy for the title of this post because, after all, it is my first year anniversary of (almost) nonstop eating and blogging. On this note, I have celebrated by baking cheese muffins that did not make it to this screen as it was quite the star of its own. Looking back on the past 365 days, I have tried to bake, cook, style my food, taking pictures in artistic manner (or so I thought), ate at all possible places, put on some weight, trying to lose some and struggling with all the problems that Blogger had come up with.

It is like a cycle. Think of a place to eat. Proceed. Food arrives. Take pictures. Eat and think. Retrieve pictures on PC. Blog. Publish. Repeat.

I did all these with the intentions of making this my online food diary with nice photos and background. I thank all the readers who took the time to come to this page and make recommendations and suggestions. It was much appreciated by me and I wish I can continue to entertain you with more recipes and food photos.

On a side note, I am contemplating on changing my blog template or another platform. Your advise is greatly welcomed. Till next time.

Beehoon with salmon and egg

2009-07-17T16:04:00.002+08:00

My mom cooks awesome tze char style beehoons and I was lucky to have them for dinner! It had over easy eggs, vegetables and salmon fillets that was so tender that I suspected it was a salmon belly. I think I had 2 servings of beehoon minus the egg and salmon :o(

Pulut Hitam (Black Glutinous Rice Dessert)

2009-07-17T15:52:00.007+08:00

I'd like to think of this as a Chinese styled rice pudding. My mom cooked this gorgeous dessert and let me bring it to work. The most common way of eating this is drizzling thick coconut milk which has a little salt added to it. It brings out the contrast of the sweetness in the dessert and hence makes it very palatable. My mom's version has fresh milk and condensed milk added to it. Very satisfying. ;oP

Millet, Brown Rice & Nut Salad

2009-07-13T14:18:00.004+08:00

I decided to get this from Cedele as I had no mood at all to eat anything else. It was tasty with a lot of bites from the millet and walnuts. The taste was pleasant but not for all because of the coriander/cilantro that was added. Otherwise, this small bowl is pretty filling for its size.

My Scones

2009-07-08T17:37:00.005+08:00

Haha...and I finally managed to do it properly this time! I baked scones and it tasted nice and fluffy unlike the other times. I did manage to adapt from this recipe but I added raisins instead of cheddar and forgot to add sugar! But all was good and I think I will make this again.

Raisin Scones:
100g butter
2 cups plain flour
pinch of salt
1 Tablespoon baking powder
1 cup milk (leave some for glaze)
1 Packet of raisins

Bake them for 10-15mins at 230deg. Enjoy them with clotted cream/butter/jam/plain!

Jollibean's Green Tea Azuki Blend

2009-07-08T17:28:00.005+08:00

Thankfully through her recommendation, I finally managed to try the green tea azuki blend. 2 thumbs up for this! I seldom take cold drinks but it was calling out to me when I was just standing near Paragon's Jollibean outlet. I like the mild green tea flavour in the milky soya milk. I like the mushy red beans. Mmm....I like this! >.<

Banana Cake Again!

2009-07-01T16:51:00.013+08:00

I baked them the week before the last. I baked them again last week. 2 consecutive weeks of banana cake baking. There is a slight difference hence this post.

So following last week's recipe, instead of 3 bananas, I made it with 4 bananas with no changes being made to the rest of the ingredients. 2 bananas for mashing into the cake batter and the other two were sliced and placed in between and on top of the cake. As you can see, this cake looked more browned.

The insides of the cake does not look like a banana cake at this point as there were no black speckles, aka seeds of banana, and the texture is like a sponge cake with sliced bananas. They were so shy that they only appeared the following morning.

Rejoice! It is a banana cake after all. They can be eaten warm or cold and tastes best on the 2nd day after and I like this one better than the previous one.

Cinnamon melts from McD's

2009-07-01T16:26:00.003+08:00

I walked past McD's and saw that they have this "new" item on their menu available. I wonder if its as good as the photoshopped photo. Dr Google helped me to find out that they were actually launched in other countries in 2007. Hmmm....

Banana Cake

2009-06-23T13:25:00.004+08:00

This time round, I have decided to make a simple banana cake. I have put in much less sugar comparatively to my past attempts. Recipe and method are the same as the previous times. Adaptation from Exclusively Food.

Banana Cake:
125g butter, softened
50g raw sugar
3 large ripe bananas (reserve 1 for decorating)
2 eggs
100ml buttermilk
225g plain flour 1 teaspoon of baking powder
1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

Notes:

The original recipe calls for 330g of sugar and because I thought of trying something with much lower sugar content so I just added 50g of raw sugar. I did not have self-raising flour on hand so I just adjusted that part.

The cake batter turned out a bit dry and I think I poured out about 50ml more of the buttermilk to mix in the batter.

Pour half of the cake batter in the cake tin and spread evenly. Place sliced bananas and then top up the rest of the batter and place in more sliced bananas. I could do with more bananas in future as the banana taste was not very strong.

This cake was baked for about 40mins but the top part seemed pale looking. I deduced that the reason could be due to the lesser sugar content. I adjusted the oven a bit so that the top part can be browned.

The taste was just nice. The feedback given was that one could take 2 slices and not feel overloaded with sugar and grease. Success is mine! ;op

Banana cake innards

Foods that I eat at work

2009-06-22T17:48:00.004+08:00

Portobello, tomatoes, french beans and couscous

Asparagus, button mushrooms, tomatoes, couscous

Pumpkins, asparagus, mushrooms, tomatoes and bread rolls

Oatmeal with cashews and maple syrup

Varieties for my lunches at work and no I am not really a vegetarian. :o)

Dessert at Kyoto Sabo AJITEI 京都茶房味亭 (Takashimaya)

2009-06-19T12:32:00.004+08:00

I always look at the displays for their desserts and finally gotten one myself. This is their green tea parfait. I like this dessert quite a bit. I noted some bacon dish that they kept serving up to other diners. I could try that the next time.

I have been eating...

2009-06-19T12:27:00.003+08:00

...mostly mushrooms. Swiss brown, white buttons, portobello and even canned ones. I bought asparagus, broccoli, eggplant and tried to make my packed lunches as healthy and interesting as possible. Next week I'm going to get more avocadoes, lettuce and make more sandwiches as I just bought a can of herring in brine.

Brunch

2009-06-11T13:08:00.005+08:00

I wanna make pancakes, because they are so very tasty...

It has been a while since I made brunch and on this day I had a competent assistant that actually made most of the food whereas I merely gave out instructions and made creamy scrambled eggs and pancakes. Because they are so very tasty. Lol.

Brunch menu:
Boiled asparagus
Bacon
Mushrooms
English sausages
Pancakes
Creamy scrambles

It doesn't sound much but its actually loads of work if its all done by one. Like I said, the competent assistant had done most of the work. Asparagus are being boiled in water. Sausages, bacon and mushrooms are being cooked in the same pan in order respectively.

I have adapted another pancake recipe from here today. This tastes pretty nice. Maybe I could make it with buttermilk next time.

The scrambles were too creamy for some so I'll make some sunny side ups in future or I can make the scrambles less creamy. I added pure cream and butter to the scrambles.

I couldn't do an artistic shot or pour maple syrup over with loads of butter or pepper the scrambles because I was hot and flustered with all the cooking. My hands were greasy. Stomachs were growling. So I just did an obligatory shot but I'll make sure next time I'll do a better shot.

Couscous lunches

2009-06-02T14:09:00.005+08:00

Greek yogurt is optional but I prefer it with yogurt.

For a few weeks I have been sticking to the couscous lunches because they are easy to prepare. This is one of my favourite combi: Couscous with seaweed furikake, some tuna in olive oil, tomatoes and Greek yogurt {optional}.

Porta Porta - Stanley Street

2009-05-29T13:35:00.009+08:00

You could miss this place if you turned into the wrong street.

Wanting to do an alfresco this time round seemed almost an impossible task as we were bombed by the loud drills coming from a construction site opposite, coercing us to retreat back in the restaurant. We saw another table do the same before deciding to follow suit. This was my second time returning this branch and I must say that my tummy and I were the most happy when the meal ended.

The bread and the olive tapenade (i guess) did just the thing that they were supposed to do. Fill our tummies and boosted our appetite for what's going to follow next.

Calamari Fritti (above) & Fish Soup (Right)

Calamari seemed like a good choice because we had a tasting of it the last time. It came with 2 additional prawns. This has got to be the thinnest battered calamari. No kidding. The batter is just a mere thin case of crispy batter and this batter has got to be the tastiest of all of those (calamari fritti) that I have tasted. Not that I tried a lot. The tentacles were just pure pleasure as I sinked in my teeth in one of those babies. This made me smiled a lot and I can't wait for more food to come. Fish soup was good but in a way, it didn't come across as full bodied as the one I had at the Changi branch. Savoury and not overwhelmed by the tomatoes, this was one heck of a fish soup.

Finally, the pasta! The prawn penne with cream tomato sauce did it for me. Although it was a tad al dente, the cream sauce and the fresh prawns were so good that I did not think about anything else (except the calamari).

Stuffed tortellini with beef sauce.

The assumption that it would be a tomato based pasta proved to be correct except that it was not how I had envisioned it to be. There were plenty of minced beef and a smidgen of tomato sauce. I think the tortellinis was stuffed with cheese. I would come back for this dish too.

Although their tiramisu was not the best, I like them because it is very simple and palatable. Not too fanciful and something sweet to end the wonderful dinner is always a plus.

I would come back again for 2 main reasons. One is for the food. The other is of course the ever charming Italian server/owner who speaks like a Singaporean. ;oP

Fried Rice

2009-05-22T16:25:00.004+08:00

This time, it is all mine! Mom cooked fried rice with preserved meat for me with a side of egg with runny yolk. Every mouth was filled with chunks of juicy lup cheong. The egg yolk just made this whole dish heavenly.

What I had for lunches...

2009-05-22T15:24:00.005+08:00

Aloha! It has been sometime for a real post for what I had eaten for lunch. I forgot to take pictures for some of them and I promise to do a real documentation of what I am eating in future. These are quite random pictures.

What you didn't see:

coffee and sugarless soybean milk (Unisoy)
instant oatmeal porridge
things like miso soup from those miso paste sachets I got from Isetan Scotts.
tofu with french beans and tomato miso soup
salmon belly sashimi with scallions, lemon juice and XO sauce
baked fat free Koka instant noodles with XO sauce (thanks a lot Alice!) and squeeze of lemon
hard boiled egg with tomato sandwiches
Fruits like apples, papaya, watermelon

Mini portobellos with scallions and XO sauce.

These were excellent. The XO sauce has lots of scallops which helped in the flavouring and olive oil as the healthy fat in my diet did help in making the salad tasty. This warm mushroom salad is light on the palate and will definitely make you want to eat more.

Tuna salad with Couscous and sides of tomato with scallions and XO sauce

For the tuna, I had chopped up some red onions and mixed some pepper. The tomatoes were firm and juicy. Paired with couscous and tuna salad...mmm...my mouth waters...

Tuna, yogurt & chives with couscous

After you mix them up...

Yes...repeated ingredients are being used here but this was the best that I could manage. I used Greek yogurt here. A note to myself: next time use less chives. You can top this up with cashew nuts and it will be a filling and healthy lunch.

Cashew nuts and lemon for my water

These are my afternoon snacks. Do you know that a cut up lemon is a natural way of deodorising your space? Yes...my office space smells divine...

Until next time....

Pasta Brava

2009-05-05T16:59:00.008+08:00

Updating some overdue entries. I remembered wanting to return at the end of the meal so it meant that the meal was enjoyable. Not entirely so but I'll get back on that. I like this ambience of this place. Reminds me of Porta Porta. We got a starter to share, 2 pastas and a dessert.

I wanted the calamari because I have tried better ones and had a strong craving for this dish for some time. In this case, I would prefer Da Mario's version as the batter was tastier. This was also not too bad as the spicy arriabata sauce enhanced the taste of the squids. Luckily, this was not the rubbery chewy type so I enjoyed this quite a bit.

Innards

The ravioli stuffed pumpkin and coated with capsicum cream was brilliantly executed. I could taste the capsicum in the saltish cream and the ravioli was cooked just right. The pumpkin filling was like a delicacy to me because it tasted real (i.e no fillers) and it was sweetish. Making this more like a dessert pasta dish.

The pappardelle with the duckling and mushroom ragout was not too bad with its savoury mushroom sauce and shreds of duck meat. In fact, everything turned out not bad with a generous serving of parmesan cheese. :o)

Finally, on to the dessert which I find it not too good. Maybe because of the description that was stated in the menu. "Mascarpone and ricotta apple pie" have certainly caught my eye but when served, I could not taste or see any cheese element in this dish. The chunky apples were a bonus but they were not sweet at all. It just came very hot. The ice cream came very cold. This yin and yang dessert was not something that I would order again.

Mini crackers with cream cheese

2009-05-05T16:53:00.003+08:00

These are really mini...but they look cute! Because of the cuteness, I wouldn't mind eating them even though the cheese cream tastes sweetish and fake. Lol. ;oP

and counting down...

2009-04-27T17:38:00.002+08:00

...to a cleaner diet for the next 3 months. Good luck to me! I must stay committed because it is only 3 months. Come August, I shall probably resume my normal eating ways...Feel free to give me "warnings". Lol...Universe...give me the strength to resist hamburgers and fries!!!!! And others!!!!

PS: Crys, I shall try my best ok?

Healthy Pasta Lunch

2009-04-25T11:11:00.001+08:00

I think I spent a total of 20mins cooking lunch. This is a simple and easy lunch that I came up with. The truth is, I just want to throw everything in the pot so that I do not have to wash extras. I can proudly say that this is one of my tastier creations. It is worth every effort shopping for the ingredients. Bon appetit!

Chicken Mushroom Avocado Angel Hair Pasta (serves 3)
Chicken Fillets (About 15 fillets in a pack)
1 pack of Swiss brown button mushroom
1 Pack of Thai asparagus
1 Avocado
1 Lemon
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 clove of garlic
4 heaped tablespoons of Greek yogurt (I used Farmer's Union)
3 tablespoons of soy sauce (or less)
1 teaspoon of raw sugar (or sugar)
Angel Hair Pasta enough for 3 servings

Set a pot of water to boil.
While waiting, marinate the chicken fillets with the yogurt. Set aside for later use.

You have to work at a slightly faster speed now.

Chop up the garlic and mix it with the olive oil and soy sauce in a bowl.
Squeeze half a lemon into the garlic mixture.
Cut the asparagus into sections. Cut the mushrooms in quarters.
When the water is boiling, place the pasta into the pot.
Slice the avocado into half and remove the pit and skin.
Cut avocado into cubes. Put aside for later use.
Just before the pasta is cooked, put in the asparagus and when ready, drain them.

For the Sauce:

In the same pot, make sure it is dry, then pour in the garlic mixture.
Put in the mushrooms immediately.
Place the chicken fillet on top together with all the yogurt and let it simmer.
Stir it occasionally and simmer till the chicken is cooked.
Pour the sauce on top of the pasta.
Add in avocado and mix well.
You could squeeze the other half of the lemon into the pasta before serving.

Notes:

You may panic a bit because I did. I nearly cut my thumb off while removing the avocado pit. So do not worry if u have to take a longer time to prepare and cook this. This recipe has a lot of ingredients so you can cut down on the ingredients if you want. It is also quite appetising so depending on your liking, you may wish to cut down on the lemon and soy sauce. I did not cut up the fillets because I like my meat chunky. So do the guys. Happy cooking! ;oP

Bella Pizza at Robertson Quay

2009-04-24T12:50:00.004+08:00

What a pleasant discovery! I gave myself a pat on the back after having dinner here and I thought to myself that I will be back. I will not order the dessert here though.

The starter of mozzarella wrapped with parma ham was a decent put together dish although I hoped that the cheese could be more chilled. It tasted like how it looked. Salty, slightly creamy tasting with refreshing tomatoes.

The star of the dinner was the pasta. Fettucine with Italian sausage and truffles and a touch of cream. It definitely was not a touch of cream here but I do not mind the sauce at all. The sausage was awesome. The black truffles provided a slight nuttish texture and taste to the pasta. One can only hope for more sausages and truffles.

I could not remember which pizza did we order but I think it was suppose to have gorgonzola in it. Although the lack of it made me a little disappointed, the pizza was sufficiently well spread with the other cheese and ham. The crust itself was easy to the bite and I felt that a beer would be great now.

Dessert: Crepes with marscarpone, nutella and bananas did not impress me at all as the crepes had a greasy after taste.

Hamburger Bed

2009-04-22T14:50:00.004+08:00

He sure looks comfortable being part of the Hamburger. Lol...I find this funny rather than freaky. Maybe they should 'upsize' this burger and double the patty.

Clodhoppers

2009-04-22T14:06:00.003+08:00

This is a dark chocolate fudge flavour which I thought was not too bad because the graham wafer clusters tasted like butterscotch. I had this for lunch, tea break and almost for dinner. This stuff is highly addictive so I would suggest you either get a small pack, or share it with like 10 people at a go. I thought the white chocolate ones are pretty good too.

Pork Rib Noodles & My Genie Mini Soon Kuehs

2009-04-22T13:47:00.004+08:00

Quiet dinner at Whampoa Market. The prawn noodle stall is just next to Uncle Sim's. I ordered the pork ribs kway tiao because it looked good. Robust broth with garlic and pork rib flavour. For $4.50 a bowl, I had 4 meaty ribs which were pretty enjoyable because of the garlicky and braised flavour. Excuse me for the lack of vocabulary to describe this. It was decent but I just wished that the flavour was made stronger.

It comes in 5s.

This mini soon kuehs were a disappointment. The unusual shape of this soon kueh had a knot of skin which was dry and chewy. The fillings does not taste like the usual soon kuehs that I have. I have tasted enough soon kuehs to differentiate the better ones from the lousy ones.

This belonged to the latter.

Aesthetically pleasing but disappointing on the whole. I probably will not buy them again.

Burmese Sweets

2009-04-15T11:21:00.005+08:00

This semolina pudding was firm to the bite but it is highly addictive because of this. I like the texture of semolina and this particular sweet has got me interested because of three main reasons.

1. It is made of semolina.
2. It has a coconut flavour which reminds me of nonya kuehs.
3. The topping of poppy seeds has upped the interesting texture factor.

Salmon Bak Kwa

2009-04-15T10:49:00.004+08:00

I saw them at NTUC last night. It was round and reddish in colour and vacuumed pack. I wonder if it tastes nice. Or maybe it is like beef jerky? If you have tried it before, maybe you can let me know what it tastes like. Sweet fish? Hmmm.....

Salmon Belly Fried Rice

2009-04-06T16:39:00.003+08:00

Take 1

Take 2

Final take before all is gone!

My mom is a good cook. Its true. I love any of her fried rice dishes. This is one of the rare occasions where she asked me to take a photo of her fried rice. It looks good. It smelt great. Most importantly, it tasted delicious! Just wished that it was mine.

Back at Zac's

2009-04-06T16:20:00.007+08:00

Camwhoring begins! My Laziza!!

Oxtail Stew

Mixed Sausage Platter - Can be better

Mixed grill platter - Was my favourite!

Look at the meats!!!

Hummus

Hummus closeup

Little did I know that the revisit would be so soon. It was a very hot day. So hot that we had 4 Lazizas. I like this sparkling fruity malt drink. It did quench some of the thirst. I think.

I think of all the dishes, I like that lone piece of lamb the best! It was well done however, the meat was tender with enough fats to make you feel greasy but I was not in the mood to be too conscious about it. I think it just made me want to come back again for their lamb dishes!

Dinner at Borders Cafe

2009-04-02T14:06:00.004+08:00

I remembered a few year back when I came here with Gab and she was recommending the mushroom pappardelle and I loved it! So a while back I was back at Borders so I decided to give it another shot. After a good sprinkling of chilli flakes, this was good to eat. So good that I feel like having another serving. This was shared between 2 so it was not that heavy. Love the cheesy, creamy mushrooms. We tried the Waldorf salad and I must say that the ones at Cedele taste better.

Laphet Thot (Pickled Tea leaves Salad)

2009-04-01T12:35:00.004+08:00

This is an interesting salad and an acquired tastebud is required as I feel it may not appeal to the more conservative(boring) ones. I like this.

A little crispy, a little nuttish in taste and texture, a little sourish and saltish. I think it has crispy chickpeas, tomatoes, tea leaves and some other stuff that I can't be really bothered to identify. This makes a good appetizer or TV snack as you can nibble all you want and still feel like you can eat a cow later. This is true for me.

I forgot how many servings did I have. I only know the accompanying floral tea makes this more appetising. More! More!!

Laphet (Pickled Tea leaves) Thot (Salad)

Ohn No Kaung Swe (Burmese Laksa)

2009-04-01T12:17:00.002+08:00

My first taste of this wonderful dish was last year at the wedding. Although it was a hot day, this was so addictive that I had 3 servings of it. I was sweating through my makeup and pretty blouse but I didn't care.

Crystal's version of this wonderful Burmese laksa has prompted me to drink more of the soup. She used a low fat version of the coconut milk and I added all the condiments provided to up the hotness of this dish. I liked the fish sauce and the chilli flakes a lot.

Thanks for cooking again!!

Chocolate Rice Banana Muffin

2009-03-27T13:33:00.005+08:00

Sort of.

I kinda made up the recipe myself and realised its a tad too sweet. I didn't know what I was doing so i sliced a banana and slipped a slice in the centre. The muffin turned out to be interesting. The top part was slightly crusty and chocolaty and the centre was soft with mushy banana.

I think I had 3 of these yummy treats.

Chocolate Rice Banana Muffin
2 cups self raising flour
100g butter, cubed
2 eggs
1/2 cup raw sugar
1/2 cup milk(or less, depending on mixture)
1 teaspoon baking powder
chocolate rice for topping
1 banana, sliced
1/2 tsp salt

Preheat oven to 180 deg.
Sift the flour and baking powder. Set aside.
Beat the 2 eggs and raw sugar. Set aside for later use.
Rub in the butter into the flour until it becomes crumbly buttery mixture.
Pour in the egg mixture to the flour.
With a light hand, use a fork to gently mix them together.
Stir in milk until it all comes together and just combined like a muffin mix.
DO NOT OVERMIX.
Spoon a little batter in the cupcake liner or aluminium case.
Place a slice of banana and cover the banana with more batter until full.
Sprinkle chocolate rice on top
Bake them for about 15-20mins.

Sausage McGriddles set

2009-03-25T10:25:00.004+08:00

After reading this recommendation and hearing that the coffee has indeed improved, I went down today and had the Sausage McGriddles set. This McGriddles does not come with any cheese or egg but the sausage patty seemed visibly thicker. Tasty stuff. I still think the hashbrown/potato sides at Carl's Junior is better.

For this "premium" brewed coffee, the smell and taste seemed to be better than the last time. It has more fragrance, and the brew itself seemed just 20% thicker than previous times.

Not bad.

I just wished that they would provided recyclable paper cups well insulated instead of styrofoam cups.

Indulge Patisserie

2009-03-24T13:42:00.004+08:00

Located at 722 North Bridge Road, which is pretty near Zac's, Anna bought 2 cute looking mousse like dessert. They basically taste the same but were too sweet for me. Its some hazelnut and chocolate like soft cake with mousse and some other unidentifiable stuff. It is OK for me.

Zac's @ 17 Jalan Pinang

2009-03-24T13:08:00.007+08:00

Pari Pari Chicken

This dish certainly reminded me of the Peri Peri Chicken I had at Nandos, KL. It does not come with any sauces, not that it was necessary. The spices provides a kick to anyone who likes hot and spicy food. It grows on you and before you know it, you will start to use your fingers to ensure every part of the chicken is not spared. I loved the accompanying salad and Arabic bread.

This is yummy!

Samosa with minced beef and potato

The curry puff like skin gave way to a tightly packed minced beef and potato. This samosa is quite different from other generic ones and is worth a try.

Harissa (Yemeni's Favorite)

It contains whole meal wheat, lamb and spices cooked and simmered into a paste with a choice of olive oil or honey. Obviously, we chose the olive oil. But beware of this bland sticky paste if you are not into this. I would order hummus the next time as this does not taste savoury nor sweet. It just taste like sticky fake lamb. You savvy?

Prices here are quite affordable and the food here tastes decent which also means that I'll be back for more! The lamb dishes and the shish kebabs have all caught my eyes but, there is only one stomach space. Burp!

Would you eat this?

2009-03-18T18:43:00.005+08:00

This is a regular ham and cheese sandwich topped with 11 sunny-side up egg yolks.

Looks insanely good. But I doubt that I can finish one of this sandwich myself. Found this website by accident so I thought of sharing this. You could submit your own pictures like certain visual food community. I actually find some of the pictures mouth watering. ;oP

Dinner at Al-Ameen Eating House (Bukit Timah)

2009-03-18T12:11:00.003+08:00

Thank you for the treat Zac! This bee hoon soto is not too bad. The soup is spicy and the taste is just right for me. There is nothing much I can say except that I will order it again.

Ayam Penyet (Crushed/Hammered Chicken). This is something I will look forward to everytime I come back again. It is simply delicious. Tender chicken, crispy skin with nice chilli at the bottom. Yum.

These steamed cockles were sweet. Burp! Now I'm full.

Soba Lunch

2009-03-17T11:12:00.004+08:00

Yep, I am back in action. Bringing my lunch to work. Thought I would show a couple of pictures. Some weeks back when there were those super hot days, I made some cold soba. These were good stuff.

Vietnamese Coffee

2009-03-17T11:01:00.004+08:00

Had one of the coffee filer gadgets from Vietnam some time ago. Due to the fact that I had ran out of Nescafe, my mom opened a pack of ground coffee, Trung Ngyuen (something like that), a Vietnam home brand. I think this was like my 5th time brewing this so I thought of taking some photos to show. The fragrance of this Vietnam coffee is somehow a little different than the gourmet ones and kopitiam ones. I made mine strong with milk and sugar and so I enjoyed this quite a bit. Maybe I can use other types of ground coffee. This filter is not too bad. ;oP

Turkish Coffee

2009-03-14T17:58:00.006+08:00

Crystal's Turkish Coffee to be exact. This cute Turkish coffee pot was a gift from her aunt and after a lovely lunch, we had coffee to complete this lazy, rainy afternoon.

My dear friend had not intended to pose in this picture but I was quick to snap everything that she was doing.

In case you were wondering, the white stuff on the plate are Turkish Delights. Pop one into your mouth, chew it, then sip into the coffee, then swallow. Not the most brilliant description but this will stop anyone from adding sugar to this mildly fragrant brew.

Not bad I would say, as this is the only way I would have my coffee straight. But i had it with sugar, not with the delights. Thank you Crys!

Pouring cup no.2

Still shot

Coffee Place

2009-03-03T14:04:00.002+08:00

Any recommendations for nice cafes or coffee places apart from Starbucks? No Coffee Bean for me. I like my coffee strong and fragrant. With milk of course. It can be a fresh brew with milk (Canele) or it can be a latte with extra shot of espresso and it would be the best if the coffee is cheap and good. Any place?

Earl Grey Steak at Essential Brew

2009-03-03T13:16:00.004+08:00

This steak tasted like a chicken thigh meat which was sinewy at parts. The Earl Grey Sauce did help a bit though I am not sure if I want to go back there to have this again. Maybe next time I could try Fosters.

Beef Laksa at AMK

2009-03-02T17:56:00.003+08:00

Beef Laksa

Mixed Tendon/Tripe Beef Kway Tiao Soup

I had this for lunch today. So much for healthy eating huh. Lol. I enjoyed myself a lot! This beef laksa is one damn of a good thing. Pardon the swear but I think I like this more than the regular laksa now.

They have the tastiest beef balls around and I actually had another beef ball soup after these 2 bowls of heaven. The tendons, tripes and beef are tender and packs the beefy-ness that I was looking for in a beef noodle. The laksa gravy was not as viscous but it didn't matter because I could drink it up as a soup.

I would travel to this place, no matter how far and sweaty the journey is. This place closes on Tuesdays and opens from 7.30am - 3pm only.

Mua Chee at Xin Wang, Anchorpoint

2009-02-25T14:14:00.004+08:00

I could finish this by myself. So can you. The sugared peanut mixture is quite fragrant but the mua chee itself is quite the star in this dish. Resembling like a tang yuan, this chewy glutinous rice ball does not stick to your teeth and has no fillings. I just want to go to pasar malams and buy mua chees to eat. Why are they increasing their price huh?

Pannacotta from Pizza Pazza

2009-02-23T17:28:00.005+08:00

This is a great recommendation by Gab who is a dear friend of mine and has similar tastebuds as me. This ultra smooth and palate pleasing dessert costs less than S$3 (i forgot how much) and can be found at Anchorpoint foodcourt.

This stall by the name of Pizza Pazza sells the usual Italian fare of localized pizzas and pastas to suit the general tastebuds. This pannacotta, however, was pretty impressive and just makes me wanna eat them 3 servings in a row.

Yummy!!!!

update on 25 Feb 2009
Went there again today. Pannacotta price is S$1.80.

Swirl Gelateria at Crown Centre

2009-02-17T17:37:00.005+08:00

I wouldn't mind seconds. I mean, another set of six flavoured gelatos. It actually incurred in me that this could be just another gelateria in this neighbourhood. Gab recommended trying these gelatos in a sampler shot glass servings so that the 3 of us can try more. I really can't recall what flavours were there but I think the durian is absolutely flavourful. There was a chendol flavour which I liked a lot. These shot glasses pack quite a bit of gelato so do remember to share them.

Board games are available here so we gals just took a shot at Scrabble. Made the whole experience even more fun. :o)

A little update

2009-02-17T17:31:00.003+08:00

The first picture shows what I had for one of the packed lunches. Pesto with scallions angel hair. Seems like I seldom bring or eat meat when I pack my lunches. These are easier to clean.

My Packed Lunch

2009-02-12T13:38:00.004+08:00

Cheddar cheese sandwich

Lunch box

I had a few considerations when packing my lunch to work. It must be fuss free aka easy to bring and wash. It must be tasty. It must look interesting.

I had prepared all these the night before and kept them refrigerated until I went off to work the next morning. The cheese sandwich was nice and cold and good to eat for breakfast or brunch or as a snack. In my lunch box, I had angel hair pasta, romaine lettuce, strawberry, seaweed and a biscuit. The bottle of pesto that I kept in the office came pretty useful.

As I had no microwave or any other way of cooking my lunch at work, I just boiled some water and used it to scald my pasta and lettuce. Drain the pasta, and toss in the pesto. Occasionally I would bring some lime and give it a good squeeze so that the pasta tastes good. Tear up some seaweed into the pasta and lunch is served!

Easy peasy.

The strawberry and biscuits are just snacks to munch on when I am hungry. I have tea and coffee to help out in case I feel hungry. But, I did not feel hungry and in fact, I feel much better to have lunch at work.

Any great lunch ideas anyone? Healthy and fuss free ones? Unhealthy and fuss free ones?

Random eats

2009-01-23T12:34:00.008+08:00

Cereal killer...with Meiji fresh milk {office brekkie}

Kopi Si {Toast Box}

Blurred pic of cauliflower gratin that I made

Teh Si. Model from Texas posing. {Toast Box}

Maggie Goreng {Al Ameen}

Chocolate cake that tasted like a bar. Too much cocoa. Sick after this.

Steak, medium rare. {Buddy Hoagies}

Chappati from KL kopitiam

Herbed Fish {Manhanttan Fish Market - KL}

Seafood Platter {Manhanttan Fish Market - KL}

Lemon & Herb Chicken {Nandos - KL}

Chicken chop from One Utama, KL

Chicken Adobo from One Utama, KL

Blueberry ball Toast {Old Town White Coffee, JB}

Meat craving {Carnivore}

Silly orange muffin that did not work out at all.

Scrumptious Noodles! {Circular Sumptous Square}

Half a duck. All mine!

I'll just post pictures of what I have eaten so far... In a bid to pack my own lunch and eat better food, I will post my pictures of packed lunches/breakfasts whenever I can.

Bacon Swiss Crispy Chicken Burger

2009-01-20T14:42:00.003+08:00

Mmm...

Real Bacon...

Reach out and touch me!

What a long name to a delicious looking photoshopped burger. Wanted to try something new at Carl's Jr so I got this chicken burger instead of the usual beef ones.

Turned out to be average but at least it shows promise of becoming a great chicken burger because of the real bacon that was used. The crispy chicken patty just needs to be thicker, less salty and remain the same size. This burger is sure big.

Pardon the blur pictures as my hands were shaking with excitement and I can't wait to sink my teeth into one of these babies. The fries were good. They had jalapenos, salsa and a tomato pepper sauce that you can take from their sauce counter. Good stuff.

I left with a smile on my face and a discovery of a cheese sauce that they might have as I spied on another table. What's with the "civilized" fork and knife eating of a burger and fries that I spotted on yet another table? Geez..

Curry Rice at Yoshoku

2009-01-16T12:51:00.004+08:00

Chicken Tonkatsu Curry Rice. No good.

Baked Mentaiko Scallops. Scallops were thin silvers of some seafood.

Unimpressive at all. Decided to have dinner at Serene Centre. We picked Yoshoku because of the tempting pictures of the Curry Rice. Service was spotty. No, I should say that it was no good. Experienced staff or even "owner" of the restaurant did not provide the most basic item in the restaurant.

Utensils.

Yes, after 10mins of staring at our food when it arrived, the utensils were not on our table and they seemed short handed. No one noticed anything wrong until we wanted to get a friend to help us get the fork and spoon. As expected, the food just tastes like how it looks. Requests for extra servings of curry were rejected with a mere excuse of how their curry comes in packets so one packet per serving. I think I could cook better than this.

...

2009-01-16T12:46:00.002+08:00

I brought and packed my lunch and snacks for the week. Something that I ought to do for the longest time.

Eggs & Tomatoes

2009-01-10T11:22:00.004+08:00

I was trying to eat well so I cooked a sunny side up and one tomato. A few drops of soya sauce and pepper and this was ready to go into my tummy. It tasted great and I was quite full until some 3 hours later.

X'mas Dinner at Ikea

2009-01-05T17:25:00.004+08:00

This dinner was on the actual day of Christmas. Who would have knew that it was a trend to celebrate at a furniture store cafe? The place was packed with many hungry diners including us but we were lucky to get seats within 10mins of wait. The couple that cleared their table for us was cheery enough to greet us with a "Merry X'mas!" Aww...how nice of them.

Mmmeatballs....

aka Fried Devil's Horns

The usual suspects like the meatballs and chicken wings made their way to our table. Meatballs with jam have never tasted this good even though it is mass produced. The chicken wings were even better. The Daim cake/pie looks like a Ferraro Rocher but somehow it tasted a tad too sweet for me.

This newly revamped place looks more spacious and have more seats, which is a good thing and what surprised me was the signs everywhere asking diners to clear their tables after they are done. What surprised me even more were the obliging diners doing the deed which you could never find them doing at foodcourts or fastfood restaurants. Hmm...I wonder...

X'mas Dinner at Curry Favor

2009-01-05T17:06:00.006+08:00

Just 2 days away from Christmas, we decided to have our dinner treat at Curry Favor, Stamford House Branch.

The initial order of a Beef & Mushroom Curry, Crispy Chicken Chop and a side of Fish with cheese did not fill us up surprisingly. The portions were generous and yet the 3 of us were toying with the idea of having steak at Hog's Breath! Well, most of the idea were from me & Gab.

Meaty ideas aside, we finally settled for another order of Mushroom Curry so that Anna could be spared from the steak. Company was great, food was excellent and the weather was cool. What more could I ask for? :o)

My favourite Mushroom Curry!

Care Bears Marshmallow Pops!

2008-12-26T13:18:00.004+08:00

Care to have one? This was from the Netherlands, courtesy of Eileen. I cannot imagine eating these adorable looking bears without filling guilty.

I have translated the instructions from Dutch to English: You can start by chewing from ears, followed by the head, then the belly, then the arms/paw.... argh!!!! Once you finished the whole bear, your body can almost feel the sugar overloading on all your senses! Everything you hear or speak now is in Care Bear language. Care Bear Stare!!

Lol. Merry X'mas to all! ;op

Savoury Cheese Muffins

2008-12-19T15:30:00.006+08:00

I am jumping for joy as I took the muffins out from the tray last night. This was my first attempt in baking something savoury and I must say I like the smell, taste and looks of it. Gab did not want any sweet bakes anymore because I told her that I wanted to try out olive oil brownies. I thought of a cheese muffin immediately and I really cannot remember the source of recipe.

I have added a few things to the muffin batter and initially wanted to name this as the Cheese & Chives muffin but after much consideration, I think this generic name suits it better as I may just change a few ingredients in the future.

Savoury Cheese Muffins
2 cups self raising flour
2 eggs
1 cup fresh milk
1 cup grated cheddar cheese*
1/4 cup olive oil
1 level tbsp raw sugar
bunch of chives*
chilli flakes*
1/2 tsp salt

Preheat oven to 180 deg.
Sift the flour and set aside.
I used Kraft's Cheddar Cheese and grated them to a little more than a cup.
Set some grated cheese aside for use later on top of the muffins.
Mix flour, grated cheese, chilli flakes in a bowl.
Beat 2 eggs, raw sugar with a fork until it bubbles.
Stir in the olive oil, followed by the milk and chives.
Make a well in the flour mixture and pour the egg mix into the well.
Use a fork and stir everything until it is just combined. DO NOT OVERMIX.
Line the muffin pan with cupcake liners and spoon until it is 2/3 full.
Bake them for about 15-20mins.

Garlic mustard sauce
1 clove of garlic minced
1 tsp of English mustard sauce (I used Coleman's)
1 tbsp of olive oil
1 tbsp of lemon juice
3 tbsp of mayonnaise

Mix them well and you get this wonderful sauce!

Notes:

I made about 11 muffins. You can get 12 or more if the mixture in each cup is lesser or the liner is smaller.
*You can substitute the ingredients with other alternatives like stronger cheeses, or replace the chives with scallions or chilli flakes with paprika.*
The sauce can give you dragon's breath because of the raw garlic but it is absolutely delicious!
This muffin is not very cheesy so it is suitable for many people.
The tangy sauce can actually make you eat more than one muffin at a go.
You could use them as a side dish.
Thanks Gab & Anna!!! For simply everything!!!

Light, golden fluffy goodness!!

Fish & Co

2008-12-19T15:00:00.000+08:00

I ordered the usual Garlic Butter Mussels. It came with a herby foccacia for dipping into the wonderful sauce. I remembered it came with plain bread and we could ask for more if we wanted to but I think it has changed for the past few years. I still think having a plain bread with the garlic butter sauce would taste better.

Oh, did you know? I am a raw garlic convert now. Slowly picking up. Heheh...It makes me have dragon breath but I am slowly appreciating the need for raw garlic at meals. I feel like a middle age uncle wearing gold chains and eating raw garlic. Lol...

The calamari was not bad. I think it is still a little different from Italian restaurants (duh!) and I prefer da Mario or Porta Porta's version.

Dinner set at Ohsho, Cuppage Plaza

2008-12-18T11:10:00.000+08:00

Order this if you are really very hungry. This value for money set (S$16) could be easily shared among 2-3 small eaters. It comes with a plate of gyozas and a bowl of watered down soup. This set has fried rice which I absolutely like a lot, omelette, stir fried pork, coleslaw, croquette and ebi fry. Yum....I almost could not move away from the seat after dinner.

Note to self: Remind them not to put ketchup on the egg because it does not match.

House of Tau Sar Piah, 603 Balestier Road

2008-12-17T11:16:00.000+08:00

One day I spotted a box filled with tau sar piah and decided to sneak one out for tasting. It looked bigger than the usual tau sar piah so I thought I would eat half first. Before I realise what was happening, I found myself picking up the crumbs on the tissue that I was eating from. Yes, I finished the salty pastry.

I liked the slight warm and crispy crust, the salty and sweet mung bean (tau sar) filling and the box. Lol. I'm a sucker for nice packaging. It costs 60cents each and there are other flavours available but I am not tired of this yet so, erm, yeah, not trying other flavours until I am sick.

Mmm....

I need one only...really...

Key Lime Pie from California Pizza Kitchen

2008-12-16T10:29:00.006+08:00

Next!

My last encounter with key lime pie made me very curious to try the version at CPK. I think I still like PS. Cafe's version. This one is too sweet and milky with the pie crust soggy with a strong honey taste which made the whole dessert taste weird.

Where to find nice ones?

Beef Pho at Madam Saigon

2008-12-12T10:59:00.006+08:00

I like their version of beef pho. Since discovering them on Liang Seah Street a few months back, I have gone back and had repeated orders of their pancakes and beef pho.

One turn off this time was their spotty service which made me feel irritated. Most of the time when we were there, coriander was never present in their dishes and we were assured that they do not add coriander in their food but the last time we went back, they had coriander everywhere. I was lucky that I liked coriander enough to finish them off. Someone else was not that lucky as the mere sight of them would just be simply revolting.

The pancake is filled with beansprouts and some slivers of prawns and meat. The appetising tangy sauce is the key to such a tasty combi so this was a must order item everytime we are here.

The beef pho's soup is very tasty and after a good squeeze of lime, I was ready to slurp the whole bowl. ;o) I liked their big bouncy beef balls, onions and tendons. Yum yum...

I am ready to overlook the service and go back there again to try other items on their menu.

X'mas assorted cookies

2008-12-03T16:03:00.006+08:00

Assortment of shortbread cookies!

I have to credit Vanna White first because without any assistance, I would not be able to complete this almost impossible task.

I followed 2 recipes and hence have 2 types of dough. Recipes were taken and adapted from Exclusively Food & Joy of Baking. The only thing that I have substituted for both recipes is the vanilla extract with the organic vanilla pods that I have on hand. Feel free to use either one.

Melting Moments Recipe (Review & Notes):

Dough was pretty soft to work with so I had left them in the fridge for about an hour before working with it. I needed quite a bit of flour to prevent them from sticking.
The oven and baking tray was a little small so I had to bake them in many batches hence the different flavours because I was bored.
Instead of baking at 150 degs, I baked the cookies at 190 degs for 30mins each batch as they did not get cooked after 20mins.
They will not change colour.
They had a milky taste to it and crumbles in your mouth.
I could change the butter to a better quality one the next time.
Flavours: Original & Cinnamon sugar.
My melting moments cookie does not have the lemon icing in between.

Shortbread cookies Recipe (Review & Notes):

Same as above except that this was easier to work with because of more flour.
For the Jam Drop cookie, just use your thumb to make that little "well" for the jam.
The strawberry jam needed was very little so be aware and careful when spooning the jam onto the little "well".
I used the strawberry milk choco bits that I got from Phoon Huat and scattered in the dough.
Can increase the flavours for all the cookies.
Shortbread tastes drier and more crisp.
Flavours: Star Shaped Shortbread, White Chocolate chip cookie, Jam Drop Cookie, Strawberry Milk cookie.
Can keep up to 2 weeks when refrigerated.

I can take orders for up to 3 flavours @ S$13.

Thank you. Cheers!

Bamboo Charcoal Sandwich

2008-12-03T11:49:00.003+08:00

It was as black as the herbal jelly!!! Was on the way back to Singapore when we passed by the popular Lavender Cake Shop. They are quite popular here in Malaysia or JB at least. I spotted a black loaf whilst happily browsing through their bread section. It was panther black. Lol... I wonder does it have a charcoal taste? All the benefits listed in their brochure seemed too good to be true. Do you dare to eat this black bread?

Herbal Jelly at Koong Woh Tong

2008-12-02T12:41:00.003+08:00

Koong Woh Tong Sdn Bhd (恭和堂) is a chinese herbal tea shop which has quite a number of outlets in Malaysia. I tried this at the Genting Highlands outlet. They specialise in Herbal Jelly (Guilinggao) and herbal teas. They are quite popular despite the limited choices. I suppose each of the outlets have similar interior designs like gold coloured pots containing the herbal bitter teas and the big gold container which is actually a steamer in disguise, steaming the herbal jellies. I got the hot herbal jelly to try.

It came with a pot of diluted syrup. For some, they may find the jelly too diluted or watery for their taste. For me, it was perfect as the ultra smooth and wobbly jelly slided through my throat and went straight to my tummy. I liked that the syrup was diluted as I can just pour a lot of it and slurp it straight from the bowl. There was a bitter aftertaste which I did not mind. I could just drink their bitter tea the next time.

Prices: RM8 (small), RM10 (big).

Giant Cupcakes

2008-11-26T12:42:00.004+08:00

Giant cupcakes spotted at Orchard Road. If only they were edible...

Confectionery from Japan

2008-11-24T11:28:00.003+08:00

This was a gift from someone at Japan. I wonder if it tastes good. Flu bug still around so I can only stare at the boxes. There were other snacks like mochi and candies but these 2 sure look interesting.

Have a break, have a Kit Kat.

Caramel Pudding flavoured and limited edition as stated on the box.

Cake Chocolat...

I just stare at them everyday.

Banana Loaf with White Chocolate Chips

2008-11-21T15:05:00.008+08:00

I had some leftover bananas so I decided to bake something small. I got myself those aluminum loaf pans like those for Sara Lee cakes so it was more convenient. You can purchase them at Phoon Huat. This recipe was inspired by my previous effort to make the banana cake.

Banana Loaf with White Chocolate Chips
80g butter
50g sugar
1 egg
2 ripe bananas
50g self raising flour
50g Quaker oatmeal
1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
handful of white chocolate chips
dash of cinnamon powder

Preheat oven to 180 deg.
Cream butter and sugar. Do not panic if they do not cream well.
Add the egg to the butter and continue to blend them.
Add the bananas, reserving about half of the banana for slicing and decorating the loaf. You can pre-mash the bananas before adding them.
The mixture will curdle but will all come together when you add the dry ingredients.
Add oatmeal and the flour and bicarbonate of soda. Do not overmix.
Fold in the white chocolate chips and cinnamon powder.
Pour the batter into the loaf pan and decorate it with the banana slices and some white chocolate chips.
Bake them for about 15-20mins or until it has risen well.

Notes:
The banana loaf's texture is more grainy and crumbly.
I did not have enough flour this time so the oatmeal is replaceable.

Cupcakes: Peanut Buttercream & Maple Buttercream

2008-11-08T11:46:00.008+08:00

This was totally an experiment. The texture for some of the cupcakes were slightly harder than expected but luckily for me, they were still pretty edible after dressing them with flavoured buttercream. Anyone who has good sponge cake recipes, please let me know.

Waiting to be dressed...

Sponge Cupcakes (Makes about 18 small cupcakes)
4 eggs
110g sugar
110g flour
25g melted butter

Preheat oven to 200 deg.
Whisk whole eggs and sugar together until thick batter consistency. The batter should be pale and creamy and coats the whisk when you lift the whisk up. About 10mins.
Fold in the flour and ensure that all are properly mixed.
Add the melted butter and fold in carefully.
Spoon the batter into the cupcake casings until almost full or 2/3 full.
Bake for 8-10mins.
Let the cupcakes cool.

Buttercream
125g butter
80g powdered sugar
1 heaped teaspoon cocoa powder (Optional)

Whip the butter until it is pale and fluffy. Add the powdered sugar and cocoa powder.
The cocoa powder was added to give the buttercream some colour. It did not make any difference to the taste of the buttercream.

Peanut Buttercream
3 tablespoons (or more) creamy peanut butter

Add the peanut butter to HALF of the creamed mixture and continue to whip.

Assembling:
1 orange rind
1 tablespoon orange marmalade mixed with 1 tablespoon of hot water

Brush the marmalade mixture generously on the top of the cupcake.
Pipe the peanut buttercream on top and sprinkle orange rind as garnish.

Maple Buttercream
3 tablespoons maple syrup

Add the maple syrup to the other HALF of the creamed mixture and continue to whip.

Assembling:
White chocolate chips
Strawberry choco flakes
Hundreds & Thousands (Rainbow sprinkles)

Spoon the maple buttercream on top, spread and sprinkle the toppings as garnish.

Shimbashi Soba at Paragon

2008-11-04T14:28:00.002+08:00

Decided to head down to Paragon to have some hot soupy stuff. This is my first time eating at Shimbashi Soba so I have no idea what to order.

I ordered the Yuba & Kinoko Healthy Soba. It had tau pok, tau kee and mushrooms in a warm broth which was soothing for the throat and comforting for the tummy. I find this quite healthy and if I didn't have flu, I would have opted for more interesting sounding dish or would have skipped this place altogether.

Rather average standards as I am not too sure what to look out for. The handmade soba tasted like those that you can buy and cook at home with the exception of the coarser texture which made them more springy. The beef was good. I could finish a bowl of rice with the beef. Maybe its time to head back to Yoshinoya for my beef bowl. :oP

A Wonderful Day...

2008-11-01T13:59:00.001+08:00

Aloe Sun BB Cream from Skin Food

Pear Restaurant No. 1

Nice gesture

1hr to kill before the show

"Simple Jack" - Lol...this was hilarious.

Pear Restaurant No.2

After steak dinner, headed to Fullerton for tea.

What a wonderful day well spent. :o)

Strawberry Crumble

2008-11-01T00:10:00.004+08:00

1st helping

I was inspired to bake something out of the strawberries because I grabbed 2 punnets at S$4.65, which was considered quite affordable. I baked 2 batches using one punnet each time and this has inspired me to consider other filling options like blueberries or apples in future.

Sliced strawberries

Strawberry Crumble:
For the crumble and base
11/4 cup of self raising flour
1/2 cup sugar
125g of cold butter (salted)
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon powder - Optional
5 teaspoons of beaten egg mixture

Strawberry filling
1 punnet of strawberry (250g)
2 teaspoon of cornflour
1/4 cup of sugar

Preheat your oven to 180 deg.
Slice the strawberries and mix the cornflour and sugar and leave them aside for later use.
Put the flour, sugar, cinnamon powder and cubes of cold butter in a bowl.
Use a fork and start mashing the butter in the flour to make it look like breadcrumbs.
Once the mixture is like breadcrumbs, add in the egg mixture.
Mix them until lumpy.
Place half of the dough mixture on a baking pan (4"x8") and use your hands to press them down until the dough covers the bottom of the pan.
Place the strawberries nicely on top.
spread the crumble on top of the strawberries. You may wish to sprinkle some extra sugar or cinnamon.
Bake for 20mins or until the fillings start bubbling. It will resemble like strawberry jam.
Let cool completely before cutting them up.
Stare your baked good in awe, pat yourself on the back and enjoy.

Notes:
The first crumble I did was too soggy because of too much egg. The second one has more crisp to it so it you like it crisp, add less egg to them.

Lining strawberries in the pan

The result!

2nd helping. Wish you could eat!

Happy Halloween to all!

2008-10-31T17:33:00.004+08:00

Who did you dress up as? ;op
I'm off to the party!

Halloween: Mutant Pumpkins & Jumpy Yolk

2008-10-23T13:24:00.011+08:00

It is that time of the year when the bright orange squashes make special appearances at supermarkets like Jasons Market Place and you know Halloween is just around the corner. I spotted these oddly shaped pumpkin at Raffles City.

They reminded me of a butt. Two butts in fact. Lol. There are other weird and interesting shapes of pumpkins which seemed to be mutated because of some chemical imbalance in the soil or something else. There is also this giant pumpkin which costs S$169.00!! I did not check to see how much did this giant weigh but I read on the papers that a farmer who harvested a 697kg pumpkin was this year's winner for some pumpkin competition. And that was not a record breaker. Freaky.

Speaking of freaky finds, while dining with a group of friends at a certain HK Cafe, an egg yolk actually jumped out of the plate and landed on the table.

Actually, it was "bleeding" a little after 2 stabs.

My friend ordered the half boiled egg and pushed one of the egg yolk to the side but it actually jumped out. The yolk was pretty sturdy because it did not break so we decided to use toothpick to see if it breaks. It didn't. What a strong egg yolk. :o)

Lettuce eats Burger

2008-10-16T14:25:00.006+08:00

This is one funny video that I had discovered in this site while browsing. Haha...this really cracks me up because the lettuce looks hungry...somehow. It looks real. Seriously.

Avocado cake

2008-10-15T09:49:00.002+08:00

Thank you Damon, for buying the cake.

I am not sure where this cake is from but apparently, I heard that you have to order the cake beforehand. This was a treat from a friend so I am not sure of the cost as well.

Well, this very light green cake apparently has avocado in it but I really can't tell. Maybe because avocado has this slight buttery taste which is not very distinctive. The sponge cake is rather sweet but the avocado mousse is light and has something which I cannot point a finger to. Avocado or not, this is a rather interesting cake that I have come across.

Oh, by the way, this site is rather interesting too, experimenting with avocado to bake a cake. Sweet.

Swiss Rolls with Coffee Butter Cream

2008-10-13T14:39:00.017+08:00

When I woke up yesterday morning, I had an urge to bake Swiss rolls even though I have not baked them before. I still have not decided whether to bake them until I was alone in the kitchen. I could hear my inner voice chanting "just do it..."

I was pretty pleased with the result and that got me to do the second roll. So here, I spent my Sunday afternoon baking.

This 2nd sponge cake is flavoured with coffee. Does not look very nice. :o(

I really spread the butter cream very thinly.

The 1st roll is on the right. The 2nd roll (all coffee flavoured) looks smaller.

In different lighting.

Cross section. The family loves it! :o)

Ta dah!!! My first swiss roll...

"Eat me! Eat me!!"

The pockets of flour.... :o(

Swiss Roll with Coffee Butter Cream:
The sponge cake
2 eggs
50g sugar
50g cake flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder

Preheat oven to 200 deg.
Using an electric whisk, just whisk the eggs for about 5-8 mins until it is thick enough to coat the whisk.
Add sugar during the whisking of the egg.
Sift cake flour and baking powder into the egg mixture. Fold in gently until the flour is incorporated thoroughly.
Pour into a rectangular tray which is already lined with parchment paper and greased. (I am not good with measurement so please pick a suitably sized tray. Not more than 10" x 15")
Spread it thinly.
Bake the cake for about 7-10mins. The cake will spring back when you use your fingers to press them.
I rolled the cake up and left it to cool before spreading butter cream as they will melt if the cake is still warm.

Coffee Butter Cream
125g butter
50g powdered sugar
1 heaped teaspoon Nescafe mixed with 1 tablespoon warm water

Whip the butter until it is pale and fluffy. Add the powdered sugar and coffee mixture. You can adjust both the sugar and coffee amount here to suit your taste. I did not really measure.
Spread on the cake thinly. Mine was done thinly but somehow ended up with a thick butter cream filling. No complaints here though. ;oP
Roll them up and place in fridge for about 30mins before cutting them.
The cream is more than enough for 2 rolls so you may want to keep them for other uses.

Notes:

Do mix the flour well because I ended with flour pockets in my swiss roll but luckily, no one minded.
Cake flour is used here because the texture of the cake will be finer and it makes it easier to roll.
Sponge cake is much drier than butter cake ones so having butter cream as the filling also makes it more appetising.
Greasing the parchment paper is important because for the 2nd roll, I ended up with an uglier looking cake as a lot of cake was stuck to the paper.
You can take them out 10mins before serving as the cream will be softer.

PS: I am just very excited that they turned out well hence I decided to put up most of their pictures although they are not in sequence. Enjoy!

Ba Chor Mee

2008-10-08T14:24:00.003+08:00

Had Ba Chor Mee at this coffeeshop called Seng Huat, just across the road from MOS Burger at Bugis Junction. This coffeeshop is near the bus stop so it always look crowded. This was ok only as the vinegar taste and chilli are not as good as I thought.

The Courtyard at Fullerton Hotel Singapore

2008-10-07T11:56:00.011+08:00

Cam whoring at The Courtyard, Fullerton Hotel Singapore.

We were excited. The teas have arrived. We ordered the Vanilla Bourbon & Choco Mint Truffle Red Tea to share. Yes, that is a slice of kueh lapis. I did not eat it.

The setting makes you feel rich.

The Vanilla Bourbon Tea has a sweet vanilla scent. I liked it better than the Choco Mint Truffle.

Complementary munchies. The service was prompt and efficient today.

The star of the evening! Post Bar Fries with Caramelized Onion Mayo Dip.

Yummy!!

YUMMY!!!!

Ice Monster, 冰馆 at Plaza Singapura

2008-10-06T16:15:00.004+08:00

I certainly did not intend to have desserts after a very satisfying dinner but was very tempted to try Ice Monster after a friend had raved about it. We had ordered a Mango with Durian shaved ice dessert to share.

Two things came to mind after the order came. Aesthetically, it was not very pleasing to my eye. Price wise, it did not came off as affordable. For S$6.50, I would have expected a mountain of shaved ice and more mango and durian. The durian puree was quite creamy and rich tasting so all was forgiven when I took a big mouthful.

This is definitely not Taiwan's snow ice standards but I do not mind coming back here to try other interesting items on the menu.

Desserts at Nectarie, le'Dessert Pâtisserie

2008-10-02T16:26:00.008+08:00

I remembered a particular conversation with the impression of this place as a "snob" because they simply "specialize in everything."

How is that possible?

Impressions aside, I actually chose Nectarie, le'Dessert Pâtisserie after dinner because I wanted to have a nice slice of cake.

The initial choice was an Opera cake because it looked not too bad but I immediately changed my mind when the serving staff mentioned this Green Tea with Sweet Potato cake. I am glad I did because this was one of the better cakes that I had.

Why do I like this cake: That mustard yellow layer of real sweet potato had got me hooked. It was not too sweet to begin with, which was a good thing as I do not like my desserts to be overdosed with sugar. The mild green tea custard did not really accentuate any flavours as did the thin layer of cake. The sweet potato layer, however, was awesome. Genuine stuff. The maple syrup that was drizzled on the plate seems to bring out the flavour of the sweet potato. Yum...

I also tried the Blood Orange Sorbet and the Wild Strawberry Sorbet with the former being more thirst quenching. It definitely changed my impression of this place which looked like it has more substance than its pretty looks.

Left: Blood Orange Sorbet
Right: Wild Strawberry Sorbet

Mini Brownie Cupcakes at Faeries' Tea Party

2008-09-30T11:34:00.011+08:00

Cute little brownie...

This was fun to make because I will usually make the brownies in bigger trays. This recipe follows the basic brownie and was piped through and baked in those mini cupcake paper moulds. The width should measure about 1 inch or slightly bigger. As promised in a previous entry, I shall include the recipe here.

Brownies:
175g butter
120g sugar
50g plain flour
90g cocoa powder (sweetened)*
2 eggs
pinch of salt
1/2 teaspoon of baking powder

Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
Add one egg each time and beat well.
Sift the flour and add to cocoa powder, salt & baking powder.
Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture in portions of 4.
Each addition use blender on lowest speed to mix well.
For the last portion, use a spatula to fold in the flour.
Bake in oven for 30mins @ 180deg.

You can pour brownie batter into aluminium trays or non-stick baking pans.

You can also put the batter into a piping bag and pipe it to paper cupcake moulds until 2/3 full or as desired.

*If you are using unsweetened cocoa powder, you may increase the amount of sugar. I find this sufficiently sweet enough because a lot of recipes is too sweet for me.

The brownie batter after piping into the moulds...

Brownie cupcakes!

Cinnamoorolls at the Faeries' Tea Party

2008-09-29T13:04:00.009+08:00

I have created this for a previous Brownie Tasting Party because it is an easy party dish. Here are some of the nicer photos of them. Yum...I am impressed by it too.

The rolls before the toppings.

The finished product!

Cinnamoorolls:
Bread
Melted Butter 175g
Cinnamon powder

5 Digestives (crumbled)
Icing sugar+Cream or you can use condensed milk
Maple syrup

Spread melted butter on bread using a brush.
Sprinkle cinnamon powder.
Roll them. Cut them like they are swiss rolls. Place on tray.
Continue until tray is full. Pour remaining butter on the rolls.
Topped with digestives and drizzle the icings and maple syrup.
Serve!

These work as great tea party food. Do not worry about the crumbles covering the rolls. That is the fun part, trying to dig out the rolls. This is not too sweet and not greasy at all so everyone can enjoy them.

Special thanks to my lovely assistant: Vanna White! From carrying everything, to setting up to helping to eat & everything else! :o)

A Healthy Day

2008-09-26T15:54:00.002+08:00

Silken Tofu, Pork Floss & unsweetened green tea.

Plain yogurt with blueberries, cashew nuts and honey.

My healthy lunch. :o)

Corn Muffin

2008-09-26T15:47:00.004+08:00

This was from Jiffy's Corn muffin mix. Did not turn out as expected and I felt a little sad as I screwed up on a pre-mix. *Its impossible!!!* Argh...

Perla's Pastry Boutique

2008-09-25T15:02:00.005+08:00

Or Pasticceria Da Valentino. Either way, I was not too impressed by their signature cakes here when I dined at the restaurant, Ristorante Da Valentino. I remembered having their Chantilly Al Cioccolato Bianco (White Chocolate Chantilly Cake) and could not recall the average tasting cake because I did not taste any white chocolate. Perhaps it was meant to be that way, light, fluffy and......i can't recall. My bad.

I popped over to next door to see if they have anything else that I might have missed. I find it rather out of the ordinary that they have a wine cellar within this pasticceria. The big bottles of wine had renewed my interest and fascination with this place and when inquired, the service staff pointed to a huge bottle of wine next to the cash register which she thought I might be interested.

Unbelievable.

27 freaking litres of wine in a bottle 3 times taller than my head. They had used a regular sized red wine bottle as a comparison. Woah... As my hands were shaking with excitement, hence the blurred photo.

This is the La Togata Brunello Di Montalcino, 2001 being produced in a 27-litre bottle. I do not have the full name of this particular full bodied wine so excuse the shortened name. There are only 5 bottles available in the whole world and one of them is in front of me as it was exclusively brought in by Valentino.

I believe that this is not a dream. I also believe that the price is beyond expensive too. Lol...

Butter cookies that don't look real to me.

Haato

2008-09-25T11:01:00.003+08:00

Chocolate & Tea

Sesame & Coffee

Tried them on both occasions at Serangoon Gardens. Followed my heart to order the gelato as I was craving for ice cream. Gelato's flavour was on the thin side and I had to race with time to finish them up before they melt into a drink. Average at most.

Chocolate Banana Loaf at Zang Toi

2008-09-23T11:01:00.006+08:00

I was not hungry at all when I walked past Zang Toi but I just stopped and stared at their signature chocolate banana loaf which looked humongous compared to other cakes I have seen here in Singapore. Hmmm...as I was wondering how it would taste like, I found myself seated and flipping through their menu. Yes, it is one of those hypnotic moments I find myself in whenever I see or smell something good. So we ordered a slice of the chocolate banana cake and a green mango float with ginger ale.

I certainly wasn't expecting them to warm the cake but they did. The drink came with a can of dry ginger ale and a mug of ice with green mango juice and ice cream.

The cake was soft and fluffy but not as chocolatey as the chocolate sauce being drizzled over it. This may be a smart move not to overwhelm anyone with strong flavours because the slice was quite big. It made the cake easier to eat too.

I think that this drink is cool. I liked that I could taste green mango when I am drinking and it was not too sweet and it actually quenched my thirst! We like this!!! Although I know this is not everything that KL has, this has given me fond memories of the food over there. The food in Malaysia is definitely something I would look forward when I next visit them. :oD

Zang Toi's West 57th St. Cafe
Bukit Bintang Plaza (BB Plaza) / Sungei Wang Plaza
LGF032, Lower GF
Jalan Bukit Bintang, Kuala Lumpur

Cinnabon

2008-09-19T16:10:00.006+08:00

I was in KL for the week and was happy to find Cinnabon, a chain bakery of the famous cinnamon rolls. Prior to this I only had a faint recollection of Saint Cinnamon Bake Shoppe being in Singapore for a short period of time before it disappeared magically and I am not sure if Cinnabon ever reached our shores. I did not get to try either before so I was ready to sink my teeth into this moist looking roll.

It all went to my tummy!!!! *evil grin*

This is the Caramel Pecan Cinnamon roll. I did not get the original ones as they looked dry. I am just swooned over by this soft buttery roll that has ample cinnamon, caramel and pecans. The pecans has added some texture but it did not really help in the taste department. They had provided fork and knife so eating this was a breeze. Yum. I could go on and on eating this. It was not as dense as I had expected and the roll was still a little warm. I am not sure if it was due to the scorching hot weather.

Plaza Low Yat,
G1, Ground Floor
Off Jalan Bukit Bintang
55100 Kuala Lumpur