Christmas Cookies

I mentioned in my last post that this Christmas has been rather unusual. Ever since I got started on throwing dinner parties for friends (read: using friends as guinea pigs for new recipes), I have had a Christmas party every year for my close group of girlfriends - the ones with voracious appetites. Except this year.

Perhaps it is because this year we decided to run away to Phuket for a quick weekend trip instead. Perhaps it is because I got lazy. Whatever it is, I didn't throw any party. I did however, help out with the raclette party I mentioned in my last post.

You would have thought I'd have become more proficient over the years, having thrown a fair number of parties (brunches, teas, dinners). I thought so too myself! But alas, from the raclette party, it seems I have not.

The plan was to have the party at my friend's new home in the east. However, her home was so new it did not have a refrigerator. Some of the preparation therefore had to be done in the day at my place. My friend, G, came over in the morning and we settled on the Linzer sandwich cookie and pecan pie recipes we wanted to use before doing some grocery shopping.

Somehow, the massivity of the project did not occur to me (even as I was trying to cream 1.36kg of butter in my kitchenaid) until I had to sieve and mix 12 cups of flour with all the other dry ingredients. Yes, you read right. 12 full cups of flour. G and I had multiplied the recipe, thinking we could bake a couple more for our colleagues, and had to whip out our muscles and mix the ingredients together in the biggest pot I had. By 3pm, we had only managed to roll them into balls of dough to rest in the refrigerator.

At that point, we had to make a call. We had to do another round of grocery shopping for the actual raclette party and quickly chop and saute the accompaniments. And we were far away from where we had planned to be at 3pm. We decided to split up - I'd stay to finish up the cookies, he'd leave for the party venue and start the preparations on that end.

To cut the long story short, I only finished baking at 630pm; the dough was given too little time to firm up and became tricky to handle. I rushed to Holland Village to pick up the cheese and raclette grill before heading to the east for the party. Somehow, thankfully, we made it and the party was a success. I'm glad to report, so were the cookies.

Even though we had to substitute the hazelnuts with almonds, they turned out very well. Incredibly crumbly and just the right amount of sweetness, they were well received. I had half the dough i.e. 6 round discs of dough left and decided to bake a few more for my mum's guests this afternoon. Here's the recipe for those who might be planning belated Christmas parties and are thinking of edible gifts for guests to doggie bag home.

Linzer Sandwiches

Adapted from Martha Stewart dot com

Makes 16

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Ingredients

1 cup (or 150g) roasted, unpeeled almonds, ground

2 sticks (or 226g) butter, at room temperature

1/2 cup caster sugar

1 large egg

1 tsp pure vanilla extract

2 cups plus 2 tbpsn flour

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

1/4 tsp table salt

icing sugar (optional)

raspberry/cherry jam

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Method

With an electric mixer with a paddle attachment, beat butter and sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy for about 2 minutes.

Add egg and beat until smooth for about 3 minutes, then beat in vanilla extract.

In a separate bowl, whisk together almonds, flour, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt.

Add to butter mixture, beat on low until just combined - takes about 2 minutes.

Separate dough into 3 portions, rolling each between 2 pieces of plastic (I usually slice open an ordinary sandwich bag for one reasonably big piece of plastic. This also helps with mess management later on since it negates the need for a floured surface.) until 0.5cm thick.

Freeze each disc for at least an hour, or overnight, ensuring they are kept flat in the freezer.

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Preheat oven to 180 degrees celcius.

Have 2 baking sheets lined with baking paper ready.

Using a 5cm round fluted cookie cutter, cut out cookies from one disc and transfer to baking sheets.

Using a 2 or 3cm round fluted cookie cutter, cut the centers out of half the cookies. Repeat for the other two discs.

Bake cookies for 10 minutes or until edges are golden, rotating halfway through if the heat distribution in the oven is not even. In the meantime, combine the scraps from the discs, reroll, freeze until reasonably hardened and cut for subsequent batches.

Remove from oven and place on wire racks until completely cool.

Lightly sift the icing sugar over the decorative tops (optional); set aside.

Spread a scant teaspoon of jam on the bottoms of each cookie and sandwich with their punched out tops.

Christmas dinner

From top left: Fresh oysters, baguette from Culina, brown button mushrooms with garlic and parsley, Habanero Tabasco sauce, pat of butter, lemon wedges, random spatula-wielding hand, and The Paella.

This year's Christmas has been... refreshing. It might be difficult to believe, but it is officially the 27th day of December and I have yet to lay my lips on any turkey since December started, unless you count the turkey ham I bought for a sandwich 3 weeks ago.

I organised a Christmas potluck for the office about a week ago, except it was a Teochew Porridge potluck party. It seemed to get my colleagues far more excited and I thought, what the heck, whatever rocks their boat. It made organising the party far easier than expected, although we did end up with a ton of canned and bottled food items like bottled olive vegetables and (my favourite) canned fried dace with black beans.

In the middle of last week, I helped a dear friend organise a raclette party. The cheese and grill were gotten from La Fromagerie, and my friend practically single-handedly prepared all the dishes to go with the cheese. The raclette was delish and thoroughly filling, and there wasn't a sliver of a turkey in sight.

When my mum suggested we have a small and simple family dinner at home, her suggestion didn't include any turkey either. Instead, she offered procuring live seafood from the nearby newly renovated Sheng Siong and preparing a seafood feast. Ed and my mum share a penchant for paella and I had always wanted to put my anodised Calphalon pan to the paella test, so we decided on an un-Christmas-like menu.

I must say I was pleasantly surprised by the selection of live seafood Sheng Siong stocked, which included lobsters and oysters. Their oysters, at SGD1.80, were not only reasonably priced, they were fresh (well, they were live you know)!

I'm happy to report the paella was a success. As usual, I cooked too much and had to spread out the paella to 2 more cast iron dishes. I'm just glad we managed to finish 2 out of the 3 pans I prepared, with the last simply waiting to be reheated and served to guests we're expecting tomorrow afternoon. With a platter of fresh oysters, some lightly sauteed mushrooms with garlic and parsley, and a couple of slices of baguette gotten from Culina, our family's Christmas dinner was complete.

So there, my Christmas experience this year, with no turkey. Nil, zilch, nada, squat. I'm somewhat happy there wasn't any of that dry, moisture-sapping meat to endure this time around. Yet, I do miss some of that amazing soup my mum makes with the leftover turkey bones. Anyhow, I hope you've all had relatively fulFILLING Christmas dinners!

Merry Christmas!

Ho ho ho!

Paella

Adapted from The Cook's Book

Serves 4-5

Ingredients

1.4 litres fish stock

2 good pinches of saffron

3 garlic gloves, crushed

90ml olive oil

50g chorizo sausage, thinly sliced

2 small bay leaves

1 white onion, finely chopped

2 red peppers, halved, seeded, and cut into 2cm squares

250g squid, cleaned and cut into pieces, including tentacles

1.5 cans skinned and chopped tomatoes, drained

1 tsp paprika

450g Valencian paella rice or risotto rice

300g fresh clams, scrubbed (ensure all clams are tightly shut or discard them)

500g large fresh prawns, shells removed (except the tail) and deveined

400g fresh mussels, scrubbed and beard removed

50g cooked French beans, cut into 2.5cm lengths

50g cooked peas (optional)

lemon wedges and tabasco sauce to serve

Method

Boil fish stock with saffron and 1 crushed garlic clove in a pot. Simmer for 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat half the oil in a paella pan (I used the Calphalon Everyday Pan).

Add chorizo, remaining garlic and bay leaves and cook over gentle heat for 1 minute.

Add onion and peppers, and cook for 5 minutes.

Increase the heat, add the squid and fry for 2-3 minutes.

Stir in tomatoes, paprika, and remaining oil. Fry for 4-5 minutes. (This tomato mixture is known as sofrito.)

Scatter in the rice, distributing it evenly over the ingredients in the pan. Pour over the hot stock, reduce the heat and cook gently for 10-15 minutes. Shake the pan occasionally but do not stir.

Add in prawns, clams and mussels, cover and continue cooking for another 5 minutes or until the rice is tender but slightly firm (it may be necessary to add a little more stock or water), and all mussels and clams have opened (those that never open may have turned bad).

Side note: The original recipe calls for the prawns, clams and mussels to be added with the stock, but I find this overcooks the seafood.

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The rice will form a golden crust on the bottom (called a soccarat).

When all the liquid has been absorbed, add the beans and peas.

Serve with lemon wedges and tabasco sauce.

Woori Nara

Some of you have probably been there already, heck, there's even a Youtube video taken of in it. But I'm guessing most of you have never even heard of Lorong Kilat. I wouldn't have myself, if not for a dear friend and colleague who, like me, enjoys sharing her love for food with others and pointed me in that direction for some kickass deep fried chicken.

Who would have known that the Koreans would be the creators of such incredibly light, crunchy and delicious pieces of deep fried chicken? On our very first visit to Woori Nara, Ed and I ordered half a 'Volcano Yum Yum' chicken (ok, so their strength isn't in naming their dishes) and half a Soy Garlic chicken. We liked those very much, although we thought they might have overdid the sauce a little. Out of greed, we also ordered another serving of the 'Crispy and Mild' chicken and were henceforth sucked into the mystical world of Korean deep-fried chicken.

We have never looked back. Sure, we have tried other items on their menu which were generally decent, but getting our hands on some of their chicken is a must for every visit. It is also the place we think of whenever we have a deep fried chicken craving. I recommend wash it down with some refreshing rice drink (similar to our barley drink, except with rice - top picture) to complete your meal.

Woori-Nara Korean Restaurant
19 Lorong Kilat 01-02
Tel: 6464-9282.

Tea Bone Zen Mind Cafe

This place isn't one of my favourite places on earth to while away weekends. There isn't a small collection of books, especially not books with those cool, embossed covers. The grilled cuttlefish they serve is also rather tiring on the jaw.

It doesn't have incredible 'tea eggs' with still-runny egg yolks and just-set egg whites.

It doesn't have a wide selection of premium teas. I never order their Iced Pear Tea everytime I go there because its poached pear isn't the most yummy poached fruit ever.

You shouldn't try this place, ever. Really, don't bother. It is already crowded enough as it is.

Chinese mitten crabs

When I was in Shanghai last year for a dreaded work-trip, the only silver lining of the trip was one of the meals we had there that featured Chinese mitten crabs, more commonly known as hairy crabs. It was my first time having it, and I was fortunate a Shanghainese fluent in English was seated next to me and gave me some tips on the most efficient way to extract its sweet flesh and enjoy the abundant, uber-rich roe.

I had fallen in love with the elusive crab ever since and was elated when Ed spotted an advertisement in the newspaper for a hairy crab menu at Ah Yat Abalone Restaurant (Allson Hotel) and suggested we try it. We had one relatively large hairy crab - 250g - each, with plenty of roe. Like in Shanghai, they were served whole at our table. However, unlike in Shanghai, a waitress snipped each hairy crab into neat sections for us. The main body was snipped into two, while the skinny legs were separated into neat segments for us to push the meat out with even skinner chopsticks.

The roe was, as expected, incredibly creamy and unctuous. We savoured every little bit of the roe, and spent near to an hour ensuring the shell was stripped clean of every ounce of its delicately sweet flesh. Given its size, persons who consider eating normal Sri Lankan crabs a chore would certainly find eating hairy crabs too fussy.

Two of the other items on the menu - sharksfin soup with hairy crab roe, and abalone - were superb as well. I was pleasantly surprised that their sharksfin soup surpassed any of the other sharksfin soups I had tried even at restaurants specialising in sharksfin. And the abalone, well it was about three quarter the size of my palm and unbelievable sweet to the last bite.

Knowing how much hairy crabs cost in Shanghai, the price of SGD$168++ per person for a full hairy crab menu was quite alarming, but it was truly a spectacular meal.

Eating like a man

While I grudgingly admit my appetite is usually no different from any other Singaporean female (I hear Taiwanese and Japanese ladies have incredibly tiny appetites), I relish in being able to 'eat like a man'. This involves consuming vast quantities of food, a significant portion of which is of meat.

Occasionally, I find myself with an insatiable appetite, needing to eat every 3 or 4 hours, and always craving for something savoury. This is a great departure from my past self where I would happily start at the dessert station of buffet spreads - now, I may even skip the dessert! Whenever I crave for a huge hunk of meat, the uber tender steak at Hooha Cafe immediately comes to mind. Perfect grill marks adorn every piece of 1.5 inch thick steak. Every tenderloin, the epitome of tenderness. Happily, not many people have heard of them, but more on Hooha another time.

When I visited Magma with a couple of friends for dinner, I was having one of those massive meat cravings. The delightful service staff recommended the steak tartare, declaring that many of their diners have said theirs is the best. I snapped up the offer and could not wait to tuck in. The waiter wheeled in the raw mince with all the condiments on the side in pretty sauce jugs then went through evidently well-practiced moves of mixing the condiments with the raw mince then making quenelles out of the final product. Each quenelle was scooped onto a small square toast then served.

It was a dish meant to be shared as a starter, but I had it all. By myself. It had a good balance of flavours and texture, and remains one of the top few carnivorous dishes I'd choose whenever I have a massive meat craving. If not for the fact it is not easy to find, I would be having it far more often.

When salad gets boring, and Thomas Keller

My favourite addition to salads has got to be fried haloumi cheese. You get a beautifully crispy crust and totally awesome salty molten cheese that makes any boring old salad alive again. Best results come with sufficient oil - something I learnt not to stinge on from Thomas Keller's latest cookbook "Ad Hoc".

I haven't tried any of his recipes but the book has been an exciting read so far. Yes, I'm one of those freaks who actually reads cookbooks from cover to cover within a day. Meanwhile, the copy of Milton Friedman's 'Capitalism and Freedom' has been sitting on my desk for the longest time and I'm barely past chapter 2. I barter traded reading a book for my boss to watch a video I thought would change her life. It was a 3 part 20 min Youtube video and I now realise I got the shorter end of the stick.

Anyway, back to the book. I love the conversational tone in the book and all the little tips Thomas Keller added. I was worried the recipes would still be somewhat fussy but was significantly relieved when I read the part about not being silly about having to cut carrots into perfect batons. I hope to try one of the recipes soon - CH already has and gave awesome reviews. I'm also still working towards visiting Per Se and The French Laundry someday, soon.

Happy Finds in Penang

When colleagues found out Ed and I were planning to visit Penang for 5 whole days, they thought we had lost our minds. They were nonetheless very helpful in recommending places to eat at and surrendered lists of great hawkers in Penang for each of the famous dishes - Assam Laksa, Chendol, Char Kway Teow, Kway Teow Teng, Pork Intestine Porridge, Hokkien Mee, Duck Soup Mee Sua... and the list goes on.

While we did manage to visit some, eating at Penang is similar to eating in Japan. Like my close friend, V, once endearingly said, "Throw stone also got good food." Though grateful for the recommendations, we would probably have had just as great an experience without them.

On top of eating fabulous hawker food at Gurney Drive or at random coffeeshops next to our hotel (top picture), we visited a couple of eateries recommended by bloggers were living in Penang. Possibly one of our favourite meals was in Hot Wok.

Stoked by an immense hunger that stemmed from being lost for almost an hour, we went ballistic over the menu and ordered much more than we should have ate - and then finished it anyway. The Otak (steamed, curried fish paste) and Tau Eu Bak (pork stewed in dark soy sauce) were sublime. I practically drenched my plate of rice in the deliciously savoury sauce.






Determined to walk off our incredibly heavy lunch, we wandered into smaller roads where we spotted siTigun, a 'bicycle pitstop cafe'. Like the other shops around the area, a lazy vibe oozed from its doorstep onto the five foot way and we were inexplicably drawn to its seats.

The cafe was charming with the couple of bicycles parked inside, a small fountain going on in the back of the shop, and a handful of colourful lanterns reflecting the midday sunlight. They had decent coffees, a small selection of snacks (so much for our plan to walk off our heavy lunch) and very helpful service staff. Because it was such a breath of fresh air among the other run-of-the-mill shops in the area, I absolutely fell in love with the place.



One of our last meals in Penang was in Vintage Bulgaria Restaurant & Bar just further down from Gurney Drive (10 mins by taxi). Having little experience with Bulgarian food, we ordered simply what sounded good. The menu was pretty extensive and we were torn among a couple of dishes. We finally settled on cod, a platter of meat and sausages, and some cheese-stuffed bacon skewers to share.

The sausages were decent and the cod a little too rich for me, but the stuffed bacon skewers floored my partner and I. Slightly crisped bacon with soft molten cheese, it was difficult to resist. If our mains weren't so filling, we would probably have ordered one more dish of that artery clogging stuff. 5 days might have been an unusual amount of time to spend in Penang as a tourist, but there was truly so much good food Ed and I wouldn't have minded hanging around for a day or two more.

Vintage Bulgaria Restaurant & Bar
1-E, Jalan Sg Kelian
Tanjung Bungah
Penang, Malaysia
Tel: +604-8981890

Lemony goodness

For my farewell present, my ex-colleagues found it within their hearts to dig deep and generously into their pockets and grant me many of my kitchen-wishes. Not only did I receive a beautiful Le Creuset cast iron oven dish (pictured above), along with it came a set of 4 Le Creuset cast iron ramekins. To top it all off, there was also a Kyocera ceramic mandolin that I had been humming and hawing over for many moons, wondering if the ceramic blade justified the steep price. I was truly, utterly spoilt. (Afternote: I'm still perfecting my Thomas Keller ratatouille dish, but my experience with it has been awesome so far.)

The itch to use the oven dish developed astoundingly quickly. One Saturday night, my mum came to me with a chicken and a question, "What shall we cook for dinner?" Coincidentally, the winter edition of Donna Hay featured cast iron pots as le pot du jour for typical winter dishes such as slow braises and roasts.

Flipping through for some inspiration, I found a delicious sounding recipe for Lemon Thyme Spatchcocks with Lemon Gratin that I promptly adapted to roast the chicken we had. Coincidentally, we had almost everything we needed for the dish. While not as pretty as the photo in the magazine (especially since the chicken was mid-massacre) this dish was awesome down to the last sliver of potato. The slices of lemon wedged between thin rounds of potato perked up the flavours in the gratin, turning the usually cloying creamy gratin into a platter of refreshing yet comforting goodness.

Cast iron is known to last for generations and was a popular cookware in older generations. Chicken roasted in a cast iron oven dish must be an old-fashioned way somewhere out there, just not in Singapore. Cast iron has since become less popular out there possibly because of its weight, despite its easier-to-clean enameled cousins. Still, I feel cast iron has gained greater recognition over the years in Singapore. If serious foodies like CH and Ivan believe in them, you should too.

I personally swear by all the small collection of cast iron pots and dishes I have accumulated over the years and love that they go from stove to oven to table with unrivaled ease. My girlfriends might pass down jewellery to their children and grandchildren in the future but I will just have a ton of cookware.

Roasted Chicken with Lemon Gratin
Adapted from Donna Hay (Issue 45)
Serves 4
Ingredients
1kg starchy potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced
1 lemon, thinly sliced
2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
sea salt and cracked black papper
375ml (1.5 cups) single cream
1 big whole chicken, cut into half
olive oil, for drizzling
Method
Preheat oven to 200 degrees celsius.
Layer potato, lemon and garlic in a lightly greased 1.25litre capacity baking dish.
Sprinkle with salt and pepper and pour over the cream.
Bake for 15 mins or until just tender when tested with a skewer.
Place chicken halves on top of the potato, skin side up.
Brush with oil and sprinkle with salt.
Roast for 30 mins or until chicken is golden and cooked through (meat thermometer should register about 80 degrees celsius).
Serve!

The View of Mount Fuji From Hakone

I mentioned in the previous post that we went to Hakone as well. Frankly, we would probably never have chosen to go to Hakone if not for the fact that it was recommended by various guidebooks if one wants to see Mount Fuji without having to actually go to the mountain itself.

We started out rather ambitious, thinking that if we had time to visit Mount Fuji, we would. Even more ambitious, we thought we could have a go at climbing the colossal creature for 'just' an hour upwards before turning back. Of course, the plan started crumbling the moment we reached Tokyo and ventured around the Ikebukuro region and spotted numerous eateries we wanted to try - we ended up attempting to 'restaurant-hop', eating only one or two dishes from each restaurant. There was simply insufficient time to explore the entire city, especially since we ventured out into Kyoto for a couple of days.

And so we decided to just go to Hakone, sneak a peek at Mount Fuji, then go back. But what was meant to be simply an afternoon at a park eating our Onigiri-s while gazing lovingly at Mount Fuji, turned into a full-day affair. Hakone had an inexplicable charm about it that made my companion and I a little reluctant to leave.

Walking out of the Hakone-Yumoto station, we simply ventured straight down the path, thinking that Mount Fuji would be so huge that it would be impossible to miss and visible from many points in Hakone. Of course, that was not true. Walking past a long row of shophouses, we thought this must be the way to wherever it was that one could see Mount Fuji since shops usually line strategic pathways.

I was most excited when we spotted a shop selling handmade rice crackers (aka Wang Wang biscuits) and couldn't resist a taste. Using our handy 'Yubisashi (pointing) sheet of expressions', we pointed to the Japanese translation of 'Is there a recommended dish?' and was immediately directed (more pointing) towards two types of rice crackers in the shop. We chose one of each, which were put into a brown paper bag, and went on our way.

Munching our deliciously savoury, crunchy biscuits, we soon found ourselves following 3 old ladies walking purposefully on a narrow strip of grass by the side of the road. Thinking they must have know a secret route none of the people in the crowd at the train station knew, we carried on along the path with them. That is, until we spotted signs of hot springs. And the old ladies disappeared.

Worn out and disappointed, we turned back and walked up the path leading to the row of shophouses again. Feeling like we needed a break from our tiring walk (yes, I can't believe we wanted to climb Mount Fuji), we went to the 2nd floor cafe of the first shop from the train station.

It was elegantly serene and all we needed to distract us from our disappointing trip so far. It also doubled up as a boutique for beautiful home accessories and clothes. Our iced tea and adorable red bean pancake (see inset) was yummy and comforting, and inspired me to want to set up a similar cafe of my own that would make people feel the way I felt at that time - at peace. After a good rest, we set off again with renewed resolve to look for Mount Fuji.

Consulting the tourist information centre, which we really should have done at the beginning, we were advised to take a Hakone Tokzan bus to Lake Hashi where they said was a viewing point for Mount Fuji and where there were sights to see. It cost us almost SGD$30 each for a return ticket on the bus, and considering we were running out of cash and no atm nor money changer in view, it was expensive.

But it was well worth it. Even the long winding journey was worth it.

Even if only for this.

The lake was beautiful, and... peaceful. But most importantly, at least to us, was the small Coffee and Sausage Restaurant we chanced upon that was run by two endearing old men in aprons. It was the sign that first caught our eye and curiosity. The cafe was quaint with some good smelling sausages and coffee. Having eaten a pancake a mere hour ago, we thought it would be best to share a hotdog.

It was one truly delicious hotdog. Everything was perfect - the slightly toasted soft buns, the juicy flavourful spicy sausage, wholegrain mustard and tomato ketchup. We couldn't have asked for more. It was truly fate that we alighted from the bus just steps away from this Coffee and Sausage Restaurant. If we were not already so stuffed, we would have eaten in and ordered more.

So our trip to Hakone was eventful, from taking the wrong path to finding awesome food. But what happened to trying to see Mount Fuji? Sadly, it was a cloudy day and Mount Fuji was out of sight from Hakone, no matter where we stood. With the hotdog and each other, standing at the edge of Lake Hashi however, I don't think we would be any more happy even with a view of Mount Fuji.

Kyoto Kaiseiki.. Not.

With the 7-day Japan Rail Pass, the world would truly be your oyster in Japan. At the drop of a hat, you could go to Kyoto, Kobe, Osaka, Hakone... the possibilities are endless. Wanting to try an authentic Kaiseiki meal, and having set aside a small fortune before even having left Singapore, my companion and I took the JR train to Kyoto before the dust had even settled on our luggage in Tokyo.

Walking down the main shopping street in Kyoto, we were like kids in a candy store when we chanced upon a not-so-Japanese shop called Angers (we later found other outlets in Tokyo). Grabbed a whole bag of gifts for friends, family and self and was surprised by the paper-bag-within-plastic-bag-thing they had going. Slight drizzle apparently triggers this reaction from sales persons throughout Kyoto (and possibly Japan).

Admittedly, we didn't set aside enough time for Kyoto than she deserved. But it did not matter as long as we got to try a proper kaiseiki meal. We figured the main shopping street would have its fair share of restaurants serving kaiseiki meals and that we'd be able to kill 2 birds with a stone.

Alas, after much miscommunication (as should be expected since we didn't know their native language) we ended up waiting for an hour in a restaurant only to find out that their kaiseiki set meal in their menu wasn't available that day. I was utterly disappointed and on the verge of walking out.

Thankfully, my very patient companion made the best of the situation and ordered a slew of dishes from the standard menu instead, because every bite redeemed our experience. With every new dish, my spirits calmed down and tastebuds tingled with joy. Sashimi was great, so great we ordered another round of it. It was also the first encounter with uni for both of us and while I quite enjoyed it, my companion could do without it. One small happy find was the side of fresh shreds of ginger flower served with sashimi (which we encountered in one or two other places in Japan), in addition to the usual shredded daikon.

One of the most pleasant dishes in our meal was the beancurd dish. Famous for their soy products, the trio of beancurd was divine. Each was smooth and very... clean. For lack of a better word. Served in a small bamboo cup was a concoction of soft delicate sheets in pure soy milk. Other dishes we tried, all of which we enjoyed thoroughly, include grilled beef and ochazuke/bubuzuke (rice with green tea and fish broth).

The dessert looked perhaps, the least impressive of all the dishes. Green tea ice cream with Tanda black beans. However, it inspired me the most. I wanted to teleport home and replicate the green tea ice cream's flawless and milky texture, served with the sweet plump black beans. I was so infatuated, I bought 1 kg worth of Tanda black beans from The Bean Guy at Tsukiji Market.

Despite the mix-up at the beginning of our meal, we left very pleased with the outcome of the meal even though it meant I never got to try a kaiseiki meal. The manager was evidently apologetic for the miscommunication and overcompensated when tallying our bill. I would certainly be glad to revisit the restaurant, whose name I can only guess is Saryo Mina from the weblink on the name card, again.

Awesome Tokyo

On the flight back from Tokyo to Singapore, my travel companion and I marvelled at the amount we accomplished during our short 7 day break in Japan. The sheer amount we ate was enough to make us absolutely satisfied with the way the vacation went (and also fearful of the weighing machine of course), without even considering the sights along the way.

Very much has been written about Tokyo, and the places one just HAS to visit. In my preparation for this trip, I consulted Chubby Hubby's Tokyo Hot List, knowing that the places recommended would never disappoint. We would have tried all the recommendations if not for the limited time we had. Here's our little list of food/places we tried which includes those in CH's list:

One) Yakitori - Gingko Nut

I have always been rather averse to Gingko Nuts. If I do eat them, it could only be for one of two reasons - health purposes (I treat it like medication) or sheer accident. Oh wait, add to that the pure curiosity I had when my companion ordered it. Grilled over high heat and lightly salted, these gingko nuts were incredible. Not in the least bit bitter, it was even a little sweet!

Two) Park Hyatt Hotel - Sunday brunch at New York Grill
3-7-1-2 Nishi Shinjuku, Shinjuku-Ku
Tel: +81 3 5322 1234

Located in the heart of Tokyo, the restaurant perched on the top of the hotel at the 52nd floor is encased in floor-to-ceiling glass windows allowing a fantastic view of the city below. The Sunday Brunch's appetisers and mains were decent, but do leave space for the dessert buffet or, like me, you'd be missing out on the best part of the meal. Reservations are highly encouraged - do request for window seats.

Three) Hida Beef
In my previous post, I mentioned briefly how I was unable to find Kobe beef in Tokyo (more specifically Ikebukuro) but was instead offered Hida beef. While it is not as rich or buttery as its counterpart in Kobe, Hida beef was also an excellent example of beef which I assume has similar breeding methods. The Hida beef sushi was sublime. It simply melted away and was well accentuated with a cube of tangy jelly among other things (we didn’t bother to ask what it was since the waitress, while helpful, was not in her element speaking English).

I can’t seem to find any information online on the breeding programme for cows from Hida. The search instead brought up a couple of other varieties of beef (some of which have apparently triumphed over the Kobe in some competitions) – Matsuzaka, Yonezawa, Lake Towada, Ishigaki, Yamagata.

Four) Cool Train Service
The novelty of beautifully packaged and very decent food on trains has not worn off despite having taken the Japan Rail train numerous times. The conscientious packaging, taking care of even your post-meal needs (wet towel and toothpick), made sure that neither function nor form was neglected. The styrofoam (my one gripe: not environmentally friendly) container that looked like wood was very hardy and very neatly separated the rice from the abundant side dishes. On a side note, it was rather amusing to see the service staff as well as train conductors bow before entering and after exiting every carriage.

Five) Sadaharu Aoki
A must-do we chose from Chubby Hubby’s Hot List, we fully agree with his judgement on the éclairs. The chocolate éclair we tried had a delectably smooth chocolate filling. We also had a bite-sized selection of cakes, our unanimous favourite being the-one-with-hazelnut (sorry, I was too engrossed to take down its name). Neatly wrapped cookies and financiers were also available and made great souvenirs for foodie-friends. We were not particularly pleased however with their compulsory drink order per person wishing to eat in, not especially since the drinks averaged an astounding SGD15.

Six) Hidemi Sugino
Kyobashi Daiei Building 3-6-17 Kyobashi, Chuo-ku
81-3-3538-6780
Thankfully, Hidemi Sugino’s cafe was more hospitable in that respect – no compulsory drink order. However, finding the shop was a challenge as it was in a small and non-descript alley. My companion and I had to resort to asking a passerby, who very patiently helped us by calling the shop and asking for directions. He seemed mighty amused that we were looking so desperately for a cake shop, and drew a very comprehensive map using a pink highlighter he took from his shirt pocket. When we arrived, I was slightly disappointed that they only had 4 varieties of cake left. We arrived only in the late morning, mind you. The cakes were supremely light, with a good balance of textures and flavours in each of them. All the walking (most of which was in the wrong direction) was well worth it.

Seven) La Bombance
Of the four gourmet experiences recommended by Chubby Hubby, we chose to try La Bombance because it sounded most exciting. Our dinner at La Bombance was fabulous. Though, it would have helped knowing exactly what we were eating. The menu was entirely in Japanese and the chef was only able to go so far as to say that what we were eating was a kind of vegetable or a kind of seafood. A friend later helped me decipher and menu and it seems that our first course was a soup with Tortoise(!!). Nonetheless, every item (except perhaps the curried aubergine mousse with tomato jelly which was a hit with my companion) was sublime. Service was pleasant, despite the language barrier, and presentation of food was elegantly simple. In fact, a pair of men sitting 2 seats away admired each course for a l.o.n.g t.i.m.e before tucking in. My companion and I, on the other hand, very unsophisticatedly lapped them and lapped up every morsel.

Eight) Tsukiji Market and Unforgettable Sashimi Place

We forced ourselves to wake up at the most unearthly hour in order to reach there at 445am, in time to fumble our way towards the big warehouse - where the action was at. The tuna auction was an absolute entertainment. Potential bidders were examining each tuna with a hooked prong, by thwacking the exposed end to extract some flesh. I saw some mashing of the flesh between fingertips. I saw close examinations of the flesh under a torchlight. Furious ringing of a bell indicated that an auction was about to commence. I was baffled, trying to figure out how the auctioneer determined the winner of each bid, but enjoyed the 'performance' nevertheless.

The rest of the market was full of yummy goodies that made us hungry even at 6am in the morning. It made me incredibly envious of the Japanese who have access to such fresh seafood. Some things made me cringe though - the battered and deep-fried crab that was still alive and frothing at the mouth (top left in photo above) - as well as the huge octopus eggs being hawked (bottom left).

The highlight of our visit to the Tsukiji Market was our wonderful find in a small back alley that led to a passway for huge containers of seafood. It was serendipity. After buying some Tanda black beans from The Bean Guy, we decided to turn around and ask him for a recommendation for a place to eat sashimi. He first went to the alley behind his shop then peeked his head out from around the corner, and waved his hand beckoning us to follow him. What we were led to was a small, 9 seater sashimi restaurant where we had sashimi that blew us away. I'll never look at Hotate (scallop) the same way again. Even the tamago sushi impressed us to no end.

We were understandably grateful to The Bean Guy for this superb recommendation and would strongly recommend anyone to visit this sashimi place if they're in the vicinity. Unfortunately, they do not have an English namecard, and all I could get is pictured in the top right hand corner of the photo above. I would suggest printing the picture out and asking for directions to the address at the market itself. What would also be useful is the Tsukiji Market calendar that indicates when the market closes.

Converted

Yes, that's right. I'm a convert. While I've always been happy to eat Japanese cuisine, I now aim to eat Japanese at least once a week. Thankfully my new office (yes I've changed jobs) is right next to Central, where there is no lack of ramen, sashimi and even hambagaa.

In between jobs, my companion and I grabbed the unbelieveably cheap flights (SGD500, all inclusive!) to Japan and bounced around for 7 days. 7 fulfilling and incredible days were spread out among Tokyo, Kyoto, Kobe, Hakone and Yokohama, though they were mostly short pitstops for a look-see. And of course some food.

One such pitstop was in Kobe - a last minute decision to go to the source of Kobe beef, made possible with the 7-day Japan Rail Pass that allowed unlimited access to any part of Japan. We probably wouldn't have chosen to do so if not for the fact that our virtually non-existent Japanese led us to a restaurant in Tokyo that specialised in what we thought was Kobe beef, that we eventually found was Hida beef. We were just unbelieveably unlucky in finding a restaurant that specialised in Kobe beef.

We travelled to the Shin-Kobe Station from Kyoto by a brief train ride and found ourselves in Kobe with no particular destination in mind. We headed to the tourist information centre and were fortunate to meet an English speaking staff who could understand our request for a recommendation for Kobe beef. Many tourists before us surely asked her too; her recommendation came quickly and for a cosy restaurant called Wakkoqu, in the Oriental hotel just across the road from the station!

We couldn't believe our luck and were able to leave our luggages with the concierge before heading to the third floor. The other restaurants on that floor would normally have distracted me, but I had my heart (and stomach) set for Kobe beef. I knew I wouldn't be able to leave Kobe without tasting it. It wasn't easy to find, but were brimming with excitement when we finally did.

We looked through the menu quickly and, with some help from the teppanyaki chef assigned to us, chose the standard lunch set (SGD75) and a CHAMPION COW lunch set (SGD200). I kid you not, it was a CHAMPION COW.

First on the menu was the Beef Tataki Salad that only served to make us hungry for more. My appetite for the beef grew, slowly tormented by the sight of the raw slab of beef awaiting the chef's deft teppanyaki skills. Only after the chef slowly fried thin slices of garlic, ensuring each one was evenly browned, the Kobe beef was sliced into bit sized chunks and fried, one portion at a time.

The Kobe beef was as good as any review out there in the blogosphere made it out to be. No, it was even better. Its rich, melt-in-your-mouth texture was overwhelming and met my every expectation. Buttery. Soft. Mmmmm. The difference between the CHAMPION Cow and the non-champion cow was evident, though the latter was already positively delicious.

The chef very thoughtfully portioned our beef, frying more only when the meat on our plate was running low. In the meantime, large slices of carrot, turnip, aubergine and cucumbers were fried. The finale involved pieces of fried fat and a large handful of skinny beansprouts, all of which were meant to be consumed. I usually shun from eating animal fat in such huge chunks but succumbed to curiosity, and then greed when I was into my fourth piece.

In all, the experience at Wakkoqu was all we could ask for, and I would not hesitate to return if I do visit Japan again.


Wakkoqu
3rd Floor, Oriental Hotel
Opposite Shin-Kobe Station
Opening hours: 11.45 - 22.00
Reservations recommended: Call 078 262 2838
Website: http://www.wakkoqu.com/english/index.html

Ah Meng's Relatives

One of the most well-known national icon (at least to people from my generation and older) is unmistakeably a furry friend who was adopted by the Singapore Zoo at the age of 11 after being kept as a domestic pet. She slowly developed into Singapore's tourism icon, being featured in countless films and media articles. Her domestication in her early years honed her to become more approachable, and this led to the popular Breakfast with Ah Meng.

While she passed on early last year, her legacy lives on through the eateries named after her (Ah Meng Restaurant/Ah Meng Kopi), in the durian tree plated at her grave, through the bronze statue erected in her memory, and most certainly in her trainer's thoughts. Her trainer, who had looked after Ah Meng for the past 36 years before her death, was even given compassionate leave after her death.

Now that Ah Meng has passed on, the interactive breakfast programme lives on but has taken on a new (and more generic) name of 'Jungle Breakfast with Wildlife'. I'm sad to say that I did not even have a chance to meet Ah Meng, much less have breakfast with her. So when my partner suggested having breakfast with a bunch of Ah Meng's relatives, I immediately snapped up the offer.

For SGD$25++, a simple buffet spread of a mix of local and western food was available. Those who favour fried bee hoon and chwee kueh would enjoy the breakfast as much as those who prefer the omelette and hash combination. While the coffee and tea ladies walked around to make sure our cups were always full, we had to trawl through a couple of drawers at the counters ourselves to find for ketchup - the one thing from my childhood I still cannot let go - giving you an idea of how casual breakfast is.

Of course, the stars of the breakfast were the Orang Utans, who eagerly climbed down the vines and sat obediently on the wooden platform. Trainers were by their sides to constantly feed them a variety of fruits to keep them occupied or they'd start becoming restless. I cannot remember how many kilograms of fruit we were told they would go through a day, but looking at the speed with which they popped whole plums into their mouths and spat out the seeds, I'm guessing it would be alot.

Visitors were invited to take photos with the Orang Utans. A professional photographer was at hand to snap pretty and sharp photographs, but we could pass to other staff there our own camera to snap pictures as well.

After breakfast, we went on to explore the rest of the zoo, and I must say that since I last visited in primary school, alot had changed. I enjoyed myself thoroughly and have to admit that the Singapore Zoo is unmistakeably one of the must-visit places in Singapore.

The Jungle Breakfast with Wildlife starts at 9am and is on a first-come-first-served basis. Reservations are encouraged (6360 8560), otherwise, it is best to go earlier to get a good seat with a good view of the Orang Utans.

The Land of 'Small Eats'

I recently visited Taipei with a couple of friends for a short break. Although it was something we had started talking about since the tail-end of last year, bookings for flights and accomodation really only started coming together 2 weeks before we had planned to depart for Taiwan. During the flight, almost out of sheer boredom since there was no on-flight entertainment, we started flipping through Lonely Planet Taiwan for places we could visit - of course I was more preoccupied with eating places.

What I found, and what has possibly been written most about visiting Taipei, were the night markets. We visited both the King and Queen of night markets in Taipei - and I quote from Lonely Planet - "If Shilin is the King, then Shida is the Queen." All the night markets we visited bustled with so much activity that it made me wonder if the entire population of Taiwanese descends upon the night markets nightly.

Anyway, since much has been said of night markets, I thought I'd bring this blog's attention to lesser known eateries we ate at, but which were awesome. On our very first morning, we hunted down what we believe to be the original Yong He outlet for both sweet and savoury beancurd and other random breakfast snacks. It was a hole-in-the-wall that didn't look like it had changed since it started in the dinosaur ages.

Of course, our source of recommendation was THE LONELY PLANET guidebook. All hail the Lonely Planet. Despite Lonely Planet calling it the 'Yong He Congee King', they didn't actually serve any congee. While our hopes for warm congee on the frosty morning were dashed, the savoury beancurd (see picture above) and peanut paste (background) were delicious and comforting, almost making up for the lack of congee. My 2 companions lunged at the beancurd, leaving me to finish the peanut paste, and were full of praises for the crunchy and silky textures in the beancurd dish.

What stole the show however, was a special 'sandwich' we ordered randomly which comprised of a fluffy and lightly fried pancake, thick omelette, and 2 fresh and crisp you tiao. It certainly tasted like a more unhealthy, and hence better, version of a Roti John.

I was and still am impressed by the variety of Taiwanese eateries and food, which punctuated almost every stop we made within Taipei. I remember an alley lined with many types of cafes - book cafes, cafes attracting students with their free wifi and affordable menus, cafes with flaccid sofas that almost swallow you, and the list goes on. Wherever I turned, there'd be someone cupping a bowl and eating out of it with a pair of chopsticks, or someone else poking with a wooden skewer some dubious but edible brown stuff in a plastic bag they were cradling.

Speaking of dubious brown stuff, of which I have taken many unflattering and uninspiring photos, the most infamous has to be their pig's blood. Unlike our now-banned versions of pig's blood which resemble tofu but is nowhere near anything edible in texture, the Taiwanese version of pig's blood came in the form of slices of glutinous rice cooked in pig's blood and some seasoning. They were usually sold with some garnishes, but the version in the photo below came with sweet-savoury gravy in a dish called 'Tian Bu La' (literally translated into Sweet Not Spicy).

Even though I was a huge fan of pig's blood when I was younger (Admittedly, I had no idea I was eating pig's blood. I just loved the texture and its barely-there taste.), it didn't sound appetising to me. I had been abstaining from meat for personal reasons before the trip even began, and for once, I was glad for an excuse not to eat.

If there were only one thing I could introduce to Singapore from Taiwan, my choice would most certainly not be the pig's blood, but tender, chewy and incredibly tasty grilled octopi. Absolutely my favourite snack, it is generously bathed in a smokey sweet sauce with every flip on the grill, then thoughtfully snipped into bite-sized pieces and packed into a paper bag with a few wooden skewers. It was rather agonising watching the vendor slowly grill the octopi with her tongs as pools of saliva formed in my mouth. Get ready for a worthwhile jaw workout.

Perhaps coming a close second would be the spring onion pancakes (of course, I am merely evaluating among the vegetarian options - I personally love the crispy chicken cutlets that are available even in Singapore). These spring onion pancakes remind me very much of roti prata, except we could choose to add garlic sauce, chilli sauce, bbq sauce, teriyaki sauce etc... mid-cooking, before it gets more time on the hot and evenly oiled pan, then a good whacking with two metal ladles supposedly to soften it up. It reminded me of someone fluffing a pillow with a few violent thwacks on both sides of the pillow.

The version we learnt to make, in a cooking class we enrolled in while we were there, had none of the saucing nor whacking. It was simple enough and involved (1) extracting the moisture from the chopped spring onions, (2) rolling and making a ball (3) out of spring onions and some well-rested dough, and then finally (4) frying the rolled out spring onion pancake until golden brown. It was simple yet delicious, very much like the other dishes we learnt to make (see her website for details).

After so much ado, I haven't even covered the more well-known xiao chi (snacks, or literally 'small eats') from Taiwan such as Oyster Mee Sua, Chou Dou Fu (smelly beancurd), and bubble tea. Taipei is undeniably a bountiful land of 'small eats'.

Soy Beancurd, Peanut Paste, and Awesome Sandwich

Yong He

132 Fuxing N Road, sec.2 , Da'an

This is quite a distance from the nearest train station, so be prepared to walk.

Pig's Blood

Shilin Night Market and Shida Night Market had plenty of vendors selling this.

Grilled Octopus

I ate this at Danshui Night Market, which is near the coast and hence is famous for its abundance of fresh seafood.

Spring Onion Pancakes

First tried this at Shilin Night Market, but learnt how to make this at:

Jodie's Kitchen (cooking classes conducted in English/Mandarin)

2F, 29-1 Zi Yun Street

Tel. no 02 2720 0053

Email jodieskitchen@gmail.com

Cupcakes For Tea

Trips to the bookstore rarely see me emerge empty handed, and I say this with a touch of bashfulness because I admit my lack of self-restraint when it comes to retail therapy and especially when there is food porn in question. A recent purchase that had been sitting around on the coffee table for quite a while is 'Indulgence Cupcakes - A fine selection of sweet treats'. Published by Murdoch books, it boasts an array of cupcakes you wish you could just pick out from the book to taste.

While it has some of the usual suspects such as 'Rich Dark Chocolate Cupcake' or 'Chocolate and Almond Cupcake', it also had more intriguing ones like 'Mandarin and Camomile Cupcake' and 'Jam Doughnut Cupcake'. Flipping through the book on a Saturday afternoon, I was undeniably drawn to the former and it helped that the more unusual ingredients the recipe called for - Mandarin oranges and semolina - were things I somehow (still) had around the house.

In 2 hours, I chopped, measured, peeled, zested, blended, gently mixed, piped, baked and washed. The result of all that activity was 18 Mandarin and Sweet Mallow (I replaced the camomile with mallow tea) Cupcakes complete with Mandarin orange glaze.

The cupcake was put to the test when my friend came over for tea that Saturday afternoon, and it passed with flying colours - my gentle mixing of the batter towards the end of the mixing process paid off in a tender and utterly moist-crumbed cupcake. The orange flavours did not leap out onto the palate, but seemed to slowly acquaint itself with the palate, like two toddlers introduced to each other for the first time. Perfect for a light afternoon tea - the cupcakes of course.

Mandarin and Sweet Mallow Cupcakes
Adapted from Mandarin and Chamomile Cupcakes in "'Indulgence Cupcakes - A fine selection of sweet treats'"
Makes 20 mini muffins
Ingredients
185ml milk
5g sweet mallow tea flowers
150g unsalted butter, chopped
230g (1 cup) caster sugar
3 eggs
2 tsps finely grated mandarin zest
300 g mandarin, peeled, seeds removed
60g fine semolina
155g self-raising flour

Glaze:
155g (1 1/4cups) icing sugar, sifted
1 tsp finely grated mandarin zest
2-3 tbspn strained, fresh mandarin juice

Method
Preheat oven to 180 degress celcius, line 20 mini muffin holes with paper cases. (I used medium sized self-supporting cupcake cases)
Place milk and tea flowers into saucepan, bring just to boil. Stand for 5 mins to infuse then strain.
Place butter, sugar, eggs, mandarin zest and mandarin in a food processor and process until almost smooth.
Add milk mixture, semolina and flour, then process until smooth (be careful not to over process).
Pour mixture evenly among cases.
Bake for 8-10mins or until skewer comes out clean when inserted into the centre of a cupcake.
Transfer onto a wire rack to cool.

For glaze:
Place icing sugar, zest and enough juice to make a paste in a heatproof bowl.
Sit the bowl over a saucepan of simmering water, making sure the base of the bowl doesn't touch the water, and stir until runny.
Remove from heat but keep the bowl over the water.
Spread the glaze over each cake (do this fast as it hardens up quickly).

Simply Bread

What makes you want to return to a cafe or a restaurant?

Good food.
Excellent service.
Pleasing ambience.
Generosity?

I am generally put off when certain places are not generous with their servings, serviets and in some places - water. It is one thing to serve smaller portions of that pork belly per person because it is quite fatty and few people can eat more than that anyway, but a totally different matter when some places do not serve tap water and instead only serve bottled water at a cost.

It is great to know that in places such as Simply Bread, one never has to put up with that kind of arrogance. I remember the joy I felt when I found out that the bakery was about to join the neighbourhood. Alright, so 'neighbourhood' is a stretch but in the neighbourhood I stay the pickings are slim.

In Simply Bread, generosity is the order of the day.They are eager to help anyone who seems to have problems picking a loaf to buy. The Bruschetta we ordered for a snack was enough for 2 to share. Juicy chunks of tomatoes tossed through fragrant olive oil and dried rosemary were in abundance. I thoroughly enjoyed the refreshing tang of the tomatoes and even enjoyed them on their own when all the ciabatta had disappeared.

But what is most irresistable in Simply Bread has got to be the Sticky Bun. Truth be told, I haven't tried very much else. I always resolve to order something different before I enter the bakery, but my determination falters the moment the heavy cinnamon aroma hits my olfactory. The deep, dark caramelised cap belies its soft, almost cakey texture. Not overly sweet but marvellously intense in spices, this is the ultimate Sticky Bun that I've had over and over again everytime I visit.

Of course, serviets and water are free for all.

Simply Bread

1 Fifth Avenue

#01-03 Guthrie House

Tel 6466 7767

Simply Yummy

Great things can happen when you least expect it. I was meeting a bunch of old friends for a farewell party for one of them who is being posted to Indonesia to work for the next 2 years or so. Someone somehow casually suggested a Peranakan food at Blue Ginger. Even though the image it brought to my head was a little odd, it was a pleasant name and I did not give it much thought.

From the moment I stepped through the doors, everything was pleasant. The service was pleasant. The décor was pleasant. The flight of stairs up to the second floor was pleasant. The air smelt pleasant. The menu was pleasant. The food presentation was pleasant.

Then I took a bite of the kueh pie tee, and was floored.

It was a simple dish, but virtually perfectly executed and I couldn’t have asked for more.

In fact, the other dishes were similarly simple but delicious. Especially the Beef Rendang, Ayam Panggang, Sambal Terong Goreng (pictured above), Otak Otak, and Chendol. While the prices are just a tad steeper than other Peranakan restaurants I've visited, this was well worth the money.

Blue Ginger
97 Tanjong Pagar Rd
Call - 6222 3928
Fax - 6222 3860

Operating Hours:
12pm - 230pm daily
630pm - 1030pm daily

Happy Chinese New Year!

Chinese New Year gatherings are always more bearable with cousins, and especially with cousins willing to cooperate.

In line with the new year - new beginnings vibe, I changed the header and cleaned up all links! It is oddly incredible how good this feels.

Hope the Lunar New Year brings love, happiness and contentment for all!


Love,
Daffy

What is breakfast to you?

What comes to mind at the sight of the word “BREAKFAST”? For some, this is a hot bowl of smooth rice congee, and a long fried you tiao (a long, savoury churro). For some, this might be kaya (coconut jam) toast and a cup of thick, strong coffee. In some other continent, this could be a simple freshly baked croissant with homemade pear jam.

I personally have images of fat fluffy pancakes almost drenched in maple syrup. A slice of bacon (pictured above) was a surprising bonus at Halia. While it worked, the combination never occured to me because they always belonged to separate breakfasts sets. Order "The Works" and you get bacon, beans, eggs, sausages and toast. Feeling like something sweet for breakfast instead? Get the pancake stack. There are few places that serve their pancakes as they should be - fat, fluffy and generous with the maple syrup. At Halia, they were all that with fruits and bacon: pure yum.

Side story- I was a little shocked when I was with a friend at a new cafe in town and the Banana Pancakes I ordered came as two 6-inch stacks of miniature pancakes the size of half my palm each. Even the bananas were tiny! Someone must have complained because the next time I went back, I saw waiters carrying plates of what looked like regular sized pancakes.


Back at Halia, while I had my mind set on the pancakes, my companion was drawn to a special breakfast combination right at the bottom of the menu - Truffle-scented Egg White Scramble with Sturgeon Caviar, Hokkaido Scallops and Foie Gras Torchon Pate on Brioche. It piqued my curiousity and after some deliberation, we took the plunge.

I was glad I was sharing it because every single component of the dish was rich. At first sight, the portion was not generous, but halfway through I was thankful for the foresight of the chef. It was decadently pleasant when shared though. Combined with light breeze, lush greenery all around (plenty of fresh oxygen), fat fluffy pancakes and a fun companion, that was possibly one of the most enjoyable breakfasts I'd ever had.

Frenched Out

When I invite a group of friends over for a potluck dinner and most of the conversation at the table revolves around ‘How did you make this duck confit?’, ‘Are frozen prawns better than those you buy at the market?’ or ‘Guess the mystery ingredient in the sauce!’ I know I’ve hit the jackpot.

This is possibly one of the ‘foodiest’ group of friends I have and having potlucks with them is always pure bliss because I know they take their food seriously. Most of my other friends would chip in by bring something bought, but the potlucks I’ve had with this particular group were all legendary and nothing less than homemade.

With a simple French theme, the menu of the night spanned from one-of-the-most-expensive-bowls-of-tomato-soup-I’ve-ever-drunk, and amazing Moules Mouclad (mussels in cognac cream sauce), to a fantastic duck confit that unfortunately has no recipe because the cook never uses a proper recipe.

The most tedious dish would definitely be the tomato consommé that was also possibly the most expensive dish there. G bought incredibly pricy vine-riped tomatoes from Jasons Market Place and mistakenly added to his basket organic cherry tomatoes, bringing the cost of the ingredients to a whopping $70. He brought all the ingredients over to cook so I witnessed the entire cooking process from start to finish and I take my hat off to him for his resilience.

And even when the tomato consomme did not turn out as clear as we all envisioned it to be, we all still appreciated the cool crisp intense tomato soup. I eagerly went for seconds and thirds taking into account the laboriousness of it all and the cost that went into it. Sadly, I went to Meidi-Ya a couple of days after that and bought a tomato essence drink produced by Asahi at just $2 which tasted almost identical to that labour intensive soup.

Which dish was the highlight of the night? It is arguable. It is terribly difficult to choose among the tomato soup, the mussels and the duck confit (especially with some truffle salt). But since the mussels is possibly the dish that was prepared at the lowest cost among the three, though it might not have ordinarily been so, I decided to post the recipe for the mussels - especially useful in these economically tough times.

Click here for link to L's recipe for Mussels Mouclad.

The Sick Salmon

New year, new resolutions! I haven't had my annual reflection/resolution-making session with Fel yet, but am hoping to get down to it soon. Sounds like my first resolution should be to stop procrastinating.

Random: I am simply in LOVE with this Little-Red-Riding-Hood-Stamp-Set I got as a gift. From my ultimate favourite stationery shop - Wood Would, I fell in love with it the moment I tore apart the gift-wrapper.

Since I was somewhat busy during the entire festive season, I decided not to overload myself by organising a dinner party among a group of close friends, although I must admit I was incredibly tempted to do so. I did however manage to make some adorable gift tags with the new stamp set for my colleagues - to go with some small gifts of course. AND of course, I managed to cure some salmon as well.

And as promised in my previous entry, here's a simple base recipe for curing salmon.

CURED SALMON

Recipe from CHOW

INGREDIENTS
3 cups kosher salt
3 cups granulated sugar
4 tablespoons lightly crushed white peppercorns
1 (1- to 2-pound) piece of salmon fillet, skin on (scales removed), pin bones removed
1 bunch dill (including stems), coarsely chopped
1 bunch Italian parsley (including stems), coarsely chopped
Zest of 1 medium lemon

METHOD
1. Place salt, sugar, and peppercorns in a medium bowl and mix until evenly combined. Rub about 1/4 cup of the mixture onto both sides of the salmon.
2. Mix together dill, parsley, and lemon zest in a separate bowl until evenly combined. Place half the herb mixture in the bottom of a 13-by-9-inch glass baking dish or other wide, shallow, nonreactive container, then spread 1/2 of the remaining sugar-salt mixture over the herbs. Place the salmon on this, and top with the remainder of the sugar-salt mixture and the herbs.
3. Weight the salmon by nesting another glass dish or heavy pan in the first baking dish or container. Place 3 to 4 pounds of weight on top of that (large cans work well) and put the dish in the refrigerator.
4. After 10 to 12 hours, remove the dish from the refrigerator and drain off any liquid. Scrape the layer of salt and herbs off the top of the salmon and flip the fish over. Repack the salt and herbs over the top, replace the weights, and store in the fridge for an additional 12 hours. (Mess alert!)

5. When the salmon is finished curing, remove it from the pan, rinse under cold water, and pat dry. Slice and serve!

Merry Christmas! Has it really been so long?

I've been so busy with Operation Secret Santa that I haven't even had time to blog about this amazing and incredibly fun French-themed dinner party I had in November! Anyway, besides the mad singing at the SuperVIP room at Party World, Christmas was a rather slow and calm affair with family. The night of Christmas eve was spent pigging out on the usual suspects.

Turkey was bought from Meat the Butcher - super friendly new butchery that opened recently along Bukit Timah Road, next to Coronation Plaza. Check out their adorable logo! And since I was there, I thought I'd also grab a hunk of beef to roast. The staff was very helpful in recommending cheaper cuts suitable for roasting.

From Greengrocer, I couldn't resist ordering oysters as I thought it'd be fun having a oyster shucking session for all the big-bulky-biceped-cousins to get a workout.

A couple of days before Christmas, I also purchased a fat slab of salmon to cure for the first time! It was rather nerve wrecking since I had not done it before, ever. But I'm proud to announce that it was really simple. The recipe was simple, I even added my own twists of cinnamon and mustard undertones. I must warn clean-freaks though, that it was rather messy, but more about it in another post.

The night after the crazy dinner of turkey, beef, salmon and oysters, we had the leftovers sliced and shredded together with some foccacia and wheat bread. And can you believe it, we still have more oysters! I hope they don't die in our chiller before I dig them out again to deep fry in beer batter.

I received a couple of gifts for Christmas too - the number of gifts have sadly dwindled significantly over the years, must be the you're-too-old-for-gifts-mentality. One is NEVER too old for gifts! One of the sweetest gifts I've received was from my brother. Though corny -the book is about a brother-sister relationship- the choice of the book was excellent. The illustrations are beautiful.

Hope you had a meaningful and wonderful Christmas!

Quesadillas

To celebrate a couple of birthdays, my friends and I decided to have some sort of a cookout last Saturday. I say 'some sort' because there actually wasn't very much cooking involved. One of my friends, having studied in US for 4 years, suggested Mexican or at least the American idea of Mexican food - Tex Mex.

We ended up with a rather simple menu of 2 types of Quesadillas, Guacamole and Salsa served with tortilla chips.

All recipes were forwarded to me by a friend who enjoys cooking as much as (if not more than) I do. They were all taken off the Cook’s Illustrated website which, after this experience, I will definitely be visiting more often. We had a simple Ham and (Gruyere + Mozzarella) Cheese Quesadilla/Cubano Quesadilla where everyone had fun, or at least I choose to think so, toasting their own Quesadillas in a hot non-stick pan. Once we all had a go at making our own, we moved to the dining table.

There was an array of chopped pickles, small purple onions, green peppers, sliced lettuce, plenty of plain tortilla wraps and – the star of the show – Mexican Pulled Pork / Carnitas. A whole kilogram of pork was braised in a concoction of orange juice, cinnamon, onion, bay leaves, and cumin for 2 hours in a heavy Dutch oven pot, then pulled apart and grilled till slightly brown and crisp at the edges.

Everyone could then add any combination of ingredients – ALL pork for the ridiculous carnivores, or a little of each for a more balanced diet – to the tortilla wrap before devouring it as daintily and neatly as possible. Of course, that was almost impossible what with guacamole and bits of chopped onion spilling out over the sides.

But it was such a delicious meal. We all ‘cooked’ together to Mexican music and made our Mexican popiahs together.

MEXICAN PULLED PORK, or, CARNITAS

(From The Cook's Illustrated)

In addition to the traditional garnishes listed below, you can serve the pork with fresh guacamole and salsa.

Ingredients

Pork 1 (3 1/2-to 4-pound) boneless pork butt , fat cap trimmed to 1/8 inch thick, cut into 2-inch chunks
Table salt and ground black pepper
1teaspoon ground cumin
1small onion , peeled and halved
2bay leaves
1teaspoon dried oregano
2tablespoons juice from 1 lime
2cups water
1medium orange , halved

Tortillas and Garnishes
18(6-inch) corn tortillas , warmed
Lime wedges
Minced white or red onion
Fresh cilantro leaves
Thinly sliced radishes
Sour cream

Method

Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and heat oven to 300 degrees. Combine pork, 1 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, cumin, onion, bay leaves, oregano, lime juice, and water in large Dutch oven (liquid should just barely cover meat). Juice orange into medium bowl and remove any seeds (you should have about 1/3 cup juice). Add juice and spent orange halves to pot.

Bring mixture to simmer over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally. Cover pot and transfer to oven; cook until meat is soft and falls apart when prodded with fork, about 2 hours, flipping pieces of meat once during cooking.

Remove pot from oven and turn oven to broil. Using slotted spoon, transfer pork to bowl; remove orange halves, onion, and bay leaves from cooking liquid and discard (do not skim fat from liquid).

Place pot over high heat (use caution, as handles will be very hot) and simmer liquid, stirring frequently, until thick and syrupy (heatsafe spatula should leave wide trail when dragged through glaze), 8 to 12 minutes. You should have about 1 cup reduced liquid.

Using 2 forks, pull each piece of pork in half. Fold in reduced liquid; season with salt and pepper to taste. Spread pork in even layer on wire rack set inside rimmed baking sheet or on broiler pan (meat should cover almost entire surface of rack or broiler pan). Place baking sheet on lower-middle rack and broil until top of meat is well browned (but not charred) and edges are slightly crisp, 5 to 8 minutes.

Using wide metal spatula, flip pieces of meat and continue to broil until top is well browned and edges are slightly crisp, 5 to 8 minutes longer. Serve immediately with warm tortillas and garnishes.

The Ultimate Bean

Wao, has it seriously been 2 months? I cannot believe how fast time has passed. And for all that time gone, I have little to show for it. Except a rather horrid trip to China where I unknowingly drank Starfish and Seahorse Soup, and saw the grey foggy skies of Guangzhou (Beijing was still benefitting from the major clean up pre-Olympics) among other things which are better left unsaid.

In the meantime, I haven't been able to spend as much time as I would like in the kitchen (how many times have you heard that from me already?). The parties and gatherings I used to organise, it seems, have become a thing of the past. Though of course this depends on the definition one chooses to subscribe to for 'past'.

Anyway, I managed to dig up photos I had stowed away for dryer months such as this, and found these two photos that immediately triggered beautiful memories of never-ending beaches and mountain ranges in Mauritius.

I almost never fail to visit the market, whichever city I visit - La Boquiera market in Barcelona; Borough market: London; and Central market: Port Louis (Mauritius). It was at the Central Market that I picked up a couple of packets of super plump vanilla beans (bottom left). Far from the dried, shrivelled up vanilla beans (bottom right) that I bought from the local baking supplies store, these plump beauties yielded eagerly under the knife tip to reveal an abundant supply of thick, syrupy seeds.

I enthusiastically used them in some ice cream, cake, and my latest and probably longest project ever - vanilla extract. So many recipes are available on the internet, but they all point to the same combination of ingredients: a bottle of alcohol (vodka, brandy or rum) and some vanilla beans for about 3 months and more.

I've put all my spent vanilla pods (i.e. shell without the seeds which would have gone into the ice cream/cake) into a bottle of dark rum and left it in a dark cupboard. It has been there since late August and I can't wait to use some of this homemade vanilla extract perhaps in some wicked ice cream - uber rich Rum and Raisin Ice Cream. Till next time!

Homemade

I fervently believe that the best things are homemade. Small diced pumpkin cubes, celery and carrots with brown rice and a sprinkling of sesame seeds. Now that my mum has time on her hands to pamper herself, spend time with our not-so-little bunny Moka and spend more time in the kitchen which used to be almost solely my domain, she has been preparing soups with plenty of healthful properties and cooking dinners for the whole family.

One delightful morning, I woke up groggy-eyed and was typically slow to start on my morning routine. I opened my room door only to find my mother, ladle in hand. She asked if I would like to pack some fried rice for lunch, and I flippantly responded to the affirmative. Just before I left home, I noticed a carefully wrapped green Tupperware container snuck into my oversized carry-all bag, together with a sturdy little bowl (for reheating the food in the microwave oven, she says) but did not give much thought to it.

When lunchtime came, I bashfully unveiled the delicious jeweled grains much to the envy of my colleagues. I felt transported back to my secondary school days when my mum packed lunch and snacks for me. When carrots were particularly cheap, I was given a stick of carrot almost everyday as a snack for the 10 minute breaktime at 950am on schooldays. Until I turned slightly orange and stopped. My night vision at that time was however, par excellence.

But I digress.

As I savoured every spoonful of fried rice, grains of brown rice milled about on my tongue dancing around with its herbivorous friends. It was tasty alright. My mum had outdone herself again. More significantly, I could taste the effort my mum put into ensuring the pumpkin and celery were diced into tiny cubes, scrambling the beaten eggs briefly before tossing the cooked brown rice through the half-cooked eggs, and adding her signature finishing touch of sesame seeds (she adds it to almost anything, you name it, she's done it) before packing the container into my bag.

That has got to be one of the best meals I'd ever eaten in my sad little office. Ever. I'd typically jump at any chance to lunch outside, but for home-cooked fried rice, I'd stay in anytime.

Tender Tentacles

The other is simply boiled and served with a gentle squeeze of lemon. This was not the first time I tried the recipe for Galician Octopus, and it was even more delicious than I remembered it to be. Soft, tender octopus with just the right amount of bounce in its meat; tossed through a scrumptiously tangy and sweet dressing; what's not to love?

I made a little extra and spooned it over cruncy baby spinach, but alas it was still not enough to satiate my guests. They wanted more! They wanted bread to soak up all the juices!
The recipe for the dressing is reminiscent of the usual salad dressing I concoct for lazy/fat nights. But who would have known that jazzing it up with some smoked paprika and thinly sliced red onions would have made that much of a difference?

I'm adding red onions to my list of staples!

Yummy and good for you

I don't know when or from where my mum got this idea of mixing honey with lemon, but for a period of time she'd make it for me every morning before I have to practically run out of the house to work. Whenever I have the sniffles or an itchy throat, she'd prescribe that to me as well. It was either that or some horridly bitter and ominously dark liquid that had been boiling for a couple of hours.

Bless her heart, but when she concocts these things she believes in economies of scale and boils a large potful of them so that it can last me a few days. Of course that means instead of being able to spread my agony over a couple of weeks, taking ample time to recuperate from the not-so-pleasant taste in between each dosage, I usually have a glass of it plastered to my hands as long as I am at home. And this would happen for many days at a stretch. Sometimes I even discover a bottle of it snuck into my handbag! Still, I gulp it all down and pop something sweet into my mouth immediately after.


In light of the dark liquid that is always the alternative to sniffles or itchy throats, I never fail to jump on the offer of a big glass of honey lemon. And now, it has joined my repertoire of drinks I would depend on if in need of something pleasant and refreshing to serve guests. This is especially crucial since my home is one of those where you’re more likely to find lemons and honey than Coke or Sprite.

For planned dinner parties, I am usually well prepared with a couple of vino or bubbly in the refrigerator just hanging. But when unexpected guests arrive and are thirsting for something sweet and soothing, I'd whip up a big batch of this in a couple of minutes and it’d be better than your store-bought carbonated drink overloaded with sugars and preservatives.

Simply mix your preferred proportion of honey, water and freshly squeezed lemon juice then top with a slice of lemon and a sprig of mint (optional). I always add some hot water to the honey first to get it all to dissolve then mix in some room temperature water to dilute it further.

But friends, be forewarned. Do not, I say DO NOT pour hot water directly into a glass jug, especially those with thick glass walls. It will crack, oh yes it will crack. I had to learn this the tough way. Colleagues and friends looked at me in horror as I recounted the incident, exclaiming that whether one could pour hot water directly into a thick-walled glass jug was a primary school Science question!

I cannot be more sorry for not paying attention in class.

Mid-week meals

Whenever I lack the motivation to cook, there are a couple of sure-fire ways I usually seek to get inspired all over again.

1. Travel to an exotic country with a national cuisine vastly different from what I'm used to.
2. Read incredibly food blogs like The Travelors Lunchbox, Orangette, Kuidaore, Delicious Days, and Chubby Hubby just to name a few. One day, if I don't get inspired by the stunning photos or the delicious writing, I'd know I'm a gone case.
3. Equally peppered with beautifully inspiring photos and prose is Donna Hay, a magazine I'd almost kill myself if I somehow miss out on buying the last season's copy.

The latest issue has plenty of recipes for special days - tiny morsels of food as part of a larger grazing menu, or a more elaborate sit-down dinner comprising main courses that you can choose to spend anywhere between an hour to 3 days laboring over .

My favourite section though, is one for the everyday. They gave a recipe for osso buco and 3 accompanying quick recipes that uses osso buco in different ways. Great as a weekend project for sure. They also have a number of recipes for mid-week dinners meant to be casual and put together almost in a flash. There, I found the perfect getting-back-into-the-kitchen recipe.

Thai-style sweet and sour barramundi. It looked like all I had to do was clean and boil (the vegetables), fry (the fish), and mix (the dressing for the fish). The only laborious part was the cleaning and chopping of the vegetables (snow peas, but I added french beans and baby corn). After that, everything was a breeze. This iss presentable and satisfying enough to be served during mid-week casual dinners at home with close friends, but easy enough as a tasty mid-week dinner for yuppie-couples.

I made this for my brother and I this weekend, and substituted the barramundi with salmon. I enjoyed how the tartness of the thai-style dressing cut through the usually rich flavour of salmon. Simply blanched snow peas, french beans and baby corn were drizzled with some Japanese Roasted Cashew Salad Dressing that I bought at the Japanese fair recently. Okay, I cheated, but it is meant for a mid-week meal you know.

It is great getting back into the kitchen!

Thai-style Sweet and Sour Salmon
Recipe adapted from Donna Hay
Serves 4

Ingredients
1 tsp chiili flakes
1 tbspn sea salt flakes
4x200g salmon fillets, skin on
1 tbsp vegetable oil
300g snow peas, blanced and thinly sliced (or 100g snow peas, 100g french beans and 100g baby corn)
1/4 cup (60ml) lime juice
2 tsp brown sugar
1 tsp fish sauce

Method
To make the sweet and sour dressing, place the lime juice, sugar and fish sauce in a non-metallic bowl and stir to combine. Set aside
Combine the chilli flakes and sea salt and rub onto the fish skin.
Heat the oil in a large non-stick fying pan over high heat.
Cook the fish skin-side down for 3-4 minutes or until skin is crisp, turn and cook for a further 1-2 minutes then turn off the flame.
Serve with the dressing spooned over, and the side of snow peas, french beans and baby corn - blanched, drained and tossed in your favourite salad dressing (preferably not something tart like the sweet and sour dressing).

A long break, a new life...

Crocodile Park in Mauritius with Stella and her parents

Instead of running up a tall tower like that shown in the video in my previous entry, I did something else - I ran away to Mauritius.

I had been feeling so out-of-sorts and knew I needed a proper break. Ever since I started work, I had not taken a break for myself. So it didn't take me long to book the cheapest return airfare to Mauritius I could find.

I spent about 10 days there resting and going to more beaches than I had ever visited in my life. That was a must, according to Stella. Looking at the crystal clear waters, and feeling the fine floury sand between my toes, I understood why. Stella, for the uninitiated, is my long-time toilet-mate from university who put forth an open invitation for free accomodation in Mauritius anytime I was disposed to fly over.

Mauritius is a beautiful place with plenty of sugarcane plantations to sweeten honeymoons. Mountain ranges are in sight virtually everywhere, no matter where you stand in Mauritius, thanks to low rise buildings. The first part of my trip experienced temperamental weather of strong winds and transient rain, but Stella and I prayed and prayed. Her friends and family showered warmth and hospitality that gave me all I needed to withstand the cold until the sun finally sauntered out from behind the clouds.

I was incredibly blessed to have Stella host me during my entire stay in Mauritius. Her family brought me to the Crocodile park that not only had giant tortoises I could sit on, but also served (surprise surprise) crocodile steak as pictured above. It had the tender chewiness of medium rare beef, but looked almost entirely like perfectly grilled pork steak. It tasted however, milder than I expected - a cross between chicken and fish. It was a thrill simply to taste crocodile steak.

There was so much Stella brought me to see and do in Mauritius that covering it all in one entry would do the trip little justice. Instead, I will share with everyone in later entries, specific (food) items I really enjoyed that left a deep impression in me.

Shortly after returning to Singapore, I spent the past week in Bangkok nursing a flu while trying to make sure I brought home some new clothes for my tired wardrobe. It was tough trying to stay chirpy and lively while my system threatened to breakdown with each hack or sniffle, but my beloved friend nursed me to health with many rounds of warm water, cough medication and Strepsils.

Am I refreshed and raring to go back to work tomorrow (actually, today since it is now 1.35am)? Not really. That I am typing this at 1.35am in the morning also means I'm probably going to feel lethargic at work while battling the thousands of emails in my inbox.

One good thing that came out of this break however, is that I have found energy to bake/cook again! I spent a good part of the last 24 hours in the kitchen playing with custards and batters. I am also very inspired to cook one of my favourite dishes from Mauritius. The problem is simply finding the key ingredient whose name I do not even know.

This long break was also meant to symbolically mark the closure of one big chapter in my life, and the start of a new one with a brand new, clean slate.

Sharing my latest favourite quote:
"Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, but today is a gift. That is why it is called the present." - Wugui master from Kungfu Panda

Good Days, Bad Days

I have been feeling totally out of sorts.

Have you ever felt like every little thing you try to do right, is just turning out wrong? No matter how much you resolve to do things better the next time, when next time comes, somehow you still screw up? Work sometimes seems senseless and when the meaningless of it all hits the bone, it just feels crap. Somewhere inside, you know it shouldn't affect you so much but it just does. It consumes you, your every breath.

You've always tried to take things easy, to be positive and cheerful regardless of things happening around you. But when the tiny raindrops beat relentlessly, for what seems like forever, even the toughest of exteriors would finally break down. You let the raindrops fall deep inside you. You let them get the better of you.

Yet even this awareness can't help you get out of your funk. Talking to friends about it usually helps, but it hasn't this time round. Instead, they get increasingly concerned at your attitude and you fear the more you talk to them, you might somehow even screw up your relationships. One by one.

Have you ever felt this way? Anyone?

I think about better days, when spotting and eventually consuming a gigantic Anadara Cockle ( I think that's what they call it) at a small, discreet Japanese restaurant made me grin with glee for the rest of the day.

But today, I just feel like running to the end of the world and screaming my lungs out then collapsing in a heap.

And this video is giving me some ideas. If not the end of the world, then somewhere high, high up would do too.

Simple Pleasures

How many times have I said 'Alright, today I shall bake a tart!'. Just in the past week alone, I must have said those 7 magic words at least 50 times. Ever since I became the proud owner of a gorgeous cookbook all about tarts (Eric Kayser's Sweet and Savoury Tart), I keep telling myself I really have to get down to baking the handsome Parma Ham and Pear tart. Or even the Bacon and Mushroom Quiche.

Unfortunately, I STILL haven't gotten down to it.

Instead, I succumbed to preparing far simpler dishes. None of the fiddly-diddly dough-kneading, even though the tarts seriously look finger-licking good. Perhaps tonight, tonight!

Many people overestimate the amount of work that is needed for cooking in general, and especially for food that looks fit for the cover of Donna Hay. Alas, it is not true! The effortlessness of wrapping bacon around a piece of chicken thigh, baking it at 180 degrees celcius for about 20-30 mins or until the middle registers 70 degrees celcius then garnishing it with chopped parsley, cannot be ignored.

The bacon bathes the chicken in its flavourful juices and protects it from the harsh heat in the oven hence keeping it moist. Pair it with a big serving of salad tossed in balsamic vinegar and olive oil, and it'd be a meal fit for... well in this case, me.

On another gloriously bright Saturday morning, the day called for something humbly plain. A pack of pork sausages, onions, hotdog buns, strawberries, lettuce and haloumi cheese later, I put together one of my all-time favourite salads, and made some sweet onion relish to complement a couple of hotdogs. 'Delicious' wouldn't even begin to describe it. Beautiful company with such a pure meal made that Saturday one of my most memorable Saturdays ever.

On the single rare occasion I actually bothered to put in just a little more effort, I had 8 spectacular pieces of lamb cutlets to thank for the blast of inspiration. Spotted in the meat section of Cold Storage one very innocent Sunday morning while grocery shopping, I could not peel my eyes off them and found my hands inexplicably wrapped around them shortly after. Somehow, somewhere, they ended up in the chiller section of my refrigerator, coated in a mixture of cumin, mustard seeds and black pepper all freshly pound in my under-used mortar and pestle.

After spending some tender-loving time in the frying pan with just a spot of olive oil, they were served with couscous (dried mint, lemon juice, salt, pepper and dried cranberries soaked in some hot water) and baby spinach salad (balsamic vinegar, olive oil, sugar, raisins, haloumi cheese).

The lamb cutlets (at about 65 degrees celcius on the meat thermometer) had only the faintest hint of pink and were succulent to the last bite. The combination of spices also fortuitously worked marvellously well with the lamb. It imparted an earthiness that complemented the natural gamey flavour one would find in lamb. The tangy and crunchy salad, together with the fluffy couscous grains were side dishes the lamb cutlets were certainly most proud to be placed next to. Or actually, sandwiched between.

Perhaps all I need is to make more grocery shopping trips, and wait for the inspiration to come. But in the meantime, I don't see much wrong with simple pleasures, or pleasures simply put-together.

Alright, today I shall bake a tart!

Muffins that go pop

I found poppy seeds!

In my 3 years of study in Warwick, I arguably spent 1 full year in all browsing the aisles in Tesco, Costcutters, Sainsbury's and Marks and Spencers. Another year might have been spent travelling, half a year in one kitchen or another whipping up something for the next potluck, and the remaining half a year trying to cram bits and bobs of facts, dates, names and theories only to regurgitate them at the year-end exams.

In that 1 year I practically lived in the grocery marts, I got spoilt by high accessibility to fresh basil, easy-peel clementines and cheap booze among others. Of course, it was difficult finding for asian produce. And when I did, cooking a full chinese meal would burn a hole in my pocket.

Coming back home to Singapore, I felt like I had to (almost) travel across the island just to get fresh herbs at not so astronomical prices. Easy-peel clementines/Mandarin oranges would only be available around Chinese New Year. Booze, well. Nuff said.

So when I find ingredients I hardly see, I usually just grab a bottle/packet of it and start planning a dinner around it for the coming weekend. Or, if like in this case the expiry date is very forgiving, I buy the bottle of poppy seeds, keep it in my cupboard and just wait. And wait. And wait.

I can't remember the number of times I'd bought a pack of lemons thinking 'Today will be the day I bake some lemon poppy seed muffins.' Lets just say there were many cups of honey lemon drinks, water spiked with many slices (and in some cases, halves) of lemons and squeezed lemon halves peppering my refrigerator because my mum believes it helps remove odour.

One fine day, I finally took out the well respected tome for baking to search for a lemon poppy seed muffin recipe. Of course, I had no idea how poppy seeds taste, I simply followed the scaled down recipe and baked away. Judging from the amount of eggs and cream that was needed for this muffin, I had no doubt it would still taste delicious even if I managed to somehow screw it up.

In the end, this was all I had ever wanted in a muffin. Soft. Fluffy. Dense. Bouncy. With a gloriously cracked tophat. The taste of the poppy seeds? They don't seem to add any flavour, but these certainly added some interesting crunch to the muffins.

Unfortunately, I added too little lemon zest, having gotten frustrated at my not so effective zester. (I highly recommend the microplane to anyone looking to invest in a good zester. Initially made as a woodworking tool, these blades last forever and give you the thinnest shavings of zest, chocolate, cheese. ) It ended up tasting like... eggy muffins? Still, this was a great muffin recipe that I would adapt as the mother-of-all-mothers muffin recipe.

Trivia: Did you know that if you ate enough poppy seeds, you would test positive for opiates in a drug test? A loaf of poppy seed cake or a few poppy seed bagels later, you'd be a certified druggie.

Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins

Recipe from Baking and Pastry (Culinary Institute of America)

Ingredients

369g All Purpose Flour

1 tbsp baking powder

293g sugar

248g butter

142g creme fraiche (I used whipping cream)

255g eggs

60ml vegetable oil

30ml orange juice

43g lemon/orange zest

50g poppy seeds (I used way less than that and it was still beautifully crunchy)

1/2 tsp salt

Method

Sift flour and baking powder together into a bowl.

Cream the sugar and butter in a separate bowl with 1/2 tsp of salt on medium speed until batter is smooth and pale.

Blend in the cream.

Whisk eggs, oil and orange juice together, adding to butter-cream mixture in 3 batches, mixing well after each addition.

Blend in zest and poppy seeds.

Add flour in 3 batches, mixing on low speed after each addition.

Fill muffin cups up to 3/4 full. Tap them onto a table gently to help the batter settle into the cups.

Bake in a preheated oven at 191 degrees celcius for 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted emerges clean.

Leave to cool then serve with a cup of hot tea.