Just some cheese, an egg and a non-stick pan

You know sometimes how two ingredients go so well with each other that you can't stop using both all the time?

It's like they're so inseperable and so happily married that a divorce is impossible!

Before you think me crazy, talking about food this way, just bear with me ya?

I suppose you'd understand when I tell you about said ingredients.

Or you'd also have guessed it by now, due to the photos!

All right, I'll just admit that I am a sucker for cheese - melted cheese at that. And what gets me going in the mornings is a cheese omelette sandwich:




With the cheese warm and oozing.

Now, I'm not sure how you cook your cheese omelette (i suppose everyone has their own way) but recently I discovered the beauty of a very good non-stick pan and found that there's an easier way to cook cheese omelette.

The way I do it is as such:

I beat the eggs and pour it into a non-stick pan and let it cook a while, making sure the egg spreads evenly around the pan.

Then I'll place a slice of cheese right smack in the middle, allowing it to melt a little, then folding the omelette around it via the 4 sides. Think of it as folding a present. haha. I know it sounds really simple, but hey it's fun! It's like a cheese parcel. Yummy... The great thing is that the cheese is safely contained in the egg and doesn't drip or ooze out, until you bite it:



Check out all that cheese! Mmmmm.... Every bite was a reward in itself because of the soft, warm cheese.

The amazing thing is that I used NO oil whatsoever when cooking the omelette.

How's that possible? A non-stick pan of course but not just any non-stick pan. It just had to be WMF's non-stick pan:



Those are water droplets I sprinkled to show you how smooth and 'non-stick' the surface is. I've used other non-stick pans and none has proven to be as amazing as the WMF.



Dad bought this pan a few months ago at an Isetan sale and he got it at a much cheaper price. Forgot how much though. About $60+ I think? The original price was supposedly more than $100.

Since he bought this (and two other pans/wok), I've been using it to cook my omelettes. So thanks to this non-stick pan, I am able to have an oil-less omelette! Haha... not that it makes it less fattening (cheese is quite rich) but who cares! Eat in moderation and everything will be fine.

I really love making breakfasts. It's just the start of the day and I know I want to feed myself (and others) well. But it's quite hard too because that means I have to rack my brains to think of what to eat in the morning and usually no one has the energy to think so much the moment they get outta bed. But I guess I'm quite a morning person. I've grown accustomed to it. Okie dokie, I gotta run.... I've to be in school soon! Tataz.... and Happy Friday! The weekend is here again! Yippie! :)

Got Pain, Lots of Gain

Here's a quick question for you, "How far would you go for pain?"

Clueless? Haha... I know that question doesn't seem food related somehow, but it actually does.

So how far have you gone? I've gone the entire 42.195km stretch of pain, and last Sunday, I completed half of that. So thankfully the pain was only a fraction of what I experienced last December.

And as my friend told me, "Crossing the finish is the best reward for all that pain", which I couldn't agree more.

Pain. You know what they all say, "No Pain, No Gain".

But it does seem insane doesn't it - to submit myself to such 'torture'. But I don't deem it as such. It's satisfying in a weird sort of way. Sure, it sounds sadistic, but it's just a personal achievement that I like to obtain. Besides, nothing beats a good hearty meal after it.

I really don't know what made me love running so much. When I think about it, I remember myself watching Forrest Gump countless times and thinking what it'll be like if I could run and as long as him!

However, the only running I did then was at Sports Day (I'd try the 100m sprints) and the compulsory 2.4km we had to complete for our physical fitness. It was only around 2002 I think, that I started running on a regular basis, and at a longer distance too. That was purely for leisure and haha, yes, keeping fit. Come on, you seriously don't think that I am able to eat so much and not exercise? Besides, nothing beats the endorphin high one gets after a good run.

As much as I enjoy food, I know that what's important is eating in moderation. Too much of a good thing can be bad for you as well.

Food isn't evil, it's just humans who make it so, sometimes. Think trans fat and you know what I mean. haha.

So if you haven't already been exercising, start now! Run! Jog! Cycle! Just get on your feet and do something - it'll benefit you in the long run, trust me.

Trust me, once you get started, you'll love it so much and you'll feel more energetic. I remembered the first time I joined a formal running event last year... the New Balance Real Run. It felt so good and I've never looked back since. I just ran my 2nd army half marathon and I am doing the full marathon (Standard Chartered Bank) again this year. No, I'm not crazy, I'm just insanely enthusiastic about running. :)

I advise you to sign up with a couple of friends and run together; moral support is always good while running. Last Sunday, I had JF and Pat who ran with me. Yea, JF is a fast runner but he was sweet enough to purposely slow down and keep with my (less than ideal) pace.

After the run, we went to Marina Square to eat breakfast and I had mee rebus. Pat ordered popiah too and it was really black. Erm, not completely, but it was darker than normal popiahs then when I popped a piece into my mouth, I knew why - there was so much dark sauce. But it tasted good. Each piece held well too - didn't fall apart when I picked it up.

We went home after that and you wouldn't believe where JF and I went in the evening...

I know we're supposed to be resting our feet and probably sleep (we woke up at 3am for the run! it started at 5:30am) but oh no.... we had to go for:

WOMAD!

Yep, a.k.a. World of Music and Dance is a music festival that takes place in various countries and Singapore has one every year as well. It was at the lovely Fort Canning Park and I brought my mat so we could sit comfortably on the grass patch. And I want to rave also, about some healthy chips we tried:



Yes yes, brown rice and black beans don't sound too appetising but hey they're good for you. I was really curious at how these would taste like so we got it and I tell you, we were hooked. I think it's also the fact that we felt less guilty eating these so we had no qualms wolfing it down. It made for a nice munchy crunchy snack.

So there, what a Sunday I had! And I had classes early morning yesterday - I had to rely on coffee to make sure I stay alert, besides my classmate and I had a presentation. We chose to talk about trans fat. Now, that's not surprising is it? :) I'll probably talk about it in another post but here's a nice link to scare you a bit: www.bantransfat.com

Time to go. Got lots of readings to do!

Of hawker food, nasi lemak & egg tarts

Teo's Noodles nasi lemak - from the Bedok Interchange Hawker Centre

Recently, in the newspapers, there has been much talk about the quality of our hawker food here in Singapore. And I think some one also commented about the long queues at certain nasi lemak stalls and how taste of what they served didn't justify the wait.

All these got me thinking.

Singapore is always touted as a food paradise. But what is its exact definition? Is a food paradise simply a place where you can find food at every corner or does the food actually have to be up to scratch? Then again, on what scale are you measuring the taste and quality of the food on?

I do believe that everyone has their own preferences and it's relatively hard to please all.

In my opinion, I think that it's already fortunate that we can get food so cheap here. Come on, can you find $1 popiah elsewhere in the world? Perhaps not. But I can find it here at the coffeeshop near my home and I'm rather satisfied with that.

However, I totally understand the complaints nonetheless. Like most people, I hate to have to eat a lousy dish just because I made a less informed choice. That does happen quite a bit and it totally ruins my day but more often than not, I just tell myself that it's okay because I paid only $3 or so, and I guess I shouldn't expect much.

Of course there are a handful of those really good hawkers that still feed you with good stuff even though their prices are low - but that's mostly because they have the customers who always come back for more. It's a vicious cycle I guess? If you charge less, and don't have enough people biting, you lose out, and if you charge too much, most people would rather go to those who charge less... and so on and so forth.

Oh well, I guess it's hard to get the best of both worlds here when competition is thick. The market here is too saturated and that's why you have trends and fads (ie. bubble tea and roti boy) that just come and go.

As for me, well I think I'd take the risk now and then. The risk of having to eat something not as delicious as I would have liked, but edible nonetheless. It's fun that way. Food is a lifestyle, eating is meant to be light-hearted, to me at least. Maybe I'm just not that fussy an eater? Perhaps. But I'll have my cake and finish it, thank you very much.

Cakes aside, I want to talk more about nasi lemak. That popular Punggol Nasi Lemak that's supposedly very good. Well I finally had the patience to queue and got this:



Okay that wasn't my plate, I forgot to take a shot of it. This was JF's plate. Now, the nasi lemak there is kind of famous (thus the long queue, duh) but sorry to say that it just wasn't really worth the wait? Don't get me wrong. I'm not saying it sucked. It was okay. Just okay. The rice was okay, the rest was okay as well. And as Leonard commented, the chilli looked dead. It had that blase look. It lacked the fiery redness and kick. It tasted dull too. Please, those people who love that stall, don't berate me for this honest comment ya. haha. I know I may not be a nasi lemak expert but hey, these are just my preferences.

I still remember the nasi lemak I had at Holland Village Food Centre. I wrote about it before. The rice was so fragrant! Ahhh... you see... a good nasi lemak leaves an impression; a good one. Oh, if you happen to live in the East, or better yet, Bedok, try Teo's Noodles nasi lemak at the hawker centre right next to Bedok bus interchange. Don't be deceived by the stall's dull appearance. They do serve good nasi lemak. I regret finding it out only now. Apparently it's Leo's favourite nasi lemak stall and I can understand why. Their sambal chilli kicks ass and looks red enough to knock you off your seat! Yummy....

I'm really in the mood for more food musings. So I shall tickle your taste buds with more food pictures:



Snacks from Ho Kee Pau. I like their char shao puff and the egg tart. Check out the yellow hue:



Mmmmm..... i've been craving for egg tarts recently, and this one soothed me so.

Anyway, I need to go now... Got a lecture later at noon and I live very very very far from campus. So I need to get outta the house now. Laterz!

Marks & Spencers' Dark Chocolate Ginger Biscuits

I can't seem to get away from Marks & Spencers'. Everytime I'm near one of their outlets, I just have to enter.

It doesn't take much for one to guess why.

Hats off to the store designer, their product designers and whoever who's involved with the branding of Marks & Spencers'.

Indeed, I have an affinity for this UK store.

I'm not sure when they came to Singapore, but as far as I remember, it was around even when I was a kid. Mum always bought their almond biscuits (they're so fragrant and crumbly!) and rich tea biscuits.

Ask me what I think of their chain of outlets and I'll tell you that it's simply their clean, homely, not too over-the-top design/feel. Entering Marks & Spencers' is like entering a quaint clean and tidy home where there's no pretenses.

Boy do I love the simple shelves they use:



Check out the way they organise their products. I love it. It's so easy to find anything you're looking for.

And I totally dig their product packaging:



Less is more they say and I couldn't agree more! Speaking of which, let me digress a little and rave about these dark chocolate ginger biscuits.

Was browsing around (as usual) and these biscuits caught my eye. It's dark chocolate coated ginger biscuits, mind you! Two of my favourite ingredients. Okay, yes I do love dark chocolate more, but I am quite a fan of ginger.

So anyways, I bought home a box and slowly ate my way through it, sharing some with my dearest sis and those at home of course.

There were even pieces of ginger in the biscuits:



Ah... I really love it whenever I step into Marks & Spencers' and pick out something that automatically becomes my favourite. So far, nothing I've tried from their store has disappointed me.

True enough, you might think me bias, but hey, to each his own, no? Haha... I am so in love with Marks & Spencers' and I do miss their huge store in the UK. I've only visited London once and I can still remember going to one of their large outlets and simply staring with my mouth agape and almost drooling at everything they had to offer. Trust me, it's a lot more than what they have here.

I guess right now, I'll just have to make do with the selection here! Which isn't too bad actually. :)

Nescafe Ice

My first week at school has been rather fruitful. Been to all the introductory lectures, bought my coursepacks and met up with friends I haven't seen in ages.

That also means that it's time to up my coffee intake once again! haha, not that I haven't been doing so. What am I talking about? You'll understand when you have to go for lectures just after lunch or early in the morning! Caffeine really wakes you up!

And speaking of coffee, I have to let you in on something weird and interesting. Just last month, I was at a supermarket and found sachets of Nescafe Ice. Okay, Nescafe is a coffee brand as you all know, but ICE? Does that mean it's best drunk with ice?

However I wasn't that bewildered because I did buy a can of Nescafe Ice before:



I think I found it at 7-11. And yes, I do take pictures of anything edible and memorable. :)

So what's this drink all about? I know that recently there has been alot of 'ICE' versions of drinks. That includes other soft drinks like 7-Up. And I do suppose that the ICE comes in with the chilling sensation one gets when drinking these.

How in the world does it chill you? I have no idea, but I suppose that they use a certain extra ingredient. I'm not really sure what it is, but I'll definitely go do some research on my own.

In any case, back to the sachets I bought. Costing $2.90 for 10 sachets, it's definitely cheaper than buying one can of it! hahaa... how did it taste? I found it a tad too sweet but still drinkable.

I've been blending it with ice to make some sort of a Nescafe Ice Slush. Yes, I know, blending it with ice gives it twice the impact - the chill sensation I mean. Lo and behold, it really gives you a chill. Seriously! You'll understand if you try it....

The packet recommends you to add in a banana too - which I did. Verdict? Gave it a smoother texture but wasn't really quite platable. I think I'll stick to my normal freshly brewed hot coffee in future.

Ashmi Indian Food

Bought this from Ashmi Indian Food for only $3.50

There's the 5 C's that Singaporeans talk about owning (cash, credit card, condominium, car, country club membership) and then there's my favourite 5 C's.

You don't need to think hard to figure out what they are. They're definitely edible. Haha...

Can you guess what they are?

Okay, I'll just tell you: chocolate, chilli, cheese, cake, cookies.

Yep yep, how typical of me eh?

Today I'm going to talk about chillies. Or rather, all things spicy.

Alot of my friends try their darnest to avoid the fiery 'thing' but I simply gobble it up like nobody's business. Believe you me, I love my chilli. Anything with it, ie, curries, sambal, assam etc, simple rocks my spicy world.

So you'll probably understand when I tell you how much I love Indian cuisine. Indians are just so adept at mixing and matching spices. Anything from peppercorns, to star anise, cumin and mustard seeds, etc - just place it in their hands and they can make magic. That's what I adore about their food. Am totally a fan of their dhal and masala stuff. And oh, talk about briyani and thosai, chapati, and their yoghurt dips. Yummm....

As always, when I talk about a certain cuisine, I'll definitely have some place to recommend, and today, it's Ashmi Indian Food.

I had lunch there a few days ago after running with JF at Sentosa. This stall is situated at Seah Im Food centre at Harbour Front Interchange and I totally dig their food. The rice was yum (basmati i think), and I ordered some veggie and chicken. It comes with a pappadum too! Yet another of my favouirte.

JF ordered a masala thosai:



Yea, I took the picture too late, so what you see is a half-eaten thosai. Hope you don't find it gross! :p Anyway it was delicious, especially with the dips.

Here's how the stall looks like:




So there you go, yet another of my off-the-top-of-my-head musings about some of my favourite foods.

Man, I need to pick up Indian cooking! The only Indian dish I know now is tandoori chicken. Anyone care to share their favourite Indian recipes with me?

Basil Seed Drink

Check this out! Another interesting find! Okay, it might be familiar to the locals, but I do suppose the rest of you would be quite bewildered. haha.

You gotta admit that it does look a bit freaky and weird. But it's actually not that bad. Those black dots are basil seeds, a.k.a. selasi seeds. They add a slight crunch to your drink and don't really have any taste. Kinda like poppy seeds ya know; they're just there to add texture.

It came in a glass bottle:



There were two flavours - honey and green tea. I prefer the honey one. It had a pleasant taste. But I think they added stabilisers to keep the seeds suspended. Usually when I use selasi seeds in my drinks, they always sink to the bottom, only to rise when I stir it. Basil seeds are very unique - if you look closely at the picture, you'd realise that there's a translucent outer layer. I don't really know what's that, but it's only after soaking it in water then you get that slippery layer.

The drink is on sale at $1.70. I bought this from Shop n Save. Try it if you're really curious :)

Why I Bake & Cook

my signature brownies, freshly baked!

Okay, so you all know that I love to bake and cook.

You'd also know that I enjoy desserts a whole lot and could just skip main course and dive into something sweet, say, a creme brulee for instance.

For my friends, they'll also be aware that the part of baking/cooking that I enjoy the most is the ability to share it with others. When I bake/cook, I get to share my love through the food I bake and cook with my dearest friends and family. I also get to share my recipes so that they can all enjoy the same foods anyday and anytime.

It is my belief that all good things are meant to be shared. I'm not one to hoard secret recipes for fear that someone else might steal my 'glory'. Nah, if there's one thing I believe in, that's generousity. I think that's perhaps why I love to feed my friends and family well. Haha... so much so that they question me about it when I fail to bring my brownies or cookies to a party or gathering.

Would I ever get bored of this? Of baking and cooking? It's a question I get sometimes. Sure, it is tiring, especially when it involves a large quantity of people (that i have to feed). However, I do subscribe to the saying 'no pain no gain'. I'm definitely not expecting to gain something tangible. I'm simply referring to the sweet satisfaction and happiness I get when I see others enjoying what I bake or cook.

To put it in other words, i get high on that. On seeing that my skills can make people happy. You see, that's another reason why I love desserts so much. They have the ability to turn a scowl into a smile :)

When I first started baking avidly, I never knew I'd develop such a passion for it. I love food and I love writing. I wanted to be a writer when I was a kid - Enid Blyton and Roald Dahl were my inspirations, and I still harbour that intention. It's only as I grew older that I discovered my other passion: food (be it consuming or producing it.. haha).

What a marriage it is, to combine food and writing. I'm really glad to be already doing that. God has been very good to me. As a freelance journalist I get to write on food, talk about it, muse and banter about all things culinary; to put it simply, I'm living my dream.

If it's your first time reading this humble wee food blog of mine, welcome. You must love food to have found this site and I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoy writing it! :)

Alot of people have emailed me asking for the recipe for my brownies which apparently my friends love. Let me say that I've been using this same recipe for years and it has served me well.

Practice makes perfect and I'm glad that those who've tried it, liked it. I've blogged about it and posted the recipe before but I think alot of you have trouble finding it! So to make it easier, here's the recipe: Hershey's Best Brownies. Do try it. It's so simple and yet it produces phenomenal brownies.

In case you're wondering, yes I baked them again (yes again!) yesterday, and some other tropical sweet delights:



Yep, I've been helping out with the F&B at Amplify Ministry every Friday. I occasionally bake and cook for the events we have and today was no different. Haha... I tried out this new recipe and I think though it might be a bit different from the stuff I usually bake, it was quite well received.

I baked cherry and coconut slices and then I used the same recipe but replaced the cherries with chocolate chips. And you know what? Coconut goes really well with chocolate! Duh... anything goes well with chocolate:



These slices are interesting because it's quite textured. The coconut gives it a flaky yet cakey bite. It's something different from normal cakes. I quite like it actually! Might try it again, perhaps with apricots or prunes.

Anyway the recipe's below in case you might like to try it for yourself!

School reopens again next week and I'll probably be busier so that means less time to bake... but no worries, I'll snatch every opportunity I have and let you in on more yummy bakes and cooks.

Oh, this semester is gonna be soooo interesting because I'm taking this module called 'Sociology of Food". Boy am I going to love this class to bits. Yep, I'm a sociology major in case you don't already know! One who loves food as much as she loves writing about it and eating it. But, most of all, she loves God more.....

Cheers!

_______________________________________________________

Cherry and Coconut Slices

Ingredients
150g butter
150g caster sugar
3 eggs, lightly beaten
225g self-raising flour, sifted
125g desiccated coconut
125g naturally coloured glace cherries, halved

1. Preheat the oven to gas mark 4/180 degree celcius (350 Farenheit). Grease and line a shallow 29 x 18 x 2.5 cm (11 x 7 x 1 inch) rectangular tin with greaseproof paper.

2. Cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy, add the eggs a little at a time, then add half of the flour.

3. Stir in the coconut and cherries and fold in the remaining flour. Spoon the mixture into the prepared tin and bake in the oven for 40 minutes until golden and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Leave in the tin for 5 minutes and then remove to a wire rack to cool completely. When cool, cut into slices.

Variation
Use 125 g chopped dried apricots instead of glace cherries
*Note from the baker* - try 125 g chocolate chips if you like.

Chomp Chomp Serangoon Garden Food Centre

Can I ask you Singaporeans (or those who've been to Singapore) a question?

Have you eaten thin-crusted pizzas at hawker centres?

No, make that GOOD thin-crusted pizzas. And I do mean the authentic Italian kind.

Well, I have. And guess what, I'm going to let you in on it:



I don't know who's Devon or who's his daddy but I sure know that this is the place to look if I'm looking for a reasonably priced delicious thin-crusted pizza!

Where's it located? Chomp Chomp Serangoon Garden Food Centre. Apparently this is one of the best places in Singapore to find good and cheap food. I found out that alot of the tenants from the now demolished hawker centre at Botanic Gardens can be found here.

Devon's Daddy Pizza (stall no. 21) caught my eye the instant I stepped into the hawker centre and I knew I just had to get at least one of this:



You have the liberty to choose any 4 toppings ($5 for a regular sized pizza and $12 for a large). I chose olives, sundried tomatoes, pepperoni and shitake mushrooms.

What's my verdict? Uber-delicious. The portions were generous and I liked the amount of cheese he put!

Chomp Chomp is known for being a food haven for foodies like me and even though the pizza did fill me up quite a bit, me and JF had to get the sambal stingray:



Ohhh.. check out the chilli. Oo-la-la. Are you drooling yet?

And, here's the satay bee hoon:



I love the satay sauce! Thick and full of peanuts. Yea, very sinful but very yummy nonetheless.

This dinner at Chomp Chomp was extremely satisfying and by the end of the meal, I just knew I had to come back again and try the pizza another time. Who's with me?

Swensen's White Chocolate Blondie

I know I know, I've been saying how much I love dark chocolate and would never settle for anything less. But sometimes you just got to bend the rules.

White chocolate doesn't rock my world, erm it doesn't even cause as much of a rumble. Honestly, I don't like the white. No offence, but once you've crossed the 'dark' side, there's no turning back! I mean it. Okay, there are times where I just close one eye and pop the occasional exceptions into my mouth B-U-T nothing beats the bitter, darkest brown.

So what's the deal then you wonder?

Ah hah. Swensen's latest dessert offering: White Chocolate Blondie ($11.30) that is. That's the deal. What's a blondie you ask? Most of my friends are cluelesss about blondies. Well, blondies are actually the 'white' version of brownies. It's more popular in the States. I know because I was enlightened by Nic of Bakingsheet when she sent me some, last year.

Anyway, back to these blondies. Swensen's serves these blondies on a hot sizzling pan with creamy rich butter maple syrup which is to die for. Diabetics, please please stay away from it. A scoop of simple vanilla ice cream accompanies the blondie and there's also a generous sprinkling of nuts such as pistachios, almonds and peanuts. I love nuts and I have a sweet tooth. So whatever bias I had against the 'white' went out of the window. I stand changed.

No no no, I've not converted. I'm still very much a person of the 'dark' side. It's just that my experience with this blondie has let me to realise that white chocolate ain't that bad. It could actually work! This Swensen's dessert might be saccachrine sweet and too much for the average person, but hey, it's a nice blend of textures and the degree of sweetness gives it a whole new dimension. The portion is generous and is good enough to satisfy your sweet cravings. I guarantee you'd want to come back and eat it with the love of your life if you haven't already. The sweetness might just make your partner dizzy and so high that he'll accede to your requests which might include that pair of Gucci shades eh?

Go to Swensen's website: www.swensens.com.sg for their store locations and full menu.

Neuhaus Chocolate Spread

Okay, you all know how much of a Nutella fanatic I am ya?

I just think that chocolate and hazelnuts make a perfect marriage and I seriously think the person who first thought of putting the two together's a genius! Seriously!

Nutella rocks my world and I'd never trade it for anything else....

BUT.

Yep, there's a but. Only because of a reason as good as this:



Neuhaus is one of Belgium's finest chocolate purveyors and I've seen it being sold at some chocolatiers here in Singapore. Not sure if there's a boutique though.

Anyway, this jar of 'chocopasta' a.k.a. crema al cioccolato alle nocciole was a birthday gift from my friend Daphne. She figured that I might just love this since I love Nutella.

Indeed, I did fall in love....

and it is now on my list of favourite food products.



It's not that I don't like Nutella anymore... way no! haha. I'm a loyal foodie.

But the thing is, this spread from Neuhaus is less sweet and you really get to taste the chocolate and hazelnut. Try it on crackers, it's amazing:



I wouldn't say it's exactly the same or better than Nutella. They're both different in certain aspects. Just like how certain jams vary in texture and taste despite sharing the same flavour. You get my drift.

Let's just say I love chocolate hazelnut, be it Neuhaus or Nutella. Both rock my world, just in different frequencies. heh.

The helluva present which blew me away...

See that clasp there above?

Can you guess what it opens? Better yet, do you know what the item is?

Here's a clue: it's something I've always wanted!

Yes, it's got something to do with food and it opens up to something way cooler than the exterior.

It's a beautiful object that's very useful and one I'd definitely be taking out to the park or the beach.

Have you guessed it yet? It's pretty simple ya?

haha.... here's a self-explanatory picture:



Ta-dah!!! If you guessed a picnic basket, you're right!

Wait, that's not it.... The best part is that this basket belongs to me! I'm so so so excited.

It's actually Dot's birthday present to me.

Aww... I'm so touched - she knew that I've been looking for one and the dear girl actually got one for me. Thank you so much Dot! I love this present to bits.

You all should have seen the look on my face. I was estatic when Dot handed the basket to me and said it was mine.

Better yet, I opened it up and found this:




Check it out!!! I think Mr. Bean has the same basket. Remember that episode where he went for a picnic with his brown bear and he had to chase away the bees? haha.

Lovely, this is just so lovely! I really just want to go picnicking right now! Imagine bringing this basket out, finding myself a nice spot under a tree, and opening it, and having a nice and homely picnic on a cool Sunday morning. ahhh....

I adore the checkered interior I tell you. It's so old school! Man, this picnic basket's like an antique. And it sure is one helluva present. It's something I'd treasure and keep for a long long time. Maybe it could be an heirloom... HAHA. Pass it down to my children in the distant future. heh. okay, I think I've gone bonkers.

All right, before I go, here's a really useful link for picnic recipes. Let's all go picnicking! :)

Sapori's Siena Panforte

I was at JF's place the other day and found a very colourful round box with quite an enticing slice of something which looked like fruit cake. He bought it during his trip to Europe in June. HE bought this panforte in Siena, Italy. haha, that boy didn't know what it was! He was as clueless as me when I quizzed him about what it might taste like. Anyway, so me, being the adventurous person I am, I asked if I could open and try it.

And so I did.

This was what it looked like:



Panforte actually means "strong bread". Well, it certainly didn't taste like bread but I read that the name came about because of the strong spices used. It's also known as Siena cake and used to be a pastry only enjoyed during Christmas. Panforte's kind of a cross between candy, fruit cake and honey cake (Lebkuchen).

This panforte that JF bought contained raisins, and some nuts like pistachios as you can see. It was really sweet - it's coated with icing sugar! One thin slice was enough for me. I'd stick to chocolate anytime. I guess this would go great with tea or coffee.

I'm not sure if they sell it here in Singapore. I wouldn't be surprised if they did! I've seen panettones sold at Jason's Marketplace etc. Our little island's pretty well stocked if I would say!

Azabu Sabo Hokkaido Ice Cream

Being an ice cream fan, I'm always on the look out for new ice cream parlours and I totally enjoy trying out new flavours.

Of late, there has been quite a variety of innovative flavours and it's seriously fun imagining what they each taste like and then actually tasting it and comparing whether it matches your preconceived imagination. Ha.

Okay, enough of my random rambles.

This post is to rave about this new ice cream parlour in town:



I really dig this shade of green! It's easy on the eyes and doesn't look too artificial (unlike some other new Japanese ice cream shop that sell green tea ice cream with a bright green shade not unlike that of the green ghost Slimer from Ghostbuster). And it helps that I'm a big fan of red beans (a.k.a. azuki beans) so I was totally in love with this flavour!

This ice cream parlour (for take-aways) makes up part of Azabu Sabo, a Japanese restaurant that sells Japanese cuisine & desserts of sorts. I will definitely go back to try the other exciting flavours and probably check out the rest of their desserts.

________________________________________

Azabu Sabo
#02-170/171
Marina Square
6 Raffles Boulevard
Tel: 6338-1244

My pleasant and scrumptious 22nd birthday

I turned 22 yesterday. Geez, time really rockets past fast! I still remember last year when I organised my 21st birthday celebration. And one thing that stuck in the deep recesses of my grey matter is the food. The glorious spread of food made possible by my aunts. But that was last year. This year I didn't bother organising one because I was too busy.

However, that didn't mean that I had a boring birthday. It was quite the contrary. You'll understand why at the end of this post! haha...

There's only one word to describe my 22nd birthday and that's "scrumptious". Seriously!

From sundawn to sunset, I'd been fed with food so delicious that I could rewind yesterday over and over again. Before you start thinking I've gone bonkers, allow me to guide you through yesterday's 'adventure' of sorts:



Mum wanted to treat me to a meal and since I was only free in the morning, she brought me and my sister to Din Tai Fung - that's why there's a picture of chilli crab xiao long bao up above! :)

I would love to post photos of what we ate but alas, I was told by the restaurant staff that no photography of the food and utensils was allowed.

Yes, I hear you asking how I got the two photos then? Ha. I took them before they told me to stop. Oh well. I guess you all just have to imagine what the food looked like.

It was my first time to this well known dim sum restaurant (apparently ranked by The New York Times as one of the World's Top Ten Best Restaurants) and I know that they are famous for their xiao long bao. And you know what? Whoever said that was darn right.

We had the chilli crab xiao long bao and loved the juicy part after you bite into the skin. What else did we have? Brace yourself and read carefully because you might want to go there and try it for yourself:

- steamed vegetable & pork dumplings
- steamed yam paste dumplings
- special braised beef noodle soup with beef tendon
- stir fried dou miao with garlic
- glutinous rice shiu mai
- dan dan mian (noodles in peanut sauce)

*These dishes are supposedly the most recommended ones...

All of us were stuffed after that. But hey, I left there a happy person. This was the best birthday lunch ever! Oh, and the tea served is really good too. Din Tai Fung's dumplings are top quality and the cutest thing is that you can watch the chefs at work because all that separates you from the kitchen are glass panels. Cool stuff!

Could you ever have guessed where I went for dinner later on?

Well it wasn't really 'dinner', but it was so filling that it just had to be dinner because I couldn't stuff anything else down my throat.

JF brought me to Haagen Daz (at my suggestion.. hehe) at the Esplanade and we had a chocolate fondue! I did blog about their chocolate fondue way back but it has improved quite a bit. Their portion is bigger (at a higher price naturally), and they serve the fondue with different dips! Check out the photos:






Cake, cookies and chocolate biscuit sticks to dip in pure molten chocolate! What more can a girl ask for?




Bananas, strawberries and green apples go oh-so-well with chocolate...




The heavenly and absolutely divine icecream balls. Ooooo, these are fab with melted chocolate. Ahhhhh....

I was so so stuffed after the fondue that I felt as if I couldn't eat chocolate for an entire week. Ha. But it was good. I love Haagen Daz's chocolate fondue. I'm still dreaming of it now...

JF certainly enjoyed it too, but I think his threshold for all things sweet and chocolatey is not as high as mine. At the end, it was only me finishing the rest of the melted chocolate left in the bowl.

And if you thought that was the end of my yummy birthday, you thought wrong.

After fondue, we went to shop in Orchard for a while and then JF suddenly asked me if we could drop by Pitstop Cafe at Circular Road to attend a friend's birthday party. Apparently his friend's birthday was also today. haha, I did believe him at first, until he said he needed to get a cake.

I smelled something fishy and knew then, that something wasn't right and how right I was! HAHA. Come on, Pitstop Cafe was where I held his surprise birthday party last month. It didn't take much for me to put two and two together. But you know what, it didn't matter whether it was a surprise in the end because I enjoyed myself thoroughly! All of us played games like mad and it was great just being around all my dearest friends.

Since Leonard & Cassilda's birthdays were also in July (just a days before and after mine!), this celebration was for the 3 of us and here's us blowing out the candles on the cake:




Actually, that was a posed shot. Haha, you were wondering how the photog captured the moment so well right? :P

The cake (from Panderia at Jason's Marketplace) was yum and so was the company and the stupid moments we had:



We played Uno, Imaginriff, Taboo, etc. I think the owners of the cafe are gonna go deaf soon. The entire place was filled with excited bursts of laughter and hoots and screams! So allow me to apologise to the kind people of Pitstop - thanks guys for putting up with our noise pollution... and sorry once agaiN!

Before I end, here's the final photo which more or less tells you the magnitude of the noise level:



Yep, that's the whole lot of us. I love you all! Amplify Ministry rocks! Thank God for each and everyone of you.

So there you have it, a detailed account of my totally scrumptious 22nd birthday. I really enjoyed myself and of course, the company of all my beloved friends, and not forgetting my family and dearest JF.

THANK YOU!