wow. i havent posted for so long..mainly because i hated the uploading of photos part, which is such a pain.

but since today is ANZAC day = holiday time! i decided to make something, something that ive never made before and would be quite a challenge. so was surfing on the web for something interesting and then. on freshloafs blog, i found the perfect thing to make.

PAIN DE PROVENCE. basically its a typical french bread with a crispy crust and moist soft interior, flavored with herbs typical of provence ( lavender, rosemary, dill, basil, thyme, mint, chives and fennel).

Ive made many breads before, mostly quick breads like pizzas and foccacia. Usually anything that requires a starter would scare me off, because i honestly dont have the patience to wait for a whole night...seeing that once the baking bug bites, its often a spontaneous ' i -feel- like- eating- this- NOW'. :)

so this is a really interesting experience. and the bread turned out MARVELLOUS. it was as the pictures promised, amazingly soft interiors coupled with a good crunch on the exterior. the only thing i have to change about the recipe is that the herbs given on the site is way overloaded, they needed 1 cup which is 250 g. I used 40 g and my sister still found it was a tad bit herb-y. but its up to you i guess.

on the whole was really pleased with it. and it was a nice upper arm workout hahaha!

 

Muffins has always been one of my favorite things since young. I would always remember going to delifrance (this pseudo-french cafe, unabashedly tweaked to singaporean flavors)  to eat their mini chocolate muffins with my mommy after kindergarten was over.

so muffins bring back lots of nostalgic memories..and after that, i grew out of the chocolate muffin phase, went for the banana walnut types, and as the years passed on more, my preference veered towards the fruity berry muffins.

so this muffin recipe is from Nancy Silverton's "Pastries from La Brea Bakery"  Im a huge huge fan of hers, ever since reading another of her book "Breads from La Brea Bakery".

anyway, we had a picnic planned today with the melbourne symphony orchestra's free concert at the botanical gardens, so what other better occasion would there be to bake fresh muffins and enjoy them with the nice evening breeze and fantastic music right?

i also tweaked a few of them and added nutella, so that explains the darker colored ones.

so hope everyone had a great time baking their muffins! it'd be cool to check out what everyone else baked! :P

Blueberry-Almond Muffins

Ingredients:

3 oz whole unblanched almonds

3/4 cup granulated sugar

5 oz unsalted butter, chilled and cut into 1-inch cubes

1tbsp finely chopped orange zest

1 tbps baking powder

3/4 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

3 extra large eggs, lightly beaten

11/2 cups buttermilk

3 cups all purpose flour

2 cups blueberries (or strawberries, nectarines, peaches or pears)

Topping:

1 tbps egg white

1 tbsp granulated sugar

pinch of ground cinnamon

2 oz sliced unblanched almonds

 

Steps:

1. Toast the almonds at 325 degrees F for 15-20 minutes.

2. Turn oven to 350. Process almonds and half of the sugar to a fine meal

3. Cream butter, zest, baking powder and soda and salt on low for 2-3 minutes until softened. Add the remaining sugar and nut mixture. Mix on medium till light and fluffy

4. Add the eggs, 1 tbsp at a time, mixing well each time. Slowly pour in the buttermilk, mix to combine.

5. Add the flour in 3 batches. Mix till just combined. Fold iin the fruit

6. For topping: whip egg white till frothy. Add the rest of the ingredients.

7. Spoon batter into prepared greased muffin tin, filling to the rim. Spoon a tbsp of topping on the muffins especially at the centre

8. Bake for 20-25 minutes until top is nicely browned.

~makes 12 muffins

 

Taste test:

the muffins were nice and soft, but perhaps as i substituted buttermilk for just plain milk, it wasnt quite as sweet as i liked it to be..but the texture and the combination of almonds and blueberries were really delicious.  :P

 

<a href="http://www.sqpixels.net/files/muffinmonday01.html" ><img src=http://www.sqpixels.net/files/mm_small.jpg" width="200" height="75" alt="Muffin Monday" /></a>

i just came back from china and guess what lovely surprise awaits me???

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MY HOLIDAY BLOGGING BY MAIL PACKAGE!!!

 

i was so happy! what a nice welcome home present! and it was such a large parcel and inside awaits lovely goodies from stefanie of USA.

this is the first layer..with a sweet card wishing me merry christmas and happy new year..

then came the best part of it all! JUST LOOK AT ALL THAT STUFF....ITS MIND BOGGLING haha all that gorgeous food.

 

so heres the chocolates..and err all the mini chocs were gone by the afternoon..haha my family happily helped themselves to them..and for the record.. they were all really yummy :P

cant wait to try the hersheys extra dark chocolate with cranberries blueberries and almonds. we dont have that flavor here in singapore and that combination just sounds fantastic..especially the 'extra dark' chocolate part :)

heres the snacks and stuff..theres coffecake, coconut junior, jell-o instant tapioca pudding (sounds interesting!!!) potato chips (my sis fave) goldfish crackers and pretzels! yummy! and last but not least..betty crocker muffin mix..yay!!! i smell muffins baking for xmas??! :)

heres the rest of the stuff..ive got a really nice smelling herbs de provence..its a mixture of lavender and a few other of my fave herbs like basil..plus stefanie provided herb containers too! wow! and just when i needed to get a whisk..she seemed to read my mind and not only supplied a cute holiday-themed with candy decorated handle whisk but also comes with a matching wok fryer! awesome!

and theres also really interesting drink satchets that she put in this magic box haha. theres chai tea..which ive always wondered about, spiced cider..which would be great for xmas! perfect timing.. and on- the- go instant juices!

It was a really well put together package and brought me and my family so much joy! thanks stephanie! hope you had as much fun receiving your package too!!

 

HAPPY HOLIDAYS EVERYONE!!!

ever since i ate the incredible truffle pasta at il lido, ive been so hooked on the delicious taste and smell of the aromatic fungi. the only problem is that when these cravings hit, it can be so inconvenient because the truffle season is only between july to august..terribly short periods to enjoy that awesome mushroom. and not to mention, it is so expensive (about $9000 US per kg for a good quality truffle, and rare white truffles can go up so much more) when in season, so not to mention the price of the fresh truffles when it is not in season.

anyway..the thing is i really HAD to have some truffles, i was literally dreaming of it. so i decided to compromise, and buy truffle infused oil! hehe. its still really expensive though, a good olive oil costs about $14-15 per 1 L, this small baby here costs me $20 for 60 ml. yeaps thats how exorbitant it is, but then again it is made of white truffle, so maybe thats why its more expensive. i bought it from Queen Victoria Market, one of my favorite places for fresh and deli produce, together with the scrumptious handmade spinach pasta (look at the nice color! :P i wanted to buy the squid ink pasta too..but kj hates it..she hates the color hehe oh wells.)

so for dinner tonight, i made a really simple pasta dish to allow the truffle to stand out. basically sauteed some chopped garlic and champignons in extra virgin olive oil, cooked the spinach pasta till al dente then add in 2 tablespoon of the truffle oil..honestly, it just cant compare to the when after having tasted fresh shavings of truffles on top of my pasta, with the steam rising and infusing with the flavor, but i guess beggars cant be choosers heh..so ive gotta survive with this poor substitute till the next season arrives. :P

such a happy day today..i finally received my blogging by mail parcel which was sent by nic from baking sheet. i was so super chuffed because bakingsheet is one of my all time favorite food blogs!! haha its actually my nightly read before i go to sleep..coincidentally, this whole global blogging by mail idea was also started by her, a really fantastic and fun idea..and i hope it continues to take place :)

so yups heres the stuff that she sent together with a nice note telling me about the items, which are her favorite snack foods.

from L-R:

Sweet-hot soft ginger candy

its kinda chewy.. really quite addictive :P  

No pudge original fudge brownie mix

haha i love this packaging! its so cute, a hot pink box with a skinny pig in front..wow. and i cant wait to try this soon...just hearing it being described as thick, fudgy and chewy makes me want to bake it right now!..brownies are my all time favorite chocolate dessert ever. period. plus this is fat free! and apparently you can use it with low fat yoghurt or even tofu..hmm.i predict thick fudgy chewy brownies within the next few days REAL SOON...:P

Jelly beans!

another childhood favorite of mine..but is incredibly hard to find these days, especially in singapore..wonder why.

this has over 20 flavors! with really cool sounding ones like chocolate pudding (!!!), cotton candy, toasted marshmallow (yum!), bubble gum, tutti frutti etc..

yay back to nostalgia haha.

Pound plus Bittersweet chocolate by Traders Joes, which is imported from belgium..havent tried this yet but i can bet its gonna be sooo super good!..i sorta peeled the wrapper off a little to steal a sniff of it and boy, its amazingly gorgeous...

Salty, Sweet and Nutty Trek Mix

it has peanut brittle (which ive never tried before till now..really yummy stuff), natural peanuts, honey roasted peanuts (i like these alot :P) almonds and cashews.

nic warned that they were addictive..and they really are! me and kj finished almost half the packet although we planned on saving it for our parents when they come and visit next week (oops. haha nvm they would still have half a pack..i hope haha)

last but not least MILK FROTHER!!!!!!

omg! i love it sooo much..thanks nic! this is the best present ever..i absolutely love cappucinos and hot chocolate with frothed milk but the coffee machines are soo expensive and this is so dead easy to use! haha we made really awesome cappucinos that very night..

once again..thanks nic for the lovely gifts! really made my day :P and thanks to emma from the happy sorceress who did a fantastic job organising all 89 bloggers!

hope everyone had fun with their blogging by mail parcels too!

the cute brownie pack again :

and the super cool milk frother :P

 

had spring sale at chadstone today..so went with kj to koko black for a tea-cum-dinner.

ive been to kokoblack before..but that was almost 2 years ago, and that was in their flagship bourke street store..but somehow ive not had the chance to go back even though i was completely enamoured by their chocolates and especially the magical hot chocolate. so i was especially happy when they opened a branch in chadstone shopping centre, which is really near where i stay now :P

ambience wise, the chadstone branch loses out to the bourke street store. the latter is in an ancient architecture building, which gives it that luxurious tea time feeling with the laura ashley kind of cushions and books all relating to chocolate..whereas the former seems more french brasserie type, with the gentlemen club kind of leather seats..but the good part about this branch is the open kitchen concept where you see the chocolatier making fresh chocolates or melting down your 85% dark chocolate into your hot chocolate. pure chocolate ecstasy :P

ok enough words.. pics time (sorry for the bad resolution..ever since i dropped my cam..it hasnt seem to recover..haiz time to get new one i reckon..haha)

heres the gorgeous hot chocolate. its the creamiest, richest chocolate you can ever expect to taste. its pure liquid chocolate heaven. and im not kidding..i think everyone who comes to melbourne should really try this..its so much better than max brenners sucao (which gave me a major stomachache i dunno why) and better even than godiva.. which is saying alot :P

heres the grand marnier chocolate mouse that kj ordered..really good too..although mousse isnt really my thing.

i ordered the belgian chocolate platter. it comes with a shortbread, a chocolate mousse, chocolate ice cream, a chocolate cake and 2 belgian chocolates of your choice. the shortbread and cake wasnt great..ive had better, and i thought the cake was a bit dry..the mousse was not bad but as ive said ive never particularly liked it..the ice cream was really really really thick and rich. actually it got to the point of cloying tho.

anyway the belgian chocs i chose dark chocolate with baileys which is fantastic..the blend of liquer and chocolate really goes well together. i also chose a 85% coutre dark chocolate which was not too dry or cloying which can happen sometimes if the cocoa goes above 70%.

ive also tried their champagne truffles and their berry ganaches and truffles, all of which were really good too..hmm so i think..its their hot chocolates and chocolates which really takes the cake haha..the rest dont impress me much and i reckon the next time i visit (which would probably be quite soon i hope :P) id order just the hot chocolate and a few chocolates to accompany it.

 

haha this is my first entry in like AGES. haha didnt really cook much in singapore...it was just relax and slack...so i never find any inspiration or much desire to cook/bake coz theres always loads of food to eat in the fridge. anyhow..out of interest sake, decided to make some satay and it turned out really really well! so pleased :p

ok heres the recipe:

ingredients:

chicken/pork/whatever meat fillet

bamboo skewers or wooden chopsticks

cucumbers

marinade

1 tbsp coriander

1 tsp cumin

4 shallots

1tsp tumeric

1 cm ginger chopped

2tsp sugar

tamarind juice

Peanut sauce:

chillies(depends how hot you want)

2 shallots

1 clove garlic

tamarind juice

3 tbsp chunky peanut butter

half cup milk

Steps:

1. lightly toast the coriander and cumin, then add all the rest of the marinade stuff except tamarind together and pound to a smooth paste. Add in tamarind juice and the meat and marinade for at least 2 hours. The longer the better really.

2. For the peanut sauce, grind the shallots garlic finely. Stir fry under low heat, add the tamarind, peanut butter. Bring to boil then simmer. Add the milk and chilli. Stir continuously until sauce thickens then leave it to cool.

3. Thread the meat pieces on the skewer and grill it. i did about 200degrees for about 5-10 min on each side. wait till they get brown and burned. Then serve it up with cucumber and the sauce. :)

 

 

hive always wanted to try Choupinette, which is this cornerside deli along Bukit Timah Road next to Coronation Plaza. It took over Prima Deli, thank goodness for that tho haha. yups but somehow even though i always pass it on the way home, there dont seem to be enough reason to stop the car and buy something even though ive always heard raving reviews about it.

anyway, we were really feeling peckish today and lunch wasnt very filling so my mom was asking me where shall we get some teabreak and immediately i suggested Choupinette and boy was i glad. when i first walked into the stores, i was a bit apprehensive, coz they only had 1 item of each type on display and looked quite sad to have the glass counter looking so lonely, also the prices were a teeny bit high for a teabreak thingy $5.90 for a small piece of dessert when i wasnt even sure of its quality. But i decided to have a whack at it since i was already there haha and after much consideration, i bought a mocoa, which is a chocolate truffle cake, a strawberry tart and a jam donut ( they had a more fancy french name for this, but err yeah its basically a jam donut..haha) AND IT WAS REALLY GOOD!!!

the chocolate was so rich and velvety smooth, and i was in chocolate heaven, it was satisfying to the extent that i didnt even feel more-ish after finishing it. yesh. and according to my mom and sis, the jam donut was the best they have ever eaten (i personally detest donuts..i think they are weird sweet things) and as for the strawberry tart. it was also just as good. the base was almond meal and in between there was almond cream, and the strawberries were plump and juicy as you can tell from the pic yar? hmm it was DEFINITELY worth my $5.90...i cant wait to go back and try the other chocholate stuffs haha. yeah im a shameless chocolate addict :p oh and they sell creme bulee too, which they will caramelise on the spot..wow huh

oh and the reason why there was only 1 item of each type on display is coz that item is only for display, the rest are kept in the kitchen to be well refridgerated...so when you have ordered they will get a new fresh piece from the kitchen, how cool yar? :p

IT FINALLY CAME!!! IM SOOO HAPPY! haha i thought it got lost in the mail or something because it was just taking FOREVER. but here it is!





clockwise from left: lemon juice in a lemon-shaped bottle! isnt it super cute? :p then luxury fruit crumble mix..which is so timely as it was just what my sister was wishing for..then there is marmite, corned beef and onion..all interesting stuff that ive never tried before.. trifle sponges which im prob gonna make for xmas dinner haha...and bak kut teh coz daffy thought she was gonna send it to ozzy..so to help me cure my homesickness. aww so sweet right? :p then shredded beef suet. which is really interesting as it is used for savory AND sweet dishes? funny right..how beef can be used for desserts. but im gonna try it real soon then post it up when ive tried it..and last but not least, a batter mix to make yorkshire pudding! its all so cool coz ive never tried yorkshire pudding before..so i cant wait to make them all. :P THANKS DAFFY!! lets meet up soon k??

well yesterday was the first day after my first paper, so i decided to give myself a little treat and bake something :p ive always wanted to try how to make banana bread, coz i thought it was interesting as to why pple call it a bread when it has no yeast or whatsoever in it...and also coz kj has been begging me to make something with bananas and so just in luck, we had 2 overripe bananas, which was exactly what the recipe from nic's baking sheet needed! PERFECT! :) so i basically followed her recipe pretty much, just adding a tad less butter and sugar and cinnamon instead of vanilla. and it was soooo gorgeous! the bread was really moist and homely feeling, its a sorta comfort food haha, and the bites of banana chunks with the hint of cinnamon was the ultimate brekkie..haha and after eating it, i realised it isnt really the bread that i was thinking of...its more like the banana cakes that singaporeans are used to..those that are sold in like bengawan solo and the sort. but it was a really nice and simple happy baking adventure..yay! :P

(by the way, the recipe made way more than that amount of cake, i couldnt stop kj and zx from eating in time before takin a pic..haha they forgot that i had to take pictures haha so yeah imagine about twice that amount..mmhmm it was that good..so this was all i could salvage :P enjoy)