I just received an email from Borders. Attached with it is a 30% discount voucher with any purchase. I'm very tempted to make another purchase but I don't really have anything in mind. Recently came across this wedsite from a Melbourne food blogger which I love and I'm making use of it now! Hoping to find my next target. I also saw they are selling Jamie Magazine from the email but it cost $12+. That's pretty expensive isn't it? But I'm super tempted!!! Maybe I will buy his 1st copy and see whether do I like it.
Jamie cookbooks have being my bedtime story for the past few weeks. I personally owned 2 of his cookbooks Jamie's Dinner and Cook with Jamie. Both bought from Borders with discount vouchers, without it I find them too expensive. I'm a sucker for discount. I'm still trying to be more organise and try more of the recipes in the book. So far CL loves all the recipes I tried.
Last night I started Jamie's Italy which I borrowed from the Library last Saturday. Yes, I became a member of the local library beginning of the year. Getting the hang of it and hopefully I can save some $ from stopping to buy books and space. I still have a full box of story book lying around in the house coz my bookshelves got kidnapped!
Friday, 23 January 2009
Saturday, 17 January 2009
Craving for CNY goodies
Nothing exciting happening in life. It's just sleep, eat, work, surf FB, blogs etc. A lof of LaLa Land food blogs started on CNY goodies. Me personally aren't baking any pineapple tarts this year. Don't really have the energy (I know full of excuses) + it's only me who is eating. But I was very tempted to get some love letters when I saw them a few weeks ago at Box Hill but I will be the only 1 eating. What is it doesn't taste good???
Granny used to make them every CNY and sis and I easily can finish a whole tin by ourself. I'm starting to miss some of the CNY goodies which both my grannys made like honey combs and kuih bangkit which I myself never had the chance to witness the process of making them. Did tried making love letters with mum years ago and OMG it's definitly not easy + we made them in a very traditional way using charcoal stove.
Oh I seriously crazing for all the unhealthy, fatty CNY goodies. Maybe I'm able to buy some tomorrow when I'm attending the Lunar Festival at Victoria Street. If not I just have to get CL to make a quick stop at Box Hill and get some.
Granny used to make them every CNY and sis and I easily can finish a whole tin by ourself. I'm starting to miss some of the CNY goodies which both my grannys made like honey combs and kuih bangkit which I myself never had the chance to witness the process of making them. Did tried making love letters with mum years ago and OMG it's definitly not easy + we made them in a very traditional way using charcoal stove.
Oh I seriously crazing for all the unhealthy, fatty CNY goodies. Maybe I'm able to buy some tomorrow when I'm attending the Lunar Festival at Victoria Street. If not I just have to get CL to make a quick stop at Box Hill and get some.
Sunday, 11 January 2009
Beach Time!!!
I was complaining to CL that though summer already started a month ago but we haven't had the chance to make a trip to the beach. Coz the weather has being damm too bloody cold!!!
Finally I spotted a chance which was yesterday. Weather forecast was 28 degrees and if it's strong sunlight, it should be warm enough. We decided to take the chance and packed for the beach!
It wasn't a hard decision to make when it comes to which beach should we go. Last summer we being around quite a few and the beach we both love is the 1 in Philip Island..
We departed the house pretty early as we are having a dinner appointment. Plus we always have the habit to start early to beat the traffic. It took us almost 2 hours to drive to the destination coz of the slight heavy traffic.
CL was pretty hungry by the time we reached. So we decided to picnic at the car park instead.
Me having my sandwich behind the car boot.
These are the food I prepared. Egg mayonnaise and Chicken (leftover) for sandwich. Carrot, Cucumber and Celery stick with dips and banana. Healthy meal?
We had fun lazing around, chatting, suntanning, reading books and getting wet! I wasn't prepared to go into the water at all but CL was super keen and kept pestering me. He threaten me by saying if I'm not going to then he will stop bringing me to the beach. What's the fun when you go to the beach but no get wet. Since he's the driver, I suppose I should accompany him right?
Initially I kept screaming when I step into the water coz it's too cold! It took us a while to get used to the water temperature. But we had fun playing with the huge waves and I'm gald CL manage to convince me to join him.
Finally I spotted a chance which was yesterday. Weather forecast was 28 degrees and if it's strong sunlight, it should be warm enough. We decided to take the chance and packed for the beach!
It wasn't a hard decision to make when it comes to which beach should we go. Last summer we being around quite a few and the beach we both love is the 1 in Philip Island..
We departed the house pretty early as we are having a dinner appointment. Plus we always have the habit to start early to beat the traffic. It took us almost 2 hours to drive to the destination coz of the slight heavy traffic.
CL was pretty hungry by the time we reached. So we decided to picnic at the car park instead.
Me having my sandwich behind the car boot. These are the food I prepared. Egg mayonnaise and Chicken (leftover) for sandwich. Carrot, Cucumber and Celery stick with dips and banana. Healthy meal?
We had fun lazing around, chatting, suntanning, reading books and getting wet! I wasn't prepared to go into the water at all but CL was super keen and kept pestering me. He threaten me by saying if I'm not going to then he will stop bringing me to the beach. What's the fun when you go to the beach but no get wet. Since he's the driver, I suppose I should accompany him right?
Initially I kept screaming when I step into the water coz it's too cold! It took us a while to get used to the water temperature. But we had fun playing with the huge waves and I'm gald CL manage to convince me to join him.
Korean BBQ
We met up with Stan and Elsie(S&E) for dinner after X'mas for dinner. They bought us to a Korean Restaurant(no idea what it is call) along Victoria Street, opposite Victoria Market. Luck Elsie called before hand and booked a table coz the place has endless crowd. Noticed that the staffs and patrons are mostly Korean which is a good sign. Plus S&E's recommendation never fail to satisfy us.
We ordered a BBQ set meal which is enough to feed 6-8 people but there's only 5 of us! So you can imagine what our tummy look like after the meal. I didn't have my camera that day. All these photos are taken by Elsie :)
Different types of kimchi which are available to top up after finish. It taste different from those available from the Oriental supermarket. This taste so much fresher and nicer.
Seafood pancake. I will have to try making this some day. Always thought I have to dice the spring onion but this prove me wrong.
Starting to BBQ.
Note: This is a very traditional style of BBQ. It uses charcoal which mummy uses to boil soup back in Singapore. I never seem it available at the shops here so I was really surprised when I saw them using it.
The service was really good. The wire mesh used during cooking was changed very frequently so that we won't be eating any burned food.
More beef. There are a few more dishes that comes with the set menu but we were too busy eating. It also came with a seafood hot pot, braised pork belly and spicy octopus.
This is a place which we will definitly go when we have craving for Korean food. Yum-Yum.
We ordered a BBQ set meal which is enough to feed 6-8 people but there's only 5 of us! So you can imagine what our tummy look like after the meal. I didn't have my camera that day. All these photos are taken by Elsie :)
Different types of kimchi which are available to top up after finish. It taste different from those available from the Oriental supermarket. This taste so much fresher and nicer. Seafood pancake. I will have to try making this some day. Always thought I have to dice the spring onion but this prove me wrong. Starting to BBQ.Note: This is a very traditional style of BBQ. It uses charcoal which mummy uses to boil soup back in Singapore. I never seem it available at the shops here so I was really surprised when I saw them using it.
The service was really good. The wire mesh used during cooking was changed very frequently so that we won't be eating any burned food.
More beef. There are a few more dishes that comes with the set menu but we were too busy eating. It also came with a seafood hot pot, braised pork belly and spicy octopus.This is a place which we will definitly go when we have craving for Korean food. Yum-Yum.
Friday, 2 January 2009
Kitchenware
It's time to change the old Jamie Oliver tefal frying pan which we when I first landed in Melbourne. The non-stick layer isn't really a non-stick anymore + it's peeling off.
This time round, I chose a Scanpan Fusion 5 frying pan. CL paid for it :)
This is a slightly bigger and much heavier pan. I'm beginning to love this pan because it's easy to heat up plus retain heat really well. Does takes a bit of time getting use to coz it doesn't have the non-stick coating. CL still prefer a pan which is non-stick but since I'm the 1 doing most of the cooking and kitchen is my territory. He let me chose it. We are still hunting for a smaller frying pan with non-stick coating for him though.
He also bought me another Scanpan item during the boxing day sale. It's a 7 liters pot. I always wanted a big pot for me to boil chicken stock, fish stock etc. Since I have the space to freeze the stock, it should be economical rather than using packet stock.
This time round, I chose a Scanpan Fusion 5 frying pan. CL paid for it :)
This is a slightly bigger and much heavier pan. I'm beginning to love this pan because it's easy to heat up plus retain heat really well. Does takes a bit of time getting use to coz it doesn't have the non-stick coating. CL still prefer a pan which is non-stick but since I'm the 1 doing most of the cooking and kitchen is my territory. He let me chose it. We are still hunting for a smaller frying pan with non-stick coating for him though.
He also bought me another Scanpan item during the boxing day sale. It's a 7 liters pot. I always wanted a big pot for me to boil chicken stock, fish stock etc. Since I have the space to freeze the stock, it should be economical rather than using packet stock.
Grill Pork Ribs and Salmon
Few weeks ago, during out usual marketing trip at Victoria Market, I bought a beautiful slab of pork ribs from my favourite butcher ("we dun yell to sell")and also 1 whole salmon (left with bones and head intact).
As usual, I went pass a tray of fish body parts which nobody appreciate and wondered what I can cook with. A very nice fishmonger lady taught me to grill it with garlic. We decided to give it a try and bought 1 which only cost us $2.60!!!
Since I'm going to use grill the fish, I decided to grill the ribs too since it's a waste to chopped it into pieces and dump into a big pot of water to boil soup which I usually do. It's also a good chance for me to try out the griller.
There isn't much trouble preparing the fish, I chopped it into 3 big pieces so that it can fit into my 2 baking tray. Wash it clean and season with garlic, salt and pepper.
As for the ribs, I went into my cookbook collection. Found a suitable 1 in Jamie Oliver "Cook with Jamie". The dish name is Blackened Barbecued Pork Fillets. But I see no harm changing the pork fillets into pork ribs. Preparation is easy too. Just dump all the ingredients and marinade.
It's also simple to cook. I pre-heated the oven, covered the salmon with aluminium foil and place them into the oven. When the fish is done, I remove the foil and grill it for a min to crisp it. As for the ribs, I place them under the griller and kept on brushing the leftover marinade as what the recipe stated to build up a sticky, blackened glaze.
The Salmon is delicious! It's full of fish oil and surprisingly it's full of flesh! I'm definitly getting more on my next marketing trip.
CL loved this dish! I love the glaze as it's sweet. I will try using pork fillet next time and I bet it goes really well with steam rice. Maybe I can cook the left cover marinade and use it as gravy. Yum Yum!!
As usual, I went pass a tray of fish body parts which nobody appreciate and wondered what I can cook with. A very nice fishmonger lady taught me to grill it with garlic. We decided to give it a try and bought 1 which only cost us $2.60!!!
Since I'm going to use grill the fish, I decided to grill the ribs too since it's a waste to chopped it into pieces and dump into a big pot of water to boil soup which I usually do. It's also a good chance for me to try out the griller.
There isn't much trouble preparing the fish, I chopped it into 3 big pieces so that it can fit into my 2 baking tray. Wash it clean and season with garlic, salt and pepper.
As for the ribs, I went into my cookbook collection. Found a suitable 1 in Jamie Oliver "Cook with Jamie". The dish name is Blackened Barbecued Pork Fillets. But I see no harm changing the pork fillets into pork ribs. Preparation is easy too. Just dump all the ingredients and marinade.
It's also simple to cook. I pre-heated the oven, covered the salmon with aluminium foil and place them into the oven. When the fish is done, I remove the foil and grill it for a min to crisp it. As for the ribs, I place them under the griller and kept on brushing the leftover marinade as what the recipe stated to build up a sticky, blackened glaze.
The Salmon is delicious! It's full of fish oil and surprisingly it's full of flesh! I'm definitly getting more on my next marketing trip. CL loved this dish! I love the glaze as it's sweet. I will try using pork fillet next time and I bet it goes really well with steam rice. Maybe I can cook the left cover marinade and use it as gravy. Yum Yum!!
Thursday, 1 January 2009
1st Blog in 2009
HAPPY NEW YEAR! How did you spend your last hour of 2008?? I went for the midnight fireworks which was spectacular!
I definitely haven't being blogging a lot for the whole of Dec. I have being lazy + busy with work during the x'mas period. Although others are starting to wind down, attending parties and gathering. I, in fact was getting busy with work. I wasn't really in low moral when others were drinking and having fun while I'm stuck in the factory with required me to strip to my undies and grown up in blue suit. Because I finally see the finishing line after being stuck with the project for bloody 2 years!
I did still manage to try out new recipes which all turn out really nice and photos are still stored in the camera which I'm too lazy to download + upload now. Hopefully I will get to them this weekend.
2008 passes by so quickly that I have no idea what I had achieved in 2008.
Going thru the blog entries, this is the list I came up with.
Well, I did manage to fulfill half of my 2008 wish list.
I definitely haven't being blogging a lot for the whole of Dec. I have being lazy + busy with work during the x'mas period. Although others are starting to wind down, attending parties and gathering. I, in fact was getting busy with work. I wasn't really in low moral when others were drinking and having fun while I'm stuck in the factory with required me to strip to my undies and grown up in blue suit. Because I finally see the finishing line after being stuck with the project for bloody 2 years!
I did still manage to try out new recipes which all turn out really nice and photos are still stored in the camera which I'm too lazy to download + upload now. Hopefully I will get to them this weekend.
2008 passes by so quickly that I have no idea what I had achieved in 2008.
Going thru the blog entries, this is the list I came up with.
- Moved out from the city and into the suburb. It's actually nice and we are loving the place! A real motivation to save more and purchase a house of our own.
- CL's bought a new car = I became the owner of our new car
- Starting driving to work = driving more (which I still need to work on for 2009)
- Spend a full 1 month with my lovely parents. Did some travelling with them
- Went to Great Barrier Reef again(kinda of disappointed that the reef are so damaged) and did some diving
- Hit a roo at Grampians (actually CL hit it in his brand new car!)
- I lost an uncle
- We did quite a bit of driving around Victoria. Covered Bright, different beaches in Victoria, Hanging Rock, Great Ocean Road, Grampians, Lakes Entrance, Warrnambool
- Started handcraft : kitting and crochet
Well, I did manage to fulfill half of my 2008 wish list.
- Stay healthy and stop gaining weight(think this might be easy rather than trying to lose weight) definitely is still on my 2009 agenda.
- Save $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$
- Be a good housewife (not as if I'm not good but I believe I can be more organise if I want to..hehehe)
- Cook more!!!! (I have being cooking more but need to start trying out more recipes)
- BLOG MORE!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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