zucchini cupcakes by fluke

i brought out all the ingredients to make the zucchini cupcakes i learnt from uncle j the last time i visited. birdbrain me forgot the walnuts and mixed fruit (a variation from the original recipe) so i hurriedly took the tray out of the oven and stirred them in. man, they turned out looking good! by mistake!

and look what i experimented with the phool makhana! i fried them lightly with garlic salt and pepper. kick ass.

phool makhana

I had my first taste of phool makhana during my stint at Icon, when an ex-colleague brought a lunchboxful of this savoury snack to share. They are similar to popcorn in texture but slightly larger in size. She must have fried them in some pepper and spice because when I opened up the pack I had bought at Sydney Road some days ago, they tasted awful. I've just posted an entry in the LJ Cooking Community and hopefully someone can enlighten me!

I have tons to update especially on my wine tours. Will do them soon!

Pumpkin Soup

The only reason why I have been procrastinating about making pumpkin soup is the preparation. I am however, ready to admit that it is the lamest excuse because the result is so rewarding especially when you need something hearty for a cold winter afternoon.

I gobbled it up too quickly so there are no pictures but you can be sure that I will be making it some time son. I am heading to Frankston again and am going to pick up more pointers from Auntie Charlotte, who so kindly told me how to do it.

If you would like to try it out, have the following:

1/2 butternut/japanese pumpkin, mashed
1 medium sized sweet potato, mashed
1/2 cup yellow split peas, soaked
1 tsp chopped garlic
1 tbsp oil
3 cups chicken stock

*Note: Cooking the root vegetable in the microwave saves you a
lot of time, so does soaking the yellow split peas overnight.

1. Heat oil in a pot and fry chopped garlic till fragrant. Place mashed root vegetables into pot and fry for another five minutes.
2. Slowly pour in chicken stock and yellow split peas. Allow to boil for about ten minutes. Season with salt and pepper, and mix herbs if you like. I experimented with a little garlic salt and loved how fragrant the soup instantly became.
3. Serve with cracked pepper and toasted Lebanese bread.

Wine-ing

A trip to the Grampians, Great Western is not complete, if you haven't visited the wineries, namely Seppelt and Best's. Thought I should have this down for those who are intending to tour some wineries in Victoria, and for my own reference.

The Seppelt wine tour, which covers the famous "Drives" and cellar door, was indeed an eye-opener. Built 3km underground, the drives house Seppelt's collection of wines including their award winning Sparkling Shiraz - the next one slated to be ready by 2013. The conducive environment of the drives is further complemented by the carpet of black french mould on their walls. They are soft to the touch and slightly damp from absorbing the moisture in the air. I was careful not to bring back any on my clothes. The guide also introduced the different tools of trade that workers in the early days had used; cementing the fact that wine-making is a tedious process and remains so, even with the introduction of technology today. I got a little restless halfway through the tour because I couldn't take any photos with the bad lighting. Thankfully we were quickly brought up to the bar for some wine tasting, where we were offered the Seppelt Original Sparkling Shiraz 2005 and Seppelt Salinger 2003. I'm just growing to like my reds, particularly the Shiraz so I felt my taste buds were a little intimidated by the fizziness in the Sparkling Shiraz. I'd have my reds flat, please. As for the Salinger, which is made up of different grape varieties, it had a slightly high tannine level so the after taste was bitter in the mouth. Other than that, this white sparkling wine has a very welcoming bouquet; full of fruit and flowers, but still in my opinion, is just another bubbly you can get at a waterhole in the city.

Moving away from the more commercialised and overrated Seppelt, I headed to Best's - a small, humble establishment but definitely has a lot to be proud about. Unfortunately, I picked up the Chardonnay 2001 instead of the Riesling which I had tried at the Federation Square Wine Showcase and really, really liked. The Late Muscat 2006 was absolutely refreshing without being too overpowering. However, we were warned of its high alcohol level and to drink it sparingly.

I would have loved to visit The Gap, among other up and coming wineries in the region but of course with limited time, these two were and are the must-visits.

Reminiscing (the rest of) Semester One

Adapted from Jamie Oliver's basic muffin base recipe, which calls for sugar but i forgot to leave it out so the muffins turned out a tad sweet.



because boon forgot that it was a public holiday the day before; queen's birthday, he couldn't get to jaspers on time to buy some coffee back to singapore. so i recommended st ali, told him ill pass it to a mutual friend who's heading back too, and i think he's going to be so convinced that he needs to check out this little south melbourne secret soon!

I bought Espresso and Sihereni.




:)

Crock Pot Super Garlic Chicken Legs
From Recipezaar.com

6 chicken legs (more or less as needed)
20 garlic cloves (skins left on)
1 teaspoon dried rosemary
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/3 cup chicken broth
3 tablespoons oil

1. Place garlic cloves in crock pot.
2. Mix spices together in med bowl.
3. Pour oil into separate med bowl.
4. Dip chicken legs in oil, then roll around in spice bowl, until chicken is nicely coated in
spices.
5. Place chicken legs in crock pot with garlic cloves surrounding it.
6. Pour chicken broth over all ingredients.
7. Cook on Low for 8 hours.