jemput jemput

jemput jemput is a local favourite back home and mum usually makes them with overripe bananas, which is what you really need for a good batch of these fritters. i googled for a recipe online, first beginning with "asian banana desserts", then to kuih kodok or kuih toad because they resemble toads! haha... and then finally got to jemput jemput which looked a tad more familiar than the former. but okay, they all mean the same oily thing ;p

what you will need:

three ripe bananas
dash of salt
1/2 tsp of baking soda
30g sugar
15g cornflour
30g self-raising flour


what you will need to do:
heat a wok of oil.
mash the bananas, mix everything together till well blended. it must be of a thick consistency otherwise they will just spread into a splatter in the oil. drop spoonfuls of mixture into wok and fry at medium heat, till golden brown.
serve warm!

Fair Trade Fortnight '07

Trade has become an integral part in everyone's lives and it is easy to see what it has done for many of us, especially in the early beginnings of our respective home countries.

Fair Trade Fortnight is a two-week event that is organised by the Fair Trade Association of Australia and New Zealand,where i am currently serving my internship under the Political Science major at university. We have a string of events that will take place during Fair Trade Fortnight and this includes a Speaker Tour by a coffee farmer from Costa Rica. There will also be an exclusive screening of the movie, Black Gold, which outlines the ways that coffee producers and farmers are struggling to make ends meet, and this is to the sheer advantage of industralised countries like the U.S. and Australia which makes tons of money from buying the beans cheap and selling them at rocket-high prices. FTAANZ has held this event diligently every year and I believe that organisations in other countries are doing the same as well. If you don't know about it already, check out the Fair Trade Fortnight website for more details and perhaps show a little support by organising your own event in the same two weeks!

Beef and Veg

Xoi Pap

hanoi wow-ed me in so many ways, be it the people, culture or cut-throat traffic. with every overseas trip that i make, i try to bring back something that i can remember it by. being stuck in the hotel for two consecutive weeks was no joke and whenever i was tasked to go out to buy something with a colleague, i would get all excited (life/fresh air!!!). we were given a day to rest before we were due back in singapore and took the opportunity to hit the streets for proper, local food. well, quan anh non was the safest best because everything was under one roof - marche style. plus i was inclined to believe that the food was uhm, cleaner than those on the streets. our vietnamese friend, minh anh joined us and helped us with our food orders. of course i had to give the banh cuon tom thit a try but you know, it's actually better here in melbourne. the coffee was tops though!
anyway, here's what i "brought" back and it's become my new favourite - Xoi Pap. it is a traditional vietnamese meal of short-grain rice, hominy, mung beans, sesame seeds and fried shallots. i tried it out at nick's place some weeks ago and was pleasantly surprised at how easy it is to prepare. the only hitch was finding hominy which i think is no different from polenta.

Here is the recipe for those who would like to try it out. This was taken from Andrea Nguyen's cookbook which I shamelessly took to a corner in Borders to copy. Kris, thank you for helping me with it too !

Ingredients -
1.5 cups short-grain sticky rice (glutinuous rice)
1 can white hominy, drained
3/4 tsp salt
2 tbsp of sesame seeds
1 tbsp sugar
1 cup ground steamed mung beans, room temperature
1/3 cup crispy shallots

Method:
1. Put the rice in a bowl and add water to cover by 1 inch. let stand for at least two hours or even longer.

2. Put the rice into a colander and rinse under cold running water. Shake the colander to expel extra water and return rice to the bowl. Add hominy, breaking it up into individual kernels. Toss the rice and hominy with 1/4 tsp of salt.
3. Fill the steamer pan halfway with water and bring to a rolling boil over high heat. If you are concerned about clean up, line the tray with a piece of parchment paper, leaving a few holes uncovered for heat circulation. Pour rice and hominy into the tray, keeping mixture 1 inch away from the edge.
4. Place tray in steamer, covere and steam for 20 minutes. Stir rice with chopsticks during steaming. Ensure no water drips onto rice. After stirring, gather grains back into centre, leaving a one inch border.
5. While the rice and hominy steam, put sesame seeds, remaining salt and 1 tbsp sugar in a mortar and crush.
6. To serve, mix rice and hominy. Sprinkle mung beans and shallots over.

cha ka la vong

for the fish fanatic fantabulous fi fie foe fan, cha ka la vong in hanoi is a must-go. walk right through the doors like you haven't had fish for the longest time, sit yourself down and let the experts feed you. i don't have much visual evidence except for the above picture. but here's how it works:

- waiter comes with charcoal stove ( the one mum still uses to boil soup on), plonks battered metal pan on top. pan is sizzling with oil and fish chunks.

- waiter returns with what looks like an amazon forest in a bowl of dill and other greens, few saucers of peanut halves, thin rice noodles and bowls of fish sauce.

- waiter demonstrates how you should eat the dish; shake greens into hot pan, toss well with fish chunks. put own portion of thin rice noodles into own bowl. scoop too much of fish into bowl till it almost over flows, sprinkle peanuts, pour a little fish sauce, mix more thoroughly and slurp it all up.

- waiter comes at regular intervals to top up your forest bowl, pours your hanoi beer, returns to table behind you, crosses and shakes his leg and smokes his local ciggie.

project kuih rose - fail :(

over the years, ive developed this strange habit of ransacking the kitchen in the middle of the night. dee can vouch for that, so can the family. and worst still i often leave trails of evidence *shifty eyes* so you know, old habits die hard; i went to look for the kuih rose mould that i bought at phoon huat the other day when i tagged along with mum to buy some baking supplies. i was dead beat from the whole day, having attended ryan's first birthday party, running around with my nieces and nephews and then scooting off to melt cafe for uncle william's birthday dinner. nevertheless i was determined to try making kuih rose and got rene to accompany me to the supermarket to buy a carton of coconut milk. got back, whisked the ingredients together, mixture smelled loooovely!

made sure oil was extremely hot... dipped mould into wok of oil...



and then into mixing bowl and back into the wok. fry, fry, fry. fatty, fatty, fatty.



then taking it out is another story altogether, lah :(



damn sad! i have to do a little research on the right techniques.

anyway mum's delivered all the orders to floral recipes who have been so supportive of our little start-up. we are working on our next collaboration now and hopefully it'd be even bigger, even better!

hi everyone! im still taking orders for the cookies so please give me a call/email/honk to place them. for those who already have, thank u so much for being patient with the deliveries - much appreciated!

im also happy to announce that the collaboration with floral recipes is going fab!! our special vday cookie jar forms part of their gorgeous Blush hamper.

will write again!

ive been giving out samples of the orange-lavender shortbread cookies to friends and relatives, and am pleased at the responses received so far. they aren't the easiest to take to because many would associate lavender to skincare products and aromatherapy. i remember how i got so sick of making the cookies just to perfect the right crunch, consistency and texture. i had to dump so many batches of them and the thought of having wasted so much butter, eggs, sugar and precious lavender was almost painful. but i knew i had to get them right and to be honest, it happened by mistake. but this is another story for another day ;- )
so im really hopeful this project will take off and im confident that it will be a stepping stone to materialise bigger plans that i already have on hand. but of course, this would not have been possible without the support of many friends who have helped in being my guinea pigs, promoters and even mentors :- )

this may prove to be a difficult time to overcome but id like to remind myself with a quote that uncle joo hong had above his work desk.

"whatever you can do or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power and magic in it" -Goethe

orange-lavender shortbread cookies

hi all!!! before the site starts collecting dust and growing cobwebs, i thought i should begin to update a little since i got back from melbourne, to not-so-sunny singapore. the weather has obviously not been too kind but rain or shine, i have attacked the food centres and usual hide-outs. of course this has left my entire body system in abit of a mess but im determined to get well soon so that i can make the best out of my summer hols which ends in late february.
and to make it all the better, i have also decided on baking for this chinese new year! it is going to be terribly exciting for me because of my new discovery just before i left melbourne; lavender! so for all those who know me, i am quite the extremist and you really wouldn't want to know the extent that i have gone to. ;p

after experimenting with different cookie recipes and finding the right ingredient to complement this lovely herb, i am proud to announce the grand release/launch or whatever you might call it, of my orange-lavender shortbread cookies! i figure they will be quite a refreshing change from our usual sweets during the festive season and even thereafter.

so here goes the shameless plugging!

a jar of the orange-lavender shortbread cookies goes for $15. i process the orders only when i receive them, to ensure that they are fresh. also known as angustifolia, the lavender used in the cookies is safe for consumption. i have sampled it from different farms in melbourne and have found those from Warratina Lavender Farm to be the most fragrant, without being too overpowering to the taste buds. yet, keeping in mind the occassion that i will be selling them for, a dash of orange zest could not have been more apt. the result is a wonderful aroma in the shortbread cookies...


i offer free delivery for orders ten and above, up till 25 January. thereafter, i will arrange collection at a couple of locations. if you need any more details, i am happy to receive emails at redskittlez@gmail.com.

will update again soon!

hi all,

chocolate cupcakes

so i finally remembered what my username is. ha! anyway i know the comment box on the right is down. anyone has any idea how to fix it?

the last few weeks have been a little bit of a madness - rushing essays, making sure we're still eating right at home, and attending birthday gatherings (at the last minute!)

lynsey's was one of them and she had hers at Old Kingdom which is a dodgy little Chinese restaurant along Smith Street. Yes, think along the lines of Wong Kar Wai's In the Mood of Love, and imagine the stench of unventilated furniture, as well as a jaded waiter; "do you need me to demonstrate how to eat the peking duck??" and before we could reply, he was already slicing the duck up oh-so-skillfully. bits of fat attached to the skin, one would feel all that oil ooze when bitten into. yum yum yum. so everything in that dinner was just duck. they had used the meat of three peking ducks we had ordered, to fry with mung bean sprouts and served on the side, a big bowl of hot rice. that was okay - nothing too special. and finally, a faux kiam chye duck soup. sheesh.. where was the kiam chye! then again, robbie said that was by far the best one he had tasted for the many times he has been to Old Kingdom.

but of course the highlight of the night had to be heading back to Southbank for abit of a celebration. lynsey had a total of three cakes, including my tray of 12 choco cupcakes. everyone was stuffed so you could see the cupcakes being neglected for abit. nevertheless, those who had it gave a double thumbs up. most importantly my housemate did :- D



this was one recipe that i really enjoyed doing and you can't go very wrong with chocolate, no matter how boring it might get ;p

sticky date pudding

have you ever wondered why you have to pay so much for a sticky date pudding outside, when the ingredients are clearly quite simple and making it is indeed easy-peasy...

well, i have thought about it many times before and haven't quite derived at a good enough answer. even more so, when i tried my hand at making them over the weekend. what i found tricky was getting them out of the muffin tray. i had to wait for them to cool but of course i didn't and struggled to pop the individual puddings out of their moulds.their tops are evidence of my impatience. heh...

i love how moist they turned out and the bits of date i could still chew on, which gave the pudding a really good, balanced texture. microwave it for some thirty seconds with a generous drizzle of toffee sauce for a light, after-dinner dessert. for an even more sinful treat, top the pudding with a scoop of vanilla ice-cream!

i give this recipe 4/5 stars!

to terri

this post is dedicated to my dear ol' cousin, terri, who is also currently away from home.

ree, this garlic rice recipe is one of my favourites because it is so simple to whip up and tastes as good as, or even better than any jap take-away. it can also keep for about a week and that saves me alot of time.

i hope you enjoy it as much as i have :- )




what you will need:
three chinese bowls of cooked short-grain rice (overnight is best)
60g minced pork, seasoned with sesame oil, salt, pepper and soy sauce
one large egg, mixed
one whole garlic, chopped
salt and pepper to taste
2 tsp oil

method:
1. heat pan on medium fire and put in oil
2. fry chopped garlic till fragrant
3. add in minced pork and cook well
4. add in rice and fry till well combined. push rice to one side of pan and pour in egg mixture. make sure egg is cooked and nicely scrambled. stir together with rice.
5. season with salt and pepper.
6. serve!

A plate of Banh Cuon Tom Thit always completes my trip down to Richmond, where I will spend a good couple of hours shuttling in and out of the little convenient stores. Also known as rice noodles with pork and shrimp, this Vietnamese appetiser is a colourful mix of rice noodles, fried mung bean balls, bean shoots, pate and home-made fish cake. This is a great alternative to beef pho, which fills you up way faster. If you still need your daily carb intake, have Banh Cuon Tom Thit with a bowl of hot fluffy rice!



thank you dee, for the photo :-)

post-essay

what do three girls do after a week of essay madness? hit the streets and satisfy their food cravings, of course...

i have been dying for waffles of a certain kind for the longest time and even went to the extent of searching for a waffle maker in the department stores here. it's strange that they will only bring the makers in during the christmas period. penguin shaped ones even. but heck, how can i wait till then.

so we checked out Waffle On along Degraves on thursday afternoon, after popping our papers into the chute in school. we were entertained by the owner and his two helpers, whilst they buzzed around. i was puzzled as well, like why on earth would french blokes be selling belgian waffles... but okay, i needed my fix, i didn't want to ask too much and if you haven't been sleeping well for three days, you just want to keep quiet.

i had the $5.00 set - belgian waffle with ice cream and a strong long black. Sher had hers with hot chocolate, while Dawn just snapped very tak glam photos of us! aside from lousy seating, the waffles scored a good 4/5 in my tummy. they were served fresh from the iron; crispy on the outside and a little gooey inside.



here's sleepy me and sher with one of the helpers who pounced behind us when we were taking a photo. -_-

egg and cheese melt on rye bread

dawn and i found a recipe online for egg and cheese melt, so she decided to give it a go this morning. i had mine with some brown mushrooms on the side and washed it all down with a glass of soy milk. yummers.

a nice hearty breakfast totally kicks start our day!

acro-cadabro-adobo

i couldn't agree more that you just can't go wrong with chicken adobo. only that the amount of soya sauce that goes into the dish really scares me. pictures and recipe later because im dog tired . i have to survive the paper.

oat muffins

always handy to have eggs, butter, milk, flour and sugar at home. you'll never know when you need some kitchen therapy. no bananas in this because they cost a bomb at the supermarket; 12 aussie dollars a kilo. i could buy several hands back home...

ready...set...go

btzz btzz!

so ive caught on the disease of taking photos of my food.