Mango Pomegranate & Cream...Anyone?

Mango Mango Mango! That's what we have been eating the last few days. We just love it and I saw some US pomegranate on sale and I took home some the other day. How would you like it , having a plate of this while watching your favorite drama. That's what I did now that my project is done . Relaxing time for me :p 

the mango was sweet and succulent :))

I don't like to waste food so since I have some non-diary whip cream

around, I put to use those too !  Earned extra calories for losing some

weight during the work project lol!

cream and mango and pomegranate...anyone ?

Only Elin will have such fancy in her dessert :p

Have a great day.... :)))

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Tofu Delight

I bought a piece of japanese tofu today and I stared at it not knowing what to do with it...meaning should I just steam it plain or with fillings. I looked through the fridge and see what I can do with it and after staring at the things in the fridge, I know what I want to do with that piece of white soft tofu. I put together some fish paste and minced meat ( I used minced pork ) , added some pepper, chopped chilli and a squirt of light soy sauce and that's it. A last minute after thought, I added dried scallops, the small size type and lily buds as garnishing .  A beautiful toppings for the tofu. So easy a task and the end result a plate of tofu deliciousness. 

My Close Brush With Mango Glutinous Rice Rolls !

I woke up wanting to make this gorgeous looking mango glutinous rice rolls which I have bookmarked the moment I set my eyes on the photo from the Pop Club mag Issue 27 Mac 2010 , given free to every Popular Card Member.   This was even worse than the previous baked tapioca honeycomb cake that I baked a few days ago :(  When I read the recipe, I knew there was something not right with it, but thinking this was maybe a new method to make the mochi like rolls, I followed the cooking instruction to the T.  And after steaming the glutinous rice flour with sugar for almost 1/2 hour , the flour still remained the same . So , to save the situation and not to waste all the ingredients I have put together , I quickly gave the recipe the modification needed....

I Am A Walking Grapefruit Now ;P

A big thank you to Cath J for sending me this consolation prize for the Top 5 best  fish recipe contest . My entry got a consolation prize and the prize arrived  last Friday . A lovely surprise !!! And thanks to all of you who have voted for me, especially Quinn and Piggy Cuz , without fail had voted for me everyday ! Thanks gals for being so supportive .

Today I tried out this grapefruit scented shower gel and gosh I smelled like a grapefruit walking about. Daddy asked " u bought grapefruits ? "  lol! So I am a grapefruit today ;p  before that I used the mango scented one but I just can't wait to use the grapefruit shower gel so I opened it and used even before the mango one finishes...this came just in time coz the mango one is going to finish fast. The mango one is also a gift. From Piggy Cuz when she went to England for her vacation. Told you, where ever she goes she remembers the Piggies.  I love body shop products but quite pricey if there is no sales. So normally ,we will grab some stuff back when they have the offer on.

the almost empty bottle of  mango showel gel :p

Have a great weekend !  

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Spinach Quiche

It's been a long time since I last baked a quiche.  And since I bought some cheddar and mozzarella  from the baking store a few days ago, I decided to bake a spinach quiche for a friend of mine . My dear friend Mathilda who is also Jo's godmom ,  loves anything with cheese and since Piggy gal is going to visit her the next day, I decided to make one for her to take along as hand gift. You know, I was actually very tired that night after rushing through my work project but becoz I promised my Jo I will bake one for her to take to Mathilda who is her godmom, I started to make the quiche only at 11.30pm and finished baking it at 2am...do you believe it , I couldn't get up the next morning and I had to apply for emergency leave. Gosh , there goes one day of my precious leave. But worth it coz , this quiche turned out delicious. I made two, one for Jo's  godmom and one for ourselves :))

' Buah Belinjau ' Chips

' Buah Belinjau'  Chips or what our local people called them  Empingan Buah Belinjau. This is a famos chips from the Belinjau fruit. I love this chips from Indonesia. They are bigger and thicker compared to our Malaysia ones. It has a ssubtle bitterish flavor. It is healthy because it is natural..no flour added, no preservatives and no coloring and no salt. It has a natural sweetness that you want to go on eating it. Piggy Jo  has taken a liking to it since she was 8 yrs old. She takes after me where food is concern...errr  'the upstair ' from the dad of course Lol! Give the wild boar  Daddy the credit where it is due :))  The picture next page shows  the ' Buah Belinjau ' tree with its fruits hanging waiting to be make into chips . In Malaysia , it is found along the coastal town of Terengganu. The Malaysia ones are smaller in  size compared to the Indonesia ones  taste more bitterish . The Indonesia ones are bigger and the chips are thicker. I liove the Indonesia ones for its thickness and they are not so bitterish in taste.  

A Gift So Cute..My Cutie Little Piggy Snack Plate.....

This cutie is so cute that I can't stop ogling at it. So cute...right? This snack plate with the piggy on it was given to me as a gift from my Piggy Cuz. I so love it and thanks Piggy Cuz for this so cute little snack plate. She has instilled in me now to watch out for any cutlery and kitchenware with Piggies design on it lol! For your information , she bought this when she was on holiday and she told me this is the only one left on the shelf ...the one and only and I am so blessed to have this one and only one :)) She does have my interest at heart...always thinking of me and my Piggies and my blog even when she goes for her holidays....I guess food reminds her of me and my blog.  So thoughtful of her. Once again, thank you Piggy Cuz for this cutie snack plate :) Okay, I know I have said it many times... I love this and this will join my others props .

By the way..I have been so busy with my work project that I hardly have time to cook any thing from my new cookbooks and my To Do List is piling up.....by the way I just bought another cookbook for just one recipe in it...crazy !  I wish I have 36 hours a day so that I can continue to work and at the same time I can indulge in my baking. Thanks for always dropping me a line in my comment box. I love to hear from you all ...it makes me feel great that you are always there to support my humble blog :)) Do keep in touch and continue to drop me a line.... I do miss my baking and I am now suffering from withdrawal syndrome....Awwwwwww.....I need to bake and my oven is in cold storage at the moment.........

I promise to find the time to bake.......so stay tuned..after this project is over I will be back with more goodies for you. For the time being just have a look at my new piggy snack plate * wink

Have a great weekend !

Salted Egg Yolk Shrimps I

After the surprised seafood congee cooked by my wild boar  Daddy, I thought I will  reciprocate and cook something nice for  wild boar  Daddy :p   Found some medium sized shrimps in the freezer  and with one salted duck egg ,  some curry leaves from the side garden and tada in the shortest time ever , I managed to whip up this artery clogging dish good enough the serve the Lordship :p  The aroma  of this decadent dish lingers on into my dreamland…hhmmm that good!  Ask the wild boar..ooops Daddy I mean if you don’t believe me :p  This is a great dish to serve when you have invited guests to dinner.

Seafood Congee

Guest Post

Hi, I am  'Daddy' , Elin's other half and also known as the ' wild boar' and head of the piggy clan . I am honored to be given this opportunity to write this post on her well guarded space here , though not often invited :p 

It’s been a long time since I cooked something from the sea and today I decided to surprise my wife with something homecooked, delicious and all the sea food she loves all in one pot.. I decided to cook the family favourite which is the Seafood Rice Congee or simply Seafood Porridge as is commonly known in our town. So I decided to make a quick trip to the supermarket to select some fresh sea offerings. Nothing beats the sweetness of  fresh sea produce especially crabs, prawns and brown sea octopus. For my signature dish today I chose two medium sized soft shell sea crabs, the locals here also calls it flower crabs as the shell has a distinctive flowery design . My preferred choice would have been the black hard shelled crabs but since these were not available I decided on the next best alternative.

Shrimp Omelette aka ' Foo Yung Dan '

This is a simple dish for lazy or no time to cook wives, like me of course  :p  This is the simplest and easiest way to whip up an egg dish . Full of nutritions , with the shrimps, onions and chinese sausages added to the already full of protein beaten eggs.  The aroma wafting from the kitchen was really great  and I served this for dinner last night . An insight into my simple lifestyle and one of the simple food  I would normally serve at the table when I am too lazy to cook something elaborate and this dish though it is simple but the wonderful flavor can really whet ones appetite!  The chinese called this dish ' Foo Yung Dan ' and most restaurants have this dish on  their menu :))

Steamboat & Grill @ Two Plus One BBQ Restaurant

Despite the weather being so hot and humid yesterday night, we still went for steamboat and grill near Tesco Extra in Bercham. The restaurant is Two Plus One BBQ . They have a steamboat pot whereby you can two broth for the steamboat, either a chinese herbal soup or tomyam soup and they have the grill pan at the edge , round the steamboat stove. This is for those who just love grill and steamboat together. Quite cheap RM22 per head , eat all you want. Food was just average. But I was too lazy to cook and also to celebrate Piggy’s achievement in her finals . And she is top student and won the Book Prize award  from her college for outstanding achievement in the Engineering Faculty. I was too happy with the news that I just want to paint the town red with my Piggy gal *wink excuses I know ( just don't feel like cooking ). Just want to relax and fellowship with her before she leaves for UK in May. I know I will surely be love sick for my Piggy when she goes over to UK :(  Since she wants to have steamboat, we went to the nearest restaurant where they serve both steamboat and grill :))

Subway Sandwiches

I love eating and I think I have grown sideway the last few weeks. Eating and walloping all the sinfully decadent food….and this long Subway sandwiches is enough to make me bloat sideways. Jo and myself were in KL last week and while waiting for the Ipoh bound train , our stomachs were rumbling like a hunger tiger so we went straight to Subway and stuffed ourselves to this long sandwiches piled with smoked turkey ham and lots of greens salad. I can’t tell you how yummilicious they were but these can’t beat the ones that Piggy boy had in New York. They were almost a foot long and he had a swell time munching them and this story of his  ‘Subway sandwiches in New York ‘ was retold again and again * my eyes will be rolling backward each time he tells the story of his NYsandwiches.

~ La Dolce Vita- Sweet Things From The Home Kitchen ~

Goodness gracious! I have added another cookbook to my collection ! :p  :) How could I resist this book Italian La Dolce Vita - Sweet Things From The Home Kitchen…awww really, I am just speechless but I do love some of the recipes in there. Those colorful pictures have me itching to bake them :p  Will try to bake them as soon as I find the time. Now I am busy with some projects I am doing  :)  but this is the lastest update on books I bought. New year resolutions are made not to be kept LOL! 

Plain Roast Chicken Leg Dipped In Garlicky Balsamic Vinegar

At times laziness takes over and I will just cook simple. Plain Roast Chicken Leg and dipped In Garlicky Balsamic Vinegar . I still have half a bottle of balsamic vinegar and have to use it up fast for I do not like to keep them too long in the fridge. You know what I mean...occupied space is one thing but the expiry factor is another :)  Piggy gal Joanna had left for KL for a seminar briefing concerning her trip to UK to finish her engineering degree. So,  left these two old folks to have candle light dinner at home....romantic anot? * wink.  Of course !! romantic when we are not having fights lol ! After twenty seven years of marriage we have stopped fighting.....mellowed already.....have learnt to appreciate each other and have more candle lights dinners ..especially when TNB breaks down  :p 

Spaghetti Aglio Olio For Beatrice's Birthday - Pot Bless

We had a pot bless on Sunday night in church which coincide with the chinese ' Chap Goh Meh ' night. I really don't know what to cook when my friend Honey rang me up and asked me what I am bringing for the pot bless. After some thoughts, with me just back from the bloggers meet up in KL, I decided to make something simple and easy to prepare and at the same time doesn't tires me out. And this was the best dish to take for pot bless. Spaghetti Aglio Olio with lots of cherrry tomatoes would be ideal for the nite function. This pasta would be a hit with my church members...They love this flavorful pasta and I love to cook this for it is simple and is easy to prepare.

Bloggers Meet Up At Madam Kwan's

We have been planning this meet up since Quinn suggested a month ago. She was the organizer and after all the ding dong emailing each other , we finally fixed the date and time and we met up at Madam Kwan's on the 27th February. This was my second meet up with other food bloggers . To meet them in real person was truly an experience I would treasure forever. Gifts exchanged and these sweet young gals received ang pow from the married ones but becoz I forgot to bring the red packets , these sweeties took home less one, LOL!