Happy 21+ to me!! part 1

Once a year, a bunch of my good friends would gather just to watch me age. And so often, we would dine at a simple outlet whilst poking fun at each other despite knowing that we have other obligations.

This post is especially dedicated to my bunch of university besties whom would always try their best to surprise and treat me like a princess (for a day lol) :D Thank you for accepting my imperfections and I pray that God will always guide you guys through life's journey :))

Lunch at Zen Vietnamese Kitchen~ pho for the nomnom monster among us.

Some spicy soup noodle dish~ for the cat boy with 9 lives.

House speciality~ for the girl who dares to be different.

Grilled lemongrass chicken fillets with broken rice~ for the girl who executes the same routine each day without fail;)

My pressies from the pharmily~ Time for me to invest in a decent spring/summer top and perhaps a straw hat?;)

Cupcakes galore!!:D

My attempt to capture every moment;D

A friend is someone who knows the song in your heart, and can sing it back to you when you have forgotten the words.
- Donna Roberts

Crabs eat mango?

How big can a mango be??O.o

Aside from the random-ness of this post, here's a blog post dedicated to the one activity I love to hate, hate to love:)

Crabs!!!

Fried mantou~ Crunchy on the outside, baby soft on the inside;P

The before frying~ wholemeal for the win!:)

Singaporean chilli crab made by the boy~

And now, time to reveal the size of le mango.

L-R: my hand, boy's hand, mango...mind you, the boy's hands are bigO.o

Distance is relative

This must have been the craziest week I have ever had in 2011. Not only do I need to study for 2 exams but I had to also do some travelling. And now that everything's over, I can finally look forward to taking a 1 day break prior to my next course commencing.

Albeit the hectic-ness, I have gained so much invaluable experiences. I am extremely grateful for having such supportive family members as well as close friends. I may have let them down at times (and probably this time again) but I'll always strive to improve myself despite the disappointing moments. Thank you for your patience (I am aware that I can get very emo/cranky/ stewpig sometimes)!!!

The trip that will determine my future..it is a really long one btw-.-

The sleeping monster. Only God knows how he can sleep throughout the day-.-

Humble little kitchen which reminds me of my current accommodation.

The apartment~

Dinner at Caffe Primo!!:)

Shrimps in a very cheesy sauce served with rice and salad.

Fish and chips~ generous portions. So generous that we could take-away our dinners for breakfast;)

My couch-bed. I watched 2 movies in one night, starting with the Simpsons and ending with Spiderman 2. I love Peter Parker's chemistry with MJ...soooooo sweeeeeeet x) Do watch the ending bit. Extreme love:D

Breakfast at Subway.

Le bus station~

Overall, long journey on the bus. Advice for short-trip travellers? Bring multi-purpose clothes (jeans, shorts, sneakers, jackets), toothpaste and toothbrush and some snacks to nibble on!!:)

Chianto Classico

Yours truly is officially a pro procastinator..not only have I procastinated my revision but I have also procastinated in updating my blog-.- On the bright side, I'm not making amends so here's a post on one of the best restaurants in Adelaide.

Friendly staff, efficient service, yummy food at Hutt Street..everyone was so accommodating that it made me wish I could live like this forever (but unfortunately notT.T).

The dessert menu~ I had a sneak peek before looking at the main menu:p

Deep fried risotto balls~ something different for the night:)

Chicken stuffed with tomatoes and oven baked potatoes ~ This was the special of the night and because I visited this place weeks ago...I have now officially forgotten the entire food description-.-

Pasta con Granchio~ pasta served with spanner crab meat, tomato, chilli and basil. Generous portion although it does look intimidatingO.o Overall very good:)

Brocollini~

And now, we shall move on to desserts, something that I have decent memory of:p

Citrus sorbet~ reminds me of iced lemon drinks except more potent. Used to cleanse your tastebuds and prepare one for the upcoming desserts:DD

We had the tasting palate~

Panfrutto al Cioccolato~ fruit style brioche pudding encasing gelato.. my favourite of the night:D

Cassata siciliana~ in lay man terms, dark chocolate fondant served with gelato. Superbly goodxD

Crostata di Limone~ creamy lemon curd with gently roasted rhubarb served with a Chianto Classico Sangiovese flavoured sorbetto. This little piece had stirred a lemon curd craze in me..shall attempt to make one after the exams:D

Panna Cotta al Vincotto~ panna cotta served with fresh strawberry, vanilla and lemon "zuppa". I'm usually not a big fan of panna cottas but this one was certainly divine :D

Overall, food was impressive for Adelaide standard and although I have yet to try everything, I would certainly recommend this place to family and friends:) Shall sample their risotto mains in my next visit;)

Potatoes - many ways

Australia's supermarket brand, Coles, recently started selling their 5kg bag of potatoes for $2/ 3 (depending on when you get them), of which, is a super bargain if you don't mind swapping your daily rice/ noodle meals:p

Being Asian, I just had to get myself a bag (and share it with my bro lol) and since I have so many of these potatoes lying around, might as well use them to experiment with different cooking techniques:)

First up is the usual potato fries (except mine wasn't deep fried). Salt, pepper, olive oil and some rosemary.

Must have a golden colour to it and make sure they are dried appropriately otherwise you'll end up with soggy chips-.-

Next is oven roasted oven potatoes. Same seasoning, different style of cooking. You can also opt to make mash potatoes or add them to your curry dishes:)

Salmon for dinner~ get those omega 3's coming:)

Caesar salad with bacon pieces, croutons, egg and shaved parmesan cheese~ Salad dressing was made with 1 egg yolk, 1/2 tbsp dijon mustard, 1 tbsp lemon juice, 1/2 tsp anchovy essence, some grated parmesan cheese, salt and pepper...whisked until nicely mixed before tossing with cos lettuce.