Pannetone

I have very bad luck with baking bread. Period. For some reason, my bread doesn't seem to proof as much and it feels denser than normal. Nevertheless, if you never try, you wouldn't know if the recipe is any good, right?

Having come across a few blehh recipes, I think I am one or two steps closer to unraveling the secrets of baking a good loaf and by then, I would be able to go about creating different yeast-risen products. Here is my attempt at baking pannetone for Christmas (a tester because I figured it might not turn out right). Looks like I am going to have tropical fruit pudding for Christmas!

When using dry raisins, it is important to soak them in fluids overnight so that they would "fatten" up and have more flavour, especially if you use brandy or rum or any other type of flavoured fluid.

See how much they have fattened up? Literally soaked up all the liquid.

Me trying to be artsy with my pictures but still not quite right yet. Hopefully would improve once I get more utensils from home. At the moment, my "props" can barely depict anything.

I realized that icing sugar makes food have this somewhat magical feel to it? Or is it just me? Hehe

8 things

When I am blog- browsing, I often see bloggers post on things that make them happy and I thought, why not? It is a great way to show some appreciation for the little things in life that we often overlook. So here's my compilation of 8 moments which would made my days worth smiling for!

Pasta made from scratch by the boy. Pasta was had a rough-er texture to it but I didn't have any problems gobbling everything down. Parmesan cheese is yummehhh:)

Ombre nail design~ not the best that I have came up with but it will have to do. Colour gradient was not too obvious but heck, I did give it a try!!

Fruit cheeses are my new favourite addiction!! I am going to serve this up as entree for Christmas. Fuss free, affordable ($1.50 each) and tastes soooo good. Now I just need to remember to get crackers otherwise we might just be eating them with cereal hahaha.

Tim tam heaven. I realized that most people get obsessed with these little devils once they step into Australia. So many variations to choose from and it's not too expensive too. I am going to bring some back to Malaysia and get a few close relatives hooked to them hehe.

Mango fest! Who doesn't love a big, plump and sweet mango to cool those burning hot summer days? Got to thank the sister for her offerings although she did butcher one of them with a butter knife quite terribly.

Reorganized my coat rack so that it's now arranged according to the rainbow colour spectrum. Happy days!! Looks like I have most of the basic colours ticked but maybe I should invest in a few more spunky colours?:)

Got some aromatherapy equipment to achieve my inner zen. The eucalyptus cream is a free sample from my pharmacy whilst the candle was a belated birthday gift (which I don't really have the heart to light!).

Loreal makeup removal~ got this freebie after completing some online training and voila, I have saved $15. Also got a $28 mascara and $27 concealer for free. Gonna get more freebies soon hehe

Japanese cheesecake recipe

The last time I attempted to make this cheesecake, the cake slowly collapsed shortly after the oven was turned off. It was disheartening to see that happen and it must have discouraged me from ever making it again, only because it is difficult to disguise an unappealing sights easily.

I have bought myself a tub of cream cheese as I was initially planning on making a carrot cake with cream cheese frosting. After much procrastination and distraction down the track, I didn't feel like baking a carrot cake anymore and did not know what to do with the cream cheese. Coincidentally, I came across this Japanese cheesecake recipe from here and thought why not?

This time round, I was fortunate to produce good results although I did find it in need of a tad more sugar. But then again, adding less sugar means it should be a healthy piece of cake, right?;)

Recipe:
140g caster sugar
6 eggs separated
1/4 tsp cream of tartar
50g butter
250g cream cheese
100ml fresh milk
60g plain flour
20g cornflour
1/4 tsp salt

Place butter, cream cheese and milk in a double boiler until everything well mixed. Meanwhile, whisk egg whites and tartar until foam is produced. Gradually add sugar to egg white mixture and keep whisking until stiff peak forms. Make sure you are constantly keeping an eye on the cream cheese mixture. Once the cheese mixture looks uniform, remove from heat and allow to cool.

Place egg yolks, flour and salt in a bowl and mix well before mixing in the cooled cheese mixture. Slowly fold the whisked egg whites into the cheese mixture. Ensure that your cake tin is sufficiently layered with baking paper before placing cake mixture in. Place a tray filled with water in the oven and place your cake tin in the preheated oven at 160C for 1 hour and 10 minutes. After that, leave oven door ajar for about 1 hour before cutting into it. Best consumed on the following day. True story!!

I beat my egg whites by hand because I don't know how to control the machine's speed.

I have issues with using baking paper. It creates creases in my cake!

But I managed to fix the disastrous shaped cake by trimming off the edges and voila, looks 10x better now!

And a few foodagraphy pictures to end the post!!

Swinging Bowl Satay

Swinging Bowl is probably one of the few little outlets that serves authentic Malay food which is very similar to the ones I have tasted back home. Having frequent the shop for approximately 3 years now, I can happily claim that the food quality did not undergo much changes at all. The curries were stil aromatic and robust with flavours, generous amount of rice to go with your dishes and although there's not many readily available curry dishes to choose from at the counter, you will still be spoilt for choices, like yours truly.

Lamb curry, ayam masak merah and vegetables~ the prices vary depending on what type of dishes you choose as well as how many dishes you pick. From memory, this plate only costs us $10 and it includes 2 meat dishes and 1 vegetable dish. We were given generous scoops of the lamb curry and as usual, the serving staff would ask if you would like some curry gravy to go with your rice. Lamb pieces can easily be torn away from the meat and was very tasty. Ayam masak merah, which can be loosely translated to chicken cooked red, which reflects that the chicken has been prepared in a red (probably tomato) sauce.

Sambal squid, turmeric chicken and fried chicken~ I was spoilt for choices and wanted to have everything on the menu! Rather than being greedy, I have decided to skip my vegetables for lunch and went from 2 meat dishes and 1 seafood dish. I promised myself that I will behave on the following few days!

The squid was well-marinated in the sauce and was fresh. In contrast to the more spiced-infused curries, this one was much lighter in flavour but still had a good amount of aromatics added to it. An ideal dish if you already have too much strong flavours going on your plate.

Who does not love a good fried chicken. Crunchy skin and juicy flesh. Enough said. Go try it out yourself, especially if you are looking for a non-spicy meat dish.

 

The Aviary Dessert Kitchen

I have been to Aviary a couple of times in the past and for some unknown reason, have not visited in recent months. The last time I was here, the entire outlet was packed full of people, forcing my dinner mates and me to wait outside in the chilly cold winter weather. We rocked up without making any reservations and swore to never do it again!! Thankfully, we were ushered in shortly after but trouble soon resurfaced as we could not decide on what to have! I wanted to try everything on the menu and all of their little cakes on the display counter. Oh the gluttony..

Vintage-inspired with a tinge of feminine romance fills the air at Aviary. I can clearly remember observing a couple so engrossed with each other that their are oblivious of my staring. No, they were not doing anything inappropriate just that I thought it was a very cute moment for the young, giggly couple whom were constantly twirling each other's fingertips. But once dessert arrived, that scene did change and both of them had their eyes focused on their plates!

I have always imagined myself reading or writing up a novel whilst occasionally peering out the window in search for inspirations.

A-Lychee in wonderland~ lychee ice cream, candy floss, popping meringue shards and raspberry jelly. A fun, wonderland moment indeed as the meringue pieces "popped" away in your mouth! I love the macaron mushroom, candy floss and girly colours on the plate. Sinful but a very imaginative invention.

Dark chocolate mousse cake with green tea mousse filling~ I liked this particular cake very much as it wasn't as sweet as it looked. The thin, circular piece of cake at the bottom lend body to the entire dessert and the chocolate glaze that's dripping all over the cake makes it look even more tempting than ever. Aside from its aesthetic appeal, it was a very delicious piece of chocolate mousse cake!

Overall, I have yet to find fault with Aviary and I am a big fan of their little kitchen masterpieces. One of my favourites would be the macaron flower pot which had a macaron atop a layer of gravel made of chocolate biscuit crumbs and a moist cake underneath. Looking forward to my next visit here!!

Hong Kee again

I'm back at Hong Kee once again for more chopstick licking good food at affordable prices. Little did I know that they actually do have a mini aquarium with live fish in their kitchen and diners could opt for freshly steamed fish for dinner:)

When I first visited Hong Kee in October last year, I rarely see the restaurant crowded with diners but last week's visit told me a different story. Just about all the tables in the first half of the shop were packed with hungry customers and the other half of the restaurant was approximately 50% filled with customers. I was there at 8pm but I would have imagined that there were more customers at around 7pm. Nevertheless, we managed to get a table and quickly picked out our favourites.

Steamed barramundi in ginger and shallot oil, topped with coriander, spring onion and ginger. I like how the chef added generous amounts of garnish on the fish as I think the fish does taste quite nice when consumed with a mixture of ginger, spring onion and coriander. Not that the fish needed extra garnishes but that's how I like to have my fish;)

Roast duck~ from memory, this dish only costs us about $15 and it was one of the best roast ducks I have had in Adelaide thus far. Crisp skin protecting a juicy layer of fat underneath and tucked underneath everything, a tender slice of protein. I can tell that the chef actually took the time to remove excess oil from the plate as there was hardly any large blobs of oil swimming in the sauce. On the following day, I have reheated the leftover duck pieces and there was no white patches of fat floating around. Always a good thing to know that you are well taken care of at a restaurant:)

Eggplant with minced chicken and salted fish~ a light dish that is not heavily drenched in marinate and the eggplant pieces still retained their physique.

Overall, we spent $63 for our entire meal, inclusive of tea and steaming jasmine rice for the 3 of us. Money well-spent indeed!

Cibo, Melbourne Street

I'm not usually a coffee enthusiast but every now and then, I can't say no to a cuppa, especially when I'm not in the mood for something to munch on. Most of my foodie companions have their own personal preference for coffee spots and being the only non-caffeine addict in the group, I'm just a mere follower. On certain occassions, you may spot me at a coffee cafe with a book or magazine and a coffee!

Cibo Espresso is an extremely popular coffee hut and in the last couple of months, I have witnessed a few outlets sprouting all around Adelaide.Who knows, I might even sign up for their loyalty card one day;)

Like most coffee shops, Cibo offers a range of savoury and sweet food for customers whom like to have a snack with their cuppa. Customers can either have sandwiches, cakes, muffins, macarons,eclairs, cookies, salads or even ice cream and as if that is not an exhaustive menu of food to choose from, there is also a moderately sized list of coffees to choose from. I certainly need to research more on each individual coffee until I find my can't-live-without-it cuppa.

Cookies and cream ice cream has and will always be one of my favourite flavours around. I'm such a cookie monster, indeed!

Mocha~