Thursday, April 30, 2009

Dinner at The Peninsula Excelsior Hotel

Spinelli's coffee & dessert of the day

2009 is an extremely special year for me......ex-colleagues, friends whom I had not met for the past 20 years found me or vice versa through Facebook.....the wonder of Facebook!

I had a great dinner last night at the Peninsula Excelsior Hotel's, Coleman's Cafe. My ex-colleague bought us dinner in this cozy cafe. The set dinner was priced at S$25+++ (inclusive of salad or soup, main course, tea/coffee & dessert of the day.

We ordered 3 different set dinner and shared the food..... I particularly liked the nasi goreng (topped with a fried egg, 2 satay, salads & keropok). Was surprised that the coffee served was not the horrible Boncafe coffee but Spinelli's freshly brewed coffee instead.......thumbs up for the warm milk served, dessert of the day was not too bad either......

As the saying says : Good food ends with good talk!!!

The Bakerwoman - Coffee Talk at 1:00 PM 0 comments

Tuesday, April 28, 2009

Home made pizza

Home made pizza base

My kids prefer the non wholemeal pizza base and I made pizza for lunch.

The Bakerwoman - Coffee Talk at 9:43 AM 0 comments

Home Made Siew Mai

Siew Mai before steaming

I only eat home made Siew Mai.....because the ones sold at Tim Sum restaurant or hawker centres are filled only with pork and lots of lard......I've added minced fish meat, prawns, minced meat, chopped cilantro, water chestnuts, shiitake mushrooms and diced carrot.

The Bakerwoman - Coffee Talk at 9:19 AM 0 comments

Saturday, April 25, 2009

Ang Koo Kueh

After steaming.......my lovely green & red ang koo kuehs

This was my first attempt to make ang koo kuehs.......since watching The Ways of the Matriach ,

I was tempted to try this out.....

Just right for my tea time with a good cup of kopi-o!!! ;)

The Bakerwoman - Coffee Talk at 12:06 PM 0 comments

Thursday, April 23, 2009

Roast Pork (All in One) Rice

Our Wednesday's night dinner, simple and easy to prepare roast pork rice with cabbage, shiitake mushrooms!!! I've also added toufu soup as our side dish........

The Bakerwoman - Coffee Talk at 11:43 AM 0 comments

Old Fashioned Marble Cake

This is my grandma's recipe.........I baked this whilst I was 13 years old (Secondary 1) and used this recipe till this very day!!! Good ole fashion marble cake!

The Bakerwoman - Coffee Talk at 11:40 AM 0 comments

Coffee Walnut Cake

I like this simple easy recipe......this warm fluffy English cake - combines coffee & walnuts - great for morning coffees! Coarsed hazelnuts could be substituted.

I've added more coffee for a nice aroma - no artificial coffee essence for me! Simply nutritious for the family!

The Bakerwoman - Coffee Talk at 11:29 AM 0 comments

Baked Cheesecake

Baked Cheesecake

It was my first attempt to try this recipe. I had tried chilled lemon cheesecake before and glad it turned out well, except the top of the cake cracked - probably due to the heat. The cheesecake was spongy and taste fairly good!

My son loves it!!! Great for an afternoon tea!

The Bakerwoman - Coffee Talk at 11:22 AM 0 comments

Tuesday, April 21, 2009

Chicken Curry - Peranakan Style

As I was logging in to Cozy Cot , a Cozy Cotter requested me to have the Peranakan curry recipe.

JuLiong, you are lucky that I was thinking of cooking the curry on a Monday night......dipped in baguette with my family. I used Sakura chicken for its succulent tender meat in this recipe. Here is the recipe as requested:

CHICKEN CURRY (based on half chicken)

Half chicken

Ingredients (A) to be pounded:

8 gloves garlic

1 thumb size ginger

1/4 thumb tumeric or 1/2 tsp tumeric powder

2 tbspoon curry powder mixed with a little water

1/2 cup of first coconut milk

1 cup of second coconut milk

Ingredients (B) to be pounded:

1 tbspoon of cumin seeds or 3/4 cumin powder

4 buah keras (candlenut)

4 dried chillies & 6 red chillies

10 shallots

1 tsp of belachan

a sprig of curry leaves

2 potatoes (cut into quarter & soaked in water)

Salt to taste

Oil for frying (abt 4 tbspoon)

• Marinate the chicken with the pounded Ingredients A, 1 tsp of salt & the curry powder for at least 30 mins.
• Pound Ingredients B into a paste.

• Heat the oil in a pan/kwali, fry the Ingredients B for a few minutes without browning, lower heat and add the chicken with the marinades.

• Stir well and add the second coconut milk (the diluted milk). Add the curry leaves/potatoes and bring to the boil for about 30mins with the lid on.

• Lower the heat & cook gently till the meat is almost tender, stirring occasionally.
• Lastly, add the first coconut milk, and cook for another 2 mins, add salt to taste.

• Enjoy your curry with baguette, rice or roti jala. Another option for me is : frozen prata....you can get it in NTUC or Cold Storage....warm yr prata on a non stick pan with some butter.

The Bakerwoman - Coffee Talk at 10:50 AM 0 comments

Monday, April 20, 2009

Kueh PieTi

PieTi shells from Joo Chiat

As mentioned in my earlier posts, Joo Chiat & Katong revisited, I had kueh pieti for tea. The kueh pieti shells were sold @ S$15 per tub - very expensive for 50 pcs!!! Next time I shall fry my own pieti shells, since I have the recipe - I shall try it.

The only hassle in this recipe is the shredding of the turnips.........otherwise, its simple and toppings are aplenty to your choice. You can add prawns, shredded cucumber, parsley, minced hard boil egg, fried garlic to it.........I made these for my majong khakis over the weekend......!

The Bakerwoman - Coffee Talk at 11:50 AM 0 comments

Wednesday, April 15, 2009

Ox Tail Soup - recipe from Chef Wan

I love ox tail!!! It took me another 30 mins to cut away the fats!!Recently, I had been craving for too many food.......instead of having the usual oxtail stew, I would like to try out Chef Wan's Ox Tail soup instead.....in Malay, its called Sop Buntut!!!

I like his recipe - in between soup kambing and a bit of curry in it.....I've added potatoes, carrot, button mushrooms and lots of cilantro to it.....because of the thickness of the ox tail, its better to use a pressure cooker or slow cooker. It took me 3.5hrs to get the tenderness of the meat.......hmmm, the soup goes pretty well with baguette, pasta & rice! Bon Appetit!!!!

The Bakerwoman - Coffee Talk at 12:03 PM 0 comments

Monday, April 13, 2009

Goreng Pisang

This pisang (banana) is great for goreng pisang or jemput jemput

Crispy goreng pisang for breakfast

Breakfast for weekends are mostly dining outdoors.....I like the TCC breakfast set, Riders Cafe breakfast and breakfast in Changi Beach Club. Its also a special moment for us to share and reflect for the week.

I yearned for goreng pisang to go along with my kopi-O. Am very lucky to have a nearby market and hastened my hubby to get me pisang tandok or asked the fruit seller for bananas that are suitable for the goreng pisang................eh, don't forget your kopi-0..........

Goreng pisang are best makan whilst its hot & crispy.........

The Bakerwoman - Coffee Talk at 10:12 AM 0 comments

Mee Siam & Sambal

Fried bee hoon (koo chye, taupok, bean sprouts were fried together with tau cheo, rumpah

The Mee Siam gravy (koo chye & prawn stock were added to it,not forgetting the assam juice)

Sambal for the mee siam

Simply sedap mee siam for the family

A weekend of spicy local delights on a Sunday night!!! Don't forget the necessary condiments like hard boiled egg, more koo chye, kalamansi and sambal!

After having the mee siam, my hubby made us iced chin chow with longans and lemon juice!!!

The Bakerwoman - Coffee Talk at 10:01 AM 0 comments

Mixed Mushrooms Soup & Garlic Bread

Mixed mushrooms - fresh & dried shiitake, button mushroomsI love home made mushroom soup with garlic bread

Well, its the long weekend and I should be taking a break from the kitchen! Right, Mum's Not Cooking!!!

Am lucky as my hubby enjoys cooking fusion, French & Italian cuisines! He was formerly a chef in Four Seasons and he cooks for the family on weekends.

This week, I've requested for his delicious mixed mushroom soup with garlic bread. Am not a "rice" person and having bread with soup - its already a complete & balanced meal!!

I found soup to be hearty as well as comforting. Whenever I am distressed, sick or simply "kalang kabut" (in a hurry), soup plays an important role in my diet.

Making soup is easy, and most soups can be made ahead of time & reheated. And when you become an avid soup maker, just think of your waistline in the next 2 weeks!!!

A word of advice: Moderate seasoning is the key to enhancing the flavours in the final dish!!

The Bakerwoman - Coffee Talk at 9:49 AM 0 comments

Sunday, April 12, 2009

Ice Kachang & Seafood in Johor Bahru

When we arrived Christ house in JB, she brought us to a nice cozy cafe, opposite the Danga Bay for a nice rainbow ice kachang (its a bit unique - shredded nutmeg, peanuts, red beans, attap seeds, jellies and other yummy fruity stuffs were also added). Topped with a colourful scoop of ice cream! One ice kachang is best to be shared by 2......a huge portion for M$3.00.


After tea in Christ's home, she brought the kids to the Johor Bahru zoo.....the entrance fee?? Guess?? Only M$2 for adult and M$1 for kids......

Most of the animals were kept in an open enclosure - you can feed the elephant (just like the man here)

Dinner - We went to the popular seafood kelong in JB

This is the place where these orang Aslis live (it was low tide on that day)

The friendly orang Aslis........you can find the children diving and swimming in the beach in the afternoon

Seafood is served by orang asli (meaning "aboriginal peoples" in Malay) is a general term used for any indigenous groups that are found in Peninsular Malaysia

Singapore lacks this beautiful sea ambience
An array of seafood in the kelong

Bamboo clams, siput, mussles (so many fresh selections of seafood). You can asked the chef to cook the seafood to your selections -

We had the best live ginseng prawn soup, butter crabs cooked in salted eggs, fried noodles/rice, mixed vegetables in claypot, fried calarmaris & not forgetting the belachan kang kong. All in? M$90..............Singapore is a far cry to get such yummy, delicious seafood. I've never liked the Jumbo, Red House seafood served here.....Prices in Singapore are pretty steep too!!

I realised the seafood in Singapore are a ripped off.........especially places where "ang mohs" like to patronise.....in Jumbo, Long House, Punggol Seafood........

My kids loved the windy outdoors and to have their dinner by the sea

When eating seafood, the ambience and comfort really count!! Superb service by the fast & friendly Orang Asli servers.

After dinner, we headed to Danga Bay for a nice cuppa

Thanks to my good friend, Chris (whom I had know for more than 15 years) and her hubby for their warm hospitality whilst we were there.

Fire works display on every weekend nights in Danga BayThis is Chris beautiful home in JB.......(the side view), which is just next to the Sultan's Palace

I decide to blog about JB and their food here. We went to JB on Valentine's Day to visit my friend, Chris and her hubby. She wanted to show me their retired getaway when her husband retires.

We visited JB on Valentine's Day ..........we liked the rest and relax atmosphere. Most Johorians love the beach.....especially in Danga Bay.....you can find super nice Thai authenthic food, mee pok, Indian food etc...........It reminded me of our Singapore WonderLand in the 70s!

For dinner, we enjoyed the seafood very much. Having seafood in kelong was simply awesome....the sea breeze, surrounding and good food were fantastic......an array of various seafood are available here. Read more about this restaurant here for their delicious and affordable seafood! The severs were mainly orang aslis.....if you are having lunch, you can see the happy and carefree orang aslis children diving into the sea.....You can give them sweets and you can see the joy in their faces!!! gleaming with delight!

I was amazed that there were more to enjoy in Johor Bahru. We ended the night in Danga Bay having our kopi and enjoying the colourful fireworks display......For my kids, they loved the zoo, ice kachang and the orang asli village.

The Bakerwoman - Coffee Talk at 3:10 PM 0 comments