My Selero Kito.....

Making Crispy Fried Chicken at home ......, that's my version of Selero Kito.

crispy, juicy, tasty and succulent fried chicken drumsticks (my old man says they are better than KFC)

Ingredients : 6 skin-on chicken drumsticks, soy sauce, salt, white pepper, sweet paprika, ground ginger, curry powder, ground cumin, garlic, corn flour for dusting and vegetable oil for frying

(adjust the seasonings to suit your taste, for a better result marinate chicken drumsticks overnight and leave them in the fridge)

Or 

Cook in a hot oven at 200 deg C for about 30 minutes, of course deep frying is a little more indulgent...

Serve chicken with salad, lemon wedges, Sambal and a bowl of steamed white rice (my old man will eat with his hand)

Selero Kito http://www.salerokito.com.au/ is one of our favourite restaurants. Located in the heart of South Eastern Suburbs, near Monash University Caulfield. They cook fantastically authentic West Sumatran Padang cuisine which is very yummy. 

春之马卡龙

马卡龙又称作杏仁小圆饼,少女的酥胸,是一种用蛋白、杏仁粉、白砂糖和糖霜所做的法国甜品，通常在两块饼干之间夹有千变万化的水果酱或奶油等内馅，其外皮酥脆，里面柔软, 虽然很甜很甜但口感丰富, 配上一杯香浓咖啡, 蓝天白云, 我想如此美好人生, 夫复何求?

I have never been so precise in baking..... Wahaha.... I am making macarons today and finally I have got them right, no cracked shells, "feet" around the base shown and they are fully cooked..... except that they are not as colourful as the macarons that are sold in stores. My principle in making home made food is try to avoid using artificial colourings, artificial flavourings and preservatives. I hate making home made cakes or bread with commercial shortenings, ovalette, bread improver and so on. Anyway thanks to my friend Soh Ching Loh who share this wonderful recipe with me.

Green Tea Macarons with Tahini filling

Chocolate Macarons with Dark Chocolate Ganache

Ingredients: 

A) 120g almond meal and 200g icing sugar

B) 3 egg whites, aged for 3 days in refrigerator, room temperature before use. 35g caster sugar, pinch of    salt and 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar

Method : 

1. Line baking trays with baking paper, sift almond meal and icing sugar twice.

2. Place the egg whites in a large bowl and transfer 1 tablespoon egg white to a small bowl. 

3. Combine caster sugar, salt and cream of tartar, put aside.

4. Beat egg whites until soft peak form, add caster sugar mixture, 1tablespoon at a time, beating constantly until thick and glossy (about 8 minutes at low speed).

5. Add the almond mixture in 3 batches, gently fold in (about 90 times) until combined and the mixture slides down the side of the bowl when tilted.

6. Add the reserved egg white and stir to loosen mixture.

7. Pipe mixture on the prepared trays, stand at room temperature for about 45 minutes until a crust forms.

8. Bake at 150 deg C for about 20 minutes or until the macaron shells are dry to touch. Cool on the trays.

Happy platinum wedding anniversary tomorrow to my old man and I.....

In The Mood for It

Hooray, it works..... this cheese cake is not too sweet and not too cheesy. In my view it could be a better cake if I sieved the batter. I did not as I always in the rush.....

Lemony Baked Ricotta Cheese Cake with Cherry Sauce

Ingredients :

1. Base

12pcs digestive biscuits, 50g butter 

2. Filling

250g cream cheese, softened, 750g fresh ricotta cheese, 4 large eggs, 11/3 cup caster sugar, 2 tablespoons lemon rind, 1/3 cup lemon juice, 1/2 teaspoon vanilla essence, 2 1/2 tablespoons cornflour and 2 tablespoons milk

3. Sour cream topping

1/2 part sour cream and 1/2 part thickened cream

4. Cherry sauce topping

Frozen cherry, caster sugar and vanilla essence, adjust the quantities to your liking

曹植在七步內寫成一首傳頌千古的好詩：「煮豆燃豆萁，豆在釜中泣。本是同根生，相煎何太急。」

绿意盎然

十月的墨尔本, 绿意盎然.

Green Tea Cake

Ingredients :  A) egg whites 5, caster sugar 130g, corn flour 10g, pinch of salt
                      B) egg yolks 5
                      C) low protein flour 115g
                      D) fresh milk 50ml, green tea powder 11/2 tablespoons
                      E) vegetable oil 75ml

Filling and Topping : sour cream, thickened cream, vanilla essence and green tea powder

Method :
1. Whip A till stiff
2. Add B, continue to whip till light
3. Add C, mix well
4. Add D, mix till well combined
5. Add E, mix till well incorporated
6. Bake at 190 deg C for about 30 minutes

世界其实很简单

人，小時候簡單，長大了復雜；窮的時候簡單，富有了復雜；落魄時簡單，得勢了復雜；君子簡單，小人復雜；看自己簡單，看別人復雜。世界其實很簡單，只是人心很復雜。

Strawberry and sour cream muffins

Ingredients : 4 eggs, 270g caster sugar, 160ml vegetable oil, 360g self raising flour, 1teaspoon soda bicarbonate, pinch of salt, 270ml sour cream and 250g fresh strawberries.

簡單的事，想深了，就復雜了。 復雜的事，看淡了，就簡單了。 有些事，笑笑就能過去。 有些事，過一陣就能讓你笑笑。#攝影#

春晓

春眠不觉晓,处处闻啼鸟,夜来风雨声,花落知多少? 春晓,孟浩然

Purple Yam Bread Rolls

 Little bread roll with purple yam filling

 Toasted purple yam bread slices with a dollop of cream cheese spread

I used the Potato bun recipe to make these purple yam bread rolls but at the same time I have incorporated heaps of mashed yam into the dough and now I confused the exact quantities.....

From September to November is spring in Melbourne....it is time for flowers in the garden blossom....

 Azalea

Carefree Orchids

Iceberg roses

好吃不过饺子

俗语说 : 好吃不过饺子，舒服不过躺着, I love dumplings regardless if they are steamed, boiled or pan-fried. My favourite dumpling restaurants are Hutong Dumpling on Market Lane in Chinatown and Dumpling King in Box hill. Last Saturday I learned how to make dumplings from a Chinese couple who are Jess's friends and presently residing in Melbourne.

Homemade Dumplings

My dumpling master 妙生 and her hubby Hong Bin. Both hail from 哈尔滨

These are my end products ...... steamed dumplings with chilli oil and vinegar

 Pan fried dumplings 锅贴 

Both taste equally good to me, the dumpling skin was thin and the filling was tasty and juicy.

Ingredients used for making dumplings :

1. The filling -  pork mince, prawns, spring onion, shredded wombok, ginger, five spice powder, salt, ground pepper, soy sauce and sesame oil.

2. The dumpling skin : 1 part plain flour and 1/2 part cold water.

天涯共此时

八月十五日夜湓亭望 - 白居易
昔年八月十五夜, 曲江池畔杏园边, 今年八月十五夜,湓浦沙头水馆前.
西比望乡何处是, 东南见月几回圆, 昨风一吹无人会,今夜清光似往年.

Linguine with garlic, chilli flakes, curly parsley and prawns

需要的很少可想要的却很多, 草草又一顿中秋晚饭.

愿月圆花好

轻松下午茶

人生最好的旅行，就是你在一個陌生的地方，發現一種久違的感動。#攝影#

Wholemeal Bread Rolls 

Ingredients used for making the bread dough : 

400g baker flour, 100g wholemeal flour, 7g dried yeast, pinch of salt, 50g caster sugar, 40g butter, 130g thickened cream, 220g fresh milk, 30g walnut, 10g black sesame seeds, egg wash, pumpkin seeds and almond flakes for decoration ( just use whatever ingredients you have in the pantry )

I can't resist to make bread when the weather is warm. 

总是有那么一阵子.....

甜酸苦辣, 起起落落, 总是有那么一阵子....你会对某些时刻,某些事物,某些口味,某些歌曲.....有特别的感觉.

My Sunday Brunch

Mixed grain bread with ham off the bone, cheese, avocado, rocket leaves and sliced cucumber

Mixed grain bread with smoked salmon, wholegrain mustard, avocado, rocket leaves and sliced cucumber

Strawberry and vanilla yoghurt smoothies

一个人，一辈子，总要悲一阵子，喜一阵子，聚一阵子，散一阵子，青春一阵子，美丽一阵子，沧桑一阵子，深沉一阵子，幼稚一阵子，成熟一阵子，烦恼一阵子，艰辛一阵子，痛苦一阵子，幸福一阵子。
不管是那一阵子, 太阳依旧从东边升起。

在不同的城市醒来

窗外雨潺潺, 春意阑珊, 罗衾不耐五更寒, 梦里不知身是客, 一响贪欢.
独自莫凭栏, 无限江山, 别时容易见时难, 流水落花春去也, 天上人间. -- 浪淘沙,李煜

Grilled Chicken with Sambal Belachan, Sliced Cucumber and Coriander Leaves

This is the first dish I make since I get back from Kuala Lumpur. Just let the oven do the job and dinner is ready in about 30 minutes. 

Chicken : cut the chicken in evenly pieces and season with salt, pepper, paprika, garlic and drizzle with oil. Grill chicken pieces until golden and cooked through.

Sambal Belachan : Process fresh chillies and toasted belachan in a food proccesor to a fine paste, add lime or lemon juice and season to taste 

I

把臂同游老友记

与老友记把臂同游 - 跃走越南之何志明市,岘港,顺化与惠安

从少年维特的烦恼到至今的半百人生, 转转辙辙尽在不言中......

卢慧玲, 赖秀琼, 黎小媚, 朱丽馨, 郭慧娟, 林佩芬, 吴彩云, Michelle Leong, 林宝春, 丽琴, 潘惠秀, 尹洁莹,曾佩蓉 和主席陈兰英

你接受也好, 不接受也好, 人生就是一段又一段的旅程, 终归也要走下去. 有的人没能陪你一起走, 只因为他终究不是命定的那个人. 张小娴

不文沾之荷兰薯面包

谨此荷兰薯面包献给我前半生的老友记. 希望我的后半生也舆你们同在. thanks to loo hwai ling who taught me all these 广东不文歇后语, 实在是一针见血,搔到痒处.

整顿心情, 重新出发.

Potato Buns

Ingredients used for making this potato buns :

 500g baker flour, 120g mashed potato ( i used desiree potato ), 70g brown sugar, 140g fresh milk, 100g thickened cream, a good pinch of salt, 50g butter and 10g yeast.

Ingredients for making the custard paste :

 1 egg yolk, 65g fresh milk, 10g sugar and 15g baker flour.

Spring has arrived to melbourne, weather is getting warmer and my plants are blossom with flowers.....

a new beginning......