Eat your heart out

Christmas Day Lunch: Jamie Oliver Inspired Chunky Mushroom Soup with truffle oil and summer truffles, served with garlic toast

2012-01-28T11:08:00.000+08:00

For Christmas day lunch, it will usually be something light since the timing between meals are quite close. Soup is the perfect option -- though it looks rather simple in nature, it is the most time consuming dish I had to make on Christmas Day. Right after breakfast at 8am, I started making the chicken stock (click here for instructions on how to make chicken stock), which takes roughly 2 hours. If you would like this to be vegetarian, by all means use a vegetarian stock.

Since my daughter and mother both love mushroom soup, I decided to make this for lunch. I adapted Jamie Oliver's recipe to make my version of chunky mushroom soup. I used white button, grey oyster, white oyster and cep/porcini mushrooms for my version-- you could also use chanterelles, girolles, trompettes de mort, shitake if available. Since we like our mushroom soup creamy, I added 100ml of dairy whipping cream at the end but you could skip this if you find it too rich.

If I could say so myself, it's a rather delicious soup and we thoroughly enjoyed it.

Chunky mushroom soup with truffle oil and summer truffles, served with garlic toast

Chunky mushroom soup
Preparation time: 15-20 minutes
Cooking time: 45-50 minutes (not including time to make stock)
Serves 4-5

Ingredients
A small handful of cep/porcini mushrooms
115g white button mushroom, cut into small pieces
100g grey oyster mushroom, cut into small pieces
200g white oyster mushroom, cut into small pieces
2 clove garlic, peeled and minced
1 onion, peeled and chopped finely
2 tbsp olive oil
100ml whipping cream (in KL supermarkets, it's hard to find single/double cream)
1 1/2 tbsp mascarpone cheese
1 litre chicken or vegetable stock
A handful of parsley, finely chopped
A knob of butter
Salt and freshly ground pepper
Truffle oil
Summer truffles

You can get cep/porcini mushrooms from Ben's Independent Grocer, Publika

It makes the soup much more luxurious

Four types of mushroom

1. Soak porcini/cep mushrooms in a bowl of warm water for 15 minutes, then remove and leave it to dry. Soak in boiling water for another 10 minutes, rinse and chopped roughly ready for adding. In a large pot over medium high heat, add oil and fresh mushroom (grey/white oyster and white button) and stir around quickly for a minute. Add the garlic, butter, and onion.

2. After a minute, you will notice some moisture cooking out of the mushrooms. At this point, add the porcini mushrooms. Strain the soaking liquid, removing any grit and add to the pot. Carry on cooking for about 15 minutes until most of the moisture disappears.

3. Add your stock and bring to the boil. Simmer for another 20 minutes over medium low heat. Remove half the soup and using a hand blender, whiz it to a puree (Note: If you like it less chunky, then puree more of the soup). Pour it back in, add the parsley and mascarpone cheese as well as whipping cream (if using) and season to taste with salt and pepper.

4. For the garlic toast, click on the recipe here. All ingredients and steps are the same, however please omit the Parmesan cheese. It will take about 10 minutes, so you can put this in the oven before you blend the soup.

Garlic butter

5. Serve the soup together with the garlic toast. Add a few drops of truffle oil and a few thin shavings of summer truffles and garnish with a parsley leaf and a few drops of cream.

Gone in 10 minutes!

Garlic toast

Goes well together

Baby D enjoyed the garlic toast.. he had a few pieces.

Baby C also enjoyed her garlic toast, and she also had a serving of mushroom soup, made with love.

Yummy!

Full set of photos available to view here.

Comedy High @ Samplings on the Fourteenth, Berjaya Times Square Hotel Kuala Lumpur

2012-01-27T10:28:00.000+08:00

Back during our dating days, we enjoyed going for comedy nights in London or our local theatre. Recently, we attended a comedy night called "Comedy High" at Samplings on the Fourteenth in KL on 17 January 2012 which pairs food with comedy. This was the first comedy night at Samplings, in collaboration with The Comedy Club KL.

For RM99++ per person, we got a 3-course Western meal plus 1 hour of stand-up comedy entertainment after. We have been to Samplings before during MIGF for its fine dining fare so we know the food is good.

A small stage placed at the corner of the restaurant

Still retaining its fine dining ambience

Dinner starts at 6.30pm and show starts at 8.30pm and ends at 9.30pm. The meal is also inclusive of 1 glass of complimentary Carlsberg beer. Food portions are quite small, but sufficient to fill your stomach.

The view from Samplings on the Fourteenth

Looking down

We started off with the curried pumpkin cappuccino. Since we sat directly under the air-conditioner (hence it was pretty cold), I was certainly glad to be spooning mouthfuls of this warm, delicious soup. It was quite light (not the creamy type) as well. There was 2 choices for mains, and we took one each. Out of the two, Hubby's choice of Chermoula Marinated Chicken Breast served with fondant potatoes, garden vegetables and chicken jus was better. I took a few bites and despite it being the breast meat, the chicken was very moist and flavorful, owing to the chermoula marination. I had the pan fried sea bass fillet served with saffron potatoes and garden vegetables, which was also nice but would have been better if there was more sauce.

Dessert was a coconut tiramisu, which was also pretty good but it was too small for me. I like my desserts BIG!

Curried pumpkin cappuccino

Chermoula marinated chicken breast

Pan fried sea bass fillet

Coconut tiramisu

The show started at sharp 8.30pm (hooray for punctuality!), hosted by a local talent Rizal van Geyzel. The 1 hour show featured comedians Steve Northcott and award-winning Phil Nichol (he was won "Best Comedy Show" in the Foster's Edinburgh Comedy Awards). I have to say we were fully entertained, the venue was filled with laughter from the diners, a truly enjoyable (and different) evening. I have posted 2 videos below (performance by Phil Nichol) to share with you guys.

Rizal van Geyzel

Steve Northcott

Phil Nichol

Phil Nichol, the funny man

For those interested, Samplings will be holding another Comedy Night on Valentine's Day (14 February 2012), which includes a five course set dinner menu, a glass of sparkling wine, a rose for the lady and a glass of complimentary Carlsberg beer for RM158++. The next event will feature Australian comedian Greg Sullivan and local talents Andrew Netto and Rizal van Geyzel.

Service: Good. Since it was cold, the restaurant provided me with a scarf to use :)

Price: RM99++ for food and entertainment. Complimentary parking for diners.

Location: Samplings on the Fourteenth, Berjaya Times Square Hotel, 1 Jalan Imbi, 55100 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Tel: 03-2117 8000

GPS Coordinates: 3.142637, 101.709538

Tate, The Intermark Kuala Lumpur

2012-01-26T08:50:00.001+08:00

If you've been following my blog for a while, you'll notice that we mostly do lunches and sometimes dinner (for special ocassions) and hardly any drinking. Back in November, we stayed in Doubletree by Hilton for my birthday. After our meal in Frangipani, we were back at the hotel peeking into Estate (at that time it wasn't opened yet). The manager Kevin came out and we started speaking to him. I remember reading on Sean's blog about Tate, but have never "seen" it whenever we were in The Intermark so we asked Kevin as to its whereabouts.

And there it was... hidden behind an inconspicuous white two-way door, we did not notice its location until Kevin pointed it out to us. I shall not reveal exactly where it is; for those who haven't been before, looking for it is half the fun.

Look for the top hat and you will have found the entrance to Tate

Tate is a watering hole with a difference. It is the first establishment in Malaysia to embrace the speakeasy concept.

For the uninitiated, speakeasy bars were commonplace in the United States during Prohibition in the 1920s when the sale, manufacture, and transportation of alcoholic beverages was illegal. Secret drinking dens were formed to fulfil the desire to consume alcohol. It is believed the term "speakeasy" originated in Pennsylvania in 1888, where the ladyboss would hush her customers by saying "speak easy boys", when they get too rowdy to keep from drawing attention to her illegal business.

Once you have found the white door, enter and be greeted by this knight in shining armour. Inside, the place is dimly lit exuding a mysterious yet classy ambience. There is also a pool table, three private rooms and a cigar room. Charlie Chaplin played on the TV before us. We were the only two in there (for a while), so it definitely felt exclusive.

Private space

Pool table

Famous quote from sporting icon Muhammad Ali.

We made a deal and switched off from our devices (no phones, no iTouch allowed) -- just some quiet time, enjoying our drinks and playing the "Chit" card game provided to us... it was rather entertaining. :)

Tell me..

A game of chess if you're up to it

The bar

Hubby had Macallan 12 years whisky on the rocks (RM24). The whisky here was served with an ice ball, which is designed to melt at a slower rate compared to common ice cubes.. resulting in consistently flavoured chilled whisky from the first sip to the last.

I wanted to order a Mojito but the mixologist said he would make me a special drink depending on what I like. I asked for something fruity, and he came up with a Mary Hendricks (RM38) for me... the primary ingredient being Hendricks Gin.

Call this number if you're really lost... hehe..

Can you find it?

Location: Tate, The Intermark KL.

Christmas Day Breakfast: Gordon Ramsay inspired scrambled eggs with caviar and smoked salmon

2012-01-24T20:13:00.002+08:00

It is our family tradition to have four courses served throughout Christmas day, rather than have three courses in one sitting. This way, we don't really overeat and get to enjoy the meal better. As the person responsible for cooking all the meals on Christmas, it also makes my job a lot easier.

For breakfast, I made scrambled eggs topped with caviar, served with smoked salmon, sundried tomatoes and cherry tomatoes. Last year, I also made scrambled eggs and one of my readers/fellow blogger Ms Jazz of Augustdiners suggested that we try the Gordon Ramsay way of making scrambled eggs. Since I was intrigued, I googled up the recipe and used it for this year's Christmas Day breakfast.

I have to say, the Gordon Ramsay-inspired scrambled eggs was absolutely delicious, very creamy and fluffy at the same time. Will stick to this recipe next time whenever we wanna make scrambled eggs, in fact I loved it so much I made scrambled eggs for the next few days using this recipe.

Just a note, when cooking the eggs may seem a little watery, but when you eat it, it's just right (creamy), so it's nothing to be too concerned about. For a touch of luxury, we topped the scrambled egg with some lumpfish caviar (which you can get easily in supermarkets). If you cannot find chives, you can substitute with spring onions, chopped very finely.

To serve, you can just serve it on a piece of rustic bread, or on its own. You can also cut off the top of an eggshell, wash it and leave it to dry, and scoop the scrambled egg into the shell if you want something special.

Christmas Breakfast is served

Jingle bells

Scrambled eggs topped with caviar

Scrambled eggs with caviar, served with smoked salmon and tomatoes
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: less than 5 minutes
Serves 4

Ingredients
7 large eggs
3 tbsp cold butter
1 tbsp creme fraiche (I substituted with cream)
Salt and freshly ground pepper
A handful chives, chopped finely

200 g smoked salmon with cumin
8 cherry tomatoes, halved
Sundried tomatoes
Lumpfish caviar

1. Break the eggs into a cold, heavy-based frying pan (do NOT season it now), add half the butter and put it on medium low heat. Using the spatula, stir the eggs frequently to combine the yolk with the white. Keep stirring (as you would when cooking a risotto - do not stop stirring).

2. Add the remaining butter as the mixture begins to set. Do not let them get too hot, you will need to move the pan on and off the heat - about 2-3 times (see the video below). The eggs will take about 3-4 minutes to cook.

3. Add the cream/creme fraiche (brings the temp of the eggs down) and season the eggs with salt and pepper. Add the chives and give it a quick stir. Serve immediately.

The perfect scrambled eggs

Full set of photos available to view here.

Check out the rest of our Christmas menu here.

Reunion Dinner Feast - Chinese New Year 2012

2012-01-23T00:42:00.000+08:00

Reunion dinner is one of the most important event of the Chinese New Year celebration. Family members from all over the country would gather on the eve of CNY for a meal together, believed to strengthen family bonds (great for catching up with relatives that we see once a year!).

My children are very lucky to be able to spend this special day at their paternal great grandparents home for the past few years. I'm grateful that one of my aunts and my grandma work very hard to put out delicious homecooked food for us every year.

Something we all enjoy before the reunion dinner feast... CNY cookies! My favorite are of cos the pineapple tarts and also these pretty butter cookies. Kids love them too!

Butter cookies

Pineapple tarts

Our reunion dinner feast, thanks to the two ladies who slaved in the kitchen all morning/afternoon!

Since my grandma is Hokkien, we will always the delicious braised pig's trotters / knucles with seacucumber, fish maw with mushroom and chicken feet, longevity noodles (sau meen) and also pig's stomach soup!

Braised pig's trotters / knucles with seacucumber served in a claypot

Siew yoke

Fish maw with mushrooms and chicken feet

Prawns for happiness. ha ha ha

Leeks so that we have lots to "count" in 2012

Fried chicken.. cos the kids love it.. :P

Kailan.. green vegetables symbolise new beginnings

Longevity noodles...

Baby C and her noodles!

Baby D loves his noodles.. and everything else!

Pig's stomach soup... oh yum!

Mini mandarin oranges

What did you have for your reunion dinner?

*All photos taken with iPhone4S.

Happy Chinese New Year 2012 - Year of the Dragon

2012-01-22T00:20:00.002+08:00

Say goodbye to the Rabbit, and let's all put our hands together and welcome the mighty Dragon. May 2012 be a good year for all, filled with happiness, fortune, health and lots of good food.

Happy Chinese New Year to everyone! xoxo

A "golden packet" for all my readers for abundance "满"

Herald in the Year of the Dragon in style

Love from us all! (Baby Sumo and family)

"Nian nian yo yu"

Enjoy this video of a special CNY acrobatic performance at The Gardens Mall I took yesterday afternoon.

Innovative Chinese Cuisine @ Gu Yue Tien, Chulan Square, Kuala Lumpur

2012-01-20T21:36:00.004+08:00

To those celebrating, wishing you all a Happy Chinese New Year and to everyone else, enjoy the long break :)

Recently, we got the chance to sample some innovative (fusion?) Chinese cuisine from Gu Yue Tien. And if you asked me to describe it in one word.... it would be awesome-rrific!!! It was definitely one of the most memorable Chinese meals we've had this year (and I could possibly stretch as far as saying ever!).

We looked around the restaurant and noticed that there were photographs of Chef/Owner Frankie Woo with famous celebrities such as Jackie Chan and Michelle Yeoh. There are several private and semi-private rooms on top of the main dining area.

Dragon fish yee sang

We started off with the customary yee sang. But wait, it's not just any yee sang. Instead of the traditional yee sang, the chef has created a refreshing Western salad from coral lettuce, pomelo, golden raisin, pear, pok chui, sesame seeds, raw salmon and a special strawberry sauce (made from local Cameron Highlands strawberries). And to top the salad, he uses dragon fish which adds a wonderful crunch to the dish as well as being symbolic to the Year of the Dragon. It was quite a light tasting yee sang, hence we found ourselves going for seconds and thirds.

Dragon fish yee sang (RM98++ for 10 pax)

Colorful and delicious

Here's what a dragon fish looks like! As thin as an ikan bilis and very long...

For those who do not take shark's fin, Gu Yue Tien has this thick, delicious seafood soup with crab roe. It is laden with prawn, crabmeat, scallop, tofu and squid.

The winning dish of the evening was most definitely the salt baked Spanish Iberico spare ribs. Totally mouthwatering, absolutely scrumptious and finger-licking-good! Yes, we licked our fingers (and bones) clean after we finished each rib. Best of all, the ribs all come with the "yuen kuat" (the white bit) which is my absolute favorite when eating ribs. Hubby went as far as calling this the best dish he's eaten this year! Let's see if it can hold its position for the next 11 months. A short note though that this is a salt baked dish so you will find a fair amount of salt stuck to the ribs, so perhaps not for those who has low tolerance of salt. But it really works for us!

The last time I ate halibut must have been in a Western restaurant in UK, where it's been pan fried or grilled. It was definitely a first for us to see halibut being steamed and served in a Chinese Restaurant. Chef Frankie has steamed it Hunan style (ie topped with chopped chilli, garlic and deep fried garlic). We were told that the halibut is imported from Greenland. The fish flesh was very fresh, smooth with a very clean taste. At first, we expected the fish to be super spicy as it was topped with quite a fair bit of chilli, but the amount of chilli was just right and complimented the fish very well! We really loved this and would recommend it to anyone wanting a simple steamed fish (done very well of cos!).

Steamed halibut Hunan style

Getting the special treatment from chef Frankie

Check out the chilli!

It was nice to get noodles for a change, as we're usually served rice for the last dish before dessert. The smooth noodles was served with a Szechuan Mapo Tofu sauce..... did I mention Mapo Tofu was one of my fav tofu dishes and I had to order it everytime I visited the local Chinese restaurant in Swansea?

Szechuan Mapo Tofu Soft Noodles

For dessert, we had the Vanilla Ice Cream with Seasonal Fruit and Almond Cream. Almond cream is one of those things which are acquired tastes, I don't usually like them but I did have a very nice one once at Gokuraku Ramen (almond jelly) and I found myself scrapping the glass clean here too. Guess I liked this one too eh? ;)

We ended on an auspicious note with the steamed niao gao rolled with salted coconut shreds.

Reunion and Chinese New Year menu for 10 persons start from RM758++ up to RM3999++. For smaller dining groups, you can go for the RM328++ set for 4 persons or RM128++ per person (min 2 persons). You can visit their website for full details of menu.

Verdict: The food here is most impressive, and Hubby is already planning a return visit here. Yay from me!

For full set of photos, click here to view.

Location: Restoran Gu Yue Tien, Lot B5-A, Chulan Square, 92 Jalan Raja Chulan, 50200 Kuala Lumpur.

Tel: 03-2148 0808

Website: http://www.chulansquare.com

GPS Coordinates: 3.148808, 101.715814

*This is an invited review, i.e. complimentary.

CNY Cooking: Braised Pork Belly with Sea Cucumber

2012-01-18T23:28:00.003+08:00

Sea cucumber symbolises happiness ("hoi sam"), making this an auspicious dish to serve during Chinese New Year. Usually, it is served together with pig's trotters but in our home, our preferred choice is pork belly as we sometimes find pig's trotter's to be "all fats and skin and no meat".

We usually get our sea cucumber from Eu Yan Sang, soaked and ready for cooking. We have been told that the country of origin is Mauritius, priced at RM120 per 700g. We usually split the sea cucumber into two, 350g is sufficient for 1 meal for 4 persons. You can cut it into chunks, but we like to cut ours into 1.5cm strips and cook it for 30 minutes, so that it retains its chewy texture. I've had friends tell me that sea cucumber is pretty tasteless, but cooked this way, it absorbs all the flavours from the braising.

Here's a simple recipe for braised pork belly with sea cucumber which you can prepare in 2 hours.

Braised pork belly with sea cucumber

Braised pork belly with sea cucumber
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 2 hours
Serves 4

Ingredients
800g pork belly, cut into 3cm width
1 garlic bulb, minced
2-3 shallots, minced
700ml of water (but you can add more depending on how much gravy you like)
1 1/2 tbsp of cooking oil
Soy sauce, to taste
2 tbsp dark soy sauce
350g sea cucumber, cut into 1.5cm strips

To garnish
Red chilli, cut into thin strips
Spring onion, cut into thin strips

1. Place the sliced pork belly into a container and marinate with 2 tbsp of soy sauce overnight. This is to infuse the flavours into the pork belly.

2. Heat the oil in a pot on medium heat and add the garlic and onion. Cook for 3-4 mins until the onion has softened.

3. Add the pork belly and brown it slightly. Then, add water to cover the pork belly, dark soy sauce and about 2 tbsp of soy sauce. Braise for 1 1/2 hours on low heat .

4. Add in the sea cucumber and cook for a further 30 minutes. The pork belly's fat layers should be wobbly by now, but the sea cucumber should still have a chewy texture. Add more soy sauce if required (according to how salty you would like it).

5. Remove from heat. Skim off excess oil. Garnish and serve immediately with boiled rice.You can also serve with this "sau meen" (longevity noodles), the gravy goes very well with the noodles.

Have an auspicious CNY

For more photos, click here to view.

For a similar dish, check out the recipe for Braised Pork Belly with Soy Sauce and Boiled Egg (also known as "loh chu yuk" or "tau yew bak").

Taiwanese Cuisine @ New Formosa Restaurant, SS2, Petaling Jaya

2012-01-17T15:07:00.002+08:00

Prawns so good, we even ate the shells!

Are you counting down the days to Chinese New Year? Only 6 more days to go! Recently, we were invited by Mrs Jeanie Lee of New Formosa Restaurant in PJ to sample their Chinese New Year menu. New Formosa serves authentic Taiwanese cuisine ( Jeanie is Taiwanese and her husband-chef trained in Taiwan). I have only eaten the occasional Taiwanese meal in Fong Lye / Din Tai Fung, so my knowledge on Taiwanese cuisine is pretty limited BUT I do know when the food tastes good (regardless of the type of cuisine)! The food here was prepared in a simple manner, but was very good.

Plus if you take into consideration the price, I would say a CNY meal here is good value for money. There are various menus to choose from, and within each set you also get options of dishes (don't think many places offer that) -- prices range from RM338 to RM498 nett for 10 persons. We had the opportunity to sample the RM498 nett set.

Formosan jelly fish yee sang

New menu with photos of food!

Pickled vegetable to whet the appetite

We started with the obligatory CNY yee sang -- the version here contains both jellyfish and salmon. We tossed to even more wealth and better health.

God of Wealth, are you watching?

Colorful

Tossing and eating is the best part!

The RM498 nett menu consists of 8-courses plus 2 desserts. We started with the pineapple spare ribs and butter eel. OMG I love the eel.. the texture was so buttery with a crisp exterior, I certainly had my fair share of this. The sauce for the ribs was nice but the meat was a bit hard to get off the bones (I need to use my hands next time!).

Delicious, buttery eel

For this menu, shark's fin soup with crab meat and bamboo pith will be served, however we changed ours to the fish skin with shredded vegetables and lean meat broth. The fish skin was hand carried back from Taiwan. Thick and smooth, it shows we don't need shark's fin to make a soup taste good.

Wholesome soup

Next up, is the steamed village chicken with yam and vegetable. Other options include braised pig's trotters in black pepper sauce or simmered herbal chicken with chestnuts. Steamed just right, the chicken is served with a ginger sauce and the chicken meat was juicy. The yam also had a nice bite to it, not too mushy or soft.

This has to be my favorite of the evening, the grilled garlic prawns. So simple but perfectly executed -- I even ate the shells as the flavours are all in there!

Fish, a must-have during Chinese New Year dinners as they signify abundance. The silver pomfret can either be deep fried (Taiwanese home style cooking) or steamed (HK/Teochew style). We were served the deep fried version, then a savoury sauce made from Taiwanese soy sauce is poured over the fish. The skin was very crisp, while retaining the moist flesh.

The roasted pork with two kinds vegetable was next on the list. The brocolli was still crunchy and I enjoyed the oyster mushrooms which was cooked with the siew yoke. Didn't eat much of the siew yoke since I was pretty full by now. For a vegetarian option, you can go for the fried lotus root, green peas, gingko nuts and pumpkin.

The Taiwan Hakka bamboo rice was fragrant and full of ingredients such as yam. If you prefer noodles, you can order the Fried Noodles Taiwanese style which comes with pork, pig's tripe and shrimps!

Although we were already stuffed, Jeanie also ordered one of their signature dishes for us (not included in the CNY menu) -- the Famous Hunan Ham in Honey Sauce (RM42 for medium). I would liken the taste and texture to that of bak kwa, sweet and savoury at the same time and was perfect eaten with the deep fried Chinese silver bread. We were told that this dish takes approximately 3 hours to prepare!

For dessert, we had Taiwanese muachi (coated with peanuts), Taiwan traditional Aiyu jelly with black pearls and sweet yam in honey sauce Taiwanese style. The Aiyu jelly was lovely after a heavy meal, since it was very refreshing owing to the fresh lemon used in the drink. The sweet yam's preparation process was pretty cool to watch -- yam pieces are coated with honey and sesame seeds and then plunge into ice water and the caramel hardens into a delightful candy coating.

Taiwanese muachi (RM4)

Aiyu jelly (RM3.50)

Sweet yam (RM7 for small)

Thanks to Mrs Jeanie Lee for the kind invite, we certainly enjoyed our meal here. If only the roads to PJ was not so congested all the time!

The CNY menu is available until 6 February 2012. For more info, visit their website.

Full set of photos available to view here.

Location: New Formosa Restaurant, 46 Jalan SS2/24, 47300 Petaling Jaya, Selangor.

Tel: 03-7875 1894

GPS Coordinates: 3.114216, 101.621078

*This is an invited review, i.e. complimentary.

pH Pastry House, Jalan Utara, Kuala Lumpur

2012-01-16T13:51:00.000+08:00

Usually when we bring the kids out with us, we have to plan in advance -- make sure the restaurant is kids-friendly, comfortable as well as having food that the kids will eat. Recently, we took them for a daytrip to Doubletree by Hilton to use their pool as well as some "kai kai" (going out to town). At first, we contemplated whether we should just eat in the hotel for convenience sake, but it rained the whole afternoon and we were sick of staying in all day, so decided to go out for a drive and eat.

I remember reading about pH Pastry House and it wasn't too far from Doubletree by Hilton. However, leaving the hotel at 5pm was a really bad idea since we ended up stuck in the jam. The journey that should have taken 5 minutes took more than 30 minutes. It didn't help that we couldn't locate the restaurant straight away, but luckily the kids were very well behaved in the car.

Swimming dog comes with us for dinner

The restaurant / cafe has an industrial sort of look, at first glance it could be mistaken for one of The Big Group's restaurants due to similarities in the furniture and menu. Do take a moment to look at the art around the restaurant, they are quite interesting. Not sure what it's called, but basically when you look at it, it just looks like dots... move a little further, squint your eyes a little and you will see the "art". The one by the front entrance is Mona Lisa.. if you can't see it, try using your mobile phone to view (ask the staff and they will tell you the best way to see it too!).

Dessert counter

Cool art

Mona Lisa -- can you see it? (move away from your computer slightly and squint!)

Hubby had the ice-lemon tea while I (or rather Baby C) had the vanilla shake. To be honest, I expected the vanilla shake to taste more like vanilla ice-cream but it tasted rather watery.

Ice Lemon Tea (RM8.90)

Vanilla shake (RM8.50)

The menu has been revamped slightly since our visit. Click here to view the latest menu. We enjoyed the food that we ordered here. Portions are reasonable for the price charged.

To start, we had the Golden Calamari (RM9.90). Nice snack, a tad oily though. Baby C loves poached egg, so we ordered Eggs Any Style (RM7.90) -- you have the option of scrambled, poached, hard boiled, soft boiled and it was served with ciabatta toast and butter. The toast was pretty good, but even Baby C commented the egg looked a bit sad (very small and served in a teeny ramekin). I think it would have been better if they served two eggs on the ciabatta toast itself and she would have been happier.

Golden Calamari

Eggs any style

Loved the chunky mushroom soup here (RM9), a hearty delicious soup with lots of mushroom bits.

I have a thing for mascarpone and mushroom -- influenced by the fabulous funghi pizza we usually we have at Ben's General Food Store in BV1. So when I saw the pasta with mascarpone and wild mushroom (RM15.90) on the menu, I had to order it. It was really good, the mascarpone adds a rich creamy flavour to the pasta and the lemon zest/juice added a slight zing to the sauce.

They have a good selection of desserts here, but we only got some macarons to take away with us. Our favorite was the Euphoria Rose (the filling is really nice, with a slight flowery perfume). I have to say most of the filling was rather good, but texture wise it is chewy but a little gritty. Other flavours we tried were Infinite Vanilla, Salted Milk Chocolate and Caramel (RM3.90 each).

Pretty colours

Nice filling

pH Pastry House

Verdict: We definitely loved the ambience here. Would we return? Yes, since the food here is pretty good, wallet-friendly as well as ample parking outside the restaurant.

Full set of photos available to view here. Join their Facebook page here.

Pork-free.

Opening times: 7.00am to 9.00pm daily.

Service: OK.

Location: pH Pastry House, 54 Jalan Utara, off Jalan Imbi, 55100 Kuala Lumpur.

Tel: 03-2141 2208

GPS Coordinates: 3.143805, 101.719483

Japanese Food @ Japan Restaurant Ishihara, Nuremberg, Germany

2012-01-15T10:17:00.001+08:00

Finding authentic Asian food in Germany is pretty much a chore, as many eateries tend to adapt their food to the local taste and in the process, the end result suffers. It is always in the larger cities though, e.g. Stuttgart or Munich, where the real deals can be picked out from the duds.

Before going for the Christmas Market in Nuremberg, we decided to go for Japanese food. Prior research led us to Ishihara Restaurant, as the menu looked pretty promising. The restaurant is located nearby Zum Gulden Stern Historische Bratwurstküche which is a famous eatery in the area; famed for their grilled Nürnberger bratwurst and being the first bratwurst kitchen in the world. Great for anyone wanting a piece of the historical action besides the Japanese food.

For lunch, we were led into the Teppanyaki area, where everyone gets an apron irrespective of whether you are having Teppanyaki or not. Most of the patrons I saw on that day were having the Teppanyaki though. The ambience is what you would expect from a Teppanyaki counter with many people seated beside one another. On the day, there were less customers so it was not overly crowded or rowdy. We were seated on a counter opposite a Japanese family. Decoration is simple and understated, lighting is sufficient; just how we like it in Japanese restaurants.

There is a separate lunch menu, so we did not get to look at the dinner menu.Some green tea while having a browse through the menu.

Chef in action.

I had the Unagi don which came with a beansprout appetiser and a miso soup (€16.50). The portion was HUGE, which completely surpassed our expectations. The unagi was beautifully grilled, well complemented by the seaweed and the sticky rice.

Miso Soup

Large slabs of unagi

My dining companion opted for Teppanyaki Ebi, Sake, Tara, Ika no Toriawase (€24.00) which alongside the main of prawns, salmon, cod and squid included an appetiser, miso soup, salad, rice and various vegetables. We loved the freshness of the seafood and also its smokey taste especially the squid.

Appetiser

Salad

Teppanyaki being prepared. Smokin' hot!

Done!

On a second visit, I had a sashimi starter (€12.00 for 9 slices) and "sukiyaki" cooked teppanyaki style (€13.80). The sashimi featured salmon, prawn and maguro; with the fattier salmon being my favourite of the lot. The sukiyaki consisted of chunks of beef, tofu, vegetables, mushrooms, noodles and a raw-egg dip served in an onion-made bowl. Instead of the conventional hot pot version, the ingredients were cooked on the teppanyaki counter. The beef was tender and flavoursome with hints of the sweet sukiyaki broth. Paired with the egg dip and rice, it was just wonderful to eat.

Pre-appetiser of cucumber and seaweed.

Trio of sashimi

"Sukiyaki" being prepped

Don't expect this dish in a hot pot!

List of awards and decorations on their wall.

Verdict: From the lunch menu, we decided that we have seen and tasted enough to warrant another visit to the restaurant in the near future, should we visit Nürnberg again. Good food at relatively affordable prices places this restaurant as one of the best japanese restaurants in the area.

Opening times: 12:00 to 14:30 for lunch, 18:00 to 22:00 for dinner, Closed on Sundays

Service: Good

Location: Japan Restaurant Ishihara, Schottengasse 3, 90402 Nürnberg, Germany.

Tel: +49 0911 22 63 95

Website: http://www.ishihara.de/

*This is a guest post by The Unc. All photos taken with the iPhone 4S.

Majestic Dragon - Chinese New Year Decor 2012 at Pavilion Kuala Lumpur

2012-01-13T20:35:00.001+08:00

2012 marks the Year of the Dragon. One of the most impressive CNY decor we have come across in KL is the giant (very long) majestic dragon at the centre court of Pavilion KL. Eye-catching, yes? For those who cannot make it to Pavilion KL, here are some photos I took today:

Lanterns and pussy willow

A grand looking "gold" Royal Selangor dragon

Royal Selangor's flagship store in Pavilion KL

If you get the chance, do drop by yourself to see the wonderful CNY decor as well as visit the United Buddy Bears (available til 15 Feb 2012).

Full set of photos can be viewed here.

Chinese New Year Menu 2012 @ Tai Zi Heen, Prince Hotel & Residence Kuala Lumpur

2012-01-12T17:37:00.005+08:00

Chinese New Year is fast approaching. Traditionally, yee sang used to be eaten only on the seventh day of CNY but the trend nowadays seem to be to eat it as soon as it is available. Many Chinese believe that the more yee sangs you toss, the more prosperous the upcoming year would be. So far I have tossed six yee sangs, I am hoping that it translates to a "good year" for me. :)

Four Seasons Prosperity Yee Sang

Recently, we were invited to Tai Zi Heen in Prince Hotel KL to sample their CNY menu. Chef Michael Wong with 27 years experience recently joined Tai Zi Heen and for CNY, he has come up with 3 special 8-course set menus -- Spring and Happiness Set (RM1088++ for 10 pax), Everlasting Prosperity Menu (RM1388++ for 10 pax) and Wealth and Fortune Set (RM1688++). There are also six yee sang creations, click here to find out more.

The yee sang at Tai Zi Heen was one of the more traditional ones we encountered this year. The Four Seasons Prosperity Yee Sang (RM48 [small], RM72 [medium], RM120 [large]) is topped with butterfish, salmon, tuna and jellyfish. Chef Michael believes in creating things which are different to stand out from the crowd -- hence the use of blackcurrant plum sauce instead of the usual plum sauce. The oil which is drizzled on the yee sang is the fragrant peanut oil fried with ginger and onion. The jellyfish adds some texture to the yee sang. Chef Michael calls this his version of "Chinese rojak".

Raw butterfish, salmon, tuna and jellyfish

Blackcurrant plum sauce

Peanuts symbolise harvest

Raw fish for abundance.

Crackers represents "gold nuggets"

Ready for tossing!

The higher you toss, the better! (it is believed it symbolises higher growth in fortune)

Sixth yee sang of the year!

After our "lo hei" session, we were treated to a six-course menu specially crafted by Chef Michael (selection made from his CNY a la carte menu). To start, we had the Double Boiled Shark's Fin Soup with Fish Maw, Dried Scallops and Vegetables (RM240 per person). The soup was clear and light, and tummy-warming.

My favorite dish for the evening was Chef's Special Baked Cod Fish (RM34 per 100g). Fish is usually served during CNY as fish in chinese "yu" literally translates to abundance. When the dish arrived, I could smell cheese. Surely my mind must be playing tricks on me. Later on, I asked Chef Michael if he used cheese and he said "yes" and said that I must have a very good "nose" to be able to distinguish it. LOL. Anyway, the fish was flaky and moist and the coating (which is made of garlic, mayo, seasoning and cheese) is very flavoursome. Plus, I love cod fish and the fact that it is served in individual portions rather than us having to "fight" for a piece from a whole fish served.

The next dish is Sauteed Fresh Sea Scallops with Fungus and Vegetables (RM60 [small], RM90 [medium], RM150 [large]). As you all know, I am a big fan of scallops so it was already a winner to me. LOL (how easily pleased!). The scallops used are Australian scallops and were fresh. Instead of the usual black fungus, Chef Michael Wong uses this brown-colored fungus called "yue yee" (not sure what it translates to in English) as it is much meatier in texture. Another reason is for the auspicious meaning, a common Chinese saying -- "yue yee kat cheong" which translates to "wishes come true and lots of blessings".

The brown fungus is called "yue yee"

Oyster is also another auspicious dish commonly served during CNY as "hou see" means "all good things". So, we were not surprised when the Stewed Dried Oysters with Fatt Choy and Lettuce (RM70 [small], RM105 [medium], RM175 [large]) was served to us. "Fatt choy" means wealth and lettuce "sang choy" means prosperity. So this is a dish screams auspicious all the way!

I love the name that Chef Michael gave to this dish... the dancing seafood fried rice. Know why? The fried rice is topped with tobiko and bonito flakes... the bonito flakes looks as if it is "dancing" (swaying) when there is air blowing past it. Very pretty indeed. Tastewise, the tobiko adds a nice (subtle) crunchy texture to the rice.

Wok fried shrimp fried rice with tobiko and bonito flakes

Instead of the usual CNY desserts such as nian gao or layer cake, Chef Michael served us the chilled avocado cream, which was refreshing and light on the palate. A sweet end to our meal for sure!

We have been told that Tai Zi Heen's a la carte menu will be revamped in February 2012 with 173 new dishes! (Sean, take note.. lol)

For full set of photos, click here. The yee sang menu can be viewed here. The CNY menu is available from 5 January to 6 February 2012. There will be an acrobatic lion dance performance on 30 January 2012 from 9am and this event is open to the public.

Pork-free.

Opening times: Lunch; 12.00 pm - 2.30pm, Dinner; 6.30pm-10.30pm.

Location: Tai Zi Heen, Level 2, Prince Hotel & Residence Kuala Lumpur, 4 Jalan Conlay, 50450 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Tel: 03-2170 8888

Website: http://www.princehotelkl.com

GPS Coordinates: 3.150179, 101.714516

*This is an invited review, i.e. complimentary.

RM888 Dragon Yee Sang @ Toh Yuen Chinese Restaurant, Hilton Petaling Jaya

2012-01-11T11:47:00.007+08:00

Yes, you read right... this Dragon Yee Sang from Toh Yuen Chinese Restaurant in PJ Hilton costs a whopping RM888++! How's that for prosperity? I have to say, we were thoroughly impressed when we first saw the yee sang as it was very beautifully crafted.

Usher in the Year of the Dragon with this impressive yee sang

This was our first time dining at Toh Yuen, and we got to sample their Longevity Menu (RM1388++ for 10 persons, inclusive of 1 bottle of wine) minus the seasonal fruit yee sang which comes with this menu. Instead we were treated to the exclusive Dragon Yee Sang with Abalone and Salmon Fish. Other than the Longevity Menu, they have two other set menus specially crafted for CNY -- Fortune Menu (RM988++) and Happiness Menu (RM1188++). Click here for the full menu.

Restaurant interior

Mini dragon

The splendid handcrafted Dragon Yee Sang is a work of art, specially created by Master Chef Lee which should be admired. Look at how intricate the head, legs and tails are! They are painstakingly carved from pumpkin to depict a dragon. Its body is made up of fresh fruits and vegetables such as mango, dragonfruit, honeydew. just to name a few. In front of the dragon's head is the "fireball" -- so well thought out, right?

Anyway the fireball is pear, topped with cucumber, pomelo and generous amounts of luxurious abalone and salmon slices. The cracker represents happiness, peanuts and sesame symbolise harvest, oil represents wealth, pomelo means good luck, and raw seafood symbolises life and longevity. You will need to pre-order this 3 days in advance if you want it.

A symbol of glory and mightiness

Dragon breathing out fire!

A closer look at the fireball

Nice handiwork

It looks as if the dragon is flying in the air, blowing out balls of fire... so cool!

Fresh fruits make up the body

It was a real pity that we had to destroy the beautiful dragon when the time came. But toss we did... for prosperity, health, wealth, happiness, new car, new home and for all things good in 2012.

For the next course, we were served the braised "hu die" shark's fin with crab meat soup. Those who do not take shark's fin can opt for the braised chicken soup with chinese herb "chong chao hua" and sea cucumber. The shark's fin soup here is the thicker variety which needs to be eaten rather quickly before it gets too starchy. I like that the chef was very generous with the crab meat.. I definitely enjoyed this.

Copious amount of crabmeat!

Next up, was the Braised Chinese Herb Chicken with Black Fungus. As soon as the top of the pot was opened, the lovely aroma of the Chinese herbs filled the room. The chicken has been marinated for 6 hours and then slow braised for 3 hours to achieve the tender, flavoursome meat. Furthermore, sea cucumber, mushrooms and chestnuts are stuffed inside the cavity of the chicken to absorb all the wonderful flavours from the slow braising.

Hubby named the Steamed Fish Sea Garoupa with Spicy Garlic Sauce as his favorite dish of the night. It must be the largest sea garoupa we've seen (on a table).. weighing close to 1.2-1.5kg it seems! The flesh was moist and the sauce was light (though not really spicy). I also enjoyed eating the tang hoon (glass noodles) which sits below the fish... the noodles have absorbed the sauce, so it was lovely to eat too.

Instead of the usual dried oysters, Toh Yuen serves up a Braised Sea Cucumber with Mixed Mushrooms. Since I love all sorts of mushrooms and sea cucumber, this dish worked for me.

Hubby kindly did the dirty work for me and peeled some prawns for me to sample. The prawns were fresh and the portion was quite large for 10 people.

Sauteed Fresh Prawns with Black Pepper Sauce

The Sauteed Toh Yuen Fried Rice with Seafood came with lots of plenty of prawns and scallops.

One of my favorite things that evening is the Deep Fried Crispy Chinese New Year Cake (Nian Gao).. so simple yet absolutely delicious. Since most of my fellow diners were too stuffed for dessert, I had 3 of this. Yes, 3!! Greedy me :P

This was paired with the double boiled red dates with papaya and white fungus.

The CNY promotion is available from 9 January to 6 February 2012. Click here for the full menus. There will be a lively lion dance performance at the hotel lobby on 31st January 10am.

Thanks to Shiuan of Hilton PJ for the kind invite.

For more photos of the dragon yee sang and more, click here.

Pork-free.

Location: Toh Yuen Chinese Restaurant, Level 1, Hilton Petaling Jaya, 2 Jalan Barat, 46200 Petaling Jaya, Selangor.

Tel: 03-7955 9122 ext. 4118

Website: http://www.zestpj.com/

GPS Coordinates: 3.102164, 101.640573

*This is an invited review, i.e. complimentary.

Lebanese Food @ Al-Amar Express, Fahrenheit 88, Kuala Lumpur

2012-01-10T14:22:00.001+08:00

We've recently been hanging out at Pavilion KL and Fahrenheit 88 quite a lot, since we like the restaurant and shopping options around this area. One evening, we decided to drop by Al-Amar Express to try their offerings -- we've had several good experiences in the past with their sister restaurant, Al-Amar Lebanese Cuisine in Pavilion KL.

The restaurant is actually located right outside the entrance of Fahrenheit 88 mall, so dining is sort-of alfresco (there is also a small area which is covered with glass windows and roof). They have blower units around the restaurant, so if you're worried it would be too hot, then find a seat near one. When we were there, there was a soft breeze so it was definitely pleasant. It's also an excellent spot for people watching.

The restaurant is much more casual and is perfect for getting a quick bite. Also, the prices are wallet-friendly :) Flicking through the menu, we see that they have various appetizers, salads, chawarma, burgers, small pastries, manakeech (Lebanese pizzas), chicha and desserts.

We settled for a refreshing ice lemon tea (RM8) each -- we noticed it is a bright red instead of the brown hue we usually get. I wonder what makes it red?

When one does not know whether to go for the beef or chicken chawarma, what does one do? Go for both of course ;P We opted for the Mix Chawarma Platter (RM26), which is a combination of chicken and beef chawarma served with tarator, garlic sauce and French fries. Though both are flavoursome, my preference lies with the chicken chawarma since it's more moist. Would it be weird to say this -- but the thing I love most from this dish was actually the French fries with garlic sauce dip. The fries was nicely done, not soggy or oily.

Great for sharing!

Hubby is a huge fan of hommos and I have told him the hommos from Al-Amar is very good. No more hommos from supermarkets for us anymore since he agreed it was really good! Plus the hommos here is very reasonably priced (RM12), and it's served with a basket of Lebanese flat bread.

Hommos - mashed chickpeas mixed with sesame seed paste and a dash of lemon juice, topped with olive oil.

Lebanese flat bread

We also got two small pastries, if I remember correctly, this is the beef sambousik and spinach fatayer. There are 6 types of small pastries in total, all priced RM2.50 each. The size is perfect for tasting and eating.

Juicy filling

Ample for sharing

Verdict: I do enjoy the food in both restaurants; Al-Amar Lebanese Cuisine has a more refined atmosphere whereas Al-Amar Express is much more casual and affordable. Would definitely be back!

Full set of photos available to view here.

Join them on Facebook or Twitter for latest updates and promotions.

Pork-free.

Service: Good.

Price: Total bill was about RM65.

Location: Al-Amar Express, Lot G-44 (01), G-44(02), G-44(03), Ground Floor, Fahrenheit 88,
179 Jalan Bukit Bintang, 55100 Kuala Lumpur.

Tel: 03-2141 3814

Website: http://www.al-amar.com/

Desserts @ Alexis, The Gardens Mall, Kuala Lumpur

2012-01-09T17:19:00.000+08:00

A meeting of old friends. We talk, we laugh, we gossip...

These desserts from Alexis make our evening all the sweeter.

Orange and almond cake with vanilla ice-cream (RM15.50)

Tiramisu cake (RM15)

Service: Good.

Location: Alexis, Lot F-209, First Floor, The Gardens Mall, Mid Valley City, Lingkaran Syed Putra, 59200 Kuala Lumpur.

Tel: 03-2287 2881

Chinese New Year Menu 2012 @ Chynna, Hilton Kuala Lumpur

2012-01-08T16:15:00.002+08:00

Chinese New Year is barely 2 weeks away.. how quickly time flies! Last week, we were invited to Hilton KL to sample their CNY menu as well as "loh sang" (tossing the yee sang). To usher in the Year of the Dragon, award-winning Chef Lam Hock Hin has come up with 4 signature set menus, for 5 persons and above (prices start from RM168.80++ per person). The set menus are available from 2nd January to 6th February 2012. Click here to check out all 4 menus available.

Year of the Dragon 2012

Love the pretty looking plates.

Upon arrival, the tea master greeted us with an impressive tea-pouring ceremony. The tea served to us was a fragrant eight treasures tea, with notes of Chinese herbs.

Watch the action here! Very awesome.

Chinese tea and eight treasure tea

A yee sang feast...

We started off with the obligatory yee sang... not one but three yee sang! That afternoon we sampled the Brilliant Australia lobster lao sang (RM78 per 100g), the Caesar salad with grated parmesan cheese and Norwegian salmon lao sang (RM98 for half portion, RM148 for full portion) and the vegetable, fruits, salmon with extra virgin olive oil lao sang. I love the luxurious lobster yee sang, the lobster meat was very fresh with a nice bouncy texture. Hubby's favorite was the unique caesar salad yee sang -- an ingenious creation by Chef Lam showcasing the perfect marriage of East and West cuisine. At first, we thought the parmesan cheese would be weird with the yee sang but we were wrong.. as tasting it proves that it works well.

Colorful yee sang

Angry lobster, happy diners :P

Norwegian salmon

Extra virgin olive oil drizzled over the yee sang

Vegetable, fruits, salmon with extra virgin olive oil lao sang.

Caesar salad yee sang with Norwegian salmon

Spooning luscious lobster meat on the yee sang

Toss to abundance, prosperity and happiness :)

The Source of Wealth is Plentiful Set Menu 1

Caesar Salad with Grated Parmesan Cheese and Norwegian Salmon Yee Sang

Double-Boiled Shark’s Fin Soup with Baby Abalone and Cabbage Heart

Stewed Free Range Chicken with Oriental Herbs

Golden Prawns with Salted Egg Yolk

Stewed Aromatic Duck with Sea Cucumber, Mushrooms and gluten ‘Tou Kan’

Lotus Leaf Fried Rice with Chicken, Mushroom and Dried Shrimps

Ginger Syrup with Pandan Glutinous Dumpling

Glutinous Rice Balls with Peanut and Sesame Seeds

Priced at RM168.80++ per person (for 5 persons and above)

After the yee sang, we sampled the set menu above. I love double boiled Chinese soups and the double boiled shark's fin soup with baby abalone and cabbage heart here was excellent. I much prefer this light soup to thick starchy soups, which fills me up unnecessarily. If you do not take shark's fin, you can always ask to change it to a different soup.

A whole baby abalone! :)

The next dish does not look like much, but it was one of the tastiest things we ate that afternoon. It will actually be served to your table as a whole chicken, but the staff will portion it up for you for easier consumption. Free range chicken is used and stewed with Oriental herbs for several hours, resulting in a toothsome dish. I dont usually eat chicken skin, but I gobbled it all up here. :P

Stewed free range chicken with Oriental herbs

Usually, I don't eat prawns during Chinese banquet dinners etc as I am too lazy and don't want to get my hands dirty peeling them (unless Hubby offers to peel them for me of course.. hehe) so it was nice to see that the prawns served to us here has already been peeled for us! Hooray. The prawns were huge and taut, and coated with salted egg yolk... I also like that the prawn was not oily.

Golden prawns with salted egg yolk

Stewed aromatic duck with sea cucumber, mushrooms and gluten "tou kan"

Lotus leaf fried rice with chicken, mushroom and dried shrimps

Ginger syrup with pandan glutinous dumpling and glutinous rice balls with peanut and sesame seeds

Baby D's fortune cooking reads..

The charismatic Chef Lam Hock Hin of Chynna -- he hails from the same hometown as me! :)

We were also presented with this beautiful koi nian gao (no preservatives used) to take home. I love nian gao and I have to say the nian gao here is really good. It was still very soft and fresh when we tried it that same afternoon and not too sweet. We still have some leftover in our fridge, so will probably pan fry it lightly and eat with toasted or fresh coconut. :) These nian gao would make an excellent gift, and is available for purchase in limited quantities from Chynna for RM88++.

Koi nian gao

Click here to view Chynna's a la carte Chinese New Year menu.

Full set of photos available to view here.

Pork-free.

Location: Chynna Hilton Kuala Lumpur, 3, Jalan Stesen Sentral, Kuala Lumpur Sentral, 50470 Kuala Lumpur.

Tel: +603 2264 2264

Website: www.life.hiltonkl.com

GPS Coordinates: 3.135685, 101.686524

Christmas Eve Breakfast: Poached Egg with Summer Truffles and Truffle Oil on English Muffin

2012-01-07T08:50:00.001+08:00

Since I didn't have time to bake a brioche as I have planned originally, we cheated a little and got these English muffins (RM2.00 each) from The Gingerbread Man in Ben's Independent Grocer. Back in the UK days, I used to get a packet of English muffins almost every weekend, lightly toast them and just eat with butter or scrambled eggs.. really good stuff!

Poached Egg with Summer Truffles and Truffle Oil

Anyway, the English muffins we got from The Gingerbread Man were decent, though it's a lot bigger than what we're normally used to. Just cut them in half and place on top of the toaster (if it doesn't fit inside the toaster) for a couple of mins until it's lightly toasted.

Since it was Christmas, we decided to get a jar of summer truffles that we saw in Ben's Independent Grocer, I was really excited. We have eaten truffles in restaurants many times but never bought them home before. This cost RM28.50 for 25g. Unfortunately it wasn't very good -- it was a little rubbery and did not taste or smell like truffles. It was more for the novelty effect than anything else. Anyway we only used a little for our Christmas eve breakfast, and what Hubby did was pour in a few drops of truffle oil into the summer truffle bottle and at least when we used it the next day, it felt a little more like eating truffles. :P

Here's how to poach an egg, as mentioned previously we do it the Delia Smith way. To poach an egg, fill a frying pan with 4cm barely simmering water. Break each egg into a cup and lower into the water. Cook for approximately 2 minutes (you will know it's cooked when the egg white has set). Use a slotted spoon to remove. Place the egg on the toasted English muffin. Season with salt and pepper and add 1-2 drops of truffle oil and several summer truffle shavings.

Nicely cooked poached egg

There you have it -- a simple yet decadent breakfast

Runny yolk -- beautiful :)

Full set of photos available to view here.

Set Lunch @ Fukuharu Japanese Restaurant, Terrace at Hock Choon, Kuala Lumpur

2012-01-06T07:17:00.001+08:00

Pretty?... YES.

Delicious?.... YES.

Affordable... YES!

Mini Kaiseki from the lunch special, Fukuharu Zen

Both our children enjoy eating Japanese food, especially chawanmushi and udon. Give them a cup of steaming hot chawanmushi each and they'll be happy all afternoon. A couple of weeks ago, we brought them to Doubletree by Hilton KL to stay the night and play in the pool, but just before we checked-in at the hotel, we brought them Fukuharu for some Japanese food.

Fukuharu serves authentic and unpretentious Japanese food in a serene setting with a view of the garden. The service is really good too, and it's a great place to dine with your family.

There are several options available for lunch, all nicely written on a blackboard. It was a no-brainer for me though, since I just read Michelle's blog the night before and saw how nice the Fukuharu Zen set looked!

For RM38, you will get a salad, chawanmushi, mini kaiseki appetizer platter, an option of noodles or rice, a choice of main course, and a dessert. What a steal, right? I have to add that the food quality is excellent too. Really good value for money.

For the mains, the options are chicken teriyaki, saba shioyaki (grilled mackarel), mixed tempura, unagi tempura and beef teppanyaki (Australian beef rib eye).

Salad -- the dressing was very appetizing!

We gave the chawanmushi to the kids. They happily ate one each.

The mini kaiseki appetizer platter changes daily depending on the ingredients they have. The mini kaiseki was beautifully presented, was really impressed with the taste and quality too. On that day, we enjoyed salmon sashimi, tuna tartar (in the shot glass), deep fried battered prawn (huge and juicy!), tuna maki, clams (I like!), smoked duck (yum yum!), scallop skirt and deep fried scallop. I took time to admire the dish and enjoyed (very much) eating all the different components.

Hubby chose the unagi tempura for his mains, thick chunks covered in a light, non-oily batter. I feel that my mains is better, the beef teppanyaki.. the beef has been cooked to medium, very tender and definitely good quality considering this is from a set lunch.

Unagi tempura

My set

Beef teppanyaki topped with crunchy garlic

I would recommend that you choose noodles instead of rice (unless you don't eat noodles) as you will only be given white rice (no topping whatsoever). And the noodles is simple but good. Baby D ate half of this. The broth was light and the soba was served with fern tops, and black fungus (mok yee).

Fresh salmon sashimi

Clams - super yummy!

Tuna tartare

For dessert, we were served vanilla ice-cream with black sesame sauce. Even though we only ordered 2 sets, the manager kindly brought another ice-cream for Baby C -- she was absolutely delighted! It's small touches like this that make our meal truly memorable. (Happy child = happy parents)

Nice view

Baby C's already asking when we'll be coming back again to Fukuharu. Soon, my dear.

Verdict: Set lunch here is great value for money. Good quality ingredients, well-prepared with good service.

Full set of photos available to view here.

Price: RM38 per set. RM2 for green tea.

Location: Fukuharu, Terrace at Hock Choon, 241-B, Lorong Nibong, off Jalan Ampang, 50450 Kuala Lumpur. (behind Victoria Station and Hock Choon Supermarket)

Tel: 017-209 8477

GPS Coordinates: 3.159981, 101.728742

The Gingerbread Man @ Ben's Independent Grocer, Publika, Solaris Dutamas KL

2012-01-05T06:32:00.000+08:00

The Gingerbread Man is the bakery section in Ben's Independent Grocer. From the side of the wine cellar, you can actually get a view of the kitchen and watch the baking action. I asked the girl at the counter and she said the pastries and bread you see at The Gingerbread Man are baked first thing in the morning.

We love freshly baked bread and pastries so we were definitely interested in what they had to offer. The brioche looks really pretty but we decided to get the English Muffin for breakfast the next day (Christmas Eve) -- it's been a while since we last had that whereas I just made brioche this year. The pretty cakes caught our eye too, but since we've already had a dessert planned for Christmas, we forgo it this time.

Pretty cakes

Freshly baked daily

Bread

English Muffin (RM2) -- it was good, we used it for a special breakfast we made for Christmas Eve morning (blogpost coming soon!)

Sweet pastries

We got a raisin twist (RM2) to share and it was really good! It was pillowy soft (literally!)... no chewing required!

Can't wait to try more the next time we visit Ben's Independent Grocer again.

Location: The Gingerbread Man, Ben's Independent Grocer (B.I.G), Lot No. 1A, 83-95, Level UG1, Publika, Solaris Dutamas, Jalan Dutamas 1, 50480 Kuala Lumpur. (located next to the newspaper/magazine stand)

Tel: 03-6209 1700

GPS Coordinates: 3.1711, 101.66583

United Buddy Bears @ Pavilion Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

2012-01-04T15:48:00.000+08:00

*Updated with photo of the Malaysia bear.

The 143 life-sized United Buddy Bears are in KL -- a first for South East Asia. I stumbled across them when I was in Pavilion KL two days ago and what a sight!

"We have to get to know each other better... it makes us understand one another better, trust each other more and live together more peacefully."

Under this motto, United Buddy Bears promote living together in peace and harmony. Since the first exhibition in Berlin in 2002, more than 25 million visitors world-wide have been able to admire the United Buddy Bears. The United Buddy Bears will be exhibited at the entrance of Pavilion KL from 8 December 2011 to 15 February 2012 -- so don't miss your chance to see them in real life.

At the entrance of Pavilion KL

Each bear is about 2m tall, made from fibregrass sculptures originally developed in Berlin, Germany.

Read more here

Artists from individual countries are chosen to handpaint the bears and is sorted by alphabetical order. We tried looking for the Scottish bear in his kilt -- but unfortunately there wasn't one, just the United Kingdom bear.

The Buddy Bears stand together “hand in hand”, symbolising the future vision of a peaceful world. Each bear stands for the people of the different countries and their culture, yet not for political systems.

When we were there, the Malaysian bear wasn't unveiled yet but has been since then during the official launch. You will see it when you visit Pavilion KL now.

Here's a photo of the Malaysia bear that I took when we visited Pavilion yesterday. It's his first time on the world tour.. so he's a little shy. Say hello to him! :)

Einstein bear

United States of America

United Kingdom

Cameroon

Rows and rows of United Buddy Bears

This was one of our favorites.. meet United Buddy Bear from Cuba... with a Cuban cigar of course!

Irish bear

If you're around Bukit Bintang area, make sure you get across to Pavilion KL to view these unique bears.

Location: Pavilion Kuala Lumpur.

*Original posting 9/12/11, updated on 4/1/12.

Our photo in Malaysia Tatler December 2011 issue!

2012-01-03T22:28:00.001+08:00

We were flipping through the December 2011 issue of Malaysia Tatler and look what we found -- a photo of us from the MIGF Gala Launch! During the gala launch, we were approached by the Malaysia Tatler photographer but never imagined we would actually see our photo in the glossy magazine. :)

An early, and nice Christmas surprise for us!

Celebrate the Year of the Dragon @ Lai Ching Yuen, Grand Millennium Hotel Kuala Lumpur

2012-01-03T00:17:00.001+08:00

Now that Christmas and New Year is out of the way, the next BIG celebration for us is Chinese New Year. Chinese New Year in 2012 falls on the 23rd January and this year is the Year of the Dragon.

The restaurant interior

We have previously dined in this restaurant when it was still known as Zing Cantonese Restaurant and really liked the food and dining ambience here. So when an invitation came in to sample their Chinese New Year menu, I gladly accepted the invite. Same chef, still serving great Cantonese food, just a different name.

Chinese New Year is the time of the year where we get to partake in tossing the yee sang! To celebrate the Year of the Dragon, Chef Leong Weng Heng of Lai Ching Yuen has meticulously prepared fresh yee sang (prices from RM58++) with either salmon, giant clam, crispy fish skin, fresh scallop, sliced abalone and many others for either dining in or as gifts.

We were served the Prosperity Yee Sang with Fresh Scallops, mango and crystal pear (RM118++ for half portion, RM228++ for full portion). I usually like the act of tossing yee sang, not so much eating it but the yee sang here looks totally mouthwatering (anyone who's been reading this blog knows that I love scallops a lot!). The scallops were huge and fresh, just lightly blanched . Instead of plum sauce, the chef has cleverly used a unique strawberry sauce instead... this has to be one of the best yee sang I've ever tasted. Light and appetizing, making you want to go back for more.

Big, juicy scallops!

First time for me having yee sang with fresh scallops but it really works!

Those crackers are very addictive!

Hubby with his long chopsticks, getting ready to toss!

Toss toss toss for good luck!

Yummy yee sang

Our favorite dish of the evening was the Roasted Crispy Duck Hong Kong style (RM68++ half duck, RM128++ whole duck). It smelled fantastic.. we were still tucking in to the yee sang when the duck arrived and instantly all our eyes were on the glistening duck! The duck meat was succulent, fair to say we could easily have eaten a whole duck simply cos it was so good.

The pronunciation of fish ("yu") means abundance in Chinese, so you will always see fish served during Chinese New Year. I thought it was quite clever of the chef to serve this to the diners in individual portions. Although the cod fish was just lightly steamed with soy sauce and topped with coriander, I loved it. The freshness and natural sweetness of the fish just shone through. And just how fresh, well-cooked cod fish is meant to be, beautifully flaky.

Steamed Cod Fish with light soy sauce (RM38++ per piece)

The baked pork rib marinated with lemon grass (RM25++ per piece) is a dish worth getting your hands dirty for. It was placed on a bed of chicken floss and a cute carved out onion decorated the plate. It looks a little like a pumpkin, don't you think?

We also enjoyed the stir fried prawns and asparagus in golden basket (RM38++ for small portion, RM80 for big portion) -- the prawns were big and juicy!

I love the umami-ness of the gravy from the braised dried oyster and bean curd skin with black sea moss (RM98++ for small portion, RM196++ for big portion). One of those dishes that my mum often makes during second day of Chinese New Year :) Lots of good meaning in this dish -- "fatt choy" (black sea moss) for prosperity and "hou see" (dried oyster) for good luck.

I'm not a huge fan of waxed meat, but all my fellow diners were singing praises for the Claypot Rice with Waxed Meat (RM25 per person). The chef uses premium waxed meat specially imported from Hong Kong. I did try this, the lap cheong had a very nice fragrant aroma from the Chinese wine.

To finish, we had the simple and satisfying black sesame rice dumpling with ginger tea (RM12 per portion). Perfect cure for a rainy day.

There are also Reunion Dinner menus at RM1,280++, RM1,480++, RM1,680++ and RM1,780++ and served for 10 persons. For enquiries and reservations, please call Lai Ching Yuen at +60 3-2117 4180.

Full set of photos available to view here.

Non-halal.

Opening times: Lunch; Monday to Friday 12.00pm - 2.30pm, Sat & Sun 11.00am - 2.30pm. Dinner; 6.30pm - 10.30pm daily.

Location: Lai Ching Yuen, Grand Millennium Hotel, 160 Jalan Bukit Bintang, 55100 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Tel: 03-2117 4180

GPS Coordinates: 3.147694, 101.712338

Mochi Sweets @ The Gardens Mall, Kuala Lumpur

2012-01-02T09:31:00.000+08:00

*Note: There will be a mochi-making demonstration at Tokyo St New Events Hall, Pavilion KL at 12pm and 2pm today (2/1/2012).

For the Japanese, New Year is one of the most important and significant celebrations for them. Mochi is traditionally made before the Japanese New Year and eaten during the day. If you like sweet treats, then try these mochis from Mochi Sweets.

Purple potato (RM3.50)

There are 2 Mochi Sweets outlets in KL, one in Tokyo Street, Pavilion KL and another in The Gardens Mall on the second floor. We've been eyeing these mochis for a while now, but have always been too full everytime we walked past. Until last week after the movies (we had a movie marathon - Sherlock Holmes and Mission Impossible 4:Ghost Protocol, both highly recommended), we were in need of a snack and decided to bring some mochi home to share with our family. I'm not sure if it's made here but they have imprinted the word "Fully Imported" on their counter.

There are a total of 12 flavours here; black chocolate, blueberry cream, sakura, mango yoghurt, chestnut cream (RM4.00 each), cream chocolate, red bean, purple potato, green tea, peach cream, caramel macchiato and strawberry (RM3.50 each). Since it was hard to decide which flavours to go for (they all sound good!), we went for the 12 Flavours Set for RM40 so we get them to try them all! There is also another set called "6 top selling flavours set" for RM21. The price is a little high for mochi, but if the quality is good, I don't mind paying a premium price.

12 Flavours set - a translucent sheet to tell you what flavour you're tasting

Cute festive paperbag

When you purchase the product, you will be given a box of frozen mochi. To be honest, I do not like buying frozen stuff so I was quite unhappy to see the staff taking out a box from the freezer. But I told myself to taste it first before making any judgment. The recommended defrost time is 20minutes in summer and 40minutes in winter and best consumed when mochi skin turns soft.

However, we waited for 2 hours and the filling was still very cold inside. Is it meant to be like this? Flavour and texture wise, the mochi was excellent. We enjoyed all the flavours, all unique in its own way and quite distinctive. My favorite is the mango yoghurt, and peach cream, in fact I think I enjoyed all the fruity flavours. The skin is soft and the cream really adds to the filling. We enjoyed our mochi with some Christmas tea.

When we paid at the counter, we asked the staff how long we could keep this for and she said 3 days in the fridge. In my opinion, I think the mochi has to be consumed on the day of purchase (also as stated on their packaging!!!) as it becomes too soft the following day.

Green tea

Purple potato

Mango yoghurt - my fav!

Caramel macchiato - Hubby likes this.

I think we were given two blueberry cream mochi and no sakura, as there was no difference in taste.

Cream chocolate

Chestnut cream

Peach cream

Black chocolate

The display at Mochi Sweets, The Gardens Mall

How did you celebrate the New Year? Here's hoping 2012 will be a great year for all. :)

Full set of photos can be viewed here.

Verdict: One of the best mochis we've tasted, however do consume on day of purchase for maximum pleasure :)

Price: RM3.50 or RM4.00, depending on flavour.

Location: Mochi Sweets, S-K01, Second Floor, The Gardens Mall, Mid Valley City, Lingkaran Syed Putra, 59200 Kuala Lumpur.

E-mail: ask.mochisweets@gmail.com

Join their Facebook page here for latest promotions.

Wishing everyone a Happy New Year 2012

2012-01-01T00:01:00.000+08:00

Hi everyone. Just wanted to say Happy New Year to all, and wish you all good health and happiness. Thank you for your continued support and I hope that you will continue supporting my blog in the coming year.

Here's to more good food in 2012 :)

Elisenlebkuchen and Christmas Tea from Nuremberg, Germany

2011-12-31T01:14:00.003+08:00

**Have a wonderful New Year's Eve celebration! **

Last year, The Unc brought home a couple of elisenlebkuchens for Baby C. We shared them and enjoyed them very much. So during the Christmas market at Nuremberg this year, he got us two whole packs along with a pack of Christmas tea and asked a friend who was coming back to KL to deliver it to our home. So nice! Thanks very much :)

Elisenlebkuchen specially air-flown from Nuremberg

Elisenlebkuchen is premium quality lebkuchen (a soft German version of Gingerbread). It is designated the Protected Designation of Origin by EU law and must be produced within the boundaries of the Nuremberg, Germany but you can get it in various other states in Germany.

Although elisenlebkuchen is sold in Christmas markets, The Unc tells me that you can also find it all year round in several specialty shops in Nuremberg. The one he got us was from Wolfgang Woitinek. Each pack contains 3 original elisenlebkuchen and 3 chocolate coated elisenlebkuchen.

They both contain hazelnut, almonds, egg whites, marzipan, citronat, orangeat, fructose, honey, apricot confiture, and spices, and the chocolate coating is dark chocolate. I prefer the original one, though both are really nice. Gingerbread is quite hard, but elisenlebkuchen is wonderfully chewy. The taste and aroma is very Christmassy too, owing to the lovely spices and marzipan. We enjoyed this for the past few evenings with a cup of Christmas tea... just perfect.

Christmas tea - black tea, orange peel, grated coconut, clove, cinnamon

I loved the smell of the Christmas tea as soon as I opened the pack. Wafts of cinnamon and orange peel gives this tea a uniquely Christmas feel. Drunk with the sweet elisenlebkuchen, it is a great accompaniment, however if you're eating a non-sweet item or drinking it on its own, it may taste better with some sugar.

I think if elisenlebkuchen was ever sold in KL, most people would like them. :)

Full set of photos here.

Elisenlebkuchen is from: Wolgang Woitinek, Saarbruckener Str. 4, 90469 Nuremberg, Germany. (Tel:0911/482121)
Price: €8 per pack.

Christmas tea is from: Krauterhaus Wurzelsepp OHG, Hauptmarkt 1, 90403 Nuremberg, Germany (www.wurzelsepp-nuernberg.de).
Price: €3.95 for 100g pack.

I cooked: Astronomical Canapes (Avocado, Tomato, Mushroom)

2011-12-30T00:07:00.000+08:00

Have you planned your New Year's Eve menu yet? If you're planning to throw a party, these canapés will make a great addition.

If you think the name of the canapés sounds a little bizarre, let me explain. This canapé was concocted during the Blogger MasterChef finals in mid October, whereby the mystery box ingredient turned out to be avocado. Most contestants were quite surprised with the mystery ingredient but since the finals was held in a shopping mall, it was not possible to give us meat or poultry or seafood to cook since there was no washing facilities at all during the cooking stage.

Anyway, back to the avocado. I wanted to make a creamy mushroom soup topped with an avocado quenelle, but they had no soup bowls!!! So I had to improvise with the ingredients I have taken, and decided to make a simple canapé. What I like most about it is it's vibrant colour, so I think this will look quite pretty on the dinner table. It is also light tasting with a nice tang from the lime.

Since the Blogger MasterChef contest was run by Astro and Nuffnang, I decided to call it Astro-nomical Canapés when I was asked to present my dish to the judges. Do you like the name? :)

Astronomical Canapés

Canapé of Avocado, Tomato and Sauteed mushrooms
Preparation time: 25-30 minutes
Cooking time: 5 minutes

Ingredients
100g white button mushrooms and Swiss mushrooms, diced
Fresh parsley, finely chopped
1/2 onion, finely chopped
1-2 tbsp olive oil
2 ripe avocado
2 limes
1 tomato, diced
4-5 tbsp UHT cream
Salt and pepper
1 pack canape water cracker

1. To remove flesh from avocado, cut half, remove seed and then scoop out flesh using spoon. Avocado browns quickly when exposed to air, so add the juice of 1 lime to it. Put the avocado and cream in a blender and blend to a puree, season with salt and leave aside.

Other ingredients I took (thinking I was making a soup)

2. Heat olive oil in a frying pan over medium high heat. Cook the onions for 2 minutes, then add the mushrooms and cook for another 2 minutes. Add half the parsley, season with salt and pepper and remove from heat.

3. For the tomatoes, place the diced tomatoes in a bowl and add the juice of one lime and the remaining parsley. Season with salt and pepper.

4. To assemble, first put a generous amount of avocado cream, followed by the tomatoes and finally mushroom on top.

Not much cooking involved, but it sure makes a pretty dish.

Something you can prepare in a jiffy for a party you are throwing.

*Did not have a scale during the competition, so all ingredients are estimated.

Like a G-Stick @ Ben's Independent Grocer, Publika, Solaris Dutamas

2011-12-29T10:19:00.000+08:00

Little girls love ice-cream and Baby C is no exception. Her face lights up whenever she sees ice-cream..

So when we were at Ben's Independent Grocer and she spotted the G-Stick shop (right next to Ben's General Food Store), this is what her face looked like. Happy, yes?

The name of this place reminds us of that song.. Like a G6.

Wonder what put a smile on her face? This......

Very pretty gelato pop sticks, all homemade and all natural.. There were eight flavours when we visited -- Christmas pudding, black sesame, chestnut, chocolate hazelnut, rocky road, mango, pistachio and raspberry yoghurt.

We promised to get her one after our lunch, and her pick was Rocky Road. I think it's because she saw marshmallows on it! She was pleased to find even more marshmallows encased within the ice-cream. Each bite was like a treasure hunt for her. Her daddy would eat any walnuts she came across. :P

Time for the taste test....

One happy customer :)

Price: RM8.90 each.

Location: G-stick, Ben's Independent Grocer (B.I.G), Lot No. 1A, 83-95, Level UG1, Publika, Solaris Dutamas, Jalan Dutamas 1, 50480 Kuala Lumpur.

Tel: 03-6209 1700

GPS Coordinates: 3.1711, 101.66583

Gourmet Heaven @ Ben's Independent Grocer, Publika, Solaris Dutamas KL

2011-12-28T14:49:00.001+08:00

For our Christmas Day meal, I was short of some items and could not find them in regular supermarkets. There were only a couple of places in KL that we know of that stocked the things we needed -- and one of them is Ben's Independent Grocer (B.I.G.) in Publika, Solaris Dutamas KL.

Newly opened this year, we have been here a few times and totally love it here. True some of the things are more expensive but the selection is vast. And there are also a lot of items which are cheaper than regular supermarkets, for example whipping cream.

So much cheese

My utmost favorite section at Ben's Independent Grocer is the "Gourmet Goodies" by the main entrance. Here you can find goose liver pate, truffles, truffle butter, wild mushrooms, cep mushrooms, fleur de sel, Heilala vanilla pods and pure vanilla extract, and so much more! You can also find Echire butter in the dairy section. Truly a gourmet's heaven (well, for me anyways :P).

We also managed to get some delicious Spanish chorizo; Hubby loves chorizo and he has given the chorizo we got here a big thumbs up. For those interested, the brand is Cecinas Pablo, and it's called Maragato Hot Chorizo (price approx RM70).

Champagne anybody?

Ben's Independent Grocer houses many of its signature restaurants such as T Forty Two, Ben's General Food Store, and also a Chocolate Bar, The Gingerbread Man and G-Stick gelato sticks. We got some stuff from a few of these places so will blog about that soon too.

The Barn Butchery stocks some great quality beef and lamb, I spotted some high marbling Wagyu. I often complain that it's hard to find duck in supermarkets - now I know where to go if I ever want a whole duck.

Even if you're not getting anything, it's a great place just to walk around especially if you're a foodie. But as always, temptation is too great and we found ourselves leaving with a few bags of groceries and gourmet goodies to spice up our Christmas :)

Location: Ben's Independent Grocer (B.I.G), Lot No. 1A, 83-95, Level UG1, Publika, Solaris Dutamas, Jalan Dutamas 1, 50480 Kuala Lumpur.

Tel: 03-6209 1700

GPS Coordinates: 3.1711, 101.66583

Santa Claus Visited Our Home!

2011-12-28T00:08:00.000+08:00

A few weeks before Christmas, Baby C sat down and wrote a letter to Santa Claus..

When the children were tucked in bed safely, our CCTV caught some movement downstairs by the Christmas tree.. look who has arrived... Ho Ho Ho!

Santa Claus visited our home and came bearing lots of gifts for the (well-behaved) children.

Just before he left, he enjoyed the glass of milk and Oreo cookies that Baby C has left out for him. "What a nice little girl, leaving me my favorite cookies and milk," says Santa Claus.

And just before sunrise, the children rushed downstairs to find lots of lovely presents awaiting them. And thus they had a great Christmas, thanks to Santa Claus, the man in the red suit, big belly (ahem!) and white beard.

-----THE END-----

P.S. Did Santa visit your home this year?

Meet the Pros: Pastry Chef Loh Mee Foong of Le Meridien KL & a dessert recipe

2011-12-27T12:14:00.000+08:00

Life keeps getting sweeter for Le Meridien KL's Pastry Chef Loh Mee Foong. Chef Mee Foong who oversees the production of all pastries, cakes and confectionery for the hotel's restaurants, banquet and catering events was recently awarded as the "Platinum Winner - HAPA Artistic Chef (Pastry)" in the prestigious Hospitality Asia Platinum Awards 2011-2013. She has previously worked in Palace of the Golden Horses, Crowne Plaza Mutiara and Shangri-la KL.

Pastry Chef Loh Mee Foong with her HAPA Award

Executive Chef Antoine Rodriguez tells me that she makes a "simple yet excellent creme caramel" -- I have to agree, after trying this at Latest Recipe just last week. Perfect wobbly texture.

I managed to meet up with this talented pastry chef two weeks ago and spoke to her about her culinary background, inspirations and her recent win at the HAPA Awards.

Baby Sumo (BS) : Congrats Mee Foong! How do you feel about your recent win in the HAPA Awards?

Mee Foong (MF): This is my first time participating in the HAPA awards, so I was definitely nervous. My mentor Chef Antoine thought I was ready and put my name in for the "Artistic Chef - Pastry" category. I was very surprised and delighted when my name was called out during the regional award ceremony in Singapore recently. I am grateful to receive this acknowledgement as one of Asia's top 5 pastry chefs alongside so many other talented pastry chefs. I will continue to do my best and create unique, visually expressive and tempting desserts.

BS: Have you always wanted to be a pastry chef?

MF: I trained at the prestigious Syuen Hotel & Catering Institute Malaysia Diploma in Chinese Culinary Art Program -- not in pastry arts, but in Chinese dim sum. A friend told me to reconsider a career change since dim sum masters have to be at work by 5am! I did and I've never looked back. Being a pastry chef is very rewarding.

A trio of desserts at Favola

BS: What is your favorite ingredient to work with?

MF: Chocolate as it is very versatile. You can create interesting showpieces, pralines or chocolate desserts.

BS: Do you have a signature dessert that we should try in Le Meridien KL?

MF: Yes, try the Rich hot Chocolate Cake, served with chocolate sauce and stracciatella ice-cream at Prime or warm chocolate pudding served with vanilla ice cream and chocolate sauce at Favola.

One of her signature desserts, rich hot chocolate cake at Prime

BS: We've tried the rich hot chocolate cake during one of our visits to Prime and it's certainly good. At LMKL, what does your pastry technique / style lean towards?

MF: It varies -- I am constantly whipping up innovative creations with influences from both east and west. For Latest Recipe's desserts, I have more room to experiment and you would often find modern French desserts there.

Carrot walnut cake at Latest Recipe

BS: What's your favorite kitchen tool?

MF: I have a mini angled spatula which I use for almost everything. A lot of the pastries that I work with are very small, so this tool is the perfect size for handling pastries.

BS: Throughout your career as a pastry chef, who is the most inspiring chef you have worked with?

MF: Definitely Chef Antoine! He has been very supportive and encouraging, and has given me lots of opportunity to shine in Le Meridien KL.

Homemade blueberry yoghurt ice cream cake with blueberry coulis at Prime

Pastry Chef Mee Foong has kindly shared a recipe with me, which I am going to share with you all. This peach yoghurt cranberry cake is an eggless cake, hence is suitable for vegetarians. Will post a photo once I've attempted to make this, maybe for New Year's Eve :)

Ingredients

180g butter/margarine

150g sugar

150g peach yoghurt

100g canned peaches, sliced

100g dried cranberries

220g cake flour, sifted

1 1/2 tbsp baking powder

1/2 tbsp baking soda

1. Cream butter and sugar until light and creamy, add in peach yoghurt and mix well.

2. Fold in sifted flour, baking powder, baking soda, canned peaches and creanberries, mix well.

3. Pour mixture into a greased mould or cake ring, bake in preheated oven 180°C for 40 mins or until cooked.

Christmas Day 4-course Menu - Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner & Dessert (updated)

2011-12-25T21:48:00.004+08:00

8.00am : Breakfast is served! Scrambled eggs with chives, topped with caviar. Served with smoked salmon, cherry tomatoes and sundried tomatoes. (Recipe here)

12.30pm: Time for lunch! Chunky mushroom soup with truffle oil and summer truffles. Served with garlic toast.

2.00pm: Snack time! Kids enjoy Marks & Spencer animal shaped butter biscuits while the adults enjoy the Maragato Hot Chorizo we got from Ben's Independent Grocer.

5.00pm: A good ol' roast for Christmas dinner. Roast rib eye with roast potatoes, brocolli, carrots and natural jus gravy.

8.30pm: A sweet ending to our Christmas day. Deconstructed tiramisu.

9.00pm: Let's drink and be merry. Bacardi Gold for the boys and Baileys for the girls. And a chocolate peanut butter Santa for me. :)

It has been a fun-filled day, good food and great company. Hope you enjoyed following my liveblogging for the day. :) Merry Christmas once again.

*All recipes will be posted after Christmas day.

Merry Christmas 2011

2011-12-25T00:01:00.000+08:00

Wishing everyone a very Merry Christmas. Hope you enjoy this special day with your loved ones. I'd also like to say thank you to all who have supported and read my blog this year.

A special Christmas message video from Baby C :)

Have a blessed Christmas

Baby C putting out some "sweets" for Santa Claus.. (we told her Santa likes cookies and cakes, so she prepared a goody box for Santa.. so cute!)

Hope you like them Santa! And hopefully by the time the kids wake up, under the Christmas tree will be filled with presents.

Follow me on Facebook or Twitter for live updates of our Christmas Day menu.

Macarons & Chocolates @ Mandarin Cake Shop, Mandarin Oriental Kuala Lumpur

2011-12-24T09:20:00.000+08:00

As someone who loves all things sweet, one of our favorite treats are macarons.. and not just any macarons but the ones from Mandarin Cake Shop. Mandarin Cake Shop located in Mandarin Oriental KL (next to Mosaic) opened back in October this year. Not only do they sell macarons, there are various types of cakes as well as chocolates which are all produced fresh on a daily basis.

The team at Mandarin Cake Shop is led by the talented Executive Pastry Chef, Holger Deh. He was recently awarded the HAPA Artistic Chef - Pastry (Platinum), recognising him as one of the best 5 in Asia. :)

Mandarin Cake Shop -- a sweet treat

Gingerbread house for Christmas

Lots of Chocolate Santas

Colorful macarons

All sorts of Christmas cakes... if you're too lazy to make a dessert this year, then you can get one from Mandarin Cake Shop!

Anyway back to the macarons. The macarons are the bestsellers of Mandarin Cake Shop and it's easy to see why. In terms of texture, they are one of the most consistent ones we've encountered in KL -- light and airy. Plus they are very generous with the fillings. These are our favorite macarons at the moment.

There are a total of 7 flavours here -- salted caramel, hazelnut, orange, blackcurrant, calamansi, raspberry and chocolate. We have tried them all except for calamansi which is their latest flavour -- wanted to try this the last time we went there to get some macarons but they ran out. So popular!

Out of the ones we've tried, our favorite is the hazelnut (tastes similar to Ferrero Rocher), followed by chocolate, salted caramel and blackcurrant. It's not only me who loves the macarons here, but my whole family does... my mum, my husband, Baby C and even Baby D!

A real treat

Beautiful colours

Très bon

We have also sampled their chocolates, can't remember all the different types we had but I remember them being very good. Baby C loves them.

Full set of photos available to view here.

The macarons from the afternoon tea served in Lounge on the Park

Price: RM4.50 each during our first visit. Price is now RM5.00 per piece.

Location: Mandarin Cake Shop, Lobby Level, Mandarin Oriental Kuala Lumpur, Kuala Lumpur City Centre, 50088 Kuala Lumpur.

Tel: 03-2179 8846

GPS Coordinates: 3.15568, 101.7120

Website: http://www.mandarinoriental.com/kualalumpur/dining/cake_shop/

Personalised Paper Bags for Christmas by Sue Yin @ Ben's Independent Grocer (B.I.G.), Publika

2011-12-23T14:48:00.000+08:00

If you want to add a personal touch to your Christmas presents, then you can get these personalised paper bags (RM4.00) from Sue Yin. She hand draws her drawings onto the paper bags, there are a few designs to choose from.

We asked if we could add Baby C's name onto the paper bag to make it even more special. Just for an additional 50 sen :)

You can find her at the entrance of Ben's Independent Grocer (B.I.G.) at Publika, Solaris Dutamas KL. She will be there until 7pm today and 10am-8pm weekends (last day 25 December).

Baby C very happy with her cute paper bag!

Looking pretty next to our Christmas tree.. now to fill it with some presents! :)

Photos can also be viewed here.

Location: Ben's Independent Grocer (B.I.G), Lot No. 1A, 83-95, Level UG1, Publika, Solaris Dutamas, Jalan Dutamas 1, 50480 Kuala Lumpur.

Tel: 03-6209 1700

GPS Coordinates: 3.1711, 101.66583

Christmas Buffet at Sudu, Hilton Kuala Lumpur

2011-12-22T14:10:00.000+08:00

After our tour of the other restaurants in Hilton KL (Senses, Chynna, Iketeru), we went back to Sudu, the hotel's all day dining restaurant for the buffet.

If what you want is a huge variety, then Sudu's holiday themed international buffet may be the one for you.. even the restaurant is adorned with a gigantic Santa Claus for the Christmas mood.

Since I had a pretty late lunch, I only tried their sashimi (salmon and butterfish), I like the salmon sashimi as it is fresh and pretty good (esp if you get the fattier parts close to the belly) for buffet standards. And I made room for desserts as well, I tried at least 10 types of dessert that evening and they were all good. I especially liked the flourless chocolate cake as well as the green tea cheesecake.

Although I did not eat much, I delegated the eating duties to Hubby -- the turkey was relatively moist and the lamb was good. We also enjoyed the pan seared mignon which was tender.

So where will you be spending Christmas this year?

Pretty gingerbread house :)

Giant Santa in the middle of the restaurant!

From above

Beautiful ceiling

Love the pretty desserts -- plus they all tasted really good!

Apple blueberry crumble tart

Pear almond tart

Pistachio pave

Macarons!

Unfortunately by the time we got back, the macarons have all gone :(

Praline cheese cake

Raspberry financier

Chocolate fountain

Sushi

Oysters

Chuka idako

Sashimi.. yums!

Rawa Meen - semolina fried fish

Beef rendang

Pan seared mignon

Butter prawn, chinese style

Roast whole turkey with giblet juice and cranberry sauce -- one of the moist ones we've eaten this year!

Roasted lamb rump with rosemary sauce

Hummus

Turkey salad

Cheese selection

Hubby dipped a marshmallow in the chocolate fountain and look what happened...

Love marshmallow

Christmas trees at the lobby

The buffet is available on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day (both lunch and dinner) for RM168++ per person.

Full set of photos available to view here.

Location: Sudu, Hilton Kuala Lumpur, 3, Jalan Stesen Sentral, Kuala Lumpur Sentral, 50470 Kuala Lumpur

Tel: +603 2264 2264

GPS Coordinates: 3.135685, 101.686524

Website: http://life.hiltonkl.com/dining/sudu-christmas-offerings-2/

Christmas Menu at Iketeru, Hilton Kuala Lumpur

2011-12-22T00:10:00.000+08:00

Iketeru was the third stop of our "safari" around the restaurants in Hilton KL (see Senses and Chynna posts here). There are two six-course festive menus here, priced at RM158++ or RM188++ per person, the difference being that one has teppanyaki chicken and the other is teppanyaki seafood trio. Check out the Festive menus here.

No idea how they both taste like, but the teppanyaki seafood trio sure looks mouthwatering! And to watch the chef prepare it was like super awesome!

I really wanted to try the food here, but we had to rush back downstairs to Sudu. Anyway, Hubby say we can return here in 2012 as he is really keen to try the teppanyaki (yay!).

FESTIVE COURSE 2

10th Dec – 2nd Jan

Sakizuke

長芋黄身焼き

Nagaimo kimi-yaki

Grilled grated yam with egg yolk

Suimono

土瓶蒸し

Dobin mushi

Steamed clear seafood soup served in earthen pot

Sashimi

鮪　白身　妻色々　山葵

Maguro, shiromi, Tuna, white meat fish,

Main course

鉄板焼き　海鮮三種

Teppanyaki seafood trio

Shokuji

ににく炒めご飯

味噌汁　

Garlic fried rice, miso shiru

Dessert

調理長スペシャル

Chef special

RM188++

Grilled grated yam with egg yolk

Steamed clear seafood soup served in earthen pot

Sashimi

Teppanyaki seafood trio

Garlic fried rice, miso shiru

All the action that went on in the teppanyaki kitchen! So skilled!

Sushi bar

Note: This blogpost is purely to showcase the Christmas menu at Iketeru, Hilton KL. The writer has not tasted the dishes in this blogpost.

Full set of photos available to view here.

Location: Iketeru, Hilton Kuala Lumpur, 3, Jalan Stesen Sentral, Kuala Lumpur Sentral, 50470 Kuala Lumpur.

Tel: +603 2264 2264

Website: www.life.hiltonkl.com

GPS Coordinates: 3.135685, 101.686524

Festive Menu at Chynna, Hilton Kuala Lumpur

2011-12-21T15:06:00.001+08:00

After our first stop in Senses, we moved on to Chynna, the award-winning Chinese restaurant in Hilton KL. There are two festive menus available until 2nd January 2012, specially created by Chef Lam. The one we managed to photograph and sample is Festive Set Menu 2. For more info on the other menu, click here.

Festival Set Menu 2

廚師特創四小碟

Chef’s Recommendation of four small individual combination platters

蛋白火鸡翅盅

Double-boiled turkey broth with egg white

文加宜蒸海红斑

Steamed sea grouper fillet with wincarnis wine and ginger

亚叁海鲜琵琶豆腐

Homemade Pipa bean curd with assam sauce

新洲辣椒蟹扒饭

Singapore chili crab meat fried rice

红豆慕思配焦糖香蕉

Red bean mousse with caramelized banana and black sugar

RM188++ per person

Four small individual combination platter

This was the only one I got to try out of the 4, the outer crust was nice and crispy, and not too oily.

Double boiled turkey broth with egg white

Steamed sea grouper fillet with wincarnis wine and ginger

Fish was flaky and moist

Homemade Pipa bean curd with assam sauce

Singapore chili crab meat fried rice

Red bean mousse with caramelized banana and black sugar

Note: This blogpost is purely to showcase the festive menu at Chynna, Hilton KL. The writer has not tasted the dishes in this blogpost unless otherwise stated.

Full set of photos available to view here.

Location: Chynna Hilton Kuala Lumpur, 3, Jalan Stesen Sentral, Kuala Lumpur Sentral, 50470 Kuala Lumpur,

Tel: +603 2264 2264

Website: www.life.hiltonkl.com

GPS Coordinates: 3.135685, 101.686524

Opening today! Karafuru Tarts @ Tokyo Street, Pavilion Kuala Lumpur

2011-12-21T00:01:00.002+08:00

Karafuru is opening its outlet in Tokyo Street, Pavilion KL on 21st December 2011 (that's today!).

As I love desserts, Karafuru definitely appeals to me -- what you will find here is multi-layered Tokyo fruit tarts in various flavours, which is handmade to perfection by a chef from Japan. The name represents the colorful and attractive tarts you can find in Karafuru. No preservatives are used in the tarts.

Flavours you can find here:

o Strawberry Chocolate

o Mango

o Grape

o Oreo

o Green Tea Red Bean

o Raspberry Peach

o Chocolate Banana

o Blackforest

o Blueberry Meringue

o Mixed Fruits

Price range from RM79 - RM85 for a whole tart and RM8.50 - RM8.90 for the sliced ones.

For a limited time, Karafuru is offering a 30% discount voucher on the whole or sliced tart. All you have to do is like their Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/karafuru.tarts) and print off the voucher or show them from your phone that you've liked their page to qualify for the discount! Promotion valid until 31st January 2012.

Attractive tart - Grape Goodness (grapes on fresh whipped cream)

Mango

I'll be heading over there this weekend to get some tarts.. looks delicious, don't you think?

Price: RM79 - RM85 for a whole tart and RM8.50 - RM8.90 for the sliced ones.

Location: Karafuru Tarts, Level 6, Tokyo Street, Pavilion KL, 168 Jalan Bukit Bintang, 55100 Kuala Lumpur.

Contact no : 03-2143 5737 (Outlet) or 012 312 3971 (Shea Leen)

Email : hello@karafurutarts.com

Website: http://www.facebook.com/karafuru.tarts

Christmas Menu at Senses, Hilton Kuala Lumpur

2011-12-20T10:15:00.003+08:00

Last week, we went to Hilton Kuala Lumpur for a preview of their Christmas menu. While most of the eating was done in Sudu (which I shall blog about later today), we went on a "safari" around 3 more restaurants in the hotel -- Senses, Iketeru and Chynna. Our first stop was Senses, the fine dining modern Australian restaurant helmed by celebrity chef Michael Elfwing.

Senses are offering a few menus, check out the website here for more details. The photos below are from the Senses Festive Menu priced at RM308++ for six courses.

SENSES FESTIVE MENU

Christmas Canapés

Feuille de brick & truffle crisp

Thyme macaron with duckliver paté

Foie gras pralines

Chestnut Soup

Chestnut soup with seared foie gras, celery and maple

Mandagery Creek Venison

Sous-vide then grilled venison rack, compote of handpicked Swedish lingon berries,

organic parsnip purée, sautéed baby spinach

Winter Seafood Medley

Seared John Dory & Atlantic halibut served with Nordic shrimp & Hokkaido Bay scallop,

fennel & celeriac with dill veloute

Palette cleanser

Snowball…

Quince & Rhubarb Trifle

Poached South Australian quince & rhubarb trifle, Limoncello custard,

vanilla bean sponge, marinated winter fruits &cinnamon ice cream

Festive Season Petit Fours

Chocolate Christmas tree, Homemade gingerbread,

Brandy posset, Christmas pudding

Thyme macaron with duck liver pate - I tried this, and I have to say the sweet/savoury combination works. Love it!

Senses restaurant

Christmas Canapes

Feuille de brick & truffle crisp

Chestnut soup with seared foie gras

Sous vide grilled venison rack

Winter seafood medley

Quince and rhubarb trifle

Festive Season Petit Fours

Note: This blogpost is purely to showcase the Christmas menu at Senses, Hilton KL. The writer has not tasted the dishes in this blogpost unless otherwise stated.

Full set of photos available to view here.

Location: Senses, Hilton Kuala Lumpur, 3, Jalan Stesen Sentral, Kuala Lumpur Sentral, 50470 Kuala Lumpur,

Tel: +603 2264 2264,

Website: www.life.hiltonkl.com

GPS Coordinates: 3.135685, 101.686524

Set Lunch @ Din Tai Fung, The Gardens Mall Kuala Lumpur

2011-12-19T08:10:00.002+08:00

When it comes to these tiny morsels called xiao long bao, my personal favorite are the ones from Din Tai Fung. Perfect texture, with a soupy meaty filling... these are just fantastic.

During weekdays (Monday to Friday 10am to 6pm), Din Tai Fung offers a set lunch menu for RM21.80++. It comes with 6 pieces of xiao long bao, one main course (choose 1 from 4 choices) and free flow Chinese tea. If you find that you still have room for desserts, just add RM4. The set lunch is pretty good value for money.

Service is efficient as always, and the restaurant is very kids friendly. Baby C was offered a kids cutlery set.

We love the chilli oil here

Kids cutlery set

As always, the xiao long bao impresses. Baby C loves this, and we love it too.

Steaming hot

As you can see, she quickly 'reserved' three for herself :)

For mains, we picked the Hot & Sour Soup La Mian -- I remember not being too impressed on the first visit with their la mian, but my perception totally changed after this bowl of FANTASTIC noodles. The soup was really good (very appetizing) and the noodles had a lovely texture.

We also picked the Vegetable Pork Dumplings La Mian for Baby C's benefit. Baby C, being a noodle connoisseur (haha she does love her noodles) gave this her thumbs up. The pork dumplings were very juicy too.

Delicious vegetable pork dumplings

Soup = pass, noodles = pass, dumplings = pass :)

For dessert, we had the Sesame Dumplings in Homemade Soya Bean -- the soya bean was not too sweet and the sesame dumpling was just the right texture.

The Golden Yam Paste Rolls was a winner too, with its smooth yam paste and crispy skin.

If I'm not mistaken, the choices for the mains vary monthly so some of the items you see here may differ from current set lunch menu since we had this sometime ago. But overall, the dishes here were satisfyingly good.

To read about my previous visits, click here and here.

Full set of photos available to view here.

Opening times: 10am to 10pm daily.

Location: Din Tai Fung, Lot LG-207, Lower Ground Floor, The Gardens, Mid Valley City, Lingkaran Syed Putra, 59200 Kuala Lumpur.

Tel: 03-2283 2292

Website: http://www.dintaifungmalaysia.com