Antoinette, Sofitel So Singapore

Last year, we spent my birthday in Singapore and one of the hotels that we stayed in was Sofitel So, Singapore. When we stepped into the hotel, the first thing we noticed was that there was an Antoinette store just by the hotel lobby.

Hubby, knowing how much I like macarons, invited me downstairs during teatime. We selected 5 macarons and a cake to share. For macarons, we chose Brittany, Chloe (citrus yogurt yuzu), Rose (rose petal cream) and Passion (milk chocolate passionfruit ganache). The macarons are priced between S$2.50 to S$2.80. The macarons were really good, perfectly formed with extra thick filling. We got two Brittanys, cos nobody wants to share macarons when it's salted caramel flavour - they were really nice, not too sweet with a hint of salt (fleur de sel). I also love the Rose flavour a lot.

Enjoying our welcome drink from the hotel at the same time, the Signature #35 cocktail

Signature #35 cocktail - Tranqueray 10 Gin, Pierre Ferrand 1840 Cognac, Hum Botanical, Giffard Abricot du Roussillon, Massenez Liqueur de Peche, Giffard Liqueur Parfait Triple Sec, Pandan Syrup (normally S$26) 

As for the cake, we chose Summer (S$10), mainly due to aesthetics. It's really pretty, don't you agree?

Summer - raspberry mousse, pistachio bavarois, forest berries jelly, pistachio sponge, pistachio glaze

Price: Total bill S$26.84.

Location: Antoinette, Lobby Level, Sofitel So Singapore, 35 Robinson Road, 068876 Singapore.

Nearest MRT: Raffles Place

GPS Coordinates: 1.279826, 103.849763


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My Kitchen Angel - A Saucy Post

One of the essential ingredients in any Chinese kitchen is soy sauce. There are so many brands of soy sauce out there, which one do I choose? When in doubt, ask your mom, after all mums know best ;)

Many years ago, my mum introduced me to Angel Soy Sauce, a trusted brand she uses herself and I have been using it ever since. As we use soy sauce on a daily basis, it is important to choose a good quality soy sauce. A good quality soy sauce will enable you to enjoy Chinese home cooking to the fullest by adding the umami flavour 鲜  to your food.

A delicious homecooked meal

Angel Soy Sauce is produced by Bidor Kwong Heng, the leading sauce and condiments manufacturer in Malaysia. Bidor Kwong Heng’s modern factory manufactures products to the highest quality standards and is the first sauce manufacturer in Malaysia to use only non-GMO ingredients. It is also the first to receive ISO 9001:2000 and HACCP certification in 2002. Additionally, the company has also received International Food Safety Certification, such as the prestigious BRC certification and full FSSC22000 certification since 2011.

The premium quality Angel Soy Sauce is 100% naturally-brewed for 3-6 months and is made without added HVP (hydrolysed vegetable protein), thus it is free from 3 – MCPD, a carcinogenic compound which is highly suspected to be genotoxic in humans.  We also find that Angel Soy Sauce is less salty, while still possessing the umami taste.

We use soy sauce in stir fries, for marinating meats, as a dipping sauce, while braising meat, and many more - the list is endless on what you can do with soy sauce. Our family loves having steamed fish for dinner - we simply add garlic oil and soy sauce to the fish and steam it for about 7-8 minutes, until ready. Angel Soy Sauce is perfect for steaming fish, as it has a thicker consistency and the desirable "umami" flavour to complement the natural sweetness of the fish. This is a very simple dish to make in your kitchen, and only requires 5 main ingredients, so it is crucial to use the best ingredients.

Steamed fish with soy sauce

Soy sauce is also a must when eating soft boiled eggs

Soy sauce is a key ingredient in our favorite chicken wings recipe! We marinate the wings in about 1/4 cup soy sauce, and other ingredients to create a delectable, finger-licking good, juicy wings!

We use soy sauce almost daily as a dipping sauce. Minced garlic, chopped chillies and soy sauce make up this condiment which is used as a dipping sauce for meats, noodles, and more.

Other than soy sauce, Bidor Kwong Heng also produces many other sauces under Angel Brand, including Angel Oyster Sauce and Angel Sriracha Hot Chilli Sauce.

Oyster sauce adds a savoury flavour to dishes and is ideal for flavouring meat and vegetables. One of my favorite childhood dishes from our local Chinese "dai chow" restaurant is stir fried beef with oyster sauce and spring onions. I am able to recreate the same flavour at home, thanks to Angel Oyster Sauce. The beef is thinly sliced and is first marinated with soy sauce, ginger wine and white pepper, and then stir fried with garlic, ginger slices and flavoured with oyster sauce. A delicious dish!

Stir fried beef with oyster sauce and spring onions

I regularly use Angel Oyster Sauce to make the sauce for wanton noodles or any dried noodle dishes at home.

For those who like a spicy kick in their dishes, you will love Angel Sriracha Hot Chilli Sauce. You can add it to your cooking (ie when making chicken wings), however we regularly use it as a dipping sauce or drizzled on top of our eggs. The other day, I made prawn omelette for dinner - the eggs are seasoned with light soy sauce, then beaten together with chopped spring onions. Once cooked, Sriracha sauce is drizzled all over for the extra heat.

Prawn omelette with Sriracha sauce

Watch this video on how I created three dishes using Angel sauces:

For more information on Angel sauces, please visit www.bidorkwongheng.com.

*This is a sponsored post.


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Recipe: Beef Pot Pie with Puff Pastry

Whenever we make beef stew, we would always make extra. Leftovers are absolutely great for making beef pot pies the following day.  Piping hot beef stew with buttery puff pastry, this is definitely comfort food for the soul.

Beef Pot Pie
Recipe by Baby Sumo
Serves 4


Ingredients
1.5kg braising beef, cut into large chunks
150g plain flour, seasoned with salt and pepper
2 tbsp cooking oil
3 cups beef stock
1 tbsp tomato paste
1 tbsp Worchestershire sauce
1 tbsp fresh thyme
2 dried bay leaves
2 onions, thinly sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
25g dried porcini
3 carrots, peeled and cut into chunks
80g frozen peas
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

4 store-bought puff pastry, cut to size
1 egg, beaten
1 tbsp milk


1. Coat the meat with the seasoned flour. In a large casserole pot over high heat, pour in enough oil to cover the bottom of the pan and heat until the oil is hot. Fry the meat in 3-4 batches, until browned on all sides, adding more oil to the pan as necessary. Once browned, remove the meat onto a plate.

2. Add onions and garlic and fry until browned. Pour in stock, add tomato paste, bay leaves, thyme and porcini and bring to the boil. Add the meat and stir well. Simmer over low heat for 1 hour. Season with salt and pepper.

3. Spoon the beef stew into heatproof bowls or ramekins. Take the puff pastry and cut a circle bigger than the top of each pie-pot for the lid. Dampen the rim of the pastry again and then pop on the lid of each pie, sealing the edges with your fingers or the underneath of the prongs of a fork.

4. Mix the egg with milk, then brush the top of the puff pastry with the egg wash.

5. Preheat oven to 200°C (fan-assisted), then place the pie in the oven. Cook the pies for about 15 minutes. Once cooked, they should have puffed up magnificently. You can serve your beef pot pies with fries on the side, or it is good eaten on its own.

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Cooking Class with Chef Ann @ Tanjong Jara Resort + Recipe (Beef Rendang Terengganu)

For cooking enthusiasts, you can enrol yourself in a cooking class with Chef Ann, the resident chef at Tanjong Jara Resort and gain insight into the wonders of traditional Malay home-style cuisine. Chef Ann is well-versed with the cuisine and her jovial personality makes the cooking class a very enjoyable one.

The cooking class takes place at Di Atas Sungei restaurant daily (except Friday) at 1.30pm. During the cooking class, you will usually be taught 2 recipes, featuring authentic Malay cuisine. We learnt how to make a beef rendang (Terengganu style) as well as a spicy prawn dish with coconut milk and lemon grass.

Baby Sumo Family with Chef Ann

Beef Rendang
Recipe courtesy of Chef Ann of Tanjong Jara Resort

Ingredients
250ml coconut milk
1 turmeric leaf, torn and knotted
5 kaffir lime leaves
1 stalk lemongrass, bruised
1-2 pieces asam gelugur
10 red chillies. finely sliced
1kg beef, fat and sinew removed, cut into 3cm cubes

Spices (ground)
3 tbsp chopped galangal
1/2 tbsp chopped turmeric
1/2 tbsp chopped ginger
200g red chillies
4 shallots
Salt

1. Simmer coconut milk with turmeric leaf, kaffir lime leaves, lemongrass, asam gelugur, sliced chillies, and ground spices until the milk thickens and becomes oily. Reduce heat.

2. Add beef and cook until tender. (during our cooking class, we used high-quality tenderloin, so cooking time was approximately 10 minutes.)

3.  Stir ocassionally until the spices dry and turn brown.



Cost: RM215 per adult.

Location: Tanjong Jara Resort,Batu 8, off Jalan Dungun, 23000 Dungun, Terengganu, Malaysia.

Tel: 09-845 1100

Website: http://www.tanjongjararesort.com

GPS Coordinates: 4.811139, 103.423422




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Musical Review: The Beatles' Let It Be

I grew up listening to The Beatles, as my dad would often play them at home. The Beatles are inarguably the most famous band in the world. Their music is timeless and many successful recording artists still give credit to The Beatles as their musical inspiration.

When I lived in the UK, we knew we had to make a visit to the birthplace of The Beatles -- Liverpool. Labelled as the "World Capital City of Pop" by Guinness World Records, we visited The Beatles Story in Albert Dock, where the world’s largest permanent exhibition purely devoted to the lives and times of The Beatles can be found.

At The Beatles Story in Liverpool 

From 14th to 17th July 2016, fans of The Beatles got the chance to relive the past and catch "Let it Be" musical at Plenary Hall KLCC, direct from London's West End and Broadway. This international hit show has been seen by over 2 million people worldwide.

Annerin Productions brings to us the show that we never got to see The Beatles perform. We were taken on an epic musical journey starting with their arrival in the USA and the historic appearance on the Ed Sullivan chronicling their music journey thereafter, with popular hits including Hard Day's Night, Day Tripper, Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, Twist and Shout, Get Back, I Wanna Hold Your Hand, Strawberry Fields, and many more.

The end of The Beatles era was never thought to be in sight when The Beatles played their last show on the roof of Apple Offices in 1969. We were given the chance to experience what it would have been like if The Beatles continued their journey, the Fab Four coming together again on stage after a decade apart performing other hits like Back in the USSR, Live and Let Die, Got to Get you into My Life, My Sweet Lord, Hey Jude and many more hits the world never got to see performed live.

The original production established itself as one of the West End’s most popular shows when it opened in 2012 and recently celebrated reaching 1000 shows.

We attended the first show on 14 July, and what a fun night it was! Everything from the physical appearance of the performers, their powerful vocals, expert guitar solos and driving drums from Ringo combined with the cinema screen footage combining original footage with live footage from that evening came together to create a very powerful and moving experience, which we thoroughly enjoyed.  Clever set embellishments and subtle wig changes, the use of glasses and news clips from the era kept the show moving seamlessly through the years.  John Lennon was able to introduce some comedy into the show which reinforced The Beatles cheeky chap reputation which endeared them to hundreds of thousands of fans across the globe.

My personal favorites from the show was Yesterday, I Wanna Hold Your Hand, Imagine, Let It Be, and Hey Jude. A definite must-see for Beatles fan!

Thank you Nuffnang Malaysia for the VVIP tickets to the "Let It Be" Musical.


Photo credit: unwatermarked photos courtesy of Michelle, my talent manager from Nuffnang.

*This is a sponsored post.

Recipe: Beef Burger with Foie Gras

Hubby was craving for a good burger, so we got the ingredients from the supermarket and cooked our own at home. We cheated this time, using store-bought beef patties as well as brioche burger buns (you can make your own patty or buns if you like).

For the ultimate gourmet beef burger, we decided to top it with a whole piece of foie gras each. And the burger was absolutely ace! So juicy and tasty :)

Beef burger with foie gras

Beef Burger with Foie Gras
Recipe by Baby Sumo
Preparation time: 1 minute
Cooking time: 8 minutes
Serves 2

Ingredients
2 beef burger patty, store-bought or homemade
2 pieces foie gras
2 brioche burger buns, store-bought or homemade
Butter
1 tbsp olive oil
1 large tomato, sliced
Maldon salt, or other good quality salt
Tomato ketchup
Cheese (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 180°C (no fan).

2. In a frying pan, heat olive oil over high heat. Once the pan is heated, turn down to medium heat and add the beef patty. Cook for 3-4 minutes on one side, then flip over and continue cooking for another 3-4 minutes. Once cooked, remove from heat and set aside.

3. At the same time, heat another frying pan until very hot over high heat. Once the pan is very hot, turn down to medium heat then add the frozen foie gras to the pan and cook without fat for 30 seconds to 1 minute each side, until golden brown. Place in the oven for 6-8 minutes.

4.Cut each brioche bun into half, then spread with butter. Using the pan from Step 3, lightly toast the brioche buns.

5. To assemble the burger, place the beef patty on the bottom bun, followed by tomato slice, foie gras, salt, and tomato ketchup. Enjoy!!!

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