tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-89391349994694050132024-03-05T23:22:14.227+11:00Around le globeYhphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02494422316969272902noreply@blogger.comBlogger163125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8939134999469405013.post-8254538037905986652016-01-21T18:10:00.000+11:002016-01-23T15:02:01.361+11:00Cooling down in Melbourne<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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We've been experiencing some heat waves with temperatures up to 41 C. So what are great ways to cool off if you're going to the city? Obviously eat and drink. </div>
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1) Spend minimum time outdoors. Once I made my friend and I walk to Fitzroy for gelato at Messina in 40 degree heat and I instantly regretted it (but was relieved at Messina). That means, try your best not to go shopping along Bourke street. Melbourne Central, Emporium etc are your air-con friends! </div>
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2) Get cold drinks and froyo!</div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Hardware societe</span></b></div>
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This is a favourite of mine near Melbourne Central. Be sure to come early during the weekends, and relatively early on weekdays. I usually go around 11-12 ish for brunch, and the normal waiting period is about 20-25 minutes. I made the grave mistake to go on the weekend with my friends, and we turned away when we heard the waiting period would be an hour plus. The coffee is fantastic and the quality of the food is pretty consistent. Iced coffees and mochas are delicious and not too sweet. My friends had the iced tea with mint which was refreshing although a bit too sweet for my liking.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Friend's salmon with some sort of pastry & veggies & poached eggs</td></tr>
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I had the lobster benedict which was nice, although I would have preferred it if the dish was a bit more hot. The eggs were poached perfectly and the combo with the asparagus is great.<br />
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<a href="https://www.zomato.com/melbourne/the-hardware-societe-1-cbd" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank" title="View Menu, Reviews, Photos & Information about The Hardware Societe, CBD and other Restaurants in Melbourne"><img alt="The Hardware Societe Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato" src="https://www.zomato.com/logo/16573665/biglink" style="border: none; height: 146px; padding: 0px; width: 200px;" /></a></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Yo-chi</span></b><br />
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My favourite froyo place has always been <a href="http://www.cacaogreen.com.au/about-us/">Cacao green</a> (locations at Chadstone & Fountain gate) but I think this place is just as good. The texture of the froyo is more similar to ice cream, but with a little less guilt. My swirling skills aren't on par, but I had the lemon iced tea, mango and butterscotch flavour. My favourite was the butterscotch because how can you go wrong with caramel?<br />
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<a href="https://www.zomato.com/melbourne/yo-chi-frozen-yogurt-hawthorn" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank" title="View Menu, Reviews, Photos & Information about Yo-Chi Frozen Yogurt, Hawthorn and other Restaurants in Melbourne"><img alt="Yo-Chi Frozen Yogurt Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato" src="https://www.zomato.com/logo/16586311/ibiglink" style="border: none; height: 146px; padding: 0px; width: 200px;" /></a></div>
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Yhphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02494422316969272902noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8939134999469405013.post-89205645784465256142016-01-17T20:57:00.000+11:002016-01-17T20:57:36.093+11:00Barcelona day 1 & 2 <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">So what happened in 2015 since my last blog post about <a href="http://aroundleglobe.blogspot.com.au/2015/01/white-chocolate-berry-blondies.html">blondies</a>? A lot. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">My second sister got married, I GRADUATED FROM HIGH SCHOOL, and I went on a trip to Spain & Portugal with my parents & eldest sister. My whole motivation for getting through that awfully painful time of exam prep & exams itself, was the fact that I'd be able to travel to Europe and see my relatives & friends in Malaysia afterwards.</span></div>
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So a few days after my last exam, I travelled for nearly 24 hours from Melbourne (transiting in Dubai and eating <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/-aTrokpTSd/?taken-by=littlemissyh">Shake shack</a>) to Spain. We were so exhausted that my sister and I fell asleep in our hotel room for 3-4 hours straight. The funny thing was our parents phoned us and knocked on our doors numerous times, but we were in deep sleep. This was to the extent that my dad started having theories that we had either</div>
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1) Gone gallivanting and couldn't wait to start shopping already like his perception of 'young people' (despite after 24 hours of travelling mind you)<br />
2) Been kidnapped </div>
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So the first night was really just not productive. I woke up feeling so groggy, but we had a delicious local dinner at a restaurant nearby our hotel.</div>
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We had lots of paella throughout the trip.<br />
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I was also surprised about how cold it was in Spain. We travelled around late November, and all my pictures which show <span style="font-family: inherit;">blue skies are very deceiving. It was not warm at all, especially when the wind blows I felt I was going to get hypothermia.. Thus I went to buy more clothes.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">And to my delight, SPANISH SHOPPING IS INCREDIBLE! Not as cheap as factory outlets in the U.S, but relatively cheaper than Australian shopping (especially with claiming VAT at the airport) . Plus, there is so much more variety and European fashion is chic. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">So the next day, my sister, V and I set out early (10 AM Spanish time, that is) for shopping before meeting up my parents later for lunch. We went along </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; line-height: 16.12px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Passeig de GrĂ cia </span></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 16.12px;">and </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">spent quite a while at Massimo dutti, where I snagged up a couple of sweaters. I thoroughly enjoyed the shopping avenues in Barcelona - the pavement was clean, and the shopping displays & decorations were nice. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">We ate at </span><a href="http://www.ququrestaurant.com/" style="font-family: inherit;">this </a><span style="font-family: inherit;">place for lunch which was great value for money and the food was quite good. Dining out in Spain is quite inexpensive because of the low wages. You can buy a beer for something like 2 euros! </span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Octopus </td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mussels, bread, fries, croquettes</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">We ordered a jug of sangria. That stuff is good, although I suppose it's 'lolly-water' because it's sweet wine and has a low alcohol content. That being said, I have only started to drink a bit the past few months, thus after about 3 glasses I was ready for my SIESTA. Oh you'll learn about the Spanish siesta later on that it is actually a thing in Spain.. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">But there was no time for a siesta but for a tour of the famous Caso Batllo, one of the architect, Gaudi's work. The tour was great because we had a headset and this cool interactive video guide (check out the <a href="https://www.casabatllo.es/en/">website</a>) of how some of the rooms may have been furnished in the past. This was a house for the Batllo family, and I'd imagine it would have been such a difficult house to clean with so many levels and rooms.. Nevertheless, it is a beauty. </span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZCLspvmtCVMGxwZKXtJrh4V2EaDTzK4vQKOJJ2OUFCo8e27Z-_GokuA4vu1AuumKxr8KX2qXunmBKQcT6CYejTcoCblYNe3IeHRNCFMrtVHSemJVhMz3rG_jrmtLwrsioAa08QWxugqd8/s1600/01049547.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZCLspvmtCVMGxwZKXtJrh4V2EaDTzK4vQKOJJ2OUFCo8e27Z-_GokuA4vu1AuumKxr8KX2qXunmBKQcT6CYejTcoCblYNe3IeHRNCFMrtVHSemJVhMz3rG_jrmtLwrsioAa08QWxugqd8/s640/01049547.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 25.5px;">The mosaics and the designs were impressive, and Gaudi's style was quite abstract, in the sense that he would use very few straight lines. </span><br />
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Yhphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02494422316969272902noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8939134999469405013.post-28986724963292624802015-01-16T14:44:00.000+11:002016-07-13T17:36:51.248+10:00White chocolate & berry blondies<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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This was my first time making blondies and there are definitely no regrets..<br />
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At first bite, this kept me going like 'Woah this is like a cookie/brownie and the white chocolate mmmhmm'. Quite similar to that scene in Ratatouille when Remy combines cheese and strawberries together and his mind explodes with fireworks (my childish obsession with Disney is evident), perhaps he's somewhat hallucinating.<br />
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They reminiscently taste like butterscotch..And the white chocolate chunks make it taste more caramel-ly and the berries add a sourness and slight sweetness. The texture in the middle is gooey, and the outside crust is nice and crisp.<br />
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I used Divine's white chocolate.. I love their chocolate range! Tasty and fair trade.<br />
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Would I add this to my repertoire? Absolutely.<br />
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<b><u>Berry & white chocolate blondies </u></b><br />
Ingredients<br />
.112 g butter, melted<br />
.220 g light brown sugar<br />
.1 large egg<br />
.1 tsp vanilla extract<br />
.125 g plain flour<br />
.1 tsp baking powder<br />
.100 g white chocolate chips/chunks<br />
.150 g mixed berries (I used frozen blueberries & raspberries, no need to thaw)<br />
.Icing sugar, to serve<br />
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<b><i><u>Method:</u></i></b><br />
1. Line a 20 x 30 cm brownie pan (I used an 8 inch by 8 inch pan) with non-stick baking paper (parchment paper). Mix melted butter with brown sugar and beat until smooth.<br />
2.Beat in egg and then vanilla.<br />
3.Stir in flour & baking powder. Mix in white chocolate chips/chunks and add the berries, stir very gently.<br />
4.Pour into prepare pan. Bake at 180 C (350 F) for 30-40 minutes, or until set in the middle. Cool to room temperature before cutting them.<br />
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Adapted from Spicy ice cream</div>
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Yhphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02494422316969272902noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8939134999469405013.post-25664289649124153272015-01-15T21:41:00.000+11:002015-01-15T21:41:43.907+11:00A day at the patisserie<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
We had our normal lessons at Creipac, the language centre.We did a really fun activity to practice our writing. We formed teams in class and had a little competition against with each other.. Our teacher, Ghislaine showed us a video of Mr.Bean, then afterwards we had to write complex phrases in order of the events that happen. C'etait tres amusant!<br />
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For lunch, we went to the boulangerie and patisserie because who can miss out on French bread and pastries? In other words, I nearly died in heaven.<br />
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The showcase of the pastries were just so pretty, I had to contemplate carefully of what savoury and sweet I was going to take away.. Rebecca and I decided on the same thing: quiche lorraine and mille-feuille. Although the funny thing was, we forgot to say 'mille-feuille aux frais', mille-feuille with strawberries that we both wanted, but just ordered 'mille-feuille', so we received the original, plain one. It was still good, but we stole some off Eric and agreed with strawberries, c'est mieux (it's better) !<br />
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We ate in a nice little park. The meal was quite good, however all of us were really way too full with a savoury and dessert in our hands.. Those cakes were extraordinarily huge for one person to eat.<br />
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Afterwards we went to the cultural centre, Tjibaou to learn about the Kanak culture. I thought it was quite significant that they have preserved a lot of that culture, and especially by building this to really showcase and tell the stories of the Indigenous people. Unfortunately I don't have much photos because we weren't allowed to take pictures, but it is great place to learn about the culture.<br />
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Yhphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02494422316969272902noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8939134999469405013.post-46323858735863156542015-01-04T18:24:00.005+11:002015-07-03T23:02:50.396+10:002014 reflections<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
I meant to post this on the 31st, but I was at a friend's! We celebrated by watching New year's eve, the movie which is super cheesy but cute, baking brownies, staying out on the balcony and finally waking up and making crepes for breakfast... Anyway, this is a bit of a wordy post but 2014 was somewhat a great, yet challenging year.<br />
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<b>Exam & test cramming is never a good idea nor fun.</b><br />
VCE has been hectic, which many people including me did not really anticipate. It goes from super basic math, super basic chemistry to all of the sudden a much higher, demanding level. So, I think that being said, I didn't really know how to handle my time properly this year. So 2015 is my last year of high school (year 12), and my game plan is ORGANISATION.<br />
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And I mean, working till 2 AM on gene technology for biology is actually the <i>worst idea ever</i>. Nor is neglecting year 11 chemistry for year 12 biology, because in the end, IT'S OVER WHELMING. But I am glad my hard work was well worth it for year 12 biology this year, content with my study score :)<br />
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<b>New Caledonia was a trip of a life time and my desire to learn languages.</b><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh48jAOZrFhPiu5yBFwZGWllBY28pmCy6BzHaPJ7_ZjytmAGlWgqfziOrbPRk8ifao5QVhrdy7rWoVBUMDvoiKMybdLl-N6nidr1BDDyrI5y-kBfLHsJN-d4j4bJV0FgyDh-kYhICV0GESm/s1600/DSC01982.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh48jAOZrFhPiu5yBFwZGWllBY28pmCy6BzHaPJ7_ZjytmAGlWgqfziOrbPRk8ifao5QVhrdy7rWoVBUMDvoiKMybdLl-N6nidr1BDDyrI5y-kBfLHsJN-d4j4bJV0FgyDh-kYhICV0GESm/s1600/DSC01982.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Fail jump shot picture....</td></tr>
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For me, French isn't really a chore. Sometimes when I walk to school or walk back, I'll listen to the French radio. I love watching French movies, reading and my French tutor is awesome. Also, the New Caledonia trip definitely helped my French and it was such a good trip. I have made friendships (and strengthened) with some people. Frankly, I didn't really expect us 14 students to get so close during the trip... I hope to continue French for the rest of my life (at least in uni) and hoping to pick up Chinese again, since I realise the <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/yiihuei-phang/learning-another-language_b_5464392.html">importance</a> of being bi/trilingual! Plus it puts me to shame being a Malaysian Chinese...<br />
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<b>Malaysia & Singapore</b><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRFPMY-QIdDjdzruy-xwjTCmA2SgenPQScf_hsWwPCcJ4KFDTmQUeUR9BQrMK7TLI7HpfWr8qKVZGjW3QtAKykCvQZJNcA4uGIVFq9GRxIzdKneb4nDGjCEk9nCoor9k8fj7uHIBeCyO5g/s1600/01200409.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="486" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRFPMY-QIdDjdzruy-xwjTCmA2SgenPQScf_hsWwPCcJ4KFDTmQUeUR9BQrMK7TLI7HpfWr8qKVZGjW3QtAKykCvQZJNcA4uGIVFq9GRxIzdKneb4nDGjCEk9nCoor9k8fj7uHIBeCyO5g/s1600/01200409.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Throwback to the greatest (and first) kouign amman of ma vie. </td></tr>
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Singapore & Penang was such a wonderful trip during January (will I ever cease saying that?). Not only just solely for food and sight seeing, but the best part is spending time with your relatives. I have very little relatives here in Australia, so seeing them is always a joy.<br />
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It was also nice catching up with my friends in KL the way I've done each summer spent in KL for so long. Always good times.<br />
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So to 2015: My bittersweet last year of high school. Dreading it, yet excited for it to be all over!</div>
Yhphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02494422316969272902noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8939134999469405013.post-51764589395439467522015-01-04T00:15:00.000+11:002015-01-04T00:15:07.866+11:00Great apple crumble/crisp<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
New year's resolutions... Well, over the years, I realise how futile they are. The no.1 resolution that always goes down the wrong pathway: "Lose weight".. Sorry, not sorry but I'm eating apple crumble.. But in all seriousness I hope that I can eat slightly more healthier and refrain from eating so much desserts this year. And be a bit more active. But I guess it'll come and go. My number 1 resolution is to <b>STAY ORGANISED </b>because I have a big school year ahead! My last ever year of high school. Nervous, but can't wait to get out.<br />
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Anyway, it's funny how we have different names for food. For example, we say 'tomato sauce' in Australia, in the states, it's 'ketchup'. We usually say 'muesli', not 'granola'. Having lived in Australia for more than half my life, I have come to discover 'apple crumble'. Oh the humble apple crumble... Or known as 'apple crisp'?<br />
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To be quite frank, I prefer apple crumble to apple pie. I love all the oats and crumbly buttery bits on top of steaming hot apples and pouring custard or eating it with vanilla ice cream.<br />
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Ambitious kitchen is one of my go-to blogs, her recipes are easy and delicious! So how could I go past a post titled 'The best apple crisp you'll ever have with brown butter'?<br />
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It certainly was a great recipe, and I ended up going back for many, many, many more slices. With copious amounts of vanilla ice cream.<br />
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I have to excuse myself for the horrid pictures though.. I wasn't quite sure how to photograph apple crumble lol!!!<br />
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<b><u>Apple crisp </u></b><br />
<b>Ingredients</b><br />
<b>For the topping</b><br />
-1 cup all purpose flour (I used combination of 1/2 cup whole wheat, 1/2 cup all purpose)<br />
-1 cup old fashioned oats<br />
-1 cup dark brown sugar *<br />
-1/2 cup chopped almonds<br />
-1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, softened and cut into pieces<br />
*I used light brown sugar and reduced it to 1/2 cup.<br />
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<b>For the filling:</b><br />
-1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter<br />
-1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise (or vanilla extract)<br />
-6 medium sized Granny smith apples, peeled, cored and very thinly sliced<br />
-1/3 cup dark brown sugar<br />
-1 tsp cinnamon<br />
-1 tsp bourbon (or 1/2 tsp vanilla extract)<br />
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<b>Method</b><br />
1.Preheat oven to 350 F (180 C). Grease an 8 x 8 inch baking pan.<br />
2.To make topping: Combine flour, oats, brown sugar & almonds in a large bowl until well-combined. Add in the pieces of butter and use your hands to squeeze and combine until mixture becomes crumbly and resembles wet sands (or cut butter pastry cutter or place all topping ingredients in a food processor and pulse until just blended).<br />
3.Once finished, place topping in the fridge and begin making apple filling.<br />
4.To make the filling: place butter and seeds from vanilla bean in a medium saucepan and turn heat on medium. After a couple of minutes the butter will begin to crackle & foam. Whisk consistently until a brown colour. Remove from heat as soon as the butter begins to give off a nutty aroma. Set aside to cool for a few minutes.<br />
5.While butter is cooling, place apples, 1/3 cup brown sugar, cinnamon and bourbon in a large bowl and toss to combine. Add brown butter to apple mixture and toss again to combine.<br />
6.Take 1/2 cup of topping mixture and toss with apple mixture. Place apple mixture in prepared pan and sprinkle evenly with topping.<br />
7.Bake the crumble on a baking sheet for 55-60 minutes or until topping is golden brown and filling is bubbling. Remove from oven and cool 10 minutes on wire rack. Serve warm with vanilla bean ice cream.<br />
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*Adapted from <a href="http://www.ambitiouskitchen.com/2012/11/the-best-apple-crisp-youll-ever-have-with-brown-butter-vanilla-bean-bourbon/">Ambitious kitchen</a></div>
Yhphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02494422316969272902noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8939134999469405013.post-41385105251572242422014-11-28T21:29:00.000+11:002014-11-28T21:29:24.958+11:00Après l'école: le deuxième jour (after school, the second day)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
After our first lesson with Ghislaine at Creipac, we headed off for lunch and our first excursion!<br />
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We had a quick lunch at 'Quick'. Our teacher, Madame S however agreed with all of us that "Quick, ce n'est pas quick!!!"- Quick, it's not quick! The queue was horrendously long, but when it came to ordering, it came out really quickly. Anyway, it was pretty decent. Better than McDonalds.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo credit to Rebecca</td></tr>
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<span style="text-align: left;">We ate on the Anse Vata beach. Sun, light breeze, conversations and fast food. What more could you ask for? </span></div>
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We headed back to our hotel and we played cards for a while before we were picked up by the Tchou tchou train! It's a small train that makes a tour around Noumea. Such a cute little train!</div>
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Our tour guide was incredibly heart-warming and joyous. He conducted 3/4s of the tour in French, then the rest in English. He was all like "Here in Noumea, we are happy so let your worries disappear and just relax and be happy!" And we were all really like "Woah he has a cool mojo", we all asked him for a photo later!<br />
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As we went up the mountain, we saw incredible views. This was at Ouen Toro park. </div>
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Simplement, je pourrais dire que c'est incroyable. </div>
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Yhphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02494422316969272902noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8939134999469405013.post-69560050152795371622014-11-26T09:04:00.003+11:002014-11-26T09:04:58.535+11:00Creipac <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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To be honest, at first I wasn't looking forward to our French lessons. And I guess that's single handedly from experience of dreadful Saturday language school.<br />
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We had 3 hour French lessons each day at the language centre, Creipac. It was about a half an hour drive from the city centre (Noumea). To my surprise, they were some of the best lessons I've ever had. Not only was our teacher incredibly encouraging & helpful, she made our lessons incredibly interactive. Also, having a small class of 7 students, was really comforting. We all felt comfortable making mistakes and talking with each other all en francais.<br />
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3 hours went incredibly quickly, and many of us just long to have language classes like that yet again. </div>
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Our teacher, Ghislaine helped us immensely, I can't thank her enough! It was mostly an emphasis on speaking & listening. The activities we did were fun, for example some of us had to go up and give a short brief description of an imaginary person, based on a single picture we were given. Then, all of us would 'interrogate' the person and ask all sorts of questions.<br />
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It also really made me realise and value how much the fact that smaller classes are very beneficial for language classes, and learning a language is something that I feel passionate about (I have yet to master Chinese.. uni?) because the problem with a lot language classes in school, it's too big. Sometimes, a teacher can't handle so many people, and consequently students are timid talking in front of the class. Since I go to a public school, we don't have the luxury of small size classes like private schools.<br />
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But I would definitely give the Creipac experience 10/10!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzEwzUGG_0O0OVgTPvdrA3gf7cIuulQWkF-Fp8h-4zFpmOFfTS4xiwF1s2XvvWXh6cbPmX5BMFHNGETCYQirsEATLxqnsIJnoYOWJRHpUPCxzZepOppuuwVdKI3K_bYHlqZn4EMDF6xy9B/s1600/DSCN3012.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzEwzUGG_0O0OVgTPvdrA3gf7cIuulQWkF-Fp8h-4zFpmOFfTS4xiwF1s2XvvWXh6cbPmX5BMFHNGETCYQirsEATLxqnsIJnoYOWJRHpUPCxzZepOppuuwVdKI3K_bYHlqZn4EMDF6xy9B/s1600/DSCN3012.JPG" height="480" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">View from the pier opposite. The language centre is nestled in lots of trees, near the mountains! </td></tr>
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<span style="text-align: left;">The view wasn't too bad either. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEmXHJuaACFa-431acBeJKx9e12mdTv1XYxd7bYD6WTe1SVFu47RuchxxR3a_aH7Y16mVg6FBAh6guCCWmj5Ub10s98JajYV6WLFVGksv1fFsD62CW04uMoklmIIvLCe4_yBhhBO14U0kv/s1600/08108949.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEmXHJuaACFa-431acBeJKx9e12mdTv1XYxd7bYD6WTe1SVFu47RuchxxR3a_aH7Y16mVg6FBAh6guCCWmj5Ub10s98JajYV6WLFVGksv1fFsD62CW04uMoklmIIvLCe4_yBhhBO14U0kv/s1600/08108949.JPG" height="426" width="640" /></a></div>
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At the end of our lessons, we received fancy certificates saying that we had completed 18 hours of French lessons at the Creipac language centre. </div>
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Merci pour tout Creipac :D </div>
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Yhphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02494422316969272902noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8939134999469405013.post-73170881524869670312014-11-25T12:55:00.003+11:002014-11-25T12:55:56.012+11:00Hummingbird bundt cake<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Last year I discovered hummingbird cake. Aunty SS made me a hummingbird cake for my birthday, and I loved it!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTGzyIKNsz-C1maPWOWkvlwPi9Rypaz5X1squUCtpP3B8vH8DB7H1p8QBWyZteWAyQqBnBkfFy2HtKKI2MoiDZVsHnce9s8vjvBxHfBMU-FkLVqbp9-222FSxGNyRGNszQESL-8BbeqFpB/s1600/01019013.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTGzyIKNsz-C1maPWOWkvlwPi9Rypaz5X1squUCtpP3B8vH8DB7H1p8QBWyZteWAyQqBnBkfFy2HtKKI2MoiDZVsHnce9s8vjvBxHfBMU-FkLVqbp9-222FSxGNyRGNszQESL-8BbeqFpB/s1600/01019013.JPG" height="426" width="640" /></a></div>
Hummingbird cake is practically another version of carrot cake sans the carrot of course. Add pineapple and banana, voila.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCFgqAqOIl9xWzIYx3SDa43bOtqNLOqWEFlqfQrmqQCKVdhsV_8KnUATdVPq5JVtZArIA9u4uQjHYwaGGXssoji1XMWeWaNtN9mLFTEHrYDUYgfgv5jy62sp3k7Wone4-P6D7MHMGhyLst/s1600/01018999.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCFgqAqOIl9xWzIYx3SDa43bOtqNLOqWEFlqfQrmqQCKVdhsV_8KnUATdVPq5JVtZArIA9u4uQjHYwaGGXssoji1XMWeWaNtN9mLFTEHrYDUYgfgv5jy62sp3k7Wone4-P6D7MHMGhyLst/s1600/01018999.JPG" height="426" width="640" /></a></div>
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This is simply a no fuss cake because personally, I find layer cakes cumbersome. Two reasons:</div>
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1) I am not artistic AT ALL. I cannot draw to save my life, so making a layer cake look pretty is the last thing on my mind. I am more of a person who will execute and replicate a recipe, or even a piano piece. I can't listen by ear in music, unlike my second sister who can magically play tunes without the piece in front of her. I unfortunately lack creativity (no I'm not a drone)..</div>
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2) It's really troublesome you know. 2, 3, 4 layers yeah whatever. Then you have to put a 'crumb coating' and how do you get your icing to look so clean and cut? I wonder. But I do love the look of layer cakes. I'm just lazy. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3evmuNZpCa0CKZzD4mL2nRYbZEu9rqFHNzgO_AHjnXek7nKVTElf5t74fkXsGgh6PTF1MY-AcXIVwZnhRGs_xvU5hJXEpxttLu8bf2IkpIcBotRtxl4AUTrUCQ6zImDH6TNUv0mwQTvSL/s1600/01019002.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3evmuNZpCa0CKZzD4mL2nRYbZEu9rqFHNzgO_AHjnXek7nKVTElf5t74fkXsGgh6PTF1MY-AcXIVwZnhRGs_xvU5hJXEpxttLu8bf2IkpIcBotRtxl4AUTrUCQ6zImDH6TNUv0mwQTvSL/s1600/01019002.JPG" height="426" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="text-align: left;">Anyway, punch line is: bundt cakes are so much easier to handle. The glaze? Even easier. Just whip some cream cheese, powdered sugar, vanilla and add a little milk and drizzle. I love uncomplicated things. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJh3G_oAvUuH0_SqtDDdvj98JaSDfOw0Ycw3u4FjOZ4EyCkeFUx49SNmsyIzt8ttKp1HLPqk5GfMdwY8zpWzLDNpcyoJ2dFtGSqAoMDqIKBVLKp96NFKb7-q7ymb9GbSoorJWh1uvy5UCK/s1600/01019018.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJh3G_oAvUuH0_SqtDDdvj98JaSDfOw0Ycw3u4FjOZ4EyCkeFUx49SNmsyIzt8ttKp1HLPqk5GfMdwY8zpWzLDNpcyoJ2dFtGSqAoMDqIKBVLKp96NFKb7-q7ymb9GbSoorJWh1uvy5UCK/s1600/01019018.JPG" height="426" width="640" /></a></div>
<b><u>Hummingbird bundt cake with cream cheese glaze</u></b><br />
<b>Ingredients</b><br />
1 cup chopped nuts, toasted (Walnuts or pecans etc)<br />
2 and 1/2 all-purpose flour<br />
1 and 1/2 tsp baking soda<br />
1 tsp cinnamon<br />
1/2 tsp salt<br />
1 cup oil (I used sunflower)<br />
2 cups sugar *<br />
4 large eggs, lightly beatened<br />
1 tsp vanilla<br />
1 and 1/2 cup mashed bananas (about 3 medium)<br />
1 can of crushed pineapple, undrained<br />
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<i>*Reduced sugar to 1 & 1/2 </i><br />
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<b><u>Cream cheese glaze</u></b><br />
4 oz (113 g) cream cheese, softened<br />
2 cups powdered sugar, sifted *<br />
1 tsp vanilla<br />
2-3 tbsp milk<br />
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*Reduced powdered sugar to 1 & 1/2<br />
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<b><u>Method</u></b><br />
1) Preheat oven to 365 degrees F/180 C. Cover bundt pan with non-stick spray (or grease with butter) and dust with flour<br />
2) Place toasted nuts, flour, baking soda & salt in a bowl and mix until combined. Add in remaining ingredients and mix until combined. Pour batter into prepared bundt pan and bake for 50 minutes or until cake tester inserted in the centre comes out clean.<br />
3) Transfer to wire rack to cool for 10 minutes. Invert the cake onto wire a rack to cool completely before glazing<br />
4) For the glaze: place cream cheese, powdered sugar, vanilla in a bowl and mix until combined. Add milk in one tablespoon at a time, mixing after each addition. Add more if necessary to achieve a pouring consistency. Drizzle on top of bundt cake. *Optional: finish with finely chopped nuts<br />
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Adapted from <a href="http://www.bakersroyale.com/cakes/hummingbird-bundt-cake/">Bakers royale</a><br />
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Yhphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02494422316969272902noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8939134999469405013.post-58253928201470851812014-11-22T23:16:00.000+11:002014-11-28T18:29:28.717+11:00Noumea day 1 <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
If there is one word to describe my trip to Noumea, it would be <i>bliss</i>.<br />
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Quite literally a trip of my life. Immersion into culture, bonding with my school friends and enjoying the sun pretty much sums it all.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYN-5O9xWLa_170LJAq38-bqO72s2REfmQDecKYWNlGb6lArkRnpOuTWqrdKYb26igEUPf1CfEF-_Z5ZcYRpYJkfEj7-wC6NTBueoEXxny76nueFq5wW0e4fkup0Mzb-dgP-kuA5Pg_7TY/s1600/08028546.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYN-5O9xWLa_170LJAq38-bqO72s2REfmQDecKYWNlGb6lArkRnpOuTWqrdKYb26igEUPf1CfEF-_Z5ZcYRpYJkfEj7-wC6NTBueoEXxny76nueFq5wW0e4fkup0Mzb-dgP-kuA5Pg_7TY/s1600/08028546.JPG" height="426" width="640" /></a></div>
Many people do not know where New Caledonia is. When I try to explain that it's a small French island in the Pacific, near Tahiti and Fiji, many people jump to the conclusion "So basically France?"<br />
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Pas exactement- not exactly. How about 17,000 km away from France?<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdc3a3e7pnxe_VC_e2H9TJNb8m4nGnnrcDm4TNgY2ZUbVGNADAst2OfFSHWcfs6x_8OhEnY1uLAC3tpXZhgUqDzXm6AsRIgcCYEU1h6gFtrHtIABQysUcsVY_z6XxEznCrLvhSTeM9Ogfo/s1600/08028531.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdc3a3e7pnxe_VC_e2H9TJNb8m4nGnnrcDm4TNgY2ZUbVGNADAst2OfFSHWcfs6x_8OhEnY1uLAC3tpXZhgUqDzXm6AsRIgcCYEU1h6gFtrHtIABQysUcsVY_z6XxEznCrLvhSTeM9Ogfo/s1600/08028531.JPG" height="426" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">School WITH A VIEW! </td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Noum<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 18px;">Ă©</span>a</span> is the capital of New Caledonia. Think crystal blue waters, white sand and lovely weather. Locals think that '18 C is cold'. Quite the contrary for us Melburnians. We experience freezing, wet winters! 18 C is lovely. </div>
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The Age also wrote an <a href="http://www.traveller.com.au/twenty-reasons-to-visit-new-caledonia-10kde7">article </a>about it<br />
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Its tourism isn't as well developed as many other well known pacific islands but it really does have the potential. So it was a nice change to see that there weren't too many tourists lurking around. A lot of tourists notably from Japan, New Zealand and Australia. I went on an educational tour with my school via GET, which was quite professionally done! 14 students and two teachers.<br />
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The trip to the airport was actually pretty exciting, because we've pretty much all never been on a school overseas trip. The plane ride was only about 3 and a half hours, not too long. I sat with Eric and one of the school teachers. We watched quite a few episodes of Friends (my all time fave show) and by the end of it, we were struggling to keep our eyes open. Actually, I think everyone was quite exhausted despite the short flight because it was a reeeeally long day at the airport and arrived in the evening.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiR_Z6xXOxWdFSEDWmJZjkuDOfg-RkV3idrhsQyF8dFRcb61FMuNdOg1v5mnFRhZ2oLhTz-aNvFsAS-qTcnw_qD3dRmgmJ0jI1yoP3P-GarHXyZIW3VtbiasEnl-sc1YvvFuUJ0KLo9aWRP/s1600/10612774_1481375312115728_1467759597066240526_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiR_Z6xXOxWdFSEDWmJZjkuDOfg-RkV3idrhsQyF8dFRcb61FMuNdOg1v5mnFRhZ2oLhTz-aNvFsAS-qTcnw_qD3dRmgmJ0jI1yoP3P-GarHXyZIW3VtbiasEnl-sc1YvvFuUJ0KLo9aWRP/s1600/10612774_1481375312115728_1467759597066240526_n.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a></div>
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Yi Shan has a Gopro so she took that everywhere. So handy for group selfies ha ha ha.<br />
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There were also several other schools from Australia.<br />
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In a later post, I will write about Amedee, an island where we went snorkelling. I would've also loved to see <a href="https://encrypted-tbn1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSm95vZNs9YusjJb2istjxwqF3UGoUJc5iBetPLRq2noxfiJ8Sz">Ile de pins</a>, but we didn't have time to visit there!<br />
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We had 3 hour French lessons each day at the language centre, Creipac. They were quite literally some of the best oral lessons I've ever had. Not only was our teacher incredibly encouraging & helpful, she made the activities fun and we all learned from our mistakes. More on my French lessons in a later post.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhJPpSR-hhtSIdBpPOpXp0-Jauv5UVXjXG_QhbPIbrBP3Yq4tlwqp__oMHLG1FOwzTM3WyxzIXSNIXy913ekGsW2tMfY1SHVz06-RIwffHHrM5ORlAq6oF9MArkHPTpqIS9oIroprK8sre/s1600/08018503.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhJPpSR-hhtSIdBpPOpXp0-Jauv5UVXjXG_QhbPIbrBP3Yq4tlwqp__oMHLG1FOwzTM3WyxzIXSNIXy913ekGsW2tMfY1SHVz06-RIwffHHrM5ORlAq6oF9MArkHPTpqIS9oIroprK8sre/s1600/08018503.JPG" height="640" width="426" /></a></div>
Anyway, on the first night, we didn't do much because we arrived in the evening. We all had a pretty magnificent burger and a taste of Orangina- the French version of Fanta except that it is less artificial and more bitter..I quite liked it. First night was at the hotel, so us students played cards all night, trying to keep quiet but that really failed. But what do you expect with a bunch of students running wild in a foreign country?<br />
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Actually, our definition of 'wild' is playing countless card games........<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdsXcdENFqX2gDXAZYGwjM79dLpT-gvlprLRFRX6DgDLY8cRRMeL3OgzBFViOJmmWXttVKZJTDrt_W_Rdk-fJuWITk_jos3_KUPnHwSb0WE1j7Kz6UaY7cF2cgI4UXSKnDPhyphenhyphenHupv0EIqu/s1600/08028523.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdsXcdENFqX2gDXAZYGwjM79dLpT-gvlprLRFRX6DgDLY8cRRMeL3OgzBFViOJmmWXttVKZJTDrt_W_Rdk-fJuWITk_jos3_KUPnHwSb0WE1j7Kz6UaY7cF2cgI4UXSKnDPhyphenhyphenHupv0EIqu/s1600/08028523.JPG" height="426" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Next morning, trying to keep our eyes open. </td></tr>
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Yhphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02494422316969272902noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8939134999469405013.post-79280314674454224812014-09-29T17:19:00.001+10:002014-09-29T17:19:24.762+10:00New Caledonia<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiyE72PiJiP_ULLQTWsdcTMugwSydeLHZvMPPmcn5yfHLlt9daHLbyrZ17f0VoXNu1QxyjCbGEqJG-KBHClhOu3g7t2yRULfx5NxtQnbtAGCpBPEDe4JpLOK0bHKVdzpOFdMYbWm7PfFmY/s1600/08098882.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiyE72PiJiP_ULLQTWsdcTMugwSydeLHZvMPPmcn5yfHLlt9daHLbyrZ17f0VoXNu1QxyjCbGEqJG-KBHClhOu3g7t2yRULfx5NxtQnbtAGCpBPEDe4JpLOK0bHKVdzpOFdMYbWm7PfFmY/s1600/08098882.JPG" height="426" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="text-align: left;">Last week, I came back from my trip to New Caledonia. I was there for 11 days, and they were some of the best days I've had all year (apart from Singapore). </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjY2NLjfZ1uHLe9dPLSho1_bmk8bjkkpNefw7EzGMI5h4yf7IWnpw-U7E1pa0Ak7N7oCPeIaCNmwHCSSWKE-QrhmDWDYWlksrQjgAIjDKqD1ZrdyKGVDoCrPPPaoFNCqqCgFYiEXo1l8NZN/s1600/20140925_173720.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjY2NLjfZ1uHLe9dPLSho1_bmk8bjkkpNefw7EzGMI5h4yf7IWnpw-U7E1pa0Ak7N7oCPeIaCNmwHCSSWKE-QrhmDWDYWlksrQjgAIjDKqD1ZrdyKGVDoCrPPPaoFNCqqCgFYiEXo1l8NZN/s1600/20140925_173720.jpg" height="640" width="360" /></a></div>
The water is so picture perfect, the weather was amazing (Apart from one day where I wore a t-shirt and it was windy & raining. Possibly the worst idea). The trip was for a school French study trip, and I am so glad that I went. I had to really persuade my parents to let me come on this trip (I presented them my case last year), and I am really blessed to have had such a wonderful time there. I'll be of course writing & posting pictures of my adventure in New Caledonia, but that won't be for a while because of exams :( But I had such a lovely time there, I MISS THE COUNTRY SO MUCH ALREADY AND SAYING MERCI TO EVERYONE!<br />
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Ok gotta study study study.. :(<br />
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Yhphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02494422316969272902noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8939134999469405013.post-63815364137594268672014-09-05T21:58:00.001+10:002014-12-18T19:14:07.230+11:00Chilli brownies<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
So since I did the 40 hour famine, I was asking my older sister to ask her colleagues if they could sponsor me.. And in return, I would bake something! So I have baked <a href="http://aroundleglobe.blogspot.com.au/2012/11/cookies-and-cream-cheesecake-cupcakes.html">oreo cheesecake cupcakes</a>, <a href="http://aroundleglobe.blogspot.com.au/2013/04/the-baked-brownie-with-macadamias-and.html">baked brownies</a> and these chocolate chilli brownies.<br />
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Someone requested chocolate chilli brownies, and at first I was quite adamant. "What about just normal brownies?" However, I searched up some recipes.<br />
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So I settled on this recipe which gave me a different type of brownie. Normally I bake very dense, fudgy brownies, but these are a little mixture of both: fudgy and a bit cakey, thanks to the addition of baking powder & soda. Now, some of you may be shaking your heads.. "A BROWNIE SHOULD BE COMPLETE FUDGE OTHERWISE, IT'S JUST A CHOCOLATE CAKE." Yes, I can see your argument. But, I became a little bit more liberal when I tasted one of my friend's brownies... Cakey, moist with lots of chocolate chunks.<br />
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I added dark chocolate chunks and white chocolate chips, and I added a little bit more chilli powder than it asked for which gave it some kick. I think they're pretty good brownies, even though chilli sounds a tad weird. I'll definitely keep this recipe for normal cakey brownies too.<br />
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<b>Chilli chocolate brownies</b><br />
Ingredients<br />
230 g unsalted butter<br />
220 dark chocolate, divided in half<br />
1/2 tsp ground chilli<br />
1 tsp ground mixed spice<br />
1 tsp vanilla extract<br />
1 shot espresso or 1 tbsp instant coffee dissolved in 2 tbsp hot water<br />
1/2 cup cocoa powder<br />
1 cup brown sugar<br />
3 eggs, lightly beaten<br />
1 cup flour<br />
1/2 tsp baking powder<br />
1/4 tsp baking soda<br />
1 cup white chocolate chips or roughly chopped chunks<br />
Icing sugar (powdered sugar) for dusting<br />
<br />
<b>Method</b><br />
1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius/ 350 F<br />
2. Place butter, half the dark chocolate, chilli & mixed spice in a saucepan and gently melt together, stirring to prevent it catching on the bottom<br />
3. Transfer melted chocolate mixture into a large mixing bowl. Add vanilla extract, espresso, cocoa powder, brown sugar and eggs. Mix well.<br />
4. Sift in flour, baking powder & baking soda and mix until flour is just moistened.<br />
5. Roughly chop the remaining half of the dark chocolate and stir through brownie mixture along with whiter chocolate. Pour into lined 20 cm tin.<br />
6. Bake for 30-35 minutes, until firm around the edges and still slightly soft in the middle.<br />
7. Dust with icing sugar and serve with whipped cream or vanilla ice-cream<br />
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Adapted from <a href="http://ourkitchen.fisherpaykel.com/recipe/chilli-chocolate-brownies/">Our Kitchen</a><br />
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Yhphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02494422316969272902noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8939134999469405013.post-80444797811129519612014-08-22T18:58:00.003+10:002014-08-22T18:58:33.798+10:00Peanut butter cookie cheesecake <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_uad8BGvNvwgaLKA4JlR7NhZXGZcXSc4U1Li68-fNcU58GN6dt4FmWhV0eVeLS1veWOqUE1wYwTd3cLDFQwSxsF1OS1QH_cjS5BrabKuzCIFHNQl-oPGU4Z7RTD5Vr3kSLeHlST_0JojR/s1600/06258424.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_uad8BGvNvwgaLKA4JlR7NhZXGZcXSc4U1Li68-fNcU58GN6dt4FmWhV0eVeLS1veWOqUE1wYwTd3cLDFQwSxsF1OS1QH_cjS5BrabKuzCIFHNQl-oPGU4Z7RTD5Vr3kSLeHlST_0JojR/s1600/06258424.JPG" height="640" width="426" /></a></div>
This is for a dear friend whom I met about 9 years ago, when I first arrived in Australia from Malaysia! My teacher assigned her to show me around and everything, and since then we've come a long way.<br />
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We have been in the same class twice in primary school, and we have been in the same class since we were 13 in high school until now. She recently did debutante and I was invited as one of her guests! So honoured and such a fun night.<br />
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More than grateful to have a friend like you M.<br />
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Anyway these are easy and super tasty. Definitely a crowd pleaser from the raving reviews I got from my friends. Great hybrid like oreo cheesecake ehehehe. So I'm just quickly posting this post because tonight I'm doing the 40 hour famine.. 40 hrs without technology! What will I be doing? Catching up on school work, <b>reading lots of novels & magazines</b> and perhaps going out for a walk (instead of the treadmill!).<br />
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<b><u>Peanut butter cookie cheesecake</u></b><br />
<i><b>Ingredients</b></i><br />
1 unsalted stick butter (113 g or 1/2 cup), softened<br />
1/2 cup white sugar<br />
1/3 cup packed brown sugar<br />
1/2 cup peanut butter<br />
1 egg<br />
1 cup flour<br />
1 tsp baking soda<br />
1/2 tsp salt<br />
1/2 cup rolled oats<br />
2 cups chocolate chips (or chunks)<br />
8 ounces cream cheese, softened (1 block, 250 g)<br />
1/3 cup sugar<br />
1 egg<br />
1/2 tsp vanilla<br />
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<i><b>Method</b></i><br />
1. Make the cookie dough. Preheat oven to 325 degrees (I just baked at 350 F or 180 C). Cream butter, sugars, peanut butter until smooth and fluffy.<br />
2. Add egg & beat well until incorporated. In a separate bowl, mix flour, baking soda & salt. Slowly add the flour mixture in with butter & sugar, mixing well after each addition. Stir in oats & chocolate chips.<br />
3. Make cheesecake filling. Cream cream cheese, egg, sugar & vanilla until smooth.<br />
4. Press half to 2/3s of the cookie dough in the bottom of a 9-inch square baking dish. Pour the cheesecake filling over the dough. Crumble remaining dough and sprinkle over the top or roll it into a flat layer and place it over the cheesecake layer.<br />
5. Cover with foil and bake for 20 minutes. Remove foil and bake for another 15-20 minutes or until lightly browned and cheesecake is set. Serve warm or cold, and store leftover bars in the fridge.<br />
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Adapted from <a href="http://pinchofyum.com/peanut-butter-chocolate-chip-cookie-cheesecake-bars">Pinch of yum</a></div>
Yhphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02494422316969272902noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8939134999469405013.post-56891922487686918882014-06-29T17:50:00.000+10:002014-06-29T17:50:25.601+10:00Ottolenghi's chocolate fudge cake<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPdti0WRn_WkqGYcj_rQqbC517_jXE64cybvhaUGgYS9w6zQQIw9bsUs1b0KpewEgAvVQlahDuHGY8-V8w_f8xaOXHaMxOBqscbHkIxETK5wC01BVKIVMFeAX3zCOo12BrmSjU2GSVlnQ2/s1600/05148337.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPdti0WRn_WkqGYcj_rQqbC517_jXE64cybvhaUGgYS9w6zQQIw9bsUs1b0KpewEgAvVQlahDuHGY8-V8w_f8xaOXHaMxOBqscbHkIxETK5wC01BVKIVMFeAX3zCOo12BrmSjU2GSVlnQ2/s1600/05148337.JPG" height="426" width="640" /></a></div>
So my eldest sister has been requesting me for the past few months to make this: Ottolenghi's chocolate fudge cake. He has a bakery in the London which I would love to go to. I mean look at the picture...<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://aa0.triptease.net/images/full/ottolenghi-london-england-11639-1374511902.jpeg?1374511902" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://aa0.triptease.net/images/full/ottolenghi-london-england-11639-1374511902.jpeg?1374511902" height="265" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Source: Triptease.com</td></tr>
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Let me warn you that this is a chocolate cake not for the faint-hearted. This is a true chocoholic's dream (and I have a chocoholic family).<br />
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There's a lot of chocolate and butter involved. And you bake it twice! I accidentally used a big cake pan because I thought the mixture was going to over-flow, so my cake was rather flat. The texture of this cake is incredibly fudgy with a crackly top, almost like a brownie, but a bit on the lighter side since you have whipped egg whites. It's also not too sweet. Unlike the other <a href="http://aroundleglobe.blogspot.com.au/2013/03/flourless-chocolate-cake.html">flourless chocolate cake</a> I made (using almond meal), it's more rich & dense.</div>
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The cake is indeed quite rich, and berries would complement it real well. Or even with ice cream. It's also pretty delicious when warmed in the microwave..Think warm fudgy cake.. </div>
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But do you know what also goes really well with this? Green tea ice cream. We had a family lunch with my two sisters' boyfriends and my mum made some Malaysian food and I made this cake and <a href="http://aroundleglobe.blogspot.com.au/2013/03/green-tea-ice-cream.html">green tea ice cream</a>. Combine chocolate & green tea and voila, <i><b>c'est super</b></i>! </div>
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<b><u>Ottolenghi's chocolate fudge cake</u></b><br />
<i>Serves 8-10</i><br />
<b>Ingredients</b><br />
240 g unsalted butter, cut into cubes<br />
265 g dark chocolate (52% cocoa), chopped<br />
95 g dark chocolate (70% cocoa), chopped<br />
290 g light muscovado sugar (I just used light brown sugar) *<br />
4 tbsp water<br />
5 large eggs, separated<br />
Pinch of salt<br />
Cocoa powder for dusting<br />
* I reduced the sugar to about 250 g<br />
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<b>Method</b><br />
1. Preheat oven to 180 C (350 F).<br />
2. Butter a 20 cm (8 inch) springform pan and line bottom & sides with parchment/baking paper.<br />
3. In a large heat proof bowl, combine chopped chocolates & butter and melt.<br />
4. Combine the brown sugar/muscovado sugar with water in a small sauce pan and bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring frequently. Pour the boiling syrup over the chocolate & butter and stir until they have melted.<br />
5. Add the egg yolks, one at a time to chocolate mixture and then set the bowl aside until the mixture comes to room temperature.<br />
6. In a large bowl, using an electric whisk, beat the egg whites & salt to a firm but not dry meringue.<br />
7. Pour 2/3rds of the batter into your prepared pan (about 800 g, saving the remaining batter for later)<br />
8. Bake for 40 minutes or until a skewer inserted comes out clean.<br />
9. Remove the cake from the oven, and leave it on a wire rack to cool completely. Flatten the cake with an offset spatula, don't worry about breaking the surface crust and pour the rest of the batter on top.<br />
10. Level the surface again. Return the cake to the oven and bake for a further 20-25 minutes. When tested with a skewer, the cake should have a few moist crumbs clinging to it.<br />
11. Allow to cool completely in the pan before removing it. Dust with cocoa powder before serving.<br />
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Adapted from Ottolenghi's cook book (via <a href="http://notsohumblepie.blogspot.com.au/2010/07/ottolenghis-chocolate-fudge-cake.html">Not so humble pie</a>)<br />
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Yhphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02494422316969272902noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8939134999469405013.post-40839997154202725392014-06-28T21:38:00.000+10:002014-06-28T21:38:41.452+10:00Browned butter chocolate chunk cookie cups<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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To wrap up the end of the first semester, I wanted to whip up something quick and fast.. A portable dessert to feed some hungry friends of mine at school! Thursday I was rather lazy, so I just helped my mum cook some curry (With roti jala!) and watched Masterchef.. Cause ya know.. It's the end of the term! Thursday is essentially filled with 'Friday vibes'.<br />
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Semester 1 of year 11 was pretty tough.And what's coming ahead is supposedly even harder. I've learned to sort of cope with it now, at the beginning it was quite a transition.<br />
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So I'm promising myself to a better semester 2! Even though I've only got 2 weeks of holiday, it's already jammed packed with outings & devoting my time to studying and NOT PROCRASTINATING.<br />
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These remind me a bit of the <a href="http://aroundleglobe.blogspot.com.au/2013/01/mini-honey-buns.html">mini honey buns</a>.. Everything mini looks great.<br />
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Anyway I didn't get great pictures because of the lighting. Food bloggers, you'll know what I mean when there's not much natural light and it's so frustrating to take pictures of food! Nevertheless, these were awesomely delicious. Have it warm and you'll have chocolate oozing with the dough crumbling in your mouth. Have it at room temp and it'll be nice, soft and chewy! Either way, it's a nice cookie.<br />
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Would I make these again? Absolutely. These are fantastic or parties/gatherings or really for just a quick cookie fix.<br />
<br />
<b><u>Browned butter chocolate chunk cookie cups</u></b><br />
<b>Ingredients</b><br />
1/2 cup (113 g) unsalted butter, browned<br />
1 large egg<br />
3/4 cup light brown sugar, packed<br />
1/4 cup granulated sugar<br />
2 tsp vanilla extract<br />
1 and 1/2 cups bread flour (I used 1 cup all purpose and 1/2 cup bread flour)<br />
1/2 tsp baking soda<br />
1/2 tsp salt, optional and to taste<br />
1 and 1/4 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips or dark chocolate chunks<br />
<br />
<b>Method</b><br />
1. Preheat oven to 350 F(180 C) and spray or grease a 12 standard-sized muffin tin (I used a mini-muffin tray) with floured cooking spray or butter.<br />
2. Melt butter in a skillet, over medium-low heat, stirring continuously. The butter will melt, foam, turn clear, golden, turn brown and smell nutty. As soon as the butter begins to turn brown, take the pan off the heat and continue to stir for about 1 minute, to make sure that the heat doesn't continue the browned butter.<br />
3. Pour butter into a large mixing bowl and allow it to cool, so you don't scramble the egg.<br />
4. Add the eggs, sugar, vanilla and whisk until smooth.<br />
5. Add the flour, baking soda, optional salt and stir until just incorporated. Fold in the chocolate chips.<br />
6. Distribute amongst the muffin pans, about 2/3-3/4 cup full.The cookies don't rise much.<br />
7. Bake for 9-11 minutes or until tops have set and are golden. If you are using a mini-muffin tin, cut the baking time, or just be wary not to over-bake them.<br />
8. Allow cookies to cool in the pan and remove them.<br />
<br />
Cookies keep up to 5 days in an airtight container at room temp or up to 3 months in the freezer.<br />
Adapted from <a href="http://www.averiecooks.com/2013/01/browned-butter-chocolate-chip-cookie-cups.html">Averie cooks</a><br />
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Yhphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02494422316969272902noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8939134999469405013.post-91701853547733110332014-06-20T16:37:00.001+10:002014-06-21T21:04:52.094+10:00Hiatus<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.averiecooks.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/caramelapplecheesecakebars-11.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://www.averiecooks.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/caramelapplecheesecakebars-11.jpg" height="320" width="225" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Source: Averie cooks</td></tr>
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I haven't posted for almost a month, so it's been quite a while. I have been baking but nowadays, I've become a little lazy to photograph it, and since it's winter here in Australia, it get darks pretty early! But anyway, I made Averie cooks <a href="http://www.averiecooks.com/2013/10/salted-caramel-apple-cheesecake-bars.html">apple cheesecake </a>bar without the salted caramel sauce (because that failed), and it had the most incredible cheesecake base. I'll definitely have to make that again one day! I also made Sally's baking addiction<a href="http://sallysbakingaddiction.com/2014/03/25/lemon-blueberry-cheesecake-bars/"> lemon cheesecake bars</a>. It's more convenient to bake cheesecakes in square tins, and I don't even bake them in a water bath. Plus, it's very portable, so cheesecake bars are a great dessert to bring to parties etc.<br />
<br />
Anyway, I wrote<a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/yiihuei-phang/learning-another-language_b_5464392.html?utm_hp_ref=tw"> this</a> piece for the Huffington Post. See, I'm rather ashamed that I can't speak Mandarin or Cantonese fluently. Sometimes I'll have to mix Cantonese and Mandarin if I need to talk to someone who doesn't know English.. I was forced to attend Chinese school, and I suppose, just being that little ignorant girl, I didn't take advantage of it. I guess I was sort of influenced by culture and peers in Australia, and I also went to a primary school where I was quite literally the only Malaysian there. <br />
<br />
But anyway, now I'm older and I understand things better. All it took was one trip to Beijing to see Uncle D & Aunty M and that really gave me a reality check that Chinese, let alone any foreign language is extremely useful. I'm hoping to study Mandarin during university or sometime in the near future. So go ahead and read it, and feel free to let me know your thoughts!<br />
<br />
ALSO I HAVE A <a href="http://littlemissyh.tumblr.com/">TUMBLR</a> for photography and other things.. </div>
Yhphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02494422316969272902noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8939134999469405013.post-62339258487392376702014-05-19T18:40:00.002+10:002014-05-20T15:13:09.411+10:00Birthday cookies!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
These are birthday cookies for my older sister. I've made these cookies before, but somehow I feel like the second time round was even better. I used 1/2 cup oat flour AND an additional 3/4 cup rolled oats to give the traditional oatmeal cookie chewiness.<br />
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The espresso/coffee granules is a nice touch to complement the dark chocolate and heartiness of oats. The best way to eat these cookies are freshly baked from the oven (state the obvious) with a sprinkle of salt and a cold glass of milk.<br />
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The first time I made these, were with macadamias. However my sister requested no macadamia nuts!One of my good friends really dislikes nuts in any baked goods..Even walnuts in brownies. Her claim is "It tastes too healthy!!!" But these are very nice with macadamia nuts too.<br />
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Oh and side note.. Look at the pretty cheesecake my mum made for my sister!I'd say it's 'triple chocolate' because there are white chocolate shavings, a chocolate ganache and the cheesecake is chocolate too. The base is a combination of wafers, oreos and different biscuits. Great cake!<br />
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Happy birthday to my older sister!<br />
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<b><u>Dark chocolate espresso oatmeal cookies</u></b><br />
<i>Makes 18 cookies</i><br />
<b>Ingredients</b><br />
165 unsalted butter melted (3/4 cup)<br />
1 cup brown sugar<br />
1/2 cup white sugar<br />
1 egg<br />
1 egg yolk<br />
1/2-1 and 1/2 tsp salt, to taste<br />
1 and 1/2 tsp instant espresso powder (I increased this to 2 tsp)<br />
1/2 tsp vanilla extract<br />
1 and 3/4 cups plain flour<br />
1/2 cup rolled oats, finely ground in food processor<br />
1 tsp baking soda<br />
1 cup dark chocolate chunks/chips<br />
*additional 3/4 cup oats (optional)<br />
* 1 cup roasted macadamias (optional)<br />
<br />
<b>Recipe</b><br />
1. Preheat the oven to 180 C (350 F) and line a tray with baking paper.<br />
2. In a large bowl, combine melted butter with both sugars. Add egg & yolk and mix until incorporated.<br />
3. Stir in salt, coffee & vanilla.<br />
4. Add flour, oats & baking soda and mix until just combined<br />
5. Stir in chocolate chunks and chopped nuts (if using).<br />
6. Use a medium cookie scoop or tablespoon to scoop balls of dough onto prepared trays.<br />
7. Bake for 8-10 minutes, until lightly golden around the outside and just set in the middle (under-bake for a chewier cookie). Allow to cool on trays.<br />
Adapted from <a href="http://www.butterbaking.com/2013/09/11/macadamia-espresso-oatmeal-chocolate-chip-cookies/">Butter baking</a></div>
Yhphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02494422316969272902noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8939134999469405013.post-73123592393146243312014-04-20T17:59:00.001+10:002014-04-20T23:05:55.116+10:00Snaps <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
So my so-called 'holiday journal' was a complete failure. But in my defense, I was literally at home for the past two weeks apart from a few outings..<br />
At home/outdoors<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2_MDCuK8DifmZelNbVvDo7ab-ICPb7Xe4P74PGkZilVWgf_jmKCDaUVBt5bEPmPN_U26MF9SwI4mB_9I86Jbppu5ZJFQUDBT9NoITFVVkxzGFcL1s0CGOCKfTKa4YDJUMYzdYtJtBUPWy/s1600/Fotor0420174719.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2_MDCuK8DifmZelNbVvDo7ab-ICPb7Xe4P74PGkZilVWgf_jmKCDaUVBt5bEPmPN_U26MF9SwI4mB_9I86Jbppu5ZJFQUDBT9NoITFVVkxzGFcL1s0CGOCKfTKa4YDJUMYzdYtJtBUPWy/s1600/Fotor0420174719.png" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
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- TV show marathons (Falling off my chair when my favourite team gets eliminated from the Amazing race)<br />
- Bake a lot. I made <a href="http://aroundleglobe.blogspot.com.au/2013/03/double-chocolate-hot-cross-buns.html">double chocolate hot cross buns</a> twice.. The second time due to my sister's insistent demand of wanting something chocolatey. But I don't blame her. She's studying for her actuarial exams (brainy) and is rather quite stressed.. Chocolate is everyone's friend, people! I also roasted a chicken for the first time, made panna cotta with berries, brownies, tortillas... mhmmm..<br />
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- Throughout the week, the weather was really lovely! Blue skies, crisp autumn air. Gave me a chance to wear my favourite sunglasses from Sportsgirl when I went out for some walks.<br />
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- Read three books. A little disappointed I didn't read more.<br />
- Holiday hw. How mundane. I struggled to pick up a pen because I felt so lazy.That biology book you see up there? Not the greatest source of reference.. As much as biology excites me, this textbook <i>doesn't</i>. Slabs of writing and an insufficient amount of diagrams (diagrams are usually the best way to learn with bio).<br />
<br />
Some interesting outings<br />
- Watched Captain America 2 and Spiderman 2. Some serious good movies.<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://img2.timeinc.net/people/i/2012/stylewatch/gallery/emma-andrew/emma-stone-8-435.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://img2.timeinc.net/people/i/2012/stylewatch/gallery/emma-andrew/emma-stone-8-435.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The most attractive couple I've ever seen.</td></tr>
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- Had lunch & dessert with friends.<br />
- Went to the beautiful State library in the city to study for barely 2 hours with friends. The majority of the time? We ended up spending most of our time having brunch at <a href="http://www.urbanspoon.com/r/71/1584177/restaurant/CBD/Manchester-Press-Melbourne">Manchester press club</a> and Starbucks & Cacao green. And a little bit of shopping. #soproductive<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2c/Vic_State_Library_Facade_Pano,19.07.06_edit1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2c/Vic_State_Library_Facade_Pano,19.07.06_edit1.jpg" height="173" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Source: Google</td></tr>
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OH AND I finally sat for my Learner's driver's knowledge test so I can start driving soon! Probably should've done it.. A YEAR AGO, but I was a little lazy and I'm still worried about being a hazard to other drivers on the road..<br />
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So quite an unproductive, lazy 2 week break and I am not ready to go back to reality...</div>
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Yhphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02494422316969272902noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8939134999469405013.post-86947799504334746412014-04-12T19:04:00.000+10:002014-04-14T10:40:16.293+10:00Oreo cheesecake brownies<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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I just love baking hybrids; <a href="http://aroundleglobe.blogspot.com.au/2013/01/nutella-pretzel-brownies.html">nutella pretzel brownies</a>, <a href="http://aroundleglobe.blogspot.com.au/2013/02/cream-cheese-brownies.html">cream cheese brownies</a>, <a href="http://aroundleglobe.blogspot.com.au/2012/11/cookies-and-cream-cheesecake-cupcakes.html">cookies and cream cupcakes</a> and I'm dying to make these <a href="http://www.bakersroyale.com/bars-and-cookie-bars/twix-cookie-dough-cheesecake-bars/">twix cookie dough cheesecake bars</a> (how ridiculous do they sound?). So this is where brownie meets cheesecake and oreos.. C'est delicieux!<br />
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My second sister had to bring most of the batch to her colleagues, in fear that we'd end up eating the whole tray.. Bakers, I'm sure you'd understand the dangers. I love this recipe because you basically smother a nice thick layer of cream cheese in the middle and then put more brownie batter on top. Not only does the cream cheese layer look effortless, it tastes heavenly. Enough said, give these a try!<br />
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<b><u>Oreo cheesecake brownies</u></b><br />
<b>Ingredients</b><br />
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1/2 cup unsalted butter<br />
3/4 cup sugar<br />
1 package (8 oz or 250 g) cream cheese, softened<br />
3/4 cup confectioners' sugar/icing sugar<br />
2 tsp vanilla extract<br />
1 cup all purpose flour<br />
1/2 cup cocoa powder<br />
1/2 tsp salt<br />
2 large eggs<br />
1 and 1/3 cup coarsely chopped Oreo cookies<br />
<br />
<b>Method</b><br />
1. Preheat the oven to 350 F/180 C. Butter a baking pan and line with parchment/baking paper.<br />
2. In a saucepan over medium heat, melt butter. Then whisk in sugar and bring to a boil. Whisk frequently, boil for a minute. Set aside to cool for 5 minutes.<br />
3. In a bowl of a stand mixer (or by hand), beat together cream cheese, confectioners' sugar & vanilla extract until combined, about 1 minute.<br />
4. In another bowl, sift together flour, cocoa powder & salt. Whisk until combined.<br />
5. In a large bowl, whisk together eggs until combined. Whisk in melted butter-sugar mixture until well combined. Stir in flour mixture until combined, followed by Oreos.<br />
6. Spear half of the brownie batter into an 8 inch baking dish, then followed by a cream cheese layer. Then, distribute the remaining brownie mixture, spreading it evenly. Swirl with a knife if desired.<br />
7. Bake for 24-28 minutes, until brownies & cheesecake are set. Insert a knife into the cheesecake mixture, and it should come out clean. Edges will be lightly browned.<br />
8. Let it cool completely in the pan on a cooling rack before lifting out the parchment paper to remove the brownies.<br />
*Tip I read from <a href="http://smittenkitchen.com/">Smitten Kitchen</a>: Freeze them after it has cooled down, so it's easier to cut them.<br />
<br />
Adapted from <a href="http://sweetpeaskitchen.com/2011/04/oreo-cheesecake-brownies/">Sweet pea's kitchen</a><br />
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Yhphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02494422316969272902noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8939134999469405013.post-1903376795292124372014-04-10T21:21:00.000+10:002014-04-10T21:46:35.480+10:00Holiday diary:Day Four<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
I thought it'd be fun just to take a few snaps as a 'holiday diary', despite it being the 4th day already. I'm on my term 1 break, for two weeks. It's been pretty glorious. For example, yesterday I did nothing but had an Amazing race marathon (new season of course)..<br />
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DAY FOUR<br />
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I baked two types of brownies today; my favourite<a href="http://aroundleglobe.blogspot.com.au/2013/04/the-baked-brownie-with-macadamias-and.html"> Baked</a> ones and oreo cheesecake (recipe coming soon)! So decadent. Dw, I'm trying not to eat the whole tray; my older sister is taking them to work for her colleagues to sample..<br />
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Melbourne weather has been much colder lately (isn't it strange how we're experiencing fall/autumn while the northern hemisphere is experiencing spring?) so I wore my fluffy robe I received as a bday present a couple years ago, and H & M socks which I bought from Singapore.<br />
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I had dinner & dessert with my two sisters in the city after they finished working which was really nice! We went to a ramen bar and then went to the Lindt cafe to share waffles & chocolate lava cake.<br />
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I've also been reading my French tutor's book which is quite challenging, despite it designed for <i>les enfants</i>, but it's definitely helping with my recognition of sentence structures. And I'm writing down new vocabulary.</div>
Yhphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02494422316969272902noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8939134999469405013.post-63273820775216973972014-04-06T20:28:00.000+10:002014-04-06T20:28:10.072+10:00Flourless peanut butter cookies<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj56XXDiPbSKpRS7hqVN3XuUxing9pQGYtj_o2DtjJ6aR4V3hMUXBvp-xYYqzSF4QZOor2dEdQMkTStvbaVpvP_LB2_e8J9916ylPciJ4J2MyF-4bwCR9BdJd3KtCTQozlzabAA13kUkSET/s1600/02200530.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj56XXDiPbSKpRS7hqVN3XuUxing9pQGYtj_o2DtjJ6aR4V3hMUXBvp-xYYqzSF4QZOor2dEdQMkTStvbaVpvP_LB2_e8J9916ylPciJ4J2MyF-4bwCR9BdJd3KtCTQozlzabAA13kUkSET/s1600/02200530.JPG" height="426" width="640" /></a><br />
I always crave for a cookie. Why do you think I have posted 9 recipes of cookies on my blog? <a href="http://aroundleglobe.blogspot.com.au/2013/06/brown-butter-chocolate-chip-cookies.html">Brown butter chocolate chip</a>, being my favourite (and also a household favourite). The Brown butter choc chip recipe is from Ambitious kitchen, and so are these flourless peanut butter cookies! I've also made her <a href="http://aroundleglobe.blogspot.com.au/2013/04/brown-butter-snickerdoodles.html">snickerdoodles</a>.. All, have been executed with success.<br />
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These literally take about 5 minutes to whip up. It uses one whole <i>cup</i> of peanut butter. And a good, hearty amount of oats and dark chocolate chunks! I'm an avid peanut butter eater, so it's only perfect for pb-lovers.<br />
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These aren't your traditional kind of cookies. They're a little bit more chewy, and seriously take my advice when I say to warm these up so you have melty chocolate bits and drink with a cold glass of milk. I also like to sprinkle a little sea salt on top (something I learnt from reading food blogs).<br />
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<b><u>Flourless peanut butter cookies</u></b><br />
*Makes 16-20 cookies<br />
<b>Ingredients</b><br />
. 1 cup creamy or chunky peanut butter (not natural)<br />
. 2/3 cup brown sugar<br />
. 1 and 1/2 tsp vanilla<br />
. 2 large eggs<br />
. 2/3 cup rolled oats<br />
. 1 tsp baking soda<br />
. 2/3 cup chocolate chips or chunks<br />
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<b>Method</b><br />
1. Preheat the oven to 180 /350 F.<br />
2. In a small bowl, mix together oats & baking soda. Set aside.<br />
3. In a large bowl, beat peanut butter, brown sugar, eggs and vanilla with an electric mixer (or by hand) until smooth. Mix in dry ingredients and then gently fold in chocolate chips/chunks.<br />
4. Roll cookies into 2-inch dough balls. The dough should be pretty sticky. You can use an ice scream scoop/cookie scoop as an alternative.<br />
5. Bake for 9-11 minutes, remove when edges start to turn golden brown.They will continue to cook once you remove them from the oven.<br />
6. Cool for 2 minutes on the baking tray, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.<br />
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Adapted from <a href="http://www.ambitiouskitchen.com/2013/03/peanut-butter-oatmeal-chocolate-chip-cookies-flourless-no-butter/">Ambitious kitchen</a></div>
Yhphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02494422316969272902noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8939134999469405013.post-75676092930044334352014-03-24T21:46:00.000+11:002014-03-24T21:49:48.224+11:00Predicaments<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
I baked two cakes for my birthday. But there's a story behind this. I think some people may think I'm a little crazy to bake two cakes, but I'm just a person who refuses to give up and, rather a perfectionist. I'm an Aries, and I saw <a href="http://www.buzzfeed.com/katieheaney/10-signs-youre-a-total-aries">this </a>on Buzzfeed which are all freakishly correct traits of me; "When things don't go your way, you don't handle it... s<i>uper</i> well."<br />
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I'll give you a silly anecdote. A few years ago, I walked out of my piano exam and I was picked up by my second sister & dad. I was crying all the way home, because I felt like I didn't go as well as I would've wanted to. Next week I found out the result.. My result was an A. To this day, my sister still makes fun of me.<br />
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So I thought I had ruined my birthday mango cheesecake with an oreo base, because the sides of the base were a little soggy when I baked it in the waterbath. So I made another cheesecake, a Japanese cheesecake. Next morning, I cut a bit of the mango cheesecake; IT'S NOT ACTUALLY <i>THAT</i> BAD. And decided to go along with that cake for my birthday dinner.<br />
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Lessons learned: Double check that your spring-form pan is secure and wrapped around tightly with foil. You do not want soggy cheesecake base. And I don't think I'm going to bake my 18th birthday cake next year.<br />
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I cannot believe that I'm already 17, and a legal adult next year.. My sisters have been asking me "How did you grow up so fast?", which I can't answer to. I honestly feel like a fourteen year old... Not someone who is not far from finishing high school and entering the real adult world.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mango cheesecake</td></tr>
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My mango cheesecake was a semi-predicament; it didn't quite turn out the way I wanted, but it wasn't horrible. The base was a little hard to cut, and I was basically murdering the cake when I was cutting it to serve. But on the positive note, it was a hit. I really did not need to make another cheesecake...<br />
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But then I had another predicament. On Sunday night, my Samsung S2 which I've had for a year DIED. I was using it then suddenly it completely shut off itself. I can't turn it on anymore. I tried charging it, this that.. So I've been quite annoyed and it's extremely inconvenient when all of your contacts have been lost... So this calls for a new phone. But this won't be for a while :(<br />
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So I had a Japanese cheesecake to photograph. I used Diana's desserts recipe, the one I used for the cupcakes! But this time I used it for a bigger cake and it was very very delicious. As fluffy as it could be and a little spongy! One thing I would recommend is to strain your cheese mixture before adding the egg-whites, if there are any lumps. And add a tad more sugar because it's not very sweet.<br />
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Fellow bakers, what kind of baking disasters have you had?<br />
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Asides from these predicaments (<i>small </i>predicaments, I must say), I had a wonderful birthday surrounded by friends and family!<br />
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<b><u>Japanese cheesecake</u></b><br />
<b>Ingredients </b><br />
140 (5 oz) sugar *I'd increase to about 160 g.<br />
6 egg whites<br />
6 egg yolks<br />
1/4 tsp cream of tartar<br />
50 g (2 oz) butter<br />
250 g (9 oz) cream cheese<br />
100 ml/3 oz milk<br />
1 tbsp lemon juice<br />
60 g (2 oz) cake flour/superfine flour *I just added more cornflour since I don't have cake flour.<br />
20 g (1 oz) cornflour (cornstarch)<br />
1/4 tsp salt<br />
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<b>Instructions</b><br />
1. Melt cream cheese & butter & milk over a double boiler. Cool the mixture. Fold in the flour, cornflour, egg yolks and lemon juice & mix well.<br />
2. Whisk egg whites with cream of tartar until foamy. Add in sugar and whisk until soft peaks form.<br />
3. Add cheese mixture to egg white mixture and mix well. Pour into an 8 inch round cake pan (grease and line the bottom & sides of the pan with parchment paper).<br />
4. Bake cheesecake in a water bath for 1 hour and 10 minutes, or until set & golden brown at 160 degrees Celsius (325 F)<br />
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Adapted from <a href="http://www.dianasdesserts.com/index.cfm/fuseaction/recipes.recipeListing/filter/dianas/recipeID/2312/Recipe.cfm">Diana's desserts</a><br />
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Yhphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02494422316969272902noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8939134999469405013.post-69197309006676844922014-03-08T20:37:00.001+11:002014-03-08T20:38:15.411+11:00Celebrating International women's day<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
A lot of my friends questioned me why I hosted a Girl rising screening, something 'out of the blue'.<br />
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You see, I was never introduced into global issues and poverty as a young kid in primary school. My parents always told me how fortunate I am, but I never really understood that.<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/qa6BC2P2KHQ" width="560"></iframe><br />
It wasn't until year 9, where I had one of the most enthusiastic teachers I've ever come across; my humanities teacher. He inspired my incredibly, to do some good. As a class, we studied Blood diamond; the hidden truth about diamonds... I discovered the dark truth behind my beloved chocolate.. And also, we were taught to be critical of some campaigns such as the notorious failed KONY campaign. I did a research project which dove into looking at the violation of Afghan women, and just pondering about it made it think why should they be treated any differently to the way I am.<br />
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I stress, had it not been my teacher who introduced this rigorous curriculum, I would not be as passionate about the issues as I am today. I think it is incredibly important to introduce such topics like these into the school curriculum, which is why I wrote my <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/yiihuei-phang/take-a-stand_1_b_4643105.html">'Take a stand'</a> article a month ago.<br />
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I'm particularly passionate about these social issues and third world issues because<br />
1) Some of the sexist remarks I hear in school make me incredibly angry.<br />
2) The way some women are depicted in society is just simply unfair.<br />
3) These women who are having their rights violated in third world countries aren't able to have a voice, and if we are the ones who have the resources to raise that voice, <i>we</i> must answer to that plight. We need to raise awareness, particularly amongst us, youth!<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/NswJ4kO9uHc" width="560"></iframe><br />
^seriously, as much as I love Carl's jr, has eating a burger ever looked <i>sexy</i>? Last time I checked, sauce and lettuce just drips out of your mouth.<br />
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I wrote an article about the lack of coverage of influential women in the media. It's alarming to see girls around my age, doing things to attract attention, and I think part of that has been due to media exposure. Which has also led to some people stereotyping females or expecting standards. So please read my <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/yiihuei-phang/my-problem-with-the-media_b_4813117.html?utm_hp_ref=fb&src=sp&comm_ref=false#sb=5306750,b=facebook">article</a>, which sort of coincides with IWD! Also, highly recommend to watch this TedX talk (I could honestly have a TedX marathon all day long)!<br />
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Yhphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02494422316969272902noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8939134999469405013.post-20963216443239030702014-02-15T21:29:00.001+11:002014-03-10T09:46:44.731+11:00Simplicity<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
There's always beauty with simplicity. Simplicity in appearance, simplicity in food. Sometimes I like to be elaborate & picky, but every now and then, I'm a little too lazy to do something complicated.<br />
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I haven't really cooked or baked much lately, but I made something simple that was easy and wowed my family. Green tea panna cotta.<br />
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For me, panna cotta has always been one of my favourite desserts. Basically like a pudding; soft, creamy with that little jiggle. It's simple.<br />
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Now, perhaps some of you are like 'Hold your horse! Isn't panna cotta difficult to do?' So, some of you may be intimidated to make panna cotta like I was initially, but it turns out, it's actually super super easy. Who loves fast & easy desserts? *Raise hands*<br />
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Honestly? You'll probably have all these ingredients in your pantry except for the green tea powder. However, I do suggest buying some green tea powder because it's a beauty in desserts (e.g my <a href="http://aroundleglobe.blogspot.com.au/2013/03/green-tea-ice-cream.html">green tea ice cream</a>). I'd dial up the green tea powder and take down the sweetness just a little. But other than that, it was simple, and pretty perfect.<br />
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P.S you can find me on <a href="https://twitter.com/littlemissyhp">Twitter </a>now!<br />
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<b><u>Green tea panna cotta</u></b><br />
<i>Serves 6 (I made about 7 ramekins)</i><br />
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<b><u>Ingredients</u></b><br />
1 and 1/2 tsp green tea powder (I'd increase to 2 or 2 and 1/2)<br />
600 ml (21 fl oz) cream<br />
1/2 cup sugar<br />
3 tsp gelatine powder<br />
1/2 cup milk<br />
1/2 tsp vanilla extract<br />
*Optional: Sliced fruit<br />
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<b><u>Method:</u></b><br />
1. Put the green tea powder in saucepan with a little of the cream. Mix and form a paste. Then, whisk the remaining cream, ensuring that there are no lumps.<br />
2. Add sugar the saucepan, stirring to dissolve. Then, slowly bring the mixture to a boil over medium heat. Then remove from heat.<br />
3. Put the gelatine in a small bowl and whisk in 1/4 cup of the hot cream to form a smooth paste. Return the mixture to the saucepan, stirring until the gelatine has completely dissolved. Rest for 10 minutes to allow it to infuse.<br />
4. Strain the mixture into a large bowl, then add milk & vanilla and stir to combine.<br />
5. Pour into teacups/moulds/ramekins, and chill for at least 3 hours or until set.<br />
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<i>Adapted from Yoshoku via <a href="http://ooh-look.blogspot.com.au/2011/06/fusion-green-tea-panna-cotta.html">Ooh-look</a></i><br />
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Yhphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02494422316969272902noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8939134999469405013.post-589666949467641272014-02-07T19:54:00.000+11:002014-02-07T19:54:28.679+11:00Local eateries<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Of course you can't pass the local hawker stalls in Singapore....While there are nice restaurants like in my previous post, there are also plentiful of local eateries around! </div>
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<b>Porridge with deep fried pig intestines</b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEin9IP-2iBX1j_gf2CLNWHdBAmSyyCNtzJraAzsFmuE7ift1TmcrrSLeTqc-JIQO_cwrCLDxJoJJ3ox0m8C8bi-iNHSSZHEc-GzUNaFwVDCzhqqHi4SILzC7-wA4Nkoaym94bNCVjksaOiU/s1600/20140118_102740.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEin9IP-2iBX1j_gf2CLNWHdBAmSyyCNtzJraAzsFmuE7ift1TmcrrSLeTqc-JIQO_cwrCLDxJoJJ3ox0m8C8bi-iNHSSZHEc-GzUNaFwVDCzhqqHi4SILzC7-wA4Nkoaym94bNCVjksaOiU/s1600/20140118_102740.jpg" height="257" width="400" /></a></div>
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I was a little jittery when Aunty M & Uncle D said they'd be ordering some porridge with pig intestines and pig liver etc...But you know, it was not bad at all! Interesting. Also, above is one of Singapore's best fritters (yau zha gwai).</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNHxLnY3PTn9vmeoHNHIWrod0BqA6WCvpe9CRmREJrx5j4MCPJwp39Cwbo-X-dgR09kkv8xA88p7RM2FwuKTkOzYIaR63egWn8JRwSzuItuBkrRNoiDWh4drcMiGSpEhhc-XSSq8jLmKCl/s1600/20140118_102749.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNHxLnY3PTn9vmeoHNHIWrod0BqA6WCvpe9CRmREJrx5j4MCPJwp39Cwbo-X-dgR09kkv8xA88p7RM2FwuKTkOzYIaR63egWn8JRwSzuItuBkrRNoiDWh4drcMiGSpEhhc-XSSq8jLmKCl/s1600/20140118_102749.jpg" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
We also had this sashimi thing.<br />
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<b>Sweet mung bean soup with fritters</b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidCuuY2zB64_d-tl9x_eYE4yUXVedPqHMwkG3rtD0ZxdRSaA6Y9XBvmmwKBoV-7fWVvlVwASakYTPAczvVi4VNvLby3E00CjSBoqK3koVzwucfsYiDiypCp3s_0MyYXp3cgkL9GtzEahJ9/s1600/20140118_104234.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidCuuY2zB64_d-tl9x_eYE4yUXVedPqHMwkG3rtD0ZxdRSaA6Y9XBvmmwKBoV-7fWVvlVwASakYTPAczvVi4VNvLby3E00CjSBoqK3koVzwucfsYiDiypCp3s_0MyYXp3cgkL9GtzEahJ9/s1600/20140118_104234.jpg" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
Also had these little rice cakes with some pickles on top!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMHsCF52OscWLVCM9Xkd4pTiLzanL2jg5mpq08xRKl9s7BqW9cHujcY5q7kSCwN1dAnB81HrNRDd30srP8SEJUULs24RyEMcuZfq9gfhJVY8uER9G__Chqos2jcX5oZRq2tJixTJnaZGXp/s1600/20140118_104510.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMHsCF52OscWLVCM9Xkd4pTiLzanL2jg5mpq08xRKl9s7BqW9cHujcY5q7kSCwN1dAnB81HrNRDd30srP8SEJUULs24RyEMcuZfq9gfhJVY8uER9G__Chqos2jcX5oZRq2tJixTJnaZGXp/s1600/20140118_104510.jpg" height="400" width="398" /></a></div>
Making siew yoke...<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_iYpFcxGayrleZEwPjaSbsq40xmWlBf_r5COEAbUs0brF3AKqr2oHwu_n3ucTexRdzMlDP5EnPZd3wqEv0FEZ1PuHu7fvgGBj-T5Y_zDj8X3s0dav8LHtgILR-cXp9s8Q-MLFhOfhwbGB/s1600/20140119_165501.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_iYpFcxGayrleZEwPjaSbsq40xmWlBf_r5COEAbUs0brF3AKqr2oHwu_n3ucTexRdzMlDP5EnPZd3wqEv0FEZ1PuHu7fvgGBj-T5Y_zDj8X3s0dav8LHtgILR-cXp9s8Q-MLFhOfhwbGB/s1600/20140119_165501.jpg" height="400" width="300" /></a></div>
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This 'local eatery' was at my uncle and aunt's place. Uncle D is the<i> master of roast pork</i>... Roast pork belly has that traditional crackly, crispy skin. It was amazing. I learnt from the best! Now my family is awaiting for a replica. </div>
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<b> Baked crab</b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBplfkk2_9x1EfqYXQlsADxHarVcGtLSo3g7V4cVZXMJuM_iQ3EdViH6c7OyKXWP-0jX2wzw-whiCdHodDRF3eDvPjpUjNR7eJeAjhcAULLm9TSoqiijxL5IguZQc-z-e4hCYUOfW-dQ8b/s1600/20140119_184541.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBplfkk2_9x1EfqYXQlsADxHarVcGtLSo3g7V4cVZXMJuM_iQ3EdViH6c7OyKXWP-0jX2wzw-whiCdHodDRF3eDvPjpUjNR7eJeAjhcAULLm9TSoqiijxL5IguZQc-z-e4hCYUOfW-dQ8b/s1600/20140119_184541.jpg" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
The crab was amazing! We had black pepper baked crab and salt baked crab. Obviously if you want the <i>au natural</i>, then go with the salt baked. But I really fancied the black pepper because I'm crazy about black pepper.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj50jwtSuUFOF7SscyV6hyphenhyphenPPhZMiR_tXUzAe82o7J2MeJJJ0Lea-BoovwBdbEiklGBeFF_jgvGbs0hrrWKEdbsv9Y6oDdRbntXamqqmeOsWcuXty3YfrY8XuodT38VZ7ECRbsuIzwKi9ay0/s1600/20140119_193306.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj50jwtSuUFOF7SscyV6hyphenhyphenPPhZMiR_tXUzAe82o7J2MeJJJ0Lea-BoovwBdbEiklGBeFF_jgvGbs0hrrWKEdbsv9Y6oDdRbntXamqqmeOsWcuXty3YfrY8XuodT38VZ7ECRbsuIzwKi9ay0/s1600/20140119_193306.jpg" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
Had some laksa..<br />
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<b> Tutu kuih</b>. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0VqU8HPq9N2aZ7Un02wiQ_q1zwmM6HDt2pa5BhDwEmQTaqPW_xJwwYtuBmvQpHPh36FHW2RFozvtfonQ5hShYZsQu3r58XZC7Q7NAmPAQ-rzAq3g4O0WdICA4jDyWIxjqP6x5c3BhKdVT/s1600/20140120_140950.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0VqU8HPq9N2aZ7Un02wiQ_q1zwmM6HDt2pa5BhDwEmQTaqPW_xJwwYtuBmvQpHPh36FHW2RFozvtfonQ5hShYZsQu3r58XZC7Q7NAmPAQ-rzAq3g4O0WdICA4jDyWIxjqP6x5c3BhKdVT/s1600/20140120_140950.jpg" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
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Interesting type of kuih, soft, and spongy with a nice filling! Very nice to eat when it's warm.</div>
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<b>Cedele </b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLVkIogM-4UyvkyaX-28b-lwqzjkmM9v9JcuR6HJMn4AUkMEDgqt17lyFfDmPpAvyTOV3R_eaSxwt6y2d0WVpd6rkkUu2k7dt16ldc-4TwqwAkQ3ibYfKJ_PAgA2FNqt4qQXx2hm9RJxjM/s1600/20140120_180056.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLVkIogM-4UyvkyaX-28b-lwqzjkmM9v9JcuR6HJMn4AUkMEDgqt17lyFfDmPpAvyTOV3R_eaSxwt6y2d0WVpd6rkkUu2k7dt16ldc-4TwqwAkQ3ibYfKJ_PAgA2FNqt4qQXx2hm9RJxjM/s1600/20140120_180056.jpg" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
Cedele would be more fitting for the cafes post, but I simply had too many pictures! This was at a suburban mall, and I'm pretty sure there are a few branches. It claims that it has no transfat, and to be healthy. I thought the cakes were nice (especially if it claims to be healthy), I shared a salted caramel cheesecake & carrot cake with my aunty (on my mum's side, not Aunty M).I think the cheesecake needed a little bit more salt though, but the carrot cake was very nice. Thank you to Aunty J for taking me out!<br />
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So 'Local eateries' is my last post of my Singapore trip. Singapore was a fantastic trip! Just when you think five days is sufficient, it really <i>isn't</i>. There are lots of things to do in Singapore, more importantly, there is so much <i>food </i>to eat. Had such a lovely trip staying & spending time with my relatives, and so far it's been one of my highlights of 2014 (even though 2014 just started). </div>
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Yhphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02494422316969272902noreply@blogger.com0