Chocolate Sponge Cake~

Cakes, they come in many different forms, black forest cake, tiramisu, cheese cake, chiffon cake, marble cake, butter cake, fruit cake, mousse cake, banana cake, walnut cake, coffee cake, cupcake... etc... and the list goes on and on. There's always something for everyone.

Hmmm... i like my cake simple and plain, without whipped or butter cream, ganache or mousse, cream cheese or custard, fruits or gelatin. How about you? What is your favourite cake?

~*Chocolate Sponge Cake*~

This wonderful chocolate sponge cake recipe was adapted from a section of Aunty Yochana's Awfully Chocolate Banana Cake.

The cake is fluffy and soft. A nice balance between the sweetness and chocolate flavour.

i'd highly recommend this basic chocolate sponge cake recipe for adventurous people who intend to bake a variety of chocolate based birthday cakes ;)

Ichiban Boshi @ Suntec City Mall~

It's post F1 fever but it's still alittle quiet over at suntec city... hmmm... Perfect, if you are looking for a quiet evening.

A peaceful and enjoyable dinner with good food and friendly and prompt service.

~*Yasai Salad*~

For starters, fresh lettuce, baby corn, japanese cucumber, tomato and asparagus served with special japanese dressing.

~*Maguro Sashimi*~

~*Salmon Sashimi*~

~*Kinoko Yanagawa*~

Assorted mushroom claypot soup with egg simmered in dashi stock. Another nice way to enjoy your mushrooms~ Yum!

~*Soft Shell Crab(left) & Lobster salad(right) Handrolls*~

Yummie-licious!

A second serving of soft shell crab handroll :p~

Bean Curd with Glutinous Rice Ball~

Rojak! Popiah! Fish soup! Cabbage! Congee! Lao Po Bing! Tau Sar Piah! Kim chi! Mr Bean ice cream! Rolled oats! Red beans! These are some of my previous/recurrent food cravings.

Keke... can you guess what's my current food crave? ...Hah! Yupz! It's ah balling a.k.a glutinous rice ball... hee...

i happened to be at Bukit Merah on a cold and rainy morning and craved for a hot bowl of ah balling when i stumbled upon this Soya Bean Milk and Bean Curd stall at Bukit Merah Food Centre. What other better way then to have a hot bowl of dessert to keep myself warm. :p

~*Bean Curd with Glutinous Rice Ball*~

A generous serving of bean curd with 4 homemade ping pong size ah ballings (2 peanuts, 2 black sesame) in hot soya bean milk (i specially requested for no addition of sugar syrup to my dessert). The bean curd was smooth and rich. The glutinous rice layer was chewy (but slightly thicker than zhen jie's ah balling) and filled with smooth and sweet black sesame or ground peanut fillings.

For my standards, with the omission of the sugar syrup, the sweetness of the ah balling filling was enough to complement the hot soya bean milk and bean curd. Awww~ what a satisfying bowl of hot dessert :p~

Zhen Jie Desserts & Ah Balling @ Amoy Street Food Centre~

This has got to be it! i've found it! The number 1 choice, my favourite Ah balling stall! Chewy boiled glutinous rice flour with a generous amount of filling, served in sweetened peanut soup. There are a total of 7 different flavours to choose from, red bean, lotus seed, yam, black sesame seed, green tea, peanut or durian :p~

~*Ah Balling in Peanut Soup*~

A serving of 4 or 6 glutinous rice balls in sweetened peanut soup at just $1.50 and $2 respectively.

The sweetness of the hot peanut soup was just nice. The peanuts were so smooth, soft and melts in the mouth.

The glutinous rice flour layer was not too thick, "Q"/chewy and smooth.

i had a combination of 2 peanut and 2 black sesame seed ah ballings. The black sesame seed paste was smooth and sweet. And the ground peanut filling was rich and yummie-licious :p~

Besides ah balling, the stall also sells a variety of hot and cold desserts. Hmmm... do you have a favourite Ah balling stall to recommend?

Harbour City Restaurant~

Dim Sum lunch at PSA building, Harbour City Restaurant.

~*A spread of Dian3 Xin*~

Char siew pastries, crispy spring rolls and fried yam.

~*Siew Mai & Har Kow*~

A must have whenever it comes to ordering dian3 xin1!

There was a balanced proportion of meat, fat and prawn in the siew mai/shao1 mai4.

The har kows were alittle disappointing... although the medium sized prawns were wrapped in a thin layer of flour, they must have been sitting on the steamer for some time... the prawns were soft and slightly mushy...

~*Prawns Wrapped in Beancurd Skin*~

~*Chee Cheong Fun with Prawn Filling*~

The steamed rice flour alittle thick and of a slight gooey/gummy texture.

~*Pan-Fried Carrot Cake*~

An asian version of the carrot cake, pan-fried radish with rice flour (Luo2 Buo4 Gao1).

~*Fried Scallop Bacon Rolls*~

Deep-fried scallop wrapped with bacon and topped with salad dressing.

~*Crystal Vegetable Dumplings*~

Hmmm... when it comes to dimsum, where's your favourite hang-out? Any recommendations?

Lau Pa Sat~

Dinner at the newly renovated Lau Pa Sat, with new marble tables and wooden stools, and an elevated centerstage directly above the drinks/desserts/fruits stalls ('Live' band plays every fri and sat nights from 7.30pm onwards).

It has been a really long time since i last ate at Lau Pa Sat, which is famous for their satay stalls, seafood and wide array of cuisines.

What did we order? The 4 of us shared a spread of spicy and relatively oily local delights (with 3 bowls of rice), and a popiah for me too! :p

~*Popiah*~

Gourmet popiah from "Bao Luo Wan Xiang". A large popiah filled with seasoned boiled turnip & carrots, beansprouts, sliced cucumber, eggs, ground peanuts and lettuce.

~*Satay*~

Mutton and chicken satays with ketupat (compressed rice cake), onions and cucumbers served with thick & rich, sweet & spicy peanut gravy.

~*Sambal Kang Kung*~

Alittle disappointing... it wasn't as spicy as i hoped it was :x

~*Lala*~

Z had a quarter of it and S pratically finished the rest of the plate. i had none of 'em, not a fan of shell food...

~*Sambal Stingray*~

Grilled stingray topped with sambal belachan and served with lime and cinchaluk sauce.

~*Fried Squid*~

Crispy squid, cucumber and pineapple fried with sweet and spicy sauce.

Ice Queen Ice Cream~

My gelato craving was triggered after reading ieatishootipost's blog about Ice Queen Ice Cream. Thank goodness i was able to roll down to Golden mile food centre to sample the homemade gelato ice cream and satisfy my craving.

~*3 Scoops @ $3.50 only!*~

i had a combination of chrysthemum tea (which was fragrant and moderately sweet), strawberry (i could actually taste the flavour of fresh strawberries!) and mocha (i love the slightly chewy texture and bitter sweet mocha flavour). Overall, the gelato had a slightly chewy texture, they were moderately sweet and weren't too creamy. i was extremely satisfied with the serving, just nice and didn't feel the least "jelak" (sick of it). It's definitely worth the trip to travel all the way for the delightful homemade gelato ice cream.

~*Check out the range of flavours*~

Peanut, chocolate with hazelnut, orange sorbet, lychee sorbet, rum & raisins, mocha, durian, black sesame, chrysanthemum tea, earl grey tea...etc

Looking forward for more Ice Queen Ice Cream! :p~

Mini Sesame Star Bread~

Little mini bread bites, once you start, it's kinda hard to stop...

~*Mini Sesame Star BRead*~

These mini savoury treats are bread-like soft on the inside and are best enjoyed during breakfast or during tea with a cup of hot milo or hot chocolate :p~

Recipe

Ingredients

• 120 g Cake flour
• 60 g Bread flour
• 20 g Corn flour
• 5 g Yeast
• 1/2 tsp Bicarbonate soda
• 1 tsp Coffee emulco
• 1/2 tsp Common salt
• 1 Tbs White sesame seed
• 2 Tbs Black sesame seed
• 1 tsp Chilli powder
• 1/2 tsp Ground black pepper
• 25 g Margarine (soften)
• 120 ml Warm water

Method

1. Sieve the bread flour, cake flour and corn flour into a mixing bowl. Add in the yeast, bicarbonate soda, salt, pepper, chilli powder, sesame seeds and stir to mix well.
2. Add in the coffee emulco, margarine and water. Mix well to form a dough and knead it for 5 minutes till dough becomes elastic and smooth.
3. Using a rolling pin roll and flatten the dough to about 3 mm in height. Using a cookie cutter, cut out the dough into desired shapes.
4. Place them onto a baking tray lined with grease proof paper and bake in a preheated oven at 190 degree celsius for 10 minutes.
5. Remove from the oven and allow them to cool for 1 to 2 minutes before serving. Best enjoyed when their warm.

Outback Steakhouse @ Millenia Walk Part III~

A decent aussie dinner as well as friendly and prompt service at Outback Steakhouse.

~*Outback Steakhouse Bushman Bread*~

This complimentary honey wheat bushman bread is soft, fluffy, sweet and goes very well with the margarine spread.

~*Chicken On A Barbie*~

Grilled tender chicken breast with spices served with seasoned steamed vegetables and barbecue sauce.

~*Outback Sirloin Steak*~

Medium rare sirloin steak (225 g) served with 2 sides, grilled onions and chips.

Wedding Dinner @ Four Seasons Hotel~

The nine course chinese dinner was held in a beautiful and cosy ballroom. All through the night, guests were treated to the passionate vocals of Bevlyn Khoo as she crooned to the tunes of famous love songs while they enjoyed their feast.

~*Heart-shape Chocolates*~

The words Passion/Joy were embossed on them, symbolizing the union of 2 passionate hearts and the celebration of a joyous occasion :) The one on the left is a white milk chocolate containing chocolate cream and the one on the right is a dark chocolate containing coffee cream.

~*Combination Platter*~

For starters, a combination of baby abalone, mini octopus, jellyfish, drunken chicken and roast duck (not shown).

~*Braised Superior Shark's Fin with Crabmeat*~

~*Roasted Suckling Pig served with Sliced Home-made Flour Buns and Black Hoi Sin Bean Sauce*~

This dish must have been inspired by the infamous Beijing Roast Duck.

~*Steamed Star Garoupa with Superior Soya Sauce*~

~*Wok-fried Diced Chicken and Scallops with Cashew Nuts in Taro Ring*~

The deep-fried yum ring was crispy on the outside, soft and smooth on the inside but not too oily :p~

~*Stir-fried Glass Prawns with Asparagus in "Jiang-Nan" Savoury Sauce*~

Just look at the size of the juicy large prawns!

~*Braised Black Mushroom and Sea Cucumber with Seasonal Vegetables in Conpoy Sauce*~

Juicy mushroom and wobbly sea cucumber with spinach in thicken constarch with dried scallop sauce.

~*Stir-fried Ee-Fu Noodles with Crabmeat and Straw Mushrooms*~

A variation from the usual dry Ee-fu noodles fried with dark soya sauce.

~*Sweetened Red Bean Cream with Lily Bud and Lotus Seeds*~

Thickened sweet red bean soup, anyone? Someone mistook the lily bud for onions! keke... they do have some similarities in texture and crunch :x

It was indeed a lovely night with great company, which consisted of my poly mates and their hubby/fiance.

Congratulations E & C! *Big Hugz* Have a blissful marriage, filled with eternal love and happiness!

Crystal Jade Kitchen @ Toa Payoh~

Here are some of the dishes my family had during lunch at Crystal Jade Kitchen.

~*Braised Peanuts*~

Our stomachs were growling as we were going through the menu, we literally finished this appetiser in a matter of seconds.

~Xiao Long Bao*~

The soup in the pork dumplings were alittle blend and not as intense and fragrant as din tai fung's.

Oops! There should have been five Xiao long baos, the missing one was consumed by my mum before this picture was taken :x

~*Prawn Wanton Noodle (dry)*~

Fine and springy noodles served with fresh prawn dumplings and green vegetables.

~*Sliced Beef Noodle (dry)*~

The beef was tender and juicy.

~*Roast Duck*~

Tasty and fleshy roast duck meat served with sweet sauce. Highly recommended by my dad and bro :p~

Besides these, we also had meat congee, century egg with lean meat congee, siew mai and har kow.

Hurrr... what a satisfying meal it was :)