You are currently browsing the monthly archive for November, 2007.
That’s right! I am now part of the awesome group called Daring Bakers! It’s hard to not notice this group if you read food blogs because a good majority of the food bloggers out there are part of this magnificent community. At the end of every month you will get to see what the Daring Bakers have been up to when the entire group posts about their findings on the same recipe.
The challenge for November is hosted by Tanna of My Kitchen in Half Cups, on the topic of Potato Bread. Yep, this is a yeasted bread that needs proving and kneading. Nope, we are not allowed to use the bread machine, we have to do it with our bare hands! This sounds like an exciting challenge for someone like me - one who has NEVER baked bread or even thought of baking one (not when you can get cheap loaves of bread off the shelves these days).
The recipe which Tanna provided included many details and tips on how to handle the dough. Hearing comments from other DBakers about how gooey and soft the dough was made me wary of the difficulties I might face ahead, but it also made me more excited about getting the challenge done!
Here, I present my very first Daring Bakers report!
Chinese cuisine with a difference indeed!
I had dinner with my family and relatives at Taste Paradise last night to celebrate my dad’s birthday. My mum had been raving about their delicious codfish and shark’s fin soup ever since her first visit there a few months back.This posh restaurant located in Chinatown advocates fine dining where food is served with passion and glamour. Every dish served was elegantly decorated and colours were interestingly paired (my sis noted that they love to pair Red and Green).
My cousin is having a BBQ birthday party tonight for her ‘lil boy! In my family, whenever someone holds a party, the rest of us will usually contribute a dish or two just like you do in a potluck. Nevermind that there is already enough food at the party, it has become a habit for everyone to turn up with something extra.
My mom asked me the other day to think of something to make so I can bring it to the party. I browsed through my collection of recipes and read all the food blogs I frequent to gather some ideas. I wanted to try a new recipe, something I’ve never made and have always wanted to. In the end, I picked apple strudel!
The apple strudel I had in mind was the layered version you find from Ritz Apple, served with creamy custard. Almost all the recipes I found online were that of the tradition German apple strudel where the apple filling is wrapped inside the pastry. I searched high and low for recommendations on the type of pastry to use - strudel, puff or phyllo; ways to make that creamy custard - think Ritz Apple and Beard Papa Cream Puffs, not tradition custard cream. After much research, I ended up using a combination of recipes and adjusting the methods to get what I had in mind.
Dinner with XY at Melvados - The Original Brownie Cafe.
Mushroom Soup - A little bland, and was not as creamy as I liked it to be.
Chicken Lasagne - The spinach complemented the lasagna well, but overall, the dish lacked the strong cheesy taste I think good lasagnas should have.
