Christmas is all around me

This Christmas will mark the first time I won’t be spending it with the family in Singapore. In any case, my family was never that big on celebrating this festival. It was always more of a watch-Home-Alone-and-Indiana-Jones-reruns-on-TV kinda day. Well, I’ll definitely be missing them (and my lovely friends), especially since there’s a new baby in the house (not mine, thankfully).

Yixiao came down for almost three weeks (with one week spent in Japan), and together, we headed off to Lantau for Buddha admiring.

Of course, what would our excursions be like without some dessert!

Her ice cream (caramel hazelnut and mixed nut cheese?) looked delicious, but I had in mind to try the tau-hway (soya bean curd) at the monastery.

In search of my perfect LBD for a formal event cos I-have-all-this-money-and-no-dress (nose flares ala Julia Roberts in Pretty Woman), we headed on a shopping tour in Causeway Bay. Alas, it was found in Zara (it says classic, elegant and gorgeous to me).

To rest our tired feet, we had a break at Azabu Sabo (Fashion Walk, Level 2). I discovered a new fondness for green tea ice cream.  Some crazy photos we took:

Haha.. I love this photograph. We look CRAZY, yo!

Finally to complete this Christmas post, I would like to write down what I’m appreciative for:

1. Being able to start a new job in a new city with so much support and help (from new friends and of course, that somebody)

2. Having friends back home whom I know will be there for me no matter what

3. Knowing my family cares very much for me

4. Being healthy, and more importantly, knowing that good health is something I should not take for granted

5. To have people I love safe and healthy

Okay, till 2009! Take care!

Diana Does Hakone

On Friday, we decided to head down to a traditional Japanese ryokan, Ichinoyu, in Hakone, for some good onsen (hot springs) soaking. This ryokan was recommended by my guidebook (Frommers), for both the food (yay!) and the ambience.

Ichinoyu opened its doors in the 1630s, and some parts of the ryokan apparently are preserved from that era!

Me in the traditional onsen outfit. You’re supposed to wear this (sans everything else) everywhere within the ryokan. 

A photo in the lobby.

THE FOOD NOW. We choose the Dinner Set B, which added a sashimi on top of the standard shabu shabu set.

SASHIMI – worth the trip

The tofu in gravy tasted home-made and had a very soft, slip-down-your-throat texture. The pickled greens with bamboo and a fish cake was not as memorable. 

Fried fish

The rice was cooked in yam and vegetable bits, and behind that is the shabu-shabu.

Scallops baked in olive oil and tomato salsa

Our palette-cleansing yuzu sorbet

For those who haven’t tried going to an onsen, you must. It’s a liberating experience as you go through the process entirely exposed with other women of all ages. From what I observed, going to a public bathhouse is a bonding experience for both men and women with friends and families. It was heartening to see aunties helping to scrub the backs of their friends while they chatted happily amongst themselves.

In other news, I have officially become a graduate! Yesterday’s Grad Night was a good opportunity for me to meet my old friends and find out how everyone is doing. Apparently, many people thought that I had left for Hong Kong for good (A common refrain: You’re back????). Well, it’s still a good one month before I’m heading to the Pearl of the Orient to start a phase in my life. Within this time, I’m actually going to do an internship/apprenticeship with 2am:dessertbar for two weeks. Let’s see how it goes!

 

Dessert Tour in Central, Hong Kong

During this trip to Hong Kong, I was very fortunate to have made a new friend whom I shall introduce as The Architect (as seen in The Matrix) of The Brunch Club. Like me, she has a passion for food and baking, and thus invited me on a dessert tour, visiting dessert places around Central that I hadn’t been to, one rainy afternoon.

First up, a bit about The Brunch Club. I’m proud to say that I have visited the cafe at least once in every of my trips to Hong Kong. The first thing that strikes you when you step in is how cozy the place is. There are several tables with sofas, which is perfect for a lazy afternoon with some tea, dessert and of course, catching up on your gossip, fashion, world events etc from the wide variety of magazines available for browsing (and for sale as well).

Note our choice of reading material

We had the salmon omelette (I forgot if it was with bacon or cheese) which comes with toast, a hashbrown and salad. It was delicious and quite enough for two to share. What I like about The Brunch Club is how it isn’t just a cafe to get coffee. It’s like a place to chill with friends, meet new people and basically spend an afternoon away from the hustle of Hong Kong. In the coming year ahead, I definitely see it as one of the places I’ll be spending time in on the weekends.

Okay, back to the tour.

Sweet Secrets (Address: 32 Lyndhurst Terrace, Central, 2542-2816)

We shared the Chocolate Mousse Cheesecake, which came with a side of fruit and mango sauce. The cake was smooth, and the cheese/chocolate textures and tastes blended well together. The only gripe I had was the addition of the mango sauce, which basically added a confusing level of sweet tartness to the flavours. In any case, I would definitely go back to Sweet Secrets if I ever had a cheesecake craving.

Cake-a-licious (Address: Lower Ground Floor, 11 Lyndhurst Terrace,, Central, 28152218)

First of all, the name is simply adorable and very to the point. I always look down into the shop, which is located in the basement, as I walk past, and see an assortment of colourful cupcakes on display. I decided to try the Lemon Cupcake, as I wanted something zesty.

I find that unlike other forms of dessert, the simpler and more unadulterated a cupcake is, the better it tastes. This cupcake fit the bill and left a slightly tart aftertaste without being too saccharine sweet.

Sift Dessert Bar (Address: 46 Graham Street G/F Central Tel: 25304288)

I was particularly excited to go to this place because of a reason that I will reveal in July. Sift Dessert Bar pairs desserts with wine, which is a novel concept that is slowing gaining momentum in Singapore (read: 2am:dessertbar). It has an open-kitchen concept, where you can see your dessert being made behind the bar. However, 3pm is rather early for alcohol inhalation, so we settled on:

Sift Chocolate Cake – There is one chocolate cake that I can never resist, and that is one with hazelnut praline in it (I have always wanted to replicate such a cake at home). Every bite of premium chocolate mousse and hazelnut crunch bits was simply heavenly.

My friend’s order was the Ispahan, which, according to the website, is an ”homage to Pierre Herme”.  The lychee ice-cream was incredibly cleansing to the palette, which provided a contrast to the raspberry macaroon filled with lychee buttercream and fresh raspberries.

To say the least, I was on an induced sugar high at the end of the tour, and for several days after that. Of course, for me, desserts always are well worth it. Thank you, The Architect!

The Vanilla Series: Vanilla Bean Ice Cream (without an ice-cream maker)

I recently bought a pack of three precious vanilla pods from my favourite baking one-stop shop, Phoon Huat. Therefore, the next three recipes, including this one, will feature the vanilla in all its pure glorious form. To kick off this Lemony Snicket-wannabe series, l have chosen a simple Vanilla Bean Ice Cream recipe, also keeping in mind the need to keep cool in this weather.

However, I did face a little problem – I don’t own an ice cream machine. Fortunately, the Internet has everything useful, useless, and un-useless that you need (or not) to know. Thus, I was able to find this website which gives you straightforward instructions on churning your mixture into ice cream without an ice cream mixer.

Vanilla Bean Ice Cream (adapted from the Food Network website – please note that I have halved the original recipe)

Ingredients:

1 vanilla bean 
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
1/2 cup whole milk 
3/4 cup sugar 
1 1/2 large eggs

Let’s begin with making the ice cream mixture.

You start with the vanilla pod. For those who are unfamiliar, it looks like a long black thin stick. The aroma is intense when you slice into it lengthwise using a sharp knife, and using the back of your knife, you try and scrape as much of the vanilla seeds into a large heavy saucepan as such. 

Stir in pods, cream, milk, and sugar. Bring mixture just to a boil, stirring occasionally, and remove pan from heat.

In a large bowl lightly beat eggs. Add hot cream mixture to eggs in a slow stream, whisking, and pour into pan. Cook custard over moderately low heat, stirring constantly, until the custard thickly coats the back of a spoon, or until a thermometer registers 170 degrees F. (Do not let boil.)

Pour custard through a sieve into a clean bowl. Place the bowl in a large bowl of ice water and let the custard chill, stirring occasionally.

Moving on, churning to get the ice cream:

Place your chilled (very important) custard in a wide bowl into the freezer for about half an hour. The ice cream should have started to freeze at the edges but not fully to the centre. (In my case, my freezer wasn’t cold enough - so I placed my bowl in a bowl of crushed ice with salt to further lower the temperature and chilled it for 45 mins). Take the bowl out of the freezer and beat the mixture until it’s creamy again.

 

(Yixiao, if you’re reading, thanks for the extremely cheery oven mitten. Its first public appearance probably isn’t the most apt one, considering that it’s used to protect my hands from the HEAT. Haha. Don’t worry, I’m going to use it more appropriately in future recipes.)

Repeat the process until you have beaten the mixture for a total of three times (including freezing the mixture in between the churning). Put the mixture into the freezer for a final time until it’s ready to eat, which might take half an hour and above, depending on whether you like your ice cream consistency soft or firm.

I admit, this is a time-conscious process, and will require that you are at home (and awake) for a couple of hours. Also, I would have liked it to be less sweet. However, the result you get is a unadulterated thicky custard that melts in your mouth, leaving a lovely aftertaste of vanilla. In other words, it’s worth it.

Note: For those who own an ice-cream machine, simply freeze in the maker. Transfer ice cream to an airtight container and put in freezer to harden. Ice cream may be made 1 week ahead.