Recently in Miscellaneous Category

While on my maid of honour duties (bridal dress shopping for my sister), the bridesmaids, my Mum and I had an hour to kill in between appointments so I decided to introduce everyone to the $2.50 shop on Clarence Street. Yes, we Sydney-siders have our very own Japanese 100 yen shop!

Shopping at Maruyu's $2.50 (100 yen) shop at Sydney's Clarence Street, Town Hall

To the bemusement of my sister, who had never traveled to Japan and learnt of the treasures available for only 100 yen each, she squealed with joy. It was only my second visit and much like sharing good food with good friends, it was a very delightful afternoon, watching the girls pick up a heap of quirky must-haves which they didn't know they had needed. Let me assure you, any trip to the $2.50 (100 yen) shop, will be very satisfying.

They stock everything from kitchenware to tableware to gardening tools to underwear!

[Top left - Bottom right] Food serving tray (image source: fotobank.ru), onigiri punchers/cutters (image source: Just Bento), cute rabbit egg mould (image source: Just Bento), table ware: bowls, dishes, cups, chopsticks (image source: Chipango), fish shaped soy sauce disposable containers and gourmet toothpicks (image source: Lunch In A Box), the $2.50 (100 yen) shop at Maruyu in Clarence Street Sydney (image source: J Style), grater / multi-slice tool for daikon, ginger, cucumber or other vegetables (image source: Lunch In A Box) and lastly, a heart-shaped mini frying pan (image-source: catgirlpink)

Some of the cool and cute foodie things on sale include a pair of plastic egg moulds which let you transform an ordinary boiled egg into a work of art that any kid would eat, a star-shaped miniature frying pan for adorable pancakes, those serving trays you see at ramen joints like Ichi-ban Boshi or Menya, sake cup sets, a massive selection of graters and slicers in all shapes and sizes for daikon, ginger or cucumber, and yes, even those disposable sushi boxes and fish-shaped soy-sauce containers!

And what's best, is that shopping up a storm here won't hurt your wallet.

So what are you waiting for? Shop up & eat up!

Maruyu City Super
Basement & Ground Floor, 283-285 Clarence St., Sydney
Tel: (02) 9267 0882
Open Monday - Friday 10am - 7:30pm, Thursdays until 8pm, Saturday 12pm - 6pm and Sunday 12pm - 5pm

NEWS FLASH
Plus in other exciting news... guess who's going to be on stage at the Chinese New Year Festival Markets at Sydney's Belmore Park (12 - 14th February)? That's right - me, me, me!

I'm working with Asian Home Gourmet to present a line up of delicious kitchen demonstrations.

My book, I Ate My Way Through Singapore & Vietnam, will also be on sale so pop by and say hi! ;)

Event Details
Date: Friday 12 - Sunday 14 February 2010
Time: Friday 4.00pm-10.00pm & Saturday/Sunday 11.00am-10.00pm
Venue: Belmore Park, across Eddy Avenue from Central Station
Cost: Free
For more information: www.cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au/cny/Events/ChinatownMarkets.aspx

In celebration of the new year, I thought it would be suitable to look back at all of my best eats in 2009. Here, I've included some of my most frequently visited restaurants as well as a few memorable favourites.

Most Visited Casual Restaurant: Dong Ba Bun Bo Hue, Bankstown, NSW
I think I have honestly dined at Dong Ba at least once every fortnight in 2009 - joining the regular local slurpers of Bun Bo Hue, a Hue-style spicy noodle soup. It is only $7 and the food (they also serve plenty of other traditional Vietnamese eats such as my second most ordered dish here, the Cambodian Rice Noodle Soup) is served at lightening fast speed. Dining at Dong Ba in Bankstown is always a guaranteed fuss-free cheap and cheerful eat. Another bonus is that the menu caters for all possible cravings of anything Vietnamese so is sure to satisfy everyone. But the best part would probably be their drinks menu which includes the iced black coffee and the avocado milkshake.

Dong Ba
296 Chapel Rd South, Bankstown, NSW

Bun bo hue (Hue-style spicy noodle soup) at Dong Ba, Bankstown - My most visited casual restaurant of 2009

Most Expensive: Le Cinq, Paris
In May 2009, I left home for my first eating extravaganza in Europe. Let me just start off by confessing that I have a really bad habit of not checking prices whether it be shopping or food. My boyfriend almost passed out when he browsed through the 'host' menu at Le Cinq, which I had booked many months in advance. Thankfully I had the 'guest' menu which didn't have the prices so he was able to break the shock to me slowly. We soon justified to ourselves that because we had travelled all the way from Sydney to Paris, it would only be right if we allowed this one splurge and promised to be sensible throughout the rest of the trip. Le Cinq sits within Paris' most luxurious hotel - Four Seasons George V, and is the most elegant space I've ever dined in. Something like 440€ (AU$900 at the exchange rate during that time) excluding drinks and service charge and almost six hours later, we left gleefully with a massive dent on my credit card.

Le Cinq
Four Seasons Hotel George V
31, Avenue George V, Paris, France
www.fourseasons.com/paris/dining

Best Surprise: Wiseman Park Wollongong City Bowling Club
My boyfriend was transferred to Wollongong for six months for work, a few years ago. During a visit to some of his old workmates earlier in 2009, we were introduced to Wiseman Park Bowling Club. Tucked within a senior's bowling club bistro is this spectacular down-to-earth yet slightly fancy restaurant. Think traditional Mediterranean and remember to make a reservation if dining on a Friday or Saturday night as the secret is out, and this place is hawt!

Wiseman Park Wollongong City Bowling Club
Gipps Road, Wollongong, NSW

Favourite City Travelled To: Barcelona
My time in Barcelona can easily be summarized with daily visits to the Boqueria Market - the best market I have ever been to. The vivid display of fruits, seafood and jamon was an amazing sight and simply drool-worthy. The friendliness of locals shouting "hola" and the buzz in eating paella after paella, oh, and the shoes made Barcelona my favourite city visited in 2009. Hopefully I'll get a chance to visit it again soon.

Boqueria Market
www.boqueria.info

Fruit drinks display at Boqueria Markets, close up of paella and tapas in Barcelona

Most Visited Seafood Outlet: Ocean Foods, Drummoyne, NSW
Almost every drive on Lyons Road in Drummoyne has resulted in me stopping by at Ocean Foods. Their floor to ceiling glass walls means there's no running away from the grand display of fresh and ready to cook seafood and salads.

Ocean Foods
154 Lyons Rd, Drummoyne, NSW

Most Visited For Dessert: Mamak, Sydney, NSW
Roti and condensed milk are just made for each other. After countless dinners at other restaurants across the city, Sydney food bloggers, myself included, seem to always end up at Mamak for dessert. The roti tisu is a golden cone encrusted with butter and sugar that tastes heavenly with a swirl of condensed milk and sometimes, even ice-cream. If that doesn't have you drooling, the roti pisang will - with freshly sliced banana that caramelizes within a thin buttery roti. Oh, so good.

Mamak
15 Goulburn St, Haymarket, NSW

Favourite Late Night Dining: Wagaya, Haymarket, NSW
With ridiculous trading hours (Wagaya opens until 2am on most nights), private booths and a quirky touch screen ordering system, late night dining at Wagaya is perfect for those night owls (like me) who want a decent feed. I can't get enough of their soft-shell crab hand rolls, lotus root chips or takoyaki gratin. Unfortunately, all this late night dining has contributed greatly to my growing waistline... Hmm... Did someone say New Years Resolution?

Wagaya
Level 1, 78-86 Harbour St, Haymarket, NSW

Dining at Wagaya - Most Visited Late Night Dining Restaurant of 2009

Best Discovery of a Hidden Gem: Uchi Lounge, Surry Hills, NSW
Uchi Lounge is only a street behind the chaotic Oxford Street but upon stepping inside, you're in a whole new world. It is soothing and peaceful, offering a selection of Japanese sake cocktails and some scrumptious food such as their grilled eggplant with miso and a sprinkle of parmesan.

Uchi Lounge
15 Brisbane St, Surry Hills, NSW

Favourite Bar: Water Bar at Blue, Woolloomooloo
I was introduced to Water Bar after my 25th birthday dinner in 2009. It's the fine dining of bars. As well as offering all the traditional cocktail favourites, Water Bar also features a range of new concept drinks that utilises some surprising and experimental techniques. Elderflower martini with a cucumber air, the kaffir lime dacquiri with coconut foam or the spiced fig whisky sour are just a few to name. The only downside here are their trading hours, closing at midnight on most nights and 10pm on Sundays and Mondays.

Water Bar
6 Cowper Wharf Rd, Woolloomooloo, NSW

Favourite Brunch: Rhodes Phoenix, Rhodes, NSW
Yum-Cha, Dim-Sum, whatever two words you use to call the fine art of eating dumplings and other Chinese delicacies over tea with friends or family, is a weekend hobby of mine. Having discovered the Phoenix group in 2007 - there's four of them: Sky Phoenix, Hilltop Phoenix, Manly Phoenix and Rhodes Phoenix, I quickly became a regular at the Rhodes restaurant which is only a short drive from my place. 2009 saw me dining at Rhodes Phoenix more than ever before. I have such a weakness for their prawn toast!

Rhodes Phoenix
1/5 Rider Blvd, Rhodes, NSW

Back in August, I posted Part 1 of 'Must-Have iPhone Apps for Foodies'. Four months on and the app store is still buzzing with new developments that some of us foodies are hooked onto.

Please join me in welcoming guest blogger, Franz Scheurer (also known as blues_junkie on Twitter), who has compiled Part 2 of iPhone Apps Foodies can't do without.

Franz is the man behind Australian Gourmet Pages, a Spirits Editor for Gourmet Traveller's Wine magazine and a contributor to Blend magazine (New Zealand), American Express Centurion and Platinum magazines.

IPHONE APPS I CAN'T DO WITHOUT
By Franz Scheurer

As a food and drink reviewer it's always good to keep up-to-date with technology and the following iPhone apps are 'must-have':

Decibel $1.19
This is a simple decibel meter that works. If you ever wondered just how noisy a restaurant is, this is the app you need. Fantastic!

SMH Good Food Guide 2010 $11.99
If you buy the book you will need more than one; for the home, for work and for the car. If you download this app for the iPhone it is always with you and it's a searchable database, quick and convenient. I love the: 'what is open now' feature!

Ask The Butcher $ 2.49
The Puharich name is synonymous with quality meat in Sydney. Be it the fabulous wholesaler Vic's Meat or the funkiest butcher shop in Australia Victor Churchill, they know they meat. Now you can too with this fabulous app that not only shows you the name of the cut (with pics) but also features great recipes and a facility to order on-line. Top marks!

Herbs+ $ 3.99
Herbs+ offers you information of popular herbs, complete with images, gardening tips, culinary ideas, medicinal uses. You can also link to a specific herb to Wikipedia without leaving the app.

Fromage $ 3.99
Another foodie app that is a definite must-have. Detailed information on over 650 cheeses, including images, history, flavour profile and suggested wine matches. Indispensible!

Consume $ 2.49
Ever dreaded the arrival of the phone bill? Now this is a thing of the past. With Consume, a usage monitor, you get a clear graphic of your usage. This way you can make sure you use up as much of your plan as possible without going over and incurring hefty fees. Works with more than 44 providers in 6 countries.

Shazam Encore $ 5.99
This is clearly black magic. Ever wondered what the tune is that is playing? No longer; point Shazam at the sound and it will tag the song, come back to you with who it is and display the CD and give you a chance to download / buy it, and share it with your friends. Awesome!

Are there any other foodie apps you can't do without? Share yours by leaving a comment below.

This post has nothing to do with food but plenty to do with me.

You may have noticed from the updated ABOUT section of this blog, that I have recently made some big changes. So when AMEX (American Express) brought to my attention, their latest campaign on “Potentialists”, I was super keen to take part. It’s a topic very close to my heart and I hope this post can help many who feel stuck (in work and life).

Social researcher Mark McCrindle explained that ”Potentialists are the one in five Australians who demonstrate a clear ambition to live a rounder life –one that mixes traditional career success with a refreshing appetite for new experiences. They are looking to make more of what they have, rather than always wanting more, and display an optimistic attitude that has previously been most associated with Generation Y.”

So here’s my story.

Three months ago, on the eve of my 25th birthday, I built up the courage and determination to resign from what used to be my dream job.

How it all started… I entered the professional world of advertising / interactive / digital media (whatever you wish to label it) straight out of uni. I studied a Bachelor of Design Computing at the University of Sydney which was a very broad but interesting course, allowing me to dabble in everything from eMarketing to 3D modelling to game development to interactive design and product design. At graduation, I felt that the degree hadn’t offered me enough so I went on to do a Graduate Diploma in Commerce, specialising in Marketing at the University of New South Wales.

Then I job-jumped several times; I always felt like it was the right time to leave once I had stopped learning new skills and wasn’t challenged enough. I thrived on testing new waters (and occasionally threw myself into the deep end) and loved moving diagonal on the corporate ladder. It meant I was ultimately able to easily expand my expertise and networks while giving myself the satisfaction and salary rises I knew I deserved.

While all of this was happening, I had of course picked up several hobbies. Blogging and producing my photographic memoir, I Ate My Way Through Singapore & Vietnam was one of them, but I also enjoyed dressmaking, web designing, web developing and photographing. These hobbies were pursued outside of work which meant that it was common for me to be up until 3am on a weeknight.

Business also became a hobby. After exposing myself to hundreds of business blogs, books and seminars, I found myself filled with business ideas and little time to do research let alone write business plans. I loved the idea of making something out of nothing.

I hit a snap point after two business ideas fell through which was when I realised I was letting a lot of opportunities go simply because I couldn’t commit to them 100%. So it was only logical that I take the next step and work four days a week.

I did that for about two months before deciding the one day off wasn’t enough.

In the first few months post-employment, I have become an events coordinator, a publicist, a book distributor, a copywriter and a digital marketing consultant specialising in food and hospitality. So until I’m hit with the responsibilities of marriage, children and a mortgage, I love not knowing where my entrepreneurial interests will take me in the next few years.

Here are 5 tips on what you can do next:

1. Surround yourself with inspiration.
Read and meet success stories. Check out the film Lemonade; a documentary which tours the lives of former advertising executives, post-GFC (Global Financial Crisis), from the moment they were fired through to how they saw it as an opportunity to discover long-held dreams that range from artist, to holistic healer, to coffee roaster.

There are plenty of social networks around which are filled with like-minded people, whatever your interest lies within.

2. Experiment with different hobbies
If someone had told me that I will be doing my hobby full time, three years ago, I never would have believed them. I think ultimately, everyone desires to spend more time on their hobbies, whether it be go-karting, painting, travel writing or jewellery-making so give everything a go until you find your passion.

3. Take advantage of flexible working arrangements
Taking the first step can be as simple as leaving work an hour early to attend a writing or cooking course.

4. Recognise who your support team is
Let your partner, family, friends and even colleagues know about your decision to explore your inner-artist and decide what compromises need to be made. Their support is invaluable.

5. Combat fear
Once you’ve fleshed out and faced the worst case scenario, opportunities tend to look brighter :)

Win a $300 travel voucher
Thanks to American Express, one lucky JENIUS reader will be able to take their inspiration to another level with a $300 travel voucher, helping them realise their travel potential.

To enter, simply leave a comment below in 25 words or less and tell me how this $300 travel voucher could help realise your potential.

Competition closes 19th November, 2009 at 11:59pm AEST and is valid to Australian residents only.

P.S. Don't forget to drop by Global Gallery in Paddington, Sydney, this week to check out my book and photography exhibition! x

THIS COMPETITION HAS NOW CLOSED.

I'd also like to take this opportunity to thank all participants for sharing their passion, aspiration and goals. I am truly inspired.

Good luck with chasing your dreams!

Jen
x

The CHOICE Shonky Awards is like the film industry's Golden Raspberry Awards (frequently referred to as the Razzies) for consumer products and services. Best summed up by the CHOICE spokesman Christopher Zinn, "The Shonky Awards highlight what is frankly ridiculous about some of the worst examples of sub-standard products and services CHOICE reviews each year".

When Mark Communications invited me to attend a behind the scenes tour of CHOICE's headquarters, I was more than curious to see where and how these products were tested.

I'll just start off by saying that the CHOICE test labs puts a whole new dimension to a classroom science experiment.

Here are 10 interesting things I discovered:

1. All tests are conducted in a controlled environment. For example, the kitchen is always a steady 23 degrees.


2. Different food types, temperatures and loads are used to test BBQs. Did someone say party?


3. The kitchen is definitely where the fun is. Varying textures from pizza dough to meringue were used to test mixers. They even test microwave defrosters with frozen quiches, measuring the temperature distribution on a hedgehog thermo conductor.


4. Being a CHOICE tester isn't for the commitment phobic. It takes approximately 2 weeks to test mixers, 5 weeks to test BBQs and 12 weeks to test 2 batches of fridges.


5. Tested products are eventually sold half price to staff or auction houses, and occasionally, eBay.


6. It's all about accuracy and monitoring. Everything from heat to energy measurements goes through the calibration lab and if required, a correction factor is added. Heck, even rulers are calibrated!


7. 28 different areas are tested inside a fridge; consistent temperatures result in a longer food life span versus of course, sporadic temperatures.


8. It only takes 1 person to test coffee machines. Caffeine overdose? Oh, and they're tested with short blacks made from Vittoria coffee.


9. What stains are used to test dishwashers? A mixture from the 4 food groups of starch, protein, fibre and fat are used to stain dishes in quarters which are then left to dry overnight in a controlled environment.


10. To CHOICE staff, hot water means 60°C and cold water is 20°C.

While none of the Shonky Award winners collected their gongs, along with who's who of consumer media, some bloggers and I had a good laugh at Vanessa Wagner's demonstrations of just how dodgy these lemons were. And yes, that's a rubber chicken you see in the stock pot!

The Awards that were most relevant to foodies include:
CHOICE Shonky Award: Water at what price?
Winner: Chefs' Cupboard and Massel liquid stocks
Why: The liquid stocks are made from reconstituted powder or concentrate, meaning consumers are paying an extra $2.50 per litre for the convenience of pre-added water.

CHOICE Shonky Award: Honey I shrunk the groceries
Winner: Uncle Tobys Oat Crisp Honey cereal
Why: Shrinkage with extra packaging meaning that despite the RRP as decreased 6%, the unit price increased by 10%!

CHOICE Shonky Award: Cheese-fearing surrender monkey
Winner: Tiffany FP807 food processor
Why: It failed a simple cheese and mayonnaise test and the plastic parts of the shaft even crumbled. Epic fail!

Win a free 3 month subscription to CHOICE!
Want more unbiased product reviews and comparisons? Thanks to Mark Communications and CHOICE, one lucky JENIUS reader will be able to enjoy a 3 month subscription to CHOICE magazine. Simply leave a comment below in 25 words or less and tell me about a shonky product experience you have had.

Competition closes Sunday 15th November, 11:59pm. Winner will be announced on Monday 16th November. Competition is open to Australian residents only.

This competition has now closed.

Gazebo Wine Garden's girls' picnics are such a wonderful offering. They're exactly my type of thing -a picnic where all you have to do is round up the girls! The food and wine is catered for, there's no worrying about picking the perfect spot or getting dirt on your pretty sundress. It's a bit like camping really. I enjoy the great outdoors but would never go camping au naturale... In fact, the only time I have ever gone camping was at Booderee National Park in Jervis Bay where we were steps away from electricity, toilets and BBQs. Brilliant I say!

The Girls' Picnic must be booked in advance and are available from noon til 2:30pm on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays. For $35 per person, you're greeted with a glass of bubbly and three tiers of delicious goodies.

At lunch with the girls -Maggie, Karen, Emma and moi

Glasses of bubbly

We decide to also share two jugs of Pimms & lemonade which are $25 a pop. The jugs are full of Pimms No1, Gordons gin, Rosso sweet Italian vermouth & strawberries, mint, cucumber topped with lemonade & dry ginger ale. It is refreshing, fruity and sweet.

The quirky furnishings and whimsical decor come complete with cute waiters dressed as lifeguards. Ours happily posed for us :)

Our lifeguard

Pimms and lemonade

Quirky decor

The picnic theme is brought to life with a wicker picnic basket, warm French baguettes and a convenient wooden chopping board and knife. Accompanying the bread are delicious marinated olives, an avocado and pistachio dip and a corn relish.

French baguette and picnic basket

Marinated olives, dips and relish

It was lovely to bask in the sun whilst feasting our eyes on a garden filled with beautiful vines, old Victorian chairs and cushions and enlivened with fresh flowers.

In the garden

Three tiers of delicious goodness

The first tier was salads. They were served room temperature which suited us well as we felt we were beginning to roast in the heat ourselves. There was pumpkin & feta, roasted almond salad, chat potato salad with mustard mayo dressing and green onion, mushrooms with pesto and a simple ratatouille with chunky pieces of cauliflower.

Salads

The second tier were meats and seafood. There was smoked honey ham with fresh iceberg lettuce leaves, cherry tomatoes and chunks of cheddar cheese; piping hot deep-fried soft shell crab; cooked prawns, smoked Atlantic salmon, lightly peppered pastami, steamed mussels and pickles and cornichons on a bed of rocket -plentiful to go around.

Meats and seafoods

On the side we also add a rocket, pear, pinenut and parmesan salad which is a combination that can never go wrong.

Rocket salad

Finally, we ate our way up to the top dessert tier which we had been eyeing from the start. Moist chocolate brownies went hand in hand with fresh pieces of rockmelon, strawberries, watermelon and marshmallows.

Dessert

Leave the picnic rug at home and hop on down to Elizabeth Bay...

Gazebo Wine Garden
2 Elizabeth Bay Rd, Elizabeth Bay
Phone: (02) 9357 5333
Web: www.thegazebos.com.au

With all my server hosting issues last month, I didn't get a chance to update the Top 50 Australian Food Bloggers list... but I stayed up last night and here it is, at it's new home: www.jenius.com.au/top50australianfoodblogs.

I have also introduced Google Back-links and Twitter into the calculation, and have replaced Technorati Authority numbers with Technorati Blog Reactions.

Check out the list and let me know if you think I've left anything out.

Cheers,
Jen
x

1. Food Watch NSW (Free)
Fresh from the developers hands, this app uses data from the NSW Food Authority list. Maybe raising more awareness of the name and shame list will help restaurant owners realise just how severe their breach of food safety standards is! This smart app can pick up your location and show you nearby restaurants to steer clear of.

2. UrbanSpoon (Free)
What's more fun than a pokie slot machine style app that helps you decide where to eat, what cuisine to try and how much to spend.

3. Sky Burger ($2.49)
A bit like Tower Bloxx, in this instance, you work your way up the corporate ladder by catching and stacking ingredients. This is my current obsession after Sally's Spa and Restaurant City. (That is, Restaurant City on Facebook -the iPhone game doesn't exist yet?)

4. FastFoodFinda Australia ($1.19)
On a roadtrip and desperately need to gorge on a burger and fries? FastFoodFinda can locate your nearest Hungry Jacks, Burger King, KFC, McDonald's, Oporto, Red Rooster and Subway! It would be nice to see some independent fast food joints appear in here, but this app is sure to be handy when in an unknown territory.

5. Food Additives ($2.49)
An useful app for anyone with or shopping for someone with allergies or reactions to food additives. It's a visual dictionary detailing the additive number, substance origin, general use, adequate daily intake, known side effects, dietary restrictions and countries unapproved for use. Handy as hell.

Sometimes, it's just really hard hiding my inner-geek. If you follow me on twitter, you'll notice that I've been celebrating my 25th birthday the last two weeks. What started with a surprise weekend getaway organised by the boyfriend turned into a sequence of dinner parties with various friends and family.

So instead of blogging my way through the huge backlog I have just formed (La Cucina Cortesi, Olive On Ocean View, Velero, Galileo and more), I fiddled around with some numbers and voila -here's my data visualisation of how a Gen Y receives birthday wishes.

It shows the different channels used and the time of day the message was communicated.

Just a few things to note:
1. My sit-down dinner party of 20+ people was on the day after my birthday, which is why the in-person channel is so high on the next day.
2. I work in the digital media industry so the statistics for the social media networks may skew slightly higher

The Aussie in me has never experienced a cold wintery Christmas. I'm used to the barbecues, the fresh seafood, chilled fruity drinks and spending the morning watching a repeat of Christmas cartoons followed by a balmy afternoon at the beach.

My dear friend Sarah decided to host a Christmas In July afternoon tea last week. There was no roast turkey or presents for each other. Instead, we used this occasion as an excuse to kick the boys out of the house and bake. Then instead of swapping presents, we brought along gifts and donations for kids in need and burnt off the calories wrapping some rather difficult open shoe boxes.

I took this opportunity to bake lemonade scones -I have always been fascinated by the simplicity of the ingredients required; and lemon meringue tarts, from my newly bought cook book: Patisserie (Le Cordon Bleu Home Collection), which was only $5.95 from Basement Books!

Lemonade Scones
(From Nigella's website)

Ingredients

3 cups self raising flour
1 cup thickened cream
1 cup lemonade

Method

1. Place all ingredients in a bowl and combine gently. Knead and pat out until 3cm thick and cut out with a 5cm scone cutter.

2. Place on lined tray, brush with milk and bake at 200 degrees for 15 - 20 minutes until top is browned.

Lemonade scones in the making

Lemonade scones

The scones were so quick and easy to bake! It's a great recipe for the young ones to be involved in too. The result were these delicious fluffy scones, which were accompanied with homemade mulberry jam and cream.

Scones with homemade mulberry jam and cream

Lemon Meringue Tarts
(From Patisserie (Le Cordon Bleu Home Collection))

Ingredients

Shortcrust Pastry
200g plain flour
Large pinch of salt
Large pinch of caster sugar
100g unsalted butter, chilled
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 - 2 drops of vanilla extract or essence

Meringue
4 egg whites
200g caster sugar
2 tablespoons icing sugar

Lemon Filling
6 egg yols
250g caster sugar
4 teaspoons finely grated lemon rind
Juice of 4 lemons
60g unsalted butter

Method

1. In a large bowl, sift together the flour, salt and sugar. Cut the butter into 1cm cubes and place in the flour.

2. Rub the butter into the flour using your fingertips until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs.

3. Make a well in the centre and pour in the combined egg, 2 - 3 teaspoons water and the vanilla.

4. Slowly work the mixture together with a palette knife or pastry scraper until it forms a rough ball. If it is slightly sticky, add a little more flour. Turn out onto a lightly floured cool surface, gather the dough into a ball and flatten it slightly. Wrap the pastry in plastic wrap and chill for 20 minutes before use.

5. Brush two 12-hole muffin tins with melted butter. Preheat the oven to moderate 180°C.

6. Roll out the pastry on a floured surface to a 3mm thickness. Cut 22 circles of pastry to fit the tins, then ease them into the tins and chill for 20 minutes. Cut 22 circles of baking paper slightly larger than the pastry cases and place in the cases. Fill with baking beans or rice. Bake for about 10 minutes. Remove the baking beans or rice and paper from the cases and return to the oven for a further 5 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from the oven, leave to rest for 2 minutes, then cool in their tins on a wire rack.

7. To make the lemon filling, half-fill a pan with water and heat until simmering. Using electric beaters, whisk the egg yols and sugar in a heatproof bowl that will fit over the pan without actually touching the water, until light and creamy. Add the lemon rind, juice and butter and sit the bowl over the pan of simmering water. Whisk continuously for 10 - 15minutes, or until the mixture is thick and creamy and leaves a ribbon as it falls from the whisk. While the filling is still hot, pour into the cases.

8. Preheat the grill to medium. Place the egg whites in a clean dry bowl and beat them with a balloon whisk or electric beaters until soft peaks form. Gradually add the sugar, beating well between each addition, until stiff glossy peaks form. Spoon or pipe onto the lemon filling in the pastry cases and swirl attractively with the top of a spoon. Sieve the icing sugar over the surface of the tarts and grill for 1 - 2 minutes, or until the meringue is just tingled golden, then serve as soon as possible.

Shortcrust pastry

Lemon meringue tarts in the making

Lemon meringue tarts

These tarts were tangy, sweet and divine. They were totally worth the effort it took to make the pastry and filling from scratch. (Although you may notice from my pics, that I did forget to add the icing sugar in the final step :-\)

Half section of lemon meringue tart

Afternoon tea at home

Wrapping boxes for a charitable cause

I'm not a regular baker and am definitely not the neatest. This challenge has led me to appreciate the hard work that goes on behind any scrumptious work of art but it has also triggered a new desire to perfect my baking skills! So stay tuned for more ;)

My dream of gallivanting around Europe is over. London, Barcelona, Paris, Nice, Cannes, Monaco, Bologna, Venice and Santorini seems so far away now that I'm back into routine in Sydney.

I will also be receiving the advance copy of my book in the next week which will only make me salivate over the abundance of street food and attempt to reminisce the traditional delicacies of Singapore and Vietnam.

So I need new inspiration.

If you could go anywhere in the world, on an ultimate eating holiday, where would you go and what would you eat?

Leave a comment below and flood me with your best experiences (if you've had your ultimate gastronomic trip already), your thoughts or fantasies on where you'd travel to or any recommendations!

Thanks a bunch my dear readers ;)
xoxo

Blogging has taken me to new heights.

Guess who was rubbing shoulders with the A-listers at last night's VitaminWater Hearts Russell James party?

Amongst the crowd was Russell James himself (launching his photography book), Erin McNaught, Leona Edmiston, Michelle Bridges, Sophie Faulkner, Laura Csortan and plenty more hotties.

But my highlight was indeed exchanging a quick conversation with Kristin Davis, also known as Charlotte from Sex And The City. It all happened rather quickly. Mid-eating, I spotted a chalkboard at the back of the room. Naturally, i felt inclined to graffiti and just had to plug this blog out there to the cool crowd. One thing led to another, and soon enough, there was a group of bloggers (Imedla, Sassybella, ChocolateSuze, One Bite More, Grab Your Fork and myself) loittering at the back. We must've been too busy with nerd-talk because it took a while for us to notice Kristin sitting right behind us, just centimetres away! So yes, I had my photo taken with her -keep on scrolling to see the not-so-stunning pic of me :)

Food-wise, they fed us well. Bay Leaf catering offered a hearty winter array of stews, lamb cutlets, Peking duck pancakes and more.

This SATC fan will be racing through every episode soon.

Vitamin Water inflatable cube outside Customs House in Sydney's Circular Quay

Me and my sister, Christina, on the red carpet

Michelle Bridges (trainer from The Biggest Loser) on the red carpet

Martini menu

Peking duck pancakes

Cocktails

Bloggers: [Left to Right] Jenius (me), Sassybella, Imelda, ChocolateSuze and One Bite More

Tower of Vitamin Water

Plugging our sites on the chalkboard

Lamb cutlets

Risotto balls

Food bloggers in attendance: [Left to Right] Grab Your Fork, Jenius, ChocolateSuze, One Bite More, Jenius's guest and Grab Your Fork's guest

Me in my Alannah Hill "So Kissable Frock" in pink

Scallops

Me eating the scallop off shell

Waitstaff from Bay Leaf Catering carrying basket of hearty goods

Beef stew with mashed potato

Chrstina (my sister) with Kristin Davis

My not-so stunning portrait with Kristin Davis

The crowd

Chocolate shots

A fashionable goodie bag

With reversible zips!

Bottles of VitaminWater inside the goodie bag

They say jet-lag depends on the number of time zones crossed and not length of flight. Well, after 26 hours, the whole flight from Sydney to Thailand to Dubai to London was a blur... I watched all the latest movies (including a new find which I loved -The Ramen Girl, starring Brittany Murphy), played multi-player games, fell asleep, woke up and ate, and then fell asleep again.

It has taken me a week to get over the jet-lag, so finally, here are the first photos of this 32 day eating extravaganza to Europe.

Shortly after take off, we were served drinks and biscuits. The salty crispiness of the biscuits were addictive, and they looked adorable too, like miniature baguettes.

House white wine and biscuits

Lunch was a hot smoked salmon salad, seasonal salad with dressing, New York cheesecake, cheese and biscuits, chocolate and a choice of grilled steak with tomato ragout, broccoli sprouts and baked fries or pesto tortellini topped with a rich three cheese cream sauce, roasted capsicum relish and steamed broccolli. The steak was too well done to be tender but the cheese sauce on the tortellini was creamy and warm.

Dinner of hot smoked salmon, seasonal salad, beef steak, New York cheesecake, cheese and biscuits, water and chocolate

Dinner alternative with pesto tortellini

Falling asleep was easy thanks to Emirate's installations of twinkling stars on the ceilling panels.

Starry night sky inflight on Emirates

In between Bangkok and Dubai, we were served our first breakfast of orange juice, fruit, croissant and a choice of Spanish omelette with roasted cherry tomatoes, blanced sugar snap peas and sauteed potatoes or wok-fried noodles with chicken and seasonal Asian vegetables.

I had the omelette which was rather bland in contrast to Zen's stir-fried noodles.

Breakfast of orange juice, fresh seasonal fruit, spanish omelette and croissant

Breakfast alternative with stir-fried egg noodles

Dubai to London, we were served our next breakfast. This time, the continental breakfast included a freshly baked and still warm croissant, a muffin and fruit salad. Refreshing!

Continental breakfast of fresh seasonal fruit, croissant and muffin

Lunch was a choice of country style chicken casserole with buttered gnocchi (which unfortunately ran out), lamb curry cooked in a medley of spices, served with vegetable rice and garnished with fried cashew nuts and onions and spinach and ricotta ravioli tossed in a creamy and chunky fresh basil and tomato sauce.

The lamb curry was surprisingly spicy and the fried onions made the meal slightly more authentic.

Lunch of salmon and vegetable terrine, seasonal salad, lamb curry, dessert of green apple and almond dream, cheese and biscuits and chocolate

An hour stopover at Dubai provided an opportunity to admire the amazing architecture of the airport and city. I can't wait until the last days of this trip where I'll be spending a few nights in this city.

Inside Dubai Airport

An aerial view of Dubai was even more fascinating. The fortress-type houses, dry desert and similarity of buildings was unfamiliar and strange.

Aerial view of Dubai

And an aerial view of London was spectacular. Spot the London Eye and other popular monuments in the below photo.

Aerial view of London

Inflight camera of landing at London airport

Stay tuned for more :)

Look what I picked up today! My very own personalised lap-rap (laptop sticker). Now I won't have to worry about scratches or dents and my blog URL and tagline is in your face ;)

The lap-rap is totally customisable (I designed this one myself), it is high gloss and acts like a protective layer and more importantly, it is removable.

My personalised Lap-rap on my ASUS laptop

Zing organised this for me in appreciation of my support but I would really like to thank them for believing in me and this blog and for opening up so many opportunities. Thank you Darcie & Lisa. xx

If you follow me on twitter, you will know that I was out with some food bloggers tonight. While I'd love to share with you the smell of the all-you-can-eat mussels at Bungalow 8 (which I will eventually blog about), i have something more pleasant and actually very comforting and exciting to share with you.

That's right, believe your eyes. I was sent this bottle of aromatherapy oil which smells exactly like freshly baked pastries. Now this is something I would love as perfume or even a room air freshener. What's better than the soothing smell of freshly baked goodies? And guess which company has diversified into aromatheraphy? None other than McDonald's McCafe! Smelt first by their test kitchen bakers, I am tonight sniffing this stuff up!

Who would have thought it were possible?

McCafé's baking aromas are now on sale!

My very own bottle of oven fresh aromatherapy oil

The Essential Oil will be available online at www.mcdonalds.com.au for an initial trial period before becoming a regular item of demand is strong. What are your thoughts?

[Edited: 01/04/2009]

Yes, that was the miniature me on Yahoo!7's homepage a few weeks back. Here are some behind the scenes shots of a few Soapies filming at the green screen studio. We were throwing invisible air-cons and fans for the Lipton Ice Tea digital media campaign. Thanks to some awesome keying work, the TVC was brought to life in an 8 second OTP ad.

Rob directing the shot

Me pretending to throw

Loren and I showcasing the bottles for fun :)

Me in the ad on Yahoo!7 AU's homepage

End frame of the ad

If you've ever been stuck on a gift idea, fear no more. I came across the coolest online store of oddities today. Here are some of my favourites:

You can now put your dough in bread with this buttered toast wallet.

Do you work with someone who has bad breath? Don't you wish they had bacon breath instead? Surprise them with bacon mints.

For the indecisive and hungry, this spinner device will take a little bit of stress away!

Eat your heart out, literally. Try these almost life-sized gummy hearts!

Bacon and Eggs can heal any sore, particularly if they're bandaids which look this delicious.

Show a little bit of love every morning with 'I Love You' stamped on toast.

My family isn't big on tradition and without any relatives in Australia, Chinese New Year celebrations usually consist of a home-made banquet with plenty of leftovers. This year, my Mum thoughtfully cooked up this modern Chinese dinner, some inspired by custom and others adapted by our changing taste.

We started with peking duck, a favourite amongst many. The pancake wrap pastry were homemade a few days in advance and steamed on the night. They were the result of one of my Mum's midnight experiments which proved to be successful.

Peking duck

The soft shell crab was deep-fried in a thick batter and lightly tossed in salt and pepper. It was a little rich for my liking, but much loved by my siblings.

Salt & pepper soft shell crab

A symbol of wealth, these huge abalones had been flavour-potting for days. It was slow cooked in a casserole full of ginger, garlic, oyster sauce, dark soy sauce and chicken stock. They were succulent and velvety.

Braised abalone in oyster sauce

There was also this cold salad of prawns with honeydew, rockmelon and jellyfish; simple flavours and very refreshing.

Salad of honeydew, rockmelon, jellyfish and prawns

Helen has referred to this as the basket of prosperity. I simply know it as my beloved yam nest. Finely shredded yam was deep-fried into the shape of a bowl and topped with a tasty stir-fry of scallops, mushrooms, sugar snap peas and carrots. Watching the yam nest crack under the moisture of the stir-fry and fighting over the crisp pieces was all part of the fun.

Yam nest with stir-fry of sugar snap peas, carrots and mushrooms

Crab claws

A whole fish is a must at any Chinese feast. I'm used to it steamed but this night, we were surprised with it deep-fried with a sweet and sour sauce. And of course we had a few huge lobsters braised in a fiery combination of ginger, chilli and shallots.

Deep-fried whole fish with sweet and sour sauce

Lobster braised with ginger, chilli and shallots

This is one tradition we have maintained over the years. My grandmother made it best; the broth consisted of a whole chicken, shitake mushrooms, fish balls, pork belly and lots of Chinese cabbage. It's so cleansing and flavoursome, I love it! I think this may be a Teochew classic. Enlighten me if otherwise!

Traditional Chinese cabbage soup with fish balls, shitake mushrooms, pork belly and chicken

While I'm sure we were already full at this stage, we continued into the night with extra large longans and lychees. Happy Chinese New Year!

I received a few bottles of POM Wonderful from the lovely Darcie at Zing last week... just in time to combat this hot sticky weather! There's nothing more convenient than having some bottles chilled and ready for use.

When some unexpected guests arrived this morning, I whipped up this kid-safe pomegranate fruit punch in no time! It's refreshing, quick and full of antioxidants.

Pomegranate fruit punch
Makes 2 jugs which serves 6 - 8

473ml of POM Wonderful (1 bottle)
500ml of Dry Ginger Ale
1 small can of Chunky Fruit Salad
A small handful of kaffir lime leaves

Simply bash the kaffir lime leaves to release flavour, combine with all ingredients and serve with ice cubes.

Welcome back! I hope ya'll had many delicious moments during the break.

To kick off a new year of blogging, I thought it would only make sense to firstly conclude 2008 with my family Christmas dinner.

It was a little chaotic at the start, with me doing too many things at once; whipping up the meringue, cutting and peeling vegetables, wrapping the last minute presents and more. But once the vegetables were sliced, fruits were cut up and meringues were baking, everything started to fall into place. Phew!

We started with some dips and crackers, then a giant seafood platter. I tried really hard not to over-cook this year. The following fed 7 adults and 1 kid... we had a few prawns leftover, as well as half the mashed potato and half the salad. I think I did fairly well!

Seafood platter with smoked salmon, shaved Spanish onion, dill and capers, prawns with 3 dipping sauces, fresh oysters with lime, lobsters and spicy wedges

Meringues baking in oven

Berries for the pavlova -strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, kiwi fruit and passionfrut

I forgot to photograph the wagyu which we bought from Vic's Meat, but it's marbling was delectable! We chargrilled these eggplants, sweet potatoes and asparagus on the side. These were simply prepared with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil and cracked pepper.

Vegetables for chargrilling

Mixed green salad with dill, cucumber, haloumi cheese, anchovy stuffed olives, cherry tomatoes and balsamic dressing

The baby carrots were caramelised with a combination of butter, brown sugar and parsley.

Caramelised carrots

Rosemary mashed potato

Charcoal and flame

Meringues are simple to bake and require minimal ingredients. This is the recipe I used:

8 egg whites
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
2 cups of caster sugar
2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoon cornflower
2 teaspoon white vinegar
Fruit and double cream to serve

1. Preheat oven to 120°C, whip up the egg whites and until stiff peaks form.
2. Slowly (spoon by spoon) add sugar while continuously beating the egg whites.
3. Once sugar has dissolved, all remaining ingredients and combine well.
4. Spoon onto baking paper into required sizes / shapes and bake for 90 minutes or until crisp.
5. Leave them in the oven with the door ajar to allow cooling.
6. Serve with fruit (I used strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, passionfruit and kiwifruit) and double cream.

Pavlova

Happy New Year!

The work Christmas party was last night. Casino tables, finger food, 2 agency bands (our very own Bath Scum plus Foxtel's) rocked it out. It would have been a fantastic end to a year of hard work but I've got another 3 days to go next week. Screw you, deadlines.

Loren and I

Blackjack table

Leftover finger food

We stole this party idea

Bath Scum

Check out the rest of the photos here.

Soap Creative was in the running to be B&T's Interactive Agency Of The Year, so on Friday night, a few of us frocked up and headed to Luna Park (Big Top) for the formal dinner / winners announcement.

Luna Park Sydney entrance

Ferris wheel

Carousel

Soap crew: Dave, me, Abs (I didn't get a chance to photograph the rest of the team, a rare moment because they were all in shirts, ties and suit... doh!)

The auditorium was decked out in a gorgeous underwater theme. Surprisingly, the 3D tropical underwater screensaver looked twice as stunning when projected. And the food? I would have expected more for a $2700 (10 person) table. However, my entree of cured salmon was divine... the pickled beetroot provided an interesting twist. I couldn't restrain my inner-foodie and also tasted a bit of the herb panna cotta. I thought it was overly rich with herbs and garlic but it would have made a delightful dip.

I've never enjoyed the taste of polenta so didn't enjoy my main dish as much as I could have if it had been served with the rosemary jus and sweet onion & potato mash (which was part of the alternative course). The grilled vegetables were a saviour -sweet potato, carrots, eggplant, capsicum and zucchini... and I was lucky to receive one of the more generous portions of pork cutlet. To give you an idea of the irregularity, my piece was almost twice as big as everyone else's hence although mine was cooked to perfection, others commented on the dryness.

And lastly, dessert... please excuse the sweaty eclairs which I did not try. The lemon meringue tart was heavenly but the others were pretty average.

Underwater theme

Entree of herb panna cotta with wild rocket, shaved parmesan and lemon dressing

Entree, alternate course of Aquavit-cured salmon, pickled beetroot noodles, herb creme fraiche and parmesan wafer

Main course of oven-roasted chicken breast with sweet onion mash, rosemary jus and spring vegetables

Main, alternative course of three peppercorn crusted pork cutlets, soft white polenta and grilled vegetables

Selection of dessert canapes

Finalists

By the way, Colenso BBDO ended up winning Interactive Agency of the Year. Boohoo.

Everything looks cute as a miniature model and food is no exception.

I've been playing with a Photoshop cheat which achieves the same effect as the tilt shift lens, turning everyday things into miniature scale models!

Check this out -

This was inspired by a video, filmed at Sydney's Circular Quay -

Bathtub II from Keith Loutit on Vimeo.

$1 CHICKEN SCHNITZEL AND CHIPS on Wednesday 1st October and Thursday 2nd October (for lunch and dinner)!!!!

Go get 'em!

I accepted a very last minute invitation last week, to Zen's sister-in-law's 27th birthday party. It was going to be a small one with just her husband & kids, housemates, Zen, my baby brother and me.

It started off well with a scrumptious steamboat. There were prawns, salmon, tripe, fish balls, enoki mushrooms, sashimi, squid, slice beef, beef balls and mussels.

But then, what started with a cheeky dab of cream on someone's face turned into the biggest cake fight I have ever witnessed. The apartment was painted with left over slices of taro cake and fresh cream. Evidence below.

Good times...

I was really excited this weekend because of former uni classmate, Noods and fellow-foodie, ChocolateSuze's engagement party. And thankfully, my sinuses had given me a morning free of headaches to enjoy this lovely warm day.

There was a feast of fried wontons, spring rolls, scrumptious satay chicken skewers, a massive subway and a glossy, crispy-skinned sucking pig.

A special touch by Suze... she made us these lush cupcakes. Pink lips for the girls and blue bears for the boys.

Congrats on your engagement, Noods & Suze. And thanks for a yummy afternoon!

My MOO Cards arrived yesterday, neatly in a little white collectible box only 7 days after the order was processed. I am so impressed. These mini cards (there are 100 of them with only one of its kind) will be my personal business card... so if you want one, introduce yourself.

Or if there’s something yummy involved, I’ll come to you!

JENIUS.COM.AU is now on Facebook! Check out the ‘Best of JENIUS | food & photography’ compilation and become a fan.

Don’t forget to visit back here regularly for the latest drool-worthy eye candy as the Facebook page will only feature highlights of past entries.

Last night, I was at the Sydney premiere of Street Kings... here are some of my paparazzi shots:

Check out my Photoshop lighting render skills... haha

Check out some foodie things you could be doing next month at the Sydney Writers' Festival.

*note: that's no a true photo of me... it's just the Helvetica avatar

Its hard turning down a freebie, let alone the cricket finals (Australia vs India, One Day International Final Game 1)... so I didn't. I couldn't resist the stadium food of chips, hot dogs and meat pies. MmMm...

Some of you will probably know that I've been working on a memoir of my trip to Singapore and Vietnam since my return. Well, I am proud to say that my first Blurb book was published a few weeks ago...

I was thrilled to see it arrive today! There are 240 pages of full glossy colour, happy snaps and drool-worthy food. I'm keeping this one private for now... but a public version is in the works. So watch this space for the release date! I'm hoping it will be ready by mid-year.

Here are some sneak peeks at my lovely Blurb book, "i ate my way through Singapore and Vietnam":

By the way, Happy Valentines Day :-)

Blurb
www.blurb.com

... while I eat my way through Singapore & Vietnam, the next 3.5 weeks :-)

[!] This post isn't really about food

Eugenia is the first of B.DesComp's 2004 grads to get married... woohoo! So here we were on Saturday night, to congratulate the bride-to-be.

For $55 plus drinks, we were fed and entertained...

Starters were bread, fried eggplant, dolmades (aka stuffed vine leaves), celery & carrot sticks with dips. The tzatziki was deliciously refreshing and the fried eggplant was light and crispy.

The Greek salad was traditionally tossed with plentiful olives, onion, feta cheese, tomatoes and cucumber.

I really loved the fried halloumi cheese. It was pan-fried to a golden brown and was flavoured with oregano, olive oil, salt and lemon. The texture was hard... quite similar to chicken... and very addictive!

We were then served more filo pastry with spinach and feta cheese... as well as a seafood and meat platter. All you need to know is that Mykonos is very generous with the serving portions. We were stuffed... but luckily burnt it out on the dance floor :-D

The theme was 'devilicious'... like our horns?

For more photos of the night (including a few R-rated ones), visit my Flickr set flickr.com/photos/foodiejenius/sets/72157603100981425.

Mykonos on Crown
248 Pitt Street Sydney (Basement of Zodiac Hotel)
Web: www.mykonosoncrown.com.au/php/welcome.php

Earth Day was Lidcombe Public School's theme for the 2007 fair. The weeks leading up to this, Bryan (my baby bro) was singing "3 is a magic number, yes it is, it's a magic number... reduce, reuse, recycle...". To continue his excitement, I agreed to bake a batch of cupcakes and brownies for the food stall.

Thanks to the power of online, I hunted down these 2 fab recipes --

Hummingbird Cupcakes by Su-Yin

Cupcake
3/4 cups self raising flour
1 cup dark brown sugar
1/2 cup dessicated coconut
1 tsp bicarb of soda
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 (440g) canned pineapple (crushed)
2 large sweet+ripe bananas (mashed)
3/4 olive oil (light preferably)
2 large eggs

Icing
1 block philly cheese
1 1/2 cup icing sugar
2 drops vanilla essence

Method

1. Sift flour & combine all dry ingredients in a large bowl


2. Make a well in the center; drop in all other ingredients and mix with a wooden spoon till well combined


3. Spoon into cupcake cases till 3/4 full and bake in preheated 180 degree oven for 35-40 minutes or until skewer comes out clean wen poked thru the center


4. Cool completely before frosting

Brownies from Taste.com.au

Ingredients
Melted butter, for greasing
150g walnut halves
200g good-quality dark cooking
chocolate (like Plaistowe Cooking Chocolate), chopped
200g (1 cup, firmly packed)
brown sugar
125mls (1/2 cup) vegetable oil
3 eggs, at room temperature
1 tsp vanilla essence
75g (1/2 cup) plain flour
30g (1/4 cup) cocoa powder
1/2 tsp baking powder

Method

1. Preheat oven to 170°C. Brush a shallow 23cm square cake pan with the melted butter to lightly grease. Line the base with non-stick baking paper.


2. Spread walnuts on a baking tray and toast in preheated oven for 5-7 minutes or until lightly browned (see microwave tip 1). Cool and chop coarsely.


3. Meanwhile: place the chocolate in a medium heat-resistant bowl over a saucepan of simmering water and stir until melted and smooth (see microwave tip 2). Remove the bowl from the heat and set aside.


4. Combine the sugar, oil, eggs and vanilla in a medium mixing bowl. Use electric beaters to beat until well combined and paler in colour. Add the melted chocolate and beat until well combined.


5. Sift together flour, cocoa powder and baking powder over chocolate mixture and use a large metal spoon to fold in until combined. Fold in the walnuts.


6. Spoon mixture into prepared pan and smooth the surface. Bake in preheated oven for 35 minutes or until moist crumbs cling to a skewer inserted into the centre. Remove from oven and cool completely in pan. Turn onto a board, remove paper and cut into pieces.

Notes & tips

1. Store for up to 1 week in an airtight container at room temperature.


2. microwave tip 1: place walnuts in oven bag and twist the opening to seal. Cook, gently shaking bag every minute, for 3-4 minutes on High/ 850watts/100% or until lightly toasted.


3. microwave tip 2: place chocolate in a clean, dry small heat-resistant, microwave-safe bowl. Heat, uncovered, stirring every minute with a metal spoon, for 3-4 minutes on Medium/ 500watts/50% or until melted.

I took a trip to David Jones' Food Hall this weekend... and to my surprise, there was 20% off all Tetsuya's packaged products! Hooray!

And here's my home made black truffle salsa butter with parmesan... Tetsuya's style.

I'm on a high just smelling the delectable scent.

Check out Tetsuya's other products, or why not visit David Jones Food Hall this weekend?

You can also read about my recent visit to Tetsuya's here.

So, still feeling the after-effects of my recent birthday, I thought I'd post up a few more pics:

There would be more pics up... but I've decided to pause on posting personal photos. You know, with all the scams going on with Facebook and MySpace users...

ChocolateSuze has tagged me... so here are my seven random food facts:

1. I was a white-meat vegetarian for a few years after watching an episode (Season 7, Episode 5) of The Simpsons
2. I do not eat lamb, not because of my surname... but I can't stand the smell
3. I hate skim milk! Pass me the full cream please
4. I'm going to Tetsuya's to celebrate the first birthday of this blog (and my birthday) next month
5. I absolutely adore any Carpaccio dish since having it served at its best at Yoshii
6. Starchy foods are my weakness... as are shoes, desserts and all things pretty. But especially potatoes... wedges, hot chips with gravy, roast potatoes with sea salt and rosemary, Smith's Original Crisps or Nando's chips and their Peri-Peri sauce... *drools*
7. I dislike washing dishes. I love to occassionally cook... but will refuse to wash up..hehe.. what a good wife i'd make! LOL

Now... due to my recent interest (not obsession) in Facebook... I will be tagging the following people in Facebook! It makes perfect sense doesn't it?
Zen, Jordan, Stacy, Erinna & David.

At her new unfurnished place, there were blueberry and choc-chip cupcakes, cheese, crackers and dips, lingerie and more. So while i'm recovering from this loss of appetite, my persistence to photograph everything I eat has died. Here's the only photo I ended up taking -

Chanthu, me and Sarah... There's a strange glare on my nose!

UN
33 Oxford St, DARLINGHURST
(02) 9267 7036

Hoorah! A mini weekend getaway to celebrate the office's second birthday.

Friday 11.30am, last week, we all hopped on a coach to Hunter Valley. Two and a bit hours later, we wined and dined at Pepper Tree Vineyards, Tamburlaine, Petersonhouse, Hunter Valley Chocolate Company, Harrigan's Irish Pub and Oishii Restaurant! Talk about an action-packed weekend.

So... at the first wine tasting, I bought a lush dessert wine... it was sweet as honey: 2005 Boytrytis Semillon. I must admit though -I'm not at all a wine expert. After a while, they all taste the same. Here's what we swirled, sniffed, gargled and sipped...

Next was Tamburlaine Organic Vineyards. Ooh, so do organic wines give you less of a hangover? Apparently so, if drunk in moderation... because of its low sulphur dioxide content.

All throughout Hunter Valley were cute gardens and cosy cottages. Outside Petersonhouse were these adorable lanterns and garden chairs...

Inbetween the wine tasting, I craved something solid and starchy... so at Harrigan's Pub, we ordered 2 giant servings of wedges with sour cream and sweet chilli sauce and another 2 giant bowls of fries with tomato sauce. The wedges weren't anything fancy... but they definately were cut the perfect size. Crunch. Crunch. Crunch.

A full day of vineyard hopping left me exhausted. Here's the view from our room at Harrigan's Pub. You never get to see this much of the sky in Sydney.

Dinner was at 8. Oishii Restaurant sits within Tempus Two's ultra-modern landscape. However, the food was average... so I didn't bother with any notes. Photos are below if you're still interested.

And then Ben, Hazim, Adam and Mat decided to see what gravity could do to their face...

Pepper Tree Wines
Halls Road, Pokolbin
Phone: (02) 4998 7539
Web: www.peppertreewines.com.au

Tamburlaine Vineyard
358 McDonalds Road Pokolbin
Phone:: (02) 4998 7570
Web: www.tamburlaine.com.au

Peterson Sparkling Wine House
Corner of Broke Road & Wine Country Drive, Pokolbin
Phone: (02) 4998 7881
Web: www.petersonhouse.com.au

Hunter Valley Chocolate Company
Corner of Broke Road & Wine Country Drive, Pokolbin
Phone: (02) 4998 7221

Harrigan's Pub
Broke Road, Pokolbin
Web: www.hvg.com.au/harrigans_pub.asp

Oishii Japanese & Thai Restaurant
Tempest Two Winery, Pokolbin
Web: www.tempustwo.com.au

More pics & bits on Hunter Valley below.

Dianne and Winnie with me at Cellini Restaurant, QVB

And now Winnie is back in HK :-(

April is awesome! How often do you get a 4 day weekend? I've always wanted to see a waterfall... so here was my chance.

The Minnamurra Rainforest is a 2 hour drive south of Sydney. There are 2 fabulous walks which take you through elevated timber boardwalks and swinging bridges. Part of it was so steep... but the workout was definately worthwhile. The waterfall was amazing! And it was lovely to take in deep breaths of nature... ah....

And here are some photos from Wollongong. Lighthouses, canons and more.

Visit the Minnamurra Falls or Wollongong.

(I refuse to write lengthy descriptions tonight. My eyes are sore... I'm tired... and I miss the long weekend!)

The waiting lines are ridiculous... but everybody loves ramen.

I can no longer call him my baby brother. He started kindergarten this year... and today, he turns five! A grown-up kid.

We celebrated an early birthday on Good Friday with a BBQ at Sydney Olympic Park's Bicentennial Park.

The night before, Christina and I stayed up to bake a batch of cupcakes. Some were decorated with pretty hearts, Autumn leaves... others had the letter B, and some the number 5...

Last year, a spontaneous decision to go to the Grand Prix meant a lot of discomfort. Five of us were squashed in a car with barely any sleep for 3 days... and Zen's bro drove practically 12 hours straight! So having grown one year wiser... we planned it well this year. Plane tickets. Booked. Accomodation. Booked. Camping chairs. Tick. Sunnies. Tick. Sun hat. Tick. Ear plugs. Tick. 4 Day pass. Tick. DSLR with new lens. Tick. We were ready!!

And here's some panning action... motion blur!!!

To see more of my F1 pics, go to www.flickr.com/photos/foodiejenius/tags/f1

[Edit 25.04.07: more pics below]

Check me out in the Daily Slurp, 21 July 2006.

with my new lens...

My first photo -->

The touch of this lens is amazing! Go get yours from D-D-Photographics.

And on Friday, we celebrated Sunny's combined 21st with Jackson & Geoff...

This is my baby brother Bryan. He's cute, sweet and super cheeky.

After a long break from doing a lot of nothing, I've decided to get my act together. And on the top of my 'to-do' list, is to update this site. Cluttered in the middle are also actions such as tidying my desk (I've currently got mouse space that stretches about 20cm in diameter) and unfortunately, folding up (note to self: this includes washing, dry cleaning, ironing... etc) all the clothes on the floor, wardrobe and rack. Yep, I've been procrastinating... A LOT!!

So -some upcoming posts will cover my adventure at the cricket finals, high tea @ Swissotel, farewell dinner @ Nick's Seafood, the launch of the Chinese New Year Festival @ Belmore Park and Valentine's Day dinner at Astral. The most embarrasing part of this, is that Dianne's actually back from her holiday... and the farewell dinner blog entry is still pending... *sigh*

Just an update to let you all know that I've finally made the move. I'm on Flickr!!

Check me out @ http://www.flickr.com/photos/foodiejenius

This has been making its round in email forwards... so here are the new foodie words for this year -

SALAD DODGER
An excellent phrase for an overweight person.

SALMON DAY
The experience of spending an entire day swimming upstream only to get screwed and die.

GOING FOR A McSHIT
Entering a fast food restaurant with no intention of buying food, you're just going to the bog. If challenged by a pimply staff member, your declaration to them that you'll buy their food afterwards is known as a McShit with Lies.

BEER COAT
The invisible but warm coat worn when walking home after a booze cruise at 3:00am.

BEER COMPASS
The invisible device that ensures your safe arrival home after booze cruise, even though you're too drunk to remember where you live, how you got here, and where you've come from.

TART FUEL
Bottled premixed spirits, regularly consumed by young women.

Merry Christmas! Last night, I was put in charge of our family's Christmas dinner. So instead of last year's roast, fresh prawns and lobster mornay, I decided to stock up on some oysters, scallops and green king prawns. I also did the gingerbread baking a day in advance!

Nothing beats fresh oysters with a few drops of Tabasco and a squeeze of lemon juice.

I adpated the Cashew-Crusted Prawns with Honey-Lemon Sauce recipe from the Coles Christmas Magazine. And instead of using cooked Australian Black Tiger Prawns, I opted for the uncooked Green King Prawns... The prawns were shelled and deveined , but I left the head and tail on (to look fancy).

1/2 cup plain flour
2 eggs
1 cup dried breadcrumbs
100g cashew nuts, chopped finely
18 king prawns, shelled and deveined
1/4 cup peanut oil
HONEY-LEMON SAUCE
1/4 cup lemon juice
2 tablespoons honey
50g butter

1. Place flour onto a plate. Lightly beat eggs in a medium bowl. Combine breadcrumbs and cashew nuts in a separate large bowl.
2. Dip each prawn in flour first, shaking off excess, then dip in egg wash and finally roll in breadcrumb mixture, pressing firmly to secure. Place on a tray sprinkled with breadcrumbs and put in fridge for 20 minutes.
3. Combine sauce ingredients in a small saucepan and simmer for 5 minutes till slightly thickened.
4. Heat oil in non-stick pan over medium heat. Cook prawns in batches for 2 - 4 minutes each side til golden. Drain on paper towel. Serve with honey-lemon sauce.

For our mains, I turned to Al Dente La Collezione (published by Hardie Grant Books, for Barilla Australia) - a compilation of pasta dishes by chefs around Australia.

120ml olive oil
1 leek, diced
4 garlic cloves, chopped
2 red chillies, finely chopped
4 tablespoons of sundried tomatoes, chopped
120g napoletana sauce
100ml cream
2 tablespoons of chives, chopped
24 large scallops
2 tablespoons of cajun spice
500g fettuccine or tagliatelle
CORIANDER PESTO
1 bunch coriander leaves, washed and dried
3 tablespoons of freshly grated parmesan cheese
3 garlic cloves chopped
1 tablespoon of toasted pine nuts
salt and ground black pepper to taste
60ml olive oil

1. To make the coriander pesto, blend all the ingredients in a food processor. With the motor running, drizzle the oil down the feed tube until all are combined.
2. Heat 60mls of olive oil in a frying pan over a medium heat. Add leek, garlic and chilli and cook, stirring often, until the leek is transparent. Add the sundried tomatoes and Napoletana sauce and cook for 5 minutes or until the sauce starts to reduce.
3. Pour in the cream and simmer until the sauce coats the back of a spoon. Stir in the chives and season to taste.
4. Cook the pasta in a large saucepan of boiling salted water until al dente. Meanwhile, pat the scallops dry with a clean tea-towel. Dust the scallops with Cajun spice.
5. Heat the remaining olive oil in a heavy-based frying pan until very hot. Cook the scallops in batches for 30 seconds on each side.
6. Drain the pasta and return to the saucepan. Add the sauce, and toss over a low heat until combined.
7. Arrange the pasta onto serving plats, and top with scallops and a dollop of pesto. Serve immediately.

And last but not least, for the gingerbread, I drew inspiration from Helen (GrabYourFork)'s post.

125g butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 egg yolk
2 1/2 cups plain flour
1 teaspoon bicarb
3 teaspoons ground ginger
1 1/2 tablespoons golden syrup
ICING
1 1/2 cups pure icing sugar
1 egg white
4 drops lemon juice
food colouring

1. Cream the butter and sugar
2. Add egg yolk and mix in remaining gingerbread ingredients.
3. Combine and keed until dought forms. Roll out dough and cut out shapes using cookie cutters or knife. Continue to remove excess dough for re-use.
4. Bake for 10 minutes in a moderate oven (180C).
5. Remove immediately and place on a cooling tray.
6. Whisk the egg white, then gradually add the icing sugar. Ensure that there are no lumps, then add lemon juice and food colouring.
7. Decorate as you like.

On Friday night, Dianne, Florence and I celebrated an early Christmas at the Corn Exchange Restaurant for a $70 seafood and dessert extravaganza. As you can see, the variety was endless! *drools*

Corn Exchange Restaurant
Four Points by Sheraton
161 Sussex Street, Darling Harbour
Tel : 02 9290 4816

With special thanks to Sony Pictures, I was lucky enough to be a part of the Australian Premiere of Casino Royale. This being my first 007 flick and premiere, I didn't know what to expect!

We got to walk on the red carpet! But that was before the stars entered... so I missed the celebrity shoulder rubbing. Nonetheless, I managed to get a stalkage shot of David Koch from Sunrise and Hugo Weaving from The Matrix! Haha, though I must admit, the latter pic wasn't as obvious.

So... last Thursday, the Sensis MediaSmart XMAS party was held at Havana. As you can see, the theme was Studio54...

Iron Chef Chinese Seafood Restaurant is meant to be a part of the new breed. Along side it's sister restaurant, Zilver, they clearly stand out from the traditional Chinese restaurants, in terms of menu range, ambience and furnishing.

Next up was the Morwong, also known as the Deep Sea Bream, or Rubber Lips; and its lips truely lived up to it's name. Its soft flesh was steamed with shallots, coriander and soy. This dish was actually prepared wrong, but my lovely parents decided to not make a fuss and accepted it anyway. What sane-minded person would order such a large fish steamed? I don't know what the chefs were thinking? There was an apology -but no discount.. hehe...

Furthermore, this is how unthoughful the restaurant was... THEY DIDN'T SERVE THE CRAB FIRST! Being served in between dishes meant that we weren't able to fully savor this $180 dish. Snow Crabs are a little less meaty than other crabs, but it is meant to be sweeter in flavour. Ours was somewhat dull and tasteless. Doh!

Another of my absolute favourite dishes would have to be this crispy taro duck... deboned duck, deep-fried with creamy taro paste on the inside... and served with a thick shitake mushroom sauce.

Then we had the Wasabi Beef which hardly tasted of the unbearably hot kick I can desired for.

Beauty is obviously skin-deep. Beneath the classy makeover, were waiters whom spoke while chewing gum and food which took over an hour to be prepared and served...

Iron Chef Chinese Seafood Restaurant
84 Broomfield St Cabramatta
Phone (02) 9723 6228

I was so caught up in the long weekend, I totally forgot it was October... Good Food Month, which means a bigger and better excuse to eat!

Thanks to Reb's awesome idea, Sydney food bloggers will be covering all the bases! So start planning your month, and check out the gastronomic events at www.gfm.smh.com.au.

How cool is this online mag?

Red Zero
http://www.redzero.com.au/magazine/1/virtual-magazine/

On the 31st July 2006, I turned 22.

On the night of 14th July, 9 of us B. Des Comp girls headed up to the Central Coast for a little getaway. We stayed at The Lighthouse, Copacabana (special thanks to Jodie for organising this). The house caters for 8 adults, and was so big and scary that we all snuggled on the top floor in two bedrooms. There was lots of food, laughter and confessions. Can't wait for the next girls getaway! Thanks for such a fun time :-D

Midori Pash
30ml Midori
15ml Vodka
Top with Cranberry Juice

Cowboy
20ml Butterscotch Schnapps
10ml Bailey's Irish cream

Midori Melonball
30ml Midori
15ml Vodka
Top with Pineapple Juice

For more information, see http://www.centralcoast.stays.com.au/8950.

Shamini, Jordan and me (being try-hards) - before The White Agency's 3rd Birthday Party at Shangri-La Hotel, The Rocks (taken on 30th May 2006).

TwentyOneSunday
Listen to them @ www.myspace.com/twentyonesunday