Purple Cabbage and Royal Gala Coleslaw

My most favourite, Royal Gala is in season! Chumpzzz, i was on top of rollercoaster when i saw them being sold at $2.99 per kg! During summer, apples were one of the most expensive fruits, sometimes reaching $8 per kg, so this is basically quite a bargain. Ain't autmun great?

I got myself so much Royal Gala, i began to worry how to finish them. You see, my hubby doesn't eat apples. N i can only eat as much as one per day. One thing good abt apples is they can keep very long.;I got some big ones three weeks ago, n they are still staying fresh.

Hence this coleslaw which i specially created for the big guy who doesn't take apples. I thought purple cabbage wld do a better and healthier job than the green ones, coupled with carrots (the orange) n baby spinach leaves as the greenie. Colourful with loads of vitamin n nutrients. Yumz.

Ginger Onion Chicken

I suddenly had the desire to stew some chicken with the leftover ginger n massive 'spring onions' my in laws left us with, hehe, been bragging about it to mr Hub for the last two days, n as usual, he din believe me at first (maybe coz i am a crappy person who daydreams too much). LOL. Dragged him to Boxhill this morning to buy good corn-fed chicken n ta-da, here is my first ginger onion chicken with stir-fry broccoli:

Dinner, Leftover Noodles as Starch (pity, we had too much leftovers)

Broccoli Garlic

Main: Ginger Onion Chicken which can last us at least two meals

My hub has this passion for fridge magnets; everywhere he goes he sure comes back with a special magnet to add to his collection. Me? i only collect postcards.

My Hub's Collection on our mini fridge (only 60% here)

My two Darlings.

Baby 2 : Cherry tomato



Baby 3 : Basil Columnar



Sigh, now that there are only two of us, the food volume seems to go down so much slower; even a loaf of bread takes us at least 10 days to finish. we had to freeze half n make sure the other fresh half is consumed before the expiry date, which usually last for 4-5 days only. Sure hard to cook dinner!

Avocados

Finally i can upload. Funny. The rain came. The line was cut for a while. N then the server accepts it.

Hey did i mention i'm into avocados lately? They seem to be everywhere, so i decided to buy a couple few weeks ago, n eventually got addicted to these creamy creatures. I eat them plain with nothing, n they taste as good as ever. My dad used to (and still does) eat them with vanilla ice cream, n Mr Jiang follows after i taught him this, while ladies like mom n sistas love them in the form of milkshakes a.k.a ice+milk blended.  My auntie eats them with custard. TO me, plain is good. I love avocado on its own. N i have been having one everyday for the last two weeks.

I have an aunt back home who used to bake delicious avocado cream cakes. And i must praise, it's sure one special hard-to-resist cake. Just like durian cream cake. Or much better. Like heaven n earth. Creamy, sinful, guilty, and irresistible. LOL. U know wat is the ironic part? She makes it so good, yet she's asking when i can make her one. haha. Shd i push the question to my cousin instead?

An attempt to live healthy

This is what i have been feeding myself and hub, especially when he has to work overtime and dinner comes late. Easy, nutritionuos and packed with lotsa vitamins and antioxidants......

Topped with yogurt (not available in picture).....it tastes superb, really!

Friday already?

Phew, time flies! Seems like Mother's Day was just yesterday, and it's Friday already. Even me who is considerably the most free person in the world is amazed at how time passes by every day. Every night i would look back and think of the stuff i've done throughout the day. I would feel ashamed, because the answer is often baking. It's only a hobby, but it has become some sort of a daily routine. I would then shake my head and tell myself that i need to focus on something else instead. Or work harder on my Chinese. :-P

As evidenced in the below, I've spent most of this week on baking, again. Starting from our daily breakfast sweet buns of various fillings,

to the first attempt of Guang Su Bing

and more Baguettes

for some Bruschettas (my version).

Not forgeting also, my continuous practice on chinese flaky pastries which has definitely improved a lot:

I also learnt to make hua jian (steamed flower buns) from mom in law, and helped her wrapped some chinese bao zis for dinner.

The only difference this week was i managed to visit a big local market and got some of my favourite foods like asparagus (i heart heart heart asparagus very much!!)

more raw walnuts (very good for hair and brain),

a big Chinese yam, coz i was thinking of making yam buns/ cake,

and more lychees which i can never resist hehe...

Spotted a lot of loquats and got a few since i've not tried any before.

From today onwards, i have a new commitment:

'Upgrade the proficiency of my English which includes fluency in speaking, extensive vocabulary knowledge and usage, and improvement in my writing skill.'

Trust me, as you read this blog, my English seems to be getting to nowhere.

Fresh Lycees oh!

I'm jolly, because it's the season for many many fruits like lychees, mulberies etc now. Fruits that are almost alien to me. Soon there'll be apricots, dark cherries, big PEACHES, and many many more. Speaking of lychees, i thought they looked a bit greeny and raw at first but i was wrong coz they're super sweet, and juicy. Never let looks deceive you. Green or red, they are still fleshy and irresistable! Ranking them as one of my most favourite fruits now! :-)

Can't have too much of them though, coz like longans and durians, they're super heaty.

Nectarines are also in place. Since it's only the start of the season, most of them are still hard and pretty bland in taste.

Early season of strawberry picking

This is supposed to be one post i should have blogged earlier but there were too many baking goods to be bragged about (cheh) so it was kinda ignored for a while. Just last previous week, Hub and I decided to go for strawberry picking since i've never been to a real farm myself, and picking fresh fruits sounded like a new excellent idea. Something which we could not do in Malaysia unless you're hunting for durians or rambutans?!?! Besides, strawberries grow on ground so it's different from picking fruits from the trees.

The big orchard is pretty near our home. It is primarily allocated for growing cherry trees that harvest big dark/white cherries during early summer (late May onwards) to be exported out (mostly, as some are also sold domestically). Since it's only March now, as you can see from the above pic, the trees were still bald and 'twigy' (as i call them) and the orchard looking pretty quiet.

A small portion of the cherry yard is rented out for growing other fruits like strawberries, plum etc. The above picture is one of the green houses where they grow the strawberries and where we did the picking.

Inside the greenhouse, strawberries are grown neatly in lines like this:

Sunshine plays an important part in growing strawberries. Strawberries love sunshine, so it is vital to plant strawberry patch in a location that gets a lot of sun. Not only that, strawberries produce their blossoms in early springtime so they can easily be damaged or killed by late frosts. Since we don't often have sunshine here, part of the reason for growing them in a green house will keep the tender blossoms protected from the frost.

It's still early for strawberry season now, as you can also see there were very few strawberries that can be harvested. According to Hub, the best time is late April to May but we decided to go ahead and play our luck since we were the only visitors and it seemed like the whole thing belongs to us. No one to rebut bah. No one monitoring us also. (Sshhh, we even curi some and washed at a nearby tap and quickly savoured them before anyone saw us!)

Here's one weird shaped berry i found and which i found adorable:
Strawberry leaves are pretty, aren't they?


We were given a basket each by the farm caretaker and here was what i got. (Took the small bright red ones as i thought they would look good on my cakes hehe)

And Hub's picking (He actually picked big ripe dark red ones so that they can be eaten right away. Not a very good choice, as they went soft and mushy upon arriving home)

Altogether they weighed up to slightly more than a kilo and costed RMB25. More expensive than those sold in local markets here, but still cheaper than Malaysia. Of course, haha, the rule of thumb here, the fresher it is the more expensive, and don't ask why strawberries are expensive in Malaysia coz we import them.

Another weird looking strawberry punnet:

Most of them went mushy the moment they were washed. Even those that weren't that ripe. And they couldn't be kept for more than 2 days, eventhough refrigerated. Makes me wonder, why aren't those sold in the market like this? I can even keep them for up to two weeks and they still look ok. This one went soft in 2 days? Hmmmmm....pesticides or chemical spray??!

The above two pics explain it all: some getting off soon and i snapped them in the car, on our way home from the farm. Shows how fresh the fruits are?!

Would definitely go back in May for more picking! And cherries maybe!

Fruit Galore

Bear with me, i've got nothing to do while waiting for my goodies to be out from the oven. So bored that i even took some pictures of the apples mom in law bought.

Since i've got the apples snapped, i thought it maybe best to show the others as well, those that i snapped last week.

First is these mini pears. Don't judge from the look, they taste super sweet-sour and juicy. Good for quenching thirst. Don't think we can get them in KK.

The next one is the most interesting fruit i discovered here: Fresh Dates (aka the original dried red ones our moms used to boil soups)!!

These dates are super sweet and crunchy.But mind you, they are very high in sugar and thus strictly prohibited for diabetic people. Good for people with constipation problem though. Only available in autumn and early winter.

One point which i find rather confusing is, dried red dates are proven to have more nutrition value than the fresh ones. Why ah?

And very last but not least are these apples...the king of all fruits in my heart!

Mom in law savoured lotsa apples from the markets lately: and there are at least four types at home now, ranging from Royal Gala (not royal gila as how Hubby termed), big Fuji, Golden Delicious (the yellow one) and one which i think should be Braeburn.

From left to right: Fuji, Golden Delicious, Braeburn, Royal Gala and Mini Gala

My favourite is always Gala. To me, they taste much better than Fujis, thanks to their crisp texture, thin skin and pleasant sweet taste.

Am still considering if i should do some apple bakings, particularly with the Golden Delicious.

The 11-11 Rush Hour Birthday Carrot Cream Cheese Cake

What an exciting day today, i finally found some nice big red juicy and cheap strawberries!! Indeed a blessing from heaven, since strawberries are out of season now and even if you happen to see some on sale somewhere, they would probably cost you a bomb!! Back in KK, i was hessitated to buy strawberries, coz to me they're like the rich man's food: SUPER EXPENSIVE, and not only that, i normally find defects in them; either they are too small, not red enough or not fresh at all.

Hubby brought me to a big local market here early this morning as he wanted to get some teas and a new tea 'board'. The moment we entered the gate, these strawberries struck me, but what made me startled is the price on top!! RM5 for two boxes!! I couldn't believe it, and my heart was singing HALLLLLLLL LLLEEEE LUUUJAHHHH.. HALLELUJAH HALLELUJAH! I can never get strawberries at this price back home; not even at KL where i used to get from!! Without further undo and no need to bargain anymore like how we should at places like this, here are what i got back home:

Today was really a busy day for me. Busy Tuesday comes after Boredom Monday. Hubby's best friend, Felix is celebrating his birthday tonight which was kinda like a very last minute invitation to us, and since Hubby had promised a birthday cake, i had to rush myself to bake one the whole afternoon. Thank God i had grated some carrots yesterday (since it was boredom Monday and though i got my hand cut again :'( )so what else, only carrot cream cheese cake would do for this last minute call.

I couldn't start the baking right away when we got home at 12 sth noon, as mom in law has invited an auntie over for lunch and i had to help out in the kitchen (they were wrapping dumplings but since i got my thumb cut, it wouldn't be hygienic to help out with the wrapping so only did the pi dan dou fu). Only started at about half past one, and was interrupted in between when i found some yeast in the 'self raising flour' which Hubby claimed was 'self-raising flour'. Turned out it was 'quick bread flour'. And i had already mixed the flour into the batter -:S. Having no choice but to start all over, the cakes only went into the oven at half past two and came out at ten past three.

As time was running short, and i only had an hour (deducting cooling time) to decorate the cake, this was the best i could do (should be bestest since i also officiated my newly bought strawberries):

(P/S: Know what, snapping photos is one skill which i lack a lot, always find it hard to take good photos)

Finally finished the cake at five, we had to rush off to the party place to celebrate the occasion with the birthday boy.

Here's the big cute birthday boy cutting his cake:

Grabbing his first slice.....

No offense but Felix is sooo cute. As i was sitting down with Hubby just now before i wrote this blog, something just struck me: hey, i had actually made the right cake! Since Felix is a bit on the huge side, carrot cake does fit perfectly, as it is low in fat, nutritious (carrots are good for your eye sight), and importantly, i had reduced the sugar much more than the amount i normally reduced back home. The only fattening part is the cream cheese itself, however, a slice would only have some dabs by the side, on top and a very thin layer in the middle. Still low fat afterall!

Felix was Hubby's bestman during our wedding. He said he felt more secure having one who is twice his size, and i couldn't agree more until on the day itself, this cute bestman was late! Very un-usual-ly L-A-T-E. Have you ever seen a bestman who is late?? So late that our wedding has to be delayed for further an hour! Hehe, for this reason, everyone nicknamed him 'The Worst Bestman'.

Despite the tight schedule, I managed to steal a portion of the batter to be made as cupcakes for the family. Topped with cream cheese and some cut almonds:

Know what, people here don't normally fancy carrot cake, and some of them have never ever tried one before. The idea of having carrots in their sweet cakes sounds very doggy to them. Like mutton or beef in butter, sugar, eggs and flour. (Dunno if they like the carrot cake i baked, but they did gobble up everything though!)

In constrast, back home, carrot cake is in general quite a hit, and it is one of my favourites especially the one baked by my youngest yi yi. One word: Delicious and so i really don't understand why some couldn't accept it, but again everyone is different right? Thank God Hubby loves this cake. Infact this is the first cake i baked for him when we were in Sheffield!

I have tried a number of recipes but this is the one which i believe it is one of the best, giving a spongy texture:

Carrot Cake

Ingredients:

4 eggs (separated)

1 1/2 cups corn oil

140g fine granulated sugar

100g brown sugar

1 1/2 cups lightly packed grated carrots

(sift together)

250g cake flour

2 tsps mixed spices (i substituted with cinnamon)

1 1/2 tsps baking soda

100g chopped walnuts or pecans

Method

1. Beat egg yolks in a large mixing bowl and then add in oil, sugar, carrots. Mix wel.

2. Stir in dry ingredients and mix well.

3. Beat egg whites until stiff and fold into cake mixture.

4. Pour into a lined and greased 9" (i used 8") round baking tin and bake at 180C for 40 minutes.

Cream Cheese Frosting

Ingredients

120g butter

250g cream cheese

100g icing sugar

1 tsp of lemon/orange juice

some lemon/orange rinds

Method

1. Beat butter and cheese til light and fluffy

2. Put in icing sugar, juice and rinds and cream til smooth.

3. After cake has cooled, cut into halves and sandwich. Then top frosting and decorate as liked.

Do have a try, and last but not least, Happy Birthday, Felix!