A visit from Korea

I was really delighted when i received an e-mail from a Korean friend saying that she was coming back to Canberra for a visit. It's rather odd because people don't usually come Canberra, i mean it's not the BEST place to visit in Australia especially if you have been here before and seen all the touristic attractions around (i.e. the Old and New Parliament House). We have no beautiful beaches, our shopping centres are nothing compared to the ones in Sydney or Mlebourne and there just isn't a night life...anyways, she told me later that she came back to visit a few friends and just relax in a humble and quiet town like Canberra.

I was only able to meet up with her for dinner, but i think we made the most out of it because we have lotsa fun talking, catching up and of course filling our tummies with loads of food! I was so full that i didn't even have breakfast on the following day.

First stop she chose was Milk & Honey (again, i know) because she really liked the decor and the comfortable chairs and obviously the menu sorta attracted her too. I've been there for lunch and dessert but never for dinner. We arrived early since she was really hungry, and we ordered a Lightly Fried Calamari On Mixed Leaves With Lemon And Garlic Aioli and a special of the day which was: Kangaroo Steak With A Seasoned Beetroot On A Sweet Potato Puree And Peas. The calamari was alright and the portion was quite generous, but i couldn't finish it because the batter was too heavy for me. The kangaroo was cooked to medium rare and it was quite nice, i liked the beetroot that came with it as it complimented the meat very well. The only disappointment was probably the peas, i think that they could have thought of something more original than just plating boring peas around the dish.

Kangaroo Steak with seasoned beetroot on a sweet potato mash & peas

Lightly fried calamari on mixed leaves with lemon and garlic aioli

After the meal, we decided to go for some desserts! Even though we were full, somehow we still managed to slot in some desserts. Don't people say that  in a girl's stomach there is always an compartment that is reserved only for desserts? Yeah, there is. Trust me. We decided to go to Koko Black (Bunda Street, Canberra Centre) because this friend of mine, loves chocolate.

Koko Black has one of the nicest decor, i reckon. I like how the Canberra Salon has glass windows that allow you to seat around and look at how the staff makes the truffles and pralines sold at the salon. However, we decided to seat outside so that my friend could 'enjoy the fresh air from Australia' - as she said it. We decided to share a Belgian Spoil - consisted of a chocolate cake, two Belgian chocolates (Classic Belgian Truffle & Sienna Strawberry), chocolate mousse, shortbread & chocolate ice-cream. The dish was very pretty and mouth-watering but having it just after the dinner at M&H was a killer. It's such a unfortunate thing to realise that my dessert compartment is so small...*sobs. The good thing is that my Korean friend liked it and we almost finished it (didn't really waste anything), good job!

Belgian Spoil

Playing with the Sienna Strawberry Praline

Sydney Trip - long long time ago (Part I)

I know i have been bad and i haven't been updating but here u go...an update from my Sydney trip in November.

Fortunately i managed to join the last event of Good Food October - Sydney Food & Wine Fair 2009, it was a charity event for AIDS. It was quite a beautiful day and with so many food booths around, you couldn't be happier. There were a lot of free stuff too...like Mount Franklin sparkling water, Ferrero Rondnoir (we got 8 of them!), Ben & Jerry's ice cream, bread!

For me the highlight was the entree from The Restaurant at 3 Weeds - Seared Scallops with morcilla, chorizo, truffled white bean puree with baby coriander! The flavours were well balanced and the scallop was just wonderful - very succulent and was cooked just right! Yum...i wanted more...

Next dish was a Noodle Salad with Peanuts, Bean Sprouts, Thai basil & Chilli Jam from Longrain. The ingredients were fresh but it was a bit too sour to my liking that i didn't end up finishing it.

To end our visit, we got 2 tarts from Bourke St. Bakery a food booth whose name i have forgotten!!! (i should have written down). One was chocolate and the other one was almond and pear tart! I liked the pear and almond tart better, even though i was the one who ordered the chocolate one.

Wagamama - Canberra

Despite hearing about how bad the food in Wagamama (Canberra Centre, 125 Bundah St) is, i still ended up there for lunch during a work training session. I must say that the decor is quite modern, very neat and clean (which i like). The staff was overly friendly or just extremely motivated to work because the waitress that served us, literally sat beside us while taking our order - not to mention the endless smile on her face. I ordered the Teriyaki Salmon ($22.20) and an 'Apple, Mint & Lime' juice ($4.70). The juice was a bit weird because it had this thick layer of lime foam at the top with a hint of mint but i have to say that it was quite refreshing for a hot day! The salmon was cooked nicely and i liked the crispy nori on top of it. However, the rice was a bit too wet and the sauce was a bit overpowering for the salmon. It was a really relaxed lunch and the overall experience was pleasant.

Sorry for the blurry photos, they were taken with my humble mobile phone!

Pão de Queijo - Brazilian Cheese Puffs

Recently, I've been craving so much for Brazilian food. I guess it was ever since i had the priviledge to eat feijoada (Brazilian black bean stew) at one of the Brazilian restaurants in Sydney: Favela. It was so good and quite authentic and now it makes me miss Brazilian food even more...every single bit of it - from main dishes to snacks! Been thinking of going back to my roots and start making some Brazilian dishes...soh pra matar a saudade! At first, i was determined to make feijoada, but gave up on the idea because i found out that it isn't easy to get the ingredients here, at least not in Canberra. Thus i decided to make something easy and that brings back good memories of my childhood: Pao de queijo! I still remember the days in middle school when i would line up in canteen queues just to get a hot and deliciously soft pao de queijo during recess. Awww.

So here is the recipe:

- 300ml of milk

- 125g of unsalted butter, melted

- 1 tbsp of salt

- 450g of tapioca starch

- 2 large eggs or 3 small eggs

- 150g of parmesan cheese (the ones that you sprinkle on top of your pasta)

Method:

1) Bring the milk, melted unsalted butter and the salt to boil

2) Remove the pot from the fire and add the tapioca starch in portions, mixing with a wooden spoon after each addition. It will eventually form something that look like a 'semi-dough'

3) Leave it to cool

4) Add one egg at a time and a portion of the parmesan cheese to the 'semi-dough' and knead it. Repeat the process until you get a smooth dough (something that resembles to a bread dough)

5) Make small/medium balls with the dough

6) Pre-heat oven to 180C and bake the cheese balls for around 20 minutes or until they are slightly brown on the top.

Enjoy!

A 'hello'!

Been wanting to blog so badly but due to the Canon competition, i've been negleting my lil' beloved blog and focusing on taking photos for the competition. Technically, i've submitted 4 photos but for some strange reason, only 3 photos show up in the Canon website. Weird.

Well...i hope that a photo of Snowie will keep you all happy for now =)

See you soon =)