Epicurious Brunch @ Bangsar Shopping Centre (27th - 28th October 2012)

Public service announcement for all foodies like me... I got to know about this Epicurious Brunch event from Ivan of The Potong. It's happening this weekend, so if you're not going away over the long weekend, do pop by. You might spot me there on Saturday checking out the stalls, cooking demonstrations, baking classes and even activities for children (yes I'm bringing BoiBoi along).

Details of the Epicurious Brunch:

Date: 27th - 28th October 2012
Time: 10.00am - 6.00pm
Venue: Concourse, Ground Floor, Bangsar Shopping Centre

Btw, do catch my fave baker, Nigel from Just Heavenly in action. He'll be conducting baking classes on these 2 days. Click on the link Epicurious Brunch for all the activities lined up for the 2 days.

The Potong will also have a stall at this event.

See ya there!

Review: Artisan Popsicles From The Potong

We have the privilege to meet with Ivan, one of the 3 founders of The Potong which have branded themselves as fresh artisan popsicles recently. Ivan proceeded by introducing the concept and production of The Potong which I find it very interesting. I think I would love to be their taste bunny (well if they wish to hire me hehehe) as The Potong team embarked on concocting the various flavours coming from fruits, vegetables, herbs etc. Well not only those but also booze for the child in every adult we know :D

The Potong range is divided into Signature Range, Seasonal Specialty, Booze Pop (RM9 for each pop) and Prosecco Pop (RM15 for each pop). The first two (RM5 for each pop) can be found currently at Wondermama Restaurant & Cafe. The Potong should be made available at more outlets soon, I guess just wait for the announcement on their Facebook page. The Booze and Prosecco will be available at places with liquor licence at a later stage. However, you can dig into them at the following upcoming events in the Klang Valley:

The Week of Taste Malaysia @ Publika > 19 - 21st Oct
The Great Brunch Experiment @ BSC Concourse area, Ground Floor > 27th & 28th Oct 10.00am - 6.30pm
FAB Market  @ Publika > 28th Oct
Urbanscapes Festival @ Padang Astaka > 24 & 25th Nov

We have a little tasting session of these pops which claimed to be all natural but Ivan was honest enough to inform that they do need to add some sugar to adjust the sweetness according to the sweetness of the ingredients procured plus addition of a little stabiliser to keep the texture consistent.

We got to try the Cherry Root Beer and Sunny Melon. Cherry Root Beer is made of A&W root beer, vanilla cream and topped with a maraschino cherry, reminded me of the time when my dad took us to the then A&W at Jalan Raja Laut for a root beer float... ahhh such beautiful memories ;-)

Honeydew melon, cucumber and thyme make up of Sunny Melon! Loved this combination and the soft texture was an added bonus. I have tasted similar granita made by Rohani at work but this is so refreshing and on a stick! Totally a must have on a hot hot day.

Ivan was kind enough to bring along a bottle of prosecco for us to try out the Prosecco Pop experience. We are supposed to dunk a pop into the sparkling wine before popping the pop into our mouth. We got to try with Rosy Mango (Mango, Grapefuit & Rose Water) and Watermelon Fizz (Watermelon, Lemonade & Apple Mint).

The sensory played up when it first tasted the slight sweet slight bitter wine followed by the flavours of the pops. We loved Rosy Mango but Watermelon Fizz is great too! Kids would love them, well minus the wine combi. The pops given to us for tasting for this Prosecco Pop experience is a normal sized pop but it will be shorter in the actual sales. So please don't complain horrr when your pop is shorter when you try them at the above events.

Do follow The Potong on their Facebook page to catch hold of their latest offerings and locations.

Thank you Ivan for the time and pops; and Lanatir for the intro.

Psst, apologies for the crappy pics cos I dunno how to use Capt'n Hook's camera lol.

The First Malaysian Week of Taste 2012

Visual from Week of Taste website

If you're a foodie like me, there seems to be quite a number of food related events around Klang Valley this October and November. Do they excite you as much as they did to me?

One of them that pique my interest is this Malaysian chapter of the Week of Taste which is supported by Embassy of France, Alliance Francaise de Kuala Lumpur, the Malaysian French Chamber of Commerce (MFCCI) and so forth. Week of Taste started in 1990 in France where school going children are being educated on food. It is also for adult to discover the benefits of cooking and the pleasures of eating and drinking. It has since spread to over 20 countries and the latest landing - Malaysia!

From the website, the Week of Taste is about:

Enhancing the diversity of tastes and food cultures
Promoting exchanges between food related professionals
Educating the younger generations to the pleasure of the taste
Making consumers aware of the quality and seasonality of products
Showcasing the craft skills
Promoting health through a varied and balanced diet
Promoting the discovery of high quality products
Preserving tradition and encouraging culinary innovation

It is designed for children, teenagers, families, teachers and all those who love to eat, who want to discover quality products and take time to savor and enjoy, and to all those who care about their environment as well as their health.

For a gastronomical affair at restaurants, do check out the participating restaurants or should you prefer to attend cooking related workshops, click on the schedule here. There will be a gourmet bazaar over the weekend (19th - 21st) at Publika in Solaris Dutamas with some 20 exhibitors of over 30 brands as well as artisans taking part. So if you wish to engage with the producers and sellers around, this is it!

The Week of Taste starts on 15th October 2012 and ends on 21st.

For more information, click on the Week of Taste official website.

Date Loaf

I was itching to bake after slowing down for ages, well... if you notice of my poor blog being in a neglected state. After going through the fridge and larder, I've found packets of dried fruits and various nuts other than the usual flour, sugar, butter etc. Browse some recipe books and finally chanced upon 2 recipes using dates and nuts. With further scrutinising of the methods for the recipes, I finally decided to use the recipe from Donna Hay's Modern Classics Book 2. Hehe all because it's simple and easy!

I got on to weigh and measure my ingredients, and it was a quick 30 minutes (includes washing up, excluding baking time heh).

The Date Loaf turned out perfectly... moist with a light hint of butter. The loaf itself is not sweet at all even though I did not reduce the amount like usual. The sweetness from the dates pieces is good enough since I do not like achingly sweet stuff. A repeat to churn out more of such loaf is on the way since the recipe seems a little healthy...

Date Loaf
Recipe from Donna Hay's Modern Classics Book 2

1 1/2 cups plain flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
2/3 cup caster sugar
1 cup roughly chopped pitted dates
1/2 cup roughly chopped pecan nuts (I've roasted them before chopping)
125 g butter
1/4 cup milk
2 eggs

Pre-heat oven to 160C. Sift flour and baking powder into a bowl. Add sugar, dates and pecans; mix to combine and set aside.

Place butter and milk in a saucepan over low heat and cook till butter is melted. Add to flour mixture with eggs. Stir until combined. Spoon into a greased 10cm x 20cm loaf tin and bake for 1 hour 15 mins or until cooked when tested with skewer.

Cool in tin for 5 mins before slicing. Serve plain or with butter.

Review: Makanan Thai Pek Sak @ Kampung Baru Sungai Buloh

**Non-Halal**


It's always great to have adventurous parents when it comes to food. I guess it must have been that upbringing that somehow I've turned into a foodie. Makanan Thai Pek Sak is merely a shack in Sungai Buloh was rather elusive as my parents have attempted to bring us earlier the year but was closed and we ended up in LYJ instead which is located near by.

Operated by a man who married a Thai wife, hence we got a combination of Chinese and Thai food. Actually the man cooks dai chow (stir-fries) Chinese style and he manned the kitchen all by himself! The Thai element here are the grilled seafood!



An assortment of fishes, squid and blood cockles are grilled over charcoal stoves. Served with the utmost appetising chili dip, way much better than Nong & Jimmy.



We have a platter of blood cockles, so juicy and yummy with the hot hot dip.



Then came the Braised Fish Head. Amazing flavours of soy bean paste with slight hint of chili melded well with the firm fish head that have quite some meaty parts. This was so good with rice that I overate my quota of rice that evening. The cook was rather generous too that my mother said he actually taught her how to cook this dish at her previous visit. However, our only gripe is the okra... so tough and old!



Thinking that they were Thai specialist, we ordered a mixed Tom Yum soup. Disappointed that it doesn't taste good at all. As the kitchen is in an open area, I could actually see the cook scooping tom yum paste from a huge tin meant for catering purposes. So stay away from this.



The star dish that appears on every table - Stir-Fried Dried Shrimp Belacan Fern Shoots. The fern shoots were blanched quickly before stir frying in sambal belacan and tossed with pounded dried shrimp. No wonder it's a must order for everyone. The fern shoots still retain their crunch and the addition of dried shrimps is a marvelous idea.



Next up is Harm Yue Far Larm Poe (Claypot Pork Belly with Salted Fish). There is no denial that I have to declare that they serve the best in Klang Valley! The pork belly are sliced thinly but broadly, unlike most places where the pork belly pieces shrivel down to nothing after cooking. The size of the pork gave a good bite to the dish. Apart from this, the portion of salted fish is really generous. The salty gravy with a hint of hotness from the dried chillies packed a punch... so now you know why I overate my quota of rice heh.



We added this crab dish later on but really, the portions here are kinda big and we struggled with these crabs. A rather unique style for a crab dish. This is done "kiong yung" (ginger paste) stir fried. Even though heavily peppered with ginger but the crabs retained it's natural sweetness. Thank goodness they were not meaty crabs, otherwise would have a lot of wastage. We managed anyway to finish up the crabs, right down to the last drop of its sweet broth. Finger lickin' goodness.



For 7 of us with rice and Chinese tea, if I can remember correctly, the bill was between RM120 - RM130 or there about. Very reasonable but then again... this is a shack at the corner of Jalan Public and Jalan Welfare, opposite RHB Bank and Yin Ma Cash & Carry. I've asked for the phone number, as the building at the back is near completion, so there might be a chance that they'll be shifting to another location.


Makanan Thai Pek Sak
Corner of Jalan Public & Jalan Welfare
Kampung Baru Sungai Buloh
Selangor
Map
Opposite RHB Bank, same road as the famous Kong Mah Dim Sum
Tel: 016 256 1020 (Ah Pheng)

Arthur's Dream

Apologies for the long silence... have been traveling for a short while for work then the lazy bones strike! hehehe... I know I'm sooo late to post this up in tribute to Arthur Guinness Day on 27 September 2012 but what the heck!

I have always wanted to make this combination of an adult chocolate cake aka my christened Chocolate Velvet Cake which is essentially a Chocolate Guinness Stout Cake layered with peanut butter, banana slices, more chocolate and to finish off with some crunch by way of almond pralines. Managed to achieved this and it tasted so good that it got thumbs of approval from Capt'n Hook who doesn't fancy chocolate cakes.

The cake recipe can be found in my old post of Chocolate Guinness Cake. And here are the recipes for the other 3 elements:

Peanut Butter Frosting

160 g icing sugar
280 g smooth peanut butter
80 g butter
80 ml whipping cream

Beat icing sugar, peanut butter and butter until light and fluffy. Add in whipping cream and beat further for another 3 minutes or so until it's light.


Chocolate Ganache

150 g dark chocolate couverture, roughly chopped
180 g whipping cream

Melt chocolate and cream over low heat until glossy. Refrigerate to cool.


Almond Praline

80 g (1/3 cup) whole almonds
115 g (1/2 cup) caster sugar
60 ml (1/4 cup) water

Place almonds on baking tray and bake for 10 minutes. Cool down.

Place sugar and water in saucepan over medium heat until dissolved. Increase heat and cook until golden. Turn off the heat and add in almonds. Quickly pour onto lined tray. Once cooled, break praline into pieces.

To assemble, I've sliced my cake into two discs. Placed the bottom part back inside the loose based cake tin. Slater on Peanut Butter Frosting followed by sliced bananas. Drizzle over Chocolate Ganache thickly before placing the top part of cake. Carefully spread Peanut Butter Frosting all over on top before spreading out the Chocolate Ganache. Sprinkle on Almond Praline. Chill for a couple of hours. Remove from fridge for about 10 minutes before slicing to serve. Yummy!

Enjoy and "yam seng" (cheers)!

Review: Lunch Delivered By Lunch2U

**Halal Certified Suppliers, Pork-Free Kitchen**


I was contacted by Alexandra whom I've gotten to know over the years when she was working with Friedchillies. She is now a certified nutritionist with the American Fitness Professionals and Associates (AFPA) and ventured into healthy lunch delivery service called Lunch2u. I loved the idea and concept of healthy lunch but with delivery thrown in, is really a bonus. Going out for lunch is such a hassle these days especially when your office area have limited food places, driving out for lunch in the short 1 hour just to get stuck in traffic and the tall task of finding a parking lot add on more stress to the hour.



One has to order the lunches via the website of Lunch2u the day before. Orders can be paid via Visa or Mastercard credit cards, paypal and also bank transfers, easy peasy. Lunches are delivered between 11:30am – 1.00pm. For the time being lunches are delivered to Damansara Heights offices, certain Mont Kiara buildings, Phileo Damansara 1 & 2 offices, Desa Sri Hartamas offices and orders can also be picked up at Lunch2U kitchen in Desa Sri Hartamas.



Alexandra had sent me a few lunches to sample. What I liked inside the plastic bag are packed food in plastic boxes and the wraps are neatly wrapped in waxed brown paper. Loved that the information of the lunch item is printed clearly on a sticker with calories count stated as well! There are also paper napkins and sturdy plastic cutleries... and I really mean sturdy as I really hate those that are hopelessly useless ones that can break easily while jabbing on your piece of meat.

There are 3 beautiful salads and first up is Moroccan Dreams which is a cous cous based salad. In there are chickpeas, cherry tomatoes, red onion and cucumber. Moroccan Dream is lightly tossed with olive oil and a squeeze of lemon juice. I'm all right with the taste of this salad as I'm used to just plain salad tossed with lemon and olive oil but someone commented it was a little tart. I'm used to food a little on the bland side, so some of you might need to adjust with a little salt.

Next is a Pasta Pasta, a tri-coloured fusili pasta with tuna, red and yellow capsicum, oyster mushrooms, and red onion tossed with a lemon mustard vinaigrette. Nice when served cold but just like Moroccan Dreams, some of you might want to adjust with a little salt.

Thai Journey gets the most thumbs up. I really like the punch of flavours in the slight spicy sour Thai dressing that melded well together with the baked chicken topped red rice, cherry tomatoes, cucumber, red onion and mango salad. Somehow sweet, spicy and sour flavours tend to always go well together. Highly recommended!

We also loved the juicy and flavourful Love Me Tandoor! Healthy stuff here of tasty tandoori chicken pieces wrapped in capati with raita sauce and if not mistaken in there have cucumber and onion. I like how the wrap is tightly wrapped and it wasn't messy at all biting into one. This would be the best choice to have while working in front of the desk during lunch hour :p

These healthy lunches from Lunch2u are all good with me and as with many friends in the circle would gripe... Alexandra, please expand your delivery area! lol and my next one would be, do expand the menu so that we get to have more healthy but tasty food ;-)

Thanks so much Lunch2u to bring healthy food to our desks!