Sweet Potato Soup

Mommy used to cook homemade sweet soup once in a while, now that I live apart from Mom, I miss it and cook it myself.

Over the weekend, I decided to make Sweet Potato Soup as it is so easy and quick to cook and the versions sold outside at food places are often too sweet for my liking.

Ingredients:
Japanese Sweet Potatoes
Orange Sweet Potatoes
Pandan Leaves (tie into a bunch)
Cane Sugar
Water, about 1.8 to 2 litres


How to:

Put water and pandan leaves in a pot and bring it to a boil. While water is cooking, skin and chop sweet potatoes into large squares.

Once water is boiling, put in the chopped potatoes and cook on medium heat for another 20 mins or till potatoes are soft.

Switch off the fire, add in cane sugar to taste and serve either warm or chilled.

Note: Some prefer their sweet potato soup with a tinge of ginger, if so you may add a few slices of old ginger when boiling the water and pandan leaves. I find it heaty so ginger was omitted.


Warm Love,
Starningblue

Barley, Gingko & Beancurd Skin Dessert

In chinese it is known as 白果意米腐竹糖水 and it is quite a mouthful to say the name of this dessert; this is what Mum used to cook for the family when I still had the luxury of staying with my parents.

Being a bride-to-be is not easy, being a vain bride-to-be takes even more effort. My plan is to take care of my skin inside out. I've been investing in regular facial sessions to pamper my skin, drinking bird's nest once in a while and another a cheaper way to nourish the skin is to cook this chinese sweet soup.

There are many versions to this. Some like hard boiled eggs in it, some like to taste chunky beancurd skin in the soup; I like mine creamy like soy milk with chewy barley and nutritious gingko.

The painful part of making this is preparing the gingko. Because mum used to cook this and not me, I now know for the first time what it means to 'remove the heart' of the gingko. After cracking the gingko shell (trying not to hammer my fingers), and soaking the gingkos in warm water to easy the removal of skin on the prized fruit, the next step is to use a toothpick pushing one tip to the another to push out the bud of the gingkos. It sounds easy but I had to grovel the toothpick inside the gingko in search of the bud and it took a long while to go through all the gingkos.

The results was very good. The beancurd skin melted into the soup and the barley was not mushy. Besides the gingko, it was pretty quick to prepare as well. So girls, you should really make some of this to pamper yourself!

Ingredients:

20-25 Gingko nuts

1 packet of dried beancurd skin

50g holland barley (there are 2 kinds of barley and this is the one you need)

1.5l water

Rock sugar to taste

How to:

Rinse barley and gingko nuts and soak barley for 30mins. Rinse dried beancurd and soak till white in a separate bowl.

Put water in pot, add soaked beancurd skin and barley. Boil  in covered put for about 20mins on low fire, or until beancurd skin melts.

Add gingko and rock sugar to taste. Boil for another 15mins more and turn off fire. Serve warm or refrigerate and enjoy it cold.


Warm love,
Starningblue

Millie’s Cookies

Whenever I passed by a Millie’s cookies store, I always take a second glance; And running through my mind there is a battle between should I or shouldn’t I?  It cost 99 pence for 1 small piece and is only worth it if you buy more.

They are freshly bake everyday and is the kind of soft cookies that I like.

Hope I won’t get sore throat…

Drooling,

Juanie

Ice Cream Parlor

Since its ice-cream week, I thought I’ll contribute something too.

Morelli’s Gelato since 1907

Some says its the Rolls Royce of ice creams.

Freshly made daily in the Italian traditional artisan method

Heavenly!

Drooling,

Juanie

What's your flavour?

This is ice cream week, not only for myself but also for 8 Days. (weekly local magazine) 20 pages dedicated to worthy licks with full images to tempt and Ice Cream Awards 2009 to boot. As for myself, a tub of Baskin Robbin’s Pistachio Almond was small treat from JB last weekend. *indulgence*

Flipping through those pages was totally uncomfortable; makes me want to reach for my Baskin in the fridge! With the features of various ice cream joints in Singapore, I realized I have tasted most of them and until this week, I had no idea I love ice cream that much! *grin*

Just imagine staring down at write-ups on Island Creamery, The Daily Scoops, Haato and my all-time love Haagen Dazs, just to name a few to start you on some popular ice-creameries over here.

From 8 days, do you know your frozen desserts?

Ice Cream Contains milk, cream eggs (some not), must have at least 10% fat
Gelato From Italian word to freeze ‘Gelare’. Less cream but more milk than ice cream, usually less than 7% fat. The smoother, denser consistency comes from 50% less air than ice cream!
Sorbet No fat! Just water, with sugar and flavourings, usually fruits.
Sherbet Like sorbet, with milk.

How enlightening is this? I never favoured sorbet or sherbet, too zingy for my liking and now I know why I like Haagen Dazs to bits – soo creamy because of the low air content in their ice cream! *and they pride themselves for that!* Totally good stuff~


Worth a mention and a try, The Ice Cream Gallery is voted for Best Boozy Kick. Be rest assured I will be there soon enough to taste the raved rum and raisin.

So, what’s your flavour?


Warm love,
Starningblue

Rainbow Cupcakes

I was just sipping my coffee mourning another week’s work ahead when my lovely colleague opened that white box to offer me these rainbow coloured mini cupcakes; I’m all smiles and really, she made my day.

These yummy cupcakes are as bite-sized as a small chocolate truffle. Love how the steamed cake melts in my mouth then presents the brown sugared coconut beneath.

After I tasted this a few years ago, I realized I have rarely seen this sold anywhere! Only once have I bumped into a street stall selling traditional Malay cakes and treats where they stocked many flavours of the rainbow cupcakes. *my colleague ordered from a home baking contact*

Apparently, this is made on special occasions (weddings, new year…) in Malay culture. The internet does not provide much details on this so no recipe, no references!

Although I did find one recipe kind of similar to this, I would have to try it out to know if that is THE ONE.

Stay tuned :)


Warm love,
Starningblue

Da Paolo Dolci

Holland Village is where Kel and I usually go. Seldom do we venture opposite to Chip Bee Gardens. One night after dinner with Aileen, we wanted to go for part 2, she suggested Da Paolo Dolci.

It was the Halloween weekend (so you know how backdated this post is), parking was almost impossible so when we arrived, all of us were ready to indulge – or maybe just me and Aileen.

Aileen took so long to decide what she wanted to have; eventually ordered strawberry tart but it came with mould growing on it (yuck.) and to have it replaced, blueberry tart was 2nd choice. I think she said it was okay, nothing to shout about.

My choice of sweet is Apple Crumble Muffin. I love crumbles! PS café has good mango and banana crumble (fyi, that’s yummy - another blog entry altogether!) and over here I just had to order a crumble for myself. This muffin is really like mini apple crumble, no different in taste with the normal apple crumble. Well, nothing out of the ordinary, I wish it was warmed though.

Kel had brownie with ice cream. He did not really make a lot of noise so I assume his is so-so too.

We did not get ourselves one of their award winning Tiramisu here but I have tasted it from Da Paolo Gastronomia Gourmet outlets and it is addictive. A must try.

Pretty fondant cakes on display.

Overall, this place is good for tea and a casual chat with girlfriends. We were the only customers so we pretty much had the place to ourselves. Pity the lady behind the counter had to endure our nonsensical chatter.

I would say the company and experience is more important than having fantastic food. We should do this often.

Location: 43 Jalan Mera Saga #01-74 Chip Bee Garden

Warm love,
Starningblue

Patisserie Valerie

Its not common here to have cafe/ patisserie/ brasserie of such and its definitely not easy to find pretty whole cakes like these for occasions. Not sure why but I guessed breads are what peeps here are used to. I’m glad Patisserie Valerie has come to this end of the country! Surprisingly, Patisserie Valerie had actually owned international reputations and was established since 1926 in London.

It felt like a breakthrough from tradition, like something new, something so interesting cos everyone who walk by this patisserie never fails to stop for some admirations. They’ll go ‘ohh aren’t they pretty?’ and if not you’ll see people whipping out their camera phone and start snapping away. I know its a norm for us but seriously will you bat an eyelid when you pass by a cake shop back home?

They also have traditional handmade Italian Gelato in store. One unusual flavor that caught me was the light green Gelato made from Pistachio.

And since Christmas is approaching, its obvious they’ll have log cakes. Look any good?

Not forgetting to try it myself.

The cakes taste differently as compared to the ones I prefer back home. I think its the flour. Still, its not bad, worth a try.

Drooling,

Juanie

Nectarie le Dessert Patisserie

We were having email ping-pong as usual, trying to decide where to eat and Paulyn suggested Nectarie, I think she was almost serious to go there for dinner! Hah.

Nice ambience, nice desserts & nice friends to share on a Friday night at Nectarie

Check out the cakes~


I think we should share the desserts next time (except Lili and her Tiramisu *kidding*), they look small but are quite taste-potent.



Warm love,
Starningblue