And the moment everything gets all wet and cold and gloomy, a certain hunger is stirred inside of me — the hunger for comfort food like steaming hot Indonesian bakso…

Excellent bakso that I had in Jakarta. Sorry if the colours are a bit off. Shot with a Nokia N82.

There’s a certain je-ne-sais-quoi in the genuine Indonesian version that just makes it so hard to replicate. Perhaps it’s something in the meatballs. Perhaps in the bumbu (spices). Perhaps it’s only the Sasa/Ajinomoto (popular brands of MSG in Indonesia). Or perhaps it’s all in the special brand of Vitamin D — Vitamin Debu (dust) — that unwittingly gets into the bakso as it is being prepared by the roadside hawker!

I’ve been intending to post this recipe since God-knows-when but have been putting it off for one simple reason: I didn’t have any step-by-step photos to post with it. Hence, my photo of a slice of this delectably moist carrot cake will have to do for now.

This cake is very easy to make and has always gotten me compliments every time I make it. (I even got orders for this cake! But I always have to turn them down because I don’t have the time to do it.) The only hard part is grating the carrots. After you’ve done that, everything else is a breeze.

Moist Carrot Cake

Ingredients:
•    4 eggs
•    1 1/4 cups vegetable oil
•    1 cup white sugar
•    2 teaspoons vanilla extract
•    2 cups all-purpose flour
•    2 teaspoons baking soda
•    2 teaspoons baking powder
•    1/2 teaspoon salt
•    1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
•    3 cups carrots, grated coarsely
•    1 handful walnuts, chopped coarsely (quantity can be increased, to taste)
•    1 handful of raisins (or to taste – don’t put too much: it will make the cake too sweet)

Ingredients for the frosting:

•    1/2 cup butter, softened
•    8 ounces cream cheese, softened (1 box Philadelphia cream cheese or 1 tube of Tatura cream cheese)
•    2-4 cups confectioners’ sugar (TIP: start with 2 cups sugar; add sugar bit by bit if not sweet enough; 4 cups is too sweet for me; I usually use only 2)
•    1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease 2 round pans & line sides and bottom of pan with baking paper. (I don’t like the taste of the flour, so I don’t grease & flour my baking tins anymore.)
2. In a large bowl, beat together eggs, oil, white sugar and 2 teaspoons vanilla.
   
3. Mix in flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon.
   
4. Stir in carrots.
   
5. Fold in walnuts and raisins.
   
6. Pour into prepared pans. Bake in the preheated oven for 40 to 50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Let cool in pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack and cool completely.

To Make Frosting:

1. In a medium bowl, combine butter, cream cheese, confectioners’ sugar and 1 teaspoon vanilla.
   
2. Beat until the mixture is smooth and creamy.
   
3. Frost the cooled cake.

IMPORTANT: The key to a moist carrot cake is baking it until just cooked, i.e. when you stick a toothpick in the centre, it comes out clean. I never really time my baking. I just wait for the a strong, yummy aroma to waft out of the oven. That usually signals that the cake’s done. Take a peek inside the oven; if the top of the cake looks set, open the oven and stick a toothpick in the centre. If some batter sticks to the toothpick, that means the cake is not ready yet. Close the oven door and wait for a few minutes. Remember: the longer the cake stays in the oven, the drier it gets.

Oh, and as for softening the butter and the cream cheese, just leave it out at room temperature for half an hour or so. Never put it in the microwave.

Finally, make sure the cake has cooled completely before  you frost it. Otherwise, the cream cheese frosting will melt.

Garnish the top of the cake with almond slivers, if desired.

This recipe is based on Carrot Cake III from allrecipes.com. Here are the tweaks that I’ve made on the recipe over the years:

1. I halve the sugar from 2 cups to just 1 cup, as I found the original recipe way to sweet for my (and most Malaysians’) taste.
2. Since pecans cost a small fortune in Malaysia and are quite difficult to find, I substitute it with chopped walnuts.
3. I add some raisins for added texture and flavour.
4. I cut down the ground cinnamon from 2 teaspoons to just 1 teaspoon, as the children found the original recipe too overpowering.
5. I also halve the confectioner’s sugar used for the frosting.
6. I use 2 baking tins and make it a 2-layer cake, to cut down on the baking time. [NB: Cake slice in the photo only shows a single layer.]

Selamat mencuba! (Good luck!) :)

Su-Tu-Kil — arguably the ultimate seafood experience in Cebu — is actually an acronym for three popular ways of enjoying seafood in the Philippines:

1) SUgba (grilled)

2) TUla (soup)

3) KILaw (raw fish soaked in vinegar mixed with tomatoes, ginger, onions and lemons, sometimes with radish; the vinegar’s acidity effectively ‘cooks’ the fish)

What makes the Su-Tu-Kil experience unique is the fact that you first need to buy the seafood from one of the stalls in the area…

…then you pick out one of the nearby restaurants to cook them for you. [NB: This restaurant sold its own seafood but you're under no obligation to buy from them.]

The choice of seafood is mind-boggling. Everything is so fresh, many of them are still alive. Everything smells like the sea; there’s no ‘fishy’ smell at all!

Take your pick from oysters and crabs…

…live lobsters…

…seaweed (the miniature grape-like things are a hoot to eat; the branchy stuff tends to be a bit more chewy)…

….as well as clams, prawns, scallops, and all sorts of exotic fish.

The best part is, of course, deciding how you want to have your seafood. Do you want your prawns grilled or cooked with butter and garlic? Perhaps the fish head can be made into soup, most of its flesh going into kilaw, then its tail grilled (just as we did!)? Name it, they’d do it for you! For a price, of course, which often translates to about half of what the seafood would cost you.

The place is not posh and can be crowded at night, but it’s breezy and offers a view of the clear waters of a mangrove swamp.

You might even find yourself serenaded with a harp…

…as you sink your teeth into all that scrumptious, deeeelicious, mouth-watering seafood.

We had our fill of dishes like scallops baked with cheese…

…fresh oysters with flesh so sweet, all I needed as condiment was the slightest squeeze of calamansi to go with it…

…and squid cooked in its ink. [Trivia: Filipinos eat squid with its ink. Malaysians don't!]

The Su-Tu-Kil experience — it’s like dying and finding yourself in seafood heaven!

Getting There:

As I said at the beginning of this post, find your way to this area called ‘Mactan Shrine’ in Lapu-Lapu City, Cebu.  The place doesn’t look like much from the outside. The police station (on the left) is the main landmark to look out for.

Walk past the police station and you’ll find yourself in a small alley with shops selling souvenirs, selling everything from keychains made from mother-of-pearl to wooden carvings to t-shirts to decorative items made of capiz shells.

The stalls selling seafood are just a few steps away from the souvenir stalls. The restaurants are on both sides of the alley. You won’t miss the place because the moment you step out of your vehicle, people will be scrambling to take you to the restaurants (that hired them as informal ‘promoters’). If you go there for lunch like we did, you might even find yourself escorted with an umbrella!

One of the items in my list when I went to the Philippines early this month was the humble bibingka. The bibingka that I had in mind is the type of rice cake that’s made from — you guessed it! — rice flour, coconut milk, sugar and a leavening agent. The mixture is scooped into moulds that have been lined with banana leaves, then baked in a charcoal contraption that allows the bibingka to have the red-hot embers both below it and above it. It’s simple food really but I’ve always liked it. It brings back memories of going to the public market with my mother when I was just a little girl.

So there we were in a small city called Ozamiz. The MPV was maneuvering its way through the narrow street when I suddenly spotted a man walking at the side of the road, balancing a tray on his head. I craned my neck as we passed him then gave a little shriek when I caught a glimpse of what lay hidden under the coconut leaves that covered the tray — bibingka! We actually turned the MPV around just to track Bibingka Guy and buy a few pieces from him. Because yes, I was that desperate to have some bibingka and I didn’t want to risk missing my chance to tick it off my must-eat list.

It turns out that he was delivering his goods to a small sari-sari store (sundry shop) on the other side of the street.

See what I mean about the bibingka peeking from the banana leaves that covered them?

I took the above shot from behind the heavily tinted window of the MPV. Not quite happy with the quality of the photograph, I rolled down the window to get a clearer shot, making  Bibingka Guy break out into a huge grin. He was absolutely tickled that I wanted to take a photo of him with his wares. He must have thought me nuts, but obliged all the same, seeing how I had a huge, “professional” camera.

Even the shopkeeper was very much amused. Too bad she looked away right at the moment when I pressed the shutter. And yes, those are bags of bread — sold by piece — hanging on top of her and pots of viands on the counter in front of her available for retail sale (read: based on the amount that one can afford to buy).

My verdict on the bibingka? Although it was nice, it wasn’t quite the taste that I was looking for. I wanted something less sweet and just a tad bit more spongey (i.e. having risen just a bit more). It was only a few days later in Davao City that I managed to sink my teeth into the bibingka that I specifically had in mind. But our roadside encounter with Bibingka Guy is something that I won’t be forgetting for a long time to come.

For Rp25,000 (approximately USD2.90 or RM9.60 at current exchange rates), you get (clockwise from top):

• a quarter portion of oh-so-tender, flame-grilled free-range chicken (pick between thigh and breast upon placing your order);
• a small piece each of fried tempe and fried tauhu (both made from soya beans);
• a cabbage leaf;
• a slice of tomato;
• two slices of cucumber;
• a piece of lettuce;
• a dollop of not-so-spicy sambal (chili);
• a cup of  steamed rice; and
• a small bowl of sayur asem soup on the side.

My mouth is watering as I type this entry. I can almost swear the entire office is resounding with the grumbling of my empty stomach right now.

Oh how I miss you, ayam bakar Indonesia…

Buah salak (snakeskin fruit)

It’s a fruit native to Malaysia and Indonesia, closely resembling the size and shape of a fig…but — as its name suggests — with a skin like that of a snake.

Don’t be scared of its reptile-like outer covering. Just break off the top portion of the fruit and the skin will tear apart quite easily, revealing the garlic-like cloves inside.

Buah salak peeled

And don’t start eating it just yet. You must rub your thumb back and forth over the flesh… so that this thin waxy layer can be peeled off.

A thin but waxy layer

Continue rubbing until you can peel the whole paper-thin layer off. It’s actually edible but it feels weird on the tongue and is better off removed.

Keep on rubbing...

Now, you can take a bite of the sweet, juicy, firm flesh. The texture can range from dry and crumbly (salak pondoh from Yogyakarta) to moist and crunchy (salak Bali). Just watch out for the seed inside — it’s hard as stone.

Watch out for the seed!

The seed looks like a polished chestnut, doesn’t it?

The seed of the buah salak

Almost seems like a shame to throw these beauties away…

Buah salak seeds resembling chestnuts

So the next time you see these bizarre-looking fruits peddled by the roadside, give them a try!

This recipe is so easy, it’s almost embarrassing to post here. But since the results are phenomenal (DH: “You must cook it again tonight!”) and preparation is quick and simple, I thought I’d share it with you.

Mushroom Soup With Puff Pastry Lid

Ingredients:
- mushroom soup
- frozen puff pastry
- one egg, beaten

Equipment:
- ovenproof cups or bowls
- pastry brush
- baking tray

Method:

• Prepare the mushroom soup according to package instructions. (Or make from scratch!)
• Preheat oven 200°C (about 390°F).
• Thaw the frozen puff pastry at room temperature for about 10 minutes. [NB: You can find frozen puff pastry in the frozen section of your local supermarket.]
• Ladle the soup into the ovenproof bowls — about 3/4 full.
• Separate the sheets of the frozen puff pastry and cut them into squares slightly bigger than the top of your bowls.
• Take one square, put it on top of a bowl and press lightly to create an indentation. Take off the pastry square and brush some beaten egg on the indentation of the bowl on the pastry, as well as portions of the pastry outside the circle. Cover the bowl with the pastry. Press the pastry firmly but gently so that it sticks to the top and sides of the bowl. Make sure the pastry sticks so that the pastry will puff up as the soup inside the bowl is boiling.

• Place the bowls on a baking tray, making sure there’s adequate space in between bowls so that they don’t stick together, then put inside the oven. [NB: Don't use a tray with holes like the one in the photo because some of the soup is bound to overflow and create a mess!]

• When the pastry has puffed up, brush the tops with a little of the beaten egg.
• Continue baking  until the pastry is golden brown.
• Serve hot.

It’s soooo easy to make!

Start off by baking your favourite yellow cake or traditional vanilla birthday cake. But don’t pour everything into one cake tin — pour out one thin layer into a baking tin that’s about the size of a pizza pan. Or bake the cake in a pizza pan, if you have one. (I’ve got one, but it’s got holes, supposedly for crispier crusts.)

The batter from my usual vanilla cake recipe was enough for 2 pizza cakes plus 6 medium cupcakes.

Then while the cake cools, take a pizza box. You can buy new ones from your favourite baking supplies shop (I go to a shop called Bagus, which means ‘good’ in Malay) or, if you’re a harassed pressed-for-time working mom like me who tends to forget little details like this, you can recycle the pizza boxes from the night before…

……and just line them with baking paper that’s been cut to size. (Please ignore the oily stains, thank you! By the time your cake is ready, no one will notice them.) Oh, and make sure you throw away the cheese-encrusted cardboard lining at the base of the pizza box beforehand.

Now, it’s time make your favourite frosting and dye it a deep, dark red to imitate tomato sauce. I made a quick buttercream frosting by beating some softened butter, mixing in some icing sugar and adding in a few drops of milk. Unfortunately, my red food colouring didn’t make the frosting red enough, hence it ended up looking more pink than red. (Sorry ’bout that, son!) Spread a thin layer of this frosting on top of the cooled cake, a few centimeters before the edge to imitate the pizza crust.

It doesn’t have to smooth or perfect. Trust me on this.

Grate some white chocolate and sprinkle over the ‘tomato sauce’. The white chocolate is your ‘mozzarella cheese’ ;)

The white chocolate will add a lot of sweetness to your cake so it might be a good idea to cut down the sugar when making the frosting.

Now for the fun part — the toppings!  I used fruits — blueberries cut in half (the ‘olives’), strawberries cut into rounds (the ‘pepperoni’) and a banana sliced thinly. I read some suggestions on the internet to use red Jello to mimic pepperoni but I very much prefer using fruits.

Complete the illusion by cutting the pizza…err, cake…with a pizza cutter to cut it into 12 or more slices. Here’s the birthday boy happily doing the task while his mother was snapping away. This was early in the morning, just before I left for work, which explains why RoundBoy is still in his pyjamas. (NB: Their school is closed due to a high number of students having viral fever. So they’re having a week-long holiday while most other students are in school. I do know that there are other schools that are closed, as well.)

Serve each slice with a generous dollop of whipped cream. And watch the cake disappear faster than you can say ‘pizza cake’.

Try making one today. You’ll be surprised at how easy it can be!

I ordered it all the way from Amazon UK the week before my trip so I wasn’t really expecting it to arrive so soon. But arrive it did and in pristine condition.

So why am I so excited about it? Because the recipes are simple and can be prepared in a jiffy. And more importantly, they don’t require any fancy schmancy ingredients — just simple, everyday stuff that you most probably already have in your fridge and pantry.

This one, for instance, is a recipe for Simple Pan-Fried Trout. It doesn’t have to be trout, of course, but the recipe gives you an idea of what you can do with a simple slice of fish. The presentation just makes the dish look so mouth-watering, almost like haute cuisine.

I don’t know about you but I always have this problem of wanting to try a new recipe…then finding out I don’t have the fancy ingredients (fancy being: stuff I don’t normally buy), so I end up not cooking it at all. So this recipe book is just perfect for me.

Then there’s this Basic Stew recipe…

That you can embellish and serve in four different ways!

How cool is that?! Suddenly a simple stew can look like something from a restaurant!

Jamie also teaches you how to make a humble cucumber salad…then jazz it up.

He does the same thing with a tomato salad…

The book is loaded with photos and step-by-step instructions that are easy to follow. Perfect for the beginner cook, for lazy cooks, for busy career women who’d rather spend the rest of her day relaxing rather than slaving at the kitchen, and for anyone who just needs a little bit of inspiration in the kitchen.

This cookbook’s gonna be a keeper for sure!

P.S. And in case you’re wondering why I bought it all the way from Amazon UK, for some reason, it’s cheaper to buy it from there. Even with the freight included, the book still costs RM30 less than it does in Malaysia (USD1:RM3.5). What can I say? I just can’t resist a good bargain :)

I’ve been craving for Omani kebab lately like crazy. And it didn’t help when I browsed through the pics that I took in Oman and found this shot that I took of an old man selling kebab from the roadside, somewhere along a highway to As-Seeb.

The chunks of lamb were unbelievably tender, the flavours so intense — sour and salty and distinctively smokey — that typing these words alone has already triggered a massive flooding from my salivary glands.

I suppose it was quite a sight that night: 2 BMW’s parked at the roadside, surrounded by two Omani men clad in their dishdasha and kumma,  two Asian men clad in Western garb, three Asian woman also in Western clothes but with hennaed hands and feet, chomping happily on stick after stick after stick of kebabs that only cost 100 baisas each (RM1 ~ USD0.30).

I find that it’s little things like this that make the most memorable moments in my trips — not the bright and shiny airports and shopping malls, but the small, unexpected encounters with the local people and local food.

Psst…here’s a secret: I always have charcoal tablets to fall back on, just in case the local food doesn’t agree with my digestive system ;)

My apologies for the grainy photos. I wasn’t sure how the old man would react to my taking photos without asking for permission first. Thus, I just took a few shots using whatever available light was there (i.e. from the dim streetlamp) before he could even realise that I was taking photos, albeit from a distance.