Bouncy, juicy and springy beefballs

Bo` viên just the way I like them. I made the first batch of 500 grams of beef mince to test out this marvelous recipe and it turned out better than my expectation for my very first attempt. I forgot to add 2 and 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder for my second and more substantial attempt and the balls were much more compact, spring-less and not bouncy at all. The key for me is the baking powder and the steps. I will be recreating this recipe again.

Our Christmas eve dinner

My first attempt at Tam Ki chicken rice was a resounding success. I only took one photo of the chicken above before it was devoured in a flash.

We have been relentlessly consuming heavyweights such as foie gras (which we love), smoked salmon, air-dried ham, bûche de Nöel (sans déco), Merveilles.


As we went to gather final ingredients for our Xmas menu we stumbled upon half-price turkey in our local supermarket. A bargain we could not resist...moreover because Shrek has been yearning for a turkey many yonks ago for festive occasions. This time we struck gold. We could not forgo this deal but decided that the 10 kgs turkey was too big and would be a gluttonous greedy choice we will regret later hence we settled on getting the medium sized 3+ kgs turkey because that was ideal for our family of 6.

Our Xmas eve dinner consisted of Tam Ki turkey rice which was a recipe I modified and tweaked from Tam Ki chicken rice.



Petit Suisse and Lil Miss N could not contain their excitement and upon discovering the unwrapped presents under the Xmas tree gloated like greedy children in a sweets shop. They both ruined the surprise Papa Nöel left for them and opened all the pressies in a flash eventhough I heard the unwrapping noise and paper being torn and sighed a little because I had planned on taking a photo as a souvenir of all the presents nicely sitting under the tree.

Shrek painstakingly explained to them that next year they will have to wait to unwrap the presents one by one with all the family gathered and not selfishly attack the packages.

Biological lesson

There are three factors that affect the degradability of food hence rendering it unfit for consumption.

These are temperature, time and humidity. It is said that at room temperature (it is aggravated in summer) natural humidity induced by the presence of moisture in food is an incubator for bacteria to develop.

At room temperature and with a normal ambient level of humidity (presence of water or other cooking liquid) the critical time is 12 hours. After said period has elapsed it is mandatory that one throw said food out.

I should have this lesson down pat by now but it seems that for some inexplicable reason (frugality perhaps) I still have not learnt my lesson.

It is a delicate subject matter.

Oh well as it is often said 'You are what you eat' I will proceed to improving this aspect.

I expect Shrek to improve certain aspects of his 'idiosyncracies' as well.

I want to pass on this important lesson to my children and hope that they will not have to endure the same predicament as me.

Creaming the ice !

After having spent the best part of over a year sitting idly in the corner of my kitchen my 'sorbetière' ou 'machine à glace', ice cream maker was put to its intended use for the very first time today. It marked the first ever batch of ice cream. It was a rather positive experience and I am sure that there will be many follow up home made ice creams and sorbets with a wide array of varying ingredients. I will definitely test out many recipes I have been dying to try and maybe will even come up with my own unique signature flavour .

The first leap has been overcome. The batch was a resounding success I might add and was a very heartening first effort.

It is a chocolate flavoured ice cream with undertones of coffee forever etched as a first successful batch.

Important lesson

I have learnt the hard way a very valuable lesson re cooking/baking
My first attempt at recreating 'pots de crème de chocolat' was a complete dud because I wanted a healthy and lighter version and substituted 'low fat cream' instead of using full cream. This rendered the cream runny and yuck... I can only learn from this mistake and advise people that if you are on a health kick and want nothing to do with sugar and cream, stay away from desserts. Low fat and healthy desserts are just not worth the pain. There is no way good 'crème' or cakes etc can taste good if you use low fat instead of full cream...

cream mmmm miam miam

I cannot know wot possessed me to substitute and make the ultimate mistake but I will not be repeating the same mistake next time. Stick to sugar, butter (real butter, no substitutes) and cream and one cannot go wrong.

Don't skim on the fat and sugar when it comes to sweets and treats. They would not be treats if they tasted like cardboard now would they ?

Making fish tasty

According to the wise and sage Petit Suisse one can render fish enjoyable for children's consumption simply by covering it with breadcrumbs and deep-frying it. This can be narrowed down to 'fish sticks' or 'bâtonnets de poissons'.


He learned this clever trick from his school canteen.
I am so relieved that my children are eating healthy and nutritious meals at their canteen. I have such confidence and absolute trust in their cuisine.

(my tongue firmly in cheek)

My personal culinary triumphs and disastrous flops in the kitchen juxtaposed.

Triumphs:

My always scrumptious and impossibly moist carrot cakes. My attemps have been most satisfying and I have successfully modified the recipe to my liking with a few of my personal touches I am rather proud of. Although the last carrot cake I baked was more than two years ago for Lil Miss N's birthday carrot cake is still one of my favourite if not my favourite cake to bake and eat. I just have not been in the baking mood lately and I have a convection oven with limited capacity and function.

My very first but highly successful attempt at a 'tourte aux marrons' or 'chestnut cake'. It was moist, melt-in-your-mouth and wonderfully chestnutty.

My wontons which can be boiled and eaten in a soup/broth, deep-fried or oven-baked.

My chicken drumsticks- which I bake for a lower cholesterol version or deep-fry when I am hankering and craving oily goodness. It is a big hit with my kids.

My cream of carrot/velouté with a ginger and sweet potato twist. It is rather flavourful and with a touch of cream can do no wrong.

My version of Vietnamese pork paste (cha) which I pan fry using no oil and a Tefal anti-adhesive frying pan. The trick lies in the marinade.

My bo luc lac-shaking beef which I add just a hint of satay to.

My bun rieu- tomato based broth with crab.

My tiramisu sans œufs leaves people wanting more (mainly Petit Suisse, Lil Miss N, Baby Taz and Shrek of course)

My Vietnamese beef noodle soup is a real hit in my household. They always ask for more in my household.

My strawberry/mixed berries friands.

Any type of egg-drop soup with aparagus and crab, quail eggs, surimi/mock seafood sticks etc or any ingredients I fancy/have on hand.

My Vietnamese sandwich : banh mi with varying meats such as char siu, roast chicken, pâté, pickled condiments-carrots and daikons, coriander.


Now onto the flops
I have had quite a number of misadventures with egg whites. The first few times involved me having tainted the whisks with a tiny bit of yolk and the whites refused to rise and glisten like glossy peaks the way most recipes call for. Needless to say it frustrated me to no end. I had to abandon a few gâteau recettes because the egg whites failed to behave and cooperate.

I once made chocolate mousse and instead of sugar or what I thought was sugar added a teaspoon of MSG and subsequently salt. I will never live that one down. It was horrible.

I made the mistake of attempting to roll spring rolls while Petit Suisse was a wee baby- four months or thereabouts. He did not know I was in the middle of doing something important and as it was the year where heatwaves swept through Europe and left my mum mistaking Geneva for a typical Sydney summer it meant that the filling that was taken in and out of the fridge due to Petit Suisse's interruptions meant that I secured a sure way to poison Shrek's fragile stomach. I think that this experience traumatised me and I have not made more attempts since that disaster to make spring rolls and vow only to make them when the children are nowhere in sight. This is partly why there are lots of recipes that I am dying to try which I think will be part of my repertoire or signature dishes that I have to postpone and put off until I can have several uninterrupted and tranquil hours to kill without the fear of being hindered by demanding kids.

A few times I put too little baking powder/baking soda into a cake batter and the end result was miserable globs of barely edible baked good.

That is all I can remember for now. Only the outstandingly remarkable or unforgettable can make the list because it would be endless to include everything.

The growing list of inedibles

I have discovered yet again another chalky cheese to add to my list. This time it is a Tessinois cheese by the name of Lati. Avoid it at all costs.

Another malediction is the unfathomably horrible apple variety drumrolls 'Pommes (Canada) Reinnettes' It is simply gross. Eat it at your own peril. It was barely palatable when juiced using the centrifugeuse/Solis juice extractor and normally any fruit or veggie is rendered rather delectable when passed through the juicer. The resulting juice resembled an ugly coloured 'liquid caca'. Needless to say that I have been traumatised for life by the Pomme Reinnette and will never dare to buy this variety again. It would serve as a great case against all apples. It has my vote for worst apple/fruit variety.

WOnderment

I do really wonder about Shrek's culinary skills as he was able to deliver overcooked broccoli branches and undercooked, almost raw broccoli flowers in the same dish.

Only Shrek is capable of such a contrasting dish: with textures so extreme. He is unique that Shrek.

I must praise him for all the efforts he has been willing to pitch into the sharing of household chores lately. Bravo Shrekkie. He can be thoughtful when he chooses.

Cottage cheese

I still do not get what the deal with cottage cheese is. People seem to praise it for its comparatively low-fat content and a good substitute for the evil decadent hence rich hence good cheeses such as cream cheese, double cream cheese. It is supposedly reeked with health benefits. I on the other hand find it bland and as tasty as chalk. I have used it a few times in 'Gratins' once in gratin Dauphinois and another time in a pasta bake or pâtes gratiné with near-disastrous results.

Chalk it up to another overrated food. I would rather deprive myself of dairy products altogether than to endure eating chalky and bland cheese with no character whatsoever. Call me finicky but I give cottage cheese thumbs down, it's better left alone.

ewww

My ever burgeoning list of dispensable kitchen appliances.

I have a list of semi-useful kitchen appliances and gadgets/tools. I am more than certain that all of these purchases seemed like a good idea at the time and it was in no way impulsive buying. Scoff scoff...

Below is the non-exhaustive list:

1. The icecream/sorbet maker - I was really eager and excited when I received this as a gift. There were so many ice cream recipes I was inspired to try but the motivation has been replaced by fatigue and other priorities. I have yet to open the carton/packaging which goes to show how useful this machine has been to me.
2. The donut maker: I have not opened the packaging and it is not high on my priority list to do so either. The plus is that is it supposed to be a healthy version of donuts as it does not involve deep-frying. Although the deep-frying sometime is indispensable to the tasty factor.
3. The rotiserrie grill : I recuperated this from my aunt in Vietnam,apparently it consumes a lot of electricity and she had only ever used it once. I myself have used it occasionally since the
4. The bread maker: I have used this sporadically since its arrival in my kitchen. As always it was an acquisition I was very excited to finally secure but it has been sitting dormant in the corner for a little while waiting to be revived. I have not been altogether satisfied with the results it has yielded so far hence my reluctance and hesitation in attempting to give it some more workout.
5. The juice extractor: In theory very healthy and so forth but a bit unwieldy. It is a budget buster as well because it's pricey to extract fresh juice from fruits and veggies. The juice yielded cannot be preserved very long either. I have used it to extract apple and carrot juice but have not been adventurous enough to try with exotic flavours...
6. The Charlotte : A multi-function mincer that minces, shreds and slices and is so versatile it has become Shrek's newest best friend.. He is enamored with it.
7. The coffee machine : Solely Shrek's wake-up call because he is unbearably stroppy, lethargic and utterly unfathomable before coffee. Coffee is his drug.

The next acquisition will have to be essential because the kitchen is becoming crowded with all these needless or semi-useful appliances.