No Guts, No Glory!

No guts, no glory! The exact motto I had to keep telling myself in order to 'master' this recipe...You see, this particular recipe is somehow so, so 'far fetched' for me ;-) For years I've been hearing stories on how getting a perfect outcome from this recipe is nearly impossible! It even stated that the way to judge a good cook is by how he/she makes this recipe. So, it's no mystery on why I keep delaying doing it...Just reading the technique of getting the dough right is enuff to discourage me!!

You might be wondering what recipe am I talking about ehh?....What could it be that I actually need to pep myself up into doing it...Scones, my favorite snack and to those who knows me well, they will tell you that it sits way up in my ranking of good food!!! The mere mention of scones is enuff to make me daydream of the idyllic sidewalk cafes in the midst of London town....Imagine sitting in one of those cafes, basking in the scenery while sipping on a cup of tea & snacking on some scones with jam & butter...What a perfect, perfect day that will be for me...Sigh!

Back to reality, let me tell you it is not easy to get the perfect scone...A good scone should be crumbly and light...I had always loved scones and yesterday, or shall I say this morning (?!!), I decided that I've succumbed to my fears long enuff already...Like an army heading for battle, I 'geared' up & knead my very 1st batch of scones - at 1:30am!!...I was unsure if my techniques are correct but heck, 'no guts, no glory', rite?...

I knead, cut my dough, brush it with milk & bake it...Que sera sera, what will be, will be....And 15 minutes later, here's the outcome...Owh! Thanks to my great friend, RYSC, now I get to share all my cooking photos instantly with all of you as I was given the greatest gift for my birthday - my own DSLR!! Thanks so much RYSC!! 

As for my scones, in my own personal opinion, the taste is good but I think I've over kneaded it as the texture is not as fluffy and crumbly as what I would like it to be...Another good excuse for me to try it the next time ;-)

As usual, I love to put my own twist in every recipe that I've tried and I already have tonnes of ideas for this particular recipe...For now, my newly baked scones is yummy enuff for me to have it with butter and jam at 3am!!!!

By the way, on another note, to those who would like to try one of the best scones, please head up to Cameron Highland and try the scones at Bala's Chalet (http://www.balaschalet.com/). It's a bit pricey but I guess the price is inclusive of the wonderful experience that you are going to enjoy  there - a quiet and cool little nook surrounded by beautiful trees & flowers...I've tried scones mostly everywhere & Bala's is my personal favorite!

Bon appetite!

Ritz Comfort Food

After years of baking & cooking for friends, I recently received a non-stop urging from family members & friends about posting details and photos of food that is available for them to purchase...I have to admit this request is a bit so nail-biting for me as I've only been baking & cooking for my own consumption all these while...These days, each time I meet up with my friends, they keep asking me the same old question - "when will I post the details?!!!" I simply can't run away from their 'chanting' any longer and so, to fulfill their request, here it is, an introduction to "Ritz Comfort Food"...

Carrot Cake With Walnut & Cream Cheese Toppings

As everyone who knows me, I HATE VEGETABLES!!!! When I first heard about carrot cakes, I simply rolled my eyes!! It was my late mum who practically insisted ( several...several times!! ) that I try it & since then I'm hooked!!! But the one I tried didn't have the frosting that I like, so over the years, I have created my own version of carrot cake & cream cheese toppings...And here it is - a dedication to my mum ;-)

Almond Brownies With Chocolate Toppings

To those who is as crazy about chocolate as I am, this is the food that I crave for especially during rainy days...Imagine having a very chocolaty & nutty brownies with a hot cup of coffee...Yummy!!!

Orange Poppy Seed Cupcakes With Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting

I'm crazyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy over cupcakes but honestly, the one I usually purchase, somehow is always so plain...As usual, I decided to try make my own twist & I came up with this...It's something orangy & the frosting is a bit lemonish...I love having this when I'm feeling down...A real booster for me!

Moist Chocolate Chip Cupcakes With Chocolate Ganache & White Chocs Toppings

A real treat to those chocolate lovers - very very chocolaty indeed!!

Vanilla Corn Muffins

A light snack which I love to have while watching tv @ dvds...A light vanilla flavor muffin with corn pieces inside.

Rock Cookies

A crunchy chocolate base cookies. I baked this for my last Hari Raya & was a hit among family & friends...

Honey & Nuts Cornflake Cookies

My version of the normal honey cornflakes biscuit...

Chocolate Chip Cookies

My family's favorite...A crunchy chocolaty cookies packed with lots of chocolate chips & pecan nuts.

Chocolate Cornflake Cookies

Another one of my family's favorite & a 'must have' EACH Hari Raya!!

Apart from the above, I do other kinds of food such like fried @ frozen popia, unfortunately I do not have the photo of it :-(

Well, to those interested to know more, please feel free to drop me a note at the 'comment box' or you can contact me at 012-9251292...If I do not pick up your call, please leave a message @ sms me as I might be in the kitchen - baking :-)

Baking Madness!!

Dear oh dear! To those who's wondering where the heck I've been, my apologies for not updating my blog for quite some time...

Yup! I was 'attacked' & 'possessed' by the BAKING VIRUS!!! You just wouldn't believe the hours I practically spend with my one & only loyal oven...Luv it! Luv it!!!

I practically had to tear myself away from my oven today as I have been receiving lots of 'complaints' from friends & family for not updating my blog...Sorry guys for being off radar...

Well, to make it up to you ( actually as proof that I WAS really attacked by the baking virus!! Ha..ha..ha.. ), here are some photos for your pleasure...

Remember I told you about the birthday cake that I made for my dad?...I went for a 'child' concept thus the free-hand childish kind of writing on the cake...Ha...ha...ha...

Then I got into this own 'home-schooling' thingy on how to decorate cakes...So, seriously, those 'off radar' moment, I actually was bz practicing decorating cakes...Remember that basket-weave pattern I tried to learn? Here's the result after several batches of wasting icing...Ha..ha..ha...

Come to think of it, you should really thank your lucky stars for not seeing me during those time! What a sight!!! Me with my hands full of icing, trying to figure out which tip does what pattern...The mess I did on the table!! Thank god my house wasn't attacked by antssssssssssssssssss!! Here's the latest photo of my carrot cake...Believe it or not, I actually received orders for it ;-)

As for my latest project - cupcakes ( I call it cuppies )...My, I had lots of fun doing this!! Would you believe it if I tell you that I was soooooooooooooooo into doing this I didn't even realized that I actually burnt the night away 'playing' with my cuppies...Imagine, at 2:00 am I got the urge to make cuppies & by the time I finish 'playing', the sun was already up!!! I wanted to try something new, so I did this orange poppy seed with lemon cheese frosting on it...Since the cake are orangie, I opt for something lemonish for the toping...Result? I think the cuppies turns out yummy - a good combination between orange & lemon I might say.

And as I love to have varieties when it comes to food, I even made myself moist choc chip cuppies with choc ganache & white choc toppings....Ha...ha...ha...Sounds so fancy ehhh?!!

A funny story though, I actually gave some of my cuppies to this Aunty who sells the bakery items...She had been so helpful to me all this years & I thought what better way to say thank you than to give her something that I baked...Guess what I received in the end?....A non-stop thank you, a smile that just warms my heart & 2 bags of Oreo cookies!!! I was practically on cloud nine yesterday...

My boxful of cuppies...

Recently I was invited to one of my close friend's house. It was her hubby's birthday & since I do not know what to get for a birthday gift, I made brownies...Unfortunately, I totally forgot to snap a photo of it :-P I hope they like my gift...

Well, time to start another project - Oreo Cheesecake...Yup! Gonna use that 2 bags of Oreo to good use ;-)

I do have tonnes of stories which I saved in my draft box...Lots of things to update yet so little time to edit it! Hope to be able to post it soon...

Oppss!! My oven is calling me...Gotta go!

The Joy Of Baking

It's 4:12am & you guys must be wondering what I'm doing up at this hour....Yup! My crazy urge to bake simply hit me AGAIN! This urge of mine sure come at such odd hours!!

As I'm typing this, I can actually smell the aroma of my carrot cake baking in the oven...The sweet smell of cinnamon, vanilla & walnut really fill my heart with joy...I can already imagine the fun I'm going to have icing it with my lemonish cream cheese topping...Hhmmmm, maybe I can use my new basket weave icing tip when I decorate my cake later. Yeay! Time to upgrade my cake decorating skill ;-)

Honestly, it has been quite some time since I last baked my carrot cake. So, last Sunday, for my dad's birthday, I thought what better way to show my love for him other than baking my own homemade birthday cake...And since it was a Sunday & I have all the time in the world, I baked another cake for my office mates - a 'pep-me-up' for those usual Monday blues.

The result? Boy oh boy! To see that surprised look on my dad's face when he found out that the cake he's eating really came from my kitchen is priceless! He actually thought I bought the cake! What I get in the end from my dad? Showers of kisses & hugs...That's the best thing a daughter could ask for! Thanks Daddy! I love you....

As for my office mates, the cake ( which is around 1.5kg ) was gone in less than half hour!! It's so fulfilling seeing your friends enjoying the food that you prepared for them...The best feeling in the world for me ;-) The result? Believe it or not, I received two orders for my carrot cake!!

Oppss! my cake is about ready...I better attend to it before it burns!!! Owhhh! By the way, here's a pix of my cake which I made for my office mates...Don't mind the simple decoration as I actually did the icing at 2am ( after my dad's birthday dinner )!!! I still need my beauty sleep okay...He..he..he...

I hope to be able to show you my basket weave cake decoration in my next post...Gotta go!! My oven timer just went off!! Ciao!!

Restoran Rose 911, Kampung Pandan (Ritz Rating : 6/10)

It was 1:00 pm & a bunch of us are so hungry!!! After all those hard work at the office, I was sooooooooooo looking forward to our group's lunch date...You see, one of my colleague just bought a car, so it's tradition that whoever got one have to bring us out for lunch...It was sort of an unwritten rule ;-) So here we are, six gals being cramped into a smoky gray colour MyVi...

Destination? Restoran Rose 911, Kampung Pandan. From Jalan Ampang, it took us less than 10 minutes to reach the restaurant...Like myself, I'm sure you must be thinking what a weird name for a restaurant...Well, I have yet to ask the owner what's d secret behind the number 911...Maybe the name comes from the International Emergency No. 911 as the food there is really spicy!!! The specialty of this place is their authentic 'masak lemak cili padi', a well known dish that originates from Negeri Sembilan. You'll definitely be spoiled with choices here as there's masak lemak daging salai ( grilled beef ), masak lemak ayam ( chicken ), masak lemak ketam ( crab ), just name it & you'll find it there! They do have other kind of dishes like masak asam pedas, but my all time favorite is without a doubt their rendang pegaga( pennywort leaves ). Gosh! Just mentioning it makes me drool!!! Take note this is coming from someone who simply hates vegetables ;-)

Really, to those who yearns a traditional cooking & the ecstasy of eating rice with their hands, this is the place to head to...Imagine, hot steaming rice complemented by masak lemak of your choice ( mine would be prawns!! ) and those super duper yummylicious rendang pegaga...Oh dear! I think I might just head there again tomorrow...Yum...Yum...

Do head there and give it a try...You might just fall in love...Owhh! By the way, FH, nice car!! Thanks for the ride...

Address

Restoran Rose 911

Jalan Satu, Kampung Pandan

55100 Kuala Lumpur.

Tel : 03-92812996

Business hour

Monday - Saturday ( 11:00am - 4:00pm )

Location

A Food Weekend!

OMG!!! With all the food I've consumed this weekend, I wouldn't be surprised if I gained another 5kg!!! Really, time for me to head to the gym before I turn into Blue Hypo's twin!!!

To my friends who welcomed me to their house for a wonderful raya gathering, my sincere thank you! And for those whose house I've missed, my sincere apologies...I'll make it up for missing it, kay...

I just have to tell you all, I've enjoyed my weekend tremendously!! A whole weekend of cooking & eating!!! In my last post, I told you about my caramel pudding rite?...Believe it or not, I end up making 3 puddings! A nice thank you gift to my friends who invited me to their raya open houses...I just hope they enjoy eating it as much as I enjoyed baking it ;-)

Gosh!! My tummy's so full rite now...I actually just got back from another friend's open house...The food was yummylicious!!! I didn't know what to bring for them actually, so I ended up cooking my favorite dish - fried macaroni...Hope they'll like it! To my friend ( you know who u are! ), your butter prawn was excellent!!! So proud of you! I'll definitely pass you more recipes to try next time....

To my friend, FH, great food last night! I've always enjoyed spending time with you & your sisters, Y & D. Btw, your dad's lemang is the best! I've never liked lemang but your dad's was an exception!!! I simply love it! Can't wait to eat it again...

Opps! I got to cut this short...Need to rush to Shah Alam to send my chicken & beef rendang to my Aunty...Till next time, happiness is to see your friend enjoying the food you cooked for them...