Alone but not lonely

The weekend of Hari Raya, I was all alone. My Quay Lo was on a business trip and my Mum had gone to stay with her friend for the weekend. I have a spirit within me that stays connected to my loved ones, even when we are physically apart. I may be alone, but not lonely. I will always make my life the best that it can be. I am happy working on my latest project, or catching up with my friend's blogs, or using social media to stay connected to friends and family. I will always see myself as being alone and not lonely.

My "aloneness" did not last long. The multi-talented friend of mine (she is a good cook, baker, writer and photographer), Chris Wan of "Pureglutton" sent me an invitation to have lunch in her home but I did not know about it until she followed up and messaged ask me if I had received her invitation. I am often confused about navigating facebook, and had overlooked her initial invitation there. I am so happy that she followed up. Otherwise I would have missed this awesome get-together with her and the chance to meet with some lovely people who are also famous bloggers.  Not only that, I would have missed out these sumptious dishes  prepared by Chris herself. Look at all these mouth watering delights!

Rendang Pork to go with store bought lemang

The best Bak Kut Teh I have ever had

Stir fried lettuce with garlic

Beautiful moist and luscious plum cake

As I usually don’t like to go to friend’s houses empty handed, I made a pavlova and some cream puffs to share. I am really very happy that it turned out great. You may click on the photo to get the recipe.

Pavlova with Strawberries, blueberries, pineapples

and golden kiwi

Mini cream puffs

(You may click on the picture to get the recipe)

I had a wonderful afternoon catching up with Chris and get to know some new friends. What was most satisfying was, I got a big reward for the day. Everyone enjoyed my pavlova and it was all gone. Trust me, this is what every cook or baker wants in the end. In the midst of all these creative foodies I GOT PRAISE! (Excuse me while I float away on a cloud.)

The proof, is in the pudding...or... in this case, the "no pudding left"

So, for my Hari Raya holiday I was not alone after all. It was a blast. Thank you Derek and Chris for being such great host and and hostess. Oh, it was a pleasure to meet Ken Chan of "Food point of Interest", Sue Lynn of  "Bangsar Babe" and hubby, and Babara Moullie for the first time and I was very glad to see Evelyn of "My lil oyster" and hubby again.

Regrets of the dying

My Quay Lo tweeted this article back in February. I learned something from it so I would like to share this with you all about top five regrets of dying. 

Here is the article:
"Top Five Regrets Of The Dying"

Posted by Jacob Sloan on February 2, 2012

I immediately replied to his tweet by saying my last regret would probably be none of what was stated in the article. It is more likely that I would wish that I did not "sweat the small stuff" and choose to be more happy than to be right in some arguments. What will yours be? Or, is it too scary to think about it?

A week before the article, my Quay Lo and I were talking about death and what our wishes would be for all the neccessary arrangements. We both wanted our loved ones to celebrate our lives rather than mourn the loss. To those who loved and survived us, we want them to open champagne and put on all our favorite music and remember the good times we had together.  We hope they will share some food, and share their memories of us. We both think it would be nice to know that among the food they share, some of our favorites are included. We laughed as we talked about this. My husband said that it sounded like "hungry ghosts" and we laughed some more. (While we mean no offense to anyone, we don't really believe in ghosts.) Later, after our conversation, I decided to examine the question of what would be the best food for our friends to share at our memorial feasts. I didn't think about this because I didn't expect anyone to follow the suggestions literally. This isn't a dying wish or anything that anyone should feel is binding at all. Our main interest is that our friends and family celebrate our lives that were, instead of mourning our lives that are no longer.

I may be the only foodie to blog a suggested menu for her own memorial service. So here I go, with some ideas about food that is nourishing and comforting and that we like. It is food that is best taken with a favorite wine. We hope it is food that will make our family and friends feel at ease, contented, and thoughtful.

Feel free to click on the pictures to get the recipe. Oh, before that, I would like to share a very inspiring video with you about how Ric Elias who was given a second chance to live. He had eliminated those regrets he had thought of, when he thought he was dying.

Frittata

Cod in lemon grass sauce

Lettuce cup with minced Pork croquettes 

and salsa

Stitch's Magarita in case you don't want wine

QPC Snow White Cocktail

Choy Geok

Carrot Cake

Pavlova

Chocolate croissant pudding with whiskey sauce

This post is a good reminder for me to pay more attention to the people that matter most to me and not waste the little time I have on earth on those who are not. Hugs to all.

Pavlova or Palova

I first tasted the Pavlova in The Ishii’s Residence on 4th July this year.  Their friend, Cheng Yi baked it.  It was really delicious and I decided to make one, one day myself.  If you want to try it, here is the recipe. Pavlova:  Ingredient: 120 grams egg white 1 cup (200 grams) superfine (castor) sugar 1 teaspoon white vinegar 1/2 tablespoon cornstarch (corn flour) Topping: 1 cup (240 ml) heavy whippingcream 1 1/2 tablespoons (20 grams) granulated white sugar 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract Fresh fruit - kiwi, strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, passion fruit, peaches, pineapple, or other fruits of your choice. Method: Preheat oven to 250 degrees F (130 degrees C) and place rack in center of oven. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and draw a 7 inch (18 cm) circle on the paper. In the bowl of your electric mixer, with the whisk attachment, beat the egg whites on medium-high speed until they hold soft peaks. Start adding the sugar, a tablespoon at a time, and continue to beat until the meringue holds very stiff peaks. (Test to see if the sugar is fully dissolved by rubbing a little of the meringue between your thumb and index finger. The meringue should feel smooth, not gritty. If it feels gritty the sugar has not fully dissolved so keep beating until it feels smooth between your fingers). Sprinkle the vinegar and cornstarch over the top of the meringue and, with a rubber spatula, fold in. Gently spread the meringue inside the circle drawn on the parchment paper, smoothing the edges, making sure the edges of the meringue are slightly higher than the center. (You want a slight well in the center of the meringue to place the whipped cream and fruit.) Bake for 1 hour 15 minutes or until the outside is dry and takes on a very pale cream color. Turn the oven off, leave the door slightly ajar, and let the meringue cool completely in the oven. (The outside of the meringue will feel firm to the touch, if gently pressed, but as it cools you will get a little cracking and you will see that the inside is soft and marshmallowy.)  The cooled meringue can be made and stored in a cool dry place, in an airtight container, for a few days.  Just before serving gently place the meringue onto a serving plate. Whip the cream in your electric mixer, with the whisk attachment, until soft peaks form. Sweeten with the sugar and vanilla and then mound the softly whipped cream into the center of the meringue. Arrange the fruit randomly, or in a decorative pattern, on top of the cream. Serve immediately as this dessert does not hold for more than a few hours.