A Food Lover's Journey

A review of the 12 Week Body Transformation program! Get FIT!

2012-05-20T22:26:00.000+10:00

Okay, so this post is not entirely food related, but I think this deserves a spot on this blog because of the importance of the message. Get fit, gel healthy, get active!

Photo by jaaanet ♫

Over the past 12 weeks, I have been following a fitness and nutrition program called 12 week body transformation (12WBT) by celebrity fitness instructor Michelle Bridges (She’s of Australian ~~Big Brother~~ Biggest Loser fame). Coming to the program, I had very little expectation of what it could do for me. Or rather, I had little of belief that I could endure the whole regime. I was at the lower end of my health, battling with hormone balance problems, which was driving me absolutely insane. I did not want to depend on medicine. I wanted to change my lifestyle to battle these things but was scared to take the steps.

Those self-doubt thoughts were dealt with even before the program started. 12WBT had pre-season tasks, where participants were supposed to come personal and honest with themselves, identifying excuses that held us back. “Too tired to workout”, “No time to prepare food”… Sound familiar?

Those pre-season tasks were valuable for me to set my head straight and went through the program. It was not entirely a smooth sailing. The program was tough. There was a calorie limit (1200 calories for girls); exercising was required 5 days a week; there was a lot of cooking and preparing. Sometimes I was so tired, I wanted to quit. But then, I came back to those pre-seasoned tasks, reminding myself of why I wanted to fight and what my goals were. It was like reading a letter I wrote for my future self. Those words brought me back.

I have come to love all of it. The morning exercise, the fresh and healthy food, the pain in my body after a hard and long workout. I have cleared my time to exercise most days. I’ve lost a considerable amount of weight, and felt a whole lot better. My journey still continues, and I am back for another round of 12WBT.

Some asked me about the programs. And here are a quick snapshot, and my thoughts.

12WBT Snap Shots

Participants start and finish the challenge together. There are a few pre-seasoned tasks which focus on goal setting and motivation.
For 12 weeks, each week there are new nutrition program and workout program. There are varieties for different fitness level (beginner to Advanced Lean and Strong. Even a train for marathon one!).
The nutrition program builds around 1200 calories limit a day (more for guys and pregnant/breastfeeding women). Food are nice, fresh and healthy. A lot of cooking is required, although the recipes are very simple.
Workout is "intense" with 5 sessions a week, with a nice mixture of cardio and strength training. The Saturday one is a SUPER SATURDAY SESSION, which often lasts 1 hour with a fitness/circuit challenge.
There are weekly "mindset" videos from Michelle Bridges herself, which are motivational and informative.
Supports are available via forums with the crew and fabulous members!

Simple and healthy potato and egg salad

What I have learned and liked from 12WBT

I knew what good food should be like, but not the entire story. Good nutrition is essential and I learned a lot about it and my body via the program. Like, no, making a healthier cake does not mean that you are making a healthy choice. It is still TREAT FOOD!
Cooking creatively within the good nutrition framework is really fun. I don't blog about the healthy recipes often enough. But I will!
Portion control!!!!
"You are a lot stronger than you think" - this is truth. Put your mind into it and you can. I was unable to run, now I can jog and start running short intervals. I am getting somewhere!
There are no quick fixes, but building good habits take time and efforts.
12WBTers on Facebook and the forums are the most supportive bunch
Integrity - no up selling of protein powder, fitness equipments etc. There are cross promotional activities, but they are done in a nice and "fair" way. I am so sick of empty promises that a lot of other diets/fitness programs offer. This is real, and I like Michelle's frankness.

12WBT cons

It is not cheap. A real additional cost if you have already paid for gym membership. I mostly work out at home coz I can't make it to the gym early enough before work. I spent quite a bit on good video workouts AND some hand weights, yoga matt.
Food cost per week is quite expensive for a lot of family... That is if your pantry is full of "crap" food. I did not have a lot of problems here, coz most of the ingredients the program uses I already have (olive oil, quinoa, grains, beans etc.). I actually save a lot of $$$ by planning the menu for the week and bringing my own lunch to work.
Commitment - to cook and stick to the program. Hard if you are truly time poor...
The meals do not always appeal to your family - Yeap. My family will NEVER eat salad for dinner. I can. So it's a fine balancing act. I swapped out meals with other comparable recipes, reading Michelle's philosophy of food and stick to those principles, 80% of the time. This is where the food knowledge of being a food bloggers do come in place.
A little guidance is given on eating out - I think the focus is really on "getting to the kitchen and get cooking". But I am often at loss when I eat out (which is a lot these days). So I try to eat light on days I am out, and stick to the calories intake on any other days.

Final Thoughts

I am back for another round, because I still need the support to get my head straight and I still have a lot of fitness goals to achieve... I hope this post will benefit those who are interested in getting that balance of healthy - fitness - and enjoying LIFE.

I still have far to go, but after losing more than 10% of my body weights and can work out everyday without hesitation, I think I will get there :).

And no, I am not affiliated with 12WBT in anyway. I have been and am still on the program as a full fee paying member. :)

Crème Caramel. Another childhood favourite

2012-05-10T12:37:00.001+10:00

I grew up in a world without cakes, pastries. Can you imagine that? But the reality was that when I was growing up, our country was poor. Supplies were extremely limited. Powdered milk and Milo was precious back then. We did not have any fancy American brands. Instead we had a lot of Russian products! I remember the "teddy bear" and "motherhood" milk powder and chocolate drink! Cake and pastries were not in my radar until I was 11 or 12.

My sweet world was limited to fruits from my grandparents' trees (not that I complained about it), occasional ice popsicles in the Hanoi Old Quarter. Every day after a light but nutritious breakfast, mom always offered me with two options: yoghurt or crème caramel as snack. That was the part I most looked forward to! Yes, we learned them from the French, but the Vietnamese make absolutely delicious crème caramel and yoghurt. The serves were really tiny yet full of flavours. No low-fat yoghurt or custard please. A little fully flavoured sweet treats went a long way.

It may be strange, but my to-go crème caramel recipe is from Australian chef Neil Perry. It produces light and smooth custard which is not overly creamy, sugary or heavy. I've had a lot of fun experimenting with flavours though – from the common vanilla to orange blossom and rose water. Gotta love them all. And yes, I will be writing up a post on home-made Vietnamese yoghurt. Soon. Promise!

Crème Caramel

In Vietnam, crème caramel is steamed on the stove because households do not have access to oven. I prefer bake them in a water bath in the oven. It's easier to control temperature that way. I've used the pudding bottles here. Traditionally, crème caramel is cooked and cooled in small dariole moulds, then inverted onto serving plates. Based on a Neil Perry's recipe.

Ingredients (for 6-8 smallish pudding bottles, around 1/4cup capacity)

500ml full-cream milk
50g caster sugar 1 tsp vanilla paste, or 1 tsp orange blossom water/rose water
3 egg yolks
3 eggs

Caramel 100g caster sugar, 60ml water

1. Heat the milk to warm, add sugar (50g) and stir to dissolve. Cool completely. For the caramel, bring the sugar and water to a gentle simmer, stirring briefly to dissolve the sugar. Do not stir once it’s simmering. Watch the sugar and water carefully, and simmer only until it starts turning a deep caramel colour. Immediately remove the pan from the heat and carefully pour equal amounts of the caramel into the moulds/pudding bottles. Hold the moulds at the top of the rim and swirl to coat the moulds halfway up their sides with the caramel. Set aside.
2. Preheat the oven to 190°C. Lightly mix the eggs, yolks and vanilla (or other flavouring) in a bowl. Strain the milk mixture into the egg mixture, slowly whisking. Strain again and pour into the prepared moulds.
3. Lay a tea-towel on the bottom of a roasting tin. Place the moulds inside the tin and fill the tin with hot water until it reaches halfway up the sides of the moulds. Cover the tin with foil and place in the centre of the oven to cook for around 30 minutes, or until set (the time will vary according to the oven and the size of the moulds).
4. Allow to cool, then store in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours or overnight.

Hokkien mee, our 'Singaporean' way

2012-05-01T12:51:00.001+10:00

Food memories are something so precious. Perhaps one of the most beautiful aspects of food blogging for me is to be able to read about food memories from many blogger friends. And sharing mine to the world, too. But food memories aren't always from the past. They always evolve, and as time passes, we are creating more and more of those meaningful memories.

When we are in the kitchen together, my MIL often tells me about her past in Singapore. Her father used to own a fruit store where tropical fruits were always available. Everyday, he would use the overripe bananas to make fried kueh (banana fried pancake). For her, to this day, it's still the most delicious snack.

She told me too, about the hawker store just downstairs from her old flat. They were very famous for Hokkien mee, a kind of stir-fry noodles with seafood, prawn stock and pork pieces. She loved it, but was unable to enjoy often since the family was poor with a lot of mouths to feed...

After marriage, my MIL often improvised classic Chinese dishes to suit her new family, substituting away pork meat. Of course, one of the dishes she cooked often was Hokkien Mee. Then I came along (:P) and learned it from her, tweaking it from time to time. Just like that, our family version of Singaporean Hokkien mee was born.

Our version is full of flavors from the homemade prawn stock and fresh seafood. We like to have this with this particular brand of prawn chilli sambal, which gives a nice addictive kick.

Making Hokkien mee feels a lot like making risotto. Warm stock is laddled into the noodle mixture, and let them cook slowly (minimum stirring!) The end result is a soft, thick soupy noodle dish. Perfect!

Singaporean Hokkien Mee
Based on my MIL's memories and various recipes

Ingredients (for 6-8 serves)

1kg fresh prawns
300g calamari, cleaned and cut into thin pieces
2 chicken carcases
1 onion, peeled
1 tablespoon black peppercorns

500g Hokkien noodles
200g dried vermicelli
200g bean sprouts
4 tablespoons light flavoured oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
4 eggs
2 tablespoons good quality fish sauce
1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
2 spring onions or garlic chives, finely chopped

To serve: lime quarters and Prawn Chilli Sambal

Method
1. First off, clean the prawns – peel them and de-vein.
2. Put the prawn shell and head + chicken bones into a big saucepan. Drop in the onion, peppercorns and a good pinch of salt. Pour in some water (around 7-8 cups). Bring to the boil then simmer for 30-40 minutes. Pass through a sieve and the liquid is your prawn stock.
3.Briefly soak the dried vermicelli in cold water for 8-10 minutes, then drain well.
4.Warm up the prawn stock. Using a strainer with large handle, quickly blanch the prawn and calamari. Avoid overcooking! Keep the prawn stock warm.
5. Boil another pot of water and quickly blanch the bean sprouts. Set aside.
6. Beat the egg with a bit of salt and pepper.
7.Now, the real action! Heat up oil in a large wok, and then quickly fry the garlic until fragrant. Pour in the beaten egg, wait until it barely sets then stir briefly (scramble egg!). Next, put in the noodles and using high heat, sear them. You will have to stir them from time to time. Ladle in 1 cup of warm prawn stock, fry until the stock is almost dry. Then ladle in another cup of stock. Check the "doness" of your noodles. Once they are nearly done, add in the cooked prawn, squid, sprouts, chopped spring onion and seasoning. Adjust seasoning to your taste.
8.The final dish should not be dry, but still have thick soupy texture. Serve with a squeeze of lime juice, and lots of chilli prawn sambal.

Moist Maple Madeleines

2012-04-19T20:04:00.001+10:00

I have not baked much lately. If there is anything to "blame", it is this fitness and nutrition plan! I am feeling happier, and attitudes towards food have changed a lot, too.

My family misses my home-baked treats, though. It was not like we indulged all the time. My baked treats were normally simple and served in smallish portions anyway. But treats are still treats, and during the first couple of weeks, I just wanted to focus my mind and energy on exercising and eating clean...

Now I am trying to normalise our eating habits even more by starting to bake again. A lot less though, and in moderation. I would save my calories and workout for those baked goods and desserts. Because I don't want to give up the sweet thing in life.

And you know what. Now I eat my cakes less frequent but with much higher pleasures. More appreciation, more understanding. It's all good.

These maple madeleines are a breeze to make and they taste so, so good. I adore the fragrance of maple syrup here!(I used grade B, the darker and more amber stuff). A good, strong floral scented honey will be excellent, too.

Maple madeleines

Simple, fast, delicious. Use a good quality honey or maple syrup!

Ingredients (for 12 standard sized pieces)

2 eggs

40g castor sugar

40g maple syrup (I used dark maple syrup)

90g plain flour

½ teaspoon baking powder

Method

Preheat the oven to 180C. Spray your cake pan with non-stick oil spray.

Mix sugar and eggs well, followed by the honey. Then, sift together flour and baking powder to the egg mixture. Stir to combine – avoid overmixing.

Use a medium spoon, put the mixture into the prepared pan. Bake for 16-18' until cooked through. Take out of the pan then cool down.

Kazuki's in Daylesford & gorgeous autumn colors

2012-04-11T13:24:00.002+10:00

We visited Daylesford, again. There is no doubt this small town is one of my favourite "local" destination. The town is full of styles and personalities.

This was my first visit in autumn, and it felt as though time ran in another dimension in this small town. While in Melbourne, autumn colors were just appearing, red and autumn colors were everywhere in Daylesford...

Our normal destination for lunch is the Lake House. But this time around, wanting something different, we headed to Kazuki's. Settled in an old building at the end of the busy Vincent Street, the restaurant was run by Chef Kazuki in the kitchen and his wife Saori in front of house. I would describe their cuisine as fusion Japanese, combining elements of Japanese cuisines with Western techniques and local produces.

We arrived early, and the restaurant was not busy for a Saturday lunchtime service. The service was attentive and polite.

The highlight of the meal was definitely Mr. B's Braised goat, celeriac, spiced daigaku imo, truffle pecorino. The goat was raised locally, and this dish did it justice. The dish had that balance of tender, gamey meat, spices and buttery crunchy phyllo roll. Served with Japanese style glazed sweet potatoes, it made perfect lunch dish. I ordered the duck dish, which had rare cooked duck breast, fried parsnip and foie gras "spring roll". A fine dish where the natural duck flavours shined through. I personally prefer a bit of spices or zing here though.

Other mains were solid, but did not quite achieve the same level of finesse. My MIL's Ocean trout, miso chowder, karasumi, Wombat Forest Organic’s vegetables was simple and delicate (I did taste a spoonful of the miso chowder, and it was dreamy good). My sister's grass fed eye fillet with duck fat roasted potato was solid but uninspiring.

Desserts was standard flair. Molten chocolate cake – apple pie with milk gelato - Lemon Verbena crème brûlée, seasonal sorbet. The brûlée was forgettable, but milk gelato? Yes, please.

Kazuki's is a solid offering in the exciting dining scene of Daylesford. The food wasn't cheap, but matched with the quality of cooking and ingredients. ...

After the meal we walked around town, enjoyed craft and vintage shops. Daylesford is especially pretty in this time of the year. Do come and enjoy!

Tomato Jam | Goodbye summer

2012-03-28T22:10:00.000+11:00

My past few weeks have been absolutely crazy. So crazy I barely noticed how quick time was passing by. I realised that the heat of summer was no longer around. And I found myself taking out cardigans, jackets and scarves…. Where has my summer gone? And autumn, too? The maple leaves on my neighbour’s yard has not even turned red yet. Winter seems to be in a hurry this year.

Last weekend we made an effort to clear out a few tomato bushes. We have been so blessed with heavy crops of juicy tomatoes. We ate them mainly in salad and sandwich. Pleasure, it was so simple. This was our first ever gardening efforts, and it seemed everyone in the house enjoyed it immensely.

Naturally enough, we had more tomatoes than we needed (I didn’t buy tomatoes for nearly 3 months!). So, time to preserve summer produces. Tomato jam was the perfect choice, since I did not have quite enough tomatoes to make large batches of passata.

This jam (or chutney?) has a perfect balance of sweetness and tartness. The spices and warmness of ginger, cinnamon and cloves are wonderful. It pairs well with most meats and cold cuts. I personally love this tomato jam with pan-fried haloumi cheese, some fresh tomatoes and fresh baguette.

Tomato Jam
Adapted minimally from here.
makes approximately 1 liter of jam

Ingredients:
1600g heirloom tomatoes (with skins and seeds), finely chopped
1 small onion, finely chopped
300g raw sugar
1 tsp. fresh ginger, grated
1 red chili pepper, finely chopped
1 cinnamon stick
1/4 tsp ground cumin
pinch of ground cloves
Juice of 2 lemons
1.5 tbsp. salt
4 tbsp. balsamic vinegar

Directions:

Combine all ingredients, except balsamic vinegar , in a large pot. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to medium. Simmer, stirring regularly, until the juices have evaporated and tomatoes have reduced to a thick and sticky jam. This will take approximately 1 to 1,5 hours, depending on the amount of heat.

In the end of cooking time add balsamic vinegar. Adjust the flavors if necessary and remove from heat.

Ladle the hot jam into sterilized jars and twist on the lids.Cool and store in the fridge for about 3-4 months.

{Review} The Commoner | Fitzroy | Melbourne ~ Farm, Feather & Fur Menu

2012-03-21T20:58:00.000+11:00

Let's take a break from my kitchen for a moment, and enjoy a lovely lunch outside. I am not normally doing restaurant review on this blog. Most of the time, I am just too lazy to bring out my camera while enjoying the food and the atmosphere. But what if the place itself is so beautiful; it inspires me to take out my camera?

My friend kept on telling me how lovely that space was before I head out to the Commoner. And it was, with a little surprise. Looking at their website, I envisaged a noisy and edgy bar. But in reality, the restaurant was modern, simple and cosy with beautiful vintage decoration.

Something about the Commoner made me feel at home. The small courtyard at the back, with narrow stair reminded me of Hanoi-style cafes. It was different space and different time, but walking ever slowly up those stairs evoked the feeling of nostalgia. Perhaps it was the vintage-like ambiance, the organic arrangement of small potted plants, and the warm sunlight on a cold autumn day made me feel that way.

Ultimately, the restaurant should be judged by its food and service. I think the Commoner did reasonably well. We sampled the Farm, Feather and Fur, which featured autumn produces. In this case, game meat! All the dishes were well-portioned and cooked beautifully. So even though we sampled a lot of meat (much more than usual), we did not feel over the top at the end of the meal.

For starter, we had crudités with anchovy butter. Nice, simple and fresh.

The next course was Mr. B's favourite: Rare Duck Breast, Pheasant Ballontine, Truffled White Bean and Mustard Fruits. The duck breast had real beautiful smoky flavours, which I feel a bit overpowering to other elements of the dish.

Now, my favourite of the day. Venison Loin, Caramelised Apple, Celeriac Puree. The venison was delicious meaty with great texture. This is why I love game meat. The puree was light, creamy with a pleasant celery taste undertone. (You can see that I love simply cook meals!)

Next was Rabbit and Prune Pie with Wood Roasted Carrots and Mushroom. We did not eat pork, so the bacon in this dish was replaced by wood roasted mushrooms. The pie was not something I would rave about, but the wood roasted carrots and mushrooms were absolutely winners.

Dessert course! Orange blossom crème brûlée with spiced biscuits and poached rhubarb. Again, the restaurant was so accommodating to change the dessert to a non-alcoholic one for us. Crème brûlée for dessert could feel old, but we both loved the fresh aroma of orange blossom water here. I'm doing a copy-cat version at home soon!

The Commoner is a place which perhaps I will be returning again and again. The food is not glorious or adventurous but it tastes good and honest. The natural flavours of produces shine through, and it is a plus point in my book. The service is warm and attentive. A solid recommendation from me.

The Commoner Restaurant
122 Johnston Street Melbourne VIC 3065
(03) 9415 6876

Disclaimer: Anh and her husband, Mr B, dined at the guest of the Commoner. The reviews are our own, and reflect our experience at the restaurant.

{Salad days} Viet-Russian Potato Salad & Chicken cabbage salad with tamarind dressing

2012-03-06T12:12:00.001+11:00

Did I tell you my discovery this summer? Salad! Yeap, the simple, humble salads. I used to dislike salads.

Growing up in Vietnamese food culture, I was spoiled with the choices of veggies for meals. But most of the veggies are cooked, and we just did not embrace salad much.

This (already gone, technically) summer, I made a switch and developed a "thing" for main meal salads. Initially, the effort was to get 5 serves of vegetables in my diet. Since then, I have developed a love for the refreshing and light flavours and texture of different kinds of salad. My favourites are chickpeas and cabbage coleslaw, wrapped with a warm tortilla for lunch. It is delicious and filling without making me feel sleepy after lunch.

Gardening, too, has made me appreciate vegetables even more. Home-grown tomatoes, oh my god. How sweet, juicy and pretty are they? My summer staple has been quinoa, toasted bread cubes and chopped tomato salad. We have enjoyed it almost every summer lunch.

Unfortunately, main meal salads are still a no go at our family dinner table. It must come from habits. But certain someone regards fresh vegetables as raw and dull *sigh*. (This comes from a household when even lettuce is cooked to dead!!) I have sneaked in salad here or there though. Tomato salad with pasta, burghul salad with grilled meat, zucchini "carpaccio" ... It is getting there, somewhere. I just hope vegetables will get more love as time goes by.

So, here they are. My two favourite salads. The first one is a crowd pleaser, a creamy potato salad. I've sneaked in some blanched broccoli for good measure. The second one, chicken cabbage salad with tamarind dressing, is my staple. I love the natural sweetness and tartness of tamarind here. A departure from the much loved Vietnamese cabbage chicken salad (goi ga), but in a good way.

Viet-Russian Potato Salad
Salad Nga (Russian salad), as we call it in Vietnam. This is a favourite when I grew up. You won't find a party without it. I've change the recipe a bit, adding broccoli and edible petals from my garden. Light, creamy, tasty and inspiring.
Ingredients
5 large potatoes (I used a creamy flesh variety)
5 small gherkins, finely diced
Kernels from a corn cob, lightly boiled
½ red capsicum, de-seeded and diced finely
4 tablespoon mayonnaise (low-fat works fine)
4 tablespoon sour cream (low-fat works fine)
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon paprika
100g brocolli, cut into florets, blanched
(optional) 60g of Vietnamese style meat loaf, diced
Method
Peel the potato and boil them in salted water until soft. Drain and mash.
Combine the mashed potatoes with cooked corn kernels, diced gherkins, diced Vietnamese meat loaf (optional), mayonnaise and sour cream, salt and paprika. Adjust seasoning to your taste.
Mount the potato mixture onto a serving plate. Decorate with blanched broccoli and edible petals if you have any.

Chicken, cabbage and pear salad with tamarind dressing
I ate this for lunch very often. They make great filling for rice paper rolls, too.
Ingredients (serve 2-3)
¼ small purple cabbage
1 pear
60g sesame seeds, toasted lightly
100g cooked chicken breast, shredded
Tamarind dressing
2 tablespoon tamarind paste (found in Asian shops)
4 tablespoons warm chicken broth or water
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 teaspoon honey grain mustard
1-2 teaspoons raw sugar
2tsp salt
Herbs – chopped coriander, parsley etc.
Method
Clean the cabbage, and shred finely. Slice the pear (peel the skin beforehand if it bothers you).
Make the dressing by combining all the ingredients together. Whisk to combine. Taste to see if it needs adjustment.
Toss the cabbage, chicken and pear with the dressing mixture. Just before serving, mix in the herbs and toasted sesame seeds.

Poached chicken soup with amaranth greens and quinoa

2012-02-22T09:51:00.000+11:00

This photo is full of happiness and bright, I can't help but sharing it. :) A lot of love for green veggies around here! And in the photo, we have amaranth greens (rau dền)!

February is in, and I have started to change my life considerably. I have cleared out my schedule, organizing my life in a different ways. Be more active and explore options that I haven't considered before. Most of my days start at 5am with a workout now. It is still a struggle of will to get up so early for working out. I'm not much of a morning person, but it's a great feeling to start the day active and even enjoy a decent breakfast on workdays.

The first week was hard. I felt like a zombie by Friday, just to realize that my body needed sleep. Earlier bed time did wonder. Listen to the body, it knows what it needs.

My body screams for greens and something soupy after I got a cold earlier this week. This soup comes about after I read about an array of Arabic soups. I am inspired by the spice, the greens and grains. I make mine with amaranth greens , chicken and quinoa. A cinnamon stick is added to the soup, and it gives a surprising hint of warmth to the broth. Wholesome, nourishing and comforting. Cooking chicken this way is wonderful, since the broth is lighter and sweet. The meat is tender and moist.

Poached chicken soup with amaranth greens and quinoa

Of course other greens will work here – think spinach, kale, and other Asian greens. Substitute quinoa for brown rice if you like.

Ingredients (5 smallish portions)
1 small organic chicken, around 1kilo
1 onion, peeled
1 cinnamon stick
A piece of ginger, about 0.5 cm, skinned and sliced thinly
3 bunches of amaranth greens, leaved picked (you should get around 3-4 cups)
100-120g quinoa
Slices of 1 purple onion
A few tsp of best quality fish sauce

Method

Bring around 6 cups of water to the boil. Add in the onion, cinnamon stick and a ½ tbsp of salt. Lower the chicken to the water, and boil for 5 minutes. Turn the heat to the lowest heat, cover and simmer for about 30 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through. This way, the meat will stay moist.

Once the chicken is cooked, take out and let it cool down. Remove and shred the meat. Discard the bones and skin. Skim off the fat from the chicken broth. Discard the onion and cinnamon stock.

Add in enough water so you will have around 4-5 cups. Bring to simmer.

Rinse the quinoa and cook in plenty of water until pale and cooked through. Drain. Set aside.

Clean the amaranth greens and roughly chop to 0.5cm pieces. Add to the boiling broth with the chicken meat. Wait for the broth to boil again plus a few minutes for the greens to cook. Don't overcook veggies! Check seasoning. I like to add a bit of fish sauce at the end for extra flavours.
Serve the soup hot with sliced onion and quinoa (or rice).

{GIVE AWAY} FREE Better Homes and Gardens LIVE Tickets - Melbourne 2012

2012-02-13T22:02:00.000+11:00

Happy Monday! Hope all of you had a blast during the weekends! I have been incredibly busy with outdoor activities. Not a lot of time in the kitchen, but I am very happy that I can enjoy a bit of gardening and exercise here and there :)

ENTRIES CLOSED! WINNERS HAVE BEEN EMAILED.

If you happen to be in Melbourne on 24th to the 26th of February then I have a fantastic give away in store! Better Home and Garden Live!

Better Homes and Gardens LIVE is coming to Melbourne at the Royal Exhibition Building from the 24th to the 26th of February. This show provides the opportunity for the magazine to come to life with live presentations from the TV Presenters and a load of shopping opportunities with over 250 exhibitors.

Better Home and Garden Live has generously offered to send 10 lucky readers a double entry double passes worth $40 to enjoy the event.

HOW TO ENTER

Required Entry: For a chance to win email me at anhnguyen118[at]gmail[dot]com with "BHG LIVE" in the subject line.

Extra chances to win:

1. Follow @anhsfoodblog on Twitter.

2. Tweet the following: Enter to #win a double pass to Better homes & garden LIVE in #Melbourne from @anhsfoodblog #giveaway http://bit.ly/xsZXzC

Please let me know if you have done the above in your comment so I can count it as one extra entry.

DETAILS

The give-away starts on 13 Feb 2012 and runs until 20 Feb 2012, 11:30pm AEST.

The winners will be selected at random and announced on 21 Feb 2012. I will send the emails with unique codes for you to get your free tickets to Better Homes and Gardens LIVE in Melbourne.

Disclaimer: I was contacted by Better Home and Garden LIVE for this give away. For any other information, please contact the event organiser directly.

*All images above are courtesy of Better Home and Garden LIVE.

Pure Maple Syrup Ice-cream (No egg recipe)

2012-02-06T20:39:00.002+11:00

I think I have discovered a favourite way to make ice-cream. Alice Medrich, how utterly talented is she? Her recipes in 'Pure Dessert' yet again tell me that minimal ingredients and preparation still can yield very good results.

You see, I am not a big fan of making custard-based ice-cream. I just cannot bother to do it in hot weather. The texture, too, feels a little bit heavy after freezing. It was not until I discovered Alice Medrich's recipe that I've managed to make ice-cream a bit more often. Her recipe contains no eggs, just cream and flavouring ingredients. It results in lighter and softer product. Even after sitting in the freezer for a lengthy period, the ice-cream texture is still soft-serve like, which I totally adore.

On Sunday I made ice-cream with just cream, a bit of milk, a pinch of salt and pure maple syrup. I used the organic dark maple syrup (Grade B) we carried all the way from the US. The deep, dark caramel flavours of maple syrup really shined through. It was such a marvellous recipe, a keeper!

(I took the photos when it was really hot. It melted so FAST! ARG!)

Pure Maple Syrup Ice-cream - the Recipe

(Based on "Pure Dessert")

Note: because there are no yolks to thicken the ice-cream, it tends to melt quicker. I have an idea from Momofuku Milk Bar's cereal ice-cream recipe that a bit of gelatine may help, but I have not tested it yet.

Ingredients
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup dark organic maple syrup (Grade B if you can get it)
Scant 1/8 tsp salt
600ml heavy cream

Method
Heat the milk in a saucepan until barely simmer. Set aside to cool down to lukewarm, then pour in maple syrup and salt. Stir to dissolve. Stir in the cream, and chill overnight.

The next day, freeze the ice-cream according to your ice-cream maker's instructions. I've found that with this recipe, extra churning time is required (but I got really hot and humid weather, too).

Serve soft or freeze in the freezer until hard to scoop. If the ice-cream gets too hard, leave to stand for a few minutes until scoopable.

Heart "Imprint" Cookies

2012-01-31T14:36:00.000+11:00

Oh, hello February! You are coming! Heck, where has January gone? I feel like time is flying by at a rocket speed! I am trying to get a new rhythm going. Part of it involves doing a "spring" cleaning of my pantry.

After a few hours, I found 5 different types of chocolate bars and packets, and 3 different types of cocoa powders. For sure I do not need any extra chocolate for V-day. I need self control not to indulge in the chocolate a bit too quickly though!

I made this recipe for heart imprint cookies for a Valentine day feature. They are fun, and will make great presents for a lot of occasions. I imagine you can colour the "heart" part of the cookies for different themes. I like mine with chocolate, always.

Chocolate Heart Imprint Cookies

(The cookie dough recipe is from Donna Hay Magazine)

Ingredients (for 40-50 cookies, size of a 50c Australian coin)
125g unsalted butter, at room temperature
110g castor sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
225g plain flour
1 teaspoon cocoa powder

Method

Cream the butter and sugar until pale and light. Add the egg and beat to combine. Sift flour, add vanilla and combine well.

Divide the mixture into 3 parts. Mix 1 portion with cocoa powder. Wrap the cookies dough with plastic wrap and chill foe 20 mins.

Divide the chocolate dough into 4 portions. Use two portions first, roll them into two thin logs (like chopsticks). Use your fingers to pinch the top of the two logs together. Try to shape it so that the top part points up (this is the bottom of the heart)

Now, carefully and gently invert the two lines so that the bottom of the line is on top. Pinch some white dough, and roll them into a thin log, which hasthe same length with the chocolate log.

Gently line the white log into the middle of the chocolate lines, where the two wings of the heart are (see photo). Basically, if you slice the chocolate part across, you will have the heart shape!

Repeat the above process so you will have two heart-shaped logs.

Divide the white dough into two. Work with each at a time. Roll the dough between parchment papers until it is about 5mm thin. Remove the papers.

Place 1 heart-shaped log in the middle of the white dough. Roll up, Swiss-roll style to enclose the heart shape log. Seal. Repeat with the remaining white dough and heart-shaped log. Cover with cling wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

Preheat the oven to 160C. Line baking tray with baking paper.

Take the cookies logs out of the fridge, and slice 1cm thick. Place onto the tray, and bake for 12 mins or until golden. Cool on a cookies rack then store properly.

Happy Lunar New Year! - Vietnamese sticky rice, coated in mung bean

2012-01-24T21:41:00.001+11:00

Happy Lunar New Year, everyone! I hope this year will be a joyous one for all.

Today is the second day of Tết (Lunar New Year). If I were in Vietnam, we would spend today at my grandmother's house. She would cook this sticky rice dish again, and we would happily enjoy it with fried spring rolls (nem), pickles (đồ chua), poached chicken with lime leaves (gà luộc lá chanh) and many more delicacies.

Xôi vò (Viet sticky rice coated in mung bean) is not an easy dish to make. The final product requires each grain to be separated and coated nicely with mashed dried mung bean. My grandmother often makes it with chicken fat, making it extra tasty!

(I am trying to get back to work even though my mind is in Vietnam, thinking of Tết! I hope those who celebrate it will have extra fun time with their families, since it is the most important thing, really.)

On another note, I have been featured in an article on Vietnamnet, one of the most popular Viet language news portal :). The post talked about the Hanoi cafe I took, and also my life as an expat in Australia. If you can understand Vietnamese, read it here! Thank you!

Watermelon and rose granita - [summer]

2012-01-18T08:39:00.000+11:00

After the weird cold days, summer is shining back again in Melbourne. The heat is on, and I find it enjoyable.

Summer means stoned fruits, cherries, lighter meals, pretty blossoms and sunshine until late. I am so much in love with the light, and my gardens. We have so much basils, tomatoes and strawberries. And the most awesome crop is the 2 kilos of peaches from the miniature tree in a pot. Nothing beats fresh peaches/stoned fruits. They are slightly sour, and incredibly crunchy.

My home-grown peaches. So proud :>

Summers also means icey, cold desserts. While I love ice-cream, I am not a big fan of making custard and cream based desserts often. Granita provides the perfect solution. Light, fresh and cold. We can use up a lot of good summer fruits. Since it is hot again this week, I am thinking of a chocolate granita. But for now, let's settle with my favourite combo this summer – Watermelon and rose!

{Top photo by Mai Nguyen}

Watermelon and rose granita

Ingredients

1 cup water
1 cup sugar
juice of one lemon
1 kg ripe watermelon (weight after remove rind)
Petals of one chemical-spray- free rose (do not use ones from nursery. Mine is home-grown)
½ teaspoon rose water

Method

First, make the simple syrup by boiling the water with sugar until the sugar is dissolved. Add in the lemon juice, and cool.

Coarsely chop up the watermelon and put it in a food processor. Add the rose petal. Process until fine. Pass the juice through a sieve.

Mix together the simple syrup with the watermelon mixture, together with the rose water.

Pour the mixture into a metal tray and freeze for 3 hours or until partially set. Using a fork, break frozen mixture up until it is quite slushy. Return mixture to freezer and repeat flaking process after 2 hours (at this stage tiny ice flakes should have formed). Return to freezer for a further 2 hours then repeat flaking process. Just before serving, repeat flaking process for the final time.

Happy Summer!

White Chocolate and Lemon Curd Truffles

2012-01-11T09:15:00.000+11:00

{And the art of balance}

It is only the start of January, but I have already started to feel the weight of work to be done over the next 12 months. I honestly do not know how to balance the work-life-study-blogging dynamic at this point in time. I think I just have to deal with each item, one thing at a time.

Speaking about the art of balance, have you read this post on Bakers Royale about "The cost of blogging"? A very honest read and it makes me reflect on my blogging experience in the past 5 years. Costs like camera gears, hosting, cookbooks can be estimated. But how about time? Somehow, somewhere, there need to be a balance. Kulsum and I were talking about a commitment of spending less time online, focusing more on our "real" life and enjoying other activities. I don't think I will quit blogging. It's part of my life that I want to keep. Hopefully I will be able to.

The recipe I am sharing today is a recent favourite. Lemon curd and white chocolate truffles. They are sweet, smooth with the lighter tangy note of citrus. A delightful after dinner bite.

White chocolate and lemon curd truffles

Making your own lemon curd is easy. I have used this recipe, but reduced the sugar a little bit. :)
I served the truffles "lollipop" style, but they do soften very quickly in warm weather. In such case, simply put them in small pretty paper cases.

Based on this recipe

Ingredients
100g white chocolate
1/4 cup home-made lemon curd
1/4 cup heavy cream
a tiny bit of orange blossom water (optional)

100g biscuit crumbs (I used my home-made biscuits and process it into finely ground in the food processor)

Method

Using a double boiler, melt the white chocolate.

Add in the lemon curd, heavy cream, orange blossom water and mix well to combine.

Place the above mixture in the freezer, and chill for 2-3 hours.

Take the mixture out of the freezer and shape into truffle-sized balls. Dust powdered sugar over your hands to stop the truffles melting around the edges.

Coat the balls with the biscuit crumbs. Put them on a baking tray covered with baking paper. If you want to make lollipops, insert the sticks into the truffle balls.

Place the whole thing in the freezer and chill overnight. Serve chill.

Simmered Soy Beans with ginger and soy sauce {Japanese inspired}

2012-01-05T09:41:00.002+11:00

We ended last year on a quiet note. A much needed getaway, far from work and obligations. It wasn't far away but we stayed in a quiet, tranquil Japanese inn called Shizuka Ryokan near Daylesford.

For a few days, we relaxed ourselves entirely. Bush walking, bathing in mineral water, wandering around in different stores. Most of the time, we were happy to read and reflect quietly in the room overlooking a private Japanese style garden.

Food, we did indulge ourselves. Trips to the Lake House have not disappointed unlike its cousin the Wombat Hill cafe. But the meal I like the most is the Japanese style breakfast. Although the salmon seemed a bit heavy for morning meal, the meal itself was nourishing and comforting. I love miso soup for the morning with rice. A few salad dishes were healthy and wholesome. Such a great start for the day.

Coming back, renewed, I continue that simplicity philosophy in food preparation. I remember a really nice, simple soy bean dish simmered in sweet soy sauce I had a while back. Traditionally, black beans are used, and it is a Japanese New Year dish called Kuromame. The version I made has an additional warm tone of ginger.

The beans are sweet, savoury and have that wholesome 'al-dente' bite to each piece. This is a kind of small dish you can offer in everyday Asian style meal. Serve it as you would serve pickles I say. The following recipe makes quite a bit, and we have enjoyed it for a few days.

I am sending this recipe to a lovely blogging event called My Legume Love Affair. It was started by my friend Susan of the Well-seasoned Cook. This month host is Claire of Chez Cayenne .

Simmered Soy Beans with ginger and soy sauce
based on a recipe here. This dish has a long cooking time, but it's really simple to make.

150g dried soy beans (or black beans)
½ cup sugar
2 tablespoons light soy sauce
A pinch of salt
A piece of thumb-size ginger, cut into three large pieces

Wash the beans and soak them in warm water for 3-4 hours.

Drain and simmer the beans in a pot with a lot of water and the pieces of ginger until cooked through (2-3 hours). The beans should be soft with a bite.

Now add the seasoning and continue to simmer with the lowest heat possible until most of the liquid evaporates (1-2 hours). Check the beans – you don't want them to be mushy but wholesome and 'al dente'.

Serve at room temperature. Store in an air-tight container for around 4-5 days.

Delicious Vietnam #20 Recap & Winners of Giveaways

2012-01-03T08:44:00.002+11:00

Happy New Year!!

We are back with the final edition of Delicious Vietnam. Although this blogging event has come to a conclusion, please join us on Delicious Vietnam Facebook page and share your recipes, stories and chit chat about Vietnamese cuisine. (Just a side note: I will be blogging as per usual, with Vietnamese recipes included :))

Without further delay, let's enjoy the feast! You will also find the winners of Indochine cookbooks and Red Boat fish sauce at the bottom of this post.

1 - A recipe for bì cuốn (and accompanying dipping sauce) - Aliette de Bodard

Bì means “pork skin”, and cuốn, of course, refers to anything that is rolled. And that’s what you get: cooked, shredded pork with pork rinds to give it a nice crunchiness, all wrapped up in a fabulous salad-rich roll, and dipped in nước mắm. Doesn’t it sound awesome?

2 - Bánh cuốn with prawn and vegetables (Vietnamese rice rolls) - Blue Apocalypse

Banh cuon is one of my favourite Vietnamese dishes. It’s a thin crepe like rice roll, filled with a mixture of ground pork and minced wood ear mushrooms. It’s freshly made and should be eaten straight away. I love the lightness of the rice rolls and the delicious pork filling topped with herbs and nuoc cham.

3 - Bún bò Huế - Angry Asian Creations

This... "reminds me of my stepmother. her mother is from Hue and this dish made an appearance regularly at the dinner table. it was not my favorite. in fact, i would usually make a sandwich to eat while the rest of the family slurped their way thru their bowls. like all the recipes in the cookbook i will refer to, food is used to show love, to show forgiveness, to bring home a lost child, and for me, it is home."

4 - Cà ri gà - Vietnamese chicken curry (cà ri gà) - Ginger and Scotch

These days, I make the curry consistency somewhere between a soup and a stew – not too watery and not too thick. If it’s too watery, I will add a little corn stach dissolved in cold water to thicken it up. Scotch now loves eating this curry and in a blind taste test, even preferred my own blend of spices to the store bought ones!

5 - Bánh bao (Vietnamese style steamed buns) - The things I eat

Banh Bao is a fluffy, steamed bun of rice flour filled with ground pork, veggies, Chinese sausage, hard-boiled egg, Chinese mushrooms and bits of vermicelli. They are basically awesome because they are easy to eat with one hand. Easiest way is to bite into it, add desired soya sauce, and continue to eat!

6 - Gỏi gà (Fiery Vietnamese chicken salad) - The Hungry Australian

Vietnamese salads always taste so amazing, and they’re so healthy and low-fat, too. In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if you burn more calories eating this dish than are actually in the dish. This is even more so if you cut the cabbage too big like I did as your jaw will get a real good work out. (Hot tip: grate the cabbage with a vegetable peeler).

7 - Gỏi hến trộn mít non (baby clams and young jack fruit salad) - rauom

This salad is a study of balancing various tastes and textures: sweetness of baby clams & tartness of tamarind, chewiness of baby clams & softness of baby jack fruit & crunchiness of rau om (rice paddy herb) and rau răm (Vietnamese coriander), rice crackling and peanuts.

8 - Bánh xèo (Vietnamese sizzling crepes) - The culinary chronicles

Bánh Xèo gets its yellow hue from the turmeric and is flavored with coconut milk. Traditionally, Bánh Xèo is filled with pork, shrimp, onions, mung beans, and bean sprouts. And just like chả giò (egg rolls), you wrap pieces of the Bánh Xèo with herbs and lettuce leave before dunking it into Nước Chấm–a fish sauce based dipping sauce. The freshness of the veggies is the perfect balance to the slightly fried crêpe.

9 - Thịt kho (Vietnamese braised pork) - Flavor Boulevard

"...no matter which region of Vietnam we are from and where we are living: the fatty chunks of pork so tender that a plastic chopstick can cut through, the amber sauce, with which the hard boiled eggs are imbrued from yolk to white. The fatty, sweet, and salty pork must be freshened up with the crunchy, sour, cold dưa giá (pickled beansprout)..."

10 - Sườn rang (Vietnamese glazed spare ribs) - Javaholic

Today's dish is a tasteful recipe for spareribs. It has the characteristically Vietnamese combination of salty (from the fish and soy sauce) and sweet (from sugar). I served them with quick pickled beansprouts and carrots, the pickled vegetables a nice counter balance to the richness of the spareribs. The recipe is from Nicole Routhier's The Foods of Vietnam, the first Vietnamese cookbook I ever bought and still one of my favorites.

11 - Kem cà phê (Vietnamese coffee ice-cream) - Phuoc'n Delicious

For this month’s Delicious Vietnam, I thought I’d make something to pay tribute to the last blogging event and also to the highlight of my year; this Vietnam holiday. This ice cream encapulates all that is associated with my beloved cà phê sữa đá; it is creamy, sweet and highly caffeinated.

12 - Bún bò Huế (with video of the making)- Ravenous Couples

Spicy, fiery red, and murky, the appearance of bún bò Huế is almost the antithesis of it’s better known Vietnamese soup counterpart, phở bò, which is valued for it’s clarity and pure clean flavors...

13 - Bánh chuối nướng (Vietnamese banana bread pudding) - A food lover's journey

This banana bread pudding is completely vegan and a breeze to make. No batter to be whipped up, we use up stale sandwich bread sitting on the counter. The bread is soaked in a mixture of coconut cream and brown palm sugar (or dark brown sugar). Then, alternate layers of bread and banana slices are assembled and baked. The result is a caramelised banana pudding that is soft, sweet with a really beautiful aroma of baked banana and coconut.

14 - Bò kho (Vietnamese beef stew) - By Jeroxie

I had Bò Kho a few times in Melbourne and always loved it. I thought I tried to make this for the last edition of Delicious Vietnam. It is very easy and totally a one pot wonder which is great for us. You can simmer it in a pot, cook it in a crock pot or even use the pressure cooker

***

Winners of the giveaways! - generated by random number generator

Two Indochine cookbooks go to: (1) - Alitelle de Bodard and (3)Angry Asian Creations

Two Red Boat Fish Sauce (US residents only) go to: (10) Javaholic and (8) The culinary chronicles

Congrats to the winners! And thank EVERYONE for being such a big part of Delicious Vietnam!!

Vietnamese Vegan caramelised coconut banana bread pudding (bánh chuối nướng)

2011-12-29T16:02:00.001+11:00

So, we are in the last few days of 2011. How fast has the year progressed? I still have a few resolutions that have not been ticked off. Never mind, that’s what the New Year is for!

This is perhaps my last post of 2011, which is also my entry for the last edition of Delicious Vietnam. It is sad to let this event go, but I hope there is more deliciousness to come no matter what…

And we have a cake of some sort this time! Vietnamese cuisine is not so famous for baked goodies, I know. But this banana bread pudding certainly won’t disappoint. Although the Viet called it “baked banana cake” (bánh chuối nướng), it is more like a really delicious bread pudding.

This banana bread pudding is completely vegan and a breeze to make. No batter to be whipped up, we use up stale sandwich bread sitting on the counter. The bread is soaked in a mixture of coconut cream and brown palm sugar (or dark brown sugar). Then, alternate layers of bread and banana slices are assembled and baked. The result is a caramelised banana pudding that is soft, sweet with a really beautiful aroma of baked banana and coconut.

There are few more days to enter Delicious Vietnam – the final edition. We have some really good prizes to offer for participants. Do read the announcement here, and join us if you can!

Vietnamese caramelised coconut banana bread pudding (bánh chuối nướng)

Based on a recipe from Trieu Thi Choi. There's another variation of this cake which uses condensed milk as well. I like the coconut version much better :)

Printable recipe

Ingredients
About 4-5 large ripe bananas
20g castor sugar
80g dark brown sugar
200ml coconut cream
8-10 slices of white or wholemeal sandwich bread (if using whole meal, chose a lighter texture bread)
2-3 tablespoons of melted coconut oil (or butter)

Method
Peel the banana, and slice them lengthwise as thinly as you can. Sprinkle them with the castor sugar. Set aside.

In a small pot, heat up the brown sugar and the coconut cream. Stir frequently until the sugar is dissolved. Turn off the heat and cool the coconut mixture down a bit.

With the bread, remove the crust.

Preheat the oven to 180C. Line a spring form baking pan with parchment paper. Grease the side of the pan.

Arrange some banana slice at the bottom of the pan. Dip the bread slices into the coconut mixture, soak them briefly, and arrange them onto the banana slice. Repeat this process until you have used all the bread. Top the pudding with a layer of banana. Sprinkle some sugar (extra) if preferred.

Drizzle the pudding with the melted coconut oil or butter. Bake in the oven for about 1 hour. If the top is brown too quickly, cover with a layer of aluminium foil. Bake until the pudding is set.

Take the pudding out, and cool down completely before unmould and slice.

Food Photography in artificial light a LONG post

2011-12-18T12:41:00.000+11:00

Friends around me know I have a special interest in food photography. It has been 5 years since this blog was open, and I have learned a lot from experience and others. I am not a professional photographer. All my works are experimental, and perhaps are often on impulse. So in this post, I have only documented my experience. Straight and forward. I hope it helps some of you! :)

{Example} strawberry still life. The white umbrella was at 4pm, higher up.

1 – Light and food photography

Most of us have heard it before – natural light is the best for food photography! I tend to disagree. While natural light does work wonder in this line of work, it is not the only way. There is a larger degree of control when using strobe lighting. But of course, mastering strobe lighting is a very complicated process. And it is fairly costly compared with natural light. It also requires more disciplined approach to photography, and therefore it is perhaps more suited for more "advanced users". Having said that, there is a number of options out to start the learning process, too.

2 – My first basic set up

This is my first artificial light set up. I bought a cheap lighting kit from eBay – two stands, two white umbrellas, two lights.

And it works fairly well. After much experiment, I have come to use 30W 5400 bulbs. You can buy these lights pretty much everywhere. The light from these bulbs are soft after being diffused.

This is a good starting point for those who advance from natural light. The source of lighting is continuous, and it is easier to adjust the camera (more on this later). The kit is fairly neat to set up, unlike a lot of other "home-made" soft boxes I have seen around. More importantly, the two umbrellas are mobile enough for us to try different settings and positions. I don't really like the Light Tent, because the light is generally strong and eliminates most of shadow, making it a bit "fake". It is great for product photography. Not so much for food.

With the two umbrella set-up above, the coverage area is enough for small-medium still-life objects. I say "small-medium" because you need to understand the size ratio of light source vs. the objects. The larger the light source, you will get a better coverage and less strong shadow.

{Example} Matcha cookies – umbrella is at 9pm, almost same level with the cookies.

3 - The Elinchrom Set Up

I acquired two Elinchrom soft boxes recently. It is a flash system, so there are a lot more controls for me to experiment. I am getting used to light meter, flash meter and everything else (my head hurts sometimes!) I am nowhere close, but the Elinchrom has allowed me to explore some ambiance shots.

{Example} Cinnamon cookies – soft box is at 11pm,high up and point to side wall.

The major drawback, technicalities aside, is that more professional flash/flash kits are more expensive. I was very reluctant to purchase this kit, until I attended a food pixel's class and was shown briefly how they should work.

{Example} - Jam thumb print cookies. Soft box @ 11pm, slightly behind.

4 – So, A few advices on artificial lighting and food photos

Start with something simple – the two umbrella kit I mention above or a light tent. Better still, you can try to diffuse a few table lamps with white cloth and take some experimental shots. (I tried that before. It was ok, but too messy to organise).

Understand your camera mode – When using artificial light, I always use manual mode, because it allows me to control the camera settings. I have heard that the camera built-in light meter is not so good in limited light conditions. So Av Mode (Aperture mode) often leads to "camera shake".

{Example} - Back lighting with white umbrella. Heavily diffused!

Using a fast lens – which is good in low light conditions. I used the canon 50mm 1.4 (or its cheaper 50mm1.8 cousin) almost exclusively on the Canon 30D. Now I use 24-70mm and 100mm on the Canon 5D mark 2. I am sure you can find the equivalent Nikon lenses.

Make sure to use only the main light sources – If you set up something, and leave the normal ceiling light on, obviously it will affect the photos! The same goes to natural lighting actually.

Reflector – You will need this to control and fill shadow. Since artificial light sources tend to be smaller than say, a window, you will notice the effects of lights on the subjects a lot more.

Tripod – to prevent camera shake! (I have steady hands, but using tripods in these situations do HELP)

Check your white balance – Not all lights are equal. You will notice their properties in practice. (eg Flash light is warmer than natural light or the kit light). There are a lot of posts on this already. Google them :).

{Example} Sweet corn pudding - white umbrella on the right

Your choice background colours and materials – it is just my observation, but the darker and non-reflective materials are easier to control in artificial light. It might due to the fact that the objects are closer to the light sources. I've learned that further diffusing of light helps. I put extra layer of white linen on my soft boxes, just like I do with my window in natural light.

Be aware of shadows and highlights – sometimes, the light falls onto the cutlery and cause unwanted highlight. You may need to change the set up a bit, or experiment with moving the light to different positions.

All in all, it is all about lighting and how it affects your photography. Hope this little "guide" is of help for those who face the challenge of having limited natural light like me! It is a fun journey of learning ;) And occasionally, you will snap funny photo. Like this pic of my cat, Den. Priceless! =)

My family's cheeseburger recipe.

2011-12-12T21:33:00.001+11:00

*Announcement* We have some really fantastic prizes for participants of Delicious Vietnam (December, 2011). Read more here and join us!!!

I didn't appreciate a good burger until our trip in New York. It was midnight and we were jet lag, cold and hungry. We queued up in Shake Shack, waiting patiently. The food arrived fast, and was so satisfying. It was meaty, packed with flavours and substantial. That was the kind of fast food I could enjoy, occasionally!

More locally, I used to love Plan B's wagyu burger so much, I asked Gourmet Traveller to help me with recipe! It was published ages ago, and I still haven't found the time, efforts or money to gather the ingredients to make it.

Instead, I am stick to my go-to burger recipe. I learned it from my friend Kelly a while back and have then adapted to suit my taste. A "normal" recipe, with regular ingredients that can be quickly purchased in any supermarket. Burgers, IMO, should be fast, simple, tasty and substantial. I still love gourmet burgers on occasion, of course.

This recipe is my family favourite. We love our beet roots in burgers, because it is Australian to do so! (joking!). Seriously, beet roots are so good here. You should try, once! Also, we adore our sriracha sauce so much, ketchup has been replaced by it. Can I call this fusion food? ;)

My family's cheeseburger

{Printable Recipe}

Ingredients (make 11-12 burgers)

1kg regular beef mince

3 slices white or wholemeal sandwich bread, crust removed

2/3 cup milk

2 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

4 tablespoons smoked BBQ sauce

1 teaspoon smoked paprika

Half a bunch of parsley, leaves picked and chopped finely

Salt and pepper to taste

100g-150g mozzarella cheese, grated coarsely

2 onions, peeled and sliced

Oil to fry

Condiments: lettuce, sliced tomatoes, canned beetroot (drained), sriracha sauce

12 wholemeal buns

Method

Prepare the burger first. Put the meat in a bowl, together with the torn bread, worcestershire sauce, BBQ sauce, smoked paprika, milk, salt and pepper. Mix well. Form 11-12 patties from the mixture. Put on a plate, cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, fry the onion with 2 tablespoons of oil until soft and start to golden. Set aside.

Now, bring the burgers out of the fridge. Pan-fry one side until golden. Flip to the other side, sprinkle with cheese on top and fry over medium-low heat until the burgers are cooked through and the cheese is melted. Set aside and keep warm.

Split the buns in haves and warm them up in the oven. Arrange lettuce, tomatoes, beetroot and one burger in each bun. Top with fried onions. Serve immediately with your favourite sauces.

Strawberry mocktail

2011-12-07T20:25:00.001+11:00

{Think colors!}

**Announcement**

Two of my photos are selected to the final of Eat Drink Blog Photography Competition. I would appreciate it if you can come here and "LIKE" my Hanoi Cafe & Tea Break Photos! Thank you! xoxo - Anh

Although we have less of an ideal start to summer, I am still eager that it will come eventually. Actually, I don't love the intense heat that much. Can we get a mild, sunny weather with all the bounties still?

As we move deeper in December, I cannot wait until the year is over. To start something new, something fresh. It is all in the mind, but I need that trigger. This year has been physically and emotionally draining. It will better if certain things become "history" for real.

"Think positive", I remind myself.

So let's do something bright with red, juicy and perfectly ripe strawberries. I have made jam and a lot of smoothie with them. But today, I have settled on a lovely drink which can quench the summer thirst.

The color of the drink is so bright and cheerful, it makes me happy. Perfect for the festive season (I made this for Eid, too).

Strawberry Mocktail

{printable recipe}

The strawberry syrup is really versatile. They can be reduced further to be more syrupy and used as topping for pancakes or ice-cream. I topped the syrup with soda water to make non-alcoholic beverage, but it also can serve as the base for cocktail.

Ingredients

500g strawberries (fresh or frozen)
250ml water
120-150g raw sugar
Juice from one lemon

To serve: lemonade or soda water (chilled), mint for garnish

Method

Wash the strawberries and chopped into pieces.

Place the fruit, together with the sugar in a medium sauce pan. Bring to a gentle boil until the fruit is soft. Add in lemon juice and water. Gently simmer.

Adjust sugar to your liking now, then turn off the fire. Leave to cool and put the syrup in the fridge to chill.

When ready to serve, put enough syrup for half of a cup(glass). Top with chilled lemonade or soda water. Garnish with mint and enjoy! Cheers!

Panna Cotta with mango gelee

2011-12-01T21:53:00.001+11:00

{Celebrating summer}

It is mango time, again.

I cannot get enough of them! The mango season this year has been great, and they are so reasonably priced at the moment. Summer is finally here, you know?

In Vietnamese belief, mangoes are considered to have properties of heat. "Enjoy them in small amount", I could almost hear my mom's advice now. But I can hardly ever resist the fruits, with their distinct tropical sweetness and flavours. To the very least, I am trying to be more moderate by not picking boxes after boxes of mangoes...

Today marks the first day of summer in down under. I wonder where the sunshine is. Never mind, I have these pots of sunshine with me - panna cotta with mango gelee. The panna cotta is perfectly creamy and smooth. It pairs nicely with the tropical flavours of mangoes.

The colors are so beautiful! I like to present panna cotta in a glass or small milk bottles like this rather than inverting them onto a plate. Much easier this way!

PS: I got these bottles off eBay a while back. I haven't seen them around here...

Panna Cotta with mango gelee

The panna cotta recipe adapted from David Lebovitz

Printable recipe

Ingredients (for 6 small bottles size 125ml)
200ml milk
300ml cream
80g castor sugar
2.5 teaspoons gelatine powder
For the mango gelee
2 medium mangoes
4-5 tablespoons sugar (depending on the sweetness of the fruits)
1.5 tsp gelatine powder

Method {I created the effects with mango gelee at the bottom of the jar}

Prepare the gelee first:
Peel the mangoes and cut away the flesh from the seed. Puree them finely.

Add sugar to the mixture. Adjust the level of sugar depending on the sweetness of your fruits.

In the meantime, heat up a few tablespoons of water, wait for them to go back to warm. Sprinkle gelatine powder (2.5 teaspoon), and then whisk to thoroughly dissolve. Pass this mixture into the mango, stir to combine.

Divide the mango mixture into 6 bottles. Leave to set in the fridge before proceed to the panna cotta. (If you want the "angle" effect, put the bottles into an egg tray, tilt them a little).

Prepare the panna cotta
Heat the cream, milk with the sugar over low heat. Stir regularly until the sugar is dissolved. Set aside.

Warm 3-4 tablespoons of water. Sprinkle gelatine powder (1.5 teaspoon), and then whisk to thoroughly dissolve. Pass this mixture into the cream mixture, stir to combine.

Carefully ladle the cream mixture into the pot. Set in the fridge for at least 4 hours. Serve chilled.

Fried brown rice with Shiitake mushrooms. And a walk in CloudeHill.

2011-11-27T22:00:00.001+11:00

"I need a break. Let's go somewhere to free our minds".

With just that, Mr. B and I went on a short, daily trip together. Sometimes, it is better not to think about work or commitments, and get out there.

I am glad we did. We found ourselves wandering in a beautiful garden called CloudeHill up in Dadenong Range. The weather that day wasn't splendid. The outcast sky and light rain gave the place a lonely, somewhat melancholy look. But it was still beautiful. We stepped through the well-maintained, formal spaces. A minute later, the formal garden gave way to a more informal section, with high tree, narrow path, lots of clovers and random lily of the valleys.

We came back, energised and refreshed. I like to think of it as a "healing session". Healing food. I like that concept. I came home from the trip, thinking of that delicate balance and wanted something simple, clean and soothing. Fried rice that was, with brown rice, shitake mushrooms and a few ingredients from the cupboard.

Brown rice fried rice with Shiitake mushrooms

Printable Recipe
(Based on a recipe from martha stewart magazine)

Ingredients

2 cups jasmine brown rice
3 large eggs
300g fresh Shiitake mushrooms
2 cloves garlic
A small piece of ginger

3 tablespoons soya sauce
1 tablespoon Korean pepper paste
1/2 cup peas
1 teaspoon sesame oil

3 tablespoons of neutral taste oil

Method

Soak the brown rice for a few hours. Drain well after that.

Bring a large pot of water to the boil. Slowly add the rice, stir to combine. Wait until the water get back to boiling poin, turn the heat down and simmer until the rice is cooked, around 20-30 minutes. Drain and keep warm.

In the mean time, crush the garlic and mince the ginger.

Beat the eggs with a dash of soya sauce and pepper. Fry in a non-stock pan into thin omelette. Cut into fine strands.

Cut the mushrooms into 1cm thick slice.

When the rice has cooled down, heat up the oil in a large wok. Add ginger and garlic, then the mushrooms. Cook, stir occasionally until the mushrooms are just cooked through, then, throw in the rice, peas, Mix well, season with soy sauce, pepper paste.

Just when the rice is done, gently stir in the eggs and sesame oil. Dish out and serve immediately.

+++

Travel Information:
CloudeHill Nursery Gardens
89 Olinda Monbulk Road
Olinda, Victoria, Aus.
Nursery: 03 9751 1009

Easy spicy lamb skewers & a tangy burghul salad

2011-11-21T22:09:00.001+11:00

It rained the whole Saturday, and then the sun came out brightly on Sunday. It felt so sudden, but we are used to (or rather, fed up with) this typical Melbourne weather. I was thinking of my trip to Preston market the previous day, how I got soaked in the rain. And driving in and out of the chaotic car park was not a pleasant experience.

But then, I got a beautiful box of cherries, mangoes, asparagus and other seasonal produces. Stone fruits have also made their appearance. Just lovely. My trusted butcher also managed to "up sell" a leg of lamb to me. I initially thought of doing a lamb roast on Sunday, but the sunny weather changed my plan. Instead, we had BBQ lamb skewer.

At our house, we only do BBQ over a char coal kettle. No gas BBQ for us, since we love the char flavours a lot. I make satay and Vietnamese meat skewers this way. No compromise!

I have adapted a lovely marinate recipe from Gref Malouf for my meat. The spices go particularly well with lamb. I even consider that cumin is the perfect partner to lamb, even more so than rosemary. The end result is spicy, juicy spring lamb skewers.

We enjoyed our BBQ lamb pieces with a simple burghul salad, wrapped in fresh lettuce and radish slices. The salad itself is something I should make more often this summer. It is wonderfully tangy, spicy and refreshing with the use of pomegranate molasses, Turkish pepper paste, cumin and a lot of fresh herbs. It was a lovely dinner. Although I ended up smelling like charred meat!

{Printable Recipe}

BBQ lamb skewer

We are blessed with good quality lamb in Australia. Use high quality spring lamb leg for this recipe. Use different color bell peppers (capsicums) for a vivid presentation.

Ingredients (serves 6 or more)
1.8kilos lamb leg, bone removed (ask your butcher to do this for you)
Marinate ingredients:
2 tablespoons smoked paprika
1 tablespoons Turkish pepper paste (mild or hot)
2 tsp cumin powder
1 tablespoon amchoor powder (Indian dried sour mango powder)*
½ tsp or more cayenne pepper
2.5 tblp salt
Generous amount of freshly cracked pepper
2-3 tbp olive oil
2 cloves of garlic, smashed

To assemble the skewers:
2 brown onions, slice to "half moon" shape
2 bell peppers, deseeded and cut to large pieces

Condiments: mayonnaise, chili sauce, slices of red radishes, lettuce leaves

Method

Trim off the fat and sinew from the lamb leg, cut into cubes of 0.5cmx0.5cm.

Combine all the marinate ingredients with the oil, stir to combine and "massage" into the meat. Cover, and let marinate for 3-4 hours. Meanwhile, soak the skewers in cold water.

Around 40 minutes before the BBQ time, thread the meat, onion and capsicum pieces onto the skewers. Set aside. You would want to start the BBQ about 30 mins before starting time as well. Do not BBQ the meat when the coal is hot and red. This will burn the meat. It is best to wait a while, until the coal is greyish . This way, the meat will cook evenly with beautiful smoky flavours.

BBQ the meat skewers until cooked to your liking. Serve with burghul salad, or other salads of your liking.

(*) If you don't have amchoor powder, substitute with a few spoons of yoghurt.Don't marinate the meat overnight though.

A tangy burghul salad

My interpretation of Kisir, a traditional Turkish salad. I have made them a bit less sour, and add more herbs to my liking. I imagine couscous will be a good substitute.

Ingredients (serves 4 or more)
2 cups of fine burghul
2.5 cups boiling water
2 tsp salt
1 tablespoon Turkish pepper paste
1 tablespoon tomato paste
2 tablespoons pomegranate molasses
A small bunch each of mint and parsley, finely chopped
Lemon juice – to taste

Method
Pour the boiling water over the burghul. Cover and let it sit for 20 minutes.

Use a fork, separate the grain. Add in the pepper paste, tomato paste, pomegranate molasses and mix well to combine. Adjust the seasoning with salt and lemon juice. When you are happy with the taste, mix in chopped herbs. Serve with plenty of lettuce.

Delicious Vietnam, the final edition. And some awesome giveaways!

2011-11-21T15:11:00.001+11:00

It is time to say goodbye to Delicious Vietnam blogging event!

Delicious Vietnam has been running for nearly two years. I love the event to bit, and I'm sure a lot of my blog friends also feel the same way. However, maintaining an online event is a bit above me at the moment. Work, life, study. The usual things :)

So we have decided that the December issue of delicious Vietnam will also be the final edition! Of course, this is not the end of Delicious Vietnam. We have created a Facebook page for the event! (Thanks to Phuoc for making this happen!) Please share your delicious Vietnamese recipes, restaurant reviews there with others!

But for now, let's get together one more time celebrate our love for this vibrant cuisine!

Delicious Vietnam, December 2011 will be hosted by me. And since this is December, the due date for this has been extended to December 31, 2011.

For more information on eligible entries, please see this post.

Please send your entries to anhnguyen118[at]gmail[dot]com with Delicious Vietnam in the subject line.

Giveaways are now CLOSED. thanks!

~~On this occasion, I will also be giving away two copies of Indochine, the new cookbook from Luke Nguyen. I have been "reading" it from cover to cover. A must have for Vietnamese lover!~~

~~The cookbook giveaway is open to all entries for Delicious Vietnam December 2011 worldwide.~~

(Note: I will purchase the book from fishpond for Australian winners, and from Book Depository if the winners are outside of Australia)

PS: My blog is still running, and I will be blogging as usual. We only discontinue the blogging event called Delicious Vietnam! Sorry if I confuse you!

After hearing about how awesome Delicious Vietnam is, Red Boat Fish Sauce has decided to give away two fantastic prizes for our US participants.

Each winner will receive 1 bottle of 500ml 40N and 1 bottle of 80ml Family Reserve 50N. (Fish sauces are rated by N, indicating the amount of nitrogen; higher numbers mean even more concentrated and refined flavor).

Especially, the 50N small bottle is very precious and is not sold at retail. Red Boat calls it "Family Reserve" because it is such small production that they generally save it for for family and close chef friends. They are offering to our "foodie" audience because they know we will appreciate it.

Good luck to all! :)