I didn’t love living in Singapore, yet when I think about the city-state, many memories and distinctive places come flooding back. I can paint such vivid images in my head that I feel as though I must be walking through as a ghost, right there this minute.

I think about that little curve up Craig Road, and the first cafe I set foot in by myself on an early weekend morning in search of some familiarity, some sustenance, and some company. It’s now closed, but at that time, I learned it was one of the first cafes offering some of the fares I craved (avocado toast, maybe?). Next to it, the junk/treasure antique shop owned by the cantankerous old man who took a liking to me and saved me the pair of chairs I bought, even though another person had ‘reserved’ them.

Mostly, these images I conjure up have a feeling of loneliness attached to them. It was a time in my life where I didn’t have anyone close to me in the same city, let alone time zone, and I was struggling to figure out who I was going to be and what I was going to accomplish, while waking up every morning alone in a strange land without having anyone to say anything to, for hours, until maybe at some point in my co-working space, a polite “good morning” or “excuse me.”

And I think about the many footprints I’ve left behind in Thomson Medical Centre. How I came across my obstetrician in December 2016 in the middle of a miscarriage, and subsequently became so intimately familiar with the routine of visiting the corner office on the third floor. The images that I can immediately think of are the awkward lock on the bathroom doors, the strangely low row of sofas that are soft and worn, the loop of news on ChannelNews Asia in the waiting area, the framed newspaper clipping next to the examination chair/table that I would rest my eyes on every time, and the familiar nurses’ faces . Even though I’m horrible with recognising faces, I bet I’d be able to pick out the ones who were so good with blood work no matter where I see them next.

Those images are tinged with a period of uncertainty, transition, tiredness, and hope. It was this very pink hospital (pink gowns, pink sheets maybe?, warm lighting everywhere…it just feels pink?) that gave me the very first ultrasounds and dopplers showing and hearing a heartbeat growing inside me, saw me through a very long and a very short labour, put me in charge of two humans I now worry about constantly, and in a way, rebuilt me as a person. I arrived in Singapore pumped with adrenaline about work and what I was going to make of a business with my bare hands. I departed full of breastmilk, knowledgeable about Calpol dosages and the effects of amoxicillin and growth charts and percentiles, very early in my journey of reconciling what it means to have a career and be a mom.

I think about the countless taxi and Uber rides we took in Singapore (blue and yellow taxis were the favourite, red ones not so much. Other colours generally only used when desperate). How it felt like a luxury at first – like sneaking a bite of chocolate when nobody’s looking, because how did we get so lucky to have such affordable cab fares to ferry us around? It was an indulgence, and it only took us on important missions like midnight airport trips for flights back to London, business meetings in new and unexplored areas of Singapore. Gradually, they became the norm and I remember piling into taxis with our visiting friends, proclaiming “it’s too hot” for any other mode of transportation. Then, as I descended into pregnancy vomit-phase, a lifeline where I would sit limply in the seat, sucking on a hard candy or a dried sour plum, silently and mentally preparing for my next client meeting without being able to make conversation en route. Once Ellie arrived, taxis were leveraged for convenience. She started off in our arms, then in carriers strapped to us, then restrained in our laps clambering to look curiously out the window. But I remember the most those trips to the doctor’s office when she was ill, and would slump listlessly against my body during the ride, how different it felt from those times when she wouldn’t sit still. At work, taxis also became more frequent as I found myself meeting more clients and pitching more new business. At that time, it was just something I did. Now, I think about the significance of that subtle transition in my role and how I achieved my goals.

If there was one taxi uncle who drove me around throughout my time in Singapore, he’d probably be able to tell me the changes he saw in me in my four years. As it were, taxis showed how much my life transformed, and how my priorities shifted, and how I matured as a person – all in Singapore, all in four years.

The next time I set foot in Changi Airport, I look forward to stepping from the air-conditioned arrival hall into the humid air, to be assigned to a taxi from the incredibly efficient taxi rank. I wonder which corners of the city will stir up memories as I travel the island, that I’ll be able to share with whoever I’m with at that time, and if they’ll even care or know what I’m talking about. Like it or not, I’ve left a piece of me in Singapore.

Read the rest of On the many places we’ve called home. Part I: Singapore on mango on an apple. © mangoonanapple.com 2009 - 2011

The idea came like this: I got the Stella Parks Brave Tart book some time in early April, and it has a complicated doughnut recipe that involves mashing up a potato. I thought I might try it. Then one day I was browsing through Half Baked Harvest’s blog and came across some brioche doughnuts she made with a pretty strawberry glaze. That reminded me that all my favourite store-bought doughnuts are brioche doughnuts. To be safe, though, I googled some more brioche doughnut recipes and came across the winner – Justin Gellatly from Bread Ahead Bakery in London, whose doughnuts I have definitely eaten in Borough Market, has a recipe! Also, it’s from the recipe book I have been eyeing forever but still haven’t bought!

So of course I gave this recipe a try. And then I made it again because it’s SO GOOD. I halved the recipe each time, so really, I only made one batch?

The end result is so fluffy and light, that the first time we ate it, we inhaled 7 doughnuts between 3 adults, 1 toddler and 1 baby in one sitting. Then I double-checked the ingredient list and even measured out the oil I used up in frying the second time around, to do a quick calorie calculation. It turns out, each doughnut is only about 116 calories (before glazing/sugaring)! Considering that some weight loss programmes have 100-calorie snacks, I’d say these are not looking too indulgent, but they are so much more delicious than cardboard-esque granola bars and “sugar-free” desserts.

The recipe is very easy to put together but does take time. You’ll need to let the dough rise in the fridge overnight for a second proofing, so manage your time accordingly!

Brioche Doughnut Ingredients (you can easily double the recipe as it was originally double and I halved it to tame the glutton in me)

• 250g flour (I used all-purpose, but if you have bread flour, it’s recommended)
• 30g sugar
• 3g salt
• 3g instant yeast (or 7.5g fresh yeast if you can find it)
• 2 large eggs
• zest from 1/2 lemon
• 75g water (room temperature/tepid is okay, doesn’t have to be warm)
• 62.5g butter, softened

1. Roughly whisk together flour, sugar, salt, and instant yeast so it’s mixed together evenly. Then put everything but the butter in your mixing bowl and, using the paddle attachment, beat for 8 minutes on medium high speed.
2. The mixture is ready for the next step when it forms a dough that pulls away from the sides completely without much interference. (I stop the mixer once or twice to scrape it down because I’m not using my own KitchenAid with the scrape paddle these days.) Let the dough rest for a minute or two before the next step.
   

   

3. Beat in the butter in 2 – 3 additions, then continue to beat on high until the dough is super elastic, shiny, and tacky but doesn’t stick to surfaces and your hands hopelessly.
   

   

4. The dough is now ready to rise at room temperature for 2 – 3 hours, until at least double. I made a mistake the first time and let it more than double, and the end result was so good that I decided to let it rise like that again the second time.
   

   

5. Punch down once it’s doubled – and you can punch really well here, I sort of just pushed it down and that didn’t help with the frying process later, so if I were doing it again I’d be more thorough about this. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
6. When you’re ready to make the doughnuts, remove the dough from the fridge and divide into 20 balls of 25g each. You could make your life easier by making them 10 balls of 50g each, like the original recipe suggested.
7. Here’s how to shape a brioche dough ball properly: Lightly flour yoru work surface. Flatten the dough ball to about 1cm thick or less, then fold the edges all in towards the middle (kind of like pinching it closed?) so that there’s a smooth top and a bottom where the edges all join. Cupping your hand, put the dough ball with the seam side down on the work surface and sort of bounce it around within your cupped hand. Swoosh, swoosh…and you’ll have a nice round shape with a flat bottom.
8. Let the formed dough balls rest on a floured tray, keeping them about 5cm apart. Cover with cling film, then a tea towel overtop. Let rise at room temperature until doubled in size.
   

   

9. You’re ready to fry! Heat canola or other good quality high-temperature frying oil to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Gently remove what feels like light little pillows from the tray. Drop in two balls at a time. Fry for about 1 – 2 minutes on each side until just golden / lightly browned. You should have a ring of dough in the middle that isn’t able to get colour – that’s normal. If you didn’t punch down the dough well enough earlier, you might get huge air bubbles that prevent you from flipping the doughnuts around, that’s okay. Just do the best you can.
10. Cool on a cooling rack lined with paper towels. Roll in sugar when it’s still warm (but not hot) if you’d like. Or, try the glaze below.
    

    

Raspberry White Chocolate Glaze Ingredients (adapted from this recipe from Half Baked Harvest)

• 75g raspberries (I used berries from a frozen bag bought from the store, thawed at room temperature)
• 80g Lindt white chocolate bar, melted
• dash of salt
• 30g icing sugar

1. Mash the thawed and soft/mushy berries through a fine sieve strainer, getting as much juice and fine puree out as possible and leaving behind the seeds.
2. Mix with the melted white chocolate until smooth, then mix in the icing sugar and stir until no lumps remain.
3. Stir and use the glaze at room temperature. You may need to stir every so often to ensure a good consistency. If you need to take a break, cover it up and stir it well before using again.
4. Dip each doughnut in the glaze and top with sprinkles or anything else you might fancy. The glaze keeps well at room temperature and due to the icing sugar, will gently crust and set after a while.

Read the rest of Homemade brioche doughnuts on mango on an apple. © mangoonanapple.com 2009 - 2011

I mean, it’s already the beginning of May…but it also feels like 2020 hasn’t really begun.

April was supposed to bring some new activities to our daily mix. A bit more regimen now that Ellie was pretty settled with being at daycare while I went to the gym, and a bunch of new community centre courses for her, and even one for both of them to do together. It’s all come to a screeching halt, and I look at the calendar daily with all my carefully marked activities that are now all cancelled. What a year this is turning out to be.

The weather has thankfully been pretty delightful, so that we’ve been able to do afternoon walks in the trail everyday after lunch. We’ve all gotten stronger as a result: I can now push them through the trail easily with the new dual jogging stroller, and Ellie can walk about half of the trail (just shy of 800m) happily by herself without complaint. We look for whimsically painted rocks which keeps everyone intrigued.

This is the same trail that I’ve walked since…*drumroll*…September 1997. It’s where I befriended one of my good friends who’s still a friend today (I asked her to tie my shoelaces on my Pippen shoes because they were the rounded type that’s super slippery and I couldn’t get them to stay. I wish my story were more nuanced than this…? Or not.)

I’ve foraged on this trail this year too – thought I spotted elderflowers and it turns out I have, although I’m still unsure if they’re “common” elderflowers or a slightly different variety. Anyway, I’ve made elderflower syrup and it’s pretty neat. If we weren’t in lockdown mode I might be tempted to track down citric acid to add to it to make it more authentic.

I’ve made a few new recipes, some successes, so I’ll be documenting that at some point. Highlight would be a raspberry ice cream I had been thinking and dreaming of since February when I first had some raspberry ice cream at Earnest Ice Cream in Vancouver. Ellie was pretty thrilled about the replica until the second time she had it, a seed got stuck in her tooth and since then she’s eyed it suspiciously. We have two pints.

I thought I might finish some of my crafty projects in April – I dug up a bunch of unfinished stuff from years ago during the month – but nothing has been completed so far. I’ve got a quilt and a cross stitch that began around this time in 2017 (before kids!) that I’d love to finish before I begin something new. I’ve also found my fabrics and patterns for a couple of kids clothing items that I could make. I’ve really missed my sewing machine. When I made masks this month with my machine, it made me happy. I didn’t think I would miss sewing but there I was, admiring the little machine that could.

Part of me is anxious to know what will really happen this year. Will I get a job? Will we move to our own house? Or will it be December all of a sudden and we’re all still here, in some sort of social distancing mode still?

I had gotten pretty far with a job and I think it was probably going to be bordering on offer and negotiation phase when everything shut down. I met the team the day before they all began working from home, and shortly thereafter I got the email to say their hiring is now on hold. Their business is dealing with a lot of small businesses who are going to be hardest hit, so I don’t know if it’ll pick back up again in the short term.

Does anyone know when 2020 will resume?

Read the rest of Thoughts during a pandemic 2 on mango on an apple. © mangoonanapple.com 2009 - 2011

…Think of all the people who contract this virus and have to die alone. The symptoms already sound crazy and on top of that, you’re left alone in an isolated room with doctors and nurses run off their feet, covered from head-to-toe not able to really comfort you? That makes me so sad.

…I have renamed my children Horrible Human #1 and Horrible Human #2 in my head. They’re difficult to be around, 24/7, with no break. Alex had just gotten into a habit of taking them out on his own for a few hours on the weekends and here we are. Maybe this is the universe’s way of telling me that I would actually really suck as a SAHM. Now, about that job…

…What a great time for me to have given notice, on my maternity leave, so I’m officially completely unemployed with the world heading into an unprecedented recession. Had I known this catastrophe was about to happen, would I have…? Probably yes, still, but the should’ve-would’ve-could’ve rhetoric is strong.

…What else can I buy? I’ve now scoured Amazon, Indigo, Gap/Old Navy, wine stores, baking stores, independent yarn dyers, chocolates…I must be missing something.

…But I can’t really buy clothes or anything to wear, for me, because where am I going? Plus, see above, I don’t even have a job so I have no real reason to buy anything new or fancy.

…Speaking of fancy, how about that car? That 0% financing for 60 months deal looked great when we drove by a couple of weeks ago but is it responsible to go to a car dealership these days? Are they even open? How do you practise social distancing and buy a car? Are they an essential service?

…Should I make a run for it to Taiwan? Sounds like they got it under control and I’d still be able to go out, eat good food – okay, it’s starting to sound a little too convincing, except for the whole having-to-be-in-an-airplane-for-12-hours part.

…I could offer to cook more

…or not

…While everyone is working through Netflix, Hulu, and Disney+ I haven’t watched anything. What have I been doing? The two hours I get after the kids go to sleep fly by when I’m reading all the Coronavirus news, send memes, and generally sift through a bunch of numbers that probably don’t mean anything in the long run. Maybe I should stop.

…Oh yeah, I’m supposed to make some masks this weekend with some of the fabric scraps, let’s see how that goes, I think I will need wine.

…Will we be able to access berries and fresh produce as the weather gets nicer? How will berry picking work? I moved back to Canada for berry picking. I need answers.

…I need to sleep. Why won’t the kids sleep through the night. They hate me.

…I say I won’t make pancakes anymore but then the request comes and I make them and then nobody eats them and I am the fool. UGH. And now we’re out of buttermilk again and damnit I have to go to the grocery store again? Every time after I come home I feel like I must have the ‘rona.

…Even though library books have been extended to at least April 30th and I have two on my bedside table have I read them? NO. WHAT AM I DOING WITH MY TIME?

…And the knitting!

…Just, what is happening to my supposed “more time” with this quarantine? Is that not a thing when you have children? Especially children under the age of 3? Why didn’t anyone warn me about having children? Do I need children? Is it too late? It’s too late? What?

…I need to sleep more.

Read the rest of Thoughts during a pandemic on mango on an apple. © mangoonanapple.com 2009 - 2011

Hello, how are you doing in your isolation bubble?

For me, it doesn’t feel like too much has changed. That’s not to say I’m not quietly clawing at the windows and doors when no one is looking. It’s just that, I’m normally at home most of the day with the kids anyway, and the kids are too young to really notice a marked difference in their days. Alex procured a used slide for Ellie just before the world shut down, and that’s providing some “physical activity” daily. The weather has been okay and with daylight savings, we’re able to do a walk in the trail after lunch on sunny days, plus some meandering around the townhouse complex in the late afternoon.

However, I worry that when we do start going out again, they might become feral beasts in their carseats (what is this restraint system I must now sit in?) and crazy people in open spaces where they have to socialize around others (would we dare eat in a restaurant ever again?). I worry that Anna might forget her carseat is likely stuffed with a powerful sleeping aid and she must always fall asleep soundly as soon as she settles in. (Seriously, the Clek Foonf = worth the money for the quiet naps.) I worry they might run up to toys at Indigo and start crying, them being young things that don’t know how to process their feelings of delight. They will also probably realize that grocery shopping and sitting in shopping carts was the hole that was always missing in their lives for the past x weeks/months. Who knows. Perhaps Ellie forgets that Mom always gets a Starbucks and that means she can have those pink sprinkle cake pops because I really don’t enjoy finishing them, and that would be an upside.

We’ve been doing some baking, too. Nothing fancy, but just because, you know, there’s a guy upstairs “working” who can step in and help out if I want to make something. Since he benefits from whatever comes out of the oven, it’s pretty easy to convince him. We’ve gone through some chocolate chip cookies, regular pancake mornings, shortbread with sprinkles, lemon blueberry muffins, and I was starting to feel a little uninspired. (Also, eggs and flour are the next items to become scarce, following in the steps of…toilet paper?) I had just typed a message to a friend proclaiming that I’m all baked out and lack inspiration when this little idea started festering in my head. Something with fruit so it’s got some tartness to it. Something with a crisp topping that has oats and brown sugar – staple comfort foods. Something that can join us at the breakfast table without too much controversy. Oh, and preferably doesn’t use 4 eggs (brownies, I’m looking at you).

So I turned to my trusty source Smitten Kitchen and browsed through her choices before cobbling together the below:

• 25g toasted pecans, cooled and chopped finely
• 85g melted butter
• 95g flour
• 95g brown sugar
• 80g oats (rolled/regular is better, but I only had large flake and it worked out okay)
• 280g raspberries and/or blueberries (I used a small container of fresh raspberries plus frozen wild blueberries to get to the total weight)
• 15g fresh lemon juice
• 20g white sugar
• 7g tapioca starch (if you don’t have it, cornstarch should be fine)

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit
2. Mix together the fruit, lemon juice, white sugar, and tapioca starch and set aside
3. Mix together melted butter, flour, brown sugar, oats and chopped pecans. Set aside about 3/4 cup of this mixture, and dump the rest into a 8×8 square pan lined with parchment
4. Press the crumble mix firmly into the pan, using a flat-bottomed glass or something similar to really pack it in
5. Arrange the fruit on top, using up all the liquid too
6. Scatter the remaining crumble topping loosely on top of the fruit – it should just about cover everything
7. Bake for 45 minutes, or just until topping is turning light brown and the fruits are bubbling
8. Cool in pan on a cooling rack until warm enough to handle, and then remove from the pan to chill at room temperature or in the fridge

Due to a proper pressing down on the base before baking, the bars baked up like a shortbread cookie on the bottom. The top remained crumbly, and the fruit all melted into jammy pockets nicely. I keep the bars in the fridge, and eat them slightly cold so that the base remains firmer. I can imagine putting different fruits on top as more produce becomes available with the warmer weather – strawberries, blackberries, peaches, nectarines, rhubarb, etc. should all work well! I’ll be revisiting this recipe for sure because it’s so simple (and you can omit the pecans if you want to keep it really simple) yet knocks up a lovely breakfast or tea time treat!

Read the rest of Raspberry crisp bars on mango on an apple. © mangoonanapple.com 2009 - 2011

If you are a Friends fan, you know that Monica needed the Nestle Tollhouse chocolate chip cookie recipe in order to feel like she’s ready to be a mom. Well, meet my version of the same story – the perfect chocolate cupcake recipe. I’ve finally found it, and it’s everything that a cupcake should be, and now I’m qualified to host kids parties and contribute to bake sales.

A good cupcake shouldn’t be too dry (often the problem with previous iterations) or too dense (another problem from converting some of my favourite recipes). It should carry enough flavour on its own, but also serve as a great vehicle for icing and sprinkles and all that it needs to hold on top. With this recipe, I’m now pretty satisfied with the chocolate version. I’ll now be in search of a perfect vanilla version and let you know when I’ve found that one! Oh, and this recipe has been scaled down to make just seven cupcakes – perfect for a little weekend (or weekday!) treat without taking forever. And, the cake recipe doesn’t require any fancy appliances, just a couple of bowls and a whisk.

Small-batch chocolate cupcakes
Recipe adapted from Sally’s Baking Addiction

• 47.5g all purpose flour
• 22.5g natural cocoa powder
• 2g baking powder
• 1g baking soda
• 1 egg
• 2.5g salt
• 50g white sugar
• 50g brown sugar
• 40mL oil
• dash vanilla
• 60mL buttermilk
• (optional – a handful of chocolate chips to add into the batter just before dividing into the baking cups)

1. Add flour, sifted cocoa powder, baking soda and baking powder in a small bowl and whisk to mix
2. Whisk egg, salt, sugars, vanilla and oil in a separate bowl
3. Add the two parts together, then the buttermilk, and whisk until smooth. If using the chocolate chips, add them in now.
4. Fill cupcake moulds half full. Bake for about 15-20 minutes at 350 degrees Fahrenheit until the surface springs back to the touch.

Cream cheese icing just enough for 7 cupcakes
(This is enough to smear onto the cupcakes. If you want to pipe anything fancier, you’ll probably need double the recipe.)

1. In a mixer, cream together 30g butter and 60g cream cheese at room temperature until well mixed and soft. Add in a small pinch of salt.
2. Add in 90g icing sugar and continue mixing until smooth. You may want to add 1 tsp of milk or lemon juice if it’s too stiff (and for flavour) but I found it was ok without.

Read the rest of Small-batch chocolate cupcakes on mango on an apple. © mangoonanapple.com 2009 - 2011

So here I am, at the beginning of 2020, with another resolutions list that includes blogging. Except this time, I don’t have a full time job – oh wait, I do, the customers are more demanding and I don’t get paid anymore. I’m on maternity leave with two kids under three.

I thought about posting a picture of my resolutions that I scribbled on a piece of paper while Ellie was drawing beside me, but I just read it again and a) I see that maybe the list has too many items that have to do with kids (ugh, who have I become) and b) I’ve had to update my travel ambitions twice now, so that’s still a work in progress I can’t quite share.

What I can share, though, is that so far 2020 has been to a pretty good start. Even though day-to-day, it feels like I’m deep in the trenches repeating myself over and over again, in a louder-than-I’d-like voice, about what to touch, what not to touch, who not to hit, what not to eat, and why dinner/lunch/breakfast is good for you. By 8pm daily I generally do not wish to speak to humans again. I didn’t think you could be exhausted from talking but, here I am. Overall, the first month of 2020 has been quite aligned with what I want to accomplish this year (a looser interpretation of the lofty “resolutions” one might’ve made 5 years ago):

• I hope to read 18 books this year and I read 2 in January. I’ve also updated my profile on GoodReads to keep myself organised
• I’m back at it with a lot more knitting, trying to get through my magnificent yarn stash, so I’ve organised my knitting queue for 2020, as well as updated my completed projects, on Ravelry. That queue is a constant moving target, as I’m not speedy with my knitting and I keep getting distracted by pretty patterns and yarns everywhere I look
• I’m exercising again! It’s been THREE YEARS since I did any form of exercise and I’ve now signed up for two days a week in a “mom and baby” fitness class. A class setting is definitely easier to ensure I actually get my act together and out the door, and I’ve even had a chance to use the childminding service for Ellie while Anna and I are in class. Gotta love community programmes – the whole set of classes is $60(ish) for 10 sessions, and the childminding is $3.75 each time we go. Finally, I get to see my tax dollars at work
• I’m trying to upcycle / recycle / reuse as much as possible, especially with kids stuff, and I’ve had pretty decent luck twice now on Craigslist. Technically the first purchase was done in 2019, but I got Ellie’s Christmas gift – a little play tent shaped like a vintage VW camper van – for $25 and it’s been the best $25 we’ve spent. She plays in it everyday for hours. We also got a hiking backpack / child carrier secondhand, and I hope to use it as soon as the weather gets nicer!
• On the topic of travel – tbc – but we’re hoping to hit up as many friends and family as possible around the Northern Hemisphere now that we’re back up here

So that’s my quick update of where things are at…and with some careful planning, I shall be back more regularly to keep track of what I’m up to. I miss having a blog to document the little things happening in life.

Read the rest of Here I am! on mango on an apple. © mangoonanapple.com 2009 - 2011

Mulled wine & Christmas cookies

Alex and I became positively addicted to mulled wine in 2011 when we went to the German Christmas markets in Stuttgart, Nuremberg, and Munich for the first time. In the freezing weather, a hot mug of mulled wine was just the trick to stay warm. After a couple of markets, we also realised we didn’t have to return the mugs to get our deposit back – we could keep these cute little mugs as souvenirs! Every market had its own mug with a unique design, and the year and place inscribed.

Since then, every year I’ve been making my own mulled wine in December and putting them in these mugs. Last year we also made a trip to Denmark to check out the Christmas scene there…and decided that we liked the German version of mulled wine so much better. So this year we’re headed back to Germany soon, for another round of markets and gluhwein before Christmas! However, since it’s already getting cold and dark in London, I’ve been dying to make some mulled wine at home anyway. This weekend was the perfect time. We spent Sunday baking up Christmas cookies, drinking mulled wine, and decorating our little Christmas tree in front of our (real!) fireplace. The cookies are mainly going to work with me tomorrow, as an office-warming present…what’s left of them anyway!

And because I cannot stop raving about this lovely winter drink, here’s my recipe for mulled wine (adapted from the Jamie Oliver magazine from November 2012).

Mulled wine – serves 2-3; double the recipe if you’ve got company!

• 50 mL orange juice
• 50g brown sugar
• Quarter of an orange
• 2 cloves
• Half a star anise
• A small cinnamon stick
• Half a vanilla pod
• 1/2 bottle of red wine – not too expensive, but drinkable red wine!
• 1 tbsp of port, spiced rum, or something else spiced/flavoured. I typically use an apple-infused vodka that I made in the autumn when apples were everywhere in my kitchen

1. Warm up the orange juice and sugar in a heavy bottomed pot until sugar dissolves
2. Put the cloves in the orange, and put orange, star anise, cinnamon, and vanilla into the orange juice mixture to infuse. You can do this step a day in advance if you’re planning to serve this drink at a party
3. Add in the wine and port/rum, and bring to just under a simmer. The drink should be served piping hot, but don’t boil the alcohol!
4. Garnish the mugs with cinnamon sticks and orange slices as you see fit. Enjoy!

If I’m really on top of things this December, maybe I’ll get around to sharing this recipe too…

Read the rest of Mulled wine on mango on an apple.
© mangoonanapple.com 2009 - 2011

Udaipur, India

That pesky May update…

I’m very conscious of the fact that the month is more than half over, and I haven’t updated anything on this blog. I did post a recipe for my coconut lemongrass tea cake earlier this month. The post may have gone un-noticed, but definitely check it out when you’ve got a minute because it’s the best afternoon indulgence I’ve made in recent days.

So, what’s new in May?

Our lives have been rather consumed with a multitude of things life- and work-related. We’ve spent every Saturday (and sometimes Sunday) since before Easter trying to find a new place to live. Our lease expires in July at a very inconvenient time, so we thought we’d get be on top of things and start looking early. So far, I’m just bitter that our weekends have been consumed with no end result! Some of the areas have just ended up being a lot more expensive than we’re willing to pay for, and some of the homes have been left to shambles with no house pride whatsoever that I don’t even want to bother. Properties also come and go very quickly, and extremely competitively. (We actually queued outside with 18(!) other couples/people waiting to view a flat one weekend.) So it’s been anxiety-inducing with no real results.

Another funny thing about London is just how big it is, and how many “pockets” there could be within London itself. It takes me about 45 minutes to get to work. We live in Zone 2, considered quite central London, and I work right in the heart of Soho. Yet because of how massive this city is, my commute takes me 45 minutes. However, if I lived out in Zone 4 or 5 near a National Rail train (how suburban), I could have a shorter commute due to the fast trains. It’s just bizarre. Don’t worry, not compromising to move out to the shires yet, but we’re definitely in the middle of the classic dilemma of having too many choices for where we could live.

Work has also gotten really busy for both me and Alex. I am really loving my job and all that I do daily – no complaints there – but I am also finding myself rushing out the door in the mornings and stumbling home late at night. I can definitely be Spanish these days, if we were to purely judge me by the time I eat dinner every night. (And those who know me know that I enjoy my dinners at 6pm on the dot.) Haven’t gotten back into exercising or running, but I have a couple of runs coming up in June and July, so all I’ve been doing is fretting about the lack of running everyday while not having time to do it at all.

Another thing that’s totally new in May is that we’ve been following the paleo diet for a few weeks now since late April. At first I thought it was going to be hard and I wouldn’t really like it. Now I am going to sound like a cliché when I say that I actually don’t miss bread and I feel great. It’s very unexpected, but now even when I’m really hungry, I don’t crave bread or noodles or anything like that. I might think about getting pizza once in a while, but when it comes to actually committing myself to eating something that has a lot of carbs, I find myself turning away from that option. I haven’t been able to resist a bite of cake or brownie once in a while, but overall I have changed my palette. I’ve also noticed my body slimming down from this, which is totally unexpected. Initially I wanted to try paleo because I’ve heard great things about how much more energetic people feel when they’re eating paleo, and for a while there in late April I was really living a blurry dream from day to night, so I thought I’d give it a try while cleaning up my eating habits. I never thought that I would actually notice a difference in how my clothes fit. Weird, but definitely a welcome side effect!

So that’s why the baking has slowed down a bit, too. I’m dreaming up my birthday cake for the end of the month, though, so stay tuned on that one!

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Over Easter long weekend, Alex and I took a day out to the sort-of suburbs of Richmond, in Southwest London, for a stroll along the Thames. We came across Petersham Nurseries, a gardening centre with a Michelin-starred restaurant, and a little café for those of us a little less inclined to dine constantly at Michelin-starred establishments. Inside the café, we were first faced with a huge selection of cakes before getting to the lunch mains – just my type of place! There were some fun flavours like chocolate pear, but the most unique of them all caught my eye – coconut lemongrass. It looked like a dense cake with big crumbs, not something I typically go for, but the flavouring sounded so different that we just had to have a slice. Thank goodness, because not only could I not forget about this lovely cake after we ate it, but I also went on during the week to re-invent it in my kitchen so now you can try it at home too!

The cake has a rustic quality to it – big crumbs, no-fuss decoration (just a light dusting of icing sugar will do), and seriously good with a cup of tea or coffee in the afternoon. Also, it takes me about 30 minutes to throw everything together and pop it into the oven. I’d know, because I made the recipe twice in a week! Taste-wise, it is remarkably light and coconut-y. Although there’s coconut milk, the cake isn’t actually creamy or rich like an indulgent dessert might be. The little slices you cut off to accompany your tea might go quicker than you expect! Therefore, I’ve doubled the recipe here to make a bigger cake – always the best solution to the over-eating problem.

Ingredients

• 160g butter
• 150g white sugar
• 150g brown sugar
• 4 eggs
• 2 stalks of lemon grass, chopped into 2″ sections
• 200g coconut milk
• vanilla (optional)
• grated zest from 1 lime (optional)
• 250g plain flour
• 50g polenta (cornmeal)
• 6g baking powder
• 50g shredded coconuts (a finer shred is probably better, and sweetened makes it a bit nicer to taste)

1. Infuse the coconut milk by warming it up in a small pot with the chopped lemongrass segments. Bring to just under a boil, and turn off the heat. Keep covered and let steep for about 30 minutes
2. Butter and flour an 8″ square pan or a 9″ round pan, lining the bottom with parchment paper. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
3. With the paddle attachment in an electric mixer, cream butter until softened
4. Add in sugars, and beat well until combined
5. Add in eggs, beating until well emulsified. If using, add in 1 tsp vanilla extract or a small tip-of-the-knife dot of vanilla paste
6. Add in the dry ingredients. If using, add in the lime zest as well. The mixture will be very dry, so you can start adding in a splash of coconut milk at a time, taking care to remove the lemongrass stalks first.
7. Once all the liquid has been added, beat well for 10-15 seconds until everything is well mixed. Do not overmix
8. Scrape batter into prepared pan, bake until golden on top, and the cake is springy (about 30 minutes)
9. Let cool in pan for a few minutes before taking out of pan, removing parchment paper, and cooling on a rack.
10. Lightly dust with icing sugar just before serving with a large cup of tea!

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