Rice & Curry

Last night I had the BEST rice and curry ever.  Hats off to mum (its kind of cheating as were Asian and always have rice and  curry!). But last night's food was really good. The rice was soft and the curry had a nice texture. Still sticking to healthy eating plan. Haven't eaten a crisp since last year!

Manga Queen

Pandora

Food - one of man's greatest inventions. I love food, can't get enough of it (yet my mum still say I'm underfed!). 
I especially love deserts, and there's no place for deserts like Pandora. Pandora is in china town, and serve loads of great deserts. 
You can have Italian gelato (Ice cream) and Japanese crepes, or both together! 
They have many types of gelato, including Rum and Raisin, Green Tea, and Open Sesame. 
You can even see them make the crepes in the shop window. They can then be filled with a mixture of fresh fruit, whipped cream and even gelato. You can even make your own combo's, but if you can't make a decision you can try some of their suggestions.
The crepes are quite cleverly shaped into cones with a cardboard holder, but are quite messy to eat on the move!
The staff don't speak English very well, but it's easy to order. 
Pandora is a great desert place and in china town too! I urge you to go!
Manga Queen

Caramel Apples (Great for Halloween)

So its nearly Halloween, and we need great treats to give to the neighbours! Here are some mouth-watering apples that'll make your day!

Ingredients

1 1-pound box dark brown sugar

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature

1 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk

2/3 cup dark corn syrup

1/3 cup pure maple syrup

1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 teaspoon robust-flavored (dark) molasses

1/4 teaspoon salt

12 sturdy lollipop sticks or chopsticks

12 medium apples

Assorted decorations (such as chopped nuts, chopped raisins, mini M&M's and candy sprinkles)

Method

1 Combine sugar, butter, condensed milk, corn syrup, maple syrup, vanilla, molasses and salt in a thick-bottomed 2 1/2 or 3 quart saucepan. Stir with a wooden spoon on medium-low heat until all the sugar dissolves. There should be no grittiness (sugar crystals) when you test by rubbing a little of the caramel between your fingers. Brush down the sides of the pan with a wet pastry brush to dissolve any sugar crystals that might form on the pan sides.

2 Cook caramel at a rolling boil until it reaches 236°F, stirring constantly and slowly with a wooden spatula. Continue to occasionally brush the sides down with a pastry brush. Carefully pour caramel into a metal bowl. Cool until the temperature lowers to 200°F, at which point you are ready to dip the apples.

3 While the caramel is cooking/cooling, prepare a large baking sheet, covering it with buttered aluminium foil. Insert a chopstick or sturdy lollipop stick into each apple, about 2-inches, top down, into the apple core.

4 When the caramel has cooled enough for dipping, dip the apples in, one by one, by holding on to the stick, and vertically lowering the apple into the caramel, submerging all but the very top of the apple. Pull the apple up from the caramel and let the excess caramel drip off from the bottom back into the pan. Then place on the prepared foil. The caramel will pool a little at the bottom of each apple. Place into the refrigerator to chill for at least 15 minutes.

5 Once the caramel has chilled a bit, remove from the refrigerator and use your fingers to press the caramel that has dripped to the bottom of the apples, back on to the apples. Then take whatever coatings you want and press them into the apples for decoration. Return to the refrigerator to chill for at least one hour.

Mmm, Caramel Apples!!! Sweet & sticky ...

Butterscotch Pudding

On my very wierd and unique blog, I am going to start to to blog recipes! Only the best will do (so it will mainly be desert!).

Ingredients
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 1/2 cups dark brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 1/4 cup heavy whipping cream
3/4 cup whole milk
3 egg yolks
1 1/2 tablespoons vanilla extract
Method
1 Preheat oven to 325°F and set a kettle of water to boil. Set four ramekins or oven-safe bowls out and a large baking dish. In a saucepan melt the butter. Once melted add the brown sugar and salt, stir until well combined. Add the cream and milk to the sugar mixture. Heat until steamy and tiny, pinprick-sized bubbles begin to show around the side of the pot and the ingredients are combined (about 170°F to 180°F). You do not want it to boil or even simmer as this will cause scalding or curdling of the milk. Remove from heat immediately.

2 Slowly, in a thin stream, pour the heated sugar-dairy
mixture into the egg yolks, whisking constantly so that
the egg yolks are tempered by the warm mixture,
but not cooked by it. Stir in the vanilla extract.
Pour through a fine mesh sieve to catch any
cooked bits of egg.

3 Ladle the mixture evenly into the ramekins. Place ramekins in a heavy bottomed pan and pour the hot water into the pan until the water rises halfway up the sides of the ramekins. Lightly tent the entire pan (not each individual ramekin) with some vented foil. The foil can simply be crimped on two opposite sides, it shouldn't be airtight. Bake for 45-50 minutes. Be sure to rotate the pan half way through cooking. If you shake them they will have a Jell-O-like wobble. It should not ripple or move like a liquid when you shake it. Don't worry as they will set up after they cool. Chill in the fridge for a few hours before serving.

Hope you enjoy it ( I certainly did!)