When you enter a bakery, do you take a close look at the different shapes and sizes of each bread? Or do you simply look at the descriptions? For me, I always buy the bread that looks prettiest. I don’t really care much about the filling, the beauty of the bread already win me over.

So I decided to challenge myself to do some bread again. Nono, THESE ARE NOT REAL BREAD. They are made of clay, and I didn’t bake them. I merely use my hands to colour them. If you think that they are real, it means I have succeeded lah. If you can see that they are fake, means I have to try harder next time! HAHA

Two years ago, I was crazy about making these food miniatures (read about my previous works here). But I stopped after a while because I was too tight up with work and have no time to play with it. And now, I decided to go back to it again! It actually feels very good to be kneading clay. Believe it anot, it does help me relieve some stress. And I feel a sense of achievement when my food miniature looks like REAL FOOD!

Actually, the most difficult one is to make the leaves. I cannot get it right 2 years ago, and I still cannot get it right now. It is so difficult to get the shape right. And the challenge is to make duplicates of the same bread. Because it doesn’t look very nice to just have one bread per design, the more the merrier. So one of my baguette looks real, and another one too small, another one has too many lines. AIYO!

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Ok lah, anyway this is my latest miss tam chiak’s bakery! Hope you like it, thank you for reading! Next week, I am going to blog about another clay art I made! Stay tune!

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I don’t usually post failures of my cakes, but I think this is an exception. I spent one of the Friday night making Steamed Egg Cake (鸡蛋糕) with my Grandpa.

This is something close to my heart as my late Grandma always make it for the family especially during festive season. After she left, nobody makes this at home anymore. And tonight, I picked up the courage to do this for the first time. It looks simple, but I guess the simplest things require the toughest skills.

When my Grandma is still around, she will always take a big wire mesh skimmer to beat the eggs. The process is very long. As a kid, sometimes I will help beat the eggs but after 3 minutes, I will complain hand pain lah, very tired lah etc etc. But I like to stand beside Grandma and see her beat the eggs.

When she finally let the batter to steam, we will be waiting for it to be ready, hoping it will “huat” (Chinese prefer to have this cake smile broadly as this the emblem of ” Bringing good fortune and usually Chinese like to present this cake for praying). After it is done, aunty and I will use a flower decorating tool, dip abit of red colouring and decorate our cake! Photo taken while we are celebrating one of the last Mother’s Day with Grandma. She left when I was 16.

Thanks to Little Teochew for sharing the Ji Dan Gao recipe, Grandpa and I had a great time recreating it!

Ingredients:
- 220g eggs excluding weight of shells (about 4 large eggs)
- 210g caster sugar
- 230g cake flour or top flour (sifted 2 or 3 times)
- 6 tbsp F&N Orange (or any other soda)

Recipe:
1. Whisk the eggs till frothy, then start adding sugar a little by little, to ensure it is well-incorporated. Continue beating until the batter becomes very pale, thick and creamy. This takes time, and there is no shortcut. Meanwhile, heat up your wok, pot or steamer until you get a gentle boil. Do make sure it is large enough to fit the cake tin and has ample space for the batter to rise and the steam to circulate.

2. Fold in the flour in thirds, alternating with the soda, and ending with flour. Once there are no streaks of flour, stop.

3. To steam, either pour the mixture into a bamboo steamer lined with greaseproof paper or use a 6 or 7-inch lined baking tin. Pop it into the wok, pot or steamer – then cover – and steam on high for 30mins.

4. Once done, place the cake on a rack and allow to cool before slicing.

I didn’t succeed, because my cake didn’t huat, but the taste resembles what I had during my childhood days. And I guess my steamer is probably the cause because the height of the cover is very low and it almost touches my cake. In any way, the family is very pleased with to see this cake appearing on table again and it was gone less than a day! I will try it again!

Grandma, I miss you…

‘Many Stories… One Singapore’ – that’s the theme for this year’s National Day Parade as the nation celebrates its 48th birthday. All thanks to the aunty who is performing for People’s Association, I am very honoured and happy to attend this year’s NDP preview again!

Together with my Grandpa and Aunty, we went early to grab a good seat. The weather was super hot lah but our spirits were high!

Although there are different themes for each year’s parade, some segments still remain. For one, it is the RED LIONS where we go whooooooooooo and “YAY” when they land safely to a relieved ovation.

Of course it wouldn’t be much of a parade without a little showing off from the military. Together with a colourful parade made up 31 contingents from the military, uniformed groups, and social organisations, this display of strength and unity never fails to make us feel proud to be Singaporean. I always feel strongly about this because I used to be from Girl Guides!

And when the helicopter with our Singapore flag flew past, we sang our Majulah Singapura loud and clear, feeling proud to be a Singaporean!

LET THE SHOW BEGINS! This year, the show segment of NDP 2013 will be presented in the format of a variety show, a first of its kind amongst previous NDPs.

Directed by writer-performer Selena Tan, the show shares Singaporean stories in nine conceptual parts: Play, Build, Reinvent, Express, Represent, Aspire, Embrace, Love, and Party. It aims to arouse feelings of excitement, pride, and nostalgia, so that everyone young and old can get in on the action.

And even our Merlion is making a guest appearance. I guess he swam from Fullerton all the way here! Haha!

Last but not least, here’s the much anticipated fireworks display, filling the skies with deafening explosions as the parade closes off with songs we all love to sing along to. There are always complaints about every year’s NDP theme song and this year is not an exception. Although this song is quite catchy but I still prefer the classic ones that can better capture our heart to make us feel proud to be a Singaporean.

Which is your favourite NDP theme song? I think many of us will remember our homegrown artiste Kit Chan, who lent her vocals to the song Home, which debuted in 1998. But I also love Where I Belong, sang by Tanya Chua in 2001 and We Will Get There, sang by Stephanie Sun in 2002.

I love watching NDP every year as it always evoke pride and nostalgia being a Singaporean. I thank the country for being such a green and lovely city, for being a safe country to live in and for all the good food it has! I am sure being a Singaporean, we have so many stories to tell and these stories define who we are as an individual and collectively as a nation. And so, it is through the remembering and sharing of these stories that make us who we are and how we identify ourselves as Singaporeans.

Do you have any memories to share? The Singapore Memory Project (SMP) is a nationwide movement which aims to capture and document precious memories related to Singapore. The project archives memories from Singaporeans to ensure that it lives on for future generations as part of the Singapore Story.

There is a SG Memory Bank on FaceBook where you can easily deposit your photo collection using pictures from Desktop, FaceBook itself or Instagram. I am submitting these NDP photos and photos of the previous years NDP to SG Memory Bank as I feel that past experiences and memories are important to remind us of who we are, as individuals and as Singaporeans.

Visit SG Memory Bank on your smartphone or computer. Access your Facebook / Instagram accounts or upload photos from your desktop. Select photos, edit your captions and upload! The best thing is, there is a weekly lucky draw for users to win $200 vouchers who submit 30 photos or more! Do your part and submit your Memories now!

PS Cafe is not a stranger to many. Nicole and I decided to chill out and have our lunch at the Palais Renaissance outlet one Saturday afternoon. We reached the restaurant close to 2pm but there was still a queue. We got our table not long after.

This was my first time at PS. Cafe but I already had some expectations while reading about its reviews online. First and foremost, one of the must try in PS. Cafe is their Truffle Shoestring Fries ($15). They serve one of the best truffle fries in town and even though the portion of too huge for both of us to share, the truffle fries aroma lingered around and the shaved parmesan and parsley also lends to the flavour.

I was very very very very disappointed that I didn’t get to try their famous Crab Tart. I was there for their crab tart and unfortunately, it was sold out for that day. It felt like my lunch wasn’t complete. HAIZ.

To perk myself up a little, I ordered their PS. Big Bacon & Eggs ($24) which consists of 2 eggs (poached, fried, scrambled, egg white scrambled or omelette – additional $5) served with herbed toast, crisped bacon, oven dried tomato, rocket pesto roasted mushrooms and your choice of sausage: beef sausage / chorizo (additional $3). All the usual items you will get from brunch lah, except that there is chorizo sauages to perk up the dish. The pesto mushrooms were flavourful and I also like the tasty roma tomatoes.

Nicole went for something more classic – Chicken in the basket ($28), which has lightly breaded chicken tenders served with house fries, veggie sticks and 2 dips.

We enjoyed our Sticky date ($14.90) with butterscotch. It was not too sweet and the sticky date pudding was served warm and accompanied by good vanilla ice-cream.

Service was mediocre. It was still crowded at 3pm on a Saturday and the staffs are very busy. It was hard to capture their attention and I expected better and more prompt service from them. Looks like I must visit them again to try my crab tart. Thanks Nicole for the treat!

PS. Cafe @ Palais Renaissance
Address: #02-09A, Palais Renaissance, 390 Orchard Road
Tel: 6887 2207

Renowned for serving Singapore’s Best-loved Penang Buffet since the early 1970s, Princess Terrace Café at Grand Copthorne King’s Hotel featuring favourites such as Penang Laksa, Prawn Noodle, Popiah, Satay, Curry Chicken, Kueh Pie Tee, Fried Kway Teow, Duck Thigh Mee Sua and a delightful selection of Nonya Kueh and silky Soya Beancurd.

Frankly, the hotel looks unassuming but their Penang buffet is not bad! And they have been serving it for the past 40 years! We went on a Thursday night and the entire buffet restaurant was full. While the selection may not be as varied as other luxury hotel, but the food here is authentic, hearty and comforting.

We began our meal proper with some hot pig stomach in pepper soup and homemade pork ball with white cabbage soup. Followed by a Penang style appetizer with tougay, cucumber slice, fried beancurd. There were also Kerabu bee hoon, Achar awak and Nasi ulam. Happy to see Nasi Ulam in the buffet because it was not easy to prepare this dish. Unfortunately, it was served as appetizer and it was cold.

The delicious Penang style rojak consists typically of cucumber, pineapple, jambu, turnip and other fruits. The prawn sauce (ha koe) is thick and the peanuts added the flavours. You can toss and mix the dressings and ingredients by yourself.

The curry chicken was balanced – there wasn’t too much coconut milk or spices. It was creamy and went well with Nasi Kunyit (yellow glutinous rice) and Roti Jela (yellow mee kia). What struck us was how ‘homely’ the curry tasted and you could tell that effort was put into making this.

The Penang Char Kway Teow had an aromatic smoky wok-fried flat rice noodles with crunchy bean sprouts, Chinese sausage, prawns and eggs in savoury black soya sauce. Don’t remember seeing cockles, yes, the noodleswere springy and every strand was coated with flavour. However, it lacks wok hei.

Live station looks abit empty but never miss out the penang laksa, hokkien mee tng, herbal soup mee sua cooked ala minute. The hokkien mee broth is prepared with stir-fried crushed prawn shells, pork bones and ground dried chilli. It gives a medium-to-light punch of flavour that does not overwhelm the palate. It is ladled over cooked noodles and bee hoon, kang kong, bean sprouts, prawns and pork rib.

The assam laksa is slightly watery for me. Nevertheless, there are generous helping of cucumber, onion and pineapple.

As their penang dishes are on rotational basis, ngor hiong was not offered on the day I went. But it is okay, nasi lemak made it up for it. Love its fried chicken wings. Their chicken satay had tender chicken skewers marinated with an oriental flair is served with a spicy peanut dip. It was slightly on the dry side.

We also marveled at the array of colourful nonya kuehs such as Apom bokwa with banana sauce, Ang ku kueh, Seri muka, Abuk abuk, Kueh dadah, Kueh lapis, Kueh bengkah, Kueh talam, Pulut ta tai, Ban chang kueh (Peanut pancake) and DIY Ice kachang. The dessert that gained nods of approval was the beancurd. It was silky smooth and you can choose to have normal sugar syrup or gula melaka. End your meal with a cup of teh tarik.

Pricing:
Weekday Lunch (Monday to Thursday): Adult S$38.80 | Child (between 5 to 12 years old) S$25.80
Weekday Dinner (Monday to Thursday): Adult S$40.80 | Child (between 5 to 12 years old) S$25.80
Weekend Buffet Lunch (Friday to Sunday & Public Holiday): Adult S$40.80 | Child S$25.80
Weekend Buffet Dinner (Friday to Sunday & Public Holiday): Adult S$43.80 | Child S$25.80

Princess Terrace
Address: 1st floor, Copthorne King’s Hotel
Tel: +65 6318 3168

Thank you Copthorne King’s Hotel, I am giving away 2 sets of dining vouchers for Penang buffet for 2 pax each, applicable for Lunch or Dinner, weekday or weekend. The voucher is valid for 6 months and not to be used during F1 period (19-22 September 2013), Christmas eve & Christmas day, New year’s eve & New Year Day. Simply answer a simple question:

Question: Which restaurant is famous for their Penang Buffet in Copthorne King’s Hotel Singapore?

Closing date: 11 August 2013 (Sunday), 23:59.

Josh introduced me to the set menus in mezza9 and I love it! Whenever we meet for lunch, you will definitely see us in Grand Hyatt.

The set lunch menu will be served from the chic show kitchens, namely Deli, Sushi-Sashimi Bar, Yakitori Grill, The Grill and The Steam Basket, which offer a wide variety of cuisines and cooking styles. There are 10 international selections for each course at lunch here. You can design your lunch exactly the way you want it. The wide array of appetizers, main courses and desserts allows you to create your own two-course or three-course set lunch – perfect for that important business luncheon or a casual gathering with friends!

I usually go for soups but this time I wanted to try something different and had Agedashi tofu. The tofu is very silky soft and it is in healthy size portion.

The restaurant is also introducing the new Fish of the Day and Roast of the Day specials, which will add an enjoyable variety to the menu, and offers a taste of the best produce the restaurant receives from the market.

Josh had mezza9 wagyu cheeseburger. You can state your preferred degree of rareness for the beef patty along with gruyere, tomato-onion confit, gherkin, lettuce, all served on a bun, and french fries as accompaniment. The juicy burger came with all the beefy goodness and sinfully good toppings, his comfort food!

Other western dishes include rotisserie chicken and shepard’s pie. Those who prefer Japanese fare can try their sakura denbu chirashi.

For Chinese food lovers like me, choose from a selection of carefully prepared dishes such as the crispy fried cod fish drizzled with szechuan sauce and served garlic-egg-fried rice. I just like the cod fish which has a crispy coating and a slightly tangy szechuan sauce.

Next time I can probably try their crispy fried kampong chicken with lemongrass, chinese wine and yellow chives.

Two-course set lunch at SGD 29 per person
Three-course set lunch at SGD 39 per person
Set lunches are only available from Monday to Saturday from 12:00 pm to 2:30 pm

mezza9
Address: 10 Scotts Road, Grand Hyatt
Tel: 6732 1234

From now to October 2013, travel back in time on a journey with Executive Chinese Chef Ku Keung as the restaurant introduced 90s culinary classics, when many Chinese nationals emigrated to Hong Kong in search of a more prosperous future. Their emigration influenced the cooking style and brought about the beginning of fusion food.

Dishes for the starter are truly classic. Grilled marinated pork shoulder with crispy beancurd and chinese pancake is flavoursome and Steamed “Pied De Cheval” Scallop has beautifully seared sides in X.O. Chilli. You are rewarded with plump and sweet scallops that are cooked just right.

One noteworthy dish is the Baked Sea Conch with Minced Chicken, scallop, onion in portugese sauce. Sea Conch is a pretty popular ingredient (along with whelk) in Hong Kong cuisine. Conch meat has a mild, sweet clam-like flavor, and it is cooked light enough not to be leathery, and the portugese sauce did a good job of rousing the appetite.

More Hong Kong classic fare followed, such as stir-fried premium bird nest omelette accompanied with double boiled superior lobster broth with spring onion pancake on the side. Replacing shark’s fins with bird nest, you would feel the crunch of the bird nest. As for the lobster broth, nothing much to shout about.

Braised premium asutralia abalone with traditional brown sauce – the abalone alone makes it worth the money. But what is interesting is the pomelo peel which is also known as “yau pei.” The pomelo peels are braised for hours to soften them. It has a distinctive aroma of the shrimp roe and tastes very much similar to winter melon. It gave the dish a subtle touch.

The star item is Traditional hong kong style baked salted chicken, which is buried in a pot full of coarse salt till it is cooked after a day. As the chef opened the large pot in front of us, we instantly fell in love with the golden brown crispy looking skin. The meat retains its original flavours and is firm to the bite.

Grouper is done in two ways – steamed grouper head & maw with minced garlic and suateed grouper slices with assorted mushrooms and seasonal green. The meaty fish slices tenderly meaty but both dishes were too garlicky for my liking.

“Bi Feng Tang” style deep fried spare ribs is marinated for 3 hours, steamed for 1.5 hours and then deep fried. with mid spicy sauce. The crispy garlic partnered the meat beautifully.

Double boiled hasma with fragrant almond cream in whole hawaiian papaya is fragrant and has just the right amount of richness from the almond cream, making it smooth without being heavy. Thank you Conrad for the invitation!

Golden Peony
Address: 2 Temasek Boulevard, Golden Peony Level 3
Tel: 432 7482

My soul has had enough chicken soup, now it wants cupcakes. But not all cupcakes are equal. Some melt in your mouth; others dry you out. Some fill you up; others leave you wanting more. What is it about the cupcake that has captured the hearts and stomachs of so many around the globe? Perhaps it’s the frosting, maybe its the moist spongy cake, or the entire package as a whole – sweet and confident.

With more cupcake parlours opening up in Singapore, it is obvious that Singaporeans are susceptible to the charms of sexy cupcakes. Just a month ago, Tiong Bahru welcomes a pretty cupcake parlour – Kisses bakery.

Phil, Wendy and Wanting took over a 60-year-old Chinese provision shop called “Hup Seng” when its owner retired. The cupcake parlour is now in soft pink, with a touch of old charm from the former shop’s vintage signage, old school cupboard and folded door.

Wendy and Wanting who were self taught bakers who start experimenting during their university days in Australia. Together with their classmate Phil, they set up this lovely cupcake parlour! Coincidentally, Phil happens to be my friend’s friend! I was just having lunch with Jeanne last and she was telling me that her friend Phil has set up a cupcake parlour in Tiong Bahru. I nearly got choked by my sandwich because I was going to check out the same cupcake parlour too! Such a small world yeah~

Anyway, the trio was inspired by the cupcake parlours in Melbourne, so they came up with some swiss flavour combination on top of the usual suspects. These include Rosé caramel which has a vanilla cake base with salted caramel core, rose buttercream and salted caramel buttercream.

Some unique asian flavours include the Kaya cupcake which my Grandpa loves very much. Pandan-infused coconut cake based with a kaya cream cheese frosting and kaya swirl – yummy!

Chocolate lovers can try something more unique – White chocolate raspberry cupcake with vanilla cake studded with white chocolate chip and a fresh raspberry topped with raspberry cream cheese frosting and white chocolate curls. You can expect about 10 flavours from them everyday.

If you prefer the classics, of course there is Red velvet Cupcake, Chocolate chocolate Cupcake, Salted caramel Cupcake, Mocha chocolate cupcake etc.

You can’t exactly watch your calorie when you eat a cupcake. But well, you got to find something that is worth your calorie, right?

I love their meltingly smooth and subtly flavoured buttercream, it’s not too heavy for my palette. Rose buttercream is the first cupcake I tried and that is my favourite cupcake. Their cupcake base may not be the lightest but it is good enough for me.

I am happy to know that they are sold out almost everyday, despite being a totally new kid in the neighbourhood. Many office ladies nearby will always go and grab a cupcake or two after their lunch breaks. Hence if you want to have your favourite flavour, be sure to visit them early!

Each cupcake here costs $3.50, box of 6 costs $20, box of 12 costs $39. All the cupcakes are at the same price. Pastries and other cakes are in the pipeline.

Kisses Bakery
Address: 55 Tiong Bahru Road #01-02
Tel: +65 65367470
Opening hours: Tuesdays – Sundays 11 am – 7 pm
Follow on instagram/facebook/twitter: @kissesbakerySG

HELLO EVERYONE! HAPPY NATIONAL DAY! The boy and I celebrated our 3rd anniversary last weekend at … SENTOSA! A while back, I signed up for Sentosa’s new game show called “RUN LIKE MAD” with Wee Teck, CY and Jasper and we won! So we were awarded with 2 complimentary staycation rooms at W Hotel and some dining vouchers! Thank you Sentosa for this fun game, you guys can watch the video here. Wee Teck has kindly gave me half the price, thank you very very much! Since it’s our 3rd anniversary, I decided to book a staycation at W Hotel to celebrate!

TADEH! This is our WONDERFUL ROOM in W Hotel! The most basic room but is super big and comfy! We spent like one hour taking photos of our the room!

This is the view from our hotel room. You can take a walk along Quayside Isle and explore the dining choices there. Or stay in the hotel and enjoy your meal at SKIRT.

We decided to explore the island and visited S.E.A. Aquarium.

It was our first time in the aquarium and heng we went on Friday so it was not too crowded. We saw many many different kinds of fishes, jellyfish and a huge octopus… errr it was kind of scary and I don’t think I dare to eat octopus anymore.

Then we went to Tiger Sky Tower and LUGE! I think this is probably the activity I enjoyed most because I am scared of heights, I am scared of water…. HAIZ, WHY I SO TIMID T_T

We were already hungry by then. So dinner was at Coastes. It’s not my first time at Coastes and I really enjoyed it. The previous time I had egg benedict and this time we had…

Chilli crab dip with baguette ($15) iss very flavourful. Each spoonful has very generous amount of crab meat and it is sweet and not too spicy.

Seafood platter ($42, suitable for 2) which has chilled crayfish, marinated mussels, chilli clams, fish stew, grilled tiger prawns, deep fried scallops and calamari. Yes we got a variety, but one annoying thing is flies love it too. We have to either eat faster, or keep fanning the flies away.

BbQ pork ribs (half slab $15, full $26) is served with potato wedges and salad. Succulent, smoky pork ribs are tender and finger-licking good.

Aglio Olio ($22) is cooked with tiger prawns in garlic, white wine, extra virgin olive oil, tomatoes and basil.

After dinner, we caught Song of the Sea which is a multimedia show located at Siloso Beach. There are lots of dramatic effects such as water jets, flame bursts and lasers. It costs $15 per person. Unfortunately, it started raining when the show began. So we were practically watching it in the rain lah, so water jets had no effect on us. Haha!

We took a bus back to our hotel after that because I wanted to catch the last episode of The Dream Makers 《志在四方》 that night. And since W hotel has blu-ray player, we brought Forrest Gump bluray and watch it in our comfortable bed!

We usually don’t wake up for hotel breakfast but we heard so much good review about the buffet breakfast at The Kitchen Table so we made an extra effort to wake up early just to give it a try. The concept is an interactive setting of walking through live cooking stations and tastings, and a whimsical restaurant layout that has giant tables overturned and hung from the ceiling walls.

Everything from Chinese dim sum and to cold cuts, bread, noodles, sausages, egg benedict, nasi lemak etc.

To top it all off, their beverages corner is pretty interesting.

After a heavy breakfast, we took a walk along the swimming pool and took some photos. Sorry for bombarding you with our faces for this post.

My legs look so slim so I had to post it. LOL.

Enjoyed the blue sky and scenery a while more before we packed our bags and went home reluctantly.

The boy gave me very cute Cony & Brown figurine which I love very much, while I bought him Lego! That concludes our 3rd year anniversary. Thank you for everything, baby. Since you came along, my life has changed. I have been the luckiest person in the world to be blessed with your love. Cheers to many more years to come! <3

Hope everyone has a good long weekend break! For me, I spent most of the time at home or to the gym. I signed up for a new gym in Ang Mo Kio and I wanted to make full use of it. It feels so good after exercising and definitely gives me a reason to have a good meal after that!

I was reading maameemoomoo‘s blog one Saturday morning and she was raving about this pumpkin cake. It looks pretty simple so I immediately jumped out of bed to get some pumpkins.

That’s the problem with me. I like to do impromptu baking and because I live in a small neighbourhood in Ang Mo Kio, not many ingredients are available. For example, the NTUC opposite my block doesn’t sell pumpkin so I have to walk all the way to the next street and buy it from Sheng Shiong. BUT, that Sheng Shiong only has pumpkin seeds with shells. So bobian, I bought a packet home and spent 30 mins de-shelling some of the seeds. This is an example of bad planning. LOL!

Anyway, I am very happy with this cake! Try it if you love pumpkin!

Ingredients:
225g butter
160g sugar
3 eggs
150g steamed pumpkin, mashed
300g self-raising Flour
20g corn flour
60g milk
150g pumpkin, peeled and diced
pinch of salt
pumpkin slices, for topping
pumpkin seeds, for topping

Method:
1. Preheat oven to 175ºC. Line and grease the baking pan.
2. Cream butter together with sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, and cream until light and smooth or the colour turned pale.
3. Stir in mashed pumpkin and mix until well blended.
4. Sift together flours and salt, fold into the mixture alternate with milk. Mix until well combined then stir in diced pumpkin.
5. Transfer batter in to baking pan, arrange pumpkin slices on the surface and sprinkle with pumpkin seeds.
6. Bake for 50 to 60minutes or until it is cooked. Cool on rack.

Happy Sunday everyone! The boy and I celebrated our National Day yesterday at Café Swiss in Swissotel The Stamford yesterday. Don’t say I never share ok! I downloaded the DBS Indulge app a few days ago and wanted to look for the dining deals to enjoy and celebrate our National day. And I found that they have “DINE FOR FREE” deals. So I decided to try Café Swiss.

This 1-for-1 lunch buffet promotion is available for any DBS/POSB Credit & Debit Cards. It originally costs $40++ per adult but because of the promotion, it only costs $40++ for TWO adults, which is about $24 per pax. Very good deal! Valid till end of October 2013.

We only reached there about 1.30pm after our gym, so I didn’t manage to grab perfectly plated buffet spread. But thankfully they refill quite fast. I started my lunch with some salad, cold cuts and terrines. For cold cuts they have beef pastrami, dried salami, and chorizo, and I enjoyed the sausage salad.

And of course, the boy targeted their cold seafood and sashimi immediately. They only have prawns and clams on ice, but the prawns were fresh and I enjoyed it very much. There is also a variety of sushi, marinated mini-octopus and salmon sashimi.

To be frank, Café Swiss does not have a hugeeee variety of hot dishes. But most of them were fairly decent. I managed to catch a few dishes which had just been refilled – (from left) pork schnitzel on roesti potato, pan fried dory fillet with capers, lemon and tomato brown sauce, sautéed tiger prawns and spinach with parmesan sage cream sauce, grilled chicken thigh infused with lemongrass and coconut jus.

I came over to the roast corner and wanted to grab a photo of the oven roasted ribeye. The very cooperative chef is also kind enough to pose for me! Thank you ah, LOL! The ribeye is very tender and juicy and the wine jus made it more palatable.

Just beside the roast section, there is a pasta live station where the chef will blanch and cook the pasta for you. And you can pick your own sauce – creamy or tomato sauce.

They have a wide variety of cheese – Saint maure, blue cheese, reblochon, camembert, emmentaler, appenzeller, gruyere etc etc.

I love the dessert corner most as they have some yummy desserts they have an assortment of cakes, tarts, mousse, puddings and kuehs such as Strawberry mirror cream with vanilla crust, Hazelnut mousseline choux paste, 80% chocolate ganache tart, Double chocolate brownie, Chocolate fondue, Ivory mousse with macha dacquoise and raspberry coulis verrine and chocolate fondue!

My favourite is the Strawberry mirror cream with vanilla crust. It has a shiny and smooth strawberry glaze in dome shape. I’ve never made a glossy pretty mirror for a cake before! And it is not too sweet, definitely my next baking inspiration! The chocolate fountain was also much welcomed, with fresh fruits and marshmallows at the side for dipping.

We were served coffee or tea after our lunch. They do have quite of range of tea bags by TWG. Ambience was good as we were seated along the window pane where we have had a good view on Esplanade and Suntec City. And we had a long and tranquil afternoon before going for our next appointment.

Café Swiss may not have a wide buffet spread but it is sufficient. There are definitely some hits and misses but the 1-for-1 deal makes it worth it! The staffs were friendly and attentive, coming by once in a while to ask about the food as well as refill our water.

Cafe Swiss
Address: Level 2, Swissotel The Stamford, 2 Stamford Road
Phone: 6431 6156

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From now till 31 October, enjoy 1-for-1 deals at Swissotel & Fairmont, Cedele, Pasta Mania, Singapore Marriott, The Café Cartel and more! See the list of deals here.

From now till 30 September 2013, you can also stand a chance to win an all expenses paid holiday to BKK! This 3D2N trip, sponsored by CTC Travel includes airfare and accommodation and enables me to fulfil my yearly ritual of shop, eat, massage!

DBS Indulge participating restaurant includes: Moo Bar & Grill, Conrad Centennial Singapore, Concorde Hotel Singapore, Furama City Centre, Ristorante Da Valentino, Furama Riverfront, The Cathay Restaurant, Space@My Humble House, Foodology, District 10 Fish.Chips.Burger.Bar, Woods @ Emily Hill, Brewbakers Kitchen and Bar, Swissôtel The Stamford, Traders Hotel, Gallery Hotel, Melting Pot Cafe, Brewerkz Taphouse, InterContinental Singapore, Days Hotel Singapore, Fullerton Hotel, Grand Park City Hall, Grand Park Orchard, Klapsons, The Boutique Hotel, M Hotel, Park Hotel Clarke Quay, Pasta Fresca, Ramada Singapore, Shangri-La Hotel, The Cathay Restaurant, Mad For Garlic, Hard Rock Cafe Singapore, The Cafe Cartel, Ben & Jerry’s, CA California, Big O Cafe & Restaurant, Toby’s The Dessert Asylum, Tampopo, Tampopo Grand. Read more about the deals here.

I am trying my luck by sending the above photo for this contest! Wish me luck and wish you luck! HUAT AH!

Vietnamese gastronomic heritage reflects the country’s rich history. It has evolved influences from the Chinese and French colonial rule. Owing to Vietnam’s longitudinal landscape, there are three distinct styles of food, milder in the North, spicer in the South and more intricate in the Central region where all the royal residences are located. Undeniably, there is a common theme running through the myraid of Vietnamese dishes – rice paper rolls, fresh herbs and greens and the quintessential fish sauce to give an exquisite combination of flavours and irresistible aroma. What’s more, vietnamese food is one of the healthiest cuisines in the world!

Founded in Ho Chi Minh in 2006, Wrap & Roll is an award-winning international restaurant chain, serving classic Vietnamese cuisine in a contemporary setting. Wrap & Roll now has 10 outlets and counting in Vietnam and Australia. Their popularity has been further affirmed by numerous awards like “Top 100 Vietnamese Restaurant 2012 in Vietnam” by Delicious Magazine and “Best Vietnamese restaurant chain 2010” by Vietnam Tourism Board. Late last year, it has set up its first outlet in Singapore at The Star Vista in Buona Vista.

It was started by two young entrepreneurs who fell in love with Vietnamese food after their holiday in Vietnam a few years ago. Hence they brought the brand to Singapore, gave up their full time job and manage the restaurant. Wrap & Roll in Vietnam is more pricey and the menu there is much more extensive. But in Singapore, the owners decided to give it a more casual dining concept, showcasing only the best dishes all over Vietnam. The menu here is simple and straightforward, with about 30 dishes for you to choose from.

Every dish is delicately hand-made with specially Vietnam-imported ingredients to maintain the authenticity of our dishes. Over 50% of the ingredients are imported from Vietnam. The chefs here are trained in Vietnam for a month to ensure quality control. And the chefs from Vietnam will come over to train the workers here every 6 months.

We started our dinner with a plate of Lotus shoot salad with prawns ($8.90) – a simple, yet refreshing Vietnamese salad with a big crunch. This dish is comprised of lotus roots which you can hardly find in Singapore, carrots, shrimp and keropok, dressed with fish sauce vinaigrette. So light and refreshing!

The focus for Wrap & Roll is of course their rolls lah! Fresh rice paper, vegetables and herbs form the key ingredients in most dishes, along with their variety of traditional specialty sauces. To compliment the different rolls, different sauces are created. They have more than 10 different kinds of sauces here.

I enjoyed Minced pork & mushroom in steamed rice paper rolls ($8.90). The skin is very labour intensive and it is made ala minute. It tasted similar to our local chee cheong fun, with minced pork and mushrooms. The skin is thinner and more chewy. Pairing it with northern sauce, which comes with pickles and much sweeter.

Grilled pork in steamed rice paper rolls ($7.90) is dipped in a peanut and soy bean sauce. The pork is marinated with lemongrass and grilled to perfection, giving it a nice aroma. It is wrapped with mint to give it a unique refreshing flavour.

Coming to Wrap & Roll, you definitely need to do some hand exercises with our selection of ‘Roll-It-Yourself’ dishes. Hanoi grilled pork skewers ($9.90), or called Bun Cha Hanoi, is a unique food which has a long tradition in Hanoi. Being unsophisticated yet very appetizing dish, this dish is the perfect combination of smokey grilled pork belly, springy rice noodle, fresh herbs and tangy pickles.

To best enjoy them, here’s a step-by-step:

1. Sprinkle water into the rice paper.
2. Transfer some amount of the noodles, meat and tear a few greens into the the rice paper.
3. Fold it like you are folding popiah. Or in any way just so that the ingredients don’t fall off.
4. Dip it in its homemade sauce and EAT!

Dipping the grilled meat into the sauce adds a wonderful acidity to the BBQ meat which is prepared both thinly sliced and nicely grilled. The next time I am coming back here for a meal, I will definitely order this dish again!

Another unique dish here is Banh xeo ($15.90, for 2 pax). It is savoury Vietnamese crepe with prawns, pork, beansprouts & mushrooms. The name bánh xèo translates to sizzling cake and this is because the crepes are cooked at a higher temperature and sizzle when the batter hits the pan. Cooking the crepes this way gives them a slightly crispy edge. Despite the fact that these crepes look like an omelette they are actually not made with eggs but rather a rice batter where the yellow colour comes from turmeric powder. Trust me, it is very filling for 2 pax!

We also had a taste of Saigon with crispy prawn pancakes and traditional deep fried spring rolls ($9.90). I am generally not a big fan of fried food and I find the skin for prawncake too thick.

Actually I have been to Wrap & Roll for a couple of times. The previous time I was here to try their lunch deal promotion and ordered a Grilled pork chop rice with salted egg pudding ($12.90). I love it so much and this time when I am back again, I requested to order its Grilled pork chop rice again. It’s just comfort food for me, something I wouldn’t mind eating and eating again for lunch. What is interesting is its salted egg pudding, which is made with black fungus and minced pork, which reminds me of the typical steamed egg with minced pork which my Grandpa will cook.

One new dish that Wrap & Roll has is Vietnamese Beef hotpot ($16.90). It is chicken and pork base with vinegar and lemongrass, so you get a little bit of sourish taste for the soup. There is also Seafood hotpot ($18.90) and from now till 18th Aug, you can pair it with a Saigon Export beer at only $4.90.

I don’t really have much knowledge about Vietnamese food and dining at Wrap & Roll certainly is an eye opener for me. We were treated to very unique dessert – Sweet mung bean & taro with coconut cream (hot/cold, $4.90). It looks like our local tau suan, but it tastes very different lah. The addition of coconut milk gave off a deep, sweet aroma. The texture is silky and smooth. And it’s just sweet enough without sending me into a diabetic coma.

The boy had Sweet bananas & sago in coconut milk (warm/cold, $5.90). We ended our milk with Vietnamese ice chrysanthemum tea ($3.50) which has an acquired taste. Glad to know that they are opening their second outlet in ION Orcahrd this September 2013. Seems that vietnamese food is the trend now and we see more and more vietnamese restaurants opening up in Singapore. Over the next few weeks, I will be introducing more Vietnamese restaurants to you!

The Star Vista
Address: 1 Vista Exchange Green, #B1-11
Tel: 6694 4111
Opening Hours: Mon – Thurs 11am to 10pm; Fri – Sat 11am to 10.30pm; Sun: 10am to 10pm

It was Missuschewy‘s birthday and just like last year, I decided to bake something for her. I have always been intrigued by red velvet cupcakes and more recently so when I have tasted a few red velvet cupcakes from different bakery. It is soooo classic and every other bakery has that. But I really want a good red velvet cupcake recipe and I guess I have finally found it.

You see, the boyfriend is pretty stingy when it comes to compliments. He has never given me any praises at all since I started baking. Good and bad lah. Good is because I always try to make my cakes better hoping that he will be impressed one day. Bad is I always felt demoralized and don’t feel like giving him a piece of my cake. LOL!

But but but, I really take his comments seriously when he eats my cake. During one of my previous bakes, he told me he love soft soft and not-so-buttery cakes. And I was thinking hard what to bake for missuschewy, because misterchewy is quite picky so I don’t want to be too adventurous. So here I have it – super moist, melt-in-your mouth and soft red velvet cupcake.

This red velvet cake recipe from Divas Can Cook is pretty superb. Because it is so soft and moist. I went NTUC to buy Hershey’s unsweetened cocoa, then went Coffee Bean to get a cup of Americano to add it into the batter. No it doesn’t have any coffee smell lah, don’t worry. This batter is more watery than other cupcake recipe. I freaked out initially but heng ah, it turned out well.

And the cream cheese frosting from Martha Stewart is simply great! I cut down on vanilla essence because too much of these artificial flavours will make me nauseous. The same goes for fish sauce. If you want your cake to be super red, please go ahead and add more colouring. I am happy with just a few drops. Actually, I prefer to go without the colouring.

RED VELVET CUPCAKE RECIPE
(Adapted from Divas Can Cook)

Ingredients: (makes 24)
2 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon of baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 tablespoons unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
1 teaspoon salt
11/2 cups sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
2 large eggs, room temperature
1/2 teaspoon red food color
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup buttermilk
1 teaspoons apple cidar vinegar
1/2 cup of plain hot coffee

Method:
1. Preheat oven to 170 degree celsius.
2. Whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, cocoa powder and salt. Set aside.
3. Combine the sugar and vegetable oil.
4. Mix in the eggs, buttermilk, vanilla and red food coloring until combined.
5. Stir in the coffee and white vinegar.
6. Combine the wet ingredients with the dry ingredients a little at time, mixing after each addition, just until combined.
7. Divide batter evenly among lined cups, filling each three-quarters full. Bake, rotating tins halfway through, until a cake tester inserted in centers comes out clean, about 18-20 minutes. Transfer tins to wire racks to cool completely before removing cupcakes. Cupcakes can be stored overnight at room temperature, or frozen up to 2 months, in airtight containers.
8. To finish, frost the cupcake with cream cheese frosting when the cakes have cooled completely.

*If you are baking a cake, bake for about 30 minutes.

CREAM CHEESE FROSTING
(adapted from Martha Stewart)

Ingredients:
8 ounces (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
12 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
1 pound (4 cups) confectioners’ sugar, sifted
1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Method:
Beat butter and cream cheese with a mixer on medium-high speed until fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes. Reduce speed to low. Add sugar, 1 cup at a time, and then vanilla; mix until smooth.

One advice is to please let your cupcake cool COMPLETELY before frosting it. Cannot be gan chiong please. I made another batch and my Grandpa was overly ganchiong and made me frost the cake when it was still abit warm. In the end the poor frosting just melted and it was a messy sight.

As I made 24 cupcakes, I packed 6 for Missuschewy, 6 for my facial aunty because she invited me for her BBQ on the same day and the rest is for the family. Auntie love it and she asked me to bake one more batch for her to share with her friends next week. -_-

See, all my friends are the best ambassadors! LOL!!! Ok lah, I forced them to pose this before they ate the cupcake. But misterchewy and missuschewy all said it is very nice okay! And this is the first time the boyfriend said to me:”蛋糕很好吃！” YAY!

Maybe it’s time to open a cupcake shop liao! :p

The Inspired Chef (TIC), which is launched today, is a first-of-its-kind experience of signature ice cream flavours, lovingly handcrafted with local and international quality ingredients, by locally renowned chefs – namely KK Pang (Antoinette), Willin Low (Wild Rocket), Daniel Tay (Bakerzin) and Janice Wong (2am:dessertbar).

It is an e-commerce website where you can order the ice creams online. The flavour is delicately packed into our exquisite pint boxes and delivered right to your doorstep by TIC’s very own delivery guys. It comes with their pretty TIC spoons.

The four unique flavors are: Raspberry Cheesecake Rumble / Caramel Popcorn Avalanche / Divine Chocolate Tart / Double Peanut Fudge. Thanks to the guys from TIC, I get to try 2 of the flavours!

Janice Wong, founder and owner of 2am:dessertbar and restaurant, created ‘Caramel Popcorn Avalanche’ which is a rich sea salt ice cream bathed in sweet caramelized popcorn and crunchy pecan nut bits topped with sea salt caramel swirls.

As a child, one of her favourite treats was caramel popcorn. Hence, it served as an inspiration and creates a balance between sweet and savoury through the salted ice cream and sweet caramel popcorn.

Another flavour I tried is “Double Peanut Fudge” by Willin Low, creator & founder of Wild Rocket, which is a sumptuous peanut butter ice cream infused with bits of crunchy Asian peanut candy brittle and deep dark chocolate fudge goodness! Local flavours, hawker fare and childhood treats serve as his inspiration and are reflected in every one of his creations.

‘Modern Singaporean Cuisine’ is what he calls his unique style and he has infused his signature style of pairing Asian and Western elements to create a unique flavour. Local flavours, hawker fare and childhood treats serve as his inspiration and are reflected in every one of his creations. He was inspired by one of his favourite childhood snacks, ‘gong tng’. Its crunchy texture serves as a beautiful counterpoint to the creamy peanut butter ice cream.

Other flavours include Raspberry Cheesecake Rumble by Chef Pang of Antoinette, Divine Chocolate Tart by Chef Daniel Tay.

I was busy baking my cupcakes when the guys delivered the ice cream to my house, hence you see my messy hair and oily face. Haha. They will send you an SMS in the next 24 hours informing you of your delivery time. Then all you have to do is think of the different ways you’re going to eat your ice cream. To buy your ice cream, visit http://inspiredchef.sg/.

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Thank you The Inspired Chef (TIC), I am giving away FREE ICE CREAM to 5 lucky readers! All you have to do is answer a simple question:

Closing date: 20 August (Tuesday), 5pm. A random generator will be used, everyone has an equal chance of winning. Winners will be notified by email. Good luck!

Times have changed. Almost every element in our diners’ experience depends on the quality of service. Even for the Jumbo group – which manages Chui Huay Lim Teochew Cuisine, Ng Ah Sio Bak Kut Teh, JPOT,Yoshimaru Ramen Bar and the well-known Jumbo Seafood chain – takes a jumbo-sized approach to delivering good service.

I visited the Tampines 1 outlet last weekend and was amazed at several innovations to processes and systems which JPOT implemented. At the entrance, staffs do not need to write down the names of customers and call for them when a table is ready. Just as in a bank, you go straight to a machine and press a button to get a number. The number will flash on an electronic screen when their table is ready. This is so smart!

Once our queue number appeared on the screen on the wall, we were guided to our table. We did not have to wait for service staff to serve us. We just pulled out an iPad from under the table and started ordering. It was rather easy to navigate the menu on the iPad.

When we clicked and confirmed our order, our selection was sent to the kitchen. And within minutes, the food arrived on our table. This definitely helps to save time and the staff could offer more personalized service.

How many times have you walked into a restaurant and they are writing orders down on a pen and pad of paper? Then sometimes, the food took very long to arrive, or worse, you ordered chicken rice but duck rice came?

Ordering via iPad means I don’t have to bother the service staff all the time, and keep waving at them to grab their attention to order food. Especially for steamboat, imagine, I want to order additional plate of fishballs, I have to wave and order and wait. Then I want to order a plate of cabbage, I have to repeat the process. This makes the staff very busy and my waiting time will be much longer. Plus they may get my orders wrong or miss out my orders. I can just play around with the iPad, order what I want, send my order and it will immediately to delivered to the kitchen. Aiyo, makes work easier, smarter and safer!

In the name of efficiency, Jumbo has also joined a reservation system called Chope to save time. Customers book through the system, which will send SMS reminders. This means the staff at the outlet need not call up customers to confirm reservations.

At the dining table, I was served by very polite and attentive staff who would assist me in every way they can. Look, they gave us a red cloth of cover our bags and a ziplock bag to put our mobile phones. The dining table also has pull-out arm rest, or you can place your mobile phone there.

At every table, there is a food safety reminder for you, to remind you to only use the tongs to handle uncooked food and chopsticks for cooked food. This makes dining a safer experience for customers as many do not realise that uncooked food has lots of bacteria that can cause stomach upset.

What I love most about JPOT is their DIY sauces corner where you can mix and match your own sauces for the steamboat.
The sauces are adequate and the spread included condiments like JPOT soya sauce, sha cha sauce, garlic chilli sauce, garlic oil, Chinese parley, spring onion, leek, chilli padi and sesame oil.

When we entered JPOT, we were immediately greeted by the warm aroma of the various pots stewing away at each. Part of the fun of hotpot is the interactive nature of the experience and the chance to cook the food yourself. This dining concept was conceived in 2009 and their broths take on a wide range of flavours – from mild to spicy, and are enjoyed in individual pots that make for a unique yet hygienic way to enjoy your hotpot.

At the Tampines 1 outlet, we can pick from eight choices of soup base – superior broth, Bak Kut Teh, herbal, Laksa, Silky Porridge, Tom Yam, Vegetarian, and Salted Vegetable and Duck. I had the superior broth while the boy had herbal soup.

Want to boil and cook your meat longer? Want your noodles firmer or softer? At JPOT, you’re in complete control. Each table for two is designed with two induction cooking areas, so that you can have your own hotpot if you like, while your partner has one too. There are touch-temperature controls where you can control the heat, which is safer compared to traditional steamboats heated by fire.

I managed to talk to one service staff who delivered our food. And so I asked her, “WAH! Here everything so computerised, then you all very free lor?” Her reply was, “You are wrong miss, we are busy with food preparation, serving customers and clearing plates.”

Indeed, with these new technologies, there has always been a debate about workers being displaced by machines. But, I think otherwise. Automation makes work easier and more efficient, not necessarily to replace them. And in the case of JPOT, staffs time is freed up to cover other pressing duties without sacrificing customer service, which will hence improve number of table turns and customer satisfaction.

The biggest difference between JPOT and other steamboat joints is the freshly made ingredients. You can go for all vegetarian, meat, quality meats, seafood or live seafood – it’s your choice.

Dishes we ordered include marinated pork, pork liver, pork belly, marinated beef, prawns, fish balls, enoki, Chinese cabbage and beancurd. I specially love their marinated beef because we can crack an quail egg to the meat, mix it before putting it into our steamboat. The quail egg actually makes the texture of the meat more tender and tasty.

Apart from ala carte orders, there are set lunch and dinner menus.The pricing for set lunch starts from $14.80++ per person and set dinner pricing starts from $58++ for 2 persons. High tea menu is from $9.80++ (only available on weekday from 2pm to 5pm). And, there is a self-service drinks bar which offers a free flow of your chosen drink.

With so many restaurants complaining about the shortage of manpower, JPOT’s implementation of these systems has definitely reduced the number of steps in the ordering process which in turn makes the whole restaurant more productive and offers a better customer experience. They can handle MORE orders as compared to unautomated restaurants, where workers might spend much time walking around to take orders and serve drinks, leading to long waits for customers who are now demanding faster service.

After JPOT went through this Customer-Centric Initiative with help from NTUC, customers could be seated more than 8 minutes faster, and only waited half the time to be served their food. Not only that, 9 out of 10 staffs got a 10% pay raise! I find it quite unbelievable that the union is behind these initiatives to make things better for the customer and also the staffs.

Judging by the crowds that throng at JPOT throughout the day, it certainly looks like they’ve found a winning formula (and one that you really should make a reservation for)!

JPOT
Address: 10 Tampines Central 1, Tampines 1 #03-16
Tel: 6532 3536

Located on the top floor of Hilton Singapore, il Cielo (which means “the sky”) is a stylist contemporary Italian restaurant offering handcrafted homemade food, natural and organic ingredients as well as seasonal produce from Italy.

I have been wanting to try this restaurant for the longest time and I am finally here, thanks to the invitation from Hilton Singapore! We came super early, say 6.30pm, so that it is still bright enough for us to take some photos. With a paranomic view of Ochard Road skyline, the interiors and surroundings of the poolside provide an urban resort feel. Lovely view, they opened up the windows and we are seated in a semi-alfresco setting.

Helming the kitchen is Chef Omar Bernardi who loves to use natural and organic ingredients including organic flours, seasonal vegetables and herbs, sustainable seafood sources as well as fresh and natural cuts to prepare the dishes. Dining at Il Cielo begins with homemade truffle butter with black olive breads and the original grissini.

The Burrata ($38), a fresh Italian cheese made from mozzarella filled with bufala, was served on a bed of crisp salad greens and tomatoes. It was made upon order, which the chef dipping mozzarella curd into hot water, stretching it and filling it with bufala mozzarella and fresh cream. Its delicate taste totally won us over.

A prettily presented appetiser of Capesante ($32), or scallops done four ways, comprises of scallop topped with saffron sauce and caviar, another seared with foie gras and wine reduction, and the last with pancetta and truffle. If you enjoy a variety of different flavours, you will love this.

The restaurant makes Rome style pizzas using mostly Italian produce which are baked in open fire brick oven. Bosco ($45 for whole), a crispy thin Rome-style pizza made with flour from Vesuviana, topped with porcini, home cured Italian sausage and truffle. For something more extravagant, go for their signature il Cielo pizza ($50 for whole) which is served with maine lobster and caviar. Both pizzas taste great and it was hard for me to decide which one I prefer. So we requested the kitchen to do half-half.

Along with other Rome-style pizzas is the wide range homemade pastas made from organic flours including the rare Kamut, bulkwheat and spelt. Kamut is an ancient type of grain that is believed to have originated from Eygpt. It is suitable for people with wheat intolerance, are easier to digest, though they do have gluten.

Chef’s rendition of Kamut Spaghetti ($36) is cooked with sicilian red prawn, zucchini and caviar, which still provides rich flavour. The pasta was very nicely cooked till al-dente, which has a hearty, nutty flavour, an interesting departure from the norm.

Flavours of days past are also replicated at Il Cielo as we enjoyed the aromas and flavours of Italian cuisine the way they used to be prepared before modern day kitchen aids replaced traditional cooking over wood fire.

Special wood pieces from olive and cedar trees are also used in cooking to lend smoky aroma to the dishes, recreating flavours that was lost with modernization. For instance, Whole Sea Bass Flash Roasted on Olive Wood ($75) is fast roasted in the oven for an earthy flavour. The waiter is good at de-boning the fish for us, but you still got to be really careful while eating this dish. No need to dip any sauces, just enjoy the smoky aroma on each sweet tender fish meat.

Olive crusted Colorado Rack of Lamb ($50) with truffle mustard was also tender and subtly spiced, and the rack is really one of the best parts of the lamb. I was initially worried that the olive may be slightly bitter for my liking but it wasn’t.

Desserts was Amadel Dark Chcolate Souffle served with Spicy Vanilla Ice Cream ($18) – which is a chocolate lava look-alike dessert.

All year round, il Cielo will follow the seaons of Italy featuring the best of nothern Italy during winter months and southern regions of the country during summer months. An avid advocate for natural, organic foods from sustainable sources, Chef Omar worked with Italian purveyors to supply produce from Italy, other parts of Europe, Japan, USA and New Zealand to ensure quality the Italian Way. If you ask me a dish which I remembered from Il Cielo, it is definitely the wafer-thin crispy Rome-style gourmet pizzas and Kamut Spaghetti. You can also come up to the sky bar and enjoy a drink or two while enjoying the view.

il Cielo
Address: Level 24 Hilton Singapore, 581 Orchard Road
Tel: 6730 3395
Opening hours: Lunch from Monday to Friday 12pm – 2.30pm; Dinner from Monday to Sunday 7pm – 10.30pm. Sky Bar opens from Monday to Sunday 6pm – midnight.

Happy Saturday! So I started doing my food miniature again! Last week, I blogged about my bread miniature and thank you all for your lovely comments. Today, I am showing you my SATAY MINIATURE!

Let me introduce you the “ingredients” for my satay. I think I am making chicken satay, or maybe mutton satay lah. Whatever you see above is made from clay, except for the small porcelain bowl. The purple and green strips at the corner is onion and cucumber, I haven’t cut them into small pieces yet.

Ok lah my ketupat not very nice, no leaves. And the orange strips at the bottom is NOT carrot, in case you are wondering. Those are supposed to be cut to very very small minced pieces and it is peanuts! I got so tired that I ask Grandpa to cut for me. And he was complaining cut so small for what! LOL.

The most fun part is of course making the satay, which I mixed red and white clay and put them in a stick. If you see satay carefully, you should see the fats on some of the meat. So my white clay represents the fats. And I REALLY TORCH IT! Yes I torched all the clay miniature satay to give it abit of smoky charcoal grilled feel. LOOKS LIKE IT RIGHT! I really think my satay is very nice!

My end product! Although I think I need to improve on my satay sauce and ketupat, but I think MY SATAY IS VERY CUTE! Thanks for reading.

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Alot of people ask me if I am learning food miniature making, yes I am learning miniature making. In fact, I have learnt it from two masters – one is a very knowledgable teacher called “Kin” and another is from a 60-year-old experienced ahma called “Mdm Ang”. Both are very talented and passionate about this craft, and I am learning alot from them.

One of Mdm Ang’s wishes is to publish a book on local food miniatures, so I am doing a shout out here. I don’t know how will this turn out or will it even have response. But anyway, Mdm Ang is very good in making these miniatures especially our local food such as chicken rice, satay, chap chye peng etc and even traditional kuehs. Of course publishing a book is not cheap so I am using my small effort here to call for publishers who are interested to work together to publish a book together on local food miniature. If you are keen to work together to publish a food miniature book or have contacts, please drop me an email at misstamchiak@gmail.com

Originated from Italy, Tiramisu comes from the words Tirami and Su which literally means “pick me up” or “make me happy” in Italian. As it’s name suggests, this cake would perk up even tired and weary souls. It was a day which I need a happy pill because of many deadlines which I have to meet.

Chenyze had hosted me for a Korean BBQ lunch in Central, and I asked her where would she be heading after the meal. She said she wanted to check out a tiramisu shop within the mall, so I shamelessly said I wanted to tag along. After roaming around basement 1 of Central, we finally found it – L’Atelier Tiramisu.

Opened for barely 2 months, L’Atelier Tiramisu is a new kid on the block, serving up one of the best Tiramisu in Singapore. Translated as “the Tiramisu workshop”, they have introduced four flavors, all laced with various types of liqueur: Classico, Dark Cherry, Matcha and Lychee. Opened by Judith, her husband is from France and she learnt this recipe from her husband’s family.

Tiramisu is considered a semifreddo (a dessert served cold, but not frozen). This dessert has many variations, the only constant ingredient being the mascarpone cheese. We shared Classico (slice $6.80/pc, cake $48/7 inch) which is gorgeously, luxuriously creamy. The mascarpone was smooth and light, adorned with sprinklings of cocoa powder and chocolate flakes was a delight. Pair them with moist sponge fingers soaked with coffee and pleasant liquor, it makes a wonderful eat.

All the layers work well together and each spoonful is such a delightful heavenly treat. The coffee used to make their tiramisu is from Liberty Coffee beans.

We complete our dessert with a cup of cappuccino with is also from Liberty beans! If you cannot decide which flavours to go for, there is a Sampling Set ($15).

L’Atelier Tiramisu
Address: The Central @ Clarke Quay #B1-09
(Clarke Quay MRT, Exit F)

Similar to claypot rice, stone bowl rice at Signature Stone Restaurant is not a dish for impatient or hungry diners. This new eatery along Havelock Road is serving a range of Asian and Western dishes in stone bowls.

The stone bowls are lightly oiled prior to cooking half-cooked rice over the fire. And because of the consistency of heat transfer, the charred rice can be pried from the bowl with a light tapping of the spoon. You will have to wait at least 15 minutes – it can be longer when the eatery gets busy.

As soon as the bowl hits the table, the service staff will drizzle some sweetened dark soy sauce, and helps you to fold the rice, very much like bimbibap. The bowl is heated until the rice turns golden and crispy on the bottom, and when mixed with the ingredients, it gives a well balanced flavour.

Stone Pot Chicken with Sliced Salted Fish ($7.90) has generous amount of special marinated chicken that is delightfully tender and smooth. The salted fish is small pieces and hardly noticeable. Together with the Chinese sausage, it blends in perfectly with the rest of the dish.

I would recommend the Sesame Chicken ($8), which has tender chicken pieces tossed in a sizzling stone bowl with aromatic sesame oil and lots of shredded ginger. It reminds me of a typical post natal dish, but this version is tastier than any I have tried before.

Thick and fluffy onion cheese mushroom omelette ($6) which aims to attract younger crowd.

Signature Stone Restaurant not only cook chinese dishes using stone bowl, they also have western dishes such as Garlic Herb Salmon ($12.30). Colourful presentation indeed but too much garlic which covered the sweetness of salmon. This bowl is so hot that it could preserve the heat throughout the dining experience and continue to create the rice crisp layer after layer.

Another dish I really enjoy is Herbal wine prawns ($12). The prawns are plump and meaty, swimming in the thick, flavorful herbal soup flavoured with red dates, wolfberries and cordyceps. The herbal taste may be too strong for some people, but both the prawns and the soup that are cooked in have a natural sweetness that I love.

If you love sausages, try Assorted Sausage and Wax Pork ($11.30) with 3 special grade sausage, waxed pork, salted fish, mushroom and vegetables. They also have Stone Pot Seafood ($9.80) with fresh prawns, squid, fish, crab stick, salted fish, golden mushrooms and vegetables. By the way, they don’t use MSG in their food at all.

Signature Stone Restaurant
Address : 729 Havelock Road
Tel: 6271 9918

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Thank you Signature Stone Restaurant, I am giving away $30 dining voucher to FIVE LUCKY READERS! Yes $30 dining vouchers without any minimum spending! All you have to do is to answer a simple question:

Question: Where is Signature Stone Restaurant located?

Closing date: 24 August (Saturday), 23:59. A random generator will be used, everyone has an equal chance of winning. Winners will be notified by email. Good luck!

Nestled among the row of vintage shophouses on Club Street, Noti Restaurant and Bar. The establishment is split between a bar that serves light finger food with a good selection of wine and a cosy restaurant plating up comfort food from southern Italy. The word ‘Noti’ means ‘famous’ in the Italian language and is an anagram of owner-chef Toni Rossetti’s name. Noti serves South Italian cuisine inspired by family recipes that are tweaked slightly to accommodate the Asian palate.

We celebrated Missuschewy‘s birthday at Noti. Because she is naughty. Ok lah, kidding. Because she was craving for mushroom risotto. While I was looking for a place that serves good risotto, one of the top search results was from tripadvisor and someone commented that Noti serves very good risotto, so I booked the place. I came with no expectations but ended up really loving the food and service.

The Deep Fried Risotto Balls ($9) are literally risotto rice balls filled with ham and fresh mozzarella cheese that are coated with a layer of fried bread crumbs. This gave the dish more texture and made it fun to eat. The spicy arrabbiata sauce add some kick to it.

Tasty & spicy calamri fritti served with lemon & garlic mayo ($9)

Although I rarely like risotto, I enjoyed Missuschewy’s Mixed mushroom risotto with walnut and white truffle oil ($28). It has a good bite, indicating it was not overcooked. The truffle oil gave it a subtle scent of mushrooms.

The kitchen missed out my boy’s Home made gnocchi with tiger prawns and pesto “salentino” ($26) so it took a little while longer for it to arrive. The gnocchi has a heartwarming homeliness of traditional cooking and the pesto sauce blended very well in a combination that is rich, but not overpowering. Portion is alright for me, but not for the hungry man.

Stripped down to the bare essentials, good Italian cuisine should have the taste of home. Misterchewy’s Crab meat linguine with fresh basil tomato sauce ($26) is a typical hearty homely meal. The pasta is cooked al dente and sauce is all full of flavour and portion size is good (although not huge).

Most of the dishes come drizzled with extra virgin oil produced by the Rossetti family’s 600-tree olive garden in Otranto, Puglia.

Somehow, I was craving for Crispy spring chicken with mix salad and patatine fritte ($24) that night. The meat were very crunchy on the outside and moist on the inside which is hard to do because the white meat has a tendency to dry much quicker, especially if it is overcooked. The chicken was not too greasy. Great fried chicken altogether.

The hilarious and charming Toni provides entertainment as well as perfect knowledge of his wine and food menu. The food is authentic Italian style which really make it a great night out with the chewys. We didn’t order dessert as I baked red velvet cupcake for missuschewy as her birthday cake. Hehe! Heard their succulent aubergine stuffed with minced meat is a must try, looks like it gives me a reason to revisit them again.

Noti Restaurant and Bar
Address: 54 & 56 Club Street
Tel: 6222 0089
Operating Hours: Mondays to Saturdays, 12pm to 12 am