Covent Garden on a Sunday

Jalan-jalan cari makan

Sotong kangkung @ Rasa Sayang, Chinatown (nearest underground station - Leicester Square)

Nasi goreng @ Rasa Sayang

Roti canai (segera!!) @ Rasa Sayang

Tukdin lagiiii

DH in action

Kes terliur tengok gambar yang mak upload di Facebook. Bihun hailam yang tak memenuhi citarasa - sedikit masin & tak pedas langsung

Satay goreng - menu berbintang2 yang boleh buat angau siang malam ;p

1st try

In Jamie's Great Britain, I found a simple recipe calling for lots of lemon - something I wanna get rid out of the fridge (as usual things happen when the husband went grocery shopping)

Looks simple enough. Great. Let's get going!

For the crumbly base - 5 digestive biscuits, 30g unsalted butter & 50 g lightly toasted flaked almond

Crushed biscuit & almond

Melted butter

Mixed well and packed down into small ramekins

The recipe calls for 200ml lemon juice, Jamie says 8-10 lemons are needed. I had only 4. So I sacrificed 4 limes to make it up. But... It turned out that those 4 lemons produced 250ml juice, more than enough. Ugh.. So I used purely lemon juice, 200ml just as the recipe calls for 

Ingredients needed for the custard - 200 ml lemon juice, 100g golden caster sugar,  1 vanilla pod, strips of lemon zest & 600ml double cream

Vanilla pod - halved lengthways, seeds scraped out, sugar, lemon zest & lemon juice. They all went into a pan

Simmered for 15 mins on medium heat until the mixture turned into thick syrup

Then, the cream was poured in and simmered again until the mixture became thick & glossy

The flavoured cream was passed through a sieve and then poured into the chilled ramekins. Cling wrap was used to cover each ramekin & off they went into the fridge to set

I left it in the fridge for about 24 hours, but you could do with 2 hours (Jamie says so)

The verdict? Very zingy! Smooth & creamy nonetheless, but next time I would reduce the lemon juice to 150ml (if there's a next time). It's a bit too sour for my liking ;p

Terkenang

Nostalgia zaman kanak-kanak..

Maktok selalu buat untuk sarapan.

Menariknya, kena guna jari-jemari yang dirapatkan untuk tarik adunan supaya hasilnya bulat elok & sama tebal. Sebabnya? Adunan dia tak terlalu cair, jadi kita tak boleh sekatakan adunan secara menyengetkan kuali leper (pan). Kena buat cepat-cepat sebelum kepanasan sampai ke jari.

Roti tempek/Roti nyoq/Lempeng kelapa

DH tetap nak makan dengan kari. Sudah kuturrunan, apa nak dikata.. ;p

Ni hidangan lewat malam. Selagi tak tidur, selagi tu lah dok mencari makanan. Haru-biru sungguh....

Finally

It snowed!! :)

5 February 2012, 1.00 a.m. We're about to go to bed when I asked dear husband to help pull the curtain closed. He said, "why is it so bright tonight?" Then I heard, "b, it's snowing!"

We got so excited, put on some layer of jacket and out we went. With the camera of course!  

5 February 2012, 1.10 p.m.

You see, I like taking this kind of shot :p

Snowmen made by our neighbor and his kids

Wet, dirty looking road

On our way to get some groceries. DH stopped to text his dad, telling him it's snowing in London. His reply? "Ayah tau dah, tengok news" Hehe

Footprints on the snow

3.15 p.m. - we arrived home only to find the snowmen have lost their noses

It sure didn't last for long, but we are very happy and grateful for the chance to experience snowfall again this year. Alhamdulillah :)

Winter is finally here

At the point when I am ready to ditch all the unflattering thick coats and jumpers thinking that winter is ending soon, the temperature dropped drastically over the past week and we're currently experiencing freezing temperature. I know there are other parts of the world or even other parts of Europe which are a lot colder than London, but this is so unexpected! Imagine having mild winter, well almost like autumn, then suddenly it gets cold without warning. Makes me want to stay indoor and curl up under the quilt, with a big mug of hot chocolate and a good read. I know it's getting much colder than I can handle when I actually stared at the shower head for 5 minutes, deciding whether I should proceed or leave the house just with brushing my teeth and cleansing my face. However, this time around it didn't snow at all in London. Just some drizzle and strong wind, every so often.

Living in a temperate country is wonderful, especially to someone who originates from the tropics. Seeing the surrounding view changing all year round is indeed very magical - from green leaves and colorful flowers to seeing shades of chocolate, orange and red and then stark white and gray. When the weather changes, so do the wardrobe and skincare routine. In winter, having to always slather on thick moisturizer on the hand, face and body can be troublesome after some time. Each time you wash your hands, don't forget the hand cream! These days, even my husband has a tube in his pocket. :p Don't get me started on layering clothes, it's so tiring and makes everybody looks bigger than they actually are. I also hate having to take off layer by layer of clothes before taking wudu' or before trying out new clothes in the fitting room, and then put them on again. Ugh. Having said that, I actually love the cold weather as I do't sweat as much so make up stays on for longer and I smell good all day! :D

I am not complaining, just trying my best to embrace the coldness. It's not going to last all year and I'm sure by the time scorching hot summer arrives, I'd be wishing for winter again. :)

My previous winter (read: snow) experience in Universiteit Utrecht, the Netherlands;

December 2009

February 2010

February 2010

Traffic light

Broccoli with garlic & oyster sauce

Singgang mackerel

Sambal telur

I'm always thrilled to have colorful lauk-pauk to be eaten with rice. At home, I usually cook according to my husband's wish. Just makes my life easier, so I don't have to come up with new list everyday. Boleh mati kutu dibuatnya. Luckily, for tonight's dinner DH requested simple and easy dishes. All ready, just waiting for him to return home at 10.30 pm. :)

A special day!

Today is my beloved ayah's 53rd birthday!

June 2009. Till today my ayah still looks so young and handsome! :)

To my dear ayah,

I thank Allah for giving me such a wonderful father. All your love, hard work, kindness and generosity, I can never repay. But I will always pray for your health, success and happiness, in this world and hereafter. Amiin..

p/s: I love you very, very much ayah! :)