Christmas Tea Set

Today is Christmas eve. I'm throwing a Christmas tea party for 5 people in the afternoon. These are what I am going to serve later.

 Christmas log cake @ RM15.00

Santa Claus is coming to town...

Manning's Mince Pies @ RM21.90

Delicious short crust pastry generously filled with premium brandy-infused mincemeat and hand-baked in the Manning's family tradition

Pinwheel Christmas Cookies

Mocha Cake

Suzuki Italian Ground Espresso @ RM25.00

The Moka Pot (the espresso maker) @ RM89.00

~ Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year ~

Time for Plan b...

Plan B, also known as a reserved plan, takes over Plan A (the first plan) when the latter fails. 

Founded by the Big Group which owns a string of restaurants in the Klang Valley, Plan b has been established for quite a long time. To date, this cafe gets its highest flow of diners throughout the day compared to the other rivals in the F&B line. Business is always good. Being well known for their breakfast menu, business starts as early as 9 a.m. and now they have even extended their business hours till late night, to cater to those who have a special craving for food at supper time. 

Plan b @ Bangsar Village

Is this Sherlock Holmes's or Conan's office desk?

This is a place with great food and a cosy ambiance.

Simply love the English pub design of Plan b.

Care for some cakes?

How about some buttery scones?

The plain-looking menu has an extensive selection of food ranging from breakfast to supper.

A corner for sauces and condiments.

Water, served the unique way, is free of charge.

Espresso Doppio @ RM7.00

Lemon Meringue Pie @ RM10.00

Each short crust pastry case is generously filled with sweet and sour lemon curd and topped with meringue which is lightly browned in the oven.

Plan B
Ground Floor, 

Bangsar Village I,
59000 Bangsar, 

Kuala Lumpur.

Malaysia.

Tel: +603-2287 2630

Black Pepper Lamb Pie

When is the best time to eat humble pie? Well, that's probably when one has committed a serious error and wishes to show humiliation for his wrongdoing in the form of an apology. 

But, what if the pie is not so humble after all? It weighs 180 gm, innocently stuffed with rich and heavy fillings sealed in a greasy and buttery twin crust pastry. Do you consider this calorie monster being humble? You need a minimum of one whole day to completely break down the whole of it and utilise the compound of it in order not to keep it overnight (may be longer) in your adipose tissue. 

So, back to the question. When is the best time to eat a not-so humble pie? The answer is: BREAKFAST TIME!

Black Pepper Lamb Pie

Each flavourful pie is filled with chunks of juicy and tender lamb cubes, sweet carrot and fragrant onion rings.

The twin crust is made of both puff pastry (the bottom) and the short crust type (the top).

A complete meal by itself.

Chicken, Mushroom and Onion Puff

Due to the hectic working life, I can hardly find time for baking on weekdays. While I am struggling in coping with my new and challenging post, I wholeheartedly wish I could have an afternoon to spare for my favourite hobby - baking. Yesterday, I arrived home earlier than usual and the workload was not as taxing as before, so I put aside my books and laptop for a couple of hours, preparing the ingredients I need for 3 humble puffs.

Homemade Chicken, Mushroom and Onion Puffs

The pastry puffs up like a pouch, making it look even more tempting.

The puff is diagonally cut, showing the flakiness of the pastry but at the same time unveiling its weakness as a big hollow is seen within the cavity. The stingy Pam made too little filling for the puff. lol

Early bird catches the worm

Early to bed, early to rise. 

Early to rise, early to eat. 

An old-fashioned dim sum shop in Taiping bakes and sells pastries of the good old days every Sunday morning. These traditional biscuits - Chinese egg tart, kaya puff, Nam yue pie, sesame ball etc. - are selling like hotcakes as they are available only once a week. So, getting up early is the only key to enjoying the food. However, how early is early? 7 a.m.? 8 a.m.? If you are lucky, you may be able to grab the last few pieces at around 7 a.m. but rest assured that nothing else will be left behind after this. 

Egg tarts, sesame balls and kaya puffs.

Nam Yue Pie @ RM1.10 each

Egg tart & Nam Yue pie

Crispy pie stuffed with with Nam Yue infused lean meat

Kum Loong Dim Sum Restaurant

45 - 47 Jalan Kota,

34000 Taiping, Perak.

Malaysia.

Davidoff Espresso and Cutie Cherry Pie

I am not a fan of instant ground coffee. While everyone is delighted by the invention of instant coffee which saves their trouble of brewing coffee, many have forgotten that instant coffee is not real coffee as the taste is artificially modified using various chemical reactions. Just imagine, when ground coffee is made into water-soluble substances under unknown processes, much (or perhaps all) taste must have evaporated in the atmosphere. This is undeniably true as all freshly ground coffee can only be kept for a maximum of 5 days upon grinding from the whole coffee bean. After 5 days, the taste and smell (even colour) will be different no matter how well you seal the ground coffee. A layman may not be able to tell the difference but seasoned coffee drinkers do. Stale coffee is easily detected from sniffing, cupping and slurping of coffee. As for ground coffee sold by renowned brands, they are always sealed in vacuum pack to ensure zero oxidation of coffee until the pack is unsealed. With that, the freshness of the coffee is somehow retained. Certainly, the one and only way of getting the freshest coffee is by roasting, grinding and brewing your own beans at one go. 

Back to the main idea of today's post. Why did I buy Davidoff instant coffee which is hardly compatible to the type of beans I used to drink? The reason is simple: I like the cup and saucer. Please don't ask me how the coffee tastes as I do not want to get into unwanted trouble. For instance, being criticised by fans of Davidoff or sued by the company... Haha!  

Davidoff Cafe gift pack @ RM24.99

Davidoff Espresso 57 Dark Roast

A set of free cup and saucer comes with every purchase of Davidoff gift pack.

In my previous post on Victoria Crest Chicken and Mushroom Pie, I introduced a new product of locally made frozen pies. Today, I am going to show you another frozen fruit pie made in the States. If you are interested in all these frozen products, visit any Cold Storage supermarkets and you will be able to see an abundant supply of imported pies and tarts at the frozen department. So, how does this American pie taste? As expected, the pie is exceptionally sweet. For those who do not have a sweet tooth, I would strongly advise against buying this product. In fact, I am having a hard time in getting rid of the remaining pies stored in the freezer. Anyone wants to adopt the pies?

Frozen Cherry Pie by Cutie Pie

Each box contains six individually wrapped pies.

Cherry pie coated with a layer of melted icing sugar

The other side of the pie

Sweet cherry filling

Hatyai 2011: McDonald's BBQ Pork Rib Burger and Samurai Pork Burger

McCafe @ Lee Gardens Plaza

Ronald Mcdonald wishing you Sawadika!

Coffee is never served in paper cups in McCafe ...

... unless you order a take away.

The 'porkiest' burgers of McDonald's

Barbecued Pork Rib Burger @ 59 baht

The Thai are more generous, in the sense of the slice of perfectly-grilled meat which is comparatively larger than the bun.

From the translucent-looking bun, you can tell how fluffy it is.

Pork Samurai Burger @ 69 baht

Wrapping the burger in plastic sheet is another skill which our local McDonald's need to acquire. After all, nobody likes to eat a burger that is so tightly wrapped till the sauce and lettuce ooze out from everywhere resulting in an unappealing sight. Visually, that kills my appetite. 

This is what I am always hoping to see - a burger looking clean and neat when it is unwrapped.

A thickly-sliced pork patty

Crispy Tuna Pie @ 29baht

Plump and crispy with very little grease sticking to the surface of the pastry.

Laden with chunks of tuna and sweet corn kennel 

Cappuccino @ 60 baht

Latte @ 60 baht

Espresso @ 55 baht

McDonald's & McCafe

Lee Gardens Plaza

Hatyai, Songkhla

Thailand