Happy Birthday Jamie!

The man I call genius. The man with a big heart. The man with a restless soul. James Trevor Oliver turns 34 today. I know millions of British people love Jamie so much and I think billions of people in the planet embraced his existence. And I am one of those billions of people who got smitten by the one and only Naked Chef! My affliction to this guy started eight years ago, when I started watching Discovery Travel & Living. There I saw the Oliver Twist, Naked Chef, Return of The Naked Chef and Jamie's School Dinners. Through this channel I also witnessed how he celebrated his 30th birthday in Amalfi, Italy four years ago. Italian long table with cold cuts, wine and of course pasta! A traditional Italian feast. From there I also started appreciating Gennaro Contaldi, Jamie's mentor. The man who molded the man that I truly admire. Jamie often said he is an Italian by heart, from that context--I also told myself that I am not a Filipino by heart, I am an Italian-French-Spanish-Aussie-English (5 in 1) by heart and soul. My beliefs and dreams in life doesn't match my origin. But I will always be proud to be a Filipino in so many ways.

So year after year, I get to know Jamie better. I feel connected to him everyday of my life as I continue watching his shows like Jamie at HOME and Jamie's Ministry of Food series. He never fails to amaze me of his great work and kind heart. Now my day is not complete without Jamie webby window being open the whole day. His vision for people to learn how to cook and avoid take away food is the same sentiment I have here in my heart. I am not a big person like Jamie to make it happen today in my region. But as I travel and learn, I know one day I would be able to build my own tower out of my own effort. I will stand in my own feet, build it and hopefully people will not doubt my visions and dreams in life.

Thank you so much Jamie for being my one and only inspiration about my cooking passion. You made me proud of myself and you allowed me to Dream BIG! I wish you will inspire the whole planet as well as the entire galaxy! I also wish you good health and more love for your family.

With all my LOVE, Happy happy happy Birthday Jamie!

hugs,
joanie xxx

"18 Grams Of Love" the Trailer

What is this??? have anyone of you seen this movie before?



I wonder if we can get it here in Malaysia.

Sell Out! the Trailer

If you look closely, you will also see Spunky in the movie!!!! Spunky = my Baby (SOYA).




this is round 2. More about the movie.



one part that is not in the movie, BUT its really funny too.

It's Like That

I found the best little shop the other day. I was wandering through Old Orchard mall (great outdoor mall here in Skokie, except when it's cold which is about 9 months of the year) and noticed a little store called Oil & Vinegar. As you can imagine, I love these culinary shops. Not because I buy a lot of food or cookware, but because they are INSPIRATIONAL. I see a muffin mix so I make homemade muffins. I see a bottle of fancy mustard and decide to make a tilapia filet with mustard sauce. I see a waffle maker and crave waffles but settle for pancakes. It's like that.
So I walked into Oil & Vinegar and was in heaven. On my right was a tasting table with tiny cubes of bread speared with toothpicks arranged on a plate and surrounded by plastic cups filled with vinegar. Another tasting table held cups of oil. Yet another had tastings of salad dressing. The back corner of the store had large vessels holding the oils and vinegars, and empty glass decanters were available for purchase and filling. Oil and vinegar on tap! The Turkish store manager had endless suggestions for every type of oil in his store - use the lemon oil on fish, rosemary infused oil for lamb, or walnut oil in a salad dressing. I wanted to be invited over for dinner. The store had other fun foods too, like specialty chocolate, flavored pasta (squid ink pasta anyone?), fig spreads, honey, spices mixes and rubs, olives, pickles and tapenades. All these foods that make me think of decadence, luxury, and concentrated flavor that satisfies on first taste and doesn't require stuffing myself.
But I wanted to stuff my shopping bag. I restrained myself and picked a only a single delicious white truffle balsamic vinegar to bottle and take home. That night I sprinkled it over a salad of mixed greens, granny smith apples, and goat cheese, letting the cheese soak up a good amount of vinegar. The white truffle adds depth to the balsamic vinegar and would also be delicious as part of a pan sauce for meat.
But if you're going to buy a good balsamic vinegar, there is one thing you must do with it - make dessert. Get some good strawberries or blackberries. You can soak them in the vinegar raw, or cook them down a bit and add the vinegar in to make a compote. Then go into your freezer and find that ice cream you've stashed. I know you have some in there. You don't? That's even better, because then you can get out the ice cream maker and make some almond ice cream in no time. Take a basic vanilla ice cream recipe which requires no cooking, and add in the same amount of almond extract as there is vanilla extract before pouring it in the ice cream maker. When the ice cream is almost frozen, add some chopped toasted almonds. Now serve up a scoop of the almond ice cream with a spoonful of your balsamic vinegar fruit mixture. Drizzle some extra balsamic over the ice cream, and if you're wondering now whether vinegar is really meant to be with ice cream, just put your mind at ease and try a spoonful. And then stock up on vinegar.

Chicken Breasts Wrapped in Bacon with Garlic Mushrooms

Chicken is unquestionably a very versatile cooking ingredient. We can cook it in so many different ways and so many incredibly simple and healthy chicken recipes are also incredibly delicious. This easy recipe simply involves baking the chicken breasts wrapped in bacon and serving them with some equally simply prepared garlic mushrooms, on a bed of fresh rocket leaves.

Ingredients (Per person)

1 chicken breast fillet
2 slices of unsmoked bacon
8 small button mushrooms
2 cloves of garlic (crushed)
1/2 tsp of dried sage
1 tbsp olive oil
Generous handful of fresh rocket leaves

Method

Put your oven on to preheat to 400F/200C/Gas mark 6. Place a large sheet of aluminium foil on a baking tray. Wrap the bacon slices carefully around the chicken breasts, encasing them as much as posssible and then lay them on the foil. Fold the foil to form a loose but sealed parcel.

Place the tray in the oven for about 25 to 30 minutes. Remove and check that the chicken is thoroughly cooked by sticking it with a fork or skewer and ensuring the juices run clear. Leave to rest while you prepare the mushrooms.

Gently heat the olive oil in a non-stick saucepan and add the garlic and the sage. After about a minute, add the mushrooms and stir well for a couple of minutes with a wooden spoon to evenly heat them through.

Add the rocket to each plate, sit the wrapped chicken breasts on top and surround with the mushrooms. I promise you that this will provide a very tasty dinner tonight or any night.