Sunday, May 23, 2010

Ikan tim ala Hongkong

Hari minggu kemaren akhir nya baru sempat buat ikan tim ala Hongkong ini, enak loh ternyata, saus nya juga wangi ditambah daun ketumbar jadi yummy.
Ikan ternyata benar harus dimakan segar, maka nya gue niatin bikin di hari minggu nan cerah.

Resep nya :
1 ekor ikan kerapu
1 sdm air jeruk nipis
1 sdm garam
2,5 ruas jahe iris tipis
3 batang daun bawang, potong dua
1 sdm irisan jahe tipis panjang
5 sdm daun bawang ambil bagian putihnya, suwir-suwir
daun ketumbar secukupnya

Bumbu untuk saus ikan :
4 sdm kecap asin
1 sdm gula pasir
2 sdm air
merica secukupnya

Cara membuatnya :
1. Lumurin ikan dengan air jeruk nipis dan garam, diamkan kurang lebih 10 menit, cuci dan
tiriskan. Beri 2-3 keratan pada daging ikan.
2. Letakkan daun bawang dan jahe dalam wadah tahan panas, susun ikan diatasnya.
3. Didihkan air, kukus ikan dengan api besar selama 15 menit sampai ikan matang, angkat.
4. Buat saus, campur bumbu lalu masak hingga mendidih.
5. Tempatkan ikan kukus diatas piring, taburi dengan irisan jahe dan daun bawang, lalu
siram dengan saus ikan, taburi dengan daun ketumbar.

Vanilla Sleuth

This will be short.  We just returned from a trip to Philadelphia to find an apartment for Eric.

SCORE!

We found one that fit both his budget and his geographic parameters.  In the midst of a very tight apartment market, with limited availability.  Super Mom (and Dad) strike yet once again.

But before the kids arrived, that bald old man and I had dinner at Alma de Cuba. 

http://almadecubarestaurant.com/

Interesting food.  Some glitches, but we liked the place.  But I REALLY liked it when I tasted dessert.  Dulce de leche crepes with smoked vanilla ice cream.

SMOKED VANILLA ICE CREAM????? 

Yeah.  It rocked.  Count on me to come up with a method and a recipe.  Soon.  First though, we have to get through the cookie marathon that is happening this week.  Stay with me!

To Leysin and then Interlaken...


Almost everyday started with a train ride.

Look! :)

Well, this day didn't actually start with a train ride. It started with a camera shop search. Thus no pictures of the first part of our day. We did find a camera shop, and bought a brand new camera so that we could continue our trip. I mean, seriously! How could we go on without a camera?

Then we took the train up, up, and up to the little village of Leysin, where Mom went to school!!!



It was really incredible being where Mom was, and at the very school that she went to. This was it: Leysin American School.

This building was one of the only buildings that would have made up the school back in the 60's, so of course we had to see it. Everyone was so friendly and happy to see us. We were thrilled to meet the founder's daughter-in-law, Mrs. Ott. :D



Mrs. Ott invited us to lunch in the school cafeteria. The food was good too! We were starved after climbing the mountains roads to the school with our backpacks on! Those bags never got any lighter!

Mom's class!

Us with Mrs. Ott. I can't explain how incredible it was to be here...way up in the the Swiss Alps, in Leysin, where Mom went to school... It just felt good!



Moving on... Our reflection is in the window.



Sarah loved these advertisements. :D

We accidentally bought the long scenic route too Interlaken, but it was okay. It was nice to sit for a while and the views were beautiful! We passed farms with adorable Swiss cows (A picture later... :P ) and quaint towns. At this pointed I noted in my journal that I thought we were finally getting the train systems down... hmmm... I don't know about that. :)



It was raining upon our arrival, but it soon dried up and we set out in search of our hostel.





Our hostel! It was sooo nice!

The view out our windows.





We took a short walk to the grocery store to buy a few things for dinner.





The hostel had a fabulous kitchen where we cooked up our dinner of grilled cheese and tomato soup. Yum! The bread and cheese in Europe is like no other!


~Anna

Don't imitate, innovate (H. Boss)

Following Laia's topic from yesterday, I decided that I want to express my opinion about the un-originality between bloggers and the rising of something that I call "The Clone Wars" (yes, I'm a freak, and I was writting about Lost today, but I'll leave it for tomorrow).




As you all may know by now, I'm studying a postgrade about coolhunting for fashion industry. So, first of all, what a coolhunter do?

As a coolhunter, you must observe the mainstream of the streets; I mean, what people wears everyday and almost in every ocassion, the shapes, colours, clothes, make up, hairs, shoes; separately and all together... and not only what people wears on the streets of your city, but also all around the world; so as you can imagine, internet is one of our tools, and blogs, streetsnaps and things like that are a meeting point of this.

But, as a coolhunter, you work with the things that are different and that may work with the mainstream. Yes, we took something original and use it for inspiring designers, stylish and people from the fashion world. And we can do this because there are original people.

But as Laia mentioned yesterday, I've realized that between bloggers, the almost most "famous" are the ones who copy one style from another: the catalogue of the brand, some idols (Alexa Chung, for example, is one of the models that I've seen that people cpy a lot) or another blogger more famous... and I mean, do this people know something about the meaning of "inspiration"?

Inspiration:

n.
1. Stimulation of the mind or emotions to a high level of feeling or activity.
2. The condition of being so stimulated.
2. An agency, such as a person or work of art, that moves the intellect or emotions or prompts action or invention.
3. Something, such as a sudden creative act or idea, that is inspired.
4. The quality of inspiring or exalting: a painting full of inspiration.
5. Divine guidance or influence exerted directly on the mind and soul of humankind.
6. The act of drawing in, especially the inhalation of air into the lungs.

So I can't understand why people doesn't follow bloggers that contains a big amount of this instead of people who only copy looks from magazines or other people... what's the meaning of that? That has no merit for me.

The good part of this is that the "clone bloggers", soone or later, would be forget... and the original ones would remain in the mind of those who really apreciatte originality, the designers and the people who want to innovate into the fashion world, not the only ones who want to be famous. 

Long time ago, I took the slogan from one of the Hugo Boss spots as a way of life. And I'm gonna use it until the end of it. Because fantasy, creativity and originality can live between the mainstream; they're the big flowers in a field full of grass...

Don't imitate, innovate. 

And this post is for those boys and girls who inspires me (as the definition from above said) everyday, those normal people who shows their lifes in pieces by internet, regardless always being perfect or going into the latest fashion:

My beloved Elin, from Elinkan
Sandra, from Niotillfem; thank you!
The gorgeous Elsa, from Need help dressing?
The original Shan Shan, from Tinytoadstool  
(by the way, she's being ill; I hope you'll recover really soon!)
Marcello Lasco, my particular Voldemort ;) 
(love you dear!)
Xiaoxi Zhang, from It is Nancy's new blog.
Tahti, from Tahti Syrjala 
(and her gorgeous make ups!)
Elliot Rentz and his adorable piercings!
Marmelindela, with her colorful lips and beautiful eyes 
and gorgeous smile!!
And this adorable girl that you all may know

You know what I'm going to say right know, but I think that this time matches perfectly with us. 

We can be more or less "famous". We really don't care. We love fashion and it's our way to express ourselves. And the most important thing: 
We're not here to please you.

Thanks for reading.

Summer Food: Tagliatelle with peas and bacon



It’s been a busy fortnight. Book pitches. Meetings. Business plans. Scouting out potential restaurant locations. Press events. Oh, and making 6000 canapés with Dhruv for a hungry City crowd.

We jokingly suggested to the producers of Masterchef that the latter of these should be a new challenge on the show. Apologies in advance to future contestants if it makes the cut.

All this is a round about way of excusing myself for neglecting the blog which itself is in the middle of an overhaul.

This weekend has seen some glorious weather. One may go so far (providing you’re not the superstitious sort) as to say that summer is upon us and with it the freshest bounty of the garden and meats grilled over hot coals.

No more braises, stews or hearty belly-fillers. The next few months are about simplicity. Fresh, zingy flavours and ingredients cooked simply and, whenever possible, enjoyed al fresco. A meal soundtracked by nature and the sounds of the open is far tastier than one taken indoors.

Although it rarely fills our bellies during the darker half of the year, come spring and summer pasta forms a larger part of our diet – its innate versatility somehow more suited to the ad hoc nature of summer meals where time spent in the kitchen detracts from time spent outside.

Consequently, now seemed a good time to invest in a book on the subject and The Geometry of Pasta appeared to fit the bill perfectly. A rather beautiful, monochrome tome it harks back to a traditional Italian approach where pasta and sauce are matched with care to capitalise on the characteristics of each. A noble concept indeed.

Although the prospect of hand-crafting some intricate orecchiette was tempting, last night’s supper was an exercise in simplicity: fresh pasta tossed with bacon, peas, a little blue cheese and cream and finished with grassy pea shoots picked from little pots in the garden.

Tagliatelle with peas and bacon



As tasty as homegrown peas are, I find growing them a thankless and arduous task that yields disappointing results. With the frozen sort as good as they are I have no qualms about using those to bulk out a meal and picking off the wonderfully fresh tasting (not to mention pretty with their winding, curling fronds) pea shoots to serve as a delicious garnish.

Ingredients:
200g pasta flour
2 eggs
OR 200g dried pasta

150g bacon, pancetta or other cured pork, diced
Olive oil
A medium sized onion, finely chopped
A splash of white wine
Two handfuls frozen peas, cooked in boiling water (or the microwave. Really)
200ml double cream
Any leftover cheese you happen to have, as long as it is of the melty variety.
Salt and plenty of black pepper

If you are the sort of person who has a pasta machine, you don’t need me to tell you how to make the stuff. Just whip up a batch in your usual fashion, it will be more than fine.

If you are the sort of person who doesn’t have a pasta machine, you don’t need me to tell you how to cook the stuff. Surely. Just go about it in your usual fashion. But not before making the sauce.

Fry the bacon until it renders off its lovely fat and begins to turn crispy. Lower the heat under the frying pan and add the diced onion. Cook it gently until it softens in the bacon fat. If it looks a little dry add a dash of olive oil (but not the good stuff). Give it 10-15 minutes so it softens and sweetens without burning and turning acrid.

Deglaze the pan with white wine - just a splash should do the job - then add the cream, peas and cheese. Season well with black pepper but go easy on the salt depending on what cheese you’ve gone for.

Cook up your pasta in a big pan with plenty of salt and as soon as it is ready, drain it (but only briefly – the cooking water adds a tasty element) and toss into the sauce. Heap into bowls, garnish with pea shoots and serve outside just as the sun is dipping beyond the trees, ocean buildings or whatever vista forms your view onto the world.


Food fotos by Charlotte (Flickr page)