Thursday, January 21, 2010

My Whirlwind Romance... With Food

I've been meaning to write about my pastry escapades since a couple of weeks now. The winter holidays have been just amazing, or as Alvin would say - and I quote, "YUM-mazing!"

Kudos to my Makansutra Singapore 2009 guide book (coupled with my innate curiosity to explore fine, fabulous grub), I have spent my tropical days back home charting my very own "Die, Die Must Try!" culinary extravaganza, titillating my taste buds with the potpourri of Uniquely Singapore local fare - from one of Joo Chiat's finest Cze Char stalls, to the award-winning Hill Street Fried Kway Teow tucked away in a nondescript hawker center at Bedok South, that of which Anthony Bourdain has blissfully sank his teeth into and declared, "How can something that looks so messy... taste so good?" And, despite my bursting belly and shrieking inner conscience that I have to double my jogging distance the day after, temptation got the better of me, so we settled for an after-dinner curbside D24 durian indulgence that I, till today, have to admit was worth every caloric morsel. The aromatically pungent fruit gleaming in its vibrant lemony custard skin was gorgeously sweet and moist... (Oh, please don't get me started...)

After my month-long love affair with K F Seetoh's recommended grub - which I have to confess may be bordering the line of gluttony - I would expect some sort of deep, pregnant guilt to sink right down to the pit of my stomach... but perhaps the term 'bottomless pit' fits in aptly right now.

Yeap. The guilt just goes right through.

So on the contrary, my culinary and pastry explorations have taken off to greater heights. I have been ranting and raving about using my Morrocan tagine (courtesy of the best girlfriends ever), so weekend dinner parties have given me ample avenues to experiment and display my inner craze for all things sweet and savory. And having been inspired by Julie & Julia, I did a modified take on Julia Child's celebrated Beef Bourguignon recipe with the help of my handy tagine. I know it's suppose to be a pastry blog but we need some splashes of salt to tickle our Umami taste buds, don't we?


Fabulous, just fabulous.

Nonetheless amidst the recent whirlwind cooking adventures, pastry was - and is - and will always be my kind of soul food. Apologies for the lack of photographic displays, but I've managed to dabble in multiple dessert creations - from Gordon Ramsay's most YUM-mazing Chocolate Fondant (translation: molten chocolate lava cake), to Piña Colada panna cottas, Spritz cookies and blueberry jam. The latest creations that I just embarked on this afternoon were two versions of Tiramisu - the classic Italian, and a Japanese twist using matcha and Azuki beans. I promise more updates on the creamy duo tomorrow after they enjoy a night of chilling (both literally an figuratively).

So in the meantime, goodnight, sweet dreams and enjoy a couple of Nigella's Totally (decadent) Chocolate Chocolate-Chip Cookies and a rich, frothy glass of cold milk...


XOXO darling!

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