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Sunday roast? Nah… Sunday Fish!!!
Everyone has their way to end the week and get ready for another week. One of my Sunday routines is a trip to the fish market. Now with the weather getting warmer, the fish market is always packed with people going about their weekly or monthly omega3 business, and seagulls fighting each other over scraps. So it is impossible for late birds like me to get a table by the water. Why would you want to eat in such a chaotic place rather than in a quieter and more comfortable place, you ask? The smell of the sea makes me feel like I’m on a holiday, and eating outdoors makes food taste better sometimes, maybe most of the time.
Sydney Fish Market at sunset
I’ve had snapper and perch so many times that I felt like trying different species, especially ones that are often undervalued and rejected by many people. They are sometimes more nutritious than popular fishes. Lucky salmon tents to get all the prizes in spite of its oiliness and others like flathead, basa and trevally are often ignored. Is it because it’s cheap since we are living in a world where high price drives consumption? Would it sell better if So I decided to give those poor little fish the opportunity to be pampered with attention. Does this reflect my empathy for the less fortunate? The lucky fish which caught my attention is ‘trevally’. It is known as Australian fish and If I cook with salmon, I don’t bother much with marinade or sauce, because it has the unique fatty flavour. But white fish may need some extra work to either disguise the stinkiness or add more interesting flavours to the bland taste of white fish.
The coating of almond and parsley was quite a blessing to the humble trevally, I reckon? Look at that juicy look of the flaky flesh! I think the coating helped to keep the moisture in. I used to have an aversion to anything fried, not so much for buying it, but for cooking it at home. As long as I don’t see myself how much oil battered or crumbed fish soaks up. *:-P* Having said that, I would probably take more fat from all that cheese I nibble as snacks than from fish n chips.
What a feast I had! To follow the almond crumbed fish is ‘Battered Asparagus’ and ‘Cheesy Cauliflower’. Ha Ha I know what you are thinking right now. If you want to get naughty, you might as well be naughty all the way to the end, not halfway. I have had sushi rolls with deep fried asparagus before and liked it, but honestly I didn’t like it with the fish. *sorry*
Almond Herb Crumbed Trevally
with Battered n Fried Asparagus and Cheesy Cauliflower
I guess you can easily imagine what happened to me after this saturated meal. *It wasn’t THAT bad.* I’m just exaggerating a little. Next time I will try this recipe with another type of fish and see how the almond flavour works with it. What I had last Sunday is ‘Salmon with White Wine Capers Sauce’, which was nice, but I didn’t take any photos- I was too hungry to think about them- so it won’t be on the blog.
Do you like my biscotti arrangement? 
For the first time I took time to put the final products together nicely, inspired by Milk and Cookies. Well, I know I need more artful napkins and other pretty accessories, but it is good enough for now. Besides, it was 10pm when I took the photo. One should be insane to care about decorations that time of night. *Hang on a second, I remember doing it at midnight 
*
I’ve made savoury biscottis with sundried tomatoes or olives before, but this was my first attempt to make a sweet version. I’ve been having good chocolate biscotti with my 10 o’clock tea. The thing with me is that if I like something, I would eat it almost every day until I get sick of it. I wonder if there is any psychological diagnosis for that.
When I was in biscotti frenzy I came across this blog. My willpower to go on a diet surrendered to the sound of ‘dark chocolate’ and the rich seductive colour. * God, I love dark chocolate! * It’s my weakness, indeed. I would rather dream of a guy waiting for me with a box full of chocolate than a bunch of flowers. *ha ha*
I was very excited since I hadn’t baked for over a month, yet, at the same time worried about the final result. I digged my cupboards for whatever was needed for the recipe while making some changes to it. The recipe calls for olive oil, BUT, if you are going to be naughty you might as well be really naughty, not a little bit naughty, right? So I used butter, of course. Hearing this you might wonder if I’m Nancy who started this blog and was into low fat, low carb, healthy baking. People change, you know? 
I was very happy that these little yummy things came out so gorgeous. They tasted like brownie before baked the second time, with the well balanced richness and bitterness the way I loved it.
They look so tempting, don’t they? It’s almost time for a cup of tea AND one of those! *GOOD NIGHT*
The smell of spring doesn’t come from streets, parks or beaches, but from supermarkets, especially when you are living in the city. Yes! The smell of strawberries I’m talking about!
Strawberries being my favourite fruit, I can’t resist those little seductively coloured babies. They always bring my memory back to my childhood when my whole family used to go to strawberry fields every summer. We would pick&eat and eat&pick them, and bring buckets full home and make strawberry jam. The memory of the smell is so vivid that it seems as if someone is making it in my kitchen at this very moment.
Strawberry Song for everyone
Let me take you down cause I’m going to the supermarket where strawberries are on sale ~~
Nothing is real~~ nothing to get for breakfast~
Strawberry scones forever~
I couldn’t walk past strawberry sales without sniffing the strawberries every time I went to the supermarket last week. So I ended up with four punnets lying around in my fridge by the end of the week although I ate one punnet fresh. What should I do? What should I do? I panicked as they started to look unhappy. 
I was very determined to do something with strawberries last weekend although I was suffering from a little hangover from the day before. So I withdrew from the idea of making strawberry gateaux that I had in mind initially and took the safe option – cupcakes! Oo-la-la~
I’m writing this post feeling a bit apologetic because I have been abusing coconut recipes lately , but then again, I’m sure there are people with the love for coconuts would still appreciate this.
The cupcakes turned out very different to what I had planned because my strawberry cream cheese frosting ended in a disaster – I got greedy with strawberries and there wasn’t enough cream cheese for the amount of strawberries I put in. The cupcake recipe is from ‘The Unemployed Cook’, but I changed the frosting. Next time I’m going to do the whipping cream trick. I had heaps of frosting leftover, and as a whim, I dipped some fresh strawberries in it and they tasted good to my surprise. Another way to eat strawberry? It wasn’t as good as chocolate dipped ones, though.
Coconut Cupcakes with Strawberry Cream Cheese Icing & Coconut
Well, as you can see I couldn’t coat the entire top – didn’t have enough coconuts left!
As for the taste… I don’t want to be biased, so I will leave it unanswered. BUT the look tells 99% of what the food is going to taste like most of times. I mean…many times….or sometimes……:-P
The truth is, though, that sometimes I feel as if I cook to take photos rather than to eat – of course I eat all the food I make, but there are some people who enjoy watching others eating the food they make – I find it a bit creepy. *>.<*
Having lovely photos of food plays a big part in food blogs, I think, in terms of keeping readers interests going. When I come across a food site I read on only when I see some pretty photos to look at. I think food photographing is quite addictive in that sense, and I understand how people become obsessed with artful settings and props for the background.
Sometimes I feel more satisfied when photos turn out good regardless of how good the actual food tastes. As long as it looks good in the photo people will believe that it’s going to taste good, aren’t they? Is it just me again? *:-$*
The Next Day…..
I started off the morning with delicious ‘Strawberry Pecan Scones‘. It could have been perfect if I had had freshly whipped cream at that time. Well, hoping for something to compensate for the missing cream, I played around by eating them in various ways – butter, honey and yoghurt.
But I still think fresh cream wins over any other things you can think of putting on scones.
This is the end of the story of my strawberry frenzy. Did I work up your appetite for strawberries or put you off them? I hope it’s the former. ’sing, sing~ I see red ~ I see red~~’
There is a cafe called ‘Concrete’, only three blocks from my place, that has the most interesting breakfast menu although it isn’t as extensive as some people might expect. However, they seem to put bigger emphasis on the quality and presentation of the food, so you are guaranteed to be leaving the place so satisfied each time that you can’t help but to brag to your friends about it – just like what I’m doing at this very moment. I’m always excited about their specials, which change every week.
They make really good coffee, too, which is important, and my other favourite is ‘Pineapple&Mint Whip‘ as a refreshing beverage.
Most of dishes are served with sough dough, when necessary, rather than normal crusty bread – a little consideration for our health. *sweet* The chefs are flexible about making changes for your preferences, and service is speedy and attentive, so you feel really welcomed there. If you’re sick of the same boring breakfast menu, roll down to the corner of Harris st and Pyrmont bridge rd this weekend. And be ready to say ‘Thank you’ to me. *@-@*
Ovenbaked Egg (chorizo&roasted capsicum&spinach)
Every mouthful was so enjoyable. I loved the salsa that came with it.
Hot Sweetcorn Cake w/Salmon
Veggie Work in a revolutionary form
Scrambled Egg w/Leek&Goat Cheese
This is my favourite! Naughty Italian Breakfast!
Layered with corn fritter, everything is fried, and the crispy potato was so irresistible. It is definitely food for a hangover.
Grilled haloumi salad with roasted pumpkin, pine nut and rocket, which isn’t featured here, is also good.
Since I’m doing an eggy breakfast post, I might as well show you my strange creation. It may look like omelet to you, but in fact, it is a spinach egg hot mousse. What is interesting about this is that it is not fried or baked. It is STEAMED in a rice cooker. The spinach in here is also blended with eggs, giving the nice green color and smooth texture. I can picture you wondering ‘How does that work?’ If you are interested in trying out this method, I will give you the secret trick.
Hot Spinach Steamed mousse
Next weekend I’m going to explore Balmain area as I heard there were a good cafe and bakery to try. I will let you know how it went. *Can’t wait!*
I don’t cook Asian food as much as I should because I love western food, especially Mediterranean cuisine. – Italian and Spanish. I love cheese so much I often nibble on it as a snack when I’m on the computer or watch TV and suddenly realise I have eaten the whole block of cheese.
People say Asian food is light and healthy, and these days many Europeans eat Asian food regularly and eating Asian seems such a sacred ritual to them – or else, a way to lose weight, especially when they struggle with chopsticks. I often feel compelled to go up to their table and feed them.
I, as a wine drinker, however, have to be hard pressed to ever cook any Asian because it just doesn’t seem to go with wine – for me anyway.
The only time I make Asian food is usually when I feel guilty for indulging in too much naughty food for weeks. The motive is far from pleasure, but still, it forces me to keep my Asian palate going. I would call it ‘Asian Affair’.
This particular dinner, which I have difficulty naming because more than three different cuisines are mixed.
Nancy’s Easy Peasy Satay Tofu, Spicy Eggplant, Chinese Green Kimchi
My guests’ all time favourite is, without a doubt, Satay Tofu. Its rich, nutty and sweet taste with a zing of chilli is something that warms your soul. It’s so easy to make, yet so satisfying! You will be amazed to find how simply it is to make it – to copy the taste, at least. All you need is crunchy peanut better, soy sauce, sugar and a bit of garlic and chilli, and maybe fish sauce and lemon if you want more authentic taste. But if you don’t have all the ingredients at handy, simply mix peanut butter with sweet chilli sauce, and it will do the trick just fine. *Lazy Satay*
I usually panfry flour-coated tofu like this so that it binds sauce better.
Deep fried bean curd would be even better and naughtier, but it would go against my healthy theme, wouldn’t it? I would change the taste depending on my mood by adding more chilli or garlic. Once I made it really spicy and my chilli loving guests at that time absolutely loved it.
Next is a variation of Malaysian spicy eggplant. I put capsicum for colour, but it could have been better if I had fresh chillies instead.
There are many varieties of Chinese green under the tag of ‘yao choy’, ‘choy sum’ or ‘you cai’. I got three
bunches of it for $2 on a Sunday at Paddy’s Market, and started to panic, figuring out a way to get rid of it without wasting it. This green salad seasoned with vinegar, chilli, sugar and sesame seeds was quite refreshing and complemented the rest of the dishes. Its taste was similar to Korean kimchi – even more so the next day – and I would call it ‘Accidental Kimchi Salad’. It is another way to enjoy Chinese vegetables as we normally eat them stirfried, sautéed or steamed.
Very exotic muffins, indeed!
This is my second trial of Pineapple Coconut muffins in a week. So surprised by those from my first trial, I couldn’t wait to get that taste in my mouth again. When I first came up with the idea of muffins with coconut, I thought of two options, one with chocolate, the other with pineapple. I did a search on the net for similar ideas and was surprised to learn that my idea wasn’t original as I initially thought. That makes you think that you are not the only weird one in this crazy world. We always want something new and exciting, don’t we?
When I took the first bite, it instantly felt like I was EATING ‘ Pina colada ‘- my favourite cocktail of all- time when you were supposed to drink it. The drink has the magical power to take me to the imaginary tropical holiday. So would you like to try ‘Pina colada’ in a solid form?
Pineapple Coconut Muffins with Coconut Crumble Topping
I actually put two pineapple coconut muffin recipes found on the net together to my liking. The first recipe I tried was very simple, so I decided to give a better look and an extra character to it, which was the topping. You can skip the topping if you don’t feel like getting your hand dirty by crumbling the butter coconut mixture. In that case you need to increase the amount of sugar to 2/3 cups in the recipe. Or simply follow the original recipe given at the end of this post.
Coconut Pineapple Muffins – makes 12
1/2 cup sweetened flaked coconut
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter, melted
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup pineapple juice
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 eggs
1/2 cup crushed pineapple, drained well
Topping:
1/3 cup light brown sugar
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup shredded sweetened coconut
3 tablespoons cold butter, cut up
Heat oven to 350 degrees.
Sprinkle the coconut on a baking sheet and toast for about 10 minutes, stirring frequently. – I skipped this stage.
In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder and salt.
In a small bowl, melt butter in microwave. Add it to milk, butter, pineapple juice, eggs, and vanilla. Stir into flour mixture just until moistened; do not over mix. Fold in the toasted coconut and pineapple.
For topping, mix together brown sugar, flour and coconut. Rub in small pieces of butter with fingers until coarse crumbs have formed. Sprinkle coarse crumb topping over pineapple muffin batter.
Fill 12 non-stick muffin pans two-thirds full. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until tops are lightly browned and firm. Cool in pan on a wire rack.
Below is the original recipe from the internet.
Coconut Pineapple muffin
1 1/3 cups sweetened flaked coconut
1/2 cup milk
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup pineapple juice
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup oil
1 Tbsp baking powder
1/4 cup butter, melted
1 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 eggs
1/2 cup crushed pineapple, drained well
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