Now where were we?

So this was my lunch today. I was checking out the fridge for what to eat (and also with the idea of planning dinner) when I spied a lonely eggplant in the corner of the veggie crisper. Voila! Lunch dilemma solved. I sliced it up, fried it and had it with leftover rice. Dipping sauce is made up of rice vinegar, soy sauce, chopped up garlic and a bit of salt. Yum!

While I was eating, I was reminded of the time D and I were making moussaka. Our version involved sliced up eggplant, which you then fry and layer with sliced cooked potatoes, sauteed minced lamb, white sauce and lots of cheese before baking everything to perfection in the oven. As we were frying the eggplant, I turned to D and said that in the Philippines, the fried eggplant alone with rice would be a complete meal by itself. D looked at me like I was crazy (but in that polite way Brits do it) and merely said that it didn’t sound appetising to him at all. I only laughed. Which got me thinking about the different ways we’re culturally conditioned to like certain things that someone from a different culture might find strange. For instance, D with the fried eggplant and rice (and probably a lot of Pinoy dishes; but this is probably more because of my cooking than the inherent qualities of the dish itself. I once cooked him adobo that had too much vinegar in it. He hates sour dishes, so that adobo probably, uhm, soured him on the dish forever!).

In my case, am still struggling to come to terms with his love for the quintessentially English baked beans on toast. We once had this for lunch at home in the UK, because we couldn’t be bothered to cook something and I was thinking then that it was a strange meal. I eventually mentioned that I found the combination of beans and toast was not what I’d consider a meal. He was amused and vowed not to serve it to me again, remarking that as a penniless university student, he practically lived on the stuff. I guess to him and many Brits, baked beans is a staple, same as rice for Filipinos. Or maybe instant pancit canton (fried noodles), if we’re going by the analogy of starving uni students. For me, that was the staple and even for a few years after uni, which is probably why I don’t eat it today. There’s a pack of six Lucky Me Instant Pancit Canton packets in the pantry that we bought last year (I think) and I haven’t opened it yet. I don’t know why I bought it. For nostalgia? Or a worst-case scenario for when the zombie apocalypse happens maybe and we’d need supplies? Who knows!

So what did you have for lunch?

—————————

Got the fright of my life today. I was thinking that I really should update ye ol’ blog again so logged on to WordPress via my laptop and while I got into my blog, all other pages were white with only the WordPress logo on them! WordPress did not even recognize my account name and password! I know I don’t post as much any more but this incident has made me realize how important this blog is to me! Any ideas why I could’t access my blog from my laptop?

Buns, Balls, and Crabs (part 2)

… Or how I ate my way through Taipei and lived to tell the tale. Or, how I learned sharing is caring. (Second of multiple parts)

Crab legs and claws, snails, shrimp and other drool-inducing delicacies at the Keelung Maiokau Night Market

Taiwan is not a good place for dieters. There is just too much delicious food. Our first afternoon alone, in the first three hours in Taipei, we have managed to eat mee sua, which is thin rice flour noodles in a thick broth/gravy with pieces of meat in it and flavored with soy sauce and vinegar. It was mouthwatering. Before that, someone bought a packet of fried chicken nuggets that were out of this world, which our group all sampled. I must say, the Taiwanese really know their street food. And almost anything can be considered street food, as I would later see as we visited the night markets — the first of which, I would be introduced to that first night.

I love traveling by myself and getting lost in a new place. But I must admit, for this first trip to Taipei, I’m glad that I had colleagues who have been here several times and can just guide us as to where to go. I suppose finding the night markets would be easy, for a newcomer. But finding the little stalls and carts that sell the best buns, for instance, is going to be a problem for newbies. There’s also the language problem. More people now speak English, especially among the young university students, but non-Mandarin speakers may still have a hard time getting understood. Still, that’s part of the beauty of travel, isn’t it? On this trip, though, we had a guide who knew her way around. That saved time figuring out how to get to the different places. And of course, the company had hired a van to take us to the more far-flung areas we wanted to go to, which again, saved us valuable time.

Buns, Balls, and Crabs

…Or, how I ate my way through Taipei in five days and lived to tell the tale. (Part 1 of several parts)

Entrance to Keelung Miaokou Night Market. Taiwan is crazy with night markets and they’re fabulous places to eat, drink, eat, shop, eat, meet friends… and eat

This was a company-sponsored bonding trip that happened mid-2013. Yes, a bit late to be posting it now more than a year later, but you know how it is — sometimes things just pile up! So Taiwan. Had to admit, it’s not on my travel bucket list (I don’t really have an actual list; but when pressed on where to go, I can name a few places) — in fact, it’s not even top of mind of places that I would consider visiting. Blame a friend’s comments more than a decade or so ago when she was on a business trip to Taipei and had a miserable time of it because ordinary people didn’t speak English and there were not enough signages in English to make your way around on your own. But since then, had heard great things about Taipei and Taiwan in general, so when the office went for a trip there, I was excited. Who wouldn’t be, when it was practically a free trip to go gallivanting?

Scenes from an Easter Sunday…

… in which we ate too much Italian food, imbibed glasses of Bellinis, laughed a lot, told stories, argued, bought stuff — in other words, celebrated. Good times!

Had heard a lot about Osteria Mozza but haven’t had a chance to eat here, so it was great that we had our Easter brunch there. Food was fantastic! Expensive, of course — as only a Mario Batali restaurant can be. It’s definitely not an everyday kind of restaurant. More for special occasions, like today. The service was great, too! The waitstaff was very attentive and saw to our every need, even anticipating refills of Bellinis! Now, that’s my kind of service!

Starters were assorted bread, which went well with the coffee I had to have before the meal started, because I hadn’t had anything to eat or drink the whole day and I get a caffeine-headache if I don’t have coffee first thing. So we munched on bread while waiting for the food. We also ordered Orechiette with sausages and chard. This is actually a main, but we had it for starters, because we can. The orechiette was very good. The pasta was cooked just right and the sausage and chard complimented each other very well. The sprinkling of bread crumbs was a nice final touch, and mitigated the strong flavors, creating a nice balance. I wouldn’t mind having it again next time we eat here. On second thought though, it can be a bit heavy, so it was actually a good idea to have it for sharing.

Bellinis! Alcohol in Singapore is expensive, so this was, at $18 a pop. So if you’re here to celebrate and splurge anyway, do what we did and have the free-flow at $50. I thought it was worth it, but that’s me. You can check the health of your bank account tomorrow.

Tagliatelle Verde with lamb ragú, olive Taggiasche & mint. This was phenomenal and really hit the spot. At first I thought the serving was a bit small for the price, but about an hour later, I wasn’t done eating it! Flavors blended well together. The lamb ragu, although slightly salty for me, was the perfect compliment to the pasta.

This vanilla panna cotta was the perfect end to the meal. It was creamy and delicious.

Paparazzi pics of us just enjoying ourselves. The great ending to this Easter Sunday? My haul of magazines and A Storm of Swords 2: Blood and Gold. The exile is over! As a friend said, “You really had a good Easter, huh?” Yes, I did!

Wine not?

 

The vino family tree, with all the branches. Salut!

Lazy Sunday: Chicken sopas* for the soul

I was in a lazy mood after being out two days celebrating Chinese New Year, so I ended up puttering around the house, doing the chores that I always end up putting off because they’re so tedious. Wasn’t even in the mood to think up of something complicated to cook. The drawback about living alone (essentially) is that it’s always difficult for me to estimate how much food to buy or make. I always end up buying more than I could consume so there’s always leftovers in the fridge. Today, there was some leftover roast chicken. I had pasta and there were vegetables in the freezer, essentially the ingredients for no-fuss chicken sopas (soup), the perfect weekend comfort food.

Weekend: Saturday in the park*

A swan in Singapore Botanic Gardens’ swan lake. In the few times I’ve been to the Botanic Gardens, this was the first time I’ve seen swans on the lake!

Went on a “just-because” picnic with friends at the Botanic Gardens last Saturday. “Just because” it was a beautiful day and we needed a break from the usual malls and cafes (and also, it has to be told, we were lacking in funds). Turned out, it was a great way to just relax and feel the balmy breeze out in the open. As my mom used to tell me when I was a kid and holed up in my room reading a book, it’s good for the earth to get to know you. Sure, in Singapore it’s well-manicured grasses and well-tended shrubbery and plants, but it’s still nice to actually touch the ground and lie on the grass.

Country mouse, city mouse

“Well, I’m back.” — Samwise Gamgee, after seeing off Frodo, Bilbo and the elves to the Grey Havens

The neighbors’ house as seen from our porch. This is what I miss about home — the greenery! I’m surrounded by greenery in Singapore as well, but it’s different at home because it isn’t… tamed. Shrubs and plants and trees are allowed to grow where they must.

Was trawling through my phone’s camera roll, and found myself smiling at some of the pictures of my Christmas break at home. I didn’t really take a lot of photos because well, vegging out to me means forgetting about the world outside for awhile, disengaging and just letting provincial life take over…

Out walking: Little India at night

At the crossroads of Mackenzie Road and Selegie. This was a few weeks after Deepavali but the decorations are still up

I haven’t been running lately, so as a compromise, I’ve taken to walking a lot. I live fairly central from town, and most of the places I go to are roughly three kilometers from home, so after a night/day out gallivanting, I would walk home. It’s my compromise for not being so assiduous with the running regimen. These pictures were taken around a week or so ago. I was always on Orchard Road, watching films during the German Film Festival (…incidentally, why are serious films called “films” and Hollywood blockbusters “movies”? Ever think of that? It’s the same bugbear I get when in a library or bookstore, fiction is divided between “bestsellers” and “literature” — aren’t all of them literature? Anyway…) and I was walking home and it occurred to me to just take pictures. So here they are. I don’t know if it’s because I was just in a reflective and pensive mood when I shot them, but there’s a loneliness to the images that particularly resonated. Or maybe that’s just my take on them. So let’s begin…

The butter paradox

Butter = goodness. But also = evil.” — Details Later

Quote was in reference to the lunch I made today — Cacio e Pepe. All that butter, I felt like I was channeling Paula Deen! Delicious though. Butter has the same effect as bacon — it makes everything better!