I'm a beached whale, no?

If a picture says a thousand words, then imagine what all these pictures have to tell.. Here are some of the 'sordid' evidence of what I've been up to for the past one week or so of my absence from the blogsphere. I've been around and about in between crashing Hard Disks, blogger's block, (I don't quite fit the cut to be called a 'writer', hence 'writer's block' is simply a form of self-flattery) PMS and and stuffing my face with the most glorious food.


My Mom's famous and super-yummy 'nasi lemak', with the accompaniments of from left 'kerabu timun', fresh cucumber, 'udang goreng assam' (tamarind prawns), 'ayam masak cabai' (dry curry chicken) and hard boiled egg.

Mom would be at her culinary best when my brother is back for the hols and I have him to thank for that as she doesn't cook often. If our place had a chimney, smoke would bellow out from it whenever my dear brother is home as he fancies wholesome home-cooked meals and Mom would go to the lengths to satisfy his cravings. hehehe... Mom promised to give me the recipes for the nasi lemak as well as all the dishes that go with it.

For dessert, I made this simple moist dark chocolate cake that my brother fancies. See? He's spoiled rotten whenever he comes home. I don't mean to flatter myself but it was really yummy, chocolatey and all the jazz that comes with the description of chocolate cakes.

Moist dark chocolate cake in the making...


Fresh out from the oven, still naked with no frosting...

Ok, if you have faith in me that I can bake and cook and trust me enough to want to make this cake, then here's the recipe:

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cup self rasing flour
half cup cocoa powder (sift together with the flour)
1 block (250 gm) of butter (never compromise butter with margarine if you want good quality stuff)
3 large eggs
250 ml low-fat milk
1-2 tablespoonful of chocolate paste (replace this with double boiled chocolate of your choice if you wish to but bittersweet is best)
1 1/3 cup caster sugar
1-2 tsp. vanilla essence
a small pinch of instant coffee powder

Method:
In a large and deep bowl, beat the butter and sugar till light and fluffy. Then, add in eggs one by one and continue whisking till eggs are well mixed with the butter mixture. Add the chocolate paste, vanilla essence and coffee powder and continue whisking till they are evenly mixed. OK, now stop using the electric beater and set it aside. Using a plastic cake spatula, slowly fold in the sifted flour and cocoa powder, a bit at a time alternating with the l.f. milk. Stir until mixture is not lumpy and it's ready to be baked.

Chocolate Glaze

1 cup/250 ml Whipping cream
8 oz/250 gm Semi-sweet or bittersweet real chocolate chopped into bite-size pieces
2 tablespoons/30 ml Unsalted butter at room temperature (optional enrichment)

Heat the whipping cream to the boiling point in a small saucepan.
Place the chocolate in a medium bowl and pour the boiling cream over the chocolate.
Using a plastic spatula, slowly stir the chocolate and cream mixture until it is smooth. Stir in the butter enrichment until well blended. Use immediately.

And after being 'dressed' i.e. coated with chocolate fudge...

The death of moi... Choccies!!! Too bad I could not find dark choc and had to settle for these instead.. But they certainly did help in times of emergencies.. and it was better than not having any at all..










This carrot cake from The Coffee Bean is just to die for... mmmhhhh.... Since I live just a door away from Bukit Jambul Complex where there's a CBTL outlet, it takes every ounce of my willpower to resist the temptation of going inside to get myself a piece every time I walk pass the cafe...


It's a wonder that I've lost a kilo instead of gaining weight with all the food that's gone into my tummy.. I normally retain water when I'm PMSing and gain a stupendous amount of weight that makes me feel like a beached whale but this time around, I feel lucky... Thanks to the treadmill! hehehe...