An acquired taste...Vegemite.

Just like beer, I think, Vegemite is an acquired taste. Last month, Cadbury introduced this...yes! chocolate with Vegemite. I'm not a fan of Vegemite and milk chocolate but it's worth trying. I would say it's not for me as I find it very sweet. It might have made a difference if they used dark chocolate. The bitterness of the chocolate will help balance out the sweetness of the caramel and the saltiness from the Vegemite would have made it a real winner. Oh well, taste is subjective, See for yourselves!

Cake decorating...my antidote for stress.

I'm back...I'm on a hiatus from my CPA studies. It's been a crazy past six months. I guess age is really catching up on me ha.ha. Anyway, raising two girls alone, working full time and studying can be really nerve wrecking. Even if it's very difficult, I really push my self to find time for the things I truly love.

A lot of you may disagree, but for me, cake decorating is one of my stress antidotes; massage is on my number one spot though. Old school  cake decorating is back. In the early 80's, cakes were mostly iced with butter cream or boiled icing using different and elaborate piping techniques. Fondant cakes were not as popular as today. 

Sharing with you a very amateur (Guys! I'm really sorry...I tried rotating using VLC...when uploaded....still crappy) short video of one of the cakes I made using a rose petal tip. Frosting is butter cream. I'm a bit rusty as I haven't done it in a long while but...it's like riding a bicycle. Everything comes back naturally.

The finished product...Chocolate Cake with Coffee Buttercream Icing.

Home Thai Restaurant

Home Thai Restaurant is my daughter's latest happy place as it is affordable and most of all, yummy. Let's face it, we'll never go wrong with Thai food, just like Chinese. Average bill per head is aud14 to 20. You'll surely get your money's worth and the service was good. Food was served very quickly, I think the service time was one notch lower than Mc Donald's ha.ha. I was impressed.

For one salad, three mains, three drinks and a dessert, aud65. Isn't that great? And oh, their pork belly is consistent, meaning, everything is crispy; no chewy spots. Plus, the serving portion is just right. Will definitely come back here.

Green Papaya Salad

Crispy pork belly with pik khing sauce

Crispy pork belly with Chinese broccoli in oyster sauce

Pad Thai

Mango Sticky Rice

Bill's Chocolate Caramel Slices

The first time I got introduced to this lovely slice was when I started working in New Zealand. It was part of our daily preparation for the Te Papa Museum cafe. Oh yes! It was love at first bite! I got my recipe from my pastry chef then. However, I've tested a couple of recipes which I wasn't too happy with the results until I came across Bill Granger's version.It was perfect for my liking. The union of the coconut base, caramel and  dark chocolate is heaven.  Definitely not for the diabetics, sad to say. 


Here's the link to the recipe: Chocolate Caramel Slice

Some important notes:
It is quite important to get the right consistency of the cooked caramel because it won't set well even if it has been baked. I've experienced it before and it can be frustrating not to have those clean edges because the caramel slightly run.

Cooked caramel

Lastly, don't forget to dip your knife in hot water in between slicing to get those neat edges. Have fun! Best eaten with a good cuppa!