Sunset in Newcastle

somewhere down the road

somewhere in Port Stephens

One Mile Beach at Anna Bay, Port Stephens

white fine sand and awesome waves!
please do not forget to bring your boogie board!!!

Salamander Bay

Another way to spend a day in Port Stephens is to go around Salamander Bay. For some outdoor fun on dry land, try the Toboggan Hill Park. The highlight would be (surprise!) tobogganing on the hill, set upon natural bushland, but the speedfreak may not be threatened by the 40kph ride on a long flat-bottomed sled. Very kid friendly, go again and again (of course you pay for every ride) and enjoy the wind on your face.

weeeeeeeeee!

There is also rock climbing, or go to the maze via a tractor ride (more like a tram pulled by a tractor up the hill). The maze is not entirely difficult but would be quite a challenge to some (not to OC though).

where are you?

There is mini-golf, or have a water fight using water balloons hurled through a pail on springs. Pay a $3 entrance fee, since the waiver, and you can venture around the park yourself. Spray on some insect repellent and sunscreen before entering the gates!

go a-splashing

This park would be best enjoyed by kids though... and perhaps, the kids-at-heart.

Right beside this park is the Tomaree Aquatic Center, where there is a giant slide. Very affordable entrance fee and tickets to the slide itself. For $3.50 for 7 rides, experience a similar speed rush from the toboggan - but wet, this time around. Other amenities include a lap pool, a covered toddler pool and heaps of picnic areas. But just remember - the beach is nearby, if you want more fun in water!

at the Tomaree Aquatic Center

The Salamander Shopping Center is a good pit stop for supplies - so for a prolonged holiday, have no fear of running out of food or booze!

at least this fellow is not going hungry

Broughton Island in Port Stephens, Newcastle

About an hour and a half flight away from Melbourne is Newcastle, the second most populated state in New South Wales. It is around 167 km away from Sydney, it is also the sixth largest city in Australia.


Within Newcastle are several bays and stretches of beach, being along the Pacific Ocean coastline. Take another 45 minute drive from the Newcastle Airport and it would lead you to Port Stephens, which was discovered by Captain James Cook. More of its history here.

One of the main attractions in Port Stephens is Nelson Bay. The largest town and main tourist destination, Nelson Bay is home to bottlenose dolphins, boasts of white beaches, magnificent views, long sand dunes and cruises to neighboring islands such as Broughton Island (named after Captain W.R. Broughton, who, while onboard HM Providence came to Port Stephens for shelter and came to find escape convicts living amongst aborigines.)

the 'Looking Glass'

On a Sunday, you can book a nice day cruise on board the Moonshadow catamaran. At 10am, the boat would depart from the D'Albora Marina and would take around an hour and a half to get to the island. On a sunny day, along the way would be sightings of dolphins or sharks on the deep blue seas that match a great blue sky. Docking a good few meters away from the shore, jump off from the other side of the boat and go for a swim while waiting for lunch to be served on board the boat.

lunch on the boat. yummy!

After lunch, passengers are ferried from the boat to the island via a smaller motor boat. On the shore are several houses and campers, lazing the day away under the sun. The island is also home to numbrays, found under the sand on shallow waters, capable of delivering an intense electric shock (as this blogger had found out).

towards the shores of Broughton Island

The view of the shore from behind, while on the trail

A 10 minute bush walk is the northern part of Broughton Island with nice white fine sand, where one can snorkel towards the edge of the rocky parts to find some fish, big and small. The snorkel gear, including fins, are provided in the cruise.

the beach at Broughton

Make sure to bring sunscreen, a hat, beach towels, swimgear and a holiday spirit to enjoy this particular destination! And don't forget to ride the boom net on the way back to Nelson Bay.

Harvesting Dill

Last October we have posted about growing dill. It has indeed grown to be a beautiful and tall plant, with nice green leaves and that distinct fragrant scent. Perhaps it has been such pleasure watching it grow, but then came the time for it to be harvested. This was how it came to be around 8 weeks.

To prolong its shelf life, dill can be frozen and used whenever the need arises. To freeze dill, wash the leaves to remove dirt. Pat dry with a paper towel, ensuring to dry it as much as possible. Trim the long ends off, leaving just a couple of centimeters to hold the feathery sprigs together. Place the sprigs in a zip lock and freeze, putting the bag on top of other stuff in the freezer so as not to squash the leaves. When needed, just take a sprig, chop or snip while frozen.

A Sample Christmas Dinner

Having grown up in the Philippines, Christmas dinner highlights meant hamon (ham, from the spanish word jamon) and keso de bola (literally "cheese ball", from spanish queso meaning cheese, and "bola" for ball). The ham is usually store bought, with a sweet honey glaze, and the red ball of Edam cheese. Having turkey was not a usual thing in our household, so don't even ask if we had cranberry sauce.

This year, despite being several days early for the actual Christmas dinner, was an introduction to Christmas dinner, European style.

parsnip fries baked in the oven, leg of turkey, baked potatoes, and ham

This year's ham was made of a particular store bought pickled pork which was only discovered after quite some time of asking around (inquire through your butcher!), boiled with herbs and spices for a looooong time, but with extreme caution on the cooking time as the preference would still be slightly pink pork, as overcooked pork tends to be dry. Turkey was the best part - roasted in the oven until the skin was crispy and the meat moist and tender.... perfect with those potatoes, with a slight hint of pepper. Together with parsnips, this meal is not for the faint-hearted, make sure to wear elastic-waisted pants to make room for a lot of food!

Just a sampler, this one. With 3 days to go before Christmas, all that can be thought about is food actually!

Sesame Cookies

Baking cookies is not very time consuming, and having experimented with several cookie recipes over the past few months, the preference would still be to have a healthy snack, like this one. In light of the clean up before the New Year starts, the tahini in the fridge show a best-before date of January 2009, so a recipe calling for tahini was in order!

Sesame Cookies

To make this you would need:
1 cup wholewheat flour
1 cup sesame seeds
1 cup rolled oats (not instant)
1/2 cup chopped currants
1/2 cup chopped raisins
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
pinch of salt
1/2 cup sunflower seeds (preferably chopped - but for this one, they were dumped in whole!)
1 teaspoon mixed spice
1/2 cup tahini
1 cup soy milk
1/2 cup honey

dry stuff

(note : in this instance, the nuts nor the dried fruits were not chopped - it just made it easier hehe!)

Mix dry ingredients well together in one bowl. Mix wet ingredients in another. Pour wet over dry ingredients, mix until combined, drop by heaping tablespoonsfuls on a cookie sheet lined with baking paper and cook for 15-18 minutes at 180C.

Easy, no?

(recipe inspired by a cookie recipe from dayzines.com - subscribe to the newsletter and you won't regret it!)

Eggs en cocotte

French cooking may be as simple as 1-2-3, like this dish, eggs en cocotte - a quick and tasty breakfast or a starter for a meal. "Cocotte" is the french term referring to a round or oval casserole, so actually 'eggs en cocotte' is a more 'sophisticated sounding' term for eggs cooked in a ramekin! Picked up the recipe from the New Concise Larousse Gastronomique, an 'encyclopedia' for cooks, 'a real must for an serious chef' (at least according to Jamie Oliver!).

The basic procedure eggs in cocotte is to break the egg into a buttered ramekin, place the ramekins in a pot filled with boiling water that reaches up to half the height of the ramekin (yes, a bain marie), and bake till the egg white is set to your liking, and with the yolk usually still soft. According to Larousse the oven setting would be 200C (pre-heated as usual), for 6-8 minutes, but the whites weren't set enough (well at least, as a personal choice), so these were in the oven for around 10-13 minutes.

Variation to the recipe would be very simple additions of very tasty stuff - 1 tablespoon of heated double cream on the bottom of the ramekin, break egg on top, add a knob of butter over the yolk, and sprinkle with grated parmesan cheese before putting in the oven.. and then some salt and cracked pepper on top just before serving. Others would use tarragon, or some other herbs and spices to flavor the eggs.

before and after

Simple breakfast, serve with some toast and coffee, and surely things can't go wrong!

Mandala

Another Christmas gift came in the form of a voucher to a restaurant called Mandala. Being nearby, its menu has been quite familiar and had been meaning to give it a try, hence the much appreciated gift removed all excuse to procrastinate the exercise.

The menu is asian, but one cannot specifically say where exactly from asia, as it has different varieties that would suit almost everyone. Wonton parcels, crispy fried pork, apple chaat, to name a few - the starters sounds like a mix of indian and chinese cuisines. We sampled the asian anchovies with pickled vegetables and salt and pepper squid. The anchovies were wok tossed but unfortunately lacked the crispiness, but was easily forgiven because the spices and flavors were quite exquisite and nicely combined with hints of turmeric, spring onions and tomatoes. The squids were cooked just right and served with a dipping sauce that tasted similar to particular chinese vinegar. For the main dishes, a whole snapper served with blackberries (and some other berries like strawberries & blackcurrants) was quite a pleasant surprise. The soft shell crab with pickled plums, salad greens and toasted peanuts was also just sublime, making the palate a distinct playground of flavors. A much recommended dish, which you can have either with rice or roti, and a bottle of wine from the diverse selection of drinks.

whole snapper with blackberry and ginger chutney, and soft shell crab

The servings were quite big but in the spirit of Christmas the dessert cannot be foregone - hence the choice of Mandala Melt. Made of whipped mascarpone, cherries, pistachio nuts, and strawberries, it was an elegant finish to the meal.

Mandala Melt

And being slightly addicted to coffee, a long black made of organic beans sealed the deal. It was official - this restaurant will be visited again to try the other delectable sounding dishes in the menu. And yes, very much willing to pay for it the next time around.

Christmas Pudding

For those away from home the build up to festive periods often brings about a little homesickness and the wish to reach out to those in far away lands. One way to help fill the gap is to surround oneself with distant sounds and smells that evoke memories of times past. For this particular exile this usually takes to form of food and drink :)

With Christmas fast approaching the advent of a rainy weekend brought about the perfect opportunity to indulge in the preparation of one of my particular favourites, Christmas pudding…..Irish style!!!

A wide and varied recipe search amalgamated with memories of recipes past brought about the following concoction:

170g self-raising flour (if you can get Odlums, excellent!!!)
225g white breadcrumbs (slightly old will do)
340g dark brown sugar (muscovado is best)
450g currants
225g raisins
225g sultanas
115g mixed peel
1 tsp mixed spice
1/2 tsp grated nutmeg
115g glace/maraschino cherries, quartered
55g ground almonds
zest of 1 orange
zest of 1 lemon
1 grated apple – skin on (preferably granny smith)
1 tbsp dark treacle
225g grated suet (or melted margarine or butter…margarine was used in this case) + more for greasing
3 eggs
90ml Irish Whiskey (Jameson here)
300ml Guinness

For the adventurous a couple of drops of Tabasco sauce add a nice little departure from tradition. If in doubt, perhaps best to leave out :)

Mix the dry ingredients together, thoroughly. Then add the wet, again mixing thoroughly.

Tradition has it that everyone in the household takes a turn at mixing; going it alone will soon expose the wisdom behind this particular tradition :)

The consistency should be wet (see above). Add more Guinness/Whiskey if not wet enough…more breadcrumbs if you go too far the other way.

When finished grease a couple of one litre/circa two pound pudding bowls, filling each to just under the rim with the mixture. Take a big piece of grease proof paper, fold in half and then fold back on one side leaving a 50mm flap in the middle. Do the same with tin foil. Place the grease proof paper over one of the bowls, taking some kitchen string to tie it tightly in place under the rim.

Repeat with the tin foil by placing it over the grease proof paper. Finally tie a string handle to the outer string; this is used to lift the pudding in and out of the steamer.

Repeat the above process for the second bowl.

Now for the easy bit. With the Whiskey and Guinness still within arms reach have a toast to the puddings….just one mind you!

Back to work!! Place each pudding in its own pot, add boiling water to three quarters the depth of the pudding bowl and place a tight fitting lid on the pot. Simmer for between six and eight hours.

When done lift the puddings from the pots, set aside and allow to cool.


If you can’t wait until Christmas then a sneak preview can be had by slicing the “muffin top” from over the top of each pudding.

Repeat the grease proof paper and tin foil steps again and stow away safely.

On the day itself the puddings will need to be steamed again, only for two hours this time. When done remove the puddings from the pudding bowls (upside down on a plate…to state the obvious).

Serve flaming (more whiskey), with your choice of cream, custard or brandy butter.

Pinakurat

A great find during the Filipino Fiesta was this dipping sauce called Pinakurat, a spicy vinegar made from Iligan, a province in the Philippines. (The city is also known as "Industrial Center of the South" and "City of Majestic Waterfalls", as it is home of at least 20 waterfalls, including the Maria Cristina Falls which is also a main source of hydroelectric power.)


Bought with a colleague for $8 for two bottles (special offer lang po!), this dipping sauce is advertised to be best with lechon (spit-roasted pig basted with special spices and with crispy crackling), barbeque (a passion that we Pinoys share with Aussies!), roasted meat or seafood. Nothing better than to give it a try to see if it delivers - and if you take my word for it, it surely does!

There was some excess ham fat that just didn't deserve to be thrown away... so it has been chucked in the oven for 1 hour at 190C after a good drizzle of olive oil and ground schezuan pepper.... and turned into nice, crispy crackling.

Serve with beer!

From the Pinakurat website : "Pinakurat is a traditional Iliganon (MC : i.e. from Iligan) dish made from wild boar meat “sulop” cooked only by a flame-shut pot of boiling coco vinegar, chilies, and spices. Since the taste of the vinegar is very similar to that of the dish, it was then named after it. Another surprising but practical reason is that the product presents a pleasant surprise that excites the senses to a taste long desired. The word pinakurat is from the word "kurat” which means surprise in Visayan vernacular. (MC : Visayan, or Cebuano, is the city's major language).

Pinoys love their "sawsawan", the dipping sauce, hence the Pinoy pantry will always have a soft spot for this very versatile dipping sauce.

It is also a testament to another typical Filipino trait - being world class! With stores in Ireland, UK and Australia, there may be a Pinakurat near you! Check out the FAQ's in the website here .

Tales of Beedle the Bard

One of the early christmas gifts came in the form of The Tales of Beedle the Bard by J.K Rowling. It is composed of 5 children's tales, something like an equivalent of Aesop's fables but for the kids with magical background like wizards and witches.

Harry Potter fanatics would definitely be able to relate to the stories because of preliminary background earned from the Harry Potter books. There are specific terminologies, like the word "muggles" which refer to non-magical people. Though these are also explained briefly in the book, there would be a sense of familiarity, which provides more appreciation to the tales.

There were five stories in the book, and the book itself was a reference in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, where Albus Dumbledore has left the book to Hermione. It may just need a cup of coffee or tea and a lazy afternoon to finish the book as it is not very lengthy, but enough to feed the imagination, and a pretty good addition to the J.K. Rowling collection!

The proceeds of the book will also go to the Children's High Level Group, which is an independent dedicated child helpline. At least everyone gets a fair share!

Claypots

A planned trip to a "pay what you feel like" lentil fest in St. Kilda was foiled by a large gathering of upwardly mobile, fake hippie wannabies barricading the entrance with a very well organised display of "spontaneous" street fair.

Plan B was required! Well actually not really, located close by was a place named Claypots...yes, guess what they serve? A pretty busy, cosy little place that promised a seafood and vegetarian feast. It delivered. Mezze (or Meze, depending on your persuasion) was served first, a lovely selection of ray, gurnard, green beans, tomatoes, aubergine, orange, fennel and dill...all very tasty, going well with a very reasonable priced bottle of the house Sauv Blanc. The mains were a large share-sized gurnard, Moroccan and Cajun claypots. All fresh, tasty and plenty to fill a hungry foursome.

Turkish coffee stood out on the menu for afters; unfortunately it was only served in the adjoining bar....oh well :)

The bar was another cosy, although slightly less busy place with dark surrounds, old chord light bulbs hanging from the ceiling and emitting the kind of soothing crooner music that brings you back to the days of Dean and Ella and, well you know. The Turkish coffee was up to scratch and it was felt only right to follow that up by availing of the, again reasonably priced, Krusovice (a Czech beer) on tap. A few of those later and a sultry songstress started up on the piano belting out the same tunes in a manner not expected in such a small back street establishment...or is it :)

If only the slightly tipsy eighty year old would have quit grabbing the mic and let her get on with it.

All in all a very pleasant way to spend an evening and perhaps one more reason not to limit yourself to lentils!!

Easy Fudge

You'd be surprised at how easy it is to make fudge. Chocolate, butter, condensed milk, and that's it!
This recipe is made with a little booze and some fruit and nut just for extra crunch. Not sure if this recipe defies any fudge making rules but it turned out to be quite good so it's a keeper!

375 grams dark cooking chocolate chips + 1 175g bar of Lindt chocolate with hazelnuts
50 g butter
1 can condensed milk
1/2 cup mixed fruit soaked in a good glug of irish whiskey

Line a 9" square tin with cling film and set aside. Place a heat proof bowl over a pot of boiling water (a bain marie), put the chocolate and butter and mix until melted. Add the condensed milk, the fruits and whiskey, mix until well incorporated. Place in the square tin, refrigerate for a couple of hours (to make cutting easier) and cut into small squares. Serve to the willing chocolate addicts in the house!

Warm Green Salad

Discovered by accident during lunch preparation today was this dish that was supposed to be a chopsuey (stir fried veggies with a little bit of sauce from cornstarch dissolved in water). There were some leftover vegetables from last week's shopping, like cos lettuce, and though it felt wrong to toss it in a wok as it is best served fresh, it went into the pan since its no longer in its peak freshness (and we can't waste food!).

This dish is made of
half a red onion, chopped
garlic shoots, minced
about 3 handfuls of roughly chopped cabbage
about 2 handfuls of roughly chopped cos lettuce
1 fresh red chili, minced
half a carrot, chopped
half a green bell pepper, chopped
a dash of peanut oil, a dash of sesame oil, soy sauce and cracked black pepper for seasoning.

Very easy - in a very hot wok, heat some peanut oil then throw in the onion and saute until slightly translucent. Add in carrots, garlic shoots and red chili, move around for a while. Add the soy sauce and let sizzle for a bit, turn heat off and then add the bell pepper, lettuce and cabbage, toss in with the sesame oil, and serve immediately.

The peanut oil, sesame oil and soy sauce serve as a warm dressing to the veggies. Season with cracked black pepper. Nice twist to your usual salads!

Christmas Tree

It's that time of the year again! When people say "Christmas is just around the corner", it literally is, because time flies so fast. As the year draws to a close, the silly season arrives only to fly out of the window again, hence us mortals who revel in its presence must make the most of it while it lasts!

Part of the tradition is putting up the Christmas tree. Having grown up in south-east asia, the concept of a Christmas tree was that of a plastic, triangular pine tree that is taken out of the box together with the rest of the lovely, colorful trinkets, and of course the huge star to be lodged on top.

This year, in light of all things new and different, a small tree was purchased instead of a big "real" coniferous creature that has been cut down. This one is a Picea Glauca Albertiana Conica, a dwarf spruce.



Hopefully this tree will see more of Silly Seasons in the future, as it will eventually find its place somewhere in the garden, to be tended with the rest of the greens!

Growing Green!

It's been a while since we have updated stuff about the garden, hence here are snapshots of what became of some plants growing quietly in their own time!

There is a long sweet pepper, nice and green and currently looking very crispy!

Photo several weeks ago

and how it looks now

Part of the maintenance involves watering it with seaweed concentrate mixed with water. Still currently figuring out the best fertilizer to use, whether some home made compost which could be tricky to start with, or some store bought organic fertilizers.

There were also some coriander seeds that were left to germinate at the kitchen window sill, where there was some sunlight streaming in.

before

and after

The little green leaves behind the window (on the photo above) are the tomatoes snatched for free during a town fair. One of the fair's purpose was to encourage people to grow their own herbs and vegetables in their own homes. During that time, there were already several greens sprouting from little pots at the backyard, hence it was a pleasant surprise to get these little seedlings for free! And now well more than 1.5 feet in height!

...about to bear fruit too!

Singapore

Some of probably the most photographed places in Singapore!

The Symbol



The Esplanade


..except for this one, which is probably not often seen, but would have been captured elsewhere!