I like easy-to-make recipes that are yummy. Apple crumble is so easy, you can make them in your sleep (almost). And the one I made today is so yummy and more-ish yet not overpoweringly sugary or rich that it's quite possible I could eat it all in one sitting if I was given the chance to :9. The crumble topping came out nice and crunchy, and the apples were deliciously soft.
The first recipe I ever tried was a recipe given to me by Rob's mum, but it called for far too much flour and oats (so the crumble mixture was too dry and floury). Most recipes available on the net uses the a 2:1:1 ratio of flour+oats:butter:sugar (Rob's mum's recipe uses a ratio of 4:1:1). I've modified that 2:1:1 ratio to reduce the amount of butter and sugar, and it turned out great.
Ingredients
Crumble
125g self raising flour
75g rolled oats
50g butter
75g sugar
2tsp ground cinnamon
0.5tsp ground nutmeg
0.25tsp ground ginger (I have lots of this stuff, so I'm trying to use it up)
juice of 1 lemon (~1/4cup) (The lemon juice adds the extra flavour and moisture I needed to the crumble mixture to make up for the fact that I ran out of butter)
Apple mixture
6 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored and cut into 1/8ths (~700g)
cinnamon and brown sugar to sprinkle (as much or as little as you want)
Method
Preheat oven to 190degC (less if using fan-forced)
Peel, core and cut apples (or get someone else to do it for you) and lay them in an ovenproof dish (I think using a metal dish will cook the apples a lot quicker. We used to use a ceramic dish for apple crumble, but the apples were always still quite crunchy). Sprinkle cinnamon and brown sugar on the apples.
Combine the oats and SR flour and rub in the butter until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. (As mentioned before, I actually ran out of butter and only had about 25g, but I improvised and added ~1tbsp of olive oil.) Add the sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger and combine well. Add the lemon juice and combine well until mixture is a bit moist.
Sprinkle the crumble mixture on top of the apples.
Bake in the oven for 40minutes until the crumble is browned and crunchy :)
Serve as is, or with cream or custard or ice cream or frozen yoghurt. Can be enjoyed warm or cold.
Friday 20 January 2006
Saturday 14 January 2006
Great affordable Japanese food @ Taka
Taka in Perth has been a favourite place for us to go to whenever we want some good but affordable Japanese food. It's cheap but not nasty, and the food is fresh. It's the place where Japanese students and backpackers in Perth go to have their meals (yes, I asked a few Japanese). The first Taka opened on Shafto Lane (between Murray and Hay Street) and it's always crowded on a Friday night. The second Taka opened last year and it's situated in a more central location corner of Barrack and Wellington Street - very close to Murray St Mall.
This place has the cheapest sashimi in town, and it's what I always order whenever I go to Taka. A large sashimi set costs $10 (the most expensive item on the menu, by the way) and you get tuna, salmon, white-fleshed fish (can't remember which one), octopus (cooked), some salad and large servings of rice and miso soup. A large assorted sushi set costs $10, and it's what Rob always order whenever we go to Taka - you get 10 pieces of assorted sushi and a large serving of miso soup. And this place gives out free green tea too (self-serve)!
Went out with a few friends to Taka for dinner, and I had my camera with me so I decided to take a couple of photos to prove that I'm not joking when I say the food is good and affordable. I decide to try something different this time - salmon don. Because of some tummy troubles, I went for the small size ($6). If this is small, I can only imagine the size of the large one.
My friend ordered a large karaage set with mayo ($7). She had trouble finishing it.
A note of warning - it does get really crowded with the lunch crowd on working days, and on Friday nights with the late night shoppers. So if you do go during the peak time, be prepared to wait a while for a table and your food.
Mm yummy, I want some sashimi now..
This place has the cheapest sashimi in town, and it's what I always order whenever I go to Taka. A large sashimi set costs $10 (the most expensive item on the menu, by the way) and you get tuna, salmon, white-fleshed fish (can't remember which one), octopus (cooked), some salad and large servings of rice and miso soup. A large assorted sushi set costs $10, and it's what Rob always order whenever we go to Taka - you get 10 pieces of assorted sushi and a large serving of miso soup. And this place gives out free green tea too (self-serve)!
Went out with a few friends to Taka for dinner, and I had my camera with me so I decided to take a couple of photos to prove that I'm not joking when I say the food is good and affordable. I decide to try something different this time - salmon don. Because of some tummy troubles, I went for the small size ($6). If this is small, I can only imagine the size of the large one.
My friend ordered a large karaage set with mayo ($7). She had trouble finishing it.
A note of warning - it does get really crowded with the lunch crowd on working days, and on Friday nights with the late night shoppers. So if you do go during the peak time, be prepared to wait a while for a table and your food.
Mm yummy, I want some sashimi now..
Thursday 5 January 2006
Update on yesterday's accident
Yes, this issue is still heavy on my mind, and hence the need to vent some frustration. Apologies that this isn't food related.
Rob rang the driver yesterday evening and the woman said she's already made the police report. Rob asked for the report number, but she refused to give it (we think she's trying to scare us and she hasn't actually gone to the police). She then proceeds to inconsiderately send sms-es in the middle of the night - as if we weren't already having trouble sleeping because of her! We got woken up at 12:30am when she sent 4 sms-es to my phone. Shows that she is not only selfish, but a very inconsiderate one.
The message we received as is - word for word, spelling for spelling (she's an awful awful writer!):
"I do realise its late 2 text but heard back from perth metro police and unfortunatley i don't have 2 give u my case number i just have 2 give it 2 my insurance Agency to pass on to you if i decide 2 petition for you to pay for the damage done to my car as while the bike lane is full with parked viechles u then have to aknowledge all road rules including indicating viechles and ad the scratches and wittnesses have reported u failed to stop and abide by the road rules as u hit the left hand side front panel of my viechle and as u were able 2 bend walk and stretch we all know u were uninjured if u wish to see photage of the incident please call after 2pm thanku"
I cannot believe this lady driver! She has the gall to say that she may want us to pay for the damage done to her car. What gets to me the most is that she immediately took an attack position right from when she hit Rob. If I were in her position, I'd be sh*tting myself and the first thing would be to check if the cyclist is okay. She's only concerned with her own self.
She has no case, yet she wants to pretend that she does. She's so insistent and even pulled out rules from her butt saying that the bike lane was full of parked cars and that Rob had to obey the road rules and look out for her indication. Pfft, whatever. 1) The bike lane was separate from the parking bays. 2) Rob was obeying the road rules - she wasn't. Her scare tactic is not working, and there's no way we'll be backing down because we know we have a good case.
Rob has also just submitted a police report of the incident. Rob had a witness who was kind enough to stop his car and give Rob his details to be a witness to the incident. All we want is for her to pay the damage to repair the bike, which would cost probably no more than $200. It's not the cost issue but the principle of the matter that bothers us. This woman needs to be taught a lesson - I think this ignorant driver just needs someone authoritative to tell her that she is at fault here.
I just hope this whole thing will be settled soon.
Rob rang the driver yesterday evening and the woman said she's already made the police report. Rob asked for the report number, but she refused to give it (we think she's trying to scare us and she hasn't actually gone to the police). She then proceeds to inconsiderately send sms-es in the middle of the night - as if we weren't already having trouble sleeping because of her! We got woken up at 12:30am when she sent 4 sms-es to my phone. Shows that she is not only selfish, but a very inconsiderate one.
The message we received as is - word for word, spelling for spelling (she's an awful awful writer!):
"I do realise its late 2 text but heard back from perth metro police and unfortunatley i don't have 2 give u my case number i just have 2 give it 2 my insurance Agency to pass on to you if i decide 2 petition for you to pay for the damage done to my car as while the bike lane is full with parked viechles u then have to aknowledge all road rules including indicating viechles and ad the scratches and wittnesses have reported u failed to stop and abide by the road rules as u hit the left hand side front panel of my viechle and as u were able 2 bend walk and stretch we all know u were uninjured if u wish to see photage of the incident please call after 2pm thanku"
I cannot believe this lady driver! She has the gall to say that she may want us to pay for the damage done to her car. What gets to me the most is that she immediately took an attack position right from when she hit Rob. If I were in her position, I'd be sh*tting myself and the first thing would be to check if the cyclist is okay. She's only concerned with her own self.
She has no case, yet she wants to pretend that she does. She's so insistent and even pulled out rules from her butt saying that the bike lane was full of parked cars and that Rob had to obey the road rules and look out for her indication. Pfft, whatever. 1) The bike lane was separate from the parking bays. 2) Rob was obeying the road rules - she wasn't. Her scare tactic is not working, and there's no way we'll be backing down because we know we have a good case.
Rob has also just submitted a police report of the incident. Rob had a witness who was kind enough to stop his car and give Rob his details to be a witness to the incident. All we want is for her to pay the damage to repair the bike, which would cost probably no more than $200. It's not the cost issue but the principle of the matter that bothers us. This woman needs to be taught a lesson - I think this ignorant driver just needs someone authoritative to tell her that she is at fault here.
I just hope this whole thing will be settled soon.
Rant about ignorant Perth drivers!
This post has nothing to do with food - just want to let off some frustration. Honestly, some people need to relearn their road rules! Many times we have followed the road rules while riding our bikes, and we've had really close calls with drivers or have been abused by them for simply following the rules (see a previous post for just one example).
This afternoon, Rob was on his way on his bicycle to pick me up from work (this is our daily routine, which ensures that he gets his daily exercise), and he was riding along Stirling Street on the bicycle lane clearly marked between the parking bays and the road (we've been doing this almost everyday for a year now). A driver in her car indicated to turn, then promptly ran into him (for a detailed explanation on what happened, read his blog entry here). Now, if you have two lanes on the road, and two drivers in two cars are driving alongside each other, one car cannot simply indicate and then turn into the lane that the other car is in without first checking to see if it's okay to turn, right? If that first driver did so and caused a car accident, it would clearly be the first driver's fault. That's basically the situation here. The worst part was the fact that this lady driver and her friend employed an intimidation tactic and yelled at Rob saying that he should have looked where he's riding. I mean, hello?
I am only thankful that Rob was not more seriously hurt. This is not the end of the matter because the driver is still insistent that Rob was in the wrong, and would probably refuse to pay for the damage done to the bike.
On behalf of all cyclists in Perth (and anywhere else where this rule applies), I plead with all drivers to be aware that we cyclists have the same rights and responsibilities as drivers and motorcycles on the road. If you doubt that statement, you obviously need to re-learn your road rules. That statement is clearly stated in the "Part 6 - Ride Safe" (click here to download that document) section of the "Drive Safe" book published by the Dept of Planning and Infrastructure, WA.
Honestly, Perth drivers are probably one of the worst ones I've encountered in the different countries and states I've been in. I agree with Rob - there should be campaign ads on television to give people more awareness of our rights on the road.
This afternoon, Rob was on his way on his bicycle to pick me up from work (this is our daily routine, which ensures that he gets his daily exercise), and he was riding along Stirling Street on the bicycle lane clearly marked between the parking bays and the road (we've been doing this almost everyday for a year now). A driver in her car indicated to turn, then promptly ran into him (for a detailed explanation on what happened, read his blog entry here). Now, if you have two lanes on the road, and two drivers in two cars are driving alongside each other, one car cannot simply indicate and then turn into the lane that the other car is in without first checking to see if it's okay to turn, right? If that first driver did so and caused a car accident, it would clearly be the first driver's fault. That's basically the situation here. The worst part was the fact that this lady driver and her friend employed an intimidation tactic and yelled at Rob saying that he should have looked where he's riding. I mean, hello?
I am only thankful that Rob was not more seriously hurt. This is not the end of the matter because the driver is still insistent that Rob was in the wrong, and would probably refuse to pay for the damage done to the bike.
On behalf of all cyclists in Perth (and anywhere else where this rule applies), I plead with all drivers to be aware that we cyclists have the same rights and responsibilities as drivers and motorcycles on the road. If you doubt that statement, you obviously need to re-learn your road rules. That statement is clearly stated in the "Part 6 - Ride Safe" (click here to download that document) section of the "Drive Safe" book published by the Dept of Planning and Infrastructure, WA.
Honestly, Perth drivers are probably one of the worst ones I've encountered in the different countries and states I've been in. I agree with Rob - there should be campaign ads on television to give people more awareness of our rights on the road.
Tuesday 3 January 2006
Rob's & Jean's Pasghetti Bolognese
Rob was the one who taught me how to make pasghetti bolognese (that's Rob's unique way of saying spaghetti) years ago with a jar of ready-made pasta sauce, mincemeat, carrots, capsicum, peas and spaghetti. It's one of the easiest meals to prepare because you can cook in bulk, then freeze some for later. Admittedly, I don't cook it very often because the vegetable content isn't as much as I'd like to have in a main meal, but I have adapted the recipe by adding more volume of vegetables as an attempt to make up for that. Now, I don't pretend that this is authentic and claim that this is the way Italians cook bolognese, but it sure is a great bolognese sauce to serve with pasta. It does take awhile preparing all the veges (if you have as much as we do) but it's all good investment of our time because we cook a lot and all the prep needed the next time we have bolognese is just cook the pasghetti pasta and reheat the bolognese sauce.
For this particular cook-up, I've made up my own pasta sauce by using an 810g can of crushed tomatoes as base. You can use any veges or meat you want - you have total free reign over what you cook and eat so feel free to experiment. I've even seen Jamie Oliver (of The Naked Chef fame) using huge hunks of beef meat, stewed it in the bolognese sauce for a long time until the meat falls apart into shreds.
Also, according to Rob, my definition of 'chopped' is actually 'finely chopped' (and my definition of 'finely chopped' is actually 'minced'). I blame this on my mum who insisted that the onions I chopped for her weren't finely chopped enough (regardless of how long I slaved over it). Thank goodness this is a bolognese, and it's nice to have chunky ingredients, so do them as chunky as you like :).
I heard that bolognese is best eaten the day after it's cooked to allow the full flavour of the sauce to develop and diffuse throughout the whole dish. Kinda like curries I suppose.
Ingredients
Olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
Chilli flakes to taste
3 medium carrots, diced
4 celery stalks, diced
1 medium capsicum, diced
1kg minced meat (using 90% lean pork)
1 medium head of broccoli, cut up into smaller pieces
frozen peas
7 or 8 mushrooms, sliced
3 tomatoes, diced
1x810g can of crushed tomatoes
1 cup of water
Herbs (basil and parsley goes really well)
1 or 2 tsp of sugar (explanation provided below)
Salt and pepper to taste
Method
You make a soffritto by heating a little oil and sautéing/stirfrying/lightly-frying (there are way too many complicated terms for cooking, methinks - no wonder some people get intimidated from cooking!) the chopped onions, minced garlic, diced carrots and diced celery on medium heat until soft-ish (5-10mins?). I add the chilli at this early stage of the cooking so that it gets roasted and release the flavour into the soffritto (same goes for any spices).
Add the mincemeat, capsicum and broccoli and cook until the meat is cooked. The lean mince I use is fairly soft and doesn't clump as much as normal mince so if necessary, break any large meat clumps apart.
Then add the chopped and crushed tomatoes, peas and water and stir well. Bring to a simmer, and simmer for 5-10minutes.
Add the mushrooms and the sugar (to take away the acidic edge of the tomatoes), and season well with salt, pepper and loads of herbs.
Give the bolognese a good stir, and voila! the bolognese sauce is ready! All is needed is to cook the pasghetti pasta to serve with the sauce.
The sauce is great in toasted sandwiches as well. Yum :9
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