Giraffe Cafe, Melbourne CBD

Sesame Chicken Noodle Salad

Vegetarian Dumplings & Soba Noodles

Creamy Pumpkin, chicken & spinach baked rice

Chocolate Pudding

Look at their waiting plate, it's not the commonly-used "numbers" but a “Mushroom”! how adorable XD
你看他们的等候牌，不是常见的“号码”，而是“蘑菇”！实在太可爱啦 XD

My friends and I had a small gathering at Giraffe Cafe tonight. We tried its desserts couple of times before but have never tried its main course, so we decided to give it a try today.


We ordered Sesame Chicken Noodle Salad~It's a very summer-ish dish, light and refreshing. The dumplings of Vegetarian Dumplings & Soba Noodles were fried nicely, but the taste itself was normal. As for the Creamy Pumpkin, chicken & spinach baked rice...the taste was just...OK =p Moving on to the dessert! You should not miss out Chocolate pudding and Sticky Date Pudding! However, I do suggest 2 persons to share 1 chocolate pudding-- It's really nice but you may feel sick if you finish such a THICK Chocolate Pudding all by yourself~


As a whole, I think Giraffe Cafe's dessert outshines its main course. This cafe is very suitable for small gathering/ Hi-Tea. The ambience is peaceful and cozy =)



Giraffe Cafe
302 Little Lonsdale Street
Melbourne, Vic 3000.

今天很愉快地跟老朋友见面了~地点就在靠近 Melbourne Central 的 Giraffe Cafe。 这间 Cafe 总是主打甜点，其实它也有卖正餐噢 =D


我们点了 Sesame Chicken Noodle Salad~吃起来清新可口，是一道很适合夏日的面食。Vegetarian dumplings & soba noodles 的煎饺煎得非常出色，脆脆的！不过味道还好。另外一道 Creamy Pumpkin, chicken & spinach baked rice 嘛。。。味道“普普”呢~哈哈！再来是甜点！Chocolate Pudding 和 Sticky Date Pudding 都是不错的选择。建议两个人合吃一份 Chocolate Pudding-- 虽然很好吃，但这么浓厚的巧克力一个人可吃不消啊~


总的来说，我觉得 Giraffe Cafe 的甜点会比正餐出色。那边气氛很温馨，非常适合小聚会/ 吃甜点 =)

Giraffe Cafe
302 Little Lonsdale Street
Melbourne, Vic 3000.

Tiramisu 提拉米苏

I wonder why I have so many November-baby friends! 7th November is my very-very-good friend's birthday, I made a Tiramisu for her ^^


Tiramisu means "pick me up" in Italian. I heard different stories about the origin of Tiramisu, but the one I like the most is this >> An Italian soldier was about to join the military to fight for the war. His wife felt really upset, and hence before he left, used the ingredients available in the kitchen to made a "Tiramisu" cake for him, literally means "bring me along with you". Isn't this a very romantic dessert? =)


My friends think that the cake was pretty nice~but what they don't know is...HOW EASY is it to make this cake! Keke~I got this recipe from Kraft Website: http://www.kraftrecipes.com/recipes/fast-easy-tiramisu-52890.aspx, and made a little bit of adjustment. Trust me it's really easy, try this at home!


Ingredients: 1 tablespoon of instant coffee powder, 1/2 cup hot water, 1 sponge cake, 2 packages of   Philadelphia Cream Cheese (250g each), 1/2 cup sugar, 7 cups of Whipped Dairy Cream, cocoa powder


Method: 1. Cut the sponge cake into pieces (about 1 cm each) and arrange them in a square/ round dish. Dissolve instant coffee in hot water, brush them on the cake.
              2. Put cream cheese under room temperature for it to soften. Then, use electric mixer to beat it until creamy. Add in sugar, continue beating until the texture is smooth.
              3. Whisk in Whipped Dairy Cream manually.
              4. Pour 1/2 of the cream cheese mixture onto the cake in the dish, top with another layer of cake and brush with coffee. Pour in the remaining cream cheese mixture.
              5. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours. Sprinkle with cocoa powder when serve.

Tips: Manually whisk in the Whipped Dairy Cream will do. Whipped Cream adds to the volume of cake, if overbeat, can "de-aerate" the cake and reduce its volume.

Done and enjoy!


别问我为什么~可是我就是有一大堆朋友在年尾生日，哈哈！十一月七号是我一个很要好的朋友的生日，我做了提拉米苏给她 ^^ 


提拉米苏在意大利文里有“带我走”的意思。我听过好几个有关提拉米苏由来的故事，可是我最愿意相信的是这个〉〉在某次大战时，有个意大利兵要离开家为国服役。他的妻子非常不舍，在他临走前用厨房里剩下的材料做了“提拉米苏”给他，并命名为“带我走”。是不是一道很浪漫的甜点呢？ =)


我朋友觉得蛮好吃的~可是他们不知道。。。这蛋糕有多容易做！呵呵呵~被骗啦 XD 我的食谱取自于Kraft Website：http://www.kraftrecipes.com/recipes/fast-easy-tiramisu-52890.aspx, 然后稍做了一些调整。非常简易，欢迎试做！

材料：1 匙咖啡粉，1/2 杯热水，1 盒海绵蛋糕, 2 盒 Philadelphia Cream Cheese (1 盒 250 克）, 1/2 杯糖，7 杯 Whipped Dairy Cream, 适量可可粉

做法：1。将海绵蛋糕切片（约 1 公分厚）铺在方形或圆形的器皿里。咖啡粉和热水调匀，刷在蛋

                   糕表层。

            2。待 Cream Cheese 软化，用自动搅拌机搅拌。加入糖，搅至滑顺。

            3。加入 Whipped Dairy Cream，用手搅至均匀。

            4。将 1/2 搅匀的 Cream Cheese 倒入铺了蛋糕的器皿，再铺上一层蛋糕，刷上咖啡。接着

                  倒入剩下的 Cream Cheese。

            5。放入冰箱至少 4 小时。要吃时撒上可可粉。

提示：加入 Whipped Dairy Cream 时用手搅匀即可。Whipped Dairy Cream 有增加蛋糕体积的作用，若过度搅拌会把空气打掉，蛋糕体积会减少。

完成！轻慢享用 ^^

Grandmother's somen (mee shua) 阿嬤的面线

 
Today I would like to present to you...the "Grandmother's somen"! Somen is called "mee shua" in Hokkien. I find this direct translation a bit funny but anyway~this is a recipe taken from 《现代心素派》 edited by DaAi TV (Taiwan), and I twisted the recipe a bit to suit my own preference. I suppose this is a traditional food in Taiwan~ Although my grandmother in Malaysia never cook this, I find this mee shua really yummy and appetising ^^

Ingredients：(A) mee shua for 1 person, sesame oil, sliced ginger, 1 egg
                     (B) salt, cooking wine (rice wine), brown sugar

Method：1. Cook mee shua with boiling water until 70% cooked.
                2. Use sesame oil to fry a sunny-side-up.
                3. Stir fry the sliced ginger, then put in the mee shua. Pour in the pre-combined (B), stir fry the mee shua until it absorbs all the (B).

Tips: 1. Don't overcook the mee shua or else it can get too soft.
        2. Mix the cooking wine and brown sugar with 1 : 1 proportion.  Add more or less depending on your own preference.

Simple but nice! The sweetness of sugar combined with a hint of bitter from the cooking wine-- perfect match XD

今天为大家献上的是简单又好吃的“阿嬤的面线”! 这食谱摘录自大爱电视台@著的《现代心素派》， 然后我再按自己的口味调整了一下。我猜想这是台湾的传统吃法~ 虽然我马来西亚的阿嬤没煮过这道面线，但我还是觉得很好吃噢 ^^


材料:  （A）面线 1 把，麻油，姜丝少许，蛋 1 个
           （B）盐适量，米酒，黑糖


做法： 1。烫面线至七分熟。
             2。 麻油入锅，煎 1 颗荷包蛋。
             3。爆香姜丝， 放入面线，再加入调匀的（B）。炒至面线完全吸收（B）即可。

提示：1。面线切记不能煮过熟，不然会太软，口感不好。
            2。米酒和黑糖以 1 ： 1 的份量增加，按个人喜好自行加减。


非常简单的美味！黑糖的甜掺杂着米酒的微苦，配上QQ的面线-- 绝配 XD

Laksa King, Flemington

Last night, we celebrated another friend's birthday at Laksa King. I have always wanted to try this restaurant because many friends had talked about it and the feedback is generally good. And YESSSS! finally! I tried the food there last night XD

When we reached the restaurant, I was shocked by what came into my sight...FULL HOUSE!! It's not a weekend, it's not in the city area, how can such a spacious restaurant be fully packed by customers??

I ordered their Chicken Laksa, I was shocked once again by their soup...it's no doubt the best laksa in Melbourne! It has a very thick soup base, and it's jam-packed with flavours! Lemongrass, shallot, garlic, shrimp paste...it seems to possess every ingredient that a good laksa should have. I can see the chef's effort and love in there =)

Although I ordered chicken, I would prefer to recommend their Fish Head Laksa (I wanted to order this but it was ordered by my friend first T.T). The deep-fried fish head was crispy outside while soft and tender inside. Don't miss out this if you are a fish lover.

Ok time to settle the bill~and again! for the third time I was shocked! My Chicken Laksa costs only AUD 9.20 while the Fish Head Laksa is only $11.90! High quality food with such a reasonable price! THANK YOU, the boss of Laksa King XD

I highly recommend this restaurant my dear friends!

Laksa King
6 - 12 Pin Oak Crescent
Flemington, 3031
(03) 9372 6383

又是一个朋友的生日, 昨晚我们到 Laksa King 替他庆祝。厚！我等了这么久终于有机会试吃这个远近驰名，人们津津乐道的餐厅啦　XD


我刚到那餐厅时是有点被震住了。。。怎么那么多人？？不是周末，不处于市中心，面积这么大的餐厅怎么还可以坐满人？？还真是名不虚传啊～


我点了他们的鸡肉叻沙，尝了一口汤后又被震住了。。。这的确是墨尔本最好吃的叻沙！那汤头非常浓郁，而且味道满分！说五味杂陈好像不太妥当，但喝下去的感觉就是那样～柠檬草，小葱头，蒜头，虾酱。。。像是一碗好的叻沙该有的材料它都具备了，是一碗非常用心的叻沙汤 =)


虽然我点的是鸡肉，但我更想推荐他们的鱼头叻沙（本来想点但被朋友先点去了 T.T )。外头炸得酥脆的鱼头，里面的鱼肉还是柔软鲜嫩。我觉得鱼头叻沙应该会更鲜甜一点。


好吧吃饱结帐～结果！我又第三次被震惊到了！这么好吃的鸡肉叻沙竟然才AUD 9.20，鱼头叻沙也不过AUD 11.90~天啊好感动，感激这个用心但“不骄傲”的老板　XD


各位！这餐厅值得一试！

Laksa King

6 - 12 Pin Oak Crescent

Flemington, 3031

(03) 9372 6383

Caramel Custard Pudding 焦糖布丁

A friend of mine just broke up with his girl friend, I really don't know how to comfort him...he likes to eat custard pudding so I made him one today, hopefully that brings up a smile on his face.

Portion: 4 puddings

Ingredients: (A) Caramel - 4 tablespoons sugar
                                      - 2 tablespoons water
                                      - 1 tablespoon hot water

                   (B) Custard - 2 eggs
                                      - 250 ml milk
                                      - 5 tablespoons sugar

Method: 1. Coat the pudding moulds with butter (easier to remove pudding from the mould later)
              2. Cook the mixture of "4 tbsp sugar + 2 tbsp water" with medium heat until it turns into brown colour. Remove from heat and add 1 tbsp of hot water (Be careful! the caramel can spill). Then pour the caramel into moulds.
              3. Heat up and stir the mixture of "milk + 5 tbsp sugar". Cook until sugar dissolves, no need to boil
              4. Whisk eggs with least bubbles possible (Make sure the whisk doesn't leave the bottom of the bowl, that helps to minimize bubbles =D )
              5. Gradually add 3. into 4. and stir gently.
              6. Sieve 5.
              7. Pour 6. over caramel in the moulds. Remove any bubble.
              8. Cover the moulds with aluminium foil (to prevent the surface from turning dry)
              9. Steam puddings in a pan. Put a kitchen towel on the pan, then add water to a level that covers the bottom half of the pudding moulds. Steam puddings at a temperature just below the boiling point for 20 minutes. (Suggestion: Fully cover the pan for the first 5 min, half-cover for the next 10 min and leave it uncovered for the last 5 min)
             10. Keep the puddings in the fridge and serve them chill. When serve, use a knife to detach the pudding from its mould, then invert it onto a plate.

Tips: Custard pudding has a distinctive feature-- the very SMOOTH texture! so try to make sure there is no bubble when you stir. Sieving the egg mixture and steaming it with a very slow fire are also essential.

Hey friends who have just broke up, please don't get too upset. If you think he/she fits, be brave and chase them back. Don't lose someone precious to you just because of a small quarrel; While if he/she doesn't fit...you shouldn't feel down for them at all. Please believe you deserve someone better =)

有个朋友最近失恋了，不知道要怎么安慰他。。。想起他还蛮喜欢吃焦糖布丁的，所以今天就做了一份给他，希望能为他打打气。


份量：4个


材料：（A）焦糖 - 4 大汤匙糖
                                - 2 汤匙水
                                - 1 汤匙热水


             （B）布丁 - 2 粒蛋
                                 - 250 毫升牛奶
                                 - 5 汤匙糖


做法：1。将4个布丁模涂上牛油 （方便之后脱模）
            2。将4大汤匙糖和2汤匙水搅匀，用中火加热至焦糖颜色（棕色）后离火，加入1
                  汤匙热水迅速搅匀（小心！加热水时焦糖会喷溅），分别倒入4个布丁模底部。
            3。加热（B）的牛奶和糖，搅匀。糖溶解即可，不用煮滚。
            4。慢速打散2粒蛋，尽量使其不起泡 （打蛋时叉子不离碗底能减少气泡噢  =D )
            5。慢速把3。倒入4。，慢慢搅匀。
            6。用滤网过滤5。
            7。将6。倒入铺了焦糖的布丁模。拿掉小气泡。
            8。用铝箔纸掩盖布丁模顶部（这样蒸出来的布丁表面才不会太干）。
            9。平底锅加水，放一张餐纸后放入布丁模。水位应该达至布丁模的一半。用刚刚低于
                   沸点的温度蒸布丁20分钟。（建议：前5分钟加盖，之后10分钟半掩盖，最后5分钟不加盖）
            10。冷却后放入冰箱。要吃时用刀小心脱模，然后倒盖在盘子上就行了！


提示：焦糖布丁的亮点在于那滑顺的口感~所以一定要确保没有气泡，一定要过滤，一定要用
             慢火蒸。


失恋的朋友们，请不要太沮丧。值得挽回的就去挽回吧，不要因为小争执错过这么难得的他/她；而不值得的。。。更不必要为他/她伤心难过。请相信，你值得更好的另一半 =)