One Long Lovely Day

Posted August 31st, 2008 in Eat out in Perth, Perth WA | No Comments »

On Saturday morning I went to Atrium Restaurant in Burswood Hotel to have breakfast.  It was my first time to go there, and I was excited by a variety of food:)  Besides the basic food such as bacon, sausages, eggs, hash browns etc, they also have porridge with condiments, dumplings (shyumai), sushi rolls and pickles (tsukemono), stir-fried noodle and rice, few kinds of toast, muffins, pancakes, danishes, muesli…  A chef was cooking eggs in front of us and asked me “would you like some fried eggs?” but I went for scrambled eggs because they looked just perfect:)  

Once we sat down at the table a waiter came to us with two pots; one is filled with coffee and another is with tea.  He was walking around other tables and refilling their cups as well.  I love drinking black coffee in the morning, so every time he came to our table I asked for my cup to be filled with coffee.  In the end I had 5 cups of coffee total :p

Oh my gosh, I ate toooo much:={  One full plate of food (like sausages, eggs, mushroom, tomatoes, ham, a slice of rye bread and dumpling) followed by sushi rolls, a glass of apple juice, muffin and some danishes, muesli, fresh fruit, more scrambled egg….  

To digest the food, I did little bit of gardening at home.  I am growing sunflower and buds are getting bigger:)  

Then, I went out to buy nice salad bowls for coming BBQ party.  (I am planning BBQ lunch at home)  I looked into many stores, but I couldn’t find any!(><)  Well, they had few but I didn’t like them:={  Sometimes it is really difficult to shop in Perth… I miss Japan (><) …. That’s ok, I will search it online.  

Once I came home, I made cookies for my friends:)  Sometimes I don’t care the recipe and measure the ingredients by my eyes.  Apparently it does not look good, but tastes good :p  I wrote a note on the cookies.  

At night, I went to my friend’s house for Gyoza party!(>v<)  We ate many kinds of Gyoza (Japanese dumpling)  with lots of beer!


Blue Berry Cupcakes

Posted August 30th, 2008 in Food | 1 Comment »

Very easy recipe, but always turn out delicious 🙂

<Blue Berry Cupcakes>

  • 4 tablespoons butter
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 1 cup flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 cup milk
  • 1/2 teaspoon finely grated lemon peel
  • 3/4 cup blueberries, either fresh or frozen

* Preheat the oven to 160.

  1. Cream the butter and sugar with electric mixer. When thoroughly combined, add egg and mix.
  2. Shift in the flour, baking powder followed by salt and lemon zest.  Mix with a rubber spatula.
  3. Gradually add milk.  Mix through.  Fold in blueberries.
  4. Spoon the butter into cupcake cases in a tin.  Fill to 3/4 of the case.
  5. Bake for 20-30 minutes or until a bamboo skewer comes out clean. Let cool for 5 minutes then move to a rack.


Eat Fish & Watch Fish

Posted August 25th, 2008 in Eat out in Perth | 2 Comments »

People should already know that Fremantle is a famous place for fish&chips, but there is a place where you can enjoy the fish$chips where live fishes surround you:)

In Cicerellos there were aquariums near the entrance since long time ago, but I was surprised when I visited this restaurant recently.  Their toilet has a totally new look!  There are few more beautiful aquariums around the toilet :p  If you want to go to toilet in Cicerellos you have to pass these aquariums.  They are so beautiful.

In Japan we think this way: if the restaurant doesn’t have a clean toilet the business won’t go well.  Would you like to use a dirty toilet when you go to a nice restaurant??  I bet it turns you off.  If the toilet is clean and well-maintained, your whole experience in the restaurant will change, I believe:) (in better way)

I see very dirty toilets everywhere in Perth, but I like the toilet in Cicerellos.  I hope they keep this up:)


My favorite bakery in Perth

Posted August 23rd, 2008 in Eat out in Perth | No Comments »

I tried bread from many shops here, but Bayview bakery is still the best 🙂 Bayview bakery is located in Claremont, and they actually supply their bread to many famous restaurants / hotels / cafes as well.  (e.g. Duxton Hotel, With’s Cauldron,  Prontos, Tradewinds Hotel etc…)  You can imagine how good their bread is!

As soon as the door opens in the morning, customers keep coming and build a big queue around the lunch time everyday.  Because there are offices and shops around, those office people come to this shop looking for a fast and delish meal 🙂

I LOVE their Focaccia and Panini!  They make up rolls/sandwiches on order, so you can always get fresh one.  Toasted Focaccia with chicken, avocado, sun-dried tomatoes, sweet chili sauce and Jarlsberg cheese are recommended!!!  Oh my gosh you gotta try this. (><)  Freshly baked Focaccia, toasted…  yum.

They use real cheese (they slice cheese and meat in the shop themselves), not plastic one!  My favorite is: lots of salad, avocado and Jarlsberg cheese on rye bread, and toasted Panini with vegemite and cheese!  yum.

Their FRUIT BREAD is also popular as we as other sweet pastries like jam doughnut, custard tart, caramel slices.  You can also order special birthday cakes too.  He is an artist 🙂


Full Moon

Posted August 20th, 2008 in Food | 3 Comments »

I see a full moon in the sky lately.   In Japan, we traditionally enjoy “Otsukimi”(moon viewing) on the night of the full moon in autumn.  We make offerings to the moon of autumn fruits and vegetables, odango(rice dumplings) and susuki(Japanese pampas grass).

However I have never experienced this traditional ceremony.  I just know about this from my grand parents’ story and old books.  I don’t know when people in Japan stopped enjoying Otsukimi…  

What comes to my mind when I see a full moon is, actually, MacDonald’s burger:p  In this Otsukimi season, MacDonald’s in Japan used to sell Otsukimi burger.  The burger contains egg, and the yolk looks like a full moon.  That’s the reason why it’s called Otsukimi burger.

I liked the burger, I don’t know if MacDonald’s still sells them though.  Next time when I go back to Japan in autumn, and if I can get Otsukimi burger then, I would like to enjoy moon viewing with the burger in my hands! 🙂


Strawberry Roll Cake

Posted August 17th, 2008 in Food | No Comments »
Strawberry Roll Cake

Strawberries are on their season and very cheap at supermarkets!  Why not try making this cake with them??  It was very easy and I finished making it in less than 45 minutes.

<Sponge>

  • 3 Eggs
  • 60g Plain Flour
  • 60g Granulated Sugar

* Heat up the oven to 200.

  1. Place eggs in a bowl.  Place the bowl over warm water bath, and whisk eggs with hand mixer.  Add sugar gradually and whisk until ribbon stage.
  2. Add flour and fold in with spatula.  (Be careful not to mix too much as it will cause the sponge not rising well)
  3. Place the mixture carefully into lined oven tray, and bake it for about 10 min.  (Press the sponge with palm lightly and if it bounces back it is cooked.)

< Cream & Syrup >

  • 200ml Whipping Cream
  • 20g Granulated Sugar
  • 5g Gelatin
  • 2tbsp Water
  • Strawberries
  • 25g Granulated Sugar
  • 50ml Water
  1. Mix gelatin with 2tbsp of water.  Mix 25g Sugar and 50ml Water in a pan and dissolve the sugar.  Let it stand to cool.
  2. Once the sponge sheet is cooled down, remove the baking sheet.  Place the sponge on the baking sheet again, and brush the syrup over it.
  3. Whip the cream with sugar till soft peak.
  4. Soften the gelatin mixture over hot water bath, and add to whipped cream.  Mix it through quickly.
  5. Spread the cream on sponge sheet.  Place some cut strawberries on.
  6. Roll up as if you are making sushi roll.  Keep in the fridge till set.



KOHARU-BIYORI

Posted August 9th, 2008 in Perth WA | No Comments »

KOHARU-BIYORI is a day that you can feel the spring is just around the corner.  Today was the one for me!  Sunny, nice wind and blue sky:)  so I went riding (motorbike)! 

View of Perth city...on the way to Attadale

View of Perth city...on the way to Attadale

***Point Water Reserve in Attadale****  This is one of my favorite spot in Perth.  Why??  because there is an unique feature in this place.

 Can you see there is a small path in the water??  When it is low tide, you can actually walk through to the other side of the river!!!  Of course most of the time this path is under the water and you can’t walk through it.  Usually in the summer holidays/weekends this place is full of people!

Today it was pretty windy so there were many many people enjoying water surfing.  Not many people on the ground.  I could see just few people walking through the path:p

This cafe is also usually filled with people but it was pretty late When I got there and very windy, so not many customer.  I love a pit stop here:)  Clear sky, beautiful view and a great coffee!!


Smiley Cupcakes

Posted August 7th, 2008 in Food | No Comments »

Cup Cakes with icing

Great treat for kids 🙂

<Cupcakes>

  • 200g Plain Flour
  • 2 tsp Baking Powder
  • 100g Unsalted Butter
  • 1 pinch Salt
  • 140g Granulated Sugar
  • 2 Eggs
  • 120ml Milk

* Heat up the oven to 170

  1. Place softened butter in a bowl, and whisk until fluffy.  Add Sugar gradually, and keep whisking until it becomes whitish colour.
  2. Add eggs and the half the amount of milk to the mixture and mix it through till it’s smooth.  Then add half the amount of shifted flour / BP in.  Mix it through.
  3. Add the rest of the milk, and then flour / BP to the mixture and mix through.
  4. Spoon the mixture into cupcake liners, and bake them for 20~25 minutes.

<Icing>

I used diet yogurt this time 🙂  It sounds little bit healthier somehow:p  And it sets on the top of cupcakes well!

  1. Just mix 1 tsp of vanilla flavored diet yogurt (or plain) and icing sugar.  Adjust the consistency with the amount of icing sugar as you add.

Spread the icing on the top of cupcakes.  Decorate with M&M and jelly beans to make smiley face 🙂


Roasted Eel on Steamed Rice (Unagi Donburi)

Posted August 2nd, 2008 in Food | 2 Comments »

Here is another easy Japanese meal tip:)

Donburi means “food arranged on steamed rice”.  The bowl which is used for this style of serving is also called Donburi. (or Donburi bowl)

Some people don’t unagi (eel)  as they look like snakes:p  But it tastes really delicious!

In Japan unagi is quite expensive, especially the natural ones.  The unagi which was grown in a fishery and raised by humans are much less expensive.

Hamana Lake (Hamana-Ko) in Shizuoka prefecture is one of the famous place for unagi.  You can enjoy the fresh, natural unagi for quite reasonable price.  If you want to eat fresh natural unagi elsewhere in Japan you will have to pay more than 10000 yen per head!  … expensive :p  but that’s the price range for unagi.

In Perth you can only get frozen unagi (cooked and vacuum-packed) from Asian grocery shop.  All the Japanese restaurant in Perth (to my knowledge) uses those frozen, vacuum-packed ones for their menu anyway, so why not just buy those from a shop and enjoy the unagi at home!  It costs much much cheaper 🙂

What you need to do is just heat up defrosted unagi in a microwave or hot water, and arrange on steamed rice.  Garnish with takuwan (yellow coloured radish pickles) and nori (seaweed) if you like.

Then you can enjoy Unagi Donburi!  How easy is it!!  Itadakimasu.