From my kitchen .. Fruit mince pie pt 11

Well, this is the continuation from my kitchen escapades and making fruit pies from scratch.

I did not take too many pics of making the dough as I don't have a food processor at home hence it was a lot of hard work to kneed it to the correct consistency.

In short though, it was quite fun (and I made a lot of mess!)..




Things required for pastry - 4 cups plain flour, white sugar to sprinkle, 2 egg yolks, 1/2 cup icing sugar mix, 300 g chilled butter (chopped)

Place flour, icing sugar and butter and and process until it starts looking like bread crumbs. You then add in the egg yolks, a few drops of water until the dough starts coming together.

Roll dough on non stick baking paper and flour. Cut pastry into round disc and place on pan, prick base with fork.

(My first attempt of pastry -made it wayyy too thick so all it tasted was pastry - attempt FAIL)

I didn't have a pastry cutter so used a 1 cup measuring cup instead ;)

Top with mince filling from Pt 1, I didn't top the pies with pastry disc, instead opting for lines (less work). Sprinkle with white sugar and place in a preheated 180' oven for 30-35 mins.

Ok - this is the finished product. I must say, I quite liked it even though I did leave it in the oven for a bit longer. I will take it out after 20 mins in my fan oven. Overall, am quite pleased with my 1st attempt. I do know that I will be adding more rum the next time.. :)

Everything looks better gift wrapped ..

Blessed Christmas to everyone.

Little pleasures

Brunch with a good mate on your day off...

APTE Cafe - Alphington

Pics taken using my camera phone

Camera stories - Melbourne Central

From my kitchen .. Fruit mince pie pt 1

Since it is close to Christmas and all, BF has been having this massive thing for fruit mince pies "Like mum used to make" .. maybe its an English thing, maybe as it is still rather chilly in Melbourne?

Since I do have this extra time on my hands, I decided to keep my man happy and instead of using the premix mince filling and store bought tart, do the whole hop and make one from scratch! I did cut corners somewhat with the fruit mix tho, instead of buying individual items, I used fruit mix which is essentially the same thing but with bits of lemon in it.

Recipe to follow with pt2, but in the meantime...


Step 1 - Dice fruit (currants, sultanas, glazed cherries, cored and peeled Granny Smith apple)

Step 2 - Mix following ingredients with diced fruit (brown sugar, breakfast marmalade, rum or brandy *I used dark rum*)

Step 3 - Let the well mixed fruit soak for 2 days....

to be continued...

Holiday update - Day 2.

2 days into the 3 week holiday.. and already I am thinking time is flying by too fast!
In the meantime - am off for a bout of last min Christmas shopping and lunch catchup at Melbourne Central :))

Shall I???

Question now is....

With my trip across the ditch next month - shall I do my fifth bungee or play it safe with the bridge climb esp as I don't want to hurt my back for snowboarding in Feb???

Tick........

Countdown to Friday begins!
*3 weeks compulsory office closure, ah well ..there goes my annual leave but what the hey!*

Santa Claus is coming to town...

Things to do for 2011

I want to pick up a language - Cantonese... maybe not. I wont have much chance to use it.

Language of choice - Spanish.

10 Things to do before I die ...

You know how some ppl have this list of things to achieve before they hit a certain age? In most cases, it generally reads like 1) Must get good job, 2) Must be married to someone who is tall dark and handsome bla bla...


Well, I never had this list. I did have a list though, just not THAT list. My list on the otherhand was all about *surprise surprise* travel and experiences. Don't ask me why, but children and marriage was never very high on my to-do agenda. I haven't had a look at this list, not since I became an inactive member of VirtualTourist anyways. But I logged on today and perhaps it is time to build up a new list.

I have been keeping a list of sorts but it is not one set on paper (or blog in this case). Some items I have already crossed off, but this can be added onto the new list. Well, for starters, here is the old list - and in no particular order....

10 Things I want to Do before I Die...(Old List)

Skydive ~ mission accomplished in KL *

Fly a kite in Tiannamen Square Beijing, China ~mission accomplished *

Get drunk on wine*oh the hangover!* at Barossa Valley, Australia ~mission accomplished *

Take a gondola ride along the canals in Venice, Italy ~mission accomplished *

Walk across the river Tiber on Sant Angelo' bridge in Italy ~mission accomplished *

Enjoy a typical Midsommer Day and have reindeer meat in Stockholm, Sweden ~mission accomplished *

Birdseye view of HK from Victoria Peak ~mission accomplished *

Bungee jump in Queenstown,NZ
~ mission accomplished, and jumped not once.. not twice .. but 4 times!!*

Walk up the Eiffel Tower(not take the elevator), Paris France ~mission accomplished *

Make a wish at the Trevi Fountain - Rome, Italy ~mission accomplished *