Fried Chicken - A Tale of Two Ladies

*This is hopefully the first post of a series about our trip to Savannah and Charleston.




After a week in Savannah and Charleston, I have learned much about the south - I have stood in the fort where the American Civil War started, read about the secession of South Carolina from the Union and walked through cemeteries of Great Men. And I will get to all that because there is much to share. But right off the bat, I must talk fried chicken.

Like many immigrants before me, I have heard much about the famed Southern fried chicken. I've read about it, I've seen it on television but have never had the courage to tussle with that much hot oil to try cooking it myself. Now, we did not plan to go to the South just to eat fried chicken, but once we were there, we were enthusiastic in our hunt.



Two women's names immediately distinguished themselves - Mrs. Wilkes, a home cook whose restaurant is an institution in Savannah and Paula Deen, the purveyor of no-such-thing-as-too-much butter. The decision on which restaurant to try first was taken out of our hands because Mrs. Wilkes' was still closed for the Christmas break when we arrived. Off to Paula Deen's we went to get in line.

Yes, get in line. Google the restaurant and you will find suggestions on how early you should stand outside the restaurant for a taste of that fried chicken. Since we were not in town for very long, we did not want to take any chances. We are after all from Singapore - getting in line for good food is second nature to us. S set-off first from the hotel to get a spot while I was layering for the bewildering cold weather the South had cheekily bestowed on us.

The Lady and Sons restaurant was easy enough to find from our hotel; just look out for the row of shivering people. S was near the top of the line and already making friends with two guys in the line. An hour later, our names were on the list and we walked our self-guided tour before returning for lunch.



Sufficiently ravenous, we were back at the restaurant and led to third level. There was a salad bar but the hot food bar was where the fried chicken was being regularly replenished - this was the buffet. Surprisingly, despite the size of the restaurant, the line does not get long.




The buffet is modest - about ten items including fried chicken, roast chicken, collard greens, boiled corn, sweet potato, and mac and cheese. In all honesty, none of the side dishes were memorable (the sweet potatoes and corn were good though) and I did not even bother with the roast chicken. We also ordered the fried green tomatoes from the à la carte menu - this was forgettable. As were the desserts (S had peach cobbler and I tried the gooey cake). But the fried chicken - yum. The chicken skin was crispy without being dry. And with the set-up of the buffet, you could eat as much as you wanted at your own pace. It was the best fried chicken I ever had.

Until we went to Mrs Wilkes' house for lunch the next day.

It did not matter that we waited almost twice as long in line to step into the family-style service restaurant. We met a genial older couple also in line, from the south who gave us tips about more places to visit in the US for great food and history. It is one of the things I love about traveling - meeting random people and discovering new places and sharing viewpoints. We don't have to introduce ourselves and can freely voice opinions because we feel protected by the fact we will never meet again.



When we finally got to the front of line, we were ushered into the ground floor of a home which Mrs Wilkes and her husband bought in 1965. It was a modest room with four large tables, each of which seats ten people, fit snugly. We went into the next room which also had four large tables and if you can count, you will realize that the whole dining room seats 80 people. Unless you came in a group of ten, you would be eating family style with strangers. We walked towards our table where bowls and plates of food had been laid out and we chose seats close to the fried chicken.



As soon as everyone was seated, one of the servers greeted us in her Southern drawl and offered us unsweetened tea if we preferred that over the the sweetened tea that was on the table. As strangers do, there was some hesitation about starting the meal. But once we started scooping food onto our plate, there was a fluent exchange of plates and bowls. With twenty dishes, yes twenty, we were outspoken about asking for a dish not within our reach. S and I lucked out because there was an empty chair and a kid who did not eat much at our table. This means less waiting for the chicken parts you wanted (yes, it's all about the chicken. Fried chicken).

Let's start with sides - mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, potato salad, 3 (or 4?) types of beans, cabbage, mac and cheese, stuffing, gravy, collard greens, okra, snap peas, jambalaya, corn bread and biscuits. I did not try everything but I liked the rice, potato salad, the black-eyed beans and biscuits. The beef stew was delicious - the meat used was not of the lean kind; it was fatty and flavorful just like the cut my mum uses for some of her dishes.



But what about the fried chicken? It looks crispy enough and then you take that first bite. It was not just crisp, it was richly seasoned without crossing to spicy. S and I looked at each other and we felt grateful that we shared that pleasure together. But beyond the food, the ladies at Mrs Wilkes' who served us defined the meaning of Southern hospitality. Their bright faces reflected sincerity as they ask attentive questions punctuated with words like "honey" and "sweetheart" spoken only like a Southerner can.

Was it the best fried chicken I ever had?

Yes.



The meal ended with dessert - if you have a choice between a fruit cobbler and banana pudding, I highly recommend the latter. And just as we were done, we were firmly informed that in the tradition Mrs Wilkes' dining room, each of us had to take our own dirty plate and glass to bring them to the sink. Just like home.

The Lady & Sons
102 W Congress St
Savannah, GA 31401
912.233.2600
How to get a seat:
The door opens at 9.30 a.m. to make a reservation. People start to line-up at 8 a.m. But on the day we were there, even if you arrived at 9.30 a.m., you could get a reservation. You choose a lunch or dinner time, leave and then return for your meal. At lunch time, we saw a couple walk-in without a reservation and another make a reservation for dinner. So if you can't join the line in the morning, you can still try to see if you can get a spot.


Mrs Wilkes' Dining Room
107 West Jones Str
Savannah, GA 31401
912.232.5997
How to get a seat:
You must get in line and you will be seated for your meal when you get to the front of the line. A line starts to form as early as 9 a.m. and the door opens at 11.30 a.m. We heard that locals have a way of getting a seat - no one told us how but we could guess after our second visit. Make sure you have enough quarters for the parking meters if you are driving.

Morels and Fiddlehead Ferns

When S saw the green spirals, his reaction was "Hey, those look like they are vegetables from an Enid Blyton book!" I couldn't agree more and they even had a name to match - fiddlehead fern. Don't they sound like they belong to the Magic Faraway Tree?

Fiddlehead fern and morel mushrooms appear to be all the rage because they are in season. S and I had never tried fiddlehead fern before and morels are not so common either, so we decided to try them together. I stuffed the chicken I had planned to for dinner back in the fridge since I read that the fiddleheads should be cooked on the same day you buy them.





To prepare fiddlehead ferns, rinse them over several changes of water. Then put them in a pot of boiling water for about 5-7 minutes. These steps will remove the toxins in them. Immediately submerge in a bowl of cold water after removing from the heat, to keep the pretty green color.

I don't quite have a recipe. I just made a potato salad with less dressing. Saute the morels with butter and garlic. Do the same with the fiddleheads. Mix them together and sprinkle with pine nuts and slices of spring onion.

Crab and Asparagus Soup

Life is busy again. And I love it.

I enjoy cooking Malay food which require nine types of spices to be toasted, ground and sauteed. The process of watching over a hot stove for three hours while the dish stews and develop flavors as you stir every five minutes to prevent the ingredients from scorching, may have its therapeutic value. But I enjoy it just as much when my to-do list is long and I am pushed to be more creative in the kitchen because I don't have a whole morning for prep work. So I turn to simple dishes, like this crab and asparagus soup which we had with brown rice.

It barely takes 15 minutes to cook. Less if I omit the onion and garlic. 'Cos sometimes, you just don't feel like cutting onion and garlic. Or, you forget to buy to them. Doesn't matter. The soup still tastes good.

Crab and Asparagus Soup

¼ medium-sized onion, finely minced
1 garlic, finely minced
5 cups chicken or vegetable stock
8 oz. asparagus, cut into inch-long pieces
8 oz. cooked crab meat
2 eggs
2 tablespoons sliced spring onions
1 teaspoon oil

1. Heat 1 teaspoon oil in a pot. Saute the onion and garlic for about 1 minute. Add in the stock and asparagus. Bring to a gentle boil and then down to a simmer. Add the crab meat.

2. Break in the eggs into a bowl and pierce the yolks. Stir the soup, making a whirlpool and then slowly dribble in the eggs slightly away from the center of the whirlpool. Let the eggs set for about a minute.

Serve with a sprinkling of sliced spring onion.

Dinner Tonight

Ramen - with braised short-ribs and homemade noodles.

Smoked Salmon and Asparagus Frittata

It must be spring – it's hard to walk two feet in the farmer's market without seeing asparagus. I've roasted them, made soup, stir-fried and here, in my favorite everything-but-the-kitchen-sink recipe, added to a frittata. Not only does a frittata absorb leftovers in my refrigerator, it's also easy to make. I like the look individual servings so I used a muffin tin. Good with a salad. We had ours with stir-fried watercress and baby shitake.





Salmon and Asparagus Frittata

4 eggs
¾ cup smoked salmon, chopped
¾ cup asparagus, cut into 1-inch pieces
½ cup whole milk
½ cup grated parmesan

Pre-heat oven 400°F. Lightly oil a muffin pan.

Whip the eggs and milk in a bowl. Add parmesan cheese, asparagus and smoked salmon. Pour mixture into muffin tin. Bake for about 25-30 minutes.

Makes 6.

Macaron shells #2 - peanut

For peanut butter and jelly macarons.

Macaron shells #1 - orange zest

Crispy Mushrooms and Squash Soup

The lack of food posts does not in any way indicate the state of my kitchen. The stove has been heating-up but the shorter winter days meant that the light was not cooperating so it was tough to take decent pictures. We've been eating well. We've been having plenty of soup. Like butternut squash soup. My new favorite thing is roasting mushrooms until crispy and putting them in the soup. I've been these throwing crispy mushrooms in everything we eat - salad, fried rice and sandwiches.

But back to the soup – to put it in the OTT category, I also microwave pieces of apple and stir it into the soup. Recipe? Make your favorite butternut squash soup. Mine is about 4 cups roasted butternut squash and 1 cup vegetable or chicken stock mixed with a teaspoon minced ginger and a tablespoon ground cumin. Line a baking pan with parchment paper, then roast oyster mushrooms (salted and peppered) at 425°F for about 10 minutes or until crispy. You have to scrape the mushrooms off the baking pan. Dice an apple and blitz it in the microwave for one minute. Serve both with the soup and dinner's ready.

I've also been cooking with recipes off the internet – I am still amaze at this resource. I have many cookbooks but the recipes in the blogosphere continue to tempt me. Here are a few, tried and tested, in our kitchen:

Oatmeal pancakes from Orangette. I made these the first time only because I had so much oatmeal. But I've made it four times since. It's that good.

Citrus and beet salad. This is a dish inspired by Sassy Radish. I added roasted beets and used honey instead of maple syrup for the dressing. My new favorite way to eat oranges. Three times.

Fish & chips. I used No Recipe's, err, recipe. I've made it only once but I used 3 lbs worth of fish so that I could freeze some of the fried fish. I just pop a couple in the toaster oven when I feel like a savory snack.

Ma pu tofu. Userealbutter's version is the easiest and tastiest I've ever made (I use ground chicken or turkey). Made this too many times to remember how many exactly.

Marshmallows. I had all the ingredients so while S was assembling new furniture, I whipped this up. I flavored them with orange zest. And then coated them with chocolate.

Macarons – Ok, I didn't make any. But D did - and they were awesome. Have been meaning to try making some myself but never got round to it. Soon. And other recipes that I hope will be heating up the kitchen in the near future – shrimp salad in wonton cups, morrocan fish stew and chestnut torte.

Salt Cod Fritters

How long has it been? The dates suggest that it has been only 2 days since my last post. But it has been much longer than that, hasn't it been? Never mind, we will continue as if nothing happened. Except one thing did happen. See this picture of Dexter? He was at the vet, yes. Sedated, yes. Last Thursday, when I was preoccupied with preparing for a presentation for my evening Spanish class, Dexter was nowhere to be seen. I figured it was just one of those days — his alone time. He would be either in the closet or under the bed, just chillin'.

When I came home from class, he was still in hiding. S told me that he hadn't seen Dexter either, but he must have come out for dinner because the plate was licked cleaned. I decided that his time-out was over and found him in the closet. I picked him up and put him on my lap. It's part of my training him to be a lap cat. I would like him to be a lap cat. Him — not so much. But for the first time, he let out this growl so I released him immediately. Then S and I noticed he was limping badly when he walked away. His right hind leg was bothering him.

So first thing the next morning, we took Dexter to the vet. He was very resistant at attempts to check his leg. He had to be sedated. The effect was immediate. His jaw dropped to the table and his eyes were glazed. It made me laugh so I took out my camera to immortalize the moment. After the X-ray, the vet told us that everything looked fine - no ligament tear, no arthritis, no fracture. It was probably a soft tissue injury which means he should recover in a few days. Whew.

It's been a few days and his leg is much better. I was sad to see him try to walk. He moved slowly and took ginger steps with the foot that hurts. I'm not sure how cats react to pain, but Dexter was less meowy than usual. The vet said he should rest the limping leg as much as possible, so I tried to carry him to his food for meals and to his cat bed at night. He usually sleeps with us on our bed, but that requires jumping which he didn't quite have the strength for. I think the rest worked. There is less limping and he is now snoring next to me as I type. Life is good again. So I thought some deep frying was in order. Deep frying salt cod, specifically.



S and I had never tried salt cod before. But it seems like the perfect food for us — I like fish and he, well, likes anything salty. I bought one pound's worth. I used half of it for a salt cod tart (recipe coming) and I made these salt cod fritters with the other half.

How was it?

We enjoyed every lush morsel. It was the cliche of a perfect fritter — crispy on the outside and creamy on the inside. Steaming hot, it was tough not to grab a fritter and bite into the richness, even as you are dropping batter into sizzling oil. But when you do grab one, you do it with your fingers, gingerly, so you don't break its fried coat. Right after you bite into it, you must resist the urge to let its buttery, salty smoothness make a quick getaway straight to your stomach. Chew, roll it around your mouth, just enjoy. I also made a spinach aioli as a dipping sauce. I wonder, does the addition of spinach make it a vegetable side dish?



Salt Cod Fritters (Buñuelos De Bacalao)
adapted from Colman Andrews

½ lb salt cod, soaked 24 hours with 2 water changes
1 medium-sized potato, peeled and sliced thin
1 tablespoon olive oil
¾ cup milk
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 egg
1 heaped tablespoon chopped parsley
2 tablespoons lemon juice
salt and pepper
oil for frying

For the spinach aioli
adapted from Rick Stein

4 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
½ tsp salt
1 egg yolk
¾ cup/3 oz olive oil
a handful of spinach

1. Put the cod in a pot of water and bring to a simmer. After 10 minutes, remove the cod. When cool, removed the skin and bones (if any).

2. Put the sliced potatoes in the pot of water and bring to a boil. Cook for 10 minutes or until soft enough to mash.

3. In the meantime, make the aioli. Put the garlic and salt in a food processor. Grind for 5 seconds. Add egg and blend for about 10 seconds. While the food processor is still on, slowly pour in the olive oil. Then add the spinach leaves and blend until the leaves are grounded. Keep in the fridge until you are ready to use it.

3. In the pot, bring the water, milk and olive oil to a boil. Lower the heat and then whisk in the flour until dissolved. Remove the pot from the stove to cool. Heat oil (about 3 inches) in another pan to bring up to a temperature of 350F. If you don't have a thermometer, the oil should be hot enough so that it will sizzle when you drop in the batter.

4. Stir-in the egg, parsley and lemon juice into the flour mixture. Add the mashed potato, mixing well, and finally, the fish. Taste the batter and add salt and pepper as needed. When the oil reaches the right temperature, drop a heaped tablespoon of batter into the oil. Don't crowd the fritters. Fry for about 1 minute or until lightly browned. Scoop out and drain on a paper towel.

Best served warm. Makes about 24 fritters.

Dinner Tonight

Broiled Prawn with Miso

This prawn with miso dish has straight-up become one of S's favorite dishes. I used to enjoy it in a Japanese restaurant in Singapore — Akashi — with my girlfriends. I can't find it in any Japanese restaurant here, so I decided to make my own. It looks fancy but it's simple to make, perfect for impressive dinner guests. Creamy, sweet and salty - yum. Just marinate the prawns overnight and put them under the broiler 10 minutes before you are ready to eat. I paired the prawns with a soba noodle soup - another simple dish that does not take long to prepare.

Broiled Prawn With Miso
inspired by Akashi

4 freshwater prawns
¾ cup white miso
½ cup sugar
¼ cup mirin

1. To make the miso paste: mix the miso, sugar and mirin in a small saucepan at medium high heat. Stir until the sugar completely dissolves. Bring to a boil and switch off the heat. Let the paste cool.

2. Clean the prawns. Make a deep cut in the belly of the prawn, cutting the length of the prawn being careful not to cut through. Press open the prawn. Spread the miso paste on the prawns, making sure to get into all the nooks and crannies. Keep in the refrigerator for 2 hours (or overnight).

3. Heat the broiler to high. Put the prawns on the highest rack in the oven and broil for 5-7 minutes, depending on the size of the prawns.

Serve with soba noodle soup or a salad.

Ayam Masak Merak — A Classic Malay Chicken Recipe

When I left Singapore, I left behind a gaggle of girlfriends. Oh, how I miss them. Long conversations, gossip over food, steady shoulders for a good cry. You know those sort of friends.

Moving here, I had no expectations when it came to making new friends. I was lucky because I already had one good friend, B, who lives 10 minutes away. And I grew close to one of S's friends, L. That was enough for my social life. I was busy with moving homes, settling down and studying. After my exams, we went to a Singapore network event (because we thought they would have good Singapore food) and during the reception, while we were munching on some spring rolls, another couple joined us at our table. We introduced ourselves. She's from Singapore too and just moved with her French husband. We did small talk and being Singaporeans, of course, we chatted about food.

Fast forward 18 months later, and we — D and I — are still chatting about food. In fact, we've gone beyond that - we've both set up blogs where we talk a lot about food. So to celebrate her birthday, of course, food was involved. Last night, I made dinner for her and her adoring husband, M. I decided to make one of my mum's Malay chicken dish, ayam masak merah (recipe below). Literally it means "chicken cooked red", which sounds a little strange translated. But the sauce is a blend of red dried chilies and pureed tomatoes. The only thing different I did from my mum was to roast the chickens instead of frying them. It was a nice taste of home, in the company of semi-new friends — eating, talking, laughing. So it was a celebration not just of a birthday, but of friendship, as well.

After dinner, we had dessert. I always make desserts when we have friends over. But last night, I didn't because D brought some. Why would I let the birthday girl bring her own dessert? Because she's been busy making them everyday for the last month! Yup, everyday. So let's celebrate her birthday today by looking through every single of her yummy desserts on her blog — bonvivant. Watch the drool!

Chicken in Red Sauce ("Ayam Masak Merah")

3 oz dried red chilies or ½ cup of dried chili paste
1 whole chicken
1 teaspoon tumeric
2 tablespoons oil
1 medium sized onion
4 cloves of garlic
2 inch ginger
1 inch galangal
2 lemongrass
1 cup tomato puree or diced tomato
½ cup coconut cream
1 tablespoon sugar
salt

1. De-seed and cut the each dried chili into 2-3 pieces. Soak in warm water for 30 minutes.

2. Heat oven to 400°F. Cut the chicken into 8-10 pieces. Marinate with oil, salt and turmeric. Roast for 30 minutes or until the internal temperature reaches 165°F.

3. Peel onion, garlic, ginger and galangal, cut into smaller pieces and place into food processor. Take one of the lemongrass stalks and cut the just the white part into smaller pieces, also to be placed in the food processor. Grind until you get a smooth paste (you may need to add a couple tablespoons of water to get it started). Remove spice paste from food processor. If using diced tomato, put in food processor and puree. Remove puree into a bowl. Then place the dried chilies in the food processor and grind.

4. Heat 2 tablespoon oil in a wok. Saute the spice paste for about 3 minutes. Take the bottom 8-inches of the remaining lemongrass and bruise with the back of your knife. Add the lemongrass, chili paste, tomato puree and coconut cream. Stir until all the ingredients are well-incorporated. Bring to a boil, then let it simmer for 20 minutes. In the last minute, add salt and sugar. Taste - add more salt if necessary and diced tomatoes if it is too spice.

5. Put in the roasted chicken pieces and mix until the chicken pieces are well coated with the sauce.

Serve with rice and a side dish of vegetables.

Figs and goat cheese and honey

Meals are not just about spice and sambal around here. A spread of goat cheese on a cracker, a slice of fig drizzled with honey and lunch is served.

Serunding ikan (Fish floss)

I made this for my dad. When we called home over the weekend, I found out that he was ill. Because we are more than 8000 miles away, I am relying on a friend who is flying in from Singapore to bring it back to him. I don't think he has had serunding ikan before, but I know he will love it. We may not look alike or agree on most things, but my dad and I have the same sense of taste in food. This serunding is not something to aid in his recovery, but just something for him enjoy. It's something he'd do for me.

The recipe is adapted from a popular Malay dish called "serunding daging" which uses beef. It is a little time consuming to make but worth it. Keep it in a container in the refrigerator because it contains coconut milk and shredded coconut. My husband loves spreading it on buttered bread. I like it over brown rice - it makes for a simple meal. You can also use it as a serunding daging substitute like putting in lontong or pulut. I used mahi-mahi which has a lower mercury level - you can use any firm fish. It doesn't make for a pretty picture, but it does taste good.

Serunding ikan

8 oz fish
8 dried chilies
15 shallots
5 cloves garlic
1-inch ginger
2 lemongrass stalks
3 tablespoon brown sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup coconut milk
1 cup shredded coconut
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoon of oil

Boil to cook the fish and mince the fish meat in a food processor. De-seed and blend the chilies into paste. Mince shallots, garlic, ginger and lemongrass into a fine paste and blend with the chili paste. Heat up a wok with the oil at medium heat. Fry the paste for 2 minutes. Add the fish and fry for one minute. Then add the coconut milk. Stir so that everything is mixed well. Bring to a slow boil. Reduce heat and stir continuously until almost dry. Add the shredded coconut. Cook until dry.

Homemade blueberry jam and english muffins

When I go to the farmer's market here, I become what Singaporeans would say "suaku" or "jakun". The former is a Chinese slang and the latter Javanese. The closest translation I can think of is "country bumpkin"; only in this case, it's the reverse. I am the city girl struck by the wonders of the local produce market.

I walk from stall to stall - taking in not just the array of colors but the fragrance of the fruits. It's the season of peaches, apricots, pluots, cherries, blueberries, strawberries... the air smells sweet. Each vendor draws you in with a knife in hand to cut you a slice of whatever fruit he may recommend, maybe a nectarine or a peach, and offers it to you. It is humbling to think that he may have planted or plucked the luscious fruit you are savoring just miles away.

That I cannot resist is evident by the bags and bags of fruits I always bring home - surely more than two people can possible eat in a single week. This morning was no different. As I washed and put away fruit after fruit, I was doing a mental triage - which fruit was most ripe and needed to be eaten soon, which can last until the end of the week. That's where Ina Garten comes in - I had just watched her make strawberry jam on Food Network in under an hour. I decided we would have homemade jam and english muffins for brunch. Cooking fruit is a way of extending its life - useful for a greedy fruit patron like myself.





I adapted the jam recipe by using blueberries and cherries and cutting down the sugar because I didn't want the jam to be too sweet. I also cut down the portion since it was just for two of us. I love the texture of the jam because you get small pieces of berries.

Blueberry Jam
adapted from Barefoot Contessa's Easy Strawberry Jam

2 cups blueberries, chopped in half or more
1 cup cherries, pitted and chopped in quarters
1/3 green apple, peeled and grated
1/2 cup sugar
2 tablespoons orange juice

Put all the ingredients in a heavy-bottomed pot and let it come to a boil. Keep it at a rolling boil and skim off any foam that may rises to the top. Stir occasionally. The Contessa says the jam should reach 220 degrees Fahrenheit on a candy thermometer. I don't have one, so I just boiled it for 35 minutes. So easy - she's a genius.

Whole Wheat English Muffins
adapted from Alton Brown's recipe

Until I looked up the recipe, I didn't realize that English muffins cook on the stove top. I used Alton Brown's recipe but because I was using whole wheat pastry flour, I used 1 tablespoon less and added 1 teaspoon of baking soda before using the batter to make the muffins lighter. I used butter because I don't have shortening. Alton Brown also uses a griddle heated to 300 degrees Fahrenheit. I don't have a griddle so I used a cast-iron frying pan, which worked well. I used non-stick egg rings because those are what I have.

2 cups minus a tablespoons whole wheat pastry flour, sifted
1/2 cup powdered milk
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon butter
1 cup hot water
2 1/4 teaspoon dry yeast
1/8 teaspoon sugar
1/3 cup warm water
1 teaspoon baking powder

Stir in the powdered milk, butter, sugar and half a teaspoon of salt in the hot water. In a separate bowl, mix the yeast, 1/8 teaspoon sugar and 1/3 cup warm water. Let it rest to activate the yeast. Combine both mixture and add the sifted flour. Cover and let the mixture rest for 30 minutes in a warm spot.

Heat up the griddle or cast-iron pan to medium high heat and put in 3-inch rings. Add in the other 1/2 teaspoon of salt and baking soda and beat well. Place 3 tablespoons of the batter into each ring and cover with a lid or cookie sheet. Cook for 5 to 6 minutes and then turn over the muffins to cook on the other side. Cover the muffins and cook for another 5 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from pan and remove the rings. Makes 8. You can freeze any leftovers.

I also fried some eggs because what's a brunch without eggs? I made the eggs with the same rings, but I did them before the muffins. The muffins should be eaten warm so that butter will melt as you spread it. Yum. My husband also reached out for some peanut butter for a peanut-butter-and-jelly muffin. It was a brunch that carried us well into dinner time.

Baby bok choy no recipe

I've just been befriended on Facebook by several of my former dorm mates whom I have not seen since I left college. That brought back some memories. Now, I don't remember much from that time - just that there was a lot of sharing. Carrying a small basket of your toiletries into the shared bathroom. Rushing out of your second-floor room because you think you heard someone yell your name for a phonecall and running down to the shared phone on the ground floor. And of course there were the meals.

There was one small kitchenette in the whole block and sometimes, we got together to make our meals. I say "make", as opposed to "cook", because little to no cooking was involved. It is embarrassing to reveal, but one of our standard meals consisted instant noodles for carbohydrate, hot dogs for protein and blanched lettuce leaves for, err, nutrients. We simply boiled some water, blanched a few lettuce leaves, set it on a plate and drizzle a little oyster sauce over it.



So for dinner last night, I made a baby bok choy dish that was inspired by those dorm-life memories. It's one of those dishes that doesn't really require any recipe. This time I steamed them instead of blanching them. You'll need two or three bunches of baby bok choy. Cut of the base of the stems - you can leave some of the smaller leaves together intact. Clean them well as they can be sandy. Just immerse them in cold water and rinse a couple of times. Boil some water in a pot - I use a silicone steamer because it's easy to clean. Steam the baby bok choy for about 2 minutes or more if you want them wilted. I like mine with a little bit of crunch in them. Then lay them out on a plate. Mix a teaspoon of oyster sauce with 2 teaspoons of water and drizzle it over the bok choy. Add a few drops of sesame oil and garnish with crispy fried shallots (or onions)*. Serves 3 or 4. It's a simple dish that complements a meal with rich or spicy dishes.

*I usually make a batch of fried shallots and store, but you can buy them in any Indian or Middle Eastern grocery store. They add flavor and texture to many Singapore dishes.

Orange and Milo jelly

I had made a spice cake for dessert for a dinner party, but it seemed a little heavy for a hot summer day. We had oranges and Milo - the latter is a pantry staple at home. So I squeezed the oranges for juice, put it on heat with some agar-agar powder and cooled it in a jelly mold. Repeat with Milo and pour it over the cooled orange agar-agar. I added some blueberries and it made for a refreshing dessert - proving once again that orange and chocolate are a sure-win combination. If you decide to try this, taste the orange juice. I used organic Valencia oranges which are pleasantly tart. I liked it, but if you want to cut down on the tartness, add a little sugar. Or, for a short-cut, use store-bought orange juice (yes, it's allowed). If I may recommend, unsweetened iced tea accompanies this dessert wonderfully.

The Sambal Series - Sambal stingray

I had a timid youth when it came to late night partying. The idea of going to a club always turned out to be more fun than the actual experience. The part of the evening I enjoyed best was the supper we would go to afterwards. Blurry-eyed and half-deaf from having 100 decibels drummed into our ears, it may take prata and teh tarik or Teochew porridge to recalibrate our senses. But eventually, we just dropped the disco beat and went straight to the late-night supper.

Oh, the options we had in Singapore for nocturnal makan.... At the top of my list are the sambal stingray and sambal kangkong from the seafood stall at Adam Road hawker center. As we discussed important issues of day - politics, gossip or matters of the heart, our fingers nimbly work the chopsticks into the white flesh of the fish. I made sure every picking include enough sambal so that I could taste the mingling of salty-sweet spice and fish with each mouthful. I remember the food better than the conversations. Perhaps we might accompany our meal with calamari or clams, but the stingray and the kangkong were a must. We ate with relish until we had to scrape the fish meat from its bones.

Sadly, since I moved to the Bay Area, I have been hard-pressed to find stingray in any of the supermarkets. But last week, while I was shopping for pomfrets at Ranch 99, I spotted these bottom feeders at the fresh seafood section. Or rather, I spotted the "wings" of the stingray. I was so excited, I wondered who I could call to share the news. Yes, that is my life now. So I bought one, went home and plotted my sambal.

My husband helped me peel off its rubbery skin while I prepared the sambal. I used some sambal belacan I had, added a little sugar and some tamarind juice and I was done. I put the fish on the oven and finished by broiling it. A spray of lime juice and it is ready. Sitting succulently on a banana leaf, it transported me back to those late night suppers. The fish was fresh and the spice level just right. I can't wait for the next stingray spotting.

Because everything starts with breakfast

breakfast1, originally uploaded by high over happy.

Don't we always start with a good breakfast?

I like stirring almond butter into my oatmeal. And lately, as a treat, I sometimes drip melted chocolate over my oatmeal too. A day that starts with chocolate promises to be a good day.