Delifrance Buffet Breakfast

Last Sunday, mom,dad,Guni , Thanam and i decided to have a Delifrance breakfast. So we woke up at 6.30 am and left the house at 7.00 am. The buffet breakfast starts at 7.30 am and ends at 11 am. So it is obvious that we are kiasu. Anyway i was the one who found out about it but i wasn't sure what was going to be served. We were so early that even Compass Point the shopping mall wasn't open yet. We had to use a side door to get in.

Start of the Delifrance Buffet

When we sat down at Delifrance, the waiters and waitresses were just opening the eatery. We patienty waited and giggled over our kiasu-ness. Then at around 7.45 am ( which seemed like eternity ) i approached the manager and enquired about the buffet. Its all you can eat for about $9++ with GST. All that you get to eat is the mini croissoints, danish pastries and bread. There was also kaya, butter, jam and maple syrup. There's orange juice and coffee, both are free flow.

All they had to offer on Display

We really ate alot. I think we took about 10 plates like these below. The plate in the background had tuna puffs and curry puffs while the one in front had escargot, jam puff, apple turnover, custard danish, plain and chocolate croissoints. Don't they look yummy.

Yummy Pastries from Delifrance

Look at these darlings. There were so airy and crispy on the outside while moist on the inside. I could also taste the butter and the 'richness' of these mini pastries. They were all my favourite...i just couldn't get enough of them...

Chicken and Tuna Puffs

I had no idea what the maple syrup was for as maple syrup is usually served with pancakes but there were none. But being the greedy girl i am ( only for food ) .. i took some maple syrup and drenched my pastries in them. OOhhhh.....

Mini Escargot drenched in maple syrup

I think i ate the most.Hee hee hee * burp* but the best thing about it was that i didn't feel guilty for having eaten so much Anyway, we were all still eating until 11 am. That's becuase we ate really slow and talked alot. Some of us also read the morning newspaper. After the buffet ended, we still sat there and were talking when the manager approached our table to clear it. While clearing he spoke to us and sorta hinted that we really ate alot. Hey, my motto with buffets, is as long you finish what you take and not waste food, eat as much as you like baby !

Marble Cake

Marble Cake

On Saturday, my mom's colleague Hafiz's wife gave her a marble cake. She is selling her baked goodies this Chinese New Year and wanted my mom to try some. The cake looked so professional even though it was homemade. It was heavy and dense. Just with the weight of the cake, one would know that a lot of ingredients went into it. I think my mom mentioned that Hafiz said his wife used a dozen eggs. Though the thought of using that many eggs is scary to me, the cake was excellent and really comforting. It reminded me of the days when i was a little girl and my grandma used to make a marble cake for every Deepavali.

Buttercream Dream

I don't know why but not many people like to eat cake filled with buttercream. I on the other hand worship it. But it has to have just the right amount of cream. Too little and you're not satisfied, too much and you get sick. Everytime i come back to Singapore, i make sure i visit the cake shop near my place, Serangoon North.

Ripples of delight

These mini cakes just cost 80 cents each and they are out of this world. But it is an aqquired taste because the cakes aren't really that moist. They are a bit on the dry side but lovely. I love the taste of cake and buttercream and chocolate and gels and oooohhh....

Swirling goodness

This has got to be my favourite. The swirl of chocolate buttercream in the middle is the last thing i put into my mouth. i close my eyes and simply enjoy the harmony that takes place in my mouth as my tongue savours all the textures and flavours. The creamy buttercream, the gentle cake base and the chocolate tip. Aawweeee....

Traffic Lights ??

I like this because i like the three colours on it. The jelly thingy is really nice. And finally the one below has a pool of chocolate in the middle. i never have this cold because i hate hard chocolate. For me it has to be in room temperature so that i can sink my teeth into it.

The black pool

Breadtalk

I have many weaknesses and one of them is bread. I would easily say no to rice anytime but not to bread. In the words of Britney Spears “ I’m a .. huh huh slave.. to you ….” …Drool drool

I enjoy every and any form of bread, plain , studded with nuts or raisins or the traditional bread made from wheat or rye but my ultimate favourite is the bread made in Chinese bakeries all over Singapore. These buns are in between being cakes and breads. Soft and chewy and with a hint of sweetness. The ones sold in Breadtalk get an eggwash and that altogether gives these beauties another dimension in appearance. Golden, resplendent and Yummy !!!

When I went to Breadtalk the other day, I noticed that new items had been created for Chinese New Year. One of it, which I got, was something that resembled a dog. I think the reason for this being; it is the year of the dog. Anyway, what attracted me to it was the glace cherry that was used for the nose. Don’t you think it’s cute …It was filled with delicious chocolate and pecans. My only complaint is that the filling is too little.

Doggy Bread

Another thing that I always get when I go to Breadtalk is the Pizza bun. Ooh… imagine soft, sweet bread studded with chunks of hotdogs and slices of succulent onions and capsicums, all topped generously with cheese. Sometimes the cheese oozes to the sides and gets a bit burnt. I simply love nibbling on them even though they’re usually stuck to the paper case.

Pizza Bun

The final piece that I got was a variation from the normal hotdog bun. In this bun, the hotdog is divided into two and joined together. The middle is then brushed with some herby butter, though I could not taste what herb it was. Either way, all three buns were scrumptious.

Twist on the hot dog

I have always enjoyed the bread from Breadtalk except for one, which I cannot stomach or should I say, cannot nose. It was a bun filled with lap cheong, bonito flakes and to my horror wasabi mayonnaise, which I failed to take note of. A few seconds after my first bite, I could feel my whole nasal passage clearing up. It was like someone was blowing steam up my nose and into my brain. Aiyaiyai .. my eyes began to water but I thought maybe the second bite would be less potent. I was wrong .. and that was all I could have. What a waste. I ended up picking on the bonito flakes and had to throw away the rest. No more wasabi for me thank you very much.

Ramly burger

Ramly Burger

Last Sunday, my family and i went to Toa Payoh to check out the new Pasar Malam. A Pasar Malam, is basically a makeshift market area, that has many food stalls and toy stalls and so on. It is usually not very big, but this one at Toa Payoh is massive. I go to Pasar Malams to buy the delicious snacks and savour these as i walk around. The snacks are almost always the same. There's always corn on the cob, boiled peanuts, tea eggs, muah chee , candy floss, pop corn , home made ice cream with local flavours like coconut and atap seeds, taiwanese pork sausages and other fried fritters.

Squeeze the barbecue sauce

This time however there were some newcomers. Takopachi and the Ramly burger. I know what Takopachi is as i have had it countless times before. It's one of my favourite Japanese snacks. But then why do i say new comer? Because its the first time i'm seeing it being sold in a Pasar Malam. But the Ramly burger .. what is that? .. all i know is that P Ramly is a legendary Malay actor. So intrigued i was that i had to have one. They only had beef and chicken patties and i can't take beef ( for religious reasons).. so i ordered the chicken. Special or not .. was the vendors question to me. 'Huh' ? ... special ? .. seeing my confused face the vendor went on to explain that the Special burger came with an egg.

I did not feel 'eggy' that day so i got the plain. The burger was only okay. The chicken patties were first cooked then a homemade sauce (barbecue sauce) and mayonnaise is added. Those who ordered plain, will get this and the specials get an egg. The vendor makes an omelette and encompasses the patty inside together with the sauces. It was just an average burger.. not something mind bogglingly good. i think the Do&Me stalls in Kopitiams serve much better burgers but hey that's me ...

Where's the Temppanyaki stall ?

After coming back to Singapore from Brisbane, I went to Junction 8 with my family. I was honestly quite surprised to see so many changes. The place looks like its made up of three minor shopping malls. There’s the main body that has the movie theatre in it. Then there’s one across from it that has some good restaurants like Pasta Mania and Din Tai Fung. I’ve heard that the latter serves really good Dim Sum. Hmmm will give it a try soon. Then there’s this extension at the side that has other outlets and a Coffee Bean. The whole place honestly needs a revamp. Everything has to be put under one roof.Anyway, we wanted to watch a movie but were too late, so we went to the Coffee Bean for drinks. I had my usual, the Vanilla Non-Coffee ice blended since I don’t like drinking coffee…anyway my drink was yummy !! .. lip smackingly good as always. We decided to have Temppanyaki for dinner and proceeded to the fourth floor to the Kopitiam

To my horror, it was no longer there. In its place was this Prata Café .. arghhhh … where is it ??? Where’s the temppanyaki stall. I love the way the food is cooked fresh in front of you. The chef first cooks the vegetables. One serving of a leafy vegetable and one serving of bean sprouts. Nothing fancy. Just sautéed in oil and seasoned with salt and pepper. But delicious.

Chef with the veges

After that the meat gets cooked. The last time I was there, I had chicken. My uncle G took squid and my mom had shitake mushrooms. The secret to the great taste is the sauce. Its prepared in advance and kept in a container. After the chef cooks the meat, he ladles spoonfuls of the savory sauce over the meat. The sauce is so versatile that it is used for every meat, chicken, pork, beef, fish, squid, mushroom.. everything ! Once cooked, the meat is placed on an aluminum sheet that is stuck on the hot griddle in front of you. If you want the meat to cool down, simply remove the meat and place it on your plate. If you want it heated up, just place back onto the aluminum. It’s that simple.

Here comes the meat

Pongal and a vegetarian feast

Last Saturday, Indians celebrated the festival of Pongal. Though in Singapore, the government does not recognize it as a festival, it is still widely celebrated in many Indian homes. Basically, it’s the harvest festival, where rice is cooked and presented to God to thank for a bountiful crop that year.

It is celebrated on a grand scale in India where the whole family comes together to make Pongal, a sweet rice pudding with cashews and raisins, and streets get decorated with Kolams, (patterns drawn on the floor with rice flour), sometimes these Kolams also get colourful when they are filled with colored powder.

Every year my mom would be in charge of doing everything but as she could not do so this year, I did everything. I spent Friday night preparing everything for prayers in the following morning. Cleaned the house and even put up mango leaves above the door and sugar canes. After everything was prepared for the next day, mom and me sat down to watch TV. There was such an interesting programme on Sun TV, the cable channel from India. But I was just so tired that I fell asleep on the sofa. I love my sofa, it’s so comfy =)

Morning came and it was time for prayers. After my shower, I cleaned the prayer room and put garlands for the various deities. Then I made the Pongal. My mom usually makes Pongal with red sugar but I like to make Pongal with jaggery. It’s a matter of personal taste honestly. I also add quite a lot of whole cashews and less raisins. Many like to break the cashews in half so that they can get away with using a little. I left them whole and delightful. Anyway after that was done, it was time to offer it to the deities. The offerings were the Pongal, fruits , most importantly the trinity fruits of mango, jackfruit and banana and some Indian sweet meats.

The offerings

After the prayers, it was time to cook for the family. Mom and me started at around 8 am and we cooked non-stop … making one dish after another… on auspicious days like this Indians tend to be vegetarian. So we ended up making six vegetable dishes, sambar, coconut chutney, vadai, papadums , payasam and gulab jamuns. There was honestly a lot of food.

Pots and Pans filled with veges

Finally at around 1 pm i sat down for lunch, my uncle L joined me as well. The traditional way of eating a vegetarian feast like this would be on a banana leave. First the pongal is served. Then hot steaming rice is put. The sambar is poured over and i like to put ghee on the sambar and rice. The heat melts the ghee and the flavour just oozes into the rice. Then all the vegetable dishes are served. Then finally the vadai and the papadums.Yum !

The feast

My very own Blog

Finally, after visiting countless food blogs and enjoying each and everyone of them , I have my own now. I am an extreme foodie !!! I LOVE LOVE LOVE food and adore anything to do with food. But my favourite has to be desserts … oooh…. The surge in my blood sugar level after a devilicious dessert is just exhilarating and the joy of putting a spoonful temple achingly sweet pie or cake or whatever into my mouth …mmmmm … hopefully I’ll post all my eating adventures and coming from the land of good eating … Singapore.. I don’t think I’ll have that many problems… I’ll just keep my fingers crossed anyway…and let the journey BEGIN !!!have my own blog. I am