Season Greetings 2011

Happy Holidays fellow bloggers,


This is Joe, I am the virus Yen previously mention. :) I just hacked into her account and would like to share holiday greetings. Her laptop is back to optimal state so she will be able to blog again when she has time.

During the next few weeks, we will be enjoying the beauty and pageantry of the holiday season. We hope all of you likewise with your love ones.

I recently glanced at Yen's blog and noticed many well wishes upon her eyes procedure.
I am glad to update that everything went well and she is very happy and no longer required
contacts or glasses. I would like to thank all of you for supporting her blog and providing Yen with positive encouragement.  She is a very creative and inventive; willing to try all sort of combination of ingredients and cooking techniques. Sometimes I feel like a crash test dummy (food junkie) but it is my way of supporting her endeavor. I have to admit the only dish on her blog that strike fear into me is the "Bitter melon" incident. Perhaps it the horror of my youth or the taste just doesn't suit me. Everything else is as the Dutch say "Lekker Lekker" !!!

In closing I would like a share a short piece about my wife. Sometimes a reminder of how special we are can provide us with the extra step in our daily walk in life.

My "secret trophy" wife

When I close my eyes,
my senses are awaken
I can hear her laughter
I can feel her joy
Her sweet whisper
drops upon my ears
Can no one else hear?

When she enters the room,

her scent fills each breath
My memories are a playback
to when we first met.

Her gentle touch
confirms her presence
The sweet taste upon her lips
plants reassuring thoughts
that only we share.

My eyes open and I realize
It is best that others
can only see her as my wife
A secret I'll gladly keep
for the remainder of my life.　


Joe



Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year everyone

The mini series: chocolate flower cups

After making apple pie I still had a bit of dough left. It was sitting in the fridge waiting for me to come up with a smart idea. Although the apple pie was good I didn’t want to make more. I decided to roll the dough out as thin as possible and to put them in a mini muffin tin till I figured out what to make.

I used a peanut butter jar to roll the dough out. Who needs a fancy rolling pin anyway =) 

And yes, I left it in the same plastic bag I stored it. I was watching tv and didn’t want to dirty more stuff.  

With a cutter I cut cute little rounds and put them in the muffin tin. I barely had enough for 24 cups but I made it. Now what? Chocolate is always a good idea. And chocolate with some orange zest is just heaven; 24 pieces of heaven it is.

I melted one bar or dark chocolate (about 100 gram) and added about a teaspoon of orange zest. I just love the smell of those two together.

Then I mixed 2 eggs and one tablespoon of flour with the chocolate. That wasn’t a good plan at all. The chocolate turned from smooth to lumpy. I didn’t want to throw it out (of course not!!) so I had to stir till my arm fell off. It got a bit smoother, but since I would bake it in the oven I thought I would be ok.

I preheated the oven on 180C and in the mean time I scooped a bit of chocolate in the cups. You see that lump? At least it’s a lump of chocolate, could’ve been worse. I lucked out cuz again I had enough.

I baked them for 10-15 minutes till the chocolate double in volume.

They were so cute when they came out! Like little flowers...the best time to eat them is when they are still slightly warm.

Ps: I want to thank everyone for their support during the eye surgery process. It’s very much appreciated! One more eye to go next Tuesday.