2017 Weekly - Week 39

24/09/2017

Had a very nice weekend in Amsterdam. This is probably my favorite capital city to visit. So much so that I wish I could retire there one day. The rich history and culture, the friendliest people on earth and very cosmopolitan in terms of society and cuisine, and it's just of the right size so that you don't feel like living in a jungle.

And I finally met a friend with whom the friendship started almost 8 years ago. She is as lovely off line as on line. A worldly person and a very good cook. Thanks for having me in your home, N.

I Heart Amsterdam.

2017 Weekly - Week 38

19/09/2017

It's as if I was living through scenes from The Emperor' New Clothes. Someone describing recent work progress comparing two techniques with r2 varying between 0.3 and 0.5. "It's looking good", said the presenter. And other people started to join, nodding or murmuring "it's looking really good" one after another.

I was stunned.

We were looking at two independent techniques which have good reproducibility in the measured values. And we are dealing with chemicals, not animals, weather objects or Donald Trump. There is no way an r2 of 0.3 can be of any good use for routine scientific studies.

I strongly objected during the meeting and someone else defended the r2 by saying it's better than before. Well, "better than before" is relative and "looking really good" is absolute. I don't claim to have excellent logics but it just beggars belief to see some senior scientists' logics.

2017 Weekly - Week 37

12/09/2017

Colder days and longer nights are upon us. Time for warm oatmeal! The smell of steaming oatmeal always brings me a sense of comfort and simple happiness. It reminds me of my college days when I had to catch early bus to the campus. My parents always got up early for me to prepare hot oatmeal with toasts before I set off. I am really lucky to have parents like them.

13/09/2017

I almost bought a book because of the name of the author. I am glad that I resisted. The more I read the excerpt, the more disheartened I am. For an event which was experienced by millions of people for a prolonged period of time, we all have forged our own reality and truth in our heads. There is nothing anyone can do about it. We are human beings with emotions tangled with reasons. I started to wonder the point of so-called memoir which wants to set the facts straight. Facts and truths only mean something to complete rationale beings, such as robots. I wish you find success somewhere else which also means something to you.

14/09/2017

My own Gamjatang (Korean potato and pork soup). A bowl of steaming soup may just be my ultimate comfort food. Growing up in a household where every meal finishes with a soup (except for breakfast), I know I miss home when I crave a bowl of warm soup. It doesn't have to be a soup I grew up with, almost any warm Asian soup will do. This is absolutely delicious with chubby medium-grain rice.

I make - orange and sultana scones

This may be my favorite scone recipe so far.

Orange and sultana scones

- 2 cups of plain flour (or self-raising)

- 1/2 cup of porridge oat (optional)

- 1 tablespoon of baking powder (reduce to 1 tsp if using self-raising flour)

- pinch of salt

- 85 g cold butter, diced

- 3 tablespoons of sugar

- 1/2 cup of sultana (or your favorite dried fruits)

- 1/4 teaspoon of vanilla extract

- zest from one orange (or lemon)

- 3 tablespoons of creme fraiche (or double cream)

- 150 ml plain yogurt (see instructions)

- 1 egg mixed with 1 teaspoon of milk

Mix flour, oat (if using), baking powder and salt in a large bowl. Rub in the cold butter cubes into the flour mixture with your fingers until the mixture looks like bread crumbs. Alternatively, you can use a pastry cutter or a fork. Stir in the sugar and sultanas.

In a measuring jug, pour in creme fraiche and top it with plain yogurt until the total volume is 200ml (for richer taste, you can use all creme fraiche, but up the quantity to 250ml). You can do this at the beginning to thicken the dairy mixture further. Stir in vanilla extract, orange zest and half of the beaten egg. Pour this liquid mixture into the flour one. Mix the dough until it becomes a cohesive mass. Don't overmix.

Rest the dough in the fridge for 30-60 minutes. Preheat the oven at 200C 10 minutes before the dough is about to finish its rest.

Roll the dough out into 1-inch thickness and cut into any shape you like (rounds, squares or wedges). Glaze the top of scones with the remaining beaten egg. Bake for 12-15 minutes.

Updated on 16/09/2017. Here are a number of variations I've made. The left five are lemon and blueberries and the right seven scones are cinnamon raisins.

2017 Weekly - Week 36

09/09/2017

I got a jar of lavender honey from my local farmers' market. There is something mysterious about lavender honey, a taste of delicacy and depth and I have yet to taste one that I don't like. It impresses me every time I think that it manages to have both dimensions together. I hardly taste lavender in the honey but only a rich and delicate floral note. It's so hard to come by that every time I see one I have to get one, even though it may cost three times more than the regular honey.

The best way to enjoy the honey (apart from having it on its own) is to spread generously on buttered and toasted (almost) white bread. The delicacy and finesse of lavender honey seems to dull on me when I spread it on multi-grain bread (or other more robust or nutritiously complex bread). It's still good but its true potential does not fully show.

With a large cup of cafe au lait, that's my Saturday brunch which brings a little bit surprise and nature's wonder to me.

Have a good weekend.

2017 Weekly - Week 35

25-30/08/2017

We had a great time with friends relishing every last moment of summer in one of the greatest cities of culture of all kinds.

Goodbye, Summer 2017.

02/09/2017

Gluten-free snacks and tea with our neighbors. Who would have thought that crudites with hummus go so well with oolong?