2019 weekly - Week 35

21-28/08/2019

Les Vacances d'été

We had a great time in Dordogne. Going through villages and visiting Lascaux cave (my dream!).

There is so much to see in Dordogne. We will be back!

28/08/2019

While on the train back home, I was greeted with this blood boiling news: BoJo suspending Parliament. Not even a month in the office, BoJo revealed his true color: dictatorship in scruffy hair. The whole point of Brexit, according to Brexiters, is to have "control" back. I thought they meant back to the people?! How naive was I?!

2019 weekly - Week 34

Homemade falafel is easier than you think! This is second time we had it in a week. It's easy and tasty.

Homemade falafels and tahini sauce

For Falafels:

1 cup dried chickpeas, soaked overnight (>12hs)
1/2 cup roughly chopped onion (~1/2 large onion)
a big bunch of coriander (or parsley or a mix)
3 garlic cloves
1 teaspoon of ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon of middle eastern spice mix (any type you have in the house), or 1/2 tsp of ground coriander
1 teaspoon of salt
2-3 tablespoons flour

Grind everything together to form a coarse paste. If the mixture is too wet (i.e. can't form a ball after gentle squeezing), add more flour to the mix. Rest the mixture in the fridge for an hour. Shape into a size of ping-pong ball and fry for 2-3 minutes.

For Tahini Sauce:

1/3 cup of tahini paste
1.5 cup of plain yogurt
zest from 1 lemon
juice from 1/2 lemon
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp ground cumin
1 tablespoon of sugar

Mix everything in a bowl and rest in the fridge for 30 minutes or until serving.

2019 weekly - Week 33

11/08/2019

We made "Taiwanese burritos" tonight :-)

It's a Taiwanese dish eaten traditionally on Tomb Sweeping Day. The wrap is made with flour, just like crepe. An assortment of vegetable and meat dishes are prepared to be rolled up. The key is crushed peanut powder with sugar. We like to add extra sweet chili sauce and coriander. Yum!

Easy Taiwanese crepe

100 g bread flour
150 g water
1 g salt

This is a portion of batter for one person, sufficient for 3-4 crepes (dia. 24cm). Mix everything well in a bowl. Rest the batter for 1 hour before making the crepes.

There are a number of ways to make the crepes. The French method, swirling the pan around (from 4:47) or using a wooden stick as shown below, works very well.

Alternatively, you can brush the batter in a non-stick pan to form a crepe. Either way, make sure to spread the dough out when the pan is warm but off heat. Only back on the heat when a whole crepe is formed.

Mom's sweet chili sauce

1-2 tablespoons of miso 

1-2 tablespoons of ketchup

1 tablespoon of Gochujang (Korean chili paste), or 1 teaspoon of dried chili flakes

2 tablespoons of sugar

150 mL water

Salt to taste

Dissolve all the solids in a pot of water (150mL). Put the mixture on low-medium heat. Stir until it comes to a gentle boil. Taste and adjust the seasoning. We like it sweet and spicy with a bit sour note.

2019 weekly - Week 32

09/08/2019

The place where I study French texted me to say that I passed DELF A2! Hooray! It's not unexpected but it's good to know finally. I can't wait to see my scores!

2019 weekly - Week 31

28/07/2019

Last week was quite eventful, heatwave and a new record high, cousin's visit, my swollen foot, visit to the dentist, gym shower work for 6 weeks. I hope to get some rest this coming week.

With 10 hrs of rain, clouds, wind, 16 degrees outside and chattering from the trees, I feel better.


29/07/2019

I know I will sound ungrateful but I'm sick of my mom's cooking now. Always the same, daily broccoli, soya pork or grilled salmon. And never changing rice. I've had that for a month. I don't think it would change much for the next 1.5 month. If I want to eat something different, I have to cook. This is really not a problem for me. I would rather she asks me to cook.


03/08/2019

I was supposed to be in London with an ex-colleague for a Prudential FreeCycle today but she just had an eye surgery. Better not to risk.