At work today, Ian had also made some sweet for us to share. They were delicious little Caraway Cupcakes with Lime Icing.
Mum's Beef Rendang
Oh my gosh, the beef was so incredibly tender - it dissolved in my mouth!
*raises her glass* "A toast: while most people eat to live, I live to eat. There's nothing like enjoying a delicious home-cooked meal with a fine bottle of wine in the company of fantastic friends. To life!"



In the evening I busied myself making cupcakes to take to work tomorrow for everyone. I used the prepackaged White Wings chocolate cake mixture but instead of using milk, I used buttermilk.
By adding drops of green food colouring, I transformed some of the frosting to green and piped little 'christmas trees' on some of the cupcakes.

I didn't have time to find a cutter to make holly leaves, so I had another idea. Here's how to make holly leaves from green musk sticks:
As you can see, one side gets flattened against the chopping board when you slice it. Using a blunt utensil, make an indentation into the flattened side and this should reshape the musk stick slice to look like a holly leaf!





Marissa also made a salad with lettuce, cherry tomatoes, orange segments and avocade with a thick balsamic glaze for dressing.
I brought some meats from the store in Subiaco for a charcuterie platter. The Spanish Serrano was divine! Much more sweeter and it had a softer texture than the Prosciutto. I also got some Hot Salami and Honey & Mustard Glazed Ham. Yum!
For dessert, we shared a little Brioche that I bought from Jean Claude's Patisserie in Subiaco. It was soooo good! It was filled with a deliciously creamy custard with small chunks of rhubarb with what we thought was Cognac or some sort of brandy.
After our feast, we lounged infront of the TV with a cup of flower tea. The tea 'flower's have been handwoven! Very pretty.
Mum made one of my favourites today. In Hainanese we call it 'Dap Sai'. It's got shitake mushrooms, black fungus, cabbage, carrot, vermicelli and usually some sort of meat. Mum makes it with beef, pork or chicken. I think it was chicken tonight but I was so hungry I just wolfed it all down with lots of Mum's homemade chilli paste.
I made a bowl of Easy Mac for breakfast at work this morning. I love macaroni and cheese! I know it's strange, but the Easy Mac that comes in the plastic sachets tastes better than when you get the ones in the plastic cups.

In the bowl, I added the bean sprouts and kang kong. They will cook when I add the hot soup.
We intended to go home and poach some eggs for breakfast, but the lure of chips and gravy was too great. We succumbed.








We marinated a piece of porterhouse in soy sauce, sesame oil, fish sauce and chilli flakes. We seared each side in the pan and after resting it for several minutes, we sliced it up for the salad.
We threw together some roughly chopped roma tomatoes, washed rocket leaves, sliced red onion and cubes of avocado. I added some olive oil and white balsamic vinegar into the remaining marinade and whisked it together to create a salad dressing. Yum!
We both ordered the $20 sirloin and chips special that was on the board, asking for it medium rare. It took a while for our steaks to arrive and we were both really disappointed that they were like cardboard. They were cooked all the way through and difficult to swallow. We were hungry though, and there was no time to order something else or have it recooked. We did mention it to the waiter when he came to clear our plates though. It's a pity it left a bad impression for us because it is a great location but I don't think I will be returning for the food.
After the concert, we walked into Northbridge and Sarah and I were so incredibly thirsty. We ordered a can of grass jelly each and polished them off immediately. We asked for a second one. So...thirsty!

Jocelyn cooked tonight. She made noodles. I was a bit reluctant to eat it because the one and only other time she cooked for us, we all got food poisoning. The noodles weren't bad! I had to add lots of chilli though because it lacked spiciness.
