Dumpling Delight

"Let's go eat dumplings for dinner," Arrow #1 said.

"I know the best place, " he said.

Well now, we have all heard that before. The best this and the best that. But best can be very relative.

That was on my mind as Hubby and I were led to a somewhat dimly lit alley, in between the back of two rows of shoptlots. The tables are simple foldable ones, and the chairs are easily stackable, portable ones.

Hmmm on arrival, there were so many customers, I began to change my mind. Maybe he was right...

Dumplings was the first item ordered. The rest were the supplements. When it arrived, looking like this... Frankly, I had second thoughts. They didn't exactly looked appetising!

 

I gingerly picked one up with my chopsticks, and bit into it.

Wow, were my tastebuds pleasantly surprised! The minced pork was nicely chopped but not too fine, so you can still savour the texture. The flavour was full as the mixture spices blended so well I didn't need to add anything more to it. I like mine "unadulterated" and without sauce or dips so this was right up my street. The flour skin was not too thick, but didn't fall apart too much either. Served in the simple way, it didn't cost an arm or leg either!

I am glad I was persuaded to go and try! And more importantly, as Hubby said, our Arrows would have good taste if we brought them up right. Hahahaha! I like his reasoning!

Celebration with Curry!

It's a very belated birthday celebration so we decide to go to a slightly up market place. 

At the end of the day however, some of us still order the local fare Haha!

I have to say that this was yummilicious!

Momma n Dotter Moments

We decided to do some baking again. Arrow #3 has her way and I have mine. Inevitably we start off clashing a little. Then we settle down in our own way. 

Final product is pretty good and more importantly, we are reconciled and not enemies! 

The next morning, I pack them away nicely. The smaller boxes contain the smaller cupcakes. The bigger contain the medium ones.

Every single one is to be given away eventually. I think Arrow #3 and I have had an overdose of this recipe ourselves! Haha!

Growing Up

Another stage in Arrow #3's life. She is learning to care for her parents more. She decided that since I wasn't feeling so well, she would cook!

These were her attempts. I am grateful!

But I guess I ought to increase her repertoire of dishes.....!

I Like .... Not!

It was supposed to be a treat.

Arrow #3 spotted it.

Seemed perfect for a humid hot day.

And after grocery shopping
Mango. Iced? Or so we thought.

But disappointing it was indeed. It didnt even satisfy our thirst.

Appearances can be so deceiving....

Candlelight Dinner

We went away for a break. I don't mean the family. It was the office staff.

First stop was the gym where we worked out for about an hour.

The next stop was dinner at a lovely restaurant.
After working at the gym, we could tuck into a sumptuous meal.

Now the staff can say that they had a candlelight dinner with the boss! Hahaha!

Simply Delightful

It was a lovely snatched time with the family. Sometimes it gets so busy that I don't have much time to even enjoy my meal.

This time, however, I managed to. And I enjoyed it too.

This is what I had.
Nasi lemak. Lovely. Presentation was appetizing. And the looks did not disappoint.

The taste was absolutely yummy.

The ambiance was comfortable.

Love visiting this place.

A New Venture

What makes a grown man who would qualify for a pension soon take up a new venture?

An opportunity.

An opening.

A never-say-retire attitude?

A can-never-ever-retire philosophy?

All of the above?

Haha!

Whatever it is, here it is - the first photo of a cafe that my Hubby opened yesterday! Yummy western food served cafe style.

Located at the 1 Borneo Hypermall in Kota Kinabalu, it's had good food reviews so far. The service needs troubleshooting of course, for a newly opened place.
This photo was taken before the mad lunch rush.

Drop by when you're in the vicinity.

Black is Good

Some friends came over recently. We had sumptuous dinner.

Then it was some cheese and wine.

And then coffee with chocolate. Black chocolate.
Black is good. It means that my daughter can eat it as she doesnt take to milk very well.

What's more, this is Belgian black chocolate. A taste worth staying up till after midnight for....

This Has Not Been Edited

I kid you not. This is a real strawberry. It fits into the palm of my hand. It is that big.
It tasted great too. Succulent. Sweet. So much juice. The best strawberry I have ever had.

Found in the fat lady's shop in the outskirts of Seoul, Korea, somewhere....She sold them ever so cheaply too. Hubby, Arrow #3 and I had a feast!

Eating the Moon

Did I tell you that my parents are here on holidays with us?

Well, since their arrival, we have taken them to many of our favourite haunts for meals. Honestly, we havent waited for Christmas Day to start stuffing! Our FAVOURITE places! How to control.... sigh....

Along the way, when we stopped off at one such place and guess what. Hubby decided to be adventurous ..... he decided to try to eat the moon!

It was a tantalizing thought. Indeed, an intriguing idea.

But how?

Here's how!
What a vessel-clogging, pressure-rising, cholesterol-peaking sight.

Not to mention the taste!

Behold the stir fried koayteow with moon.

Simpang Mengayau

What a glorious day it was. After a pleasant drive, we visited the Tip of Borneo, aka Simpang Mengayau.

Seemed the right thing to do with my parents. Did I tell you that my granny was born in Kudat? Well this was a good reason to go and visit!
After this long walk to the top, we walked to the tip and more. My Dad didnt follow to the end, but on the way back, he was scarcely breathless! I am amazed and thank God that we all had a good time!

Perfect End to the Day

After a great time of fellowship over dinner, we adjourned to the house - young folks from the university and some adults.

There, we indulged in further fellowship.... and more.

Here, folks, is Big Mmmmommmma's indulgence.

It's a great way to end the day. Fellowship and Fei-low-ship.

Gout Giver

I know, I know, I shouldn't.

But in one day alone, I did.

This was my morning fare. Pork innards noodles. Honestly, it was worth the drive all the way to the other side of town near the beach. Initially we worried if there were any seats available! There were none the last time we went. We meaning Hubby and I of course.

When we got there, voila, just one table left - just for us.

Needless to say we enjoyed this meal immensely!
Then in the afternoon, the children asked to go out for lunch together. So I suggested another place. This time, where my favourite beef innards noodle dish is served.

This dish, where the noodles are covered with a dark sauce, is one of my favourite morning meals. I like the innards more than the dry, stringy meat. There's something about the soft texture sliding about on my tongue, with the delicious sauce coating it.... hmmmm
Specially arranged that bit of intestine to show it off!

Yeah, this is Big Mmmmommmma's glorious grub moment.

Auf Weidersehen

Auf Wiedersehen (German pronunciation: [aʊfˈviːdəʁzeː(ə)n]) is German for "goodbye". The phrase more literally translates as "when we see again" or "until we see again".

That's the phrase my second Arrow learned while with us. He came back for his semester break having lost some weight. It is hard as a mother to see his already thin frame look even more thin and frail. Have been trying to put back some meat on him and I think we have succeeded to some extent.

Why German? He's going to take the language as part of his studies. Hopefully he will continue to do well and get selected to go to Germany for part of his course.

His course. Today he flew to go back and continue it. He probably wont be back end of this year for Christmas. We probably wont see him over Chinese New Year either.

And I didnt get to see him off at the airport. It was hard to worship in song this morning.....

Passion

This grows wild in our garden and just outside our fence! It's passion fruit! A yellow version.
Here is a friend eating it as is. Too strong for me though. I prefer it made into a juice with some bananas and a few cubes of ice. Yum!

Naughty but Nice

The other day Hubby and I suddenly fancied this dish. Can you see it? Dripping with the fried fat pieces, the sauce is sticky and thick and tasty. The noodles are thick, and covered with this dark sauce. Priceless.
Amazingly, this dish though simple, is actually difficult to recreate well.

My favourite part? The cabbage. Yum!

Good Food Good Fun

I nearly didn't want to go. For the dinner I mean. I was tired and a little low in spirit. I didn't want to spoil the fun.

But as six o'clock approached, I felt a second wind. So I agreed to go.

And I am so glad that I did!

The food was really nice. For more, visit here.
But the conversation around the table was wonderful.

The laughter continued to our house where we chatted like old friends over a hot drink.

There's something about the fellowship of the saints.

Problem Solving

For some time now we had been perplexed. Frequent stuffy nose episodes, terrible debilitating headaches, heavy head days. It was mind-boggling. We couldn't understand what the problem was. We even wondered if there were other problems we hadn't thought about. You know, problems with school perhaps. Or relationships that were not helpful. Maybe it was psychosomatic you know. How about her spectacles? Did they need changing?

And so it went on.

For months.

In the end, it was God's inspiration.

Spelt D-I-A-R-Y.

Yup, she is allergic to dairy products.

She's been off it for a while and she is fine.
Then one day I got another phone call from school - another headache. She was almost in tears from the pain. She could barely focus.

Later when she had recovered, she thought back and found the culprit. It was a new dish that the school canteen was serving. She tried it and discovered cheese in it.

The rest, as they say, is history....

Praise God!

A No-No for Dieters

As usual, even after dinner, we were talking about food. Amongst friends, we shared about Hubby's famous crispy skin pork. None of those days of preparation beforehand for him. None of that hanging up to dry for hours.

He does his in one day. Cooks it for an hour.

And this is today's outcome.
Verdict of all present - finger licking good! "You can open a Chinese takeaway", "Worth its weight" etc!

So much for trying to maintain one's weight!