Merry Christmas 2008

On every Christmas day, my whole bunch of friends will meet out for our Christmas dinner followed by a Gift Exchange program. This year, everything remains except that we have moved our destination out of downtown area to a more heartland environment!

The change was started by me, because I was the coordinator for this year's Christmas program. Every year the downtown area will be flooded with people and it is really hard to get a reservation at any place. Furthermore, we have 2 little kids and it will definitely be a tough chores for both mums to struggle carrying their babies amongst the crowd.

I had a hard time looking for a dinning place because I wanted a place that has a nice ambience and is really cozy. It was such a blessing when I came across this cafe while on a trip and they were featured on the TV as well. I hurriedly called them up for reservations and was really thrilled when we finally visited them!

The whole cafe is really really comfortable and they have vibrant colors that brighten up your mood. Best of all, the owner - Priscilla is such a gorgeous and friendly lady. The whole cafe brings out a very cheery atmosphere and I'm sure kids and adults will love to stay inside for a long long time and yes, they have a nice and interesting name - With a Pinch of Salt by Kyra.

I think I'll save my words and let the pictures tour you around.


The entrance


Nice windows ;)


The Menu stand


Very colorful environment


Kyra the host with her slogan


Besides the usual dinning area, they have a side corner for games and it's quite spacious


I told you it's spacious!


They have very cute and innovative name cards.
We "grabbed" many many of them :P


I have not tried the cakes but they looked pretty delicious


Turkey Caesar Salad
Nice salad! I love the dressings very much~


One of the Christmas course - Teriyaki Salmon set
Very yummy sauce and the fish was cooked nicely. The potatoes were nice!


One of the Christmas course - Beef Tenderloin set
The beef was tender although the sides were a little dry so it was on the average range


French Caramel Pudding
Very milky and delicious! The choco balls around them were really cripsy!

The whole Christmas menu cost $30 nett. (comes with a Salad, Main course, dessert and a cup of red/white wine). Yes NETT, no GST, no Service Charge! How cool can that be!


With a Pinch of Salt by Kyra
297 Tanjong Katong Road
Tel: 6348 2297

Christmas Cookies

Christmas is going to tip at my toes in another 15 days and I'm so excited! It's a season for family and friends and this truly perks up my mood :)

Last year, I wanted to make some Christmas cookies but they failed terribly. I could not even lift up the shaped dough not to say baked them! I guess it's either the recipe or otherwise my skills. I believe it's the latter.

This time round, I bucked up enough courage to try it out again.
IT works and I frosted them with some icings. Though they may not looked as nice as Evan's ones but I'm happy that at least they can be shown to the public now. Hurray!

On a side note, I'm looking for a nice and cozy place for Christmas Dinner.
It'll be good if it's buffet but Ala carte is fine - Not too expensive because you know Christmas is a month of spending! Let me know okay?


Santa Claus is coming to town.!

Hello Hello!

I have been tagged by both Aimei and Ganache-Ganache for the below Meme. Sorry ladies that I actually acted on this till now. Was really busy with my work and you know, I have not been baking for almost 2 weeks! Arghhh...

Here are the rules to observe.1. Link to my blog (tagger) on your blog. 2. Give seven facts about yourself. 3. Tag another seven blogs by leaving a comment on their blog and letting them know they were tagged and listing them (and their blogs) on your blog.

1. I love high carbohydrate food such as Bread, Potatoes and noodles. NOW, you know why I always have to keep a watch out on my intake ;P
   
   
2. I love to bake and cook as much as I love to talk. However, due to my workload, I haven't been doing the 3 much recently! :(
   


3. I'm a very repetitive person who can ask the same questions up to 20 times a day. The first person who can prove for that would be my Prince Charming.
   


4. I'm 5 feet 2 inches tall. Go convert it into Centimeters and you'll get my height.
   


5. I'm lamenting on the fact why did I chose to left my previous company. Sniffs....
   


6. I'm a hilarious and loud person who can laugh at the smallest joke and cry at the smallest mistake I made. Very extreme person I would say but no worries, I don't have any mood swings. My friends can vow for me!

I am not going to tag anyone for this.

Raisins Scones

Makes 13-16
Ingredients	Amounts
Plain flour	3 cups
Butter	170g
Sugar	1/2 cup
Baking powder	5 tsp
Salt	1 tsp
Milk	1 cup
Beaten egg	1
Raisins	1 cup

1. Combine flour, sugar, salt and baking powder in a deep bowl. Cut butter into small pieces and mix into the flour mixture. Rub the butter with the flour using your finger tips till crumbs like mixture is formed.
   
   
2. Add milk and beaten egg into the crumb mixture and mixed well. If the dough is sticky, you may add in more flour. Pour the raisins into the dough and knead well.
   
   
3. Roll the dough flat onto a floured surface. Cut the dough into circular shape and bring to bake at 200 degree Celsius for 15 mins or till golden brown.

I forgotten where I got this recipe from ( sign of aging *sniffs*) but I wrote that down and stick it onto my fridge, so when I was cracking my brain what to prepare for breakfast, I saw that and was happy since I got all the ingredients on hand, plus I was craving for scones after I ate that at InterContinental Hotel.

This is the second time I'm attempting on scones and the last time, Prince Charming complaint that he does not like fluffy scones so I was crossing my fingers that this is not something that he would fuss about. Quite a relieve that Prince Charming commented he likes this much better than the previous attempt :)

Serves this with your favourite jams and it'll make a good breakfast or high tea ;)

Late night supper @ The Roti Prata House

I almost forgotten all about our late night supper only when I found these tempting pictures lying in my folder! Gosh, is that a sign of aging? :(

Prince Charming and I headed down to Thomson for our late night supper while on our way home. We decided to go for pratas since the aroma was really strong and its practically dragging our feets there.

We ordered 2 kosong pratas (plain) and 2 egg pratas, 1 mee goreng and 1 Teh cino to go along.
The pratas were really crispy and nice! I love how you can bite the crisps off the edges and munch it down your throat. Awwww... thumbs up for the prata. Mee goreng on the other hand was not too bad and with a good point - they were not as greasy as the common ones we get anywhere.

I did not get to taste Teh Cino because I don't like to consume caffeine at night so according to Prince Charming's statement, he said that was the most flavourful Teh Cino he has tasted and it was really smoothing and nice. Total cost - $10 in exact. I have no idea how much each individual cost so I'll check it out the next time.

Anyway, I am staying so near to Jalan Kayu but both Prince Charming and I will rather prefer to take a ride down to Thomson for their pratas than walking over to Jalan Kayu. We both felt that Jalan Kayu's pratas are a little over-rated and they were not as nice comparing to the ones at Prata House. I suppose its up to individual to decide.









The Roti Prata House
Thomson Garden Estate
246M Upper Thomson Rd
Tel: 6459 5260
Mon - Sun (7am - 1am)