French Lolly Balls

I must be on drugs the day I bought these French candies !!

I saw them sitting pretty on the cashier counter & yup I grabbed each flavour available & fix the bill. I actually bought 5 tins (can't find tin no.5 for photos).

The only selling point for me is the pretty tins, nothing spectacular bout the candy :o)
Bought them without even tasting, smart me.
They are all white balls regardless the flavour.

Now I am stuck with lolly balls in pretty tins.

Rose, ?? (not sure) ,Violet, Liquorice, Mint (no photo - can't find the tin)

PERTH - Where to Go ?

Quite lucky to have a chance to visit Perth for the 3rd time. I am surpised with the changes around the city, they have done major works since my last trip back in 2006, it is now a pretty city !!

Perth has relaxing atmosphere, everything seems running at a slow pace (no mad morning rush like Sydney), hardly any traffic jam.

Here's where to go:

• Greenhouse Cafe

I love this place, it is really unique, they really are GREEN wholistically. Everything seems to be made from recycled materials.
100 St Georges Terrace
City

• Phin Vong

Family run Vietnamese restaurant, very affordable, approx $15 per head (appetiser, main, drink), restaurant is really clean which is a relief !!

William street
Northbridge

• CORICA Pastries

Famous for their apple struddle, prebooking is recommended, they sold out like hot cakes
Pity I didn't have time to go there during this trip.

106 Aberdeen Street

Northbridge, WA 6003

p: (08) 9328 8196

• King st cafe

Nice cafe across Louis Vuitton & Tiffany co., they baked their own bread, has great wine selection. The great thing about the cafe is they open till 10pm.

King Street (enter from Hay street)

City

• CIAO Italia

Authentic Italian restaurant, nothing flash about the joint, food & service are great, they accept no booking, about 10 mins from city by car
273 Mill Point Road (Corner Douglas Ave)
South Perth

GREENHOUSE cafe - St Georges Terrace - city

GREENHOUSE cafe
The wall is filled with strawberry pots !!

GREENHOUSE cafe - My fresh Orange juice came in a (recycled) bottle
GREENHOUSE cafe - menu from recycled paper
and I love this bit ..

"Our eggs come from chickens @ margaret river organic free range, the back from pigs@ ...the bread@ greenhouse is made of house milled ...wheat...we make our yoghurt in house with milk from caprino farms..all the goats have names out there...
We will harvest herbs from the roof top when they are at their best"

GREENHOUSE cafe - breakfast - pancake with peach compote & vanilla mascarpone
They use real vanilla !! I can see the black dots !! It is nice & the sweetness level is low.

GREENHOUSE cafe - home made Peach Almond Tart
I love them, not too sweet which is great & it is freshly baked !!

PHINH VONG - Sugar cane prawn vermicelli
Tasty, love their radish/ carrot pickles, generous portion
Sugar cane prawn has good texture, not too doughy/ chewy

PHINH VONG - Fresh prawn spring roll

CIAO Italia - Seafood Pizza (called SARDEGNA)

CIAO Italia - Seafood Pizza (called SARDEGNA)

Generous seafood !! Nice pizza base too

CIAO Italia - Penne Arrabiata (olive, chilli, garlic)

Generous portion, I reckon this can be shared for 4 people, they use fresh tomatoes for sure !!
CIAO ITALIA - Cannoli
A little too sweet for my liking

St Georges Terrace - City of Perth :

London Court (St Georges Terrace - city)

Stirling Garden (St Georges Terrace - city)

St Georges Terrace - city

CANBERRA - Where to Go ?

My 3rd trip to Canberra, discovered new eating places thanks to friends recommendation.

According to my source, Canberra just recently built this shopping centre called Canberra Centre. The centre is kinda the IT place to hangout during the weekend where people are quite dressed up (I was wearing my CROCS ... LOL).

All the nice places to go for dining are all located within the Canberra Centre (Bunda Street).

Few places that that you can go within the city centre:

• Gu's Cafe

Cafe with history dated back in 1960's, quite cute

• Tongue & Groove

Lounge/ Bar - they are famous for their pizookie (pizza cookie)

• CREAM

Nice atmosphere for breakkie, I would say food is average, presentation & service are good

• Sammy's Kitchen

Mad chinese restaurant, booking is a must, really nice, fast & great service

• KOKO Black

Definitely for chocolate lovers, I didn't try their dessert, only went to the shop, the shop is really nice, great for gossip/ coffee session.

Canberra City Centre (Bunda Street) - all the nice places are located within the street

Gu's Cafe (outdoor & indoor seatings)

CREAM cafe
CREAM cafe - big breakfast

CREAM cafe - breakfast menu - Waffles with berries compote
Was OK - the compote was too runny on that day

CREAM cafe - lunch/ dinner menu

SAMMY's kitchen - asparagus with garlic & oyster sauce
The asparagus was so fresh, perfectly cooked & not overcooked !!

SAMMY's kitchen - Belachan (shrimp paster) beans

SAMMY's kitchen - ShangTung chicken (vinegar sauce??)

SAMMY's kitchen - Duck Pancake (duck, pine nut, celery)
The fillings resemble San Choy Bow

SAMMY's kitchen - special menu

SAMMY's kitchen - Prawn & Lobster egg noodle with XO sauce
(Lobster was a bit on the salty side..pity !! otherwise perfecto !!)

Upside Down Caramel Pear Cake

I normally have little luck in baking, either look pretty & not edible OR edible & look terrible.
Here's my 1st successful attempt of baking a cake that is edible & look pretty fancy !!

Source : Sydney Morning Herald (Good Living magazine 02/03/2010)

This cake is easy to make & looks devine, The sticky brown caramel glazes the pears & seeps into the cake, making it moist & delicious. SErve warm from the oven with vanilla ice cream for a decadent dessert.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup sugar
• 1/3 cup water
• 3 firm pears
• 2 large eggs
• 1/3 cup raw sugar
• 1/2 tsp vanilla essence
• zest of 1 orange
• zest of 1 lemon
• 100 gr unsalted butter, melted
• 1 cup self raising flour

Method:

• Preheat fan forsec oven to 170C (190C conventional).
• Grease a 20 centimetre cake tin with removeable base & line the bottom with baking paper.
• Put sugar & water in a small saucepan & warm gently until sugar dissolves.
• Increase the hear & cook until the liquid is a light caramel colour.
• Pour into the tin & swirl around to cover the base.
• Peel, core & quarter pears & arrange on top of the caramel, with points facing towards the centre.
• Beat eggs with raw sugar, vanilla, orange & lemon zest.
• Add melted butter.
• Mix in flour.
• Place spoonfuls of batter over the top of the pears & gently spread, so as not to disturb the pears.
• Bake in oven for 30-40 mintues or until the cake is set in the centre.
• Remove from oven & turn out on to a plate while cake is still hot.

My little Tips:

• 2 pears is sufficient if they are medium-large size ( I did it with 2 pears - cut into 6 for each)
• I found it is easier to peel the pears before starting to make the cake, we can stick the pears to the caramel based cake tin
• Making the caramel is a little tricky, do not leave them to dissolve by itself/ you might burnt the sugar
• Place cake tin into another cake tray, just in case the caramel run a little wild
  

Original Recipe - Sydney Morning Herald (Good Living)

Cake tin with removable base

Arranging the pears

My masterpiece - Upside Down Caramel Pear Cake - not bad for 1st attempt