Pineapple Tarts

Every year without fail my parents will have a usual selection of things in the house in readiness for Chinese New Year. If you didn't see these things in the home it didn't feel like CNY. There were the mandatory mandarin oranges bought by crates, red envelopes, and pineapple tarts. Without fail there would be a container of pineapple tarts on the coffee table for guests. Sometimes the guests don't even have a chance, my brother would scoff almost all of it down well before the festive season was over.

This year, I decided to bake some pineapple tarts for my own place. Sure, I don't have a coffee table to place them on, but there's always the kitchen table - I'm all for establishing new traditions, me.

First step was to make the pineapple jam filling. I bought two large cans of pineapple pieces, squeezed out all the juices and ended up with a small bowl of pineapple. Then, I stirred the pieces with sugar in the pot over low heat on the stove. At the end of the 1/2 hour, my right biceps had grown by 1/2 cm for a tiny bowl of pineapple jam.

The next day, I made the pastry. Lots of butter, some sugar, some flour and 3 egg yolks. I had no idea what shape I should have for the tarts. I didn't have any moulds, cookie cutters, or anything that would make my pineapple tarts look as flash as the ones on the market. So, I made them in the shape of logs, or in keeping with the spirit of Chinese New Year, gold bulions.

This is what the end result look like after 25 mins in the oven.

Tadaaa!! My very first attempt at baking pineapple tarts. Definitely not export quality but still taste pretty good! The pastry melts in the mouth, and the pineapple jam is pleasant. I didn't add enough sugar - I try to reduce sugar and butter in all my recipes but obviously I shouldn't have for this one!

How to Debone a Chicken Wing and other Tricky Issues

Being a religious devotee of food in the media, I came across a picture and a recipe for stuffed chicken wings recently. The picture showcased the beautiful colours of each ingredient perfectly. It was a picture of a mound of deep fried chicken wings dissected in the middle showing off a round of ham, and other yummies.

As I reached for a tissue to catch my saliva from dribbling all over my clothes, I had the crazy idea I would also attempt the recipe. After all, the recipe only had 4 ingredients, and 4 steps. The 4th step was - eat hot chicken wings with caution. Now, I have no idea on how to debone a chicken wing. So, I searched on the Net for some youknowhow videos that will turn me into a master chicken wing deboner.

I changed my mind after watching the first video. The process looked as complicated as open heart surgery. A blog entry even described it as 'laborious'. Wait a minute... Is it worth three hours of my Saturday deboning chicken wings for some praises around the table? Hmm... debatable, but I don't think it is.

Maybe all recipes should have a difficulty rating, something like:
Level 1 - so easy you can do it in your sleep.
Level 2 - takes some time and effort but won't kill you.
Level 3 - don't even think about it. Go to your nearest restaurant.

I'll just attempt Level 1's most of the time and Level 2 on a day I need some challenge in my life. But right now, I think I'll just go to my nearest restaurant and ask if the chef can prepare a dish of deep fried stuffed chicken wings.

Exercise!

Tearing down the street at full speed.

Wind in my hair, my suit flapping wildly.

Amazed at how fast I can run with high heels on. Man, I could win a marathon with heels.

If I don't drop dead first with the searing pain in my chest.

Then the need to coughs started. My body, unused to the exertion that is forced on it, trying to protest.

But no time to bend over coughing!

Phew...! Caught the tram in the nick of time!

Now there is time to cough... started coughing like a smoker with a 20 a day habit.

Coughing interruped by a little old lady half standing from her seat in the crowded tram asking me, "Would you like a seat, dear?"

Errr.... time to exercise a teeny bit more??

To Start the New Year

Point of No Return
David C McCasland - http://www.rbc.org/odb/odb.shtml

Longtime California pastor Ray Stedman once told his congregation: “On New Year’s Eve we realize more than at any other time in our lives that we can never go back in time. . . . We can look back and remember, but we cannot retrace a single moment of the year that is past.”

Stedman then referred to the Israelites as they stood on the edge of a new opportunity. After four decades of desert wanderings by their people, this new generation may have wondered if they had the faith and fortitude to possess the Promised Land.

Their leader, Moses, reminded them that they had seen “every great act of the Lord which He did” (Deut. 11:7) and that their destination was “a land for which the Lord your God cares; the eyes of the Lord your God are always on it, from the beginning of the year to the very end of the year” (v.12).

On New Year’s Eve, we may fear the future because of events in the past. But we need not remain chained to our old memories because we can move ahead focused on God. Just as the Lord watched over the land and His people, so His eyes will be upon us.

God’s faithful care will extend to every day of the new year. We can count on that promise.

The “what” of our future is determined by the “Who” of eternity.