Apple Pie

I finally got around to making my Apple Pie that I've been talking about for ages! I must admit, I cheated and bought the dough to use for the pie, but then when I thawed it and rolled it out, there wasnt enough for both top and bottom crust :( So I decided to make it without a base...*gulp* I mixed and matched a few recipes so I was very worried about how it would turn out. I also wasnt sure if I should put foil around the edges to prevent the edges of the crust from burning, but I decided not to in the end. So, after preparing it, and baking it for an hour and 10 minutes, it was done! I was like a kid on Christmas morning, running to peek into the oven-glass every 20 minutes or so and I even squealed with glee when I set it down on the table :D I've yet to taste it (the bf is keen!) as I'm waiting for my mom and sister to come and taste it with us :)

The pie filling

Ready for the oven

The finished Apple Pie!

In other news, my new babies arrive on Monday, and I finally worked up the courage to go officially get permission to keep my rats in my apartment block! When most people hear "rats" they think smelly, diseased, sewer creatures, which of course could not be farther from the truth, so I was very worried they'd say NO RATS ALLOWED! But, they didnt! She seemed a bit put off by the thought, but after assuring her that I dont breed, and my girls are kept in a cage, she said fine. So yay for us!! Now I can bring my rats from my car to my flat (and vise versa) without worry!

Chocolate Brownies

Yummy Chocolate Fudge Brownies

So the other day I decided to make Chocolate Fudge Brownies. It was my first attempt and I was pretty impressed with the results.

The recipe will stay a secret, because I'm going to work on it a little more and make it fully mine! It was fairly simple to make, and I enjoyed every minute of it, including watching it bake haha.

My new ratties are arriving on Monday, and I'm so excited! Poor Orlith is incredibly bored, since Xeon is rather old and just wants to sleep and cuddle. She's going to be so relieved to have friends to tumble about with, but I'm not sure what to do while they're still growing. The new bubs will be too small for the large cage, and if they're anything as sneaky as Orlith was, they'll soon find they can fit through the bars...thats if Orlith doesnt show them herself! LOL!

I took a few photos of my babies, so here are a few of the ones I liked:

Orlith

Xeon

"Mommy watcha doin'?!?" (blurry Orlith-nose)

More photos can be seen under "Recent Pics" slideshow...

Hamilton's Squash

Hamilton's Squash and Chicken Steaklets I'm not sure when I got this bee in my bonnet to try out new cooking dishes, but I'm enjoying (almost) every minute of it. A while ago I borrowed my mom's Happy Days with the Naked Chef cooking book (no, this was after I was bitten by the cooking bug) and found a recipe for Hamilton's Squash. I just had to try it (which is surprising in it's own, being that I'm not a butternut lover at all and that my mother has made this before and I've never eaten it!)! Basically, its a butternut squash, stuffed with basmati rice, mushrooms (which I omitted this time since bf -sadly- doesnt eat mushrooms), sundried tomatoes, and various spices such as rosemary, chilli (optional) and coriander seeds. It gets oiled, wrapped in foil, and cooked in the oven at 230° for about an hour and fifteen minutes. What results is greatly pleasing! The most difficult part, in my opinion, is scoring and scooping out the inner part of the butternut (mainly the neck area). That takes some hectic wrist action! It's a nice way to work up an appetite though hehe. Oh and the waiting is pretty tough too - especially if its your first time making it! That being said, my first attempt proved successful enough (and bf liked it!!), but in hindsight, I think I'll parboil the rice before hand, as I'm not fond of the al dente texture that results from this recipe. Other than that, it was great! Oh and I also think I'll pick a slightly smaller squash next time, esp if I'm having it alongside anything else (like chicken). The bf also wont eat too much butternut, so I dont want to waste any if possible. Preparing the squash Straight out of the oven! It really is great as a meal on its own, so dont be afraid to pick a big ol' butternut and make it a main course! Perfect for vegetarians!! I'm not sure I could see myself making this more than once a month though haha since it is quite tiresome to make. If I'm having a dinner party, however, bring it on! PS: My new ratties arrive on Monday 27th!! Ramoth looking down (Husky) and Wirenth looking above (Dumbo)!

My 5 Year Anniversary Weekend Away

A boat outside Die Strandloper restuarant

So after more than half a year gone by, I needed a holiday! I tried to organise some friends, new and old, together for a weekend away at Langebaan (inspired by my upcoming 5 year anniversary with Michael), but unfortunately circumstances dictated that it would be only Michael and I.

I was sad, but what better way to spend an anniversary than with the person you love and only the person you love!?! In preparation, I made a Banana Bread in my dad's bread machine... um, well, lesson learnt: mix cake recipes' ingredients yourself and dont trust machine to do it properly for you (like they say it will - though the bread comes out great)!

The Banana Bread That Wasnt Quite Done

*sigh* And the inside wasnt cooked properly, so it was like eating dough....I still ate some though haha.

The weekend got off to a rocky start....was supposed to have hair cut and coloured before I left, but mom didnt plan for cutting, so I ran late on leaving for Langebaan while she fitted me in between her other customers (thanks, Mom! :D). Also tried to make some Sesame Seed Snaps but both batches didnt come out properly :(

Then we left for Langebaan, arrived, realised Michael forgot his bath towel and slipslops, and we forgot coffee and sugar, and that we didnt plan anything for dinner that night. We dashed off to the shops, to arrive back to find our keyhole lying on the floor...someone must have tried to get in! :( We had to then use the back door thereafter. *sigh*

The second day was better, cloudy at first, but gorgeous day by noon - spent most of the day wandering around semi naked (whaaat? it was our anniversary weekend after all :P) and tanning in the sunroom while reading, playing cards, and backgammon. Went for some walks on the beach in town, walked through the shops to see what had changed since our last visit (April 2007). Came back home and lazed about until dinner at Driftwoods (if you go to Langebaan, you HAVE to eat at this restaurant, or at the least try their cocktails - YUM!!).

Went to Driftwoods and got our regular table in the corner, overlooking the beach. While we were waiting on our food, we saw a seal diving around in the waves! I ordered a Bahana Rama (very rum-and-coconutty), and Michael ordered Love on the Rocks (like a Sex on the Beach, only with cranberry juice instead of OJ and grenadine). For food, I ordered the Seafood Tagliatelli was was simply outstanding!! There was so much seafood I couldnt believe it!! And it was my first time eating clams too! Michael ordered the sirloin (they gladly swapped it for rump at his request) and calamari (which I tasted and was great!). We were so full afterwards, we had to practically be rolled home!

The last day was spent relaxing, shopping, taking photos on the beach and at Die Strandloper, and cleaning up and preparing to go home. Photos can be seen in Recent Photos slideshow.

All in all it was one of the best weekends I've had in a looooong time, and one that wont quickly be forgotten.

Here's to another 5 years (at least) with my wonderful and caring man!

Chicken Tuesday...with a difference!

So, Tuesday nights in my house are called Chicken Tuesdays. This name came from when I started making roast chicken pieces for dinner, and somehow it always seeemed to be on a Tuesday.

Last Tuesday I was treated to dinner, since the following day was a public holiday, so we missed out on Chicken Tuesday that week (I think there were other dinner arrangements for the other nights of the week that week) and this Tuesday I attended an Intel function at our wholesalers (they gave away camo jackets and had a prize-giving air rifle shooting competition :P) so again, no Chicken Tuesday.

So, last night I finally got down to making chicken and thought I'd try something different with the potatoes for a change. I've been watching Masterchef with my mother every day on BBC's Lifestyle channel, so I guess thats where I got the urge from.

Anyway, I decided to make Sauteed Potatoes! Ok ok, so its simple enough, but for me, its a Big Thing. I cubed up the potato (we only needed one, it was a large potato), boiled it in a pot of water with a little salt, and then heated up a non-stick frying pan with quite a bit of oil in it (not enough to "deep dry" the cubes). In went the cubes, I seasoned them, and waited until they turned golden brown on the outside, turning them as needed. Drained them onto some paper towels, and served. It was DELICIOUS! They were crispy on the outside, and simply light and fluffy on the inside!! Just mouth-watering! Michael loved them and is now demanding that I make them more often! They were soooo good!

A photo (which doesnt look as appetising as it was, I assure you!) for you to see:

Yes, thats a very large piece of chicken, they're not normally that huge and normally I dont serve myself potatoes (carbs and proteins 'n all that). Hmm, and the potatoes were a little more golden than that...actually...why am I posting this photo at all?? It simply doesn't do these wonderful sauteed spuds justice!