Wasabi Meatballs

Minced meat ( chicken , beef or pork ) can be prepared in many variations...you can either have it steamed  with duck yolk and eggs or steamed it with preserved veggie ( tung choy in cantonese ) or make them into meat cutlets but for once I would like to stuff wasabi into the meatballs and deep fry them till crispy on the outside and juicy inside.Pour some oyster sauce gravy over it.  Ooh la la ...it is one dish I don't mind making again coz I love wasabi  so does Jo.. and Daddy loves it too * wink 

Every bite is heavenly and the pungent wasabi can choke your nostril and sent you back to earth. And you can go on and on...without stopping...you can get addicted after the first meatball.  You can eat it sans gravy as a finger food or with onion rings oyster sauce gravy.

Pre-Graduation Dinner With Claire :)

Tonite ,we had a pre-graduation celebration dinner at Riche Montana with invited guest Claire. LOL! We invited Claire for this Korean BBQ & Steamboat at Riche Montana becoz  I wanted Claire to meet Jo and at the same time a little pre graduation celebration for Jo.  She worked hard the last four years so it was time to reward her :))   Just Piggy Gal Joanna , Claire and myself.  A ladies' night out...we had so much fun together...chatting , eating and photo shooting all the time. We had so much fun together And seriously we enjoyed ourselves very much...not so much on the food but on the fellowship.

Daddy recently had his eye surgery done so he doesn't feel like going out and Piggy boy Joshua is still in KL having fun with his coursemate. He is now having his semester break but will only be coming back this weekend and he will be going back to KL only after the CNY for his 2nd year 3rd semester...Time flies ! :)

Well ,this is not really a celebration but a meet up for Piggy gal and Claire.  Piggy gal wanted to meet up with Claire the famous blogger in her own right "  Caring Is Not Only Sharing " so I took the opportunity to invite Claire to join us for the dinner. I had wanted to give Claire and Jo a treat so tonite was the best time since Claire is free and Piggy gal is craving for good food. We arrived early and managed to take some pictures for we were the only patrons there when we arrived at 7.30pm. But after half an hour the crowd came in and within an hour the whole place was packed.  Surprisingly...since it was a weekday and I purposely chose today thinking there won't be a crowd.  The food there is passable and I have a  post on it sometime in November last year. I won't blog on food this time around. Pretty much the same :))  and hop over to  Claire's blog for more pictures on tonite's dinner :).

Claire and Piggy gal Joanna 

she is so happy....beaming and grinning all the time 

laughter is brightest in a place where there is food.....:))

I am also happy when I see her eating well

by the way I was chef for the night...I cook they eat...

candid shot ...she was talking to claire and I just clicked away

while waiting for the food to cook on the grill pan

Claire cracking a joke and Piggy Gal was laughing heartily

they clicked instantly...great pal after tonight? :)))

Jo listening ernestly to Claire's story...very attentive :p

She is most happy when attacking the dessert

can you see how happy she is...food is the answer...LOL!

Smile Inducer for the day :

A mother passing by her daughter's bedroom was astonished to see the bed was nicely made and everything was picked up. Then she saw an envelope propped up prominently on the center of the bed. It was addressed, "Mom." With the worst premonition, she opened the envelope and read the letter with trembling hands: 

Dear Mom: It is with great regret and sorrow that I'm writing you. I had to elope with my new boyfriend because I wanted to avoid a scene with Dad and you. I've been finding real passion with Ahmed and he is so nice-even with all his piercings, tattoos, beard, and his motorcycle clothes. But it's not only the passion Mom, I'm pregnant and Ahmed said that we will be very happy. He already owns a trailer in the woods and has a stack of firewood for the whole winter. He wants to have many more children with me and that's now one of my dreams too. Ahmed taught me that marijuana doesn't really hurt anyone and we'll be growing it for us and trading it with his friends for all the cocaine and ecstasy we want. In the meantime, we'll pray that science will find a cure for AIDS so Ahmed can get better; he sure deserves it!! Don't worry Mom, I'm 15 years old now and I know how to take care of myself. Someday I'm sure we'll be back to visit so you can get to know your grand children. 

Your daughter, Judith 

PS: Mom, none of the above is true. I'm over at the neighbor's house. I just wanted to remind you that there are worse things in life than my report card that's in my desk center drawer. I love you! Call when it is safe for me to come home.

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Chicken Cheese Roll With Black Pepper Sauce

Piggy gal is back for good...Yay! she finished her studies in KL and now has 3 months holiday before she takes off to UK for her final semester there. What a bliss for me and having her all to myself for 3 solid months.  Envy me ! LOL! You know how long I waited for this day to come...4 years! And now I have my baby back with me for at least 3 months. Time to cook all her favourite dishes and this is one of her favourite....Chicken Cheese Roll With Black Pepper Sauce and with lots of salad...I am going to feed her till she grows round round :p, the chinese way of speaking so to say :)

Tuna Sandwiches 2

Tuna Sandwiches again ? Yup I made this for our breakfast before going to Church this morning. Simple and yet delicious. Imagine munching on this healthy tuna sandwiches with a cup of hot lemon tea while reading the morning paper....whoa....this is a simple and relaxing breakfast indulgence :))  Eating at home beats waiting for a table at the coffee shops on weekends :) especially those dim sum restaurants in town.

mix tuna flakes, chopped chillies, mayonaise, chopped italian parsley together

spread evenly over the wholemeal bread 

top with pickled onion rings and a layer of cheddar cheese

before sandwich another slice of bread over it

cut them diagonally across into 4 pieces of  triangles

yummilicious tuna sandwiches....a balanced breakfast treat for all ages

a close up of something that will make you crave for it :p

Elin  in her wickedness once again....making you drool over

this piece of deliciousness :))))

Tuna Sandwiches 2

Ingredients:

1 small can of  Tuna Chunks in brine water - drained and flaked it

(A)

2  bird-eye chillies - chopped

1 tbsp of mayonaise

2 sprigs of italian parsley- chopped

 onion rings pickled with lemon juice

grated cheddar cheese

4 slices of wholemeal bread

Method:

Mix the tuna flakes with ingredients A till well mixed. Spread evenly over a slice of wholemeal bread, topped with the pickled onion rings and cheddar cheese. Cover with another slice of wholemeal bread. Cut diagonally across into 4 triangles.  Serve with a  cup of hot lemon tea or coffee.

Enjoy !

One of the very nicest things about life is the way we must regularly stop whatever it is we are doing and devote our attention to eating.  

~Luciano Pavarotti~

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Yay! 100,000 Visitors :))

Yay! I am happy that my blog has touched a  100,000 visitors in its 2nd blogversary this Jan 2010 . When I started this blog it was solely for my Piggies who were away in college in KL. Becoz  everyday they will ask me " Mom, what are you both having for dinner ? "  " What you baked these days ? ", etc etc. And I was too lazy to describe and sms it , I started this blog solely for them and asked them to drop in to read and view the dishes I cooked and the cakes I baked  :p  Since then there is no turning back , it became a hobby I enjoy doing. Slowly I took an interest in food photography , thus you see a great improvement in my food presentation. I told myself that I am never too old to learn and it has proven that I can be IT savvy too :p

Many people asked me why Elinluv's Tidbits Corner ? ....well....Just that Elin loves everything...LOL! thus I just named it Elinluv's Tidbits Corner!  I have many people who told me this....Elinluv is a tag too sexy for you LOL! doesn't suit the real person....Elinluv sounded out for this old Elin....haha do you people agree to that? Well, many readers emailed me and say that they like the way I write my daily post and were surprised that Elin turns out to be such a matured lady....LOL ! Even my Piggies coursemates asked them how old is your mom? She writes like a young person...ahem...please I told you I may be 5 decades old but I am forever 25  LOL! Please bear with me...I am funny though :p

Through blogging I came to meet a lot of friends from all over the place. And Gertrude of MyKitchenSnippets became my first blogger friend and since then our friendship has grown. She taught me a lot of things and from her blog I became good in baking and cooking. A big thank you to Gertrude for helping me out in Foodbuzz, the patience she has shown to my ignorance of the usage of Foodbuzz :)) I have made a lot of friends thru foodbuzz :)

Thank you guys for always dropping me a line here for me to read .  I love your comments...it brings me closer to you all. Thank you for all your support thus far. I love you guys....muaxs to all :)))

Have a wonderful and great weekend ! :)

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Shiitake With Salted Fish Infused Mince Meat Fillings

Whenever I have the opportunity to do stuffing for mushrooms , my preference will be the salted fish infused mince meat fillings....I can forget my own surname :p whenever I have this for dinner :p that good......excuse the exaggerated statement ! :))

I like to use fresh shiitake for this dish. You can use any type of minced meat...add a bit of salted fish ( the mui heong type) , garlic, chopped italian parsley , chopped hot chillies, light soy sauce, sesame oil , corn flour and pepper , stir the ingredients together vigorously in a big bowl till it turns into a sticky mixture.... mmmmm just talking about this salted fish, my salivary glands will do its job :)) tada... and it is ready for stuffing the shrooms.... seriously this is a great dish ! The ghost of its scent lingers everywhere !

gorgeous looking shrooms.....

can't wait to swim in the hot oil......

lightly fry them in hot oil ...with the meat fillings facing down

and fry till the meat is cooked and golden brown

Dish up and leave aside ....you can start preparing the gravy

when the mushrooms are done

Pour the ready gravy over the cooked mushrooms

and garnish with italian parsley if you like

this is also the family favourite dish :)

Shiitake With Salted Fish Infused Mince Meat Fillings

ingredients:

12 pieces of fresh shiitake - removed the stem, washed clean

Fillings:

300 gm minced meat ( chicken/pork)

1/2 piece of salted fish ( mui heong ) - chopped

3 pips of garlic- chopped

2 sprigs of italian parsley - chopped

3 bird's eye's chillies - chopped

1 tsp of light soy sauce

dash of pepper

1 tsp of sesame oil

1/2 tbsp of corn flour

Gravy:

1/2 tbsp of fermented soy bean ( tau cheong)

chopped garlic

1 tbsp of oyster sauce

1/4 tsp of sugar

thickening:

1/2 cup water

1/2 tsp of corn flour

Method:

Mix all the fillings ingredients together in a big bowl. Stir vigorously with a pair of chopsticks till it turns into a sticky mixture. Stuff each of the fresh shiitake mushrooms with the salted fish infused mince meat fillings until all done.

Heat up the oil in a wok, when the oil is hot, put in the mushrooms one by one with the fillings facing down and fry till golden brown and cooked. Dish up and arrange neatly on a serving dish and leave aside while you prepare the gravy.

Pour the extra oil into a oil container for future use and leave about 1 tbsp of oil in the wok. Under medium low heat, saute all the gravy ingredients except the sugar and the thickening till fragrant. Add in the sugar and thickening. Once it boils. Off the heat and pour gravy over the cooked mushrooms. Garnish with italian parsley if you like. Serve hot with rice.

Enjoy!

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