N.o 7 Fish Bistro Torquay

Last night Andy took me to our local seafood bistro by Torquay harbourside. It's always good sign to see a packed restaurant. We went before for Andy's birthday a few years back when he reminded me I wore a see-through top.. I didn't realise it was that see through! Anyway, me and Andy always do a very clever thing whereby we order two mains and ask them to come out one after the other so when one main comes out we share that one then the other main can get cooked and be fresh! We like to share everything and have a bit of variety.

So above is the first main an assortment of King Prawns, Baby Scallops and Mussels soaked in a very very very garlicy buttery sauce. Very nice and we polished off the frying pan and had garlic burps all night :-)

The second main below is grilled red mullet fillets with more scallops and chorizo sausage in a what can only be described as a 'f'izzy' vinegary sauce.

This was my fave dish the red mullet skin was soo crispy with a lovely texture and taste and the chorizo really worked well with the fish and scallops. This dish also came with some spinach, red cabbage, sweet potato and herb mash.. lovely.

So if I wasn't full enough, greedy Law here had dessert..Chocolate moosecake..

A Birthday Dinner - Sushi Boat

So much for my 30 minute cardio work-out today - was invited to a birthday dinner. Though the sushi/sashimi boat was relatively healthy - we all had to eat a slice of strawberry/chocolate gateau with chocolate-covered strawberries. The cake is taller than you think and the whole cake was covered with cream. Yes, it even defeated me. Had to leave some on the plate....

The tastiest heart attack you'll ever have

I've eaten a lot of greasy, artery clogging crap in my time, but the worst thing i ever ate (in terms of calories and sheer obesity potential, not taste) was labelled 'The Coronary" and you can see the monster below.

This thing is a beast of a meal, consisting of a bufffalo burger, an ostrich burger, and a slice of bacon, topped with melted cheese and relish, in a large sesame bun with a side of steak fries. In the background you can see the Kangeroo burger, not half as nice but hey. You can find this bad boy at the Pig & Fiddle pub in Bath - good times, good times..

Too much time on your hands or a work of art?

My sister's gift to her hubbie last christmas every kids dream a real homemade gingerman house! Yes, she really made this.

Perks of the job - the Chocolate Fountain bribe

I first started work at a small local law firm back in the summer of 2005. My colleagues were, shall we say, people who looked like they enjoyed their food! This was fine by me of course since I equally loved my food but my waist size never showed it hehe. I like good food but wouldn't pass the odd Haribo sweet brought in and the delight when I hear 'cakes in the kitchen' when one of my 35 or so colleagues' birthday it was, they would kindly leave an assortment of cakes in the kitchen for the rest of us - to celebrate another year gone, another belt size slackened.. so this cake treat would happen EVERYTIME someone in the office had a birthday.. I love this job. I'd also like to announce that I was the founder of 'Bacon Roll Friday', what better way to end the week?

So anyway, the point of this blog and pictures of a chocolate fountain - the bribe. My boss let me down last year when she made the new years resolution of dieting and keeping fit, and keeping the bloody resolution! By then my greedy eating and 3 course lunches were notorious, people knew the way to my heart was through my stomach. So one day a secretary was particularly busy with work, we're a team but lets face it - who wants to mop up someone elses mess? My boss, sensing my blatant *snort when it came to 'helping others' gave me a little challenge.. help shift the other secretary's work and my prize would be a chocolate fountain. The bitches knew how to get me. So that I did and slaved away for the rest of the week to win this beauty. Our office chocolate fountain. Ok, it's not mine but heck on every special occasion which can range from a birthday to it's sunny today it comes out and gets a rinsing. Long live chocolate covered bribes.

Recipe: Warm Asparagus Pesto Salad

Ingredients (to serve 2 as main or 4 as side dish)

10-15 asparagus spears (ends trimmed, halved)

2-3 Baby Red Potatoes

2 handfuls of dry pasta (shells, tubini, whatever)

3-4 Small Tomatoes on the Vine

2 tablespoons of fresh pesto (I just bought a jar from refridgerated section in supermarket)

2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

Handful of argula/mixed greens (optional)

1 tablespoon of parmesan cheese flakes

1. Cut the baby red potatoes into small pieces - you can be healthy and boil or if you're feeling indulgent, roast them. If roasting, pre-heat oven to 350F - cover with extra virgin olive oil, season with salt, pepper and mixed italian herbs if you have them. Should be done in 30-40 minutes. Check half-way through the cooking to give the potatoes a stir.

2. When the potatoes have about 15 mins cooking to go, start cooking the pasta shapes. I always add a tad of extra virgin olive oil and a pinch of salt to the rolling boil before adding in the pasta. When the pasta has a few more minutes to go, blanch the asparagus spears. To cut down on washing up, I just add the asparagus to the pasta that is cooking. Only needs about 2-3 minutes - just use chopsticks to fish the asparagus out.

3. Cut the tomatoes in quarter-sized pieces (no need to cook). Drain the pasta. Once all the ingredients are ready, mix the asparagus, tomatoes, potatoes, mixed greens (if you want) and pasta with the pesto and balsamic vinegar. Sprinkle with the parmesan cheese. Serve!

*Note: In the pic, I have forgotten to add the parmesan cheese...*

Home-made bread

Since time is a commodity I possess these days, I've taken to making my own bread! Turns out Paul's mum was given a bread machine which she has never used. The bread machine is totally automated - you just dump in the ingredients, it kneads the dough in two cycles, allowing time for the yeast to rise and then bakes the bread. The idea is that you can walk away and in 3 hours time, the bread will be ready to eat! There are several settings for wholemeal bread, french bread etc. The only thing about baking is that exact measurements of the ingredients is key. Measuring out everything in cups and fluid oz reminded me of my school chemistry experiments...Above is a pic of the kneaded doughball but before the yeast has risen. And below is a pic of the loaf taking pride of place in the New Year's Day Dinner!

Food in Japan

Have I told you how much I love Japanese food? The food is always presented so artistically which makes it all the more appetizing. Even the dishes are carefully chosen for their colour and shape to match the food. To my left is one of the best breakfasts I've ever had - the Japanese breakfast at Benesse Island in Shikoku. It's the usual miso soup/fish and rice combo but there's also egg and other lovely dishes. Below is one of the best sashimi platters I've ever had - at a ryokan in Miyajima. The sashimi was the appetizer, there were plenty of main courses as well such as hotpot, tofu etc. The portions are usually modest in Japan but that was one meal where I was totally stuffed...

Infamous Meals: The One when the Parents Cooked the Sashimi

So many culinary adventures in Japan but this one is fairly infamous. When the Law parents came to visit, I took them to Hakone, a well-known hot spring resort. We stayed overnight in a Japanese-style inn called a "ryokan". All very last minute so all four of us ended up in one room together. The room is in traditional Japanese style with tatami mat flooring. During the day, there's a low table and four cushions. After dinner, they take away the table (while you go out and bathe in the indoor or outdoor springs) and roll out four futons on the floor. In the morning, they roll away the futons and place the table back again for breakfast. Dinner was a beautiful assortment of small dishes, including fresh sashimi in an ice igloo and fresh raw scallop.

However, the parents turned their noses up at the raw sashimi and started cooking it in their individual rice pots - pic of Dad with his individual rice pot in front of him. The conversation went as follows - "Ooo, this fish is really fresh" and "Hurry up and cook it - before the waitress comes back and see us!"

XMAS 2006 - UK

Oh yes, feast your eyes on the tradtional Law family Christmas Dinner! As you can see in the background my little cousin is also eagerly taking pictures.. it must run in the family! This is one of two chinese meals we had on the day. It consists of a very large Turbot fish (please see below), jelly fish, marinated squid, Ox's tongue, shittake mushroom stew, our own 'village special' of marinated fatty pork with chinese potatoes. Enough to make your eyes water!


This family likes to eat is an under-statement, taking away our ability to cook or feed is taking away our dignity.
So, that was our first meal of earlier in the day.. Later on..



Lobster, fresh choi sum, more village special, home made salmon sushi rolls and seafood wraps, and finally crispy aromatic duck. The slightly odd looking expression on my brother's face is hunger.

It's a wonderful time and every year is the same. To prove this please see the picture below which is Xmas 2004.

The Blue Ginger

Have any of you seen Iron Chef? It's this hilarious, slightly campy food show that started out in Japan. Each week, one of the resident "Iron Chef" is pitted against a guest chef - they have 45 minutes to produce 4-5 dishes utilising the mystery ingredient - it could be lobster, beef, onion, cheese, whatever which is only unveiled a minute before cooking. The panel of judges decide who is the winner after eating the dishes - yeah, great job. Well, in the States, they've started "Iron Chef America" and on one episode, it was the previously unbeatable Iron Chef Bobby Flay vs. Ming Tsai. The mystery ingredient was duck. Ming Tsai does asian fusion - he owns a restaurant called The Blue Ginger in a Boston surburb - he made Chinese-style crispy Roast Duck in 45 mins!! Not surprisingly, he won the challenge.

So off we went to The Blue Ginger for our 6th wedding anniversary dinner. Pic shows the asian claypot with tea-smoked duck. The claypot was a highlight - the broth also had duck in it with daikon and sweet potato and vermicelli ("fun see"). The sliced duck on top was cooked medium (still a little pink in the centre).

Dessert was a five spice pumpkin bavarian (mousse-like) with gingerbread cookie and cranberry compote. As you can see from the pic, they knew it was our special occasion. To see the restaurant menu, go to www.ming.com/blueginger and start salivating.

Xmas 2006 - Cambridge

No one was going to make anything special for Xmas so I stepped up to the challenge! Bags of fresh, fleshy mussels were on sale in the supermarket (2lb bag was $5 - read and weep, you UK peeps) so I made Mussels Marinara for Xmas Eve supper before Midnight Mass. The broth was made from fresh tomatoes, pearl onion and parsley with a little chili.

On Xmas Day, I resorted to the Law Family institution - Roast Lamb! It took some tracking down to get the mint sauce/jelly though. The usual supermarkets were no good - but I did find it in a neighbourhood gourmet store. Unfortunately, their jars of mint sauce were all expired so I ended up with the mint jelly. That's how popular it is here which begs the question: What do Americans eat with lamb? Needless to say, the mint jelly was a big success with the Szetos - they gobbled up half the jar in one sitting.

My other big success at Xmas was a Mushroom and Roast Fennel Soup. I got the recipe from Food Network. Fennel is my latest obsession - I slice the bulb, smother in olive oil, salt and pepper and roast at 350F for 30 mins. The soup was made from four different mushrooms (white button, carmini, porcini and shiitake). Sorry - no pretty pictures but you have to take my word for it that it was amazing! Very strong mushroom flavour with the fennel providing an anise aftertaste - think this is what they call layering..