Wednesday, October 24, 2007

Chloe -my school holiday guest chef & Singapore - my vacation wrap-up




After 2 solid vacation posts, the passionate foodie in me is literally ‘itching’ to do a post on a home spun goodie of some sort – so today, I present to you a guest chef from the Rode-Chong household, my gorgeous multi-talented daughter Chloe who is affectionately known at home as ‘Theng-Theng’. For all you foodies reading this post, I hope you will leave a kind comment as an encouragement to her. Many thanks in advance from this doting mom!


Chloe

Chloe is 13, loves to cook and bake – her favourite food items in the whole wide world are the glorified Potato and the highly exalted Chocolate so it’s no wonder that she’s sharing her favourite Brownie recipe today. I’m just a little surprised that she did not incorporate a spud or two in the recipe! See here for another of Chloe's creations! Chloe also enjoys Hip Hop dancing, reading girlie novels and magazines, racquet sports, rock climbing and swimming. Albeit her tender age, Chloe is a sensible and responsible child who assists me in my home duties above and beyond her assigned tasks. She is a delightful companion and I count myself extremely blessed to have her as my daughter.












Chloe’s totally awesome Chocolate, Chocolate Brownies!
Makes 24

40g all-purpose flour
60g unsweetened cocoa powder
2 cups granulated sugar
250g good-quality dark chocolate,
chopped into small pieces
125g milk chocolate chips
250g salted butter, melted
2tsps natural vanilla extract
4 eggs lightly beaten

Preheat the oven to160 degrees Celsius. Lightly grease a 20 x 30 cm cake tin and line with baking paper, leaving the paper hanging over on the two long sides.
Sift the flour and cocoa powder into a bowl and add the sugar and chocolate. Mix together and make a well in the centre.
Pour the butter into the dry ingredients with the vanilla and eggs and mix well. Pour into the tin, smooth the surface and bake for 40 minutes (the mixture will still be a bit soft on the inside). Chill for 2 hours before lifting out, using the paper as handles, and cutting into pieces. Enjoy them with your friends!





Now, on to the second part of this post - a wrap-up of my recent vacation in Singapore, I would firstly like to say that Singapore is Ming’s (my husband) country of origin, his family and the friends that he grew up with are all there, so we visit the island about twice a year. As for me, besides visiting Ming’s family, I get to hang out with one of my ‘Bestest’ (I learned this word from my daughters) friends, M, (of 'Yummytots') who actually introduced me to blogging. I have known M for yonks, we went to High School together here in Perth. We used to ‘wag’ (play truant) school together, cook and bake together, have long chats while we plucked hairs from our legs, ok, maybe a little bit too much info there but yeah, we were really close then and we still are.


The very impressive color changing canopy at Clarke Quay


Paige, at Clarke Quay


Paige and I browsing some bling-bling at Clarke Quay


Paige, digging into the Haagen Daaz Chocolate Fondue at Clarke Quay - hey, this here is a natural born foodie!


During my stay in Singapore, M and I went for two Delicious treatment massages at the ‘Renewal Day Spa’ in Tong Building Orchard Road, a couple of ‘toe-curling’ reflexology sessions at the People’s Park, countless meals together with our families – the best being the afternoon tea at the PS. (Project Shop) Café in Harding Road where we had their famous Steak Sandwich and fantabulous Tall Chocolate Cake. The most memorable meal however was had at M’s home where she cooked up a really satisfying meal that included her mouth-watering ‘Assam Fish Head’ (Fish Head cooked in a spicy tamarind sauce). As always the best meals are had without the presence of a camera, unfortunately. M and I also did a baking class together with Lynn Chen, patissier blogger and instructor at Palate Sensations, a cooking school in Singapore. We learnt to make the ‘Opera’ – a rich 3-layer almond sponge saturated in coffee and liqueur, sandwiched in a coffee butter cream and covered in a Valrhona Dark Chocolate Ganache. It was heavenly, as you can imagine. Lynn was wonderful, M and I totally enjoyed the experience.


Our 'Opera' making class in Lynn's Kitchen


The finished Product..


'M's very successful 'Opera'

During this trip, I also had the pleasure of meeting ‘A’ of Greedy Goose, one of my favourite food blogs. ‘A’ was really sweet and hospitable and my family and I took to her immediately. We had lunch together at the famous Chicken Rice stall in the Alexandra Village Hawker Centre. The Chicken and the fragrant ‘oil’ rice was delicious but the girls and I stared in horror as Ming and ‘A’ tucked into the plate of Chicken livers!



After Lunch, ‘A’ took us to ‘Macaron’, a patisserie specialising in macarons where we had some very tantalising samples over coffee. It was a very pleasant afternoon indeed.


Our Macaron Tasting Plate


A half chomped-on Lavender Macaron

Besides having a lot more lunches....


Ming, Chloe and I at Toast Box, Food Republic in Vivo City

.....and a lot more dinners...

'Rojak' - Singaporean Spicy Fruit Salad with Crisp Cruellers


Cheryl (my niece) and I at Island Cafe, CK Tangs


Spicy Fried Chicken Wings

...Ming and Paige visited the zoo whilst Chloe and I caught up on some retail therapy. Here's Paige (my precious, precious baby!) to take you on a mini tour of the World-Class Singapore Zoo..


Paige and the Alligator


A very rare White Tiger


Paige and the Hippos


Paige with the monkeys and the trainer in the background


Paige and the Elephant

This post concludes the recount of my August 2007 Foodie Vacation. I hope you have enjoyed reading this post as much as I've enjoyed writing it!

37 comments:

Mandy said...

Oh Carol,not only is Chloe pretty, her brownie looks absolutely drool-worthy. I enjoy reading your foodie vacation series a lot! :)If only I could have a taste of all the food you had!

Ming the Merciless said...

Chloe's brownie looks delicious. I can see the soft chewy center and the crispy crust on top -- the key to a good brownie pie.

Tell Chloe the next time I need someone to bake brownies for a bake sale, I will call her.

I love your Singapore photos. I also got to try the assam fish head stew when I was in Singapore. It was delicious.

daphne said...

yum! Chloe-u r a talented girl. Such gorgeous looking brownies, I wouldn't mind having one myself!

the pictures are terrific! Sounds like the vacation was a huge success filled with beautiful memories and lasting impressions!

yummy tots! said...

My beautiful Theng,
Your brownie looks fabulious ...Yum, yum and yum! I have only baked brownie once, and will definitely try out your recipe once I get the chance.

You go girl!
Love Aunty Miti

Annette said...

Dear gorgeous Chloe, those brownies sure look like something special :-) I'm real glad to have met you and your equally gorgeous sister Paige. Keep baking, sweetie -- if at 13 you're delivering such scrummy treats, think of what fantastic things you'll come up with when you're 20!

Anh said...

Carol, you should be so proud of your princess! She is already a wonderful baker!!! how cool is that? :)

Big Boys Oven said...

Dear Chloe,

Uncle Sunny & Uncle Sid would say this:

Go Chloe, Go Chloe.... you are a babe baker already!!!

Baking is always fun and creative, it is great to see people enjoying our creation. Chloe, you start at such a tender age, by no time, you will be a great baker of your own right. Well done, you are getting day, just hang on there! You got a great baker there with you, your mum!

yours Sunny & Sid

April said...

Chloe, you such a beautiful girl, and you make some awesome looking brownies!

SIG said...

Hi Chloe, those brownies do look gorgeous, beautiful and moist on the inside. And you're beautiful too. Bet you had a great time shopping with mum.

Carol - You've captured the colours of Clarke Quay so well. And both your girls are very pretty. It's lovely to come back to visit friends and family twice a year. If I had known you when I went to Perth a few months back, I would have arranged to meet you. :) It sure looked like you had a most awesome holiday.

wita said...

wow! she's gonna be just like her mom. I couldn't bake anything when I was 13. Thanks, I love S'pore a lot, like my second country.

Sylvia said...

Oh Carol,you must so pride with this.The brownies looks delicious and moisten.Chloe must be the next chef in Oh! For the love of food.Take care Carol :D
I continuous surprised (and mouth watering too) with your amazing trip.
The photo are terrific and your family is so beautiful

Cutie said...

Chloe, you are talented and pretty. I think you will be a great chef especially you have your mom to guide you there.

Anyway, the opera cake looks gorgeous. I wish to learn how to make it as well and I know it's not easy to make one. Hopefully there is a chance to learn from you. Hehe...

Anonymous said...

aww..
Thank you all for your lovely comments.
You have inspired me to bake more and more.

=)

xx

SteamyKitchen said...

Chloe- you are so beautiful!!! I'm going to make your brownies this weekend with my boys. They love chocolate.

lots of love,
Jaden

Big Boys Oven said...

I wonder what is Carol up to, preparing in her kitchen for the next post? .....???...lol....can wait!

Dwiana P said...

Oh Carol, your vacation feel like in heaven. Visited nice places and FOOD? wow... they all look soo YUMMY!

Nora B. said...

Chloe: Your brownies look perfect - I can see how moist they are...yummm! I hope that you will post more of your cooking/baking adventures.

Carol: Your have beautiful girls. Your recap of your trip to S'pore is making me even more excited about my trip home at the end of the year. My sister already has all my pampering sorted - massage, facial, manicure & pedicure (God knows my toes need help!), etc. And of course, yummy food!!! :-)

Anonymous said...

Chloe.., your brownies look sooo delicious, wanted to eat it straight from the computer!! Thanks for sharing the recipe, will try it one of these days. You are such a talented girl!!

Carol, I relly love your blog, looks so professional!!!

Love, Erica

Daniel Indradjaja said...

I thought I already left a comment for Chloe but apparently it's not there. Oh well.

Chloe, your brownies are magic! They can talk and they said, "Eat me! Eat me!" :-)

Unknown said...

Hi Carol, Chloe's brownie looks so moist and rich. She's definitely got your baking genes. I'm glad you enjoyed the Opera class. I had loads of fun too. Hope to see you again the next time you're in Singpore!

Oh for the love of food! said...

Mandy, Ming, Daphne, Mit, Annette, Anh, Sunny And Sid, April, Debra, Wita, Sylvia, Cutie, Jaden, Nora, Erica, Daniel & Lynn,

Thanks for the encouragement and 'pats -on-the- back' you gave Chloe, she's completely stoked with all the compliments she's received!

Oh for the love of food! said...

Mandy,
I'm glad you enjoyed the vacation posts - I really enjoyed putting them up!

Ming,
Thanks, bud, isn't the assam fish head dish AMAZING??

Daphne,
Thanks for the compliment. Yes, we've definitely got beaut memories from our vacation!

Anh,
Thanks, I am proud of Chloe, and Paige for that matter - they are wonderful kids!

Debra,
Thanks, I would have loved to meet you too. Anyway, there's always next year!

Oh for the love of food! said...

Wita,
I think you're right, but I got a feeling that she's going to be much better than I'll ever be. I think our influences at home are really important when we're growing up ;o)

Sylvia,
Thank you, I am proud of both Chloe and Paige, they are really good kids. I'm truly blessed!

Cutie,
The 'Opera' was really delicious! and Lynn is an excellent teacher - you should hook up with her if you're in S'pore and learn from her.

Sunny,
Hmmm, I'm cooking up something all right, but I'll tell you later once I've got it more organized!

Oh for the love of food! said...

Dwiana,
Thanks, it really was a lovely break :o)

Nora,
Thank you Nora, more importantly though, they are beautiful on the inside too! Good for you! You deserve a relaxing holiday after all that stress you've been having lately sweetie.

Erica,
Thanks, you should have a Food blog too! You are an AMAZING cook!

Lynn,
The class was really fun, I'll definitely see you again when I'm in S'pore! :o)

Ashley said...

No... not the last of the foodie vacation! Chloe's recipe looks fantastic and I hope to try it out for Halloween.
Chloe is such a beautiful young girl; you must be so proud. Please thank her for sharing this delightful recipe with all of us :)

Moments said...

WOW, Chloe's brownies really makes my mouth watery... *drip*. I really enjoy reading your blog, and it sounds like a great trip you had with ur family. And honestly, i like your photos: their colors and composition really express your love of food, and it really shows how good they are....... now i really must have my lunch!!. KEEP IT UP!! GBU

Oh for the love of food! said...

Hi Ashley,
Chloe will be so happy to receive yet another compliment, thank you. Yes, I am proud of both my girls, they're fantastic kids. Tell us how the brownies turn out for your halloween party, ok?

Hello Indra,
How does it feel to be a married man? Thanks for the compliments. Can't wait to see your wedding photos!

Anonymous said...

Wow, wow, wow!

First, good job to Chloe's brownies....she is definitely talented! For a person almost 3 times her age, I can't even do brownies! :O

I actually prefer chicken gizzards to liver in chicken rice stalls, yum! Errr....are you dropping your jaw when you hear me?

I always miss Singapore for it's food. Just don't like the weather.

Oh for the love of food! said...

Thanks Tiger,
I'm sure it's not because you can't make brownies, it's because you haven't thought of making them! Nothing can stop our talented Aunt Tiger , I'm sure! HA!HA!
I have tried chicken gizzards not knowing what they were when I was a kid, they weren't too bad I guess, crunchy, what I don't like about livers is that it looks(and probably is) mushy!

Anonymous said...

Wow!What can I say - love the brownies, love the post, love the photos! Sounds like a totally fab time. So when are you going to do it again?

joy
The Goddess In You

Anonymous said...

To Chloe - you're welcome in my kitchen anytime! Those brownies look totally yummy. Let me know if you want a recipe for a French flourless chocolate cake, ok? I'm sure you'll make a good job of it.

joy
The Goddess In You

Ashley said...

The brownies were fantastic, just as I suspected. They were so rich and chocolaty. Thanks again Chloe :)

Oh for the love of food! said...

S.J. Simon,
Thanks for visiting my blog. Thanks for the link on how chocolate was once banned - it is as interesting as it is ridiculous! Good Luck with your new blog!

Shella said...

Goody good brownies. Love em. The pics are lovely, Thanks for sharing them.

Anonymous said...

I can vouch that Chloe's brownie's ARE YUMMILIOUS!
I baked it 4 times over the past 5 weeks. why? coz its truly THE simplest recipe ever! and there's was lots of entertaining to do.

Am baking it yet again today.
I'm going to divert a little by adding peanut butter, my next great love after chocolate.

let's see what happens...

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Go Go Elite Traveller Plus said...

Wow... i have always been a sucker for brownies.. and those things look great!

Great pictures too!