Spun in jam

REVAMPED. Musings out loud. To the attempting to focus on food and drink blog, http://www.spuninmorejam.blogspot.com

Sunday, November 26, 2006

Food tastes best with friends

Firstly, thank you everyone who gave me this wonderful 21st gift! I was not expecting it at all and this would be for me, an experience I can't repeat for many, many years. I'm so grateful for this present guys and I love you guys so much. Hugs for each of you and eskimo kisses around!
Secondly, I want to thank my partner in crime Leach for accompanying me to this wonderful meal. There's noone else I know who appreciates food as much as you do and enjoys it unashamedly. Love you very much!! *kisses and hugs*

So on Saturday at noon, I took the Tetsuya's voucher (you wonderful, splendiferous, absolutely stunning ladies) and partner in crime Leach, ready to eat to our heart's content.



Walking through the gates and up the stairs into the very classy restaurant, greeted by all the waiters and seated at our table in the corner with a view of the small waterfall and pond outside. We were asked whether we've been to Tetsuya's before and welcomed warmly, and I said that I'm here for my 21st birthday lunch (Yays!!). I also had the menu and wine list typed up for me so I wouldn't have to write everything down :D



So we asked for matching wines with the courses and all up it would've been 600ml each. That's a bloody lot considering I'm an eaaaaasy drunk. Thank goodness Leach was here ;)So we were first offered the choice of Italian white or Sourdough roll. Sourdough for us ;) with a black truffle and reggiano butter. Sooo good, a delicious, tangy, warm and crusty roll. The butter was salty and at room temperature so it was easy to slather on.



First course: Sweetcorn soup with basil ice cream. This was very sweet, for such a small amount it really packs the flavour. Leach (L) says "I could eat a bucketful". The basil ice cream gives a great contrast in the herb and the sweetness of the corn. Sooooo good. Wish the portion was bigger than a small martini glass.



Extra course: Pacific oysters with ginger and rice vinegar. Ohhh my goodness. We were served sake (I don't remember the name) but it was very smooth, very light to drink (I'd never tried sake before and I don't think I can go for cheap sake now). L: "The sake gives off warmth at the back of your throat. Not potent tasting aftertaste." So the oysters, the mirin packs a punch and the chives give it an extra boost, and it's salty, but not too salty. L: "I hit the creamy jackpot..."



Second course: Tartare of tuna on sushi rice with avocado. Yellowfin tuna was L: "so fresh, can't taste the fishiness and at the right temperature". It was very tasty with the marinade of the tuna and very smooth avocado soup. It's recommended to mix the tuna, rice and avocado and eat together. The texture of the avocado, melt-in-the-mouth tuna and the soft sushi rice, ooooh, so nice. L: "the caviar gives a bit of texture to the very smooth avocado, which they must put in a blender for 10min". I'm not sure about the caviar myself, so for me, it may be just an extra luxury to have the caviar in it, coz I couldn't taste it over the salty tuna. L: "Mmm... pureed avocado... I feel like a baby!!! Mmmm. Just short of licking the bowl clean..."



Third course: Tuna marinated in soy & mirin; Soft smoked ocean trout with asparagus; Marinated NZ scampi with chicken parfait & walnut oil; 2006 Freycinet Riesling, East Tasmania. Firstly L thinks the wine is sweet. I thought the wine was quite nice, not too sweet and not too sour either, not too crisp. Tuna: L says it's slimey, but in a nice way. I said it's kinda like the dish before, warm temperature (room), and it does very well with the wine, the fattiness of the tuna does very well. Ocean trout: this was my favourite in this set of 3, asparagus was perfectly cooked, crisp and very creamy trout and the texture against the asparagus makes it feel less fatty. We both thought the riesling went better with the tuna. The scampi L said it was slightly chewy. I said the parfait is much stronger in flavour than the scampi. Walnut oil makes it quite fatty in taste, which is coincidentally wiped out by the riesling ;)



Fourth course: Tetsuya's signature dish, Confit of Petuna Tasmanian Ocean Trout with Konbu, Daikon and Fennel. Matched with 2005 Henschke Joseph Hill Gewurztraminer, Eden Valley, SA. Served with Seasonal green salad perfectly lightly dressed with balsamic vinaigrette. L says "rough texture (the unpasteurised roe), looks raw but is cooked!" It's definitely cooked through even though it appears otherwise, it's like cutting through soft, fresh butter, so soft, the daikon gives a good textural contrast in the butter soft trout and crispy slices. L says "wrap a piece in a lettuce leaf and the flavour will burst out on you in surprise *laughs in delight*". This dish was excellent, the roe gives it such a saltiness, the separate ingredients really give a great contrast in flavour and it's such simple flavours as well. We didn't say anything about the wine!! All I remember is it was very easy to drink, more tangy in a way, but good to match.



Fifth course: Ravioli of Qld. Spanner Crab with tomato & basil vinagrette. Matched with 2004 Pierro Chardonnay 'For Tetsuya', Margaret River, WA. Oh my goodness, I was getting heady by now, but Leach marches on (I swear woman, Edinburgh has trained you well). L: "sea-ness". The wine was getting sweeter, easy to drink. The dish was quite crabby, the vinaigrette was sweet just like the crab meat, it was kind of oily.



Sixth course: Grilled breast of Duck with braised witlof & orange jus. Matched with 2004 Bass Phillip Pinot Noir 'For Tetsuya', Gippsland, Vic. L says "Delicioso". The duck was tender and pink, the salty skin had a lovely flavour and texture with the sweet, crisp yet tender witlof. L: "Soooooooooooooooooo yummy! Flavoursome, salty". I have to agree, the duck was great, I would've loved some more of that. The pinot noir went excellently with it, but I was so heady from the white by now, Leach had to finish off my little bit *looks shamed* ;) But considering I don't drink pinot normally, it was truly lovely.



Seventh course: Seared fillet of veal with wasabi butter (and tarragon jus). Matched with 2002 Mosswood Cabernet Sauvignon 'For Tetsuya', Margaret River, WA. I was very, very heady by now. And I really struggled to put the piece of veal into my mouth, I swears, it was beautiful, but gaahhhh... my head... L: "wine is sharp, tannic. Easy to down [not meaning I did] I LOVE wasabi, let us go live in Japan [I am drunk :P]. Veal: good stuff, tender tasty. Pun, why are you taking so long to eat? Are you trying to make me jealous?"" Pun says "wine is very sharp""No, no, I just don't eat much anymore *trails off*" LEACH!!! I JUST READ WHAT YOU WROTE!! Admittedly, the wine was very nice, even though I left my share on the table, since I only drink excellent Cab Sav, that was very nice, but still too heady.



Page in notebook. "I'm really heady ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... weeeeeeeeeeee ... ... ... ... ... ... ..."

Eighth course: Beetroot & blood orange sorbet; Strawberry shortcake. This was my favourite dessert course, possibly I've every tried, actually considering it, this has got to be my favourite desserts ever now. I couldn't stop saying how good it was whilst eating it. So sweet, beautiful cool sorbet, not bitter at all, and very light, especially with little pieces of sweet beetroot on the bottom of the shot glass. L says "Strawberry shortcake sssooo sweet Yommy!" The shortcake layer was sweet and very creamy, beautiful, absolutely beautiful! The puree of strawberries was fresh and sweet, slightly tangy and sour so it was great in contrast to the shortcake, and there were little chunks of strawberry! L: "YUMMY!!!!"



Ninth course: Vanilla bean ice cream with white beans & date. Matched with 2005 Wellington Iced Riesling, Coal River Valley, Tas. L says "Iced riesling SUPER SWEET! (like really sugar sweet)". I'm ashamed I couldn't drink any more, I was sooo heady I was... not feeling that well, so I didn't have any of the iced riesling, even though it's on my list of "must-try", my head just wouldn't have been able to take it and would've been very unwise. But L says about the ice cream "Wow, this is a weird as a dessert since the white bean isn't sugary at all, date same texture as the beans!! Wow that's talent." I had some too, the ice cream was very sweet and yes the beans and dates were of the same texture but the dates were slightly, only slightly chewier. I couldn't finish mine off so "Oh yes!" *Leach hisses as she swaps her empty glass with Pun's (half) full one*.



Tenth course: Floating Island with praline & vanilla bean anglaise. I didn't have this last course so Leach finished it off for me, these are her words "YOM! Fluffy and light. Almost like it doesn't take any space at all. Come on Pun you can take this, it's like eating fairy floss. Mmm. Chocolate and raspberry centre, bitter chocolate and sweet, sweet raspberry inside."



It was already 1650 by the time we hit the green tea and petit fours. I was drinking my green tea trying to settle my throat and head whilst watching Leach enjoy the meal. It really does make me happy seeing one enjoy their meal, it's lovely to watch! :D The chocolate and sweet potato petit fours were melt-in-your-mouth. And the coconut peitit fours crumbles! Mmmm. Leach took the petit fours home but the chocolate ones melted on the way back. But I had 2 of the coconut and whatever left of the choc-sweet potato one after I took 2 panadol (at Leach's).




So , then off to Alex's Hens Outing at the Loewenbrau, then moved onto the Cruise Bar where we got the Hen a Coconut Daiquiri and wrote some (considerably censored) pearls of wisdom (Vivian! You dirty girl!! ;P). Then to the Uberbar at the Loewenbrau to dance our little hearts out, and watch a particularly drunk guy try to feel Alex and all of us up. Alex is getting married in a week!! So happy for you, if you need any help this week Alex, just sms or call me and I'll be glad to help if I can make it :D


So Wong, Leach and I headed to City Extra for dinner (at 0100) and had Fish & Chips, Wedges, BBQ chicken wings, and a bowl of strawberries with cream, oh yes and lemon bitters.
Then we walked along the foreshore to our old haunt facing the harbour, sat around chatting, taking silly photos and then taking a taxi back to Leach's, getting back around 0440. I miss sitting on the benches facing the harbour, it's so peaceful at that time, no noise, all the couples are down near the Opera Bar so we had the benches to ourselves. Let's do it again :)


Link to the complete photos is on My Photos.

Wednesday, November 22, 2006

My new haircut, much better than in July...

I curled it just then, whilst chatting on msn.
It's the lightest red I could go, and chopped a good half of it off.

Friday, November 17, 2006

Es ist so kalt, oder?

What's with the crazy weather this week?

Have been driving much more recently, drove up the kerb twice last night. "Talking" with dad makes me in a bad mood. Luckily didn't run over anyone. Still need to drive more in the evening, and learn how to angle park. *sighs*

Max Brenner is stocked up again!! *Face lights up with joy* Yays!! All the nuts, chicao, pralines, powders, addiction, hug cups, suckao sets all back in! Must control thyself... after the gym today, had lunch and a dark chocolate mocha in Parra.

Have been seriously considering cutting (layering) hair and dyeing red. What do you guys think?

Yea I know I can't. My skin tone is too dark, too olivey in a way to handle this colour red. *sighs* can only dye a darker auburn colour. Like this one. Which I've done before. Should dye it before I start work, speaking about that, I've gotta find out when to get the work uniforms...
Maybe this colour instead?? ;)
Recent purchases:
- 2 TOL dresses - will stop I swear, I swears...
- Perfume: a Story of a Murderer by Patrick Sueskind
- digital weight scales - have chucked the old one out, as much as I'd love to believe I'm 3kg lighter than I really am, delusions aren't helpful in the long run.

Monday, November 13, 2006

Sooo much money for one day...

So the Hen's night is now on the 25th. You know, can you believe how much money can be spent on one Saturday??? Tetsuya's for lunch (breakfast) and then lounging around Kinokuniya, and then bar crawling later. Gaaaaahhh... wait do you think we're gonna need any dinner beforehand? Okay Leach, do you think you're gonna need any dinner beforehand??? Argh, that means wearing the same clothes all day and all night...

Finished 1 Corinthians tonight and onto Psalms for the next few weeks, til the end of the year. And Secret Santa's gotta be organised next week. Another dilemma in getting presents...

I drove with my dad this yesterday and today! Need to drive more in the evening, and sticking a blindspot mirror has helped muchly in parking and side view now. Dad's still talking about buying an Astra for me to drive. I'm still talking about "Mmmhmm where's that money gonna come from."

Received Match Point DVD today, I wanna waaaaaatch, but preferably when neither relatives are home... heeheehee.

Doing a gigantic clean out of wardrobe and shoes (possibly). Ohh ohh it's recycling night tonight, maybe I should recycle the stupid HSC physics notes now? Unfortunately gigantic bonfires are prohibited by Btown council, well there goes all my fireworks for Beltane.

Feeling kinda hungry, I feel like some vegetables... there's only so much one could eat at this time of night. Something savoury... ooooh I could do with some chive dumplings right now... darn, only have har gow and chicken and pork siu mai. Okay, the more I type about food, the more hungry I'm getting. Maybe I should wait til breakfast tomorrow morning...

Oooh ooooh, next time we're in the city, remind me to go to Lueneburger in the QVB. Looksie at zee linksie http://www.luneburger.com.au/?page=bakery. Especially the scrumptious looking Kirsch-Vanille-Butterplunder und Laugenbrezel.

Friday, November 10, 2006

Haven't seen Ann for ages...

Isn't it amazing what time does? 4 years ago, we had finished the HSC. We were on schoolies. And some packing for Britain. We were planning on which uni course to do and whether to get Ls...

Now one of us are getting married, some of us are dating, more people have their licences, more people are working, one of us are in Armidale, at least one of us is very widely travelled, we've acquired qualifications, some of us have graduated and working fulltime. I think we've accomplished something in these past 4 years. Good on us!

It's amazing watching people grow and change and mature. Watch their lives change from something you've always known them for, to something completely out of the ordinary.

Met up with an old primary school friend/best friend today in Parra. And her friend from Wollongong. It's amazing how much she's changed. And to find out what she's doing now and how life is going (I hadn't seen her since August or September last year). I wish I watched her grow, at least in these past 4 years, I wish I was there for her.

But it's hard to be there for people so far off, at least distance wise, and non-emailling wise, as we've found out. *snickers*

Red dress turned out magnificently. I am in love with the launderer's cleaning skills. Now need to sew up rip.

Sad but joyful news for some: our minister is leaving in February and taking a position in Melbourne. All the best for Trevor and Ilana and that they do well in Melbourne. Pray that we find a shepherd for our flock in GHall.

Reminders:
- book in Ps test Booked in for Friday 1st Dec 1220. Lord help me!

Recent purchases:
- cheap pair of thongs
- TOL red dress - 20% off clothing til 14th November - *looks sheepish*
- Match Point DVD - ebay baby!
- Loreena McKennitt - An Ancient Muse - preordered from Barnes & Noble (US) and will be shipped Nov. 21st. Hopefully, in Sydney by mid December.
- 3 DVDs off Madman - Thanks Leach for the 1.5h heads up ;)

Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting
1: Just got it from TOL. Wear to Alex's ceremony maybe? It's a daytime dress.
2: Don't know about wearing it for the reception though? I think I still can... maybe with the proper shoes and makeup... well I've only really got the pointy gold ones for it.
3. Only problem is I'm currently wearing it with a safety pin, as all TOL dresses are immodestly low.
4: No safety pin! HEEELLLLOOO EVERYONE!

I think I'll curl my hair as well.

Sunday, November 05, 2006

Ich hatte Kopfschmerzen...

Good surprise party last night for Amy's 20th. She just walked right past us in the living room. Had to be stifled so wouldn't laugh out loud.

But yes, last night was casino theme, as in upper class casino, not dodgy smelly LV casino theme. So at least cocktail and suits.
My dress! My dress! Next time I am sooo not wearing anything which costs more than $X to any church gatherings. Will pray that oil and coffee/Tia Maria stains can be removed, sooo glad was not planning on wearing it to Alex's reception.All up the dress costed $120. Dry cleaning will costs a bomb.
Had sausages, chicken kebabs, chicken Caesar salad, pasta with brie, green olive dressed roast potatoes, green mash canapes (which were surprisingly tasty), and lots of bread rolls.
Also nicked (with permission) McGuigan (Black label???) 2001 Chardonnay from Josh's cellar (it really is a bombshell down there my dear, I thought you were exaggerating...). Unfortunately we (Amy and I) couldn't get the cork out and *cough* wine now had floaties... so after some double straining... had 2 full (to the brim) glasses of white for Amy and I and 2 smaller for Shell and Tim. Hehehehee.

Dessert was wonderful as usual. Steve made ice cream cake, Michelle brought strawberries with dip and Shell made her delicious Tiramisu cake [which was the stains on my dress (note to self, buy Shell a square shaped or at least rectangular oven dish for Christmas)] and an AMAZING Astroboy cake! I wish I had a photo, oh wait I do, isn't it fabulous?! It looks so great!! Shell is so talented!


So while most of the gentlemen played poker, Michelle, Vero and I were in the kitchen making Splices, without use of a blender and where I became designated shaker. After some delicate colour matching, lots of giggling, lots of mixing and matching, we had 7 splices on the way out. I had my Baileys choc mint on the rocks thank you.

A bit of sitting down and chatting, then I proceeded to give massages to poker players Shell, moved onto Steve, tried to half strangle the soon-to-be-copper Phil (unsuccessful btw, he went for my nerve near my brachial and I had to let go, nice to know policing's teaching him useful stuff), and lastly a massage to Josh.

So cleaning up, wiping up, putting stuff away, we've got plenty of leftovers for dinner tonight after church. So B and I headed on home. I slept around 0115, woke up at 0530 with a smashing headache... gahhh... went to drink some water and couldn't sleep til 0620... it wasn't that much either... probably 3-4 drinks the whole night... (oh for shame!). How am I gonna handle Tetsuya's?? I'll be hungover by 2000.

Didn't wake up too long ago (after having some bizarre dreams), had breakfast and onto my second cuppa tea...

Monday (Shilpa's 22nd!!!):
- go to dry cleaner's
- buy SMH, white sugar, soy milk, UHT cow's milk, frousse
- make dinner for Shell, B and I

Tuesday:
- clean room
- pack some clothes (damn weather, choose either summer or winter, take your pick!)

Wednesday, November 01, 2006

Interesting for Monday night

The infamous 1 Cor 14: 29-40. Actually more so the infamous v33-35.

"As in all the congregations of the saints, 34 women should remain silent in the churches. They are not allowed to speak, but must be in submission, as the Law says. 35 If they want to inquire about something, they should ask their own husbands at home; for it is disgraceful for a woman to speak in the church." NIV

I find it best to read this passage in context (as for any other text really). Reading this passage out of context and plainly singling it out just allows for argument and disorder anyway.
The chapters before and chapter 14 are about gifts of prophecy and tongues. This specifically about Orderly Worship.

I can't believe that "women should remain silent" as in zip, no talking, no asking questions, no singing, no noises coming out of one's mouth. That just doesn't match up with chapter 11 where women pray and prophesy, as well as Priscilla and other women working in the church during the early Christian church.

Was it a particular problem in the Corinthian church that the women (wives) were speaking and disrupting during prophecy? As for anything, if something needs to be said to a minister or a preacher, it should be done in private and away from eyes, and that's just common sense for both genders. Why would Paul specifically say this to women? Which is why I wonder if this was a particular problem for the Corinthian church.

I'm still quite confused over this passage, I really want to understand the original Greek and the time of the Corinthians to understand it. Especially the words "church", "silent" and "speak".

For this to be about women ordination, women ministers, well the whole debate is way too tiring to type up without asking you ladies' opinions. What do you ladies think about women ordination?

BTW Synod voted 'no' to women ordination.

Yes I know in year 10 history I did the whole "Women in the church" thing, but I'm growing I tell you, I am. (Anglican churches in HK had to ordain women during WWII coz they were running out of men ministers, hehe, I don't know whether it was because they were dying off, more people were dying off, therefore needed more ministers etc.).