My moo cards and the little robin

My moo mini cards are here! I'm very happy with them. They are really well printed and good quality. I was very surprised to find out that moo.com is literally down the road from my office! I'm in EC1V and they are in EC1R... It's a small world. Check them out, they are great fun.

For the last 2 weeks we had a pet in the office. It is a little robin and she has nested in the "lighthouse" we have in the courtyard. She has laid four tiny eggs and we are looking forward for them to hatch. I have read that it takes 12/14 days for robins' eggs to incubate, so we should have company sometime next week. Sweet!

So hungry!

Today I wasn't feeling too good. I was cold and had a headache . I really wished I could go home early and rest. I had a craving for meat and red wine! Strange... It would have been nice to arrive home, have a hot bath and find dinner ready. Not the case...

I gathered my strength (I'm not so ill after all) and prepared some lovely meat balls with cheddar mash and stir fried spring greens. Yummy! I also had a glass of red wine. Ha, ha!

I like my meat balls with a lot of parsley and garlic. I usually add some chopped ham as well. It gives the mix a great flavour. I didn't have any ham in the fridge, but they came out nice anyway. Meat balls are very versatile and you can use many different ingredients. You can give them a Thai twist by using coriander instead of parsley and chopped fresh chillies.

Another recipe :)

This is one of my favourite chicken dishes. I had something similar for the first time at my friend's Eirik a few years ago, but I've changed the recipe and now I'd dare to say that it is almost perfect. I'd recommend organic vegetables and chicken. The mushrooms and leeks especially have a stronger and more deliciuos flavour.
These quantities are enough for 2 hungry people (or 3 boring ones). I call it "Ginger Chicken with Mushrooms and Leeks".

350g of chicken breast
250g of chestnut mushrooms
2 or 3 leeks (depending on size)
1 medium size fresh ginger root
1 clove of garlic
soy sauce
4 table spoons of mirin
1 tea spoon of sugar
vegetable oil

Chop the ginger and the garlic finely. Heat a large pan with 4 table spoon of vegetalbe oil. Add the chopped ginger and garlic, a splash of soy sauce, 1 table spoon of sugar and 4 table spoon of mirin.
In the meantime rinse the chicken breast and cut it into 3cm dices. Add it to the pan and fry it on medium to low heat until the meat has absorbed all the flavours and is cooked through.
Meanwhile wash the mushrooms and leeks and slice them. Not too thinly.
Add the leeks and another splash of soy sauce then cook for 5 minutes until the leeks start caramelising. Add the mushrooms, cover the pan and cook for another 5 minutes. It is important that you cover the pan because it creates steam and the dish will be really juicy and the chicken very tender.
Serve in a deep dish or a bowl on top of a generous serving of Japanese white rice. You can use brown rice if you prefer, but it doesn't work as well.

Andy's Birthday Cake

Last Monday we celebrated Andy's birthday. I bought a green tea and red bean paste cake for him at the "Wonderful Patisserie" (funny name) of Oriental City. It reminded me of cakes from a fairy-tales book I had when I was a child. It looked amazing and tasted good, too!

I went there to see my acupunturist and to shop for nice food. I also tried a new dim sum: turnip paste and chinese sausage cake. I'm sure it is very normal, but I had never had it before. It is my new favourite. It's a pity that Oriental City will be closing soon. It is more popular than ever, but they are still going ahead with their stupid decision of shutting it down to make space for a new B&Q. As if we need another one!

A recipe for the cold weather

It has been snowing over the weekend and I fancied cooking something yummi and warm.I've found a recipe for a corn chowder in a magazine. I've adjusted it slightly. It is really good and not hard to make.

100g of unsmoked bacon cut into little pieces
1 medium onion, finely chopped
2 celery stalks, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, chopped
450g of corn kernels
2 large potatoes, cut into cubes
3 bay leaves
500ml vegetable stock
150ml milk
5 tbsp single cream
pinch cayenne
chopped chives, to serve

Fry bacon until fat runs out and it's crisp. Drain on kitchen paper and set aside.
Add onion, celery, garlic, salt and pepper to the fat. Sautee until the onion is translucent. Add the corn, potatoes, bay leaves and stock.
Bring the soup to a boil and then simmer for about 20 mins until the potatoes are very tender. Discard the bay leaves. Add the milk and cream, then heat through.
Spoon a third of the soup into a blender, then cool slightly. Puree until smooth, then return to the pot and heat. Season with cayenne, salt and pepper.
Serve with reserved crispy bacon and the chives.
These quantities serve 4 people.

Here is a picture of mine :)

A VISIT FROM KAI

Last Sunday baby Kai came over for a visit. He's super cute and sweet. Look at his cheeks!!!

POOR DOG...

A south American artist, Guillermo Habacuc Vargas, let a poor dog starve to death as part of his installation. What the hell does killing an innocent dog have to do with art? I am no modern art expert and no big fan either. It seems that all there is to it is to shock and create controversy. To be honest I don't care if stupid people fall for worthless objects and pay millions just because they are by a certain famous name. It's their money and, although wasted, they can do whatever they want with it. What I cannot condone is gratuitous cruelty against a defensless animal in the name of art. This is disgusting. The guy should be locked in a dark room with a bunch of starving dogs. Asshole!