TAKE A GUESS??

A spoonful of rich and luxurious delicacy....anyone have any idea what it is?

HAPPY NEW YEAR 2010!!

Pea and Pumpkin would like to take the opportunity here to wish everyone a Happy New Year!!

PICK-UR-OWN CHERRIES @ Red Hill Cherry Farm

The only thing I look forward to this hot summer, apart from my trip back home to Malaysia in January, was cherry picking! I enjoyed it tremendously when I went with Hubby and my nephew 3 years ago, that was why I really looked forward to this trip again. We went two Sundays ago after I called up the farm to make sure 'pick-ur-own' cherries are still available. I am glad I did as some smaller farms are already closed for the season.


We went to Red Hill Cherry Farm which is one of the tourist attractions in Mornington Peninsula. Cherries are ready for picking from mid November through to early January but to avoid disappointment, do call a day before to check if there are cherries available for picking. On the day we went, there were too many people at the assigned zone (they open up their farm to visitors by section) and by lunch time, all the cherries were GONE. Many people who came much later was turned away and I saw a sign stating that the farm will only reopen two days later.


Yum yum...I was more interested with the 'eat-all-you-can' than the 'pick-ur-own' cherries! Entrance fee is A$10 for adults and free for kids below the age of 10. You can eat as much as you can, but whatever you bring home will be charged at A$12 per kilo. The moment we went into the farm, everyone got really excited and started attacking the cherries.


Plump and juicy...I always go for dark red cherries as they are really sweet and crunchy.


Everyone really enjoyed themselves...look at their faces!!


We didn't bring any home as most of the cherries were cracking due to too much rainfall near harvest this year. We can easily get good cherries from Coles and Safeway at less than A$10 per kilo.


Hubby, I know you must be full of envy now. Next year, we go together ok?

Red Hill Cherry Farm is located at:
61 - 69 Prossors Ln
Red Hill, Victoria 3937
Phone: 03 - 59892237 / 0407 819751
Email: trevorholmes@pac.com.au

King Prawns with Glass Noodle in Sizzling Wok

Bro-in-law and I spotted fresh King Prawns on special offer at Safeway last week. Grabbed some home and initially we planned to have it steamed until I came up with the idea of cooking it with glass noodle instead. Actually, I was craving for Claypot Glass Noodle with Crabs, a wonderful dish I once had in Bercham (a small town in Perak, Malaysia) many many years ago. Since it is not crabby season now, I was pretty certain that prawns would be good on this dish as well. True enough, it turned out so good that we headed back to Safeway the following cold and pouring night to grab more prawns.


We used lots of sliced ginger, spring onions, garlic, a tablespoon of crushed white pepper and the most important ingredient: LARD! On the first night, we used pork fats to extract the oil and the dish turned out so flavourful and delicious. We ran out of pork fat the second night so we used fats from bacon instead. Big difference, it lack of the 'ommmpphh' aroma from the fresh pork fats.


From 2 packets of glass noodle on the first night, we used 3 packets the second night cos it was so tasty after it absorbed all the flavour from the prawns. Soak to soften before adding it into the dish.


First of all, heat up the wok and WITHOUT any oil, pan fry the pork or bacon fats until golden brown. Then, put in the ginger, garlic and crushed pepper. If you don't intend to use any of those artery-clogging fats, you can substitute with a tablespoon of cooking oil.


Once you get the wonderful aroma from the garlic and pepper, throw in the prawns.


For seasoning, add a touch of magic! Can you spot those droplets from my bro-in-law's finger?? Cool picture eh?? He mixed a concoction of seasoning sauce using oyster sauce, dark soy sauce, sugar and cooking wine.


Finally, put in the spring onions and glass noodle, give it a good stir. Although the original version of Glass Noodle with Crabs I had in Bercham was much soupier, I find this homecooked version not too bad, in fact, not too bad at all! Love the glass noodle the most as it was so tasty. I really hope to try cooking this dish again with crabs next time.


One more thing, just to share my new found love....Jacob's Creek Sparkling Moscato! Very light and refreshing bubbly Rosé with summer berry flavours. Absolutely perfect wine to pair with this yummy dish!

Tis the Season to be Cooking.....fa la la la la la

Pssstt....wanna get some free cookbooks for this coming festive season? The Discovery Travel and Living has given 5 cookbooks to Masak-Masak to giveaway!!

1. There are two copies of David Rocco's Dolce Vita that takes you to Italy and is an extension of Canadian celebrity chef David Rocco's television series.

2. Two copies of Willie's Chocolate Factory Cookbook by Willie Harcourt-Cooze that describes his chocolate factory story and delectable recipes that include sweet and even savoury dishes.




3. One copy of Kylie Kwong's My China Cookbook where Kylie journeys around China to trace her family roots. The book is beautifully photographed with recipes inspired by dishes she tries on her journey around her ancestors' homeland.

To win a copy of the cookbook, you just need to answer a simple question, "What is Christmas to you?". Email the answer to masakmasakcomp2@gmail.com. The best answer will win one copy of the cookbook. Unfortunately, this competition is limited to residents in Malaysia. You are also entitled to one entry only. This competition will run until 28 December 2009 midnight, so make sure you send your entries in early. Late entries will not be entertained. Winners will be announced on 31 December 2009. For more details, just hop on to Masak-Masak's blog!

Shhh...now it's time to crack my head as I wanna win a cookbook for myself too!