Short talk: I haven't been religiously updating my blog as often as I would like but here I am. I haven't abandoned it. Oh yes, Happy April Fools Day! The Malaysian Consulate pulled a "prank" on us - passport collectors today. They made everyone take a ticket but the lines were all jumbled up so the ticket was useless... Nevertheless, this folly turned out great for me. In spite of being number 3, I was the first to collect & head out of the Consulate. However, I am now resigned to believe that people who go to the Malaysian Consulate must stay there for at least 45 minutes even though you are first in line. They love to play the game "now you see me, now you don't" with their customers. Though it was a tedious wait, the Consulate staff was polite. After paying USD93 (must be in exact change coz they don't have petty cash), I wasn't expecting any less.

Green Papaya

Recently, two interesting food establishments opened its doors for business in Bergen County. Needless to say, it is to our delight :) One being Penang -- not directly linked though distantly related to the famous Penang Restaurant owner Datuk ??? (forgot his name) and the other, Green Papaya -- an Asian fusion restaurant just 10 minutes away from our apartment. Although we have been to Penang a few times and love it (I'll write about Penang, Lodi next time), Green Papaya was quite a discovery for us last weekend. If you're looking for somewhere cosy yet reasonably priced, the latter is quite a gem!

Appetizer

The Malaysian chefs did a good job with the beef/chicken satay. Although the peanut sauce was a little watery to our liking, the taste was acceptable. The marinated beef and chicken was just as good as the Malaysian hawker stall's.

Entrees

Forget about the broccoli. I must admit, it's an unusual choice for decoration but that's secondary. Although the beef rendang looked kind of grosteque, it is really good! I am NOT kidding. Yes, looks can be deceiving. I know, I know...normally there's no potato in rendang but bear in mind that Green Papaya is a "fusion" restaurant. So, we have to expect the unexpected.

Shrimp sambal -- yummy! The sauce is a unique cross between sambal and sweet & sour. Adrian was scrapping the left-over sauce with his rice towards the end of his meal. Enough said...

The verdict: We would definitely go back to Green Papaya soon. Besides, the owner assured us of her willingness to craft out her specialty dish -- wonton noodles with char siu and black sauce (not in the menu). Apparently, this is a favorite among her Malaysian customers. And, they have hot frothy tea. I am already dreaming of teh tarik!

Alex's Second Birthday Party

We attended Alex's birthday party yesterday. I couldn't believe that another year has gone by!

Alex & his maternal Nana

Yup, Alex is now a big TWO year old. He is growing up fast and has a big heart. He doesn't mind sharing his toys with his fellow tots at the party. Now, that is a trait that would make every Godmother proud. This year the theme for his birthday party is Cars.

First comes the food...

Beef sticks

Gotta balance it with some veggie dip

Meatballs...they're great on a sub

Steaming hot lo-mein

Is that all? Of course not. Alex's paternal Nana came with more food -- pansit/fried vermicelli, salad, etc. but I was too busy blabbering away and forgot to take more photos.

Time to cut the cake...

Alex's Cars ice-cream cake

Help me blow the candles, Mommy!

Come on, come on...I want some cake!

Hopkins: Hey, don't forget about me!

Time to open the presents...

Here are some of Alex's presents. What, there's more?! Yup, someone is definitely the lucky one today. He has enough presents to fill the basement...!!!

Alex & his Cars book (from me, of course!)

Good Friday & Lui Char

Rant: It is common practice to give up something during Lent and Good Friday. Honestly, I haven't been able to keep up with the usual abstinence on Fridays. However, we were determined, for Good Friday. Began the day early and went to work. A lot of people took the day off (it's not a Public Holiday here in the U.S. - separation of religion & State...blah, blah, blah) but I decided to leave early anyway. Mass at 3 p.m. was long, as it was bilingual (Spanish & English). I didn't mind that but the worst part was kids who couldn't keep still and talked throughout the service. Though difficult, I held my tongue and didn't say anything to the Grandma in front of me. Clearly, her efforts to silence her grandkids were futile. I didn't think that she would achieve anything by asking the kids to keep quiet and proceed to kiss them continuously at the same time. It was the most "contradictory" parenting style I've ever seen. If my Ah Ma/Grandma was there, those kids would have a few rattan markings on their butts.

What's for dinner?

Good Friday and the decision to abstain from meat was a good excuse to eat Lui Char or tea rice again. Lui Char is a vegetarian dish typically eaten by the Chinese sub-group --Hakka. Adrian is Hakka, my Mom is half-Hakka so what does that make me? 1/4 Hakka + 3/4 Hokkien. But when it comes to food, thou shall not discriminate. As long as it is delicious, we shall eat it!

Preparing the ingredients for Lui Char takes a lot of effort. Thank goodness Adrian is very handy in the kitchen.

Yes, they do sell lesung batu (pestle & mortar) here in the U.S. I wouldn't have carted it all the way from Malaysia. It's way too heavy. So, here is the most important ingredient for you to stir-fry all your veggies e.g. asparagus, beans, tofu, leek, etc. in -- dried shrimp.

Another tedious routine, cleaning the ikan bilis (anchovies). Lui Char isn't a lui char without anchovies.

Phew! Made it. Here are the ingredients.

Fry the minced radish until fragrant.

Divide the dried shrimp. Stir-fry the veggies (except for the tofu & leek), separately with the dried shrimp.

Preparing the tea/soup...

Fry anchovies until golden brown.

Grind them in the food processor.

Add them into a pot of boiling water. Tip: I usually use Kwan Yin (hi-grade) tea leaves and some dried mint leaves for the soup. A great shortcut! Adrian said the taste is similar to the Lui Char he used to eat in Malaysia, just not as bitter. But, less bitter is my preference :)

Spoon cooked rice into a bowl.

Invert in a bigger bowl and add all the cooked ingredients.

Scoop some tea/soup into the bowl and it is ready to be eaten!

November Road Trip Photos

Here are some photos from our previous road trip to Toronto. We stopped by Niagara State Park on our way back to New Jersey and took some photos of the fall foliage and the American Falls.

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Humor in Dim Sum

I've been meaning to blog about this for sometime now but kept putting it off. Today, I need something funny to write and laugh about. Whilst it is always a good idea to go for dim sum on a relaxing Sunday morning, it is also good practice for one to be able to hold a straight face when the servers come by your table and tell you what they have in the cart or tray.

Here's my Silver Pond Dim Sum guide:

• pork space = pork spare ribs
• rice soup = porridge/congee
• egg-ger-tat = egg tart
  
• fry- rye = fried rice
  

Pressies from Down Under - again! Woo-hoo..!

Not many moons ago, I sent some Star Wars stamps to No. 1 Star Wars fan - Darth Wuching. Not many days ago I, in return received a package from him - all the way from Melbourne, Australia.

Australia Post Chinese New Year stamps designed & personally autographed by the talented designer, Dani Poon and beautiful origamis from the equally skillful Mrs. Wuching. Aren't they lovely!!!

It really made my day. I love it how Mrs. Wuching cleverly folded the Statue of Liberty, Eiffel Tower and Big Ben shirts :) Her origami stars are not the usual fold that was once the craze in Asia back in the 90s. Hers is with a twist in the middle. Too bad it isn't really visible in this photo :(. They are just precious!

Thanks so much Mr. & Mrs. Wuching.