I Scream You Scream for Homemade Oreo Ice Cream

  
I had a wonderful birthday celebration with family and friends. Here are some of the lovely things I've received! My lil sis, miss J bought me an ice cream maker (genius!) and I have just made my first ice cream using one.

Cuisinart - checkout their webbie, they come in assorted colours

I was amazed at how easy it was to make an out-of-this-world Cookies 'n Cream ice cream. Why pay a fortune for Ben & Jerry's when you can make your own ;P

This is all you need, no kidding!

In a bowl, stir together milk, cream, sugar & vanilla essence.

Add some Oreo goodness into the mixture.

After 20 minutes of churning, cookies are well blended into the mixture.

Voila! Homemade smooth & creamy ice cream with delicious chunks of Oreos!

Makes 
10

Ingredients
2 cups pure cream
1 cup full cream milk
3/4 cup caster sugar
1 tsp vanilla essence
6 pieces crushed Oreo cookies

Method
1. Place all ingredients except for cookies into a bowl, mix well.
2. Pour mixture into ice cream maker.
3. Turn the machine on and freeze until mixture thickens, add crushed oreo cookies.
4. Transfer ice cream into a container and place in freezer for a few hours to work its magic!


PS: What are your favourite ice cream flavours? As you can guess, yours truly will be making (and eating!) more ice cream ;D

Mini Cupcakes

Ghermez has inspired my new addiction for cupcakes. Their cupcakes are really stylish, yummy and smaller than those at other bakeries, but are the perfect size - so I can get my hands on to a variety of flavours! ;)

Mum and I had a baking session during the weekend. We used orange zest and juice for the flavour of the cupcakes and frosted with a simple lemon glaze (see recipe below).  We baked so many that we had enough for home, work and my sweet gf, D's b'day. 

Definitely not my last time baking these sweet little treats, my verdict - cupcakes are actually really fun and easy to make. The best part is decorating it! ;P

Makes

48 mini cupcakes

Ingredients

2 cups self-raising flour

3/4 cups caster sugar

3/4 cup milk

125g butter - melted

2 eggs, beaten

1 tsp vanilla essence

1/4 cup fresh orange juice

1 tbsp grated orange rind

Icing

1 1/2 cups icing sugar

1-1 1/2 tbsp water (lemon juice)

Food colouring

Method

1. Preheat oven to 180 C.

2. Combine flour & caster sugar in a bowl, make a well in the centre.

3. Add milk, butter, eggs, vanilla essence, orange juice & rind. Stir gently to combine.

4. Spoon mixture into the paper cups.

5. Bake 15-20 mins, or until skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.

6. Frost cupcakes with icing and decorate with your fav. sprinkles.

It'll be easy-peasy-lemon-squeezy! ;)

Autumn Weekend Outfit

Hello! How have you been? It has been pretty cold here but at the same time blue skies and sunny. Bright colours are seeping into my wardrobe which adds a little colour to these cold autumn days. I'm wearing an orange red color skirt which probably is not something I would wear everyday but the bright vibrant color looks pretty amazing, what do you think? I'll be having crepes for dinner with friends tonight! yummm can't wait! Have a lovely weekend (enjoy what remains of it!)

xx

Au Bon Accueil

Contemporary French bistro cooking has started merely over twenty years ago. Recession in the 90s has seen a surge in aspiring young chefs opening up bistros instead of formal restaurants. This has evolved into a whole new generation of bistros to the culinary scene of Paris, and they just keep getting better.


My frenchie recommended this restaurant after some research on Bonnes Petites Tables (similar to a SMH good food guide in Aust) after I told him I was looking to sample some excellent, yet reasonably priced, honest French cuisine. So, if you are after good food at reasonable prices at Paris, look no further! Au Bon Accueil as the name suggests means "good welcome" is a stone's throw away from the Eiffel Tower.

We were shown to our table at the bistro's terrace by our friendly waiter, who could speak English and thankfully was quite willing to put up with my appalling French. You can order a la carte, but I recommend the fixed 3 course menu for 32 euros. It includes entrée, main and dessert.

Being a seafood lover, I chose the fish nuggets as my entree, fish for main and a fruit soup for dessert. Overall, I could not fault the food as they were extremely fresh, delicious and beautifully presented. Fantastic food, friendly efficient service and a great view - Au Bon Accueil is worth reserving an evening for! :)

Dramatic view of the Eiffel from our table 

Swiss chard cream with bacon and fried onions

Fish nuggets with lemon, almond & avocado crème fraiche (my personal fav!)

Galantine of suckling pig with toasted pistachio mesclun seedlings

Freshly baked baguette

Roast chicken fricassee of vegetables and sorrel emulsion

Duck fillet of Dombes with zucchini, roasted pineapple and spices

Fish fillet with vegetables and eggplant caviar

Chocolate tart with pure Ghana choco sorbet

Passionfruit soufflé with mango sorbet

Fresh fruit soup & mint granita (I can eat this all day!)

Short stroll to Eiffel after dinner to see the lights ;)

Paris, je t'aime!

My first post is dedicated to my infatuation for this must-have pâtisserie treat called the macaron. This small round biscuit, crisp on the outside, tender and smooth in the middle is now a worldwide symbol of dainty indulgence. 

Introduced to France from Italy in the 16th century by Catherine de' Medici, the macaron was originally a form of pasta. It has the same origin as that of the word 'macaroni' which means fine dough. It was only in the beginning of the 20th century, Pierre Desfontaines, second cousin to Louis Ernest Ladurée first thought of sticking 2 macaron shells together with a creamy ganache filling.

Hence, my first stop at my recent trip to Paris is none other than la Maison Ladurée. I will let yourself be guided by these sweet little luxury that you can (almost) consume without moderation! 

Ladurée ice-cream topped with macaron (perfect for a hot summery day!)

Ladurée Bonaparte in the St-Germain des Prés neighbourhood - the summer collection is inspired by the berries, strawberry and cherry.

Oooh, I'm a happy camper!

An assortment of classic flavours including Vanilla, Coffee, Caramel with Salted Butter, Raspberry, Blackcurrant Violet, Lemon, Chocolate, Pistachio

Ladurée signature celadon green shopping bag and my pink cherry box. Falling in love with so much cuteness!