Another Sunday antics

Sunday was rainy, so what better to do at home? Another cooking experiment! My, is this turning out to be a food blog?

After Easter, I had some leftover white chocolate and about a pint of double cream... what better excuse to make some creme brulee? :P


Firstly, made some Langue De Chat on Friday night... to much of a housemate's irritation as I only finished baking by midnight. Sorry!


And then on to the brulee - white chocolate and raspberry brulee that is... Unfortunately, I couldn't get the burnt sugar layer right as I only have an electric grill... Here's the first one served with extra raspberries and Langue De Chat.


Second attempt , still couldn't get the caramel right. I guess that's why people usually use a blowtorch. So if anyone would like to buy me a blowtorch as a birthday present... much appreciated, as strange as that sounds!

The People's Petition

It's Saturday and I'm avoiding the city centre as I got news that there will be a large animal rights demo today. I'm tired of these people, and I know many others are too.
Hence, David Taylor has the idea of putting an online petition that is pro-research. If you want to know more about the three statements this petition is for, and hopefully sign up for it, then click on the title of this post. Unfortunately, as these so called animal lovers are so aggressive, the petition can be signed anonymously.
The anti-vivisectionists critise this of course, but after all that has been happening, you cannot say that it is unneccessary. Once, I've witnessed students being shouted at and intimidated as they enter the Zoology Department, even though many of these students studies and work for the progress of welfare and conservation of animals. Buildings belonging to the university are also damaged thanks to them.

I am pro-life, therefore I agree with this petition. How about you?

Easter is the excuse for choc overdose

What a weekend! Was your Easter weekend a pigging out session on tons of chocolate? Mine was, starting with a rich chocolate cake of my own concoction on Saturday. Then Sunday, a chocolate egg hunt in a local garden, then a lunch, with more chocolate afterwards.

As you can see, my oh so bold attempt to decorate it as a bird's nest did not turn out quite so well after a couple of mishaps. So then I dubbed it the Easter Dinosaur Nest. Amount of chocolate: 500g of Belgian dark (for the cake), 100g of white chocolate and a bag of Terry's chocolate orange eggs.


Here's one of my egg hunt reward: The evil Cadbury's Creme Egg! So sweet that even your teeth cries in protest! :P
Amount of chocolate consumed at the hunt: 3 eggs, fragments of a chocolate bunny, and a handful of other chocolates.

Ugh, maybe that is why I'm feeling a little sick now... ooo! there is still a quarter of the cake left in the fridge!

Stuck in between experiments

I've run out of a few essential things for experiments... Nothing I can do now but wait till next week, when hopefully I can continue.
Everyone is more or less is in a holiday mood. The department is pretty much empty now, save or a few mental people (including yours truly) that will work over Easter. Le sigh, I hope at the end of my three year research, something useful will come out of it. Meanwhile, Happy Easter... even though it isn't of any significance to me, except that I'll be stuffing myself with chocolate. That I will :).

Here's what I'm listen to at the moment: Bloc Party's "Plans"

Wake up dreamer
It's happening without you
Cut your hair and shave your beard
You squandered your chances
I'll give you a thousand pounds
To show me how you do it
Stop being so laissez-faire
We're all scared of the future

Been training vipers to come for you
In your dreams to release you
Been training vipers to come for you
In your sleep
And the ravens are leaving the tower
And the ravens are leaving the tower
Make your peace

I've got a taste for blood
Leave the weak, leave the young
I've got a taste for blood
I'm walking out without you
You will kill or be killed
It's about progress
I've got a taste for blood

Wake up sleepyhead
It's happening without you
Such a nice guy
You tell me everything twice
Whipcrack speed jump
We will run backwards
Stop being so laissez-faire
We're all scared of the future

We make plans for big times
Get bogged down, distracted
We make plans for good times
All neon, all surface
So kiss me before it all gets complicated
I've got a taste for blood

Something's up with Mos...

Many failed experiments, but I do have some results to work with... What does it mean? I feel like I'm at a dead end... I'm reminded of Jack Skellington's obsession with solving the secret to Christmas.

"There are so many things I cannot grasp
When I think I've got it, and then at last
Through my bony fingers it does slip
Like a snowflake in a fiery grip

Something's here I'm not quite getting
Though I try, I keep forgetting
Like a memory long since past
Here in an instant, gone in a flash
What does it mean?
What does it mean?"

Oh woe, what to do with my data?

"Simple objects, nothing more
But something's hidden through a door
Though I do not have the key
Something's there I cannot see
What does it mean?
What does it mean?
What does it mean?
Hmm..."

I've stared and tinkered around with my data, I still can't make any sense with it other than some basic stuff...

"Or perhaps it's really not as deep
As I've been led to think
Am I trying much too hard?
Of course! I've been too close to see
The answer's right in front of me
Right in front of me"

Or is it? Time for a visit to the supervisor...

On a Sunday...

I usually spend my Sundays at home. Doing laundry, food shopping, reading, artwork... So today's no different. The day started out with plenty of sunshine, and so I cycled down to visit the Prophets of Tesco. The fresh chicken shelves were on sale: Buy one get one free! Needless to say this was sparked by the recent event of bird flu in the country. Oh for goodness sake! It's in Scotland! But anyway, I thought I should stock up on chicken since memory serves that the prices of poultry and related products will sky-rocket after this. I also bought a few stuff on a wimp that will soon be my lazy Sunday's main event...
So lugging kilos of food (of which half being chicken), I cycled home: in the rain. The meak sun was smothered again and heavy dark clouds summoned tiny droplets of near iced rain dancing around with the chilly winds. Unfortunately, I forgot to bring my gloves and so had the luxury of watching my hands turn snow white, then an angry red. And the pain! Heh, that is spring for you.

Right, so after a nice cup of tea and a flapjack (whilst watching the rain that turned into hail and then return of the sun), I started my first attempt at making a japanese cheesecake. I don't know why did I suddenly felt like making cheesecakes... I started at around 4pm, and by the time I've finished with the baking it was 6.30pm! But I guess it was well worth it because the cake turned out quite yummy, if not soft and fluffy as it should. But with the decor on, it was rather pretty. And I was pretty chuffed too when some housemates thought I bought it. Too bad the cake's pristine condition was to last for like 10 minutes! Most of it now sits in the stomachs of five people.


The cake after all the lovely trimmings on. Sad to say the souffle-ness started to sink after a bit.


After dinner, I've got something else to look forward to... yum!

So all in all, not a bad first attempt. ;)

In between experiments 3

Waiting for the results... and some chemicals for further experiments... so la dee da!

Here's anothere song by The Editors that's stuck in my mind thanks to my little sister.

"Distance"

Distance, I'll keep my distance
These things I never seem to meet
So I'll leave the murder scene

Honey, what got broke here
Won't go back together again
So I'll leave this while I can

Here
Here
Here
Here

Nothing, to be scared of
My dreams they keep a hold of me
My guide when I can't see

Call, I will be there
I'm sure you're passing the test
I wish you all the best

Here
Here
Here
Here
...

Escape to the Welsh landscape

And so after much stressful work, I've decided to go back to Cardiff for a visit. Unfortunately, I failed to catch wind of a football match that weekend (Swansea vs Carlisle if anyone is interested, oh and Swansea won). But fortunately, my friends brought me to escape the city football-craze scene: the Brecon Beacons of superb Welsh landscape! Didn't take many stunning pictures though...


Taken in a moving car...


Abergavenny Castle... in Abergavenny (Y-Fenni in Welsh) Town, Monmouthshire of course.

Now that I'm no longer living in Wales, I realised it is not a bad place to be afteralll. With that, I was a little sad to leave the country... by train packed full of people in blue and white, or black and white.