Bites.

I'm the kind of person who thinks about dinner while I'm having lunch. Or the type of person who stays awake at night thinking about that a brunch buffet. I'd rather labour over a pesto recipe & a spicy tuna casserole for two hours than have a cup of instant noodles. I hope that doesn't make me a glutton; I just love food a whole lot :)

(I) If Comfort Were a Room

I like the look of my room.

It is what I imagine Comfort to look like,

If Comfort were a room.

Especially when it is raining outside.

When the sky is dark & weeping & heavy.

It’s a secret guilty pleasure I have,

enjoying the rain.

But there’s a certain melancholic sadness in watching rain fall

like watching a grown man cry…

Not that I would ever take pleasure from that.

(Who would anyway?)

I take pleasure in ordinary & simple things,

like Loneliness.

Loneliness is a wonderful thing,

if you let it be.

Most people haven’t really realized this,

Which is okay because we are all learning.

You’ll get there somehow,

But only if you want to.

Solitude.

'She slept with the door open every night. At one time, when she was more hopeful, she had thought: if Rey were to come back tonight, he would see right away that I was sleeping alone. That had been the logic at first, but now it wouldn't be truthful to say that she expected anything of the sort. It was habit, pure & simple, of the kind whose origin was vaguely recalled but which existed nonetheless, a constant & unchanging fact of life. Her door was open.'

Lost City Radio

by Daniel Alarcón

_____________________________________________________________

I'm done with a major essay. It feels wonderful to read for pleasure again.

Pears for Poaching

The first time I had a poached pear was in Switzerland, in a tiny inn off the side of a mountain during Christmas time. I remember it was paired with ginger cake & hot tea. Savouring that sliver of warm fruit nestled to the side, combined with the snow outside & the warmth within was absolutely magical. It took me a long time to figure out the perfect balance of ingredients, but it was worth it. The most amazing thing is how incredibly simple it is to make; anyone could do it.

I initially tried David Lebovitz's recipe for poached pears, but it didn't work for a number of reasons. First, it's near impossible to get the special type of pears that he uses (Bosc / Conference pears) here, which are of course great if you can get them, because they are firm & sturdy, perfect for poaching. The Asian pears, which are what we get here instead are very crisp & great for eating raw, but fall apart easily when simmered for a long period of time. The Anjou pear, a good in-between, can be found in Cold Storage fairly frequently throughout the year. 

Secondly, there were several adjustments made to the spices & other ingredients used in order to suit my own taste. I don't like to use lemons because it can overpower the subtle flavours of the other spices. I substituted it with an orange & cardamom seeds instead to retain the fresh citrus flavour, but feel free to experiment... you're the one eating them after all :) Perfect for a rainy evening, or for Christmas dessert.

Spiced Poached Pears

If served with a slice of cake or on top of a tart, the best thing to do is to reduce the remaining liquid & use it as a sauce/glaze. Otherwise, warm poached pears are perfect with some good-quality vanilla ice-cream, or even on its own.

Ingredients

1l water

1 cup of sugar

200g honey

6 medium-sized Asian/Anjou pears

1 orange

1 split vanilla bean OR 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla essence

1 cinnamon stick

3 teaspoons of cloves

3 star anise

1 teaspoon cardamom seeds

Ginger slices (optional)

1. Put the water in a large saucepan / pot under low heat & slowly mix in sugar & honey till dissolved


2. Meanwhile, peel & core the pears, cutting them into quarters or halves. (Halves take longer)

3. Slice orange into half & allow it to stew face-down in the water for a couple of minutes. 

4. Add remaining spices & oranges, constantly stirring & making sure the pears are fully 
submerged for an evenly-poached texture. You can also cut a piece of parchment paper to lay on top of the pears.

5. Simmer for about 20 minutes. Remove the pears & set aside.

6. Retain the liquid in order to keep leftover pears in. Or turn the heat up a little & reduce till it's concentrated to about half it's original amount (to use as sauce/glaze with accompaniment) 

Serves approx. 6-8 people for dessert

The Only Place

Today I skived school & spent the whole day making photo collages on a new photo app. It was a day well-spent, I think. Sometimes it's alright to play hooky, only once in while, to catch up on life. I miss reading and my guitars. I miss summer.


I miss having time.

(hashtag) Twitter

(25/10/2012. Spotted: John & Yoko on the MRT)

25th Sep

'Love, like art,comes from the moment.' 'Minor correction, love comes from a confluence of chemicals and hormones in the pineal gland' #bones

The backs of all stamps should taste like bacon

Dinner is a diet coke & a two-day old frozen chicken steak how sad is that

OK, I lied about the coke being diet. 


26th Sep

WHO ATE ALL MY PRETZELS

27th Sep

tried to wipe a speck off my screen for ten seconds before realizing it was a full-stop in the middle of the page #ibetrippin'

Why are Harry & Ron always complaining about studying for exams you're in a magic school doing magic homework for crying out loud

Just walked home in the pouring rain... Yeah I really carpe-d that diem. Take that, dead poet's society!


28th Sep

Just had my first slice of mooncake I FEEL SO CONNECTED TO MY CHAINESE CULTURE #notreallyno


29th Sep

When's the new Jonas Brothers record coming out?

Yeah anyway I'm apparently my mom's mooncake delivery assistant how did I get here what did I do in life


30th Sep


Ants in the bathroom. Who's been eating Reese pieces in the shower again?!

Oops yeah that was me.


1st October

For once in my life I want somebody to threaten me so I can say 'I don't respond well to threats.' in a cold, steely voice

My dad has the same waist size as me okthxbye

Oh right it's October. Time to get excited about Halloween.... TV specials.


2nd October

DON'T TALK IN THIRD PERSON UNLESS YOU'RE DOBBY THE ELF OK? ok

Likely death scenario: choking on a chocolate biscuit.





Yeah so, follow me @stacecake on twitter #irrelevanthashtag