Linzer Cookies!

Ever since I saw these Linzer Cookies on CupcakesandCashmere, I had wanted to try baking them as they looked soooo pretty! As I recently found a baking supply store near my apartment, and managed to get my hands on some almond flour as well as some nice cookie cutters, I finally got round to making them ... (except I used the GoodHousekeeping recipe) ...

The pretty patterns left on my board after sprinkling the icing sugar ...

With the little leftover dough, I managed to cut out a gingerbread boy and a cat ... tada!

Jianguo Flower Market, Taipei, CNY

Bistro Le Pont, Taipei

Bistro Le Pont ... doesn't this name just conjure up images of a Parisian Bistro?

Even the menu has prices in EUR, and the dishes are in French or Chinese ...

Check out the very French menu board outside the bistro ...

The lovely French looking facade ...

Are you still thinking France?

.. Granini brand of banana juice ... yup, from France ...

SURPRISE!!!!!

Taiwanese style smoked goose!

I was totally surprised when the waiter served us this!

Cheeky Hubby tricked me into thinking we'd be having French food at this French bistro with the French name, French exterior, French interior and French menu!

Apparently, he had read about this lil restaurant on the internet ...

ppl had highly recommended the goose

- they apparently specialised in this.

Stirfried Bean Sprouts

- how much more Chinese can you get? Hahaha ...

A lovely bowl of Taiwanese bee hoon or rice noodles to go with the goose

A bowl of rice with a tasty topping of XO sauce

made by the shop themselves ... this was truly delicious!

I also picked up a couple of handcreams made in Twn

- these looked so French, I'd initially thought they were fm France

but they turned out to be made by the shop themselves!

As they specialised in geese products, they contained goose oil.

Are you cringing?

Well, don't!

Cos goose oil is like lanolin!

And when I tried some on, I found it really good!

Tai Ho Dian Mala Hot Pot, Taipei

As we had been experiencing a few cold fronts over the past few weeks, we decided to have some Mala Hot Pot, something which Taiwan is famous for. It had been ages since we've visited Tai Ho Dian, so we decided to have dinner there ...

We normally have a yin-yang hot pot, which is half a pot of non-spicy broth and half a pot of Mala broth - this is good so one can enjoy the immense spiciness yet have the option to take a breather from the spiciness by cooking one's food in the clear non-spicy broth. That day, however, we bravely (or foolishly? let's just blame it on the weather ... ) opted to have just the Mala Hot Pot (incidentally, it's called "Mala" cos it's mouth-numbingly spicy).

We ordered some squid balls (you can see them in the pot above), Tang-O veggies, "you tiao", handmade beancurd skin and sliced beef ...

To make a dip/sauce for the cooked food, there was a generous bowl of spring onions available. We were taught to add the mala broth to a mixture of spring onions, "sa cha" sauce, soya sauce and vinegar, then dip the cooked food in this to add flavour.

Halfway through the meal, I was sooooo thankful for this ...

"Wu Mei Zhi" or smoked preserved plum juice ... this was perfect to douse the internal fires that the Mala hot pot created! I'm amazed at how this brings down the heat so speedily!

"Little France" or "Franciacorta", Taipei

Knowing my soft spot for pastries, Hubby found this little shop that ppl were raving about online (on the Chinese internet). It's tucked away in an out-of-the-way alley, which I'd never have found on my own. Here's "Franciacorta" ...

What had attracted Hubby's attention was this ... Ispahan ... he was probably reminded of the delicious one we had at Laduree in Paris...

While there, we decided to pick another pastry and chose this little tower of profiteroles ... while the Ispahan paled in comparison to the one at Laduree, this was pretty wonderful! The custard filling in the dainty profiteroles contrasted nicely with the whipped cream holding the profiteroles together, while the caramel crunch atop the profiteroles provided a delicious crunch. Overall, the tastes and textures went together beautifully. We'd definitely come back for this!

Franciacorta is such a tiny little operation that it only provides for take-aways. There isn't the option of dining in. So, we popped into a nearby little cafe and asked if we could have our desserts there if we ordered some coffee from them, and they were kind enough to allow us to do that. We ordered a latte .... this was really good!

... and I had a cappuccino. I was amazed at the level of care the barista/owner put into making this one cup of cappuccino ... apparently she wasn't quite satisfied with the first cup she brewed, and made another one, which matched up to her high standards ... this is the cup of cappuccino that made the cut ...

Bread in Taipei

One of my favorite things in Taipei is the bread. Bread probably isn't one of the things that come to mind when thinking of Taiwan, but it is surprisingly really good! Maybe it's cos Taipei has more of a northern Chinese influence, and as the Northern Chinese diet consists of more bread-like food, it is little wonder they love to eat bread and have become very good at it. It could also be because of the Japanese influence that they have become as proficient as the Japanese as making delicious breads.

Here are some things I picked up at a bakery at Shida:

Apple Galette

As you might recall, I was having a craving for apple pie (ever since visiting Just-In Bistro), so I decided to search for a recipe online. I visited my favorite foodie websites - Smittenkitchen and Joy the Baker - and found this wonderful pastry, and this fantastically easy recipe, the combination of which produced a beautifully crisp and flaky apple galette ...

What I absolutely lurrrve about this galette is that it is wondrously easy to assemble - it's a rustic looking free form tart. And it tastes absolutely delicious! This has now become one of my favorite pastry recipes!

Speaking of Poached Eggs ...

Still craving the type of poached eggs I saw on Masterchef, I was inspired by the winner, Whitney Miller, to attempt it in my own kitchen. It didn't look as perfect as hers did (maybe I didn't swirl enough?), but it tasted great ... really hit the spot for poached eggs!

In case you're interested, here's the segment on her cooking poached eggs (about 1:49 into the video) ...

Brunch at Evans Burger, Taipei

The week before, I was watching Masterchef on TV, and one of the dishes the contestants had to cook was poached egg. Ever since then, I've had poached eggs on my mind ... I guess that explains our brunch at Evans Burger ...

Hubby ordered egg .... (hmm ... not quite the poached egg I was hoping for) ... with roast chicken, beans and potato cubes with a lil side salad. The lil heap of "potato wedges" on the left turned out to be stewed apples!

I had a sausage wrap with cheese and egg, jalapenos on the top, and a hash brown served with a lil side salad and the same stewed apples as above.

Inside the wrap ...

Taiwanese Street Food at Tong Hwa Night Market

While we were walking home after our New Year's Eve concert, we decided to take a lil detour at Tong Hwa Night Market for a snack. We ordered a serving of ...

Smelly Tofu!

(I only like the deep fried version - so deliciously crisp, served with a healthy dose of minced garlic and chili ... when done right, this is wonderful! You just need to get past the smell just before they start frying it.)

We also got a small bowl of meatrolls in a sourish, savory broth ...

Pets in Taipei

One of the things I really enjoy about walking around in Taipei is all the pets I see - in pet carriers, in prams, on scooters, in shops, walking along the streets .... I think the Taiwanese really love their pets, and I like that about them.

These are some pics I snapped recently ...

This hair salon in the East District has 3 cats ... while I was snapping these pics, two Taiwanese girls came up beside me to admire the kitties and they were saying that they were tempted to get their haircut there just cos of the kitties - my sentiments exactly!

A huge ginger furball at the window ... and if you look beyond the counter inside, there's another ginger kitty ...

The third kitty ... a very pretty grey and white cat ...

And this kitty, I believe, is the namesake of the shop: Alleycats!

Isn't he utterly and totally adorable?! Aww ....

We spotted this lil inky poodle while we were getting some tea. It was so sweet - simply kept licking everyone who petted its head ... what a lovable lil fellow!