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Back to the food entries.

Sun, 23 Aug 2009 00:29:51 GMT

I have quite a few recipes to post so I better get started!

Zucchini, also known as 'courgette' in some other country, was not something that I'm familiar with prior to coming to Australia. In fact I never actually liked it in the past, blame it on lousy mid range restaurants that don't know how to cook it properly. It was listed as my least favourite 'vegetable' for a long time. Although I do like Zucchini flowers. Love, in fact if they stuffed and deep fried. Yumm.

It wasn't until recently when I was watching Masterchef Australia I became curious about it (is anyone suffering from Masterchef withdrawal like I am?). To be specific it was Sam's very first Chicken challenge where he made the Zucchini rosti to serve with the chicken drumsticks (ok I admit, I have a soft spot for Sam even though he was not the best cook amongst the lot). It's not an original recipe of course. A google search brought up many variations of zucchini cakes, rosti, fritters etc. I have attempted a few of the recipes since then. And the winner?

Corn, Zucchini and Chickpea fritters!

400g can chickpeas, drained, rinsed
1/2 cup milk
2 eggs
1/4 cup self raising flour
1 large zucchini grated, squeezed dry
400g can corn kernels, drained, rinsed
Half a brown onion, thinly sliced.

1. Roughly chop the chickpeas
2. Whisk milk and eggs in a bowl. Place flour in another bowl. Graduallly add egg mixture to the flour, whisking until smooth. Stir in chickpeas, zucchini, corn and onion.
3. Heat olive oil in a large frying pan over medium high heat. Add 1/4 cup mixture to pan. Spread slightly with a spatula. Repeat to make 3 more fritters. Cook for 2-3 minutes on each side or until golden brown. Repeat with remaining mixture.

Not only they are pleasing to the eyes but they are oh-so-delicious! I was so happy I made 12 because they are really great to bring to work for lunch! You should give this a go. Really!

And just like that, Zucchini goes from the bottom of the list to almost the top of the list. (Still can't beat Eggplants and Tomatoes though)

Oh and did you know that Zucchini is actually a fruit? (I didn't either but now it's useful to know for me because I don't eat sweet fruits. So unconsciously I upped my intake of fruits!)

More Zucchini related recipes to come!

P/S: Hair is done. Here's a quick peek! The dirty blonde bits are now bright red-magenta and the rest dyed black for more contrast. Kept the hair style the same (ie super long). Took them 3 hours!

The red is more vibrant under the sun but you get the idea! So far I'm loving it!

P/P/S: I have been accepted into Psychiatry training. Which means I will be a Psychiatry registrar next year and starting my Master of Psychiatry. Wow, I still can't believe this is actually happening! By that I mean actually making the decision and going through with it, despite the rushed applications. So, time to celebrate!

Some updates.

Sat, 15 Aug 2009 23:45:16 GMT

So in a nutshell: Psychiatry has been fantastic. There are some difficult personnel at my current ward, however it's a small issue considering I really enjoy the work. This has also prompted me to put forward my application for a Psychiatry registrar position next year, hence I've been busy over the weekends preparing the paperwork etc. Having said that, am also developing some sort of a social life. Thank goodness the night shifts have not given me social phobia!

Point form again just because otherwise it will be too long!

♥ I have attended the interview at Southern Health for the Psychiatry Registrar position. There were 4 psychiatrists on the panel including the clinical director and the whole interview went for half an hour! Having said that I went prepared for the questions and did much better than I expected. I have been basically told that the panel was 'highly impressed' and have already been offered a job. Now all I have to do is wait and see if the college of psychiatry will accept me (fingers crossed).

♥ The college interview was actually less intimidating (only 2 person on the panel), however the questions were more clinically focused. I know I've aced the clinical scenario but can't say I've predicted all the other questions! I hope I've done enough to be accepted though. We'll will find out in about a week's time!

♥ Work stuff aside: The side project of writing/producing has come along slowly but surely, considering I have to do this when I already have a crazy schedule! I have shared the tracks on my Youtube so some of you might have already come across them. We are nearly there! I have also setup a Myspace artist page. Feel free to add me if you have a myspace account!

♥ Hair. Is out of control. Because the last time I stepped into a salon was in January! *gasp in horror* Booked in for some cut and colour this week. Yay!

♥ Lots of girly catch-ups over the month(s). Special mention of Krystal + the med chicks that I have not seen for nearly a year and it's really interesting finding out that everyone's developing their own niche and leaning towards different specialties. Let's just say it would be interesting in the future for referral purposes!

♥ October trip is nearing! I'm thinking of organising a farewell cum early birthday catch up do before I leave, probably going to have it at home. More cooking for my friends! And I would also like to organising a small birthday get together at perhaps one of the bars in Kuala Lumpur (if you know someone who has contacts let me know). Should be fun!

Some photos:

Caught up with pretty Christine when she was in Melbourne at Kobe Jones. Wasn't impressed with the food but the company was good! As usual the conversations were really 'interesting'!

Krystal's housewarming. Grown up doctors (nearly). One of them could be your future gynaecologist! And surgeon! And Psychiatrist! hehe

Sarah and Jacquelin's very girly birthday tea party with a difference. Indulged in giant pink cupcakes, lovely scones and *cough* champagne!

Sarah the princess. Long live our friendship!

Last but definitely not the least, let's share my very first original track here too. My BABY!!

Kelly Siew - Don't Fight for Me

Written by James Roche, Kelly Siew, Adrianna Gutwirth.
Direct link here.

Subscribe to my channel if you haven't already!

Jacques Reymond - an incredible 3 hatted experience

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 05:06:51 GMT

Ahhh, Jacques Reymond, have been wanting to experience it and haven't gotten around to booking it, so when Libby blogged about it last month I decided to do it as a surprise birthday dinner for Trev. I managed to keep the Restaurant secret up until the night before. Slip of tongue when I mentioned that it's 3 hatted and then realised 'silly me, there are only 2 of them in Melbourne! Can't be too hard for him to figure out.' But I still followed the plan and drove us there without revealing the answer anyway.

Jacques Reymond is basically a mansion situated on Willians Rd, Prahran just minutes away from High Street. The decor is lovely, they even have a fire place! Very romantic setting. I had a quick look around and there are also 2 private rooms which both look fabulous! Imagine celebrating your birthday there!

We started with glass of champagne each and toast for Trev's OLD age :P. And decided we will go for the Taste of winter 7 course degustation (well, a no brainer really). I also chose to have the matching wine while Trev had just 2 wines for the night.

Most people would have heard that Jacques Reymond has kind of a 'no photo' thing going on, and if you read Lib's entry she managed to get some photos without being kicked out from the place, so I'm not sure if this rumour is even true. Maybe they have relaxed it a little. I was still being quite careful, and only took photos after the waiters left the room. But there was another asian couple who were seated not very far from us (the place is not that big anyway) and the wife (assuming because she's pregnant) said it rather loudly in Mandarin 'Look! She's taking photos!'. And next thing you know, she was snapping away with the loud flash and all. Anyway, I didn't get kicked out either.

Cam whoring before leaving the house! I cut my fringe today after seeing this photo, but I think I might have overdone it.

I bought this dress specially for the occasion. I love forever new! I think this might be one of my best buys of the year. Hehe.

So let's get started with the food, shall we?

Our Amuse Bouche which was a Duck Terrine with Horseradish mayonnaise with crispy brioche and a citrus fruit salad. I've always loved duck terrine and this was an interesting one with lotsa texture, just enough flavour. The horseradish mayonnaise was delicious!

Lobster and Tofu 'Chakin' which is a dumpling, celeriac broth with a hint of blue cheese. Topped with baby herb salad and mini fried potato 'chips'

Very comforting. I thought the dumplings itself tasted a little bland (tofu?? really? why?), but the broth was gorgeous, perfect for winter. This was paired with a Portugal white port, which I thought was interesting. Apparently fortified wine for appetiser is quickly becoming a trendy thing to do. I thought it complemented the creamy taste of the broth quite well, clever!

Hiramasa Kingfish with ponzu, Harvey bay Scallop, spiced nougatine with peanuts, leek terrine and chilli gherkin dressing.

The Kingfish was definitely the highlight of this dish. Paired with the leek it's just delightful. The scallop was cooked well but it's not really my favourite ingredient so meh. Trev on the other hand loves scallops, so I guess he was impressed.

This was paired with a 2008 Yarra Valley Chardonnay, good combination.

Snapper with four peppers, fennel and white balsamic topped with tarragon foam, and *gasp* green tea and lime emulsion. The tarragon foam was actually quite flavoursome! But I thought that the snapper was lacking, can't really taste much except for the so-called four peppers. But green tea and lime emulsion was a nice touch.

Tempura quail breast, organic black rice, whipped persian fetta.

Trev thought this was the best dish. The tempura was done perfectly, light and crispy and the fetta really compliments the quail without being heavy. Inside the quail was still slightly pink, absolutely tender and juicy. I also liked the black rice, maybe I should start cooking those!

Paired with Adelaide Hills 2007 Coriole Nebbiolo which was light and fruity.

Flinders Island Wallaby (!) and kombu celeriac cooked in salt crust, dashi and apple jelly, cider vinaigrette.
Can't say I have tasted wallaby before, it was very tender and has a sweet taste to it, I thought it would have been close to kangaroo, but not quite. Some bok choy underneath which was full of flavour and juicy (wonder how they cooked it), and the apple jelly was cute.

2006 Gevrey Chambertin, 'La Gibryotte' Claude Dugat, from Burgundy France.

Wagyu Beef rump, oyster sauce and condiments (which?), ravioli of daikon and spicy celery, mustard ice cream.

The best wagyu I've tasted. Wonderfully soft, melts in your mouth releasing that buttery flavour. Oooorgasmic! I thought the mustard ice cream was a little odd at first but it actually worked really well with the beef! It does give a nice balance against the fatty feeling. The 'ravioli' was actually like a pastry filled with caramelised onions, which I absolutely love!

2003 Dalwhinne Cabernet, Pyrenees, VIC. absolutely wonderful! The aroma lingers around my palate for ages after that.

Also, no surprise that this is the winner dish for me.

But, only 2 tiny pieces of wagyu :(

Martini of bittersweet chocolate (mousse), coffee ganache, bourbon vanilla chantilly and cripsy rice puffs.

Just enough chocolate to keep us satisfied. And the balance of coffee, chocolate and vanilla, outstanding!

What a sexy dessert! Pear and caramel, earl grey ice cream, broken pedro ximenez (which is a grape jelly)

Once again the way the flavours work together was ingenious! The earl grey ice cream was absolute divine! And caramel is my weakness! The soft caramel and the crispy toffee, oh words can't describe how good this taste! Damn it I want more....

2003 Chateau de Myrat Grand Clu Classe from France. (I think I was starting to feel a bit light headed at that stage due to the heavy red I had)

And of course, petit fours to finish the meal!

Silly me had a latte to go with these, and ended up stay up the WHOLE night! And that totally ruined my sleeping pattern even for my night shifts.

Oooh last but not least, a photo of the birthday boy. (Actual birthday is today!) But I couldn't celebrate with him because I'm well, at work now.

Happy Birthday My love!

The damage? $495! I suspect the portion might have shrunken slightly as compared to the taste of autumn menu and the price has also gone up to $165 without wine and $225 with matching wine. We left the place feeling just full and we are not big eaters. I think it might be time we pay another visit to Vue de Monde for comparison hey?

Well the next one for us will be Ibuki, should be awesome!

Last couple of night shifts until Sunday morning then it's hello Psychiatry on Monday, bright and early! Looking forward to regular weekends off for the next couple of months. Yay!

Some updates

Mon, 22 Jun 2009 11:19:33 GMT

Ahhhh I can see the light at the end of the tunnel! 4 more nights and then I'm back on day shifts, and also moving on to my favourite specialty of all time - Psychiatry. No more overtime, no more weekend shifts, obviously back to basic pay which would kinda suck but ah well, think of job satisfaction!

I shall do this post point form style, as I think I owe everyone an update of my life.

I have passed my IELTS with 8.5 out of 9 Band score. My speaking component in particular scored a perfect score of 9. I guess my 9 years stay in Australia has not gone to waste!
Passing the IELTS means I could finally lodge my Permanent residency application, which I have done couple of weeks ago. Now for the LONG wait for approval. The average length of wait is around 5-6 months even for Critical skilled migrants, which is insane! Ah well, nothing much I can do I guess.
I have finally booked my flights to Kuala Lumpur/Singapore! Will also be going to Hong Kong for a few days, food and wine year! Looking forward to a great trip!
This is super super belated but Trev and I celebrated our 4th year anniversary in March. 4 years! That's the longest I've ever been in a relationship. Still happy as ever. Amazing.
Working night shifts have been a tiring and not to mention scary experience. I have some stories which I might share with you next time.
I'm eating up to make up for all the meals I have not eaten during my night shifts. My shifts are 11 hours long and I normally go through the shifts without food, because it's really weird for me to eat in the wee hours in the morning. But fear not, Gingerboy on Friday, Rock Kung on Saturday and Jacques Reymond tomorrow night, I'm definitely making up for lost meals! Tee hee hee.

Anyway, some recent pics:

Tian and I at a wedding gig couple of weeks ago.

Gold Leaf Restaurant @ Docklands. Lovely venue.

Showing off the blue satin waist belt I made when I was in i think Form 3 - as a project for one of the subject in school.

Singing a few songs.

Photos are taken with Tian's camera.

And I stumbled across this photo on Baraki Bar's page on facebook. We went there for a quick catch up with An and watched some great live performances. Great bar! A photographer randomly took my photo. I remember pointing at myself confused and said: "Just me?"

Love it! It's now my profile pic for a few things. Haha

Last but definitely not the least, I shall share another song with you.

Kelly Siew - Loving you (cover)

Direct link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XJ6k83x83hs

I recorded this one when I was mid conversation with a friend. I used the WavePad Sound Editor and my laptop's built in mic. So the quality is not the best, but nonetheless passable.

Enjoy!

2009 TVB Chinese New Talent Singing Championship

Mon, 15 Jun 2009 11:56:34 GMT

Once again I was invited to the TVB singing competition as a performing guest. Two years in a row which I think is very much a privilege. The rehearsals were a little stressful because it was really hard, I mean REALLY hard to get everyone together as we all have different work/uni schedules etc. But when we did rehearse it was fun. I think it's about time I organise a karaoke session as practising on my own can get pretty boring sometimes.

So I shall share the videos and photos from the night.

Singing 'I Hate This Part' by Pussycat Dolls with Tian

Unfortunately due to 'technical difficulties' my solo part in the beginning was cut off, you can all blame Trev for that. Teeheehee. But in all seriousness, many thanks to him for taking the videos, otherwise you won't be able to see them here!

Special mention: my dress is by Ruth Tarvydas, I'm so in love with this Australian designer! My bank account doesn't.

And for the closing song this is one of my favourite group song by a bunch of Taiwanese singers, a song written by my beloved David Tao and Wang Lee Hom, performed by Tian (winner 2007), myself (1st runner up 2007), Bryant Kam (winner 2006), Shine (2nd Runner up 2007)

手牽手 - Holding Hands.

This is an inspirational song and was produced few years ago during the SARS outbreak if my memory serves me right.

And here are some photos from the night, the ones on stage were captured by Mr Tom Huynh, thank you so much!

Opening with the contestants.

Doing our thing

la la la la

Our group. And by the way the girl in the brown dress is Melissa Seow, the winner of the night! Congratulations! I said to her jokingly we might be distant relatives! (Because we share the same surname and it's not a common surname)

A sort of close up of the dress. (Just ignore the face lol it was not a happy song!)

Back stage! (from Tian's camera)

I'm on night 6 out of 7, almost over! Looking forward to Gingerboy with Kerry and Alastair for an early celebration of Trev's birthday. And also a secret reservation for Trev (he's not allowed to know where it is so I won't reveal here just yet) which I'm quite excited about. It's going to a busy week off already by the sound of it.

Here's hoping tonight will be a good night.

Winter warmer

Wed, 10 Jun 2009 04:35:04 GMT

There's nothing better than sitting around the table tucking in large serves of these golden goodness. This is one of the dishes I made for our Easter get together. I used the beef version (cottage pie) because some of the guests (yes I'm looking at you Kerry) don't eat lamb.

Shepherd's Pie (or Cottage Pie) is an English pie with a crust made of mashed potatoes and meat. Shepherds look after sheep, therefore a lamb or mutton pie is called Shepherd's pie, while any beef version could be called Cottage because in the 1700s potato was one of the affordable crop. But regardless of its name, it is the ultimate comfort food. Although this is meant to be made with leftover stew meat, I made a fresh bunch for mine.

The meat mixture, which is delicious on its own.

Beautiful golden crust. I chose not to fork the top and put some extra cheese for decoration.

And this recipe is adapted from none the other Gordon Ramsay's Shepherd's pie! Trev and I went to the good food and wine show over the long weekend and he made an appearance for a cooking demostration. Minus all the swear words and the like, I think he's a great chef and I love watching him cook because that's when he shows his genuine passion and his love affair with food. And I find that strangely attractive. I guess there is no surprise given how much I love my food too. Hehe.

Anyway, let's not ramble on, here's the recipe!

Cottage Pie

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons Olive Oil
Sea Salt & freshly ground black pepper
600 g minced lean lamb
1 large Onion finely grated
250 g frozen peas/corn/carrot mix (you can use fresh ones too!)
2 Cloves Garlic
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon Tomato paste
Thyme sprigs, leaves picked
250 ml red wine
300 ml chicken stock
1 kg Desiree Potatoes peeled and cut into chunks
50 g Butter
Grated Cheese, about 50g

Method:
1. Preheat the oven to 180°C.
2. Heat the oil in a large pan until hot. Season the mince and fry in the oil over moderate to high heat for 2-3 minutes. Stir the onions and vegetable mix into the mince then grate the garlic in as well.
3.Add the Worcestershire sauce, tomato paste and herbs and cook for 1-2 minutes, stirring constantly. Pour in the red wine and reduce until almost completely evaporated. Add the chicken stock, bring to the boil and simmer until the sauce has thickened.
4. Meanwhile, cook the potatoes in boiling salted water until tender. Drain then return to the hot pan over low heat to dry out briefly. Pass them through a potato ricer then mix in about 2 tbsp grated cheese. Check for seasoning.
5. Spoon the mince into the bottom of a large ovenproof dish. Using a large spoon, layer the mashed potato generously on top of the mince, starting from the outside and working your way into the middle. Grate some extra cheese over and season. Bake in the oven for approximately 20 minutes, until bubbling and golden brown.

Perfect for cold days like these... BrrrrRRRrrrr!

I'm back on night shifts again tonight, I can't believe how the 7 days off just flown by! *shudders* Here comes another week of messed up sleeping pattern and a non-existant social life.

I miss you girls! I think another dinner party is in order....

And here's me obviously loving my chocolate frosting too much!

Can't believe this is nearly 2 months ago now. Gosh I really need to catch up with my blog posts! I will make a point to blog again before my night shifts finish in 7 days!

Run with it

Tue, 26 May 2009 14:20:17 GMT

Some of you would probably have seen the new youtube videos I have posted. But for those who haven't. I was invited to perform for the semi final of the TVB Melbourne Chinese New Talent Singing Championship (and the final and I will post those videos later) and this is my solo song.

Run by Leona Lewis - originally by Snow patrol.

Gosh I have soooooo many recipes that I want to share. I have totally lost my drive to blog and I apologize for that. My life is consumed by work and singing (and also producing - and I shall not reveal much for now).

Although, I'm starting nights tomorrow and hopefully it means I have slightly more time to reorganise my life outside the work, and the singing. But goodbye normal sleeping pattern!

Will also be heading to Canberra next weekend for a wedding, really looking forward to getting out of Melbourne although I know what Canberra is really not much to speak off. Better than nothing!

Before signing off this is also a video that I've made with an really really old track I've recorded. Some of you who has followed my blog from the earlier years might have heard this one:

Amazing Grace.

Oh how much I have grown over the years.

Great! Finally something that resembles a blog post! Til next time!

Everybody hurts

Sat, 16 May 2009 12:30:19 GMT

When the day is long and the night, the night is yours alone,
When you're sure you've had enough of this life, well hang on
Don't let yourself go, 'cause everybody cries and everybody hurts sometimes

Sometimes everything is wrong. Now it's time to sing along
When your day is night alone, (hold on, hold on)
If you feel like letting go, (hold on)
When you think you've had too much of this life, well hang on

'Cause everybody hurts. Take comfort in your friends
Everybody hurts. Don't throw your hand. Oh, no. Don't throw your hand
If you feel like you're alone, no, no, no, you are not alone

If you're on your own in this life, the days and nights are long,
When you think you've had too much of this life to hang on

Well, everybody hurts sometimes,
Everybody cries. And everybody hurts sometimes
And everybody hurts sometimes. So, hold on, hold on
Hold on, hold on, hold on, hold on, hold on, hold on
Everybody hurts. You are not alone.

- REM

I know I haven't been blogging for a while. My life is currently like a crazy whirlwind and I'm trying to get through this couple of weeks before finally taking a breather. I will be back!

I have a question....

Sat, 25 Apr 2009 06:21:31 GMT

Is it possible for guys to ever dress in outfit that does not come with pockets?

Isn't it funny that girls quite often have outfits that do not come with pockets but guys almost always do! That's why we need our handbags, and tend not to pick up our phones soon enough because we have to fish around in our bags! Haha. Trev said that's coz pockets make our hips look big.

I know this is random, but I find it rather amusing!

(I'm now officially calling myself a Rehab doctor. It's growing on me.)

My 'detox' diet (translate healthier diet)

Tue, 21 Apr 2009 04:24:39 GMT

I've been trying to eat healthy for the past few weeks. Part of the reason I started this diet is a friend of mine, who has recently found out about his high cholesterol level and has been 'instructed' to change his diet completely. And being the good friend I am (really!), I've decided to join him for a few weeks of 'bunny diet' challenge. In fact, I wasn't the only one, our whole group of friends have all decided to join in the challenge after we talked about it online. I also wanted to show that healthy food can be delicious, so I experimented with a few new recipes and new cooking ingredients and I shall post some of them for your benefit as well!

What I have adopted was actually a 'detox diet'. Now I know most of you would probably question: 'WHY DO YOU NEED TO DETOX YOU DON'T NEED TO LOSE ANY MORE WEIGHT?' But what I can tell you is that everyone needs to eat healthy, and giving the body a break from all the highly processed food would benefit anyone. Most of all, not everyone loses weight on the detox diet, if you are already underweight then the weight loss is minimal, the main advantage would be a sense of wellbeing, clearer skin and more regular bowel motions amongst a few.

The basic rules for detox diet is to eliminate Red meat - your beef lamb kangaroo etc, Animal fat, Seafood except fish, Dairy - cheese, full cream milk, cream (soy and skim milk, low fat yoghurt probably acceptable but best to be avoided), Refined carbohydrates - white bread, sugar, white pasta, white rice, Caffeine in all forms except Green tea and Alcohol (self explanatory). Meanwhile have lotsa fruits, vegetables, in particular lemon (which has many health benefits). And increase water intake to at least 2 litres a day.

These dishes are listed in no particular order, obviously I don't document what I ate any particular day so I don't remember the order!

Salmon and Zucchini with brown rice.

A lot of people cringe at the thought of having brown rice. It's actually not half bad! It has a little bit more of an texture and a little bit chewy, very fragrant and most of all, really filling too! This dish I have basically combined smoked salmon, sliced zucchini, some baby spinach, diced brown onions and light soy sauce for flavouring. Salt and pepper to taste. Light and tasty.

Smoked salmon and baby spinach with wholemeal pasta

Wholemeal pasta does not taste very different from normal wheat pasta at all, it is slightly firmer though. This one admittedly I cheated a little bit with added cream. But that was a particularly cold night and I needed some extra fuel. Hehe. Next time I'd just cooked it with an olive oil/basil/garlic base. Smoked salmon and baby spinach was tossed in the sauce and the dish was decorated with more Smoked salmon on top. Yummy!

Tuna Sandwich with crazy amount of salad.

I had this for most of my lunches, and I switch from tuna to salmon depending on my mood. The bread (multigrain, of course) were slightly toasted before I put in all the ingredients. No butter or other spread. Very satisfying!

Moroccan Eggplant, Chickepeas, Pumpkin curry

This one is beautiful! I came across the recipe on one of Good Food magazine and decided I have to make it. The flavour come from the Moroccan Seasoning, small amount of Greek Yoghurt was also used. Plenty of leftovers for lunch at work too. Served with brown rice of course.

Fried Rice Vermicelli

This one is probably not the most healthy being that the rice vermicelli was refined carbs, but I used plenty of vegetable and lean chicken meat. Minimal olive oil used.

Braised Chicken (no skin) with Carrots, Mushrooms, Potatoes

This one is cooked with 5 spice powder and a bit of soy sauce. Very fragrant dish and obviously hearty without all the guilt attached. I also had this with brown rice.

During this detox period I also replace my breakfast and dinner with the Lemon Detox drink. I had senna tea every evenings to ensure good regular bowel movements (that's the whole point of detoxing really, getting rid of your toxins) and did this for the whole 2 weeks. The third week I add in dinner and only have the Lemon detox drink in the morning. I'm now back to my normal diet albeit slightly healthier. I certainly noticed a difference in my skin, and no longer feel bloated and sluggish, most of all I feel healthier than before and no longer 'need' coffee to stay awake!

In other news, my friend who initially have the high cholesterol had a repeat blood test that showed the significant drop in his cholesterol level, which is AWESOME! Proud of you, my dear! I should my blood test done asap too as some of you know, I too have been diagnosed with hypercholesterolaemia a couple of years ago. My last blood test reviewed that my cholesterol level has dropped slightly but still high. We will see if my healthy lifesyle has made a difference.

What have you done for your body lately??