I know, this pumpkin/squash thing is getting REALLY ANNOYING isnt’ it! However, today’s dish concentrates more on the meat (or in this case, fish) rather than the squash..this is something that I had always wanted to try out but had always been way too lazy.

Miso-encrusted salmon with mashed pumpkin and herbed cauliflower

2 good slab of salmon
miso paste

1/4 pumpkin, cubed
cumin,cinnamon,paprika

cauliflower
dollop of butter
mixed herbs

Arrange the salmon on a baking tray
Spread a thin layer of miso paste on the fish, skin-side up.
Don’t worry about the smoothness,spikes add to the ‘character’

This needs to go in the oven at 220 for 15 minutes, depending on how over-cooked you like your fish and how thick your salmon is
Boil the cubed pumpkin until soft, around 5-10 minutes

When done, sieve the pumpkin to get rid of excess liquid…pumpkin retains water, so this move is nessacary.Make sure most of the water have been removed – about 100ml!

Mash it up with a potato masher, or in the words of malaysians, Ramly Burger press.
Season with paprika,cumin and cinnamon. This gives it a curry-like flavour.

Panfry the cauliflower with butter and herbs.
When cauliflower has slightly browned, put the lid on, this will ‘sweat’ the cauliflower slightly and continue to cook it.
Keep the heat on for 5 minutes.

Back to the salmon, please remember to remove it from the oven after 10-15 minutes
Plate and serve up with a slice of lemon and a grind of pepper

I love love the taste of miso paste with salmon! Its a copycat and less-delicious version of nobu’s black cod miso,but seriously tasty irregardless of the wrong color and wrong fish. The squeeze of lemon goes deliciously well with the cauliflower as well, working hand in hand with the fish to achieve a good flavoursome dish. The pumpkin could do with a swirl of cream to make it creamier and nicer, but it’ll do finely .

Enjoy.

We had officially gone OD on autumn veggies! After two solid days of pumpkin, I bacon decided that we needed a change and I served butternut squash instead – or what bacon calls penis squash…cause it looks like this:

hehe.

I had always wanted to try it, because it looks funny and I quite like the name, sounds like it tastes faintly like butter.I don’t think we have it in Malaysia, but I had definately seen it in Fresno with other cute-sounding vegs like spaghetti squash ect.And this is now part of my food adventure that I set out at the start of the year – welcome to the world of squashes! It definately has a very nice flavour, and I was impressed with the soft orange flesh inside, sweeter and tastier than my jack-o-lantern.

Stuffed Butternut squash with peppered steak

1 butternut squash, sliced half
mushrooms, whole
rosemary
mixed pepper seasoning
slab of good sirloin steak

Remove the seeds and other fibrous flesh from the concave inside the halved butternut
Marinate the butternut squash halves with rosemary,honey and olive oil
Roast in oven for 45mins. 1 hour will provide a nicely burnt edge to the squash
Sautee mushrooms with butter and a splash of balsamic vineger
Marinate steaks and panfry to taste – I prefer mine rare.
Remove squash,plate. Stuff mushrooms into the concave.
Serve with steak. No sauce required

today@8am…

Halloween used to signify the beginning of autumn for me. Somehow, in Fresno, Halloween is also the day that you’d notice the seasons have changed. Those going out dressing like hookers would be freezing their tails off, and you can barely keep warm in your costumes without a coat. BUT, it would still be warm enough. It’s around halloween as well when you lose an hour, turning the clocks back to daylight savings.

Those of you who have been reading this blog for some time would probably have heard before that I love halloween. My first (and last, due to my age) trick or treating trip was when I was 19, and it was heaven on earth for a sweet tooth like me . It also introduced me to Reeses’ peanut butter cups…the most heavenly and dastardly candy on earth (sen hon would agree) .Of course, growing up in Malaysia, if I were to walk around with a pumpkin on 31st October and in costume, everyone would be calling the cops rather than showering me with candy.

The English do not celebrate Halloween like the Americans do, which is a damn shame if you ask me. Everyone should celebrate halloween! It’s great! I love the color orange!Oops, secret out now… So, with the lack of halloween spirit means no more costumes for me to go to work in – but with today dipping down to 1c (WTF WTF WTF!!) there is no point putting on costumes unless you’re in a hot dog suit. Yummm…hot dog…The only trick or treaters I got last year was some jailbait mini hoochie mamas whose costume was to try to look like their trashy mother. Oh…shush.

This year I decided that I would try to celebrate Halloween adult-styled.Yep, no more pumpkin carving, but we’re eating it instead! I’ve bought a hugeass pumpkin carving-style and we are going to eat it instead of carving it up and letting it rot.

Roast pumpkin wedge with salmon

1/2 pumpkin – depending on size, 1/4 produces 2 wedge
honey to glaze
sea salt & cracked pepper
sprinkle of herb – rosemary’s great

Roast in oven on 200c for 1 hour.
Glaze with honey
Serve with grilled salmon, topped with a squeeze of lemon

After a whole pointless summer waiting for my parents to visit and endless aborted plans made and abandoned due to job instability…

We’re heading back next year for Chinese New Year. I can’t wait for it – and it being cny, I also know I am going to get pretty peeved at the family getting on my nerves. Not to mention having to actually DISTRIBUTE ang pow. BLEAH. The worst part is I know those cynical ones will be expecting a HUGE angpow as oh, I am afterall suppossedly 7 times richer than anyone else.

we *heart* our bosses as they had allowed us three weeks off! WOO!

Heading back for this…

and this…

that is me!!!

My strangely rounded table. Ergonomically friendly and all that crap. On the left is my favourite picture going into Perhentian. Hmm..

Squeeze me! I just randomly bounce it around. Having this at work makes me feel horrible when I have my weekly mcdonalds or bacon butty.

My daily food and drink. And you thought I was kidding about the flask

I took a picture of the exterior as well,but it was frankly such a hugeass building, it would be revealing too much .

I am really starting to enjoy this job, if you can’t tell yet. Fair enough, this may not be dream job,but it is extremely challenging and enriching as well. It contributes to my personal growth as well by introducing me to many aspects of the adult money world that I had always insisted on not knowing.. I now know the best mortgage deals, best credit cards, home insurance…list goes on. I feel that whatever I do here is adding value and appreciated, rather than being given a token salary for me to sit on my ass all day and chat. HOWEVER, I do miss chatting, but really, I couldn’t go through my working career chatting on msn all day can I?