Mango Sago

As the temperature rose to extreme heat (according to the news lady) during last weekend and also abundance of mangoes, why not make some mango desserts right? The first time we had mango sago was at this one yum cha restaurant at Piccadilly Centre, Sydney. I don’t think  have seen the same dessert on offer in any other yum cha restaurants we have been to before, where they usually only have mango pudding and mango pancakes.

Googled mango sago recipe and resulted in many variances, but this is the one I attempted to make.

Ingredients:
  • 2 medium-sized mangoes
  • 1/4 cup mangoes chopped
  • 1/3 cup sago pearls
  • 3 tablespoons sugar
  • 3/4 cup milk, boiled and cooled to room temperature
  • 1/4 cup condensed milk
Directions:

Soak sago in water and rinse off the excess starch. Then boil water in a pot and add the sago, cook until the sago turn transparent and soft. Keep mixing them while cooking to make sure none is stuck at the bottom of you pot.

Once cooked, drain and wash under running water; then drain well and set aside to cool.

In a blender, mix the mango puree and half of the milk and sugar until smooth. Transfer to a large bowl, add in the rest of the milk and mix well.

Give it a taste test while to measure how much condensed milk you will need. Depends on how sweet your mangoes are, you may need more or less of the condensed milk.

Then add in the sago, mix until everything is combined and smooth.

Refrigerate at least one hour before serving, garnish with chopped mangoes and enjoy the sweet summery dessert!

Mangoes at its best!

Cooked sago pearls

I served the mango sago with a little bit more milk to tone down the sweetness 🙂

  • Any mangoes with less fibers would be prefect for this dessert.
  • Obviously, the measurement are just a guide, so please adjust level of sweetness according to your liking.
  • Also, if you prefer thicker consistency, you may add more sago pearls; likewise more milk if you prefer it runnier. As it chills in the fridge, it will thicken up a little bit. 
  • For a creamier and richer taste, you might want to substitute half  or all of the milk to evaporated milk.
  • Add some pomelo or grapefruit chunks for an even more refreshing dessert and cut through the sweetness. Notice that grapefruit will usually hint of bitterness which isn’t the case with pomelo.

 

 

Manmaruya, Ashfield

We still experience the worst of summer here in Sydney, where temperature reached up to 43 degrees in the west. Last weekend was no exception, it was really hot while we were out here and there mostly all day on Saturday. We spent first half of Saturday looking at property inspections around Ashfield and decided we should grab quick lunch in the area. After all there are plenty of choices to choose from at Ashfield, but we ended up at Manmaruya. Also on the note of Sydney heat, I think I will not do any more baking or much cooking indeed until it is cooler again 😛 So stay tune for more recipe posts probably in a little while…

The Cold Noodles menu

 

We got to the restaurant around quarter past twelve and there were still plenty tables available. We ordered the special lunch bento boxes whereas hubby tried their cold ramen.

Bento Box with Teriyaki chicken

 

Bento Box with Chicken Katsu

 

Bento Box with Pork Katsu

 

Cold Ramen

 

Those lunch bento boxes are really good value for your money no doubt, huge portion of rice and generous amount of delicious meat with salad and some small side items. As for the cold ramen, it really came like the normal ramen but with cold broth. The broth is so refreshing, it is a little bit tangy but very tasty, just perfect for a hot day. By the way, you can always upgrade your ramen portion to a bigger size if you feel super hungry 😀

 

Manmaruya Japanese Noodle Bar

217 Liverpool Rd., Ashfield NSW 2131

Phone: (02) 9799 6889

manmaruya.com.au

[Review] Gelato Factory, Seminyak

Since we missed our favorite pistachio gelato from Gusto Gelato the other day, we set out to find other places and hopefully it can satisfy our cravings. On the second last night of our trip, we headed to Seminyak and set the Waze App to go to Lelo Lelo. I read plenty of reviews of this place about how good their gelato and was keen to try. But alas we got lost, couldn’t find it and it started sprinkling so we stopped at Gelato Factory instead.

Located at Jalan Kayu Aya, it is definitely in the prime location of Seminyak. But when were there, there are no other customers, I guess it’s rain and almost dinner time so people must have stayed inside or out to restaurants instead.

They have many flavors of colorful gelato available and all of them looks really yummy. And of course, pistachio is also there!
gelato-factory3

gelato-factory5

Can you guess what we ordered? We both each has 1 scoop of pistachio gelato of course. Then rum and raisin for me, meanwhile coffee or tiramisu (can’t remember now) for hubby. They tasted really good actually, very rich and creamy even richer than Gusto’s. But in the meantime also packs with flavor, not just sweet 🙂 And that waffle is so good, thin, crispy and sweet with a hint of saltiness. In fact, the waffle left more impression than the gelato!

gelato-factory

The cafe is so bright, felt like they went overboard with lighting. But I do love the wooden shelves on the wall, do you notice the old sewing machine? Isn’t that cute?

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The lighting set up somehow reminds me of spider with it’s long legs! ಠ_ಠ
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The menu

It was still pouring after we finished our gelato and we were kind of stuck there. So hubby ordered a cup of flat white which was not bad at all. Unfortunately, this was not documented so I can’t share the picture. But the coffee totally washed down the sweetness of gelato ? Perfect end of the night and the rain also almost finally stopped, so we could head back to the hotel.

Gelato Factory

Jalan Kayu Aya No. 32, Seminyak

Phone: +62 361 739124

Cafe Batu Jimbar, Sanur Bali

As we waited for our room to be ready, we went across the street and had lunch at Cafe Batu Jimbar. It has the Balinese architectural influence, semi open air, high ceiling and mostly wooden theme throughout. There are ample seating inside the restaurant or on the front porch and side alley. We chose to sit inside hoping to escape from the Sanur heat during lunch time and indeed it was cool inside, even without air conditioner.

cafe batu jimbar
Notice the amazing decoration!
Seatings at the side alley
Seating at the side alley

There is cabinet displaying cakes and little sweet treats in front near the cashier and bar, which all looks very appealing. We ended up ordering one of their chocolate sliced caked for dessert. But first of all, a friendly waiter came to our table and left us to read the menu. They offer not just Indonesian food, but also Thai, Vietnamese, and Western.

Cake display
Cake display

I opted for one the Batu Jimbar favourite, which is Ikan Woku Belanga – fish cooked in spicy sweet and sour broth. Hubby went for Arugula Salad with grilled sirloin beef as he had craving for green leaves 🙂 It was a difficult choice to make for the drinks, all the juices in their menu sounds delicious! We ended up getting the Green With Envy and Inner Cleanser. I personally prefer the Green With Envy, but both tasted good not just on the taste buds but body as well.

The healthy juices
The healthy juices
Arugula Salad
Arugula Salad
cafe batu jimbar5
Ikan Woku Belanga
Close up of the fish stew
Close up shot of the fish stew
Chocolate Mousse Cake - yes we are in chocolate heaven!
Chocolate Mousse Cake – yes we are in chocolate heaven!

Hubby said the Arugula Salad is very flavorsome and the beef cooked perfectly well. When we went to Bali, we rarely had western food, mainly because the point of Bali trip for us is to devour on Indonesian food that we already miss. But with this Arugula Salad, hubby said he would happily order it again and again. Same goes to the Ikan Woku Belanga, well-balanced dish that packs with flavour.

Oh and a side note, Cafe Batu Jimbar has Sunday Market event where various chefs sell their food on the stalls in front of the restaurant. We had already left Bali on Saturday night, so missed this chance; but we would definitely love to try it out.

Cafe Batu Jimbar

Jl. Danau Tamblingan No. 75A, Sanur, Bali

Phone: +62 361 287 374

Email: info@cafebatujimbar.com

www.cafebatujimbar.com

Scorching hot day in Sydney

Today’s temperature is reaching up to 35 Celcius degrees in my area and it is now 31 degrees. And to prepare ourselves for such weather, we bought a watermelon yesterday at local Coles supermarket. Hubby picked it after he did some “knocking tests” on few of them and cut it up to be stored in the fridge last night. We are so going to enjoy eating these juicy babies this afternoon biggrinbiggrinbiggrinbiggrinbiggrin

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Happy Sunday peeps!