Little Joy Factory

最近，我迷上了西式的酸面包。用自己培养的天然酵母引子(sourdough starter) 成功地烤了 普通酸面包 之后，我上周又接连烤了几个核桃果干酸面包。果干是以前就一直用朗姆酒浸着收在冰厨里的，现在派上了用场。刚出炉的酸面包, 芳香四溢，外脆内软，有嚼劲。 面香、酒香、盐香、果香、乳酸香, 沁人心脾!

When I first read about the sourdough bread, it reminds me of  Chinese old dough  mantou  (老面馒头), a steamed bun with wild yeast starter before commercial yeast was commonly used. Growing up in northern China, I have been eating old dough mantou as an alternative staple to rice during my childhood. 

I love homemade bread, I always do. Under such a hot weather like today, it's the perfect time to bake bread at home.  The yeast is activated easily, and dough rises really fast.  I plan to try a different recipe, and I am glad I did.

Entering April, the temperature in Singapore has been hovering over 30°C for a week.  A meal cooked on a hot stove has become a challenge for me.  Anything quick and easy for dinner?  This Salmon recipe from Canada Living  seems a perfect choice. 

Wechat 相当于中国的Facebook, 在华人圈子里很火, 你知道吗？我在偶然的机会里，在2013年才和Wechat结缘，认识了来自大江南北的朋友。Wechat 信息丰富，四通八达, 成了我在网络上最喜欢"逛"的地方。如果说，Facebook 主要以英语为媒介，那么Wechat 则以华语为主导。连我70多岁的妈妈也在Wechat 上和我们作日常的交流。一句话，Wechat 势如破竹，锐不可当。 最近在Wechat 美食群里，结识了一班美食爱好者。大家切磋技艺，让我受益匪浅。 群里的姐妹们最近都在鼓捣面食。要知道蒸花卷馒头可是我这个北方人的强项啊。我特意做了这个玫瑰花卷来凑热闹。它看起来难，做起来非常容易。赶紧把它学起来，真的很可爱啊!

在所有的美食中，我还是觉得烘面包最轻松，又有满足感。从第一次做面包起，从没有遇到面团发不起来的问题。一方面食谱很重要，另一方面，要归功于这里的气候。炎热潮湿特别适合面团发酵。我这个喜欢DIY美食的北方女子，最终爱上了新加坡这个热带岛国，可以说面包也是“功不可没”的。

What will you do with minced beef? I have made beef ball and beef lasagna before. Yesterday was Good Friday, I was in a mood to make a special dish with exotic flavors. Chili con carne sounds gorgeous to me.  While the origin of this dish remains controversial,  many food historians agree that chili con carne is an American dish with Mexican roots. Chili con carne means "chilli with meat". Though there is no one recipe for this dish, the basic ingredients are more or less the same: spicy chili with ground beef, red kidney beans, tomatoes, onions and garlic.