Baking withdrawal

My oven is officially dead.
I was making these dinky little apple turnovers and had them ready to go into the oven. 

All I had to do was brush on the egg wash?.when suddenly all the lights go off.
All the lights.
I had been preheating the oven for about 20min.
Arghhhhhhh!!!!

I then called the electrician, by the name of Ah Chwee.
He?s acting really strange.  I?ve gotten him to look at the oven before.
But he didn?t sound like THIS.
Like he was high on drugs or something.
This guy isn?t even coherent.
And when I ask him if he can come tonight there's a silence of about 40secs - I know he's still there cos I can hear him breathing.
Then he's just sort of moaning and mumbling about nothing I can understand cos it doesn't even sound like English OR Chinese for that matter, and I get kinda freaked out in case he offers to come over.
So I go "Ahh nevermind-sorry to disturb you-I'll call somebody else!"
He goes "Uh aum ah ummm hmm".
Good grief.
Wonder what he's on.
So I call "Ah Huat" (just love these names!), and this friendly uncle comes over STAT.
Tries everything. Then tells me the oven can't be saved.

So I call the landlord.  I shall call him ?Mr Nice?.
Because he is. He even helped me put up the curtains.
But unfortunately, Mr Nice is on a plane to Chengdu on business, so I guess this calls for some girl power.

Silly me goes all the way to GainCity to get the stove only to be told I need to go home, PULL OUT my oven and measure the "CUT OUT SIZE".
I was completely clueless about these things.
I asked the guy "aren't these things STANDARD??"
Well apparently not.
And since I'm not in the habit of buying ovens on a regular basis, I had to go home again and measure the thing.

I get out my TOOL BOX.  A girl?s gotta do?.


I unscrew whatever I can see is holding the oven onto the wall.
Yank!!!! Pull!!!
*pant pant*
Oh there are two more screws.
I'm such an idiot.
Heave!!!! Pull!!!
Oh crap!! There are two more screws.
This oven is starting to kill me.
Could use a muscular hunk lying about the house right about now.
Ok here we go
Puullll!!!!!
Out it comes :)
Measured it.
Incidentally it?s an AEG, and ironically, the model is COMPETENCE.
Got an Ariston coming this week.

In the meantime I have been heating up  chicken pie and curry puffs in the microwave, apple turnovers waiting in the freezer, and have to do everything non oven related.  Didn't realise how much I use the oven until this happened.

Last Night

(Yeah, I know. I sold out with the fake plastic cheese. Add this to the list of exceptions. It's a God-send for frazzled, sleep-deprived, energy-sapped mothers.  Too bad my mum was a traditionalist Chinese woman living in New Zealand.  I can?t tell you how many countless times I?ve been served Mac & Cheese ? from the box kind ? as a kid, playing at a friend?s house.  Way better than beetroot sandwiches anyday.  Felt sorry for my friend whose mum served THOSE up).




Baby spinach with sauteed tomatoes and white mushrooms
 This is simple and tasty ? take note -
1. Heat up a teaspoon full of chopped garlic in olive oil.
2. Add a chopped up tomato, about 2-3 sliced mushrooms (white, brown or baby portobello is doesn?t matter), all the spinach.
3. Heat to soften and pour in about 1/2 C chicken stock.
4. Simmer until spinach stalks are softened, and stock has reduced by half.

- dessert - frozen chocolate cake



Tonight


All done in my thermal pots....




Ginger sesame chicken with portobello mushrooms and tau kwa (tofu)
2 tablespoons cornstarch
Now all the measurements for the flavourings are completely arbitrary. It really depends how salty you like it.  The same goes for chicken stock/starch ratio ? how thick/watery you want it to be.  For me I like lots of sauce to put on my rice, and for it to be more on the thick side, so that it sticks to the rice, and not run all over the plate.  That?s just me.

Directions
Fry the ginger in the sesame oil until fragrant
Add the chicken and fry until lightly browned.
Add the soya sauces and cognac, and scrape up the bottom of the pan where chicken may be sticking.
Add Chicken stock.
Simmer for a few minutes.
Take a ladle of the hot stock, and dissolve the cornstarch separately in a bowl, before pouring it back into the pan.
This stage you can add mushrooms, tau kwa, and whole cloves of garlic are nice too, because they absorb the sauce and soften up really well.
If you have a thermal pot ? bring the whole lot to the boil and put into the pot.
If you don?t ? keep simmering until the chicken juices run clear.
Serve with steamed white rice




Pan-fried siow pai chye with tomatoes 
This is too basic. You don?t need a recipe do you? OK, refer to the baby spinach recipe above a leave out the mushrooms.

- dessert : apple slices and yoghurt



Some retail therapy helped to lift my mood this week?. unfortunately had to leave these behind at Zara.  Tried them on, and walked all around the shop, hoping they would stop pinching my feet.  Lovely shoes, but just so uncomfortable.



Found something at good ole Charles & Keith.  Perfect.  And at a guiltless price. 
Felt inspired by Karen Cheng (fashion blogger) to model my shoes.  HAHA!



I think I should stick to food
Will have report and photos if I ever get my apple turnovers into the oven!