To My H

The man ...

whose cold feet always snug to mine in the middle of the night (and waking me up!)

who always tells me to order whatever I want from the menu

who calls my small eyes and flat nose pretty, and my fingers hobbits

who likes me to put my fingers in between his toes

who is camera shy..

who needs a full 5 mins to study a 4-page restaurant menu before deciding what to order

who often pokes his finger into my tummy saying, "Look, look, my finger disappears!"

who has nimble fingers and give wonderful massage

who gives me 50 euro pocket money to spend while he meets with his banker

who occasionally entertains my craze for Haribo candies

who loves to jump on freshly made bed

to H, l'homme de ma vie, who asks for raspberry tart as birthday cake
and lasagna as the main menu

I look forward to standing shoulder to shoulder with you for more years to come. 

Happy Birthday, mon sayang! 

What keeps me going

.. is coming home to little notes like this, next to clean plates.

I-I-I-I wished for you

.. my wish came true..

I love how goofy we can be.

I love how you let me wear your clothes as my lounging wear.

I especially love the little 'tradition' you set for us.

[Christmast 2010 at Nazare, Portugal]

"There are some good movies like Tintin, Tower Heist with Ben Stiller, and The Concert. Except the Ben Stiller movie, dunno if the rest are in english. Do you prefer going to a restaurant?" I texted him.

"I think restaurant is better, but wot do u prefer? :* " came the reply. 

"Agree. Restaurant it is! :)"

"Happy I am, my dark S..."

"Why dark?? Because I haven't showered?"

"No, my baby talks like in Star Wars. So u r my dark vader, very powerful. But I'm still the jedi of our couple ;)"

"And you, my husband, is a mega geek."

The perfect cup

Every visitor to Paris (or France) during winter should at least try chocolat chaud.

The most enjoyable way is of course to visit any marche noel and order what every kids are ordering, hot chocolate.  Even my dad shyly admitted that it was good.

Original recipe is from here, though I presume the David Lebovitz's one will be more "original".

Verdict:
I shall add rum next time H isn't watching me. But we'll keep this recipe for special occasions, not for our sunday morning treat.

"So who won?"
"France dong! Confiture is better than maple syrup."
"Ha?"
"Our kids will grow up eating confiture. It will make them stronger."
"Yeah ok. Come help me knead this dough. I'm trying a new pizza recipe."
"But you are so pretty when you're cooking."
"Yeah and I know crap when I hear one."
"And you tell me I'm not romantic?"

Day 9: Butter Turkey with Naan and Cinnamon-poached Pears

Without further ado, I shall just yahooooo..

Recipe for butter chicken is from here and for naan is from here. I only substituted the tandoori masala with Chicken masala, fenugreek leaves with fenugreek seed. And of course, turkey instead of chicken.

Verdict: Wow.. I have never seen him eating that fast, and that should say a lot. Taste was just perfect, though I could go several notch spicier, but H wouldn't be able to appreciate it. There is a balance of sweetness from honey with the sourness of the tomatoes and the yogurt. I should really grind the tomatoes finer next time and cook slightly longer so it will dry up properly.

As for dessert, I made cinnamon-poached pears. Original recipe is from here. But I made quite a number of modifications.
a) Instead of using cinnamon stick, I opt for powder so that my pear will have that powdery look. I reduced the sugar amount, esp. since the pear is already ripe & sweet, just to balance the saltiness from the wine.
b) I ignored step 4 onwards as I have no idea what cinnamon sugar butter spread is.
c) Instead, once the sauce thicken, I added back the lemon juice from the pear marinade and whisk everything together before pouring it on top of the pears.

What came out is a great blend of sweetness (cinnamon, sugar, pear), sour (lemon) mixed heavenly white wine fragrant. Taste better when it's cold. Yowzah.

I'm so ready for weekend!

"You and me, it's written... My stomach is happy. Thank you, mon amour. You can have a nap today."

I kid you not!

A bonus, while I have internet connection.

(voice on tv) .. scandal over documents found showing that China has been supplying arms to Gadhafi, more on that later. But first I'm Rosemary Church and this is CNN.
"Good morning Rose. ... baby, what happen to the eggs?" said H, looking at the egg-white omelet.
"Oh, these are the egg whites left over from the Kue Sus."
"I don't eat egg whites."
"Just because it is not sunny and runny in the middle?"
"Yes!"

And people asks whether I want to have children.