Slumdog

Okay...so today I did the most random thing. I was streaming for this movie called "Slumdog Millionaire" and as I was watching the first few minutes of the movie, I didn't enjoy it, mainly becoz it wasn't as clear as I would've liked it to be. But the movie seemed so exciting, even from the beginning. I couldn't bear it, so I checked the cinema times on The Ritz website and there was a 3:45pm show. I looked at the time...it was 3.30pm...and without even flinching for a second, I took my keys and some money, stormed out of the door and power-walked to the cinema. It's just a 5-10 minute walk from my place. I purchased one ticket for myself and entered Cinema 4 and took the most centre seat on the third row from the front. Everyone was like filling the seats at the back....but to me, the seats from the third row to the fifth row have the best view....anything other than those, I don't like.

The movie was excellent....I couldn't believe that I didn't even wanna watch it at the first place when I first heard of the movie. I loved the concept of it....where the plot actually walks thru the life of the protagonist. Plus, it really portrayed the lives of the unfortunate ppl a.k.a. slums living in India....which is really sad. It's one of those movies where it makes you feel grateful for your life the way it is. Anyway, I highly recommend that movie....it's a MUST WATCH!!

Here are some more photos of the food that I made in class and at home as well.

This dish is called "Pot au feu" which literally means Pot on fire! It's a very traditional French braising dish where all the ingredients are chucked into a big pot and braised for a few hours to extract all the flavor. Very simple dish....but really delicious.
This dish is called "Saute of Chicken Basque" which is originally from the Basque region in France. It's basically just a whole chicken cut into 8 pieces and is half-stewed in a sauce that consists of red and green peppers, garlic, onions tomatoes and brown chicken stock. Again, very simple dish but very tasty! It's the kind of dish you would eat during a cold winter's day.
This is my version of Bangers and Mash! For those of you who don't know what bangers and mash is, it's basically just sausage and mash potato. It's just the English/Aussie way of saying it. I made this dish at home....it has nothing to do with my classwork. The sausages are Spanish Chorizos...and I topped it with a serve of caramelized onions and a mushroom gravy. To be honest, I wasn't happy with the quality of the Spanish Chorizos...which is why I will never go back to that Deli again. But other than that, it was a simple but delicious Aussie dish.
This is a slice of the Warm Apple Tart that I made in school. The filling is what they called "Frangipane" and it's definitely one of my favorite sweet fillings. I don't usually fancy sweets, but this I like. And it is topped with thinly sliced apples.
Last but not least, the "Honeyed Pear Flan". This would be my favorite dessert that we've made so far. The filling is just diced pear caramelized in honey and sugar. This dessert just melts in your mouth....really!!


I really do enjoy simple food....I don't like complex flavors blended into one dish...and many chefs do make the mistake of turning their dishes into very complicated mix of flavors. I really just like the ingredients speak for themselves...instead of chefs trying to hard to mingle ingredients together. Anyway...it's getting late now and I gtg....I'll write more about food in another post one day, when I have the mood. Cheers!

When one door shuts, another BIGGER one opens....

I guess I can say that this week hasn't been good for me....or at least for the beginning of the week. But nevertheless, I've been having quite a lot of fun with my friends in school....especially on Wednesdays. Wednesdays are always great for me....coz A, it's sort of like TGIF for me, since it's the last day of class for the week. And B, my favorite chef, Chef Ross, teaches Demo on that day. So it's always awesome to have him around. I totally adore him....he's got flair and elegance when he teaches Demo....he's totally THE MAN.

I have this friend called Zalfa and she's really quite a comic. She's a lot older than I am...like about 37 years old...but for some reason, we seem to get along very well together, although we're like total opposites. She's really tall, slim and hot....and I'm like short, fat and cool (i wasn't gonna say ugly...I have way more integrity than that..lol). She's so much into dance music, especially hip hop and trance...whereas I'm totally anti all of those crap music. She's this really warm and loving individual who is just a dear...and I'm like this really cold and ignorant person who is just plain evil. Lol...Bottom line is, you can see that one's from heaven and the other one's from hell.

Anyway...she has a habit of saying what's on her mind...without thinking much about the implications of what she's actually saying. So while we were in the change rooms after the Demo, we talked about Chef Ross being a really great teacher. And she thinks that Chef Ross has the charisma to run his own cooking show...and I was like, "Why're you telling me? Go and tell Chef!" And she was just like..."Yeah, you're absolutely right. I'm gonna go tell him!" I was like...OMG..she didn't actually take me seriously. I mean I was totally joking about telling chef.

So she went back to the Demo room and approached Chef Ross. This was how the conversation was like:- (I was just behind her...trying to keep myself from laughing my ass off)

Zalfa: Chef, have you ever thought of starting your own cooking show?

Chef: What? A cooking show?? No...

Zalfa: It's just that I think you'd be great on TV...I mean you're always so organized and elegant when you teach us...like everything is just in its place. (At this point of time, she sounded a bit flirty and she was coming on too strong but she just didn't realize it....but I did...LOL!!)

(Chef's face was a little flushed...and you could tell that he totally didn't know how to respond to that!)

Chef: *ranting* Oh yeah...really?? Hahaha....thank you!

Zalfa: I even thought of a name for your cooking show!! It'll be called "ROSS IS THE BOSS!"

(At this point, I just couldn't take it anymore and just laughed my ass off...and you could totally see that Chef was totally clueless as to how to respond.)

Chef just laughed at what Zalfa just said, but didn't say anything after that. But somehow, I could tell that his mind was saying:-

Chef' mind: "What the hell is this woman trying to indicate? Is she flirting with me? I'm a little confused...maybe I should just laugh and she'll go away."

OMG...that was the most randomest thing I've ever seen someone do. Lol...and I totally love it~!! The funny thing was....I had to tell Zalfa that she actually sounded a bit flirty...and chef was a little flustered. Coz Zalfa and Chef are about the same age...so it totally sounded like she was flirting with him. I just couldn't stop laughing at that....I mean really...it's just the funniest thing I've ever witnessed so far. And she said she was a shy girl when I first met her....SHY MY ARSEEE!!!!

Okay...enough about that. She'll kill me if she knew that I posted this incident on my blog. Lol...she's kinda like my source of entertainment...she just makes me laugh my ass off. Another thing...I kinda call her "MOM", coz of her maternal instincts of always knowing what I need. I mean really...she knows when something's bothering me...and she always helps me carry my stuff. Coz I'm kinda like a klutz in school...I always have way too many stuff to carry around and I keep dropping papers and books. In return, I drive her home every night from school...coz her place is on my way home. I always tell ppl that I have to drive my Mom home...lol. So that's basically the other part of my life in school. It's not always just stress and chaos in the kitcen...sometimes it can be really fun! And I'm really glad for it.

Anyways, here are some pictures of the food that I took during Demo class. I didn't cook them...but Chef did. However, we were meant to cook the same dishes that he did during demo, so my version would look exactly like chef's. I just never remember to take picture of the food that I've cooked. The only difference between mine and chef's would probably be the TASTE...lol. Here it goes:-

This is a Duck Breast with Onion Confit with a Spinach Mousse as garnish. As you can see the green pudding-like thing is the spinach mousse...and to be honest, mine looked way better....reason is becoz I didn't blend the spinach in the machine. I just chopped it really fine, mixed it in the egg mixture and baked it. The color of my spinach mousse looked way more appetizing.

This is a Puree of Pea Soup Saint Germain with Croutons. This recipe was actually served together with the duck breast...and lol..we called it the "St Patrick's Day" combo coz they were all so green. Lol.

This is one of my favorites...it's called "Smoked Salmon with Mango Salad". This entree dish is absolutely fantastic!! The mango salad was AWESOME!! Even the dressing had some mangoes in it...omg..it was just heavenly.

Last but not least...the highlight of the course! LOBSTER AMERICAINE served with Rice Pilaf!! We actually had to kill a live lobster. And one lobster costs about $60 bucks. Anyway...it was such a great dish. Everybody did such a great job on the dish...and ALL of us took the dish home. I mean..who's gonna be that stupid to waste his/her share of the lobster.


So I went to my usual guitar lesson today...and I was talking to Harry, my guitar teacher about my progress and all. All of a sudden, he just asked me this question, "Do you think you'd be able to teach Beginner's guitar?" He just caught me off guard there...I just said..."Uhmm...yeah I guess!" He kinda indirectly offerred me to teach on behalf of him....for beginner's only of course. I was soooo excited...I mean...it's such a privilege to have someone like Harry believe in your talents and skills. He didn't sound like he was kidding.

OMG...u know what this means if he's actually serious bout letting me teach his students?? It means that I'm finally making progress in my music dream!! Someone actually believes in my music talents...and little by little...I'm gonna achieve that dream I've always wanted. A PROFESSIONAL MUSICIAN!! And from there, I can branch out bit by bit...like form a band...perform live...record an album. I'm not exactly looking to get rich and famous with my music...I just wanna get some form of recognition...and acquire some contacts so that when I open my cafe/bistro some time in the future, I'd be able to hire good bands to perform live at my establishment. Now...that would be my ULTIMATE DREAM!! Basically, I still wanna be a chef...but at the same time, I also wanna be kept in the loop within the music industry.

You know what Harry said to me before I finished my lessons? He said this, precisely...Veron, I want to make you the best student I've ever taught. Actually, you are already one of my best students and I believe that you can do way better...I know it!! But you're just a bit slack!! So go home, practise, and show me that you can do it next week!

These words of encouragement just totally made my day. Some ppl are just so natural with words of encouragement and motivation. Harry's definitely one of em'. He makes me believe that I can totally achieve the impossible. Sometimes I feel that I need more of these ppl in my life....or perhaps, sometimes I just wish that I am someone like that. But unfortunately, I give up on things way too easily...I totally know that about myself. I'm a total wuss sometimes...I give up the second I know that I cannot succeed in something. I'm way too afraid of failing...and this sorta attitude will never get me anywhere above the mediocre level. But good news is...I'm starting to change little by little.

Well...I guess it's true when ppl say that "When one door shuts, another one opens!" Not just any door...but a BIGGER and MEANER door. I guess that's what is happening to me at the moment. I might've under-achieved in my studies as a chef....but I've made some major progress in my music. But I guess my aim would be to try to balance these two aspects of my life. I wanna be awesome in both. Not just one or the other....but BOTH!! Some ppl say I might be too greedy to embrace in both....but those ppl can go to hell.

Alright...post is getting a little too long. Catch you next time! Cheers.

Worst time of my life

I'm having the worst time of my life these couple of days. I feel like I'm losing EVERYTHING that are important to me. Sometimes I just feel like ending this miserable life...and start over from scratch...but unfortunately, life does not work this way. I wish I could rewind back to that critical point of my life...and try to do things differently...but no...it doesn't work that way too.

I received my last semester's grades today...and sadly to say, I didn't do so well. When I saw that "P" in my transcript....I just felt like the whole world crushed upon me. I got a fucking "PASS" for my Basic cuisine certificate. I worked so fucking hard and put so much effort...but all I got was a fucking Pass. You have no idea how pissed off I got. I wanted at least a CREDIT...coz I knew Distinction was impossible...but at least a CREDIT will be enough to keep me motivated for the next 10 stressful weeks.

I gotta say....
"Life is indeed like a box of chocolates."
I never really understood the meaning behind this quote until now. It's so true that sometimes in life...
you'll never know what you'll get!!

I certainly did not know I was gonna get such shitty grades....despite all the hard work that I've put in.
I certainly did not know that things do not turn out the way you plan....no matter how much time and effort you've put into preparing for it.
And most importantly, I certainly did not know that I, VeRoN LiNg has turned out to be such a miserable failure beyond words.

I'm not being a drama queen...but so what if I am?? All the high hopes and goals that I set for myself before starting this course has just shatterred right in front of my eyes. You have no idea how much this affects me and my confidence.

What if this actually defines my limitations, which means that this is the best I can do?
What if no matter how much extra effort I put into improving myself, I will still be hanging around on the same thread??

I am so scared at the moment...I almost wanna cry...but I know that I gotta suck it in, swallow my tears, take a deep breath, take a step back if I have to and FOCUS on what's at stake...which is the PRESENT!! I know I cannot cry over spilled milk...coz the moment I do that, I will always be captured in the past. And if that happens, I know I will be so caught up with it and I will spend most of my time feeling sorry for myself, and thus neglect the present. But then again, saying it is easier than doing it...I guess I just gotta learn to move on.

Bad things can just hit you when you least expect it to happen. And I cannot believe that two bad things can happen within two days. It's like God is trying to punish me with these plagues...lol...maybe I should start going to church again! The other disappointment is a bit more personal...which I won't be mentioning in detail. It's basically about this guy I've been seeing for the past month...but didn't work out coz I can be such a loser when it comes to relationships. But this didn't really bother me as much as my grades...coz if you know me well enough, you'd know that I try not to get too serious with whomever I date...hence it won't hit me as hard as it would if I was serious. But doesn't mean I'm a player...lol...don't misunderstand...it's just that my priorities are more to my career and dreams....and not relationships.

I'm not too upset about this...in fact, I'm kinda relieved that it's over. I mean...seeing this guy was kinda like killing the free time that I had over the christmas holidays...especially since I quit my job and didn't have as much events going on. And now that I've started school again, I don't actually need all these DISTRACTIONS revolving around my life. And just so you know...I don't believe in love...so don't ask me any questions in regards to whether I loved the guy or not. Coz the answer will be FUCK NO...and it will always stay the same, no matter who I date in the future. I repeat...I DO NOT BELIEVE IN A THING CALLED LOVE!! (Love in general that is....not just boy/girl love).

I could go on and on and on about this "LOVE" topic if I had the time...but fortunately for you, I won't! Hehe. Basically, I'm a true believer of
If there is no love, there is no hate!
So I'm not all devil here..lol..I'm just taking a different approach to banish hate towards anyone....which is by not loving anyone...if you catch my drift?!

Anyway...whatever...this topic is more suitable for a drinking session. Lol. I don't know how the hell I could go from getting pissed off at my grades to the topic of love. Well...that's me u know...very random.

Sigh..I'm still very upset about my grades. My friends told me to double check it again with the Admin office to see if they've made a mistake...but to be honest, I don't know whether I should or not. I mean I really don't wanna cry over spilled milk and waste too much time on the past. Well if they really made a mistake, then so be it. What do you think??

Alright...I think I'm gonna stop rambling now. I wish you guys all the best. Cheers buds!

All you wanted cover

Hey guys...I'm just testing out some of my audio recording...hope you guys can give me some feedback on the sound and my singing. It's not really a very good cover, to be honest...but hey, it is my first cover piece anyway.

I know it's just a plain clip...well, I guess that's why I need a camcorder...lol. Plus I'm more focused to the sound...not the image. So anyway...this is a cover of Michelle Branch's "All you wanted." Cheers.

Three Days in Hell

So now that I'm back to school, I finally broke my "stay-at-home-everyday streak." When I stepped into the building, everything was different. They re-located the lockers, canteen, staff rooms and administration offices. Anyway...I met all my classmates...most of them I haven't seen since the break started. No one has really changed that much...I mean...it is only a month and a half...how much can a person change within that timeframe?

Anyway, I couldn't believe just how much I struggled on the first day back in the kitchen. Everything was just chaos. I'll start with the first day.

Day 1 - First day back in hell

I had my theory class at 12.30pm and I was kinda hoping that it's gonna be some really awesome chef who's gonna be our lecturer. Turns out it was this plump lady who claims that she's a chef...but I've never seen her in a chef's uniform ever. Well...she's an okay public speaker...but she can be quite obnoxious, especially to those who can't speak English too well. For one thing, she always picks on the overses students....like the Koreans and the Taiwanese. Bottom line is, I don't really like her as a theory lecturer.

Anyway, after theory class, we had an hour break and then we had our demo class. I was really excited about demo class....coz once again, I was really hoping that one of my favorite chefs, Chef Steve, Chef Ross or Chef Colm would be my demo chef. Well, yet another disappointment. I had this German chef...Chef Andreas, as my chef for Monday and Tuesday demos. But after going through his demo class, I find that he's pretty okay chef...not excellent...but I can get by with him as my demo chef.

So the recipes on Monday was puff pastry and spatchcock. Oh my God....I HATE PUFF PASTRY SO MUCH!!! My puff pastry sucked...BIG TIME!! Anyway...my practical chef for Mondays and Tuesdays is this old Italian dude that speaks a very strong Italian accented English. His name is Chef Vito. He's super strict...but reasonable. Once again...not my favorite chef...but I can live with him as my practical chef.

It was such a hassle that day...even though we were only cooking two recipes. It was a really hot day too...and the kitchen was at least 40 degrees. We were all sweating like pigs and hassling to finish our dishes. I cut the inside of my nail on a sugar snap pea....can u believe that?? I cut my finger when I was trying to pull out the strings on the sides of the sugar snap peas. Wasn't a deep cut...but it was very painful....almost like a papercut. And I can't even put a band-aid on coz it bled from the flesh inside of my nail. Anyway...that was only a minor cut.

But after a while, I burned my hand on a 300 degree Celcius steel pan. I took out the pan from a very hot oven and put it on the stove while I tried attend to some other task. So DUH...the handle of the pan is very hot. I actually warned the guy next to me, Pedro to be careful of the hot pan. So after I finished the task, I came back to the pan and held the handle with my bare hand, without a tea towel...and Tssss....I burned my right palm. It was such a bad burn that I could literally feel that the devil is building a little hell on my right palm. I couldn't do anything except running it on cold water. My hand was sooo red and I could still feel the burn. It's as if my hand is literally on fire.

Anyway...I tried to finish cooking the dish even though I burned my hand. I wasn't gonna let a minor setback ruin my dish. I could only use my left hand to complete the remaining jobs. I couldn't use my right hand at all...coz anything that I touch, it just hurts twice as much. Judging from the pain I was enduring, I was expecting my skin to peel sooo bad the next day...or worse..BLISTERS. But you know what?? I think I have some sorta supernatural healing powers....the burn just healed by itself and didn't even leave any burn marks, or even blisters. My right palm looked as per normal...and it didn't hurt at all. Lol...I think my skin is like leather...it's so tough and thick that heat doesn't really affect it. So that was Monday.

Day 2 - Second day in hell

Once again, I had Chef Andreas as my demo chef...and there was this new chef next to him as well...he looked pretty young, good-looking and foreign. I think he might be Polish or Scandinavian. But I really couldn't tahan his arrogance. Anyway...I'm not really interested to talk to about him. So...we were supposed to cook the puff pastry that we made the day before with a mussel filling. Also we had to prepare a guinea fowl and cook it.

During practical, I had so much trouble with my puff pastry that Chef Vito suggested that I used someone else's one. I could tell that he didn't wanna say that my puff pastry is totally "un-useable", coz he didn't wanna disappoint me. So in the end, I had to use someone else's puff pastry. and I threw mine away..it was upsetting, coz if u remember last term, I made puff pastry before...and it wasn't successful too. Lol...I just never had any luck when it comes to making pastries.

As for the guinea fowl that I cooked, it wasn't that great too. Chef said that it needed more time in the oven...coz some parts were uncooked. And my sauce wasn't that great either...basically, everything was shit. It kinda felt like the first day when I started the Basic course. Everything's just chaos. And that was Tuesday.


Day 3 - Final day in hell for the week (today)

When I got up today, I knew that it was gonna be a much better day. I decided to use a different approach in writing my workflow. I typed it up, instead of just writing em' on the workflow sheet. As I was typing it up, I felt like I understood the recipe more clearly. I spent about an hour typing up a really detailed workflow, whereas usually it only takes me 30 mins to write in on the workflow sheet. So I'm actually putting extra effort in my workflow...which I'm really proud of.

I knew that today was gonna be Chef Ross' turn to teach the demo...and I was really excited. Okayyy...I'll admit I've always had a little crush on him. Lol. It's nothing serious....just a harmless crush, leaning towards admiration actually. So anyway, I was really excited to attend his demo...coz last year when he was my practical chef, he was really awesome! He's a funny character...really.

During the demo, I was paying like 200% attention to him...lol...I think my blink counts were drastically reduced. lol. Anyway...Chef Ross was sooo professional and organized during his demo....it was kinda unexpected, coz I heard some bad reviews about him from other students who have attended his demos before. I guess this only proves that reviews are bullshit. He kept his workstation clean and tidy, his system was flawless, his food was delicious and most importantly, he's really entertaining during his demos. Like I said...he's quite a character. Gordon Ramsay can go back to hell....Chef Ross is now my idol!!! I got a bit disappointed when he told us he was married...lol. If not, HAHAHA....i might jump on him. Lol...just kidding la. I like Chef Ross as the way I like Kiefer Sutherland....strictly idolization and admiration only. Except that chef ross is more real...lol...compared to Kiefer.

Anyway...I guess the amount of effort I put in my workflow and the attentiveness I had during demo, I managed to improve drastically on my speed and quality. I managed to serve the dishes on time....and chef Anita said that my dish was full flavors...but the only thing I had to watch out for is my sauce. My sauce was way too greasy...I guess it was becoz I didn't degrease it enough. But today was good. Not sure if it's because of chef ross' demo...or just the extra TLC (tender loving and care) that I put into my cooking. Maybe it's both. Either way, I'm happy....coz at least I'm improving.

Oh...did I mention that I cut my finger again today? This time it's with a knife. I gotta say...it didn't hurt as much as I'd expect it to when I cut myself. It just bled a lot...but it didn't hurt at all. I guess adrenaline was pumping all over my body that my nervous system just backs out for a moment there. I've cut myself twice this week...and burned myself. Lol...how careless can I be?

So that was three days in hell....in details! Lol...way too much details. Anyway, I'm just so glad to be back in school...I'm enjoying myself, even though that it can be so stressful....but I guess it's better than boredom. I guess I'll catch you guys later. Adios!