Starting Out My Journey As a Doctor to Be

Sunday, November 29, 2009

afterall, baking is still my thing

last few weeks were a little crazy. i had my oral presentation followed by a meeting with both my supervisors and the BIG boss of one of the supervisors (aka big potato as mel would put it), it might not sound very scary but trust me, it was. the last thing i want to do is to stuff up the meeting so i did some, i shall say, very extensive preparation with preliminary data analysis and reports for the 8am meeting - which thankfully went well (one thing i learn from AMS people is that successful people do not sleep). In return to all the hard work and time i spent on looking through my access database and excel spreadsheets, i rewarded myself by baking! i am easily contented/ boring that way :)

i have had my eyes on this Pear and Almond Tart recipe from Smitten Kitchen since ages ago. and when i say that this recipe is my only motivation to keep going for the past week or so, i mean it. (okay not my ONLY motivation but it did play a major role :p)

the only downside about this recipe is it's a bit bit complicated

and it involves a lot of chilling and waiting so you really have to plan ahead.

and LOOK!

egg yolk!
i love egg yolks

i love the orange

and i love the gooey-ness

especially the semi cooked sunny side up kinda fried egg
*

anyway, it's worth the wait

(and so is endless washing afterwards)

because the crust is oh so crunchy and aromatic and what's the word? - oh yes, PERFECT

the almond filling is a winner too!

i love almond but i am no big fan of almond essence. i think it smells like some kind of - BUGS. can't tell you why/how but i guess it has sth to do with my childhood memory. yea. almond and bugs. how interesting.

anyway, the recipe calls for 1/4 tsp of almond extract and i am glad i bravely drip a few drops of what i USED to presume as poison into the batter

the subtle hint of almond extract actually neutralize the sweetness of the tart.

i was surprised

lesson to be told: sometimes u just need to take the risk. u might be surprised.

the recipe also called for poached pears but i am too busy/lazy a person to do that.

canned pear slices work just fine

and you would have a few more hours to spare.

u can watch a movie

go to the gym

do your lierature review

read a book

or go to sleep

my point is: use canned pear slices.

and this is what you are going to get at the end of the 5th hour u spent slaving away in the kitchen

and have i told u that the crust is oh-so-crunchy?

i won say "trust me' again because after using it so very often, the word might have lost its effect already. so this time, i am going to show u EVIDENCE