Yearly Archives: 2013

Egg Tarts with Cardamom

Egg Tarts with Cardamom
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Ingredients
  1. Pastry
  2. 450g self raising flour
  3. 110g sugar
  4. 1 tsp ground cardamom
  5. 110g margarine
  6. 110g butter
  7. Egg custard filling
  8. 450ml boiling water
  9. 450g castor sugar
  10. 4 cardamom pods, bruised
  11. 200ml evaporated milk
  12. 4 eggs
Instructions
  1. Pastry
  2. Preheat oven to 180 degrees celsius.
  3. Pulse all ingredients in a food processor until the mixture resembles fine bread crumbs.
  4. Turn the mixture out onto a bench and knead it into a dough.
  5. Roll into a ball and wrap in cling wrap.
  6. Refrigerate for 2 hours or more.
  7. Egg Custard filling
  8. In a bowl, add the cardamom pods and the sugar then pour in the boiling water to dissolve the sugar then set aside to cool down. When cool pour through sieve to remove cardamom.
  9. Whisk the eggs and evaporated milk into the cooled sugar mixture until mixed well. Sieve the mixture and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
  10. Roll out the dough and cut into small dough balls, then press the dough into the tart shells.
  11. Pour the custard into the shells making sure not to overfill.
  12. Bake in the oven for 20 minutes or until pasty golden brown and custard is set. Turn down oven if pastry is getting too brown.
Notes
  1. Eat warm.
stylebriefHongKong http://www.stylebriefhongkong.com/

Coconut Egg Tarts

Coconut Egg Tarts
Write a review
Save Recipe
Print
Ingredients
  1. Pastry
  2. 450g self raising flour
  3. 110g sugar
  4. 2 tsps coconut milk
  5. 110g margarine
  6. 110g butter
  7. Egg custard filling
  8. 450ml boiling water
  9. 450g castor sugar
  10. 200ml coconut milk
  11. 4 eggs
Instructions
  1. Pastry
  2. Preheat oven to 180 degrees celsius.
  3. Pulse all ingredients in a food processor until the mixture resembles fine bread crumbs.
  4. Turn the mixture out onto a bench and knead it into a dough.
  5. Roll into a ball and wrap in cling wrap.
  6. Refrigerate for 2 hours or more.
  7. Egg Custard filling
  8. In a bowl, dissolve the sugar in the boiling water and set aside to cool down.
  9. Whisk the eggs and coconut milk into the cooled sugar mixture until mixed well.
  10. Sieve the mixture and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
  11. Roll out the dough and cut into small dough balls, then press the dough into the tart shells.
  12. Pour the custard into the shells making sure not to overfill.
  13. Bake in the oven for 20 minutes or until pasty golden brown and custard is set.
  14. Turn down oven if pastry is getting too brown.
Notes
  1. Eat warm.
stylebriefHongKong http://www.stylebriefhongkong.com/

Fungus Workshop

I first met Baldwin Pui and Philip Lau when I did a leather making class in their workshop late last year. This lovely and very clever duo have been making leather goods for stores such as Harvey Nichols and private clients for quite some time now. They are a highly regarded leather making team. Fungus Workshop is a partnership between Hoiming (a leather goods designer brand) and Cowrice (a lifestyle creative unit). Not only do they run classes but they also sell their designs at Fungus Workshop, a quirky and inspiring studio space on G/F 4 Po Hing Street, Sheung Wan, Hong Kong Island, +852 2779 9003.

Baldwin and Philip started teaching leather classes in 2009 and haven’t looked back. They want people to focus on making their own handmade leather pieces, they teach students to stitch everything by hand. The main aim of Fungus Workshop is to share their passion, technique and respect for the leather craft and they encourage people to enjoy the satisfaction that comes from making something from scratch.

Classes are packed so bookings are essential and what you choose to make is completely up to you. I worked on a leather clutch; others in my class were making everything from dog collars, wallets and handbags to children’s shoes. Materials are provided but they don’t mind if you bring along your own handles or leather. I found my leather in Sham Shui Po at Luen Cheong Company, G/F 173 Tai Nan Street, Kowloon, +852 2393 5926. We’ve also been to Sun Hing Lung Leather Company, G/F 170 Ki Lung Street, Sham Shui Po, Kowloon, +852 2391 3448. It’s definitely worth a look – they fill their bins at the front with affordable off-cuts.

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Dumplings

Nothing beats freshly made dumplings for a lazy Sunday lunch. The best kind is an immediate taste sensation on the tongue and once found you go back again and again. Many places in Hong Kong produce dumplings with expertise. We’ve put together a selection that we love, but like anything popular, these places often draw a queue. Arriving early can alleviate the time spent waiting for a table.

Tim Ho Wan – Renowned one star Michelin restaurant. Always long queues. Need I say more? Shop 8, Taui Yuen Mansion Phase 2, 2 -20 Kwong Wa Street, Mong Kok. +852 2332 2896.

The second Tim Ho Wan is conveniently located in Sham Shui Po so you can buy cuttings of silk and textiles before tasting the fresh delicious dumplings here. G/F 9-11 Fuk Wing Street, Sham Shui Po, +852 2788 1226.

Din Tai Fung is part of a chain of restaurants in Hong Kong but their dumplings are exactly right. It’s fascinating to watch the chefs in the kitchen painstakingly make the dumplings from scratch.  G/F 68 Yee Woo Street Causeway Bay +852 3160 8998 and Silvercord Building, 20 Canton Road, Tsim Sha Tsui +852 2730 6928.

Mak’s Noodles has many locations around Hong Kong but we are just mentioning the two we ate at. Service is fast and the dumplings are very good. Head to Shop 1, G/F The Peak Galleria, 118 Peak Road, The Peak, +852 2854 3871 and 77 Wellington Street, Central, +852 2854 3810.

With all due respect to plates we decided to give a vintage porcelain tile a new life. The tile is circa 1920s found by me, in the back of a shop just off Cat Street, Central, covered in layers of dust and grime – I believe it’s an old Chinese cigarette advertisement. These tiles are hard to come by, but some of the shops along Hollywood Road can turn out a few hidden gems. The photograph features Belinda’s hand-made dumplings and dipping sauce. See recipe below.

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Pretty Ribbons

Everyone agrees its a joy to have a box or drawer filled with pretty ribbons. Whenever I wander into a specialty ribbon store I am driven to grab a handful of sweet brocades and classic grosgrains. But how do you use them in your home? They can be hung side by side as parallel decorations or use them as trims for bed linens and curtains. They transform a simple brown parcel into a work of art. I’ve even hung smaller paintings with stronger ones.

Nam Cheong Street and Yu Chau Street in Sham Shui Po, Kowloon are a top tip for decorative ribbons. Hashimotoya, G/F Shop A, 110 Nam Cheong Street, Sham Shui Po, Kowloon, + 852 3173 5678, is a great shop to pick up satin, cotton and velvet ones. Flying Dragon, G/F Shop D, 213 – 217 Yu Chau Street, Sham Shui Po, Kowloon + 852 2708 2528, is good for grosgrain and taffeta. I sometimes get Wing Fung Industrial to print special messages on ribbons – things like Merry Christmas, Happy Birthday and Bon Voyage. Wing Fung Industrial, Shops A & B, G/F 201-207 Yu Chau Street, Sham Shui Po, Kowloon +852 2278 8255.

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We love bamboo

Bamboo is a symbol of longevity for the Chinese. Many skyscrapers in Hong Kong are enclosed in bamboo scaffolding – you can see it when they’re being built or torn down and this is a unique sight to Hong Kong.  For a wonderful selection of natural bamboo pieces head to these streets:

Our fave: Tuck Chong Sum Kee Bamboo Steamer Company; G/F 12 Western Street, Sai Ying Pun, Hong Kong. +852 2559 7765. Manager Raymond Lam still hand-makes the bamboo steamers. The store’s bins and shelves at the front have plenty of chopsticks, trays, fans, tongs and biscuit moulds at very reasonable prices. Go to Siu Woo Trading Company, 1/F 94 Bonham Strand, Sheung Wan, Hong Kong.+852 2544 2049 which has always had big and small bamboo trays arranged around its shopfronts – make sure you check out the bamboo hats as well. Shanghai Street on Kowloon side has plenty of bamboo shops as well – you won’t miss the high stacked displays of bamboo steamers. Inside these specialist bamboo stores you can shop for strong seating with that resort-at-home feel that instantly looks better when you move it out of the shop.

For our steamed ginger pudding recipe (dessert featured in our pictures of bamboo steamers) see below.

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Spotlight on Lunch

Since I’ve been living in Hong Kong, friends have been coming and going: it’s sometimes relocating to different districts of Hong Kong, and further afield to Australia, Britain, Europe or Indonesia. The result is an eclectic mix of constantly moving people who are familiar with airports. In celebration of a few returning and in support of those leaving, we got everyone together and arranged lunch.

The theme was based around recycling so the idea was to create an original space by transforming anything secondhand. The newspapers, which I took off flights, are easy to cut up and shape into flowers. It requires patience, but hand-dyeing strips of cotton, linen, silk and lace in pale hues and hanging and weaving over the table becomes a stunning canopy. Pom-poms are pretty when dipped in tea and strung up, and guests’ names I stamped on rose-tea stained strips of canvas and the napkins were sourced from local hardware shops in Hong Kong.

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Brass

Discovering that many hand-crafted vintage and modern brass pieces – trays, door-knockers, candelabras, ice-buckets, umbrella stands – can be sourced in Hong Kong turns out to be heavy work. You’re about to head home and you end up with two or more tailored, glamorous pieces under your arm. For a unique collection take a look at designer Debra Little’s Deem, her lifestyle boutique that combines furniture, accessories and one-off furnishings at 252 Hollywood Road, Sheung Wan, +852 2540 2011, www.deemlimted.com. Here you will find white and gold brass trays in a variety of sizes and her single candle holders with a second usage as vases are exquisite.

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Lilliput Tales

We love Lilliput Tales and their kooky, quite captivating mini-lives-in-glass-jars or ‘mossariums’. Singapore-born creative director Maggie Chan started the idea as a little artistic experiment outside of her full-time job. The experiment turned out to have lots of possibilities. And we’re glad it did – from a tiny ‘Summer Hike” to a spirited ultra athletic mini coming down a rope – ‘Hang in There’ – they all tell a story and each piece is a one-off. Just choose one and add love, sun and water. www.liliputtales.com or contact Maggie at maggie@lilliputtales.com. They are also available at kapok stores in Hong Kong. Read More…

La Petite Caravane

We love to find out what other people are doing with their days. French born children’s wear designer Thuy-Tien Crampton is the face behind her successful children’s wear label La Petite Caravane, www.lapetitecaravane.com, which makes superlative use of vintage and unusual fabrics. The clothes are beautifully crafted and Thuy-Tien keeps each collection small in other words, go to La Petite Caravane for an individual look. Here is our interview. Read More…

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