Hobie's Diary: Copy Cat

Hobie has settled in nicely into her new family aka us including Bonnie. We are glad the animals get along well. Hobie adores Bonnie, if cats can feel such thing, that is. The kitty wants to be with Bonnie, not all the time of course but often enough that Bonnie gets grumpy with her, especially in bed. Do they speak the same language? I don't know - but I think they communicate with each other somehow. The cat learns from the dog and oftentimes copies what the dog does around the house.

Our neighbours' cats sometimes stray into our backyard. Yesterday there was one big gray fluffy cat from two doors away sitting on the grass looking into our kitchen - Hobie was behind the glass door and looked a bit disturbed. Bonnie saw the big cat and ran out to chase him away. Hobie now looks up to Bonnie even more - she's her heroine, she chases the intruder away..wow...

I'm sure Hobie likes us as well but I have a feeling she likes Bonnie more than anyone else (apart from herself, of course). But the relationships among us are good.

I read the paper today about the senior doctor asking the Asian interns whether they eat dogs. Being Asian, this particular culinary subject has been suggested to me a few times over decades I have been in this country. No.no..I don't eat them but I admit I snort our dog and cat very often especially on their yummy tummies, less so when they are a bit smelly.

Karaage Chicken

Karaage Chicken was one of the dishes we loved when we were at the Sheraton in Samoa. I have made this several times at home. Last time a couple of weeks ago I used potato flour instead of corn flour and it was more crispy. If possible, do use potato flour in this recipe. Corn flour will be ok-ish but not as good.

Ingredients:
400 grams Chicken Tights, chopped to bite size
3 tablespoons Japanese Soy Sauce (I prefer Kikkoman)
1 tablespoon Sake
1 tablespoon Mirin
Sea Salt
1 clove of Garlic, finely chopped
1 slice of Root Ginger, finely chopped
3-4 tablespoons Potato Flour for dredging
1 tablespoon Chopped Spring Onion, only green bits
Oil for deep frying

In a jug, mix soy sauce, sake, garlic and ginger together then pour the mixture over the chicken, marinate for a few hours.

Heat oil in a wok over medium high heat, when the oil is hot, dredge the chicken pieces in potato flour and deep fry in batches. Drain on paper towel. Sprinkle with sea salt flakes and spring onion before serving with rice and stir fried vegetables.

Hobie's Diary: First Step to the Outside World

Hobie is growing steadily and her face is more rounded. The vet was right when she said that we would have to give the cat a grown-up version of flea treatment next time round.

Last week we let her venture outside for the first time - the first day Bob carried her onto the deck but she was not that happy and just ran back inside the house when he put her down. The next day, we all went out to the deck and just left the door open - sure enough, the cat followed. However, she stayed close to the door. She seemed more relaxed if Bonnie was also around outside.

Since then whenever the weather is good enough we leave the door open wide enough so Hobie could go out and come back in as she wished (the dog/cat flap will be a bit too complicated to drive at the mo). She's got more and more confidence each day. However, I have to say that she is quite a homey cat and doesn't want to stay outside on her own for too long. We have been tapping her food bowl with spoon at every mealtime so she associates the noise with food and so far Bob had to use this trick only once when he accidentally shut the door on her thinking she's inside. Sure enough, when she heard the tapping noise she emerged from under the deck and ran back in. 

Chocolate Cake

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups Self Raising Flour
1 cup Caster Sugar
1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
1 teaspoon Baking Soda
100 grams Butter, softened
1/2 cup Milk
2 Eggs
1/2 cup Coffee (I used Espresso freshly brewed from the machine)
1/4 cup + 2 Tablespoons Cocoa Powder
A pinch of salt

Pre heat the oven at 160  degrees C

Grease ring pan and set aside.

Put all the ingredients in a mixing bowl and beat at medium high speed until well combined and pale in colour. Transfer the mixture into the pan and bake for 45 minutes. Rest the cake in the pan for about 5-10 minutes before transferring to the wire rack to cool down completely.

You can have the cake with chocolate ganache or with whipped cream and golden syrup or fruit sauce. The un-iced cake can freeze well.

Fargo: The Movie

If you are a fan of neo-noir comedy films or series like Breaking Bad you will like Fargo (both movie & TV Series). This film is nearly 20 years old and if you are watching or thinking of watching the series - it's best to also watch the film to get the background and links between the stories in the movie and the series. 

Although the title is Fargo - a lot of things did not happen there. It is written, edited, produced and directed by Joel and Ethan Coen. It earned a couple Academy Awards, one of them Best Leading Actress for Frances McDormand (she's married to Joel Coen), It's basically a murder story that was supposed to be simple but not simple. One mistake (due to incompetency and sheer madness) leads to another and another. It's hilarious and a quite sad at the same time. And Steve Buscemi was so young! Despite the fact it's about murders, the cinematography is beautiful.

The TV series of the same name pays a lot of homage to the original film - but is set 10 years later and the first season was screened last year in the US with the Coen brothers as Executive Producers. Martin Freeman and Billy Bob Thornton acted superbly, especially Thornton. I'm not a fan of his but in the series he's just wonderful. Bob Odenkirk is also good and so different from the role of slick criminal lawyer he played in Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul. It's still a murder story but a different one with more characters, more murderers (criminal minded and not) and of course, more dead bodies.

Hot Smoked Salmon Quiche

For a 20 cm Quiche, you'll need:
Filling:
1 cup Chopped Broccoli Florets
2 cups Chopped Spinach
1/2 Onion, Chopped (or Chopped Leek - only white part, about 1/2 cup)
1 tablespoon Butter
200 grams Hot Smoked Salmon, broken into chunks, skin removed
1/2 cup Grated Cheddar
1/2 cup Cream
3 large Eggs (or 4 if small)
Salt & Pepper to taste
2-3 teaspoon of finely chopped spring onion and coriander
A few scratches of lime zest

Case:
1 and 1/4 sheets of frozen Short Pastry

Pre heat the oven to 210 degrees C

Grease a flan tin (I use 20 cm Spring Form) and line with thawed pastry, work gently to the side. Trim the excess and patch up the side to about 3-4 cm high. Prick the pastry with fork several times and put the whole pan in the freezer for 10 minutes. Cover base with baking paper and weight down with pie weight of clean garden pebbles and bake blind for 10 minutes. Remove the weight and paper and brush the base with beaten egg and bake for 4 or 5 minutes further until lightly golden brown. Set aside and reduce the oven to 180 degrees C.

On medium high heat, fry onion with butter until soft. add chopped vegetables and stir fry for a few minutes to get red of excess water. Season with salt and pepper - do't be too heavy handed - salmon is star of the show and smoked salmon normally comes seasoned. Line the case with vegetables and hot smoked salmon pieces. In a jug, beat the eggs, add cream and cheddar. Pour the mixture into the case. Sprinkle the quiche with lime zest, chopped coriander and spring onion and a few rounds of freshly milled black pepper. Bake for 40 minutes.

When the quiche is cooked, rest to cool in the pan for 10 minutes before transferring to the plate. Serve warm or cold with Tomato Salsa.

Reflection of My Life: Living with Kitten

The first day we brought Hobie home, life has not been the same for our dog, Bonnie. True, she has been living with cats for most of her life, but they were older cats that did not want anything to do with her. Bonnie tried to make friend with Pipi but she was not interested. Spike was even worse- he's almost a recluse.

But, Hobie - man, is a totally different story. She's a live wire kitten and she definitely is interested in Bonnie. She adores Bonnie and often follows her around. The dog was not quite sure how to handle this little meow to start with.

However, one morning while they were basking in the sun in the living room, Hobie went a step too far and played with Bonnie's tail with a bit of claws and the dog snapped and growled. Hobie seemed to get the message, she stopped but didn't run away. Since then, Bonnie has been much happier and still is - she can tell Hobie off from time to time and their relationship improves (or at least on Bonnie's side).

We also indulged Bonnie more than we should have with guilt treats here and there the first few weeks we've got Hobie and when we took her to the vet we were told that Bonnie was a little bit too chubby. So we are putting her on diet again. As the dog and the kitten get along quite well we do not have to worry. Bonnie has confidence in dealing with Hobie to the relief of the parents!