Apple pies and Japanese garlic fried rice.

Apples are in season this time of year in Sydney and i was lucky to have spotted some very fresh and crisp Fuji apples from Woolworths. I've read and heard alot about these Fuji apples (particularly from woolworths) and decided to several home to try. They aren't as large as the imported Fuji apples we get in Malaysia, but they are definately as good! Eaten fresh, the apples were crisp, succulent and sweet like honey! I woke this morning at 7 am to make shortcrust pastry for the apple and custard pies i was planning on making. It helps to have the weather nice and chilly when i make my shortcrust recipe, it keeps the dough constantly cold. I made the custard filling from scratche as well. The recipe is simply; 100ml of cream to one egg yolk and the amount of sugar should suit your personal taste. I used 30 gms of sugar in mine. Beat the egg yolks and sugar until very thick and pale. Pour mixture into a saucepan and add cream. Sit on top of stove, stir continously and cook for 5-8 minutes until mixture resembles custard. Be careful not to let the custard curdle, if it looks like its starting too, quickly dunk the saucepan into a bowl of cold water to stop it from cooking. Beat with a whisk till thick and smooth. Before baking these apples pies; I lined my petit tins with pastry, spooned a scoop of custard, arranged apple slices, dusted with cinnamon and topped with a layer of pastry to cover. They are relatively easy to make, and keep some additional warm custard aside to serve. I topped mine with a naughty scoop of butterscotch ice-cream...MmMMmmm.

This household has a love for fried rice, all types and all flavours. I recall on many occasions, having a dilemma with leftover rice from chinese/indian dinners going to waste and my solution to this problem is, fry it! When I add a different flavour, tiny special hints of spices and fried beaten eggs to the rice, everyone finishes it in less than a day. We like our rice spicy and bursting with flavour. A few of the many types of fried rice i've mastered so far are, Indonesian fried rice, Cantonese fried rice, Indian tandoori fried rice and this particular one here is Japanese garlic fried rice. It is flavoured with garlic, shallots, vegetable stock, mirin and kikoman soy sauce to give it Japanese twist!