Anyone Care For Some Sausage Rolls ? (Recipe)

I decided to do something different this evening. Besides the usual routine of clocking hours in front of Astro and seriously trying to finish a book I meant to finish ages ago (still stuck on the same chapter), I decided to bake. Yes. Bake!

I have watched all the culinary maestros in action (Jamie Oliver, Gordon Ramsay, Jac Pepin etc) in Astro and its time to put all the theories into practice. It's really easy to get carried away in cooking (you just have to watch Jamie in action; his very lay back and casual style of cooking doesnt help either although I must say its entertaining) and I decided to embark on a less ambitous project.

After browsing through all the culinary books that my wife bought, I settled for what I thought would be a straight forward recipe to begin with. Sausage rolls. There is a complete instruction from the book so what can possibly go wrong. I ransacked the fridge just to make sure I have got the basic ingredients in place...i mean what would sausage roll be without sausage. I ended up with a pack of sausages from Farm's Best which my wife bought earlier from Tesco. As for pastry, I decided to cheat. My wife used the brand from Kawan (beats me why the brand is called Kawan, its got nothing to do with food. I bet its a marketing flaw) in which she made chicken pie last Sunday and it was GOOD. I played safe.

The pastry from Kawan is really easy to use. Just roll and flatten the pastry till its really thin, wrap and style it the way you want. It is better when it is really thin since the pastry will expand and form a crispy layer on the outside and soft yet crunchy inside. I added in cheese and some butter to provide some character and 'kick' to the sausage rolls.

I preheat the oven at 180 degrees C and left it to bake for 20 minutes. And here are the fruits of my labour. Notice that I made a couple of variants; long and short.

It taste great as well as it looks. Soft, chewy, buttery and crunchy. All in one. Not bad for a first try. Boy..I am getting addicted to this.

Wantan mee @ Kheng Pin Coffee Shop (Georgetown)

I decided today to have brunch at one of my favorite eating place in Penang. Kheng Pin is located at the junction of Sri Bahari road which is smack in the heart of Georgetown. Like most coffee shops in Georgetown, it was built during the preware era.

I remember coming here a lot when I was back then in primary school specially for the loh bak and the wantan mee. It has been a while since I last frequent Kheng Pin and its no surprise why I have been dreaming of coming back here lately. I decided to suppress my appetite for the loh bak once and for all and make a trip down town.

I ordered a combo consisting of some loh bak and prawn fritters (heh cheh) for starters. Each piece cost RM1. Here is a snap shot of the combo that I took before I devoured them contently. The loh bak is famous because the uncle who runs the stall represented Penang in some gastronomy competition in Australia. That was many years back then. Nonetheless, the taste remains exquisite. Its very crispy and I somehow wonder the batter he uses is quite unique than the rest. Additionally, the pork he uses doesnt contain much fat unlike some other stalls. And it isnt too oily too. This is probably one of the best loh bak stall in Penang.

I also had the wantan mee. It used to be run by two brothers but now its operated by a husband and wife team. The noodles are quite delicate and the wantans are tasty as ever. The sesame oil isnt too overpowering hence one would be able to taste the intrinsic ingredients of the dumplings.

Notice that her stall spells wantan mee as wan thung mee. I have come across different names before like "wantan mee" and yes; "one ton mee" (could the true meaning be he's selling one tonne of mee?) but wan thung mee is something I have heard for the first time.

There are quite a number of other stalls here too selling porridge, satay, char koay teow and chicken rice. I notice the chicken rice is a hit with most of the patrons here too. I would definitely come back to this coffeee shop and try it the next time. If you have additional space in your stomach, do try the porridge. I had with everything in ie fish, chicken etc. Definitely a viable option for those who wants something light and less oily.

This coffee shop can be quite crowded during peak hours. I suggest the best time to come here would be before 11 am. The cafe closes on Monday.