Peony Jade Mooncakes 2014

To celebrate the abundance and togetherness of the Mid-Autumn Festival, Peony Jade's culinary team presents a range of mooncakes that display both a great respect for tradition and an enthusiastic nod to the future. Each mooncake is made to the chef's exacting standards and features a fusion of top drawer ingredients with superb craftsmanship. These are all made fresh daily with no artificial flavourings, stabilisers or preservatives. A true commitment to quality and excellence.

Matching the traditional baked mooncakes is an elegantly designed orangey red box with an oriental fan in the centre. I have been a fan of Peony Jade's signature flaky skin Teochew 'Orh Ni' Mooncake with Premium Fragrant Golden Pumpkin and Single Egg Yolk ($33 for 2pc / $59 for 4pc). The air lightness flaky pastry skin and the dense creamy yam filling is one of the best in town.

I am old school and I love my baked mooncakes more than snowskins. At Peony Jade, one can enjoy these traditional bakes with less sugar, allowing one to indulge with less guilt. Peony Jade's rendition includes Low Sugar Baked Mooncake with Premium Mother of Pearl White Lotus Paste & Single Yolk ($35 for 2pc/ $59 for 4pc), Baked Mooncake with Premium Jin Hua Ham and Assorted Nuts ($34 for 2pc/ $60 for 4pc) and Premium Mother of Pearl White Lotus Paste with Macadamia Nuts & Double Yolk ($35 for 2pc/ $62 for 4pc).

For the snowskin mooncakes, the gift box is a rich hues of turquoise lacquer complemented by black trimmings.

If you are a fan of snowskin mooncakes, not to be missed is the Peony Jade's 4 Heavenly Flavours ($64 for 4 pieces), featuring Top Grade Pure Mao Shan Wang Durian Mooncake in Organic Pandan Snowskin, Snowskin Kochi Yuzu & Apple Cream Cheese Mooncake, Snowskin Soursop Mooncake and Snowskin Premium Cempedak Mooncake.

Peony Jade also introduces 5 new flavours this year. They are Black Thorn Durian Nyonya Mooncake in Coconut Mini Snowskin ($76 for 8pc), Mini Snowskin Fragrant Honey William Pears, Organic Apricot and Raspberry Mooncake ($49 for 8pc), Mini Snowskin Teochew Orh Ni Pumpkin with Coconut Truffle Mooncake ($62 for 8pc), Mini Snowskin Chocolate Salted Caramel Glaze Banana and Walnuts Mooncake ($49 for 8pc) and Mini Snowskin Silver Lotus Paste with Gui Hua Cassia Flowers and Melon Seeds Mooncake ($58 for 8pc)


15 July to 28 Aug 2014
Online purchase: http://www.pjmooncakes.com and http://www.peonyjade.com

15 July to 8 September 2014
Onsite purchase at Peony Jade Restaurants

7 August to 8 September 2014
Onsite purchase at 14 roadshows. Info from their website. http://www.pjmooncakes.com

Jade Restaurant (玉楼) + Mooncakes 2014 @ Fullerton Hotel

With the Mid-Autumn Festival around the corner, what best way to celebrate this joyous festival with a reunion dinner feast with friends and families. Fullerton Hotel's Jade Restaurant presents a luxurious Mid-Autumn Reunion Dinner Feast available at $88++ per person from 25 August to 8 September 2014 to celebrate the full moon comprising of 6 courses.

Trio of Mid Autumn Combination 4/5

The first course is the Trio of Mid Autumn Combination. Chef Leong got his inspiration from the folk tale of Chang'E. The plating is supposed to represent Chang'E floating to the moon. The three components on the plate are Steamed Sea Prawn Roll with Capsicum and Mushroom, Shredd Chicken with Preserved Fruit in Honey Mustard Dressing and Tea Smoked Beancurd Carrot Roll. This is in fact an art on a plate with the prawn sitting on a cloud while the shredded chicken represents a lantern.

Boiled Sea Grouper Soup 4.8/5

Boiled with fish bones to get that milky robust soup base, the Boiled Sea Grouper Soup with Black Fungus and Chinese Wine this is extremely delicious and comforting. The used of quail eggs is a excellent choice for the theme, representing reunion with its dumpling like shape.

Fragrant Crispy Duck Stuffed with Yam Paste 4/5

The Fragrant Crispy Duck Stuffed with Yam Paste reminded me of the traditional yam basket but stuffed with fragrant crispy duck. I like the bite of crispiness from the duck skin in between the yam paste. Yam and duck is a classic combination but given a modern execution that will delight more the young and old.

Stewed Whole Abalone with Dried Scallop and Homemade Edamame Beancurd 4.5/5

A luxurious dish of Stewed Whole Abalone with Dried Scallop. However what stood out for me is the Homemade Edamame Beancurd that was extremely soft and silky. From its colour, I initially thought it was infused with spinach but to my surprise it is actually edamame. I thought the colour suit the theme of Jade restaurant perfectly and it should be made into their signature dish.

Wok-Fried Five Grain Rice with Crab Meat 4/5

You probably would not get this elsewhere. The Wok Fried Five Grain Rice with Crab Meat is both fragrant and packed with mouthful of different grainy bites with the crab meat lending a luxurious sweet sea flavour finishing.

Classic Trio Desserts 3.5/5

The feast is wrapped up with a classic Trio Desserts of Shaved Almond Ice with Osmanthus Jelly, Chilled Rabbit Shaped Egg White Cake, Petit Traditional Oven Baked and Snow Skin Mooncakes. The rabbit shaped egg whit cake is so adorable and cute that I almost don't bear to eat it. It has a marshmallow soft texture that sorted of melted in the mouth. Of course we can't do away with mooncakes since it is the Mid-Autumn Festival.

Can't get enough of The Fullerton Mooncakes? Don't worry the mooncakes are available for sales from 25 July to 8 September 2014 at the Fullerton Cake Boutique located on the lobby level of the hotel. The mooncakes are encased in an elegant oriental chest adorned with dainty pieces of jade or a classic golden-hued chest.

Taking centrestage this year is The Fullerton Snow Skin Treasures which offers a contemporary assortment of the classic. Two irresistible Snow Skin flavours exude a comforting taste of home with a dose of indulgence. The White Lotus Seed Paste with Single Yolk Snow Skin Mooncake features a smooth and delightfully sweet white lotus seed paste.

The Pandan with Gula Melaka Snow Skin Mooncake is a nostalgic blend of familiar local flavours where the aroma of the pandan complements the deep caramel flavour of the palm sugar.


Jade Restaurant (玉楼）
The Fullerton Hotel Singapore
1 Fullerton Square
Singapore 049178
Tel: +65 68778188
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheFullertonHotel
Website: http://www.fullertonhotel.com/dining/diningCategories_2-en.html
Nearest MRT: Raffles Place (EW Line, NS Line)

Opening Hours:
Daily: 1130am - 230pm, 630pm - 1030pm

Direction:
1) Alight at Raffles Place MRT Station. Take Exit H. Turn right and walk towards the river. At the river, turn right again and walk to destination. Journey time about 5 minutes. [Map]

Bakerzin Mooncakes 2014

Bakerzin well known for its dessert cafes around the island has launched a new collection of snow skin mooncake ranges fro the Mid Autumn celebration this year. The Bliss, Joy and Lush Collections joins the stellar mooncake range this year, taking on a fun and playful slant this season.

Bakerzin has adopted the same Moon Rabbit themed designer boxes and bags as it has been a hit since the launched 4 years ago. It has kept to the well loved design but have an added element in each box this year.
The interior of each box has its own colourful and distinct pattern and carries eight glossy pieces of origami paper matching the interior of the box. These papers can be folded into pretty little Moon Rabbit with instructions. This provides a more interactive and fun element for both the young and young at heart.

The Bliss Collection ($60/box of 8 pieces) has Frangelico Hazelnut Truffle Snow Skin, Grand Marnier Chocolate Truffle Snow Skin, Pink Champagne Truffle Snow Skin and Whisky Truffle Snow Skin. It comes with 2 pieces of each flavour. This collection contains nuances of alcohol such as whisky, champagne, frangelico and grand marnier.

The Lush Collection ($52/box of 8 pieces) has Lychee Snow Skin, Mango Pomelo Snow Skin, Strawberry Snow Skin, Yuzu Snow Skin. It comes with 2 pieces of each flavour. A collection of fruity flavours such as strawberries, yuzu, pomelo, mango and lychee.

The Joy Collection ($52/box of 8 pieces) has Pandan Lotus Snow Skin, Purple Sweet Potato, Yam Snow Skin, Sweet Potato. It comes with 2 pieces of each flavour. It showcases an interesting assortment time honoured fillings and flavours.

Besides the three new snow skin mooncake collections, Bakerzin still has their popular Mao Shan Wang Durian Snow Skin Mooncake, Black Sesame Snow Skin Mooncake and the classic traditional baked mooncakes such as the Premium Egg Yolk Mooncake, Melon Seed Mooncake and Wu Ren Mooncake. Bakerzin Mooncakes are on sale from 8 July 2014 to 8 September 2014. They are available for order online at www.bakerzin.com or at al Bakerzin outlets in Singapore

Man Fu Yuan Mooncakes 2014

This year Man Fu Yan mooncakes are elegantly packaged in a beautiful amethyst hued coffret designed in collaboration with students from the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts. The exquisite packaging and mooncake selections are ideal as gifts for business associates, friends and family. The packaging can even be recycled as elegant food covers or used as  a serving tray for a variety of snacks.

Making the debut this year is a new series of Shanghai Mooncakes created by Man Fu Yuan's acclaimed Dum Sum Chef Simon Poon.

Man Fu Yuan's perennial favourite classic baked mooncake collection comes with a variety of fillings such as Assorted Nuts, White Lotus Seed Paste with Double Yolks and Read Bean Paste with Melon Seeds.

The assortment of snowskin mooncakes in a palette of aromatic flavours such as Green Tea Paste with premium dragonball jasmine tea-infused snowskin, sesame paste and Mao Shan Wang Durian mooncake with coconut provides the perfect gift for the more adventurous palate.

For health conscious, a myriad of low sugar offerings, made with 50 percent less sugar and all natural ingredients provided a guilt free indulgence this Mid Autumn season.

Man Fu Yuan mooncakes are available from 09 July through 8 September 2014 at Tea Hut, located at the entrance of InterContinental Singapore from Bugis Junction. and 20 locations across Singapore with boxes of 2 pieces from $29+ and 4 pieces from $49+.

Resorts World Sentosa (RWS) Singapore Mooncake 2014

To celebrate this year's Mid-Autumn Festival, a traditional Chinese tribute to the full moon and season of harvest, Feng Shui Inn at Resorts World Sentosa is presenting a selection of mini mooncakes in unique flavour combinations that is not of the norm. For the first time, the authentic Cantonese restaurant is offering three variations of the traditional pastries by using mooncakes' skin of different textures, as well as pairing unusual ingredients together to create an assortment of meticulously handcrafted treats.

Back by popular demand, Feng Shui Inn is bringing back last year's melt in the mouth flaky crust mooncakes but with the additional of black and white sesame seeds to the base of the mooncakes with a bolder flavours.
The handback flaky crust mooncakes come in two exciting pairing flavours - the Flaky American Ginseng & Coconut Mooncake as well as the Flaky Lotus Roots & Buter Mooncake.

On top of the two new flaky crust mooncakes, Feng Shui Inn also offers the Mini Baked Custard Mooncakes. Made with a traditional baked skin crust, its custard paste ha a subtle hint o f sesame, perfect for sesame lovers.

Apart from the Feng Shui Inn's Premium Box mini mooncakes, other line up of traditional baked skin mooncakes including Lotus Paste mooncake with single yolk or double yolk, Assorted Nuts 'Ng Yan' and flavourful Pandan with Red Bean Paste are also available for purchase from 8 August.

All mooncakes are available at Feng Shui Inn, Crockfords Tower, level G2 and Asian Deli, Festive Hotel Lobby from 15 August to 8 September 2014. Feng Shui Inn's Premium Box mooncakes priced at $62 comes in 6 pieces and contains 2 flavours of each kind while the RWS Baked Treasures Mooncakes priced at $56 per box contains 4 different traditional baked skin mooncakes.

Pickat SG Instaprint

Instagrammers and foodies who like to use their smart phone to take food pictures will be rejoice. Pickat SG has collaborate with d' Good Cafe from 17 July to 23 July 2014 to bring you Instaprint. Not only that, there is even a weekly draw where the lucky winners get to win Golden Village Gold Class Tickets too!

Instaprint and Golden Village Gold Class Tickets, you can get all these in 3 simple steps,

1) Visit d' Good Cafe and snap your experience there.
2) Upload them onto Instagram, tag #PickatSG and #dGoodCafe
3) Collect your very own Instaprint from the counter

Do also look forward to other Instaprint collaboration in the following weeks. You can look forward to the following merchants in the upcoming weeks.

24 July to 30 July 2014
Empire State
Hashtag to use: #PickatSG, #EmpireState

31 July to 6 August 2014
Craft Cafe
Hashtag to use: #PickatSG, #Craft_hv

7 August to 13 August 2014
Maple Loft
Hashtag to use: #PickatSG, #MapleLoft

Don't miss the opportunity to collect the free limited edition Pickat SG Instaprint and a chance to win Golden Village Gold Class Tickets. Download PickatSG now at iTune or Google Play and start instragramming.

Lee Kum Kee Teriyaki Marinade + Giveaway

Lee Kum Kee, a household name for 126 years for its vast variety of sauces and condiments for Chinese and local cooking. The success story of the brand besides quality and authenticity, is the continuous efforts to innovate. With this commitment, Lee Kum Kee launches its first ever Teriyaki Marinade.

Lee Kum Kee launches the new Teriyaki Marinade ($3.70) to cater for the growing demand for teriyaki sauces. Being an established brand for 126 years and understanding the palates of Singaporean, a generous amount of white toasted sesame seeds are added to the teriyaki marinade. It nutty flavour of the sesame seeds enliven the flavour even more. This is a perfect for making dishes such as yakitori, teriyaki grilled meat and fish. No preservatives are added to the marinade and all ethnic groups can enjoy it as it is healthy and Halal certified. The Teriyaki Marinade is available at major supermarkets such as Cold Storage, Giant and Sheng Shiong.

Lee Kum Kee has also given their Tomato Ketchup ($1.25) a makeover with an adorable design of either a boy or a girl. This cute and eye catching designs will appeal to children with its easy squeeze bottles.

Lastly here is a chance for readers to win Lee Kum Kee Hampers. I will be running the giveaway on both my facebook page and Instagram. I will be giving away 3  hampers complimentary from Lee Kum Kee. 2 hampers to be won on facebook and 1 hamper to be won on Instagram.

GIVEAWAY - 3 LEE KUM KEE HAMPERS

Each hamper considers of
- 1 Teriyaki Marinade
- 1 XO Sauce
- 2 Tomato Ketchup

Facebook Giveaway (2 hampers)
All you need to do is,
1. Go to my facebook page, click HERE
2. Locate the Lee Kum Kee giveaway photo and like it.
3. Answer the question for the giveaway by leaving a comment.

Instagram Giveaway (1 hamper)
All you need to do is,
1. Add me on instagram at @dashtaz or click here
2. Find the Lee Kum Kee hamper giveaway photo.
3. Answer the question for the giveaway by leaving a comment.

Closing date: 13 Jul 2014, Sunday 2359hr.
Valid for readers reside in Singapore only.
Winners will be announced on facebook and/or instagram respectively.
Winners need to provided postal address for delivery upon notification.
A new winner will be drawn if there is no reply within 3 days.

CP Foods Sausage and Cold Cut

It is the FIFA World Cup month and many soccer fans will be staying up late until the wee hours to catch the live telecast matches from Brazil. The problem with staying up late to catch the matches is one will get hungry. CP Foods has offered the ideal solution to battle the late night hunger pangs in the 10 newly launched cold cuts and sausages. The newly launched cold cuts and sausages come in microwavable bags that help to ease the convenience in food preparation ensuring that soccer fans will not miss all the action on the screen.

The new cold cuts are CP Chilli Bologna ($2.20), CP Jumbo Bologna ($2.35) and CP Chicken Sandwich ($2.20). The CP Chilli Bologna will spice up the appetite with its potent mix of chilli and black pepper. The CP Jumbo Bologna which boasts of smooth chunks of fine quality chicken meat will satisfy your hunger. And lastly the hassle free CP Chicken Sandwich to fix any hunger pangs in the middle of the night.

Among the new products are the Japanese influenced sausages. The CP Shoyu Sausage ($3.60) is smoked with beechwood, giving it a rich and aromatic fragrance. The CP Japanese Classic Pork Sausage ($3.60) is seasoned with ginger and white pepper for additional zing to the flavour.

For those that preferred a barbeque flavoured food, there is there CP Chicken Vienna ($2.20) and CP Smoked Chicken Frankfurter ($2.20). Each bite of the smooth textured sausages come with tantalisingly smoky flavour that will lavish the taste bud, leaving one with great satisfaction. For bite sized sausages, one can have the CP Smoked Chicken Cocktail ($2.35). For a cheesy kick, one can have the CP Pizza Cocktail ($2.35) made with Italian spices and cheddar cheese or the CP Cheese Sausage ($2.20) that is firmly stuffed with mouth watering cheddar cheese for that tangy kick.

Kind note that if you are planning to stock up these delicious cold cuts and sausages, the CP Jumbo Bologna, Smoked Chicken Cocktail and Pizza Cocktail are sold exclusively at 7-Eleven outlets while the remaining items are available at major supermarkets islandwide.

Din Tai Fung Rice Dumpling 2014

Dragon Boat Festival or Duan Wu Jie (端午节) is just around the corner on 2 June 2014. It is celebrated in Singapore in events like dragon boat race as well as eating rice dumplings. Dragon Boat Festival origins from the sacrifice of Qu Yuan, a legendary Chinese poet. He drowned himself to protest against the rulers for corruption. Dragon boat races are organised symbolizing searching for Qu Yuan's body along the river. It is said that dumplings are said to be thrown into the river to stop fish from feeding on the poet's body as well as making noise to scare the fish away. Hence the originating of rice dumpling but now it is served on the table as delicacy instead.

Read Bean Dumpling 4/5

For this festive period, Din Tai Fung has specially imported from Taiwan the Red Bean Rice Dumpling ($5/pc). The dumpling is handmade using top grade Taiwan glutinous rice and generously stuffed with the finest red bean paste. I was quite surprised how well the red bean paste and glutinous rice work together in harmony. The glutinous rice also comes with a hint of heavenly aroma absorbing the fragrance of the bamboo leaves. This will be available all year long at all Din Tai Fung restaurants.

Rice Dumpling with Flavoured Pork 3.5/5

Back by popular demand, the Rice Dumpling with Flavoured Pork ($6/pc) is filled with succulent premium pork belly steeped in a secret marinade recipe and stuffed within tender top grade Taiwan glutinous rice for a soft and chewy texture. The dumplings are then wrapped in bamboo leaves, allowing the rice to absorb the fragrance of the leaves and tender pork. The flavoured pork rice dumpling was shy in flavour compared to the red bean rice dumpling. I was expecting a more richer and robust taste from the marinade. The flavoured pork rice dumpling will be available from 1 May 2014 to 2 June 2014.

With every purchase of 10 rice dumplings from Din Tai Fung, you get to carry away a complimentary limited edition insulated picnic bag worth $10.90. You can also bring it home at $8.90 with any rice dumpling purchased.

Durian Fiesta 2014 @ Goodwood Park Hotel

The much anticipated Durian Fiesta at Goodwood Park Hotel is back again between 24 February 2014 to 13 July 2014. The Durian Fiesta since its inception in 1983 makes its return with new creations and perennial favourites homemade with the finest D24 durians.

What best way to indulge in the alluring aroma and creamy intensely flavoured flesh of D24 durian with the Durian Combo ($29) that consists a piece of Durian Mousse Cake, Durian Gula Melaka Roll, Mini Durian Donut, Mini Durian Charlotte and 2 pieces of Durian Puffs.

Durian Gula Melaka Roll

The new creation is an inspired Asian interpretation of the traditional swiss roll. The Durian Gula Melaka Roll comes with a luscious D24 Durian mousse enveloped within a vanilla sponge drizzled with gula melaka.

Mini Durian Charlotte

The Mini Durian Charlotte is an exquisite adaption of the classic Charlotte Russe  brimming with D24 durian mousse between spongy ladyfingers lined with a crunchy hazelnut base and topped with white chocolate coated cornflakes.

Mini Durian Donut

An excellent tea time accompaniment is the pretty pinwheel shaped Mini Durian Donut that is garnished with a glace cherry  and generous piping of rich durian mousse.

Durian Puff

Durian Mousse Cake

The combo box also comes with the all time favourites. There are 2 pieces of the Durian Puff and a slice of Durian Mousse Cake. The signature dainty nuggets come with light choux pastry cases plump with rich durian mousse while the legendary cake since 1983 is pure heavenly with a bountiful of durian pulp mousse.

Exclusive Privileges 
For takeaway durian pastries at the Deli
(except for Durian Ice Cream Tub, Durian Combo and Mao Shan power puff)
- Goodwood Park Hotel Gourmet Cardmembers enjoy 20% off
- Citibank, DBS/POSB & UOB Credit & Debit Cardmembers enjoy 15% off

Goodwood Park Hotel Deli 
 Tel: +65 67301786
Website: festivepromotions.goodwoodparkhotel.com