Pregnancy: 28 Week Update

Almost 29 weeks! I'm already in my third trimester now and pregnancy is getting more difficult for me, especially coping with the ever-growing tummy! It's so difficult to sit still for more than 1 hour! But baby's been healthy and active (I can really feel him swimming now!), so that's a good sign.

Several days ago I took the flu vaccination (was told by the doctor that it's ok to take), but unfortunately my body just doesn't take it very well. It was like this as well last year when I fell sick a couple of weeks after I had the flu vaccination. I'm now on my 4th day of suffering the post-flu vaccination side effects and hopefully it will go away soon (because I hate having to lose appetite to eat!).

BACK AND SIDE PAIN

Finally the time of back pain and sleeping issues that everyone has been talking about has come. Any sitting position is not comfortable. I would need to change position or body posture every 30 minutes or so just so I can feel comfortable and continue with my work. On the right side just under my breast hurts a lot as well, especially when I eat too much, hahaha, because I feel like my ever-growing tummy is pulling the skin down especially around that area. And when I walk, sometimes my tailbone and pelvic bone hurt, but I try hard not to waddle like a duck!

I also find it difficult to sleep comfortably. Always tossing and turning. Sleeping on my sides and on my back with pillow support. But most of the time I find sleeping on my back gives the most comfort compared with sleeping on your side (although I read somewhere that it's better to sleep on your left side).

GLUCOSE TEST

Around 27-week I went for glucose test at the Hanley Moir Pathology in Parramatta as that's the closest Hanley Moir from me (I think). It's compulsory to fast before the test (the last meal or food that you can take is around 10pm the night before test). At the clinic, they took my blood 3 times in 1-hour intervals, so in total I was in the clinic for around 2.5 hours. First, they will take the blood before they gave me some sort of sweet drink, then 1 hour after I had the drink, and the third (and last one) was 1 hour after the second. The nurse told me not to vomit the liquid, otherwise we'll need to re-book the test. An hour after consuming the drink, I was already feeling dizzy and wanted to throw up (I guess it's more because I was hungry). Thankfully I always keep a small bottle of Safecare (some sort of eucalyptus oil) which has strong smell so minimise the urge to vomit.

The result of the test was then sent straight away to the hospital, so I didn't need to pick up anything (yay!). I was told by the midwife on Thursday that my glucose looks normal and so does my vitamin D (this is where I get most worried about). However, my haemoglobin was a tad lower than initial. She said, diet can have an effect. So, lets say if you eat red meats and vegetables, it should increase your HB. Does that mean I need to eat more steak?!

WEIGHT GAIN

On Thursday night I just had my regular visit to the midwife. The first test: weighing. The screen of the scale was showing 66 kgs. Oh nooooo!!! I'm supposed to only gain 1 kilo within the last 3 weeks and instead I gained 3 kilos!? What have I done wrong?? Well, I probably did wrong on several occasions like eating bread and butter (LOL) and avocado juice with heaps of condensed milk and sugar even though I really tried to cut off carbs from my dinner.

I posted on my Path account about my weight gain, and you know what response I received from my friends? "It's okay Dita! While you're preggo, it actually looks sexy. I used to gain 27kgs". And another one said, "I gained 26kgs, Dita, haha... Continue!". Oh my God. What kind of encouragement is this!? LOL. I don't want to work extra hard to lose the baby weight. Well, I don't see much "fattening" on my body, so hopefully it's just bubba being big *trying to run away from reality*.

Salmon and Leek Parcel

Salmon and leek parcel is one of my favourite 'luxury' and comfort food. Why I call it luxury food? Because it looks very sophisticated and the ingredients are expensive. Well, in reality, not really, except the salmon meat.

Usually I got my salmon and leek parcel from the supermarket when Woolworths have half price. But I haven't been checking catalogues regularly so I thought perhaps I've already missed it. But this time around I knew I really wanted it and I'll get out of my way to make the recipe! I found one simple recipe and it turned out as great as the supermarket-bought one. Maybe it's not as 'gourmet' as other recipes, but I'm quite happy with the result and will definitely make more in the future. Plus, you can freeze these tarts for up to a week to enjoy a couple of times during the week!

INGREDIENTS:

•  50g butter, chopped
•  1 leek, trimmed, halved, washed, sliced
•  2 tablespoons plain flour
•  1 1/4 cups milk (I substituted the milk with thickened cream and omitted the plain flour)
•  1/3 cup grated smoked cheddar cheese (I used Kraft cheddar cheese)
•  415g can pink salmon, drained, flaked (I used fresh salmon, seasoned and pan fried, then shredded)
•  Frozen puff pastry, partially thawed
•  1 egg, lightly beaten

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 200°C/180°C fan-forced. Line a baking tray with baking paper.
2. Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Add leek. Cook, stirring, for 6 to 8 minutes or until softened. Add flour. Cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Gradually stir in milk. Cook, stirring, for 3 to 4 minutes or until sauce boils and thickens. Stir in cheese. Set aside to cool slightly. Add salmon. Stir to combine.
3. Cut 1 pastry sheet into two and put them on a baking sheet. Then spread the pastry sheet with salmon mixture, leaving a 3cm border.
4. Cut another pastry sheet into two and make slits in the middle, leaving 2 cm border.
5. Place the slitted pastry on top of the salmon mixture. Using a fork, press edges together to seal and brush with egg
6. Bake for 25 minutes or until golden.

Source.

Ayam Goreng 99

I heard that this fried chicken joint in Kingsford is one of the most popular Indonesian restaurant in Sydney. Usually Indonesian restaurants serves many different kinds of food, but this particular one specialises in chicken (grilled or fried). And apart for the chicken dishes, they also serves side dishes which usually goes well with their grilled of fried chicken e.g. cah kangkung and pepes.

We finished at Shalom around 5.55pm and walked several metres to Ayam Goreng 99. Both of these restaurants are not that far away from each other. When we arrived at the restaurant, the shop was still dark. I asked my husband, "How come they're still closed? I thought it's 6pm already?". When he looked at his phone - nope, it's 5.55pm. But there was already several groups of people queuing in front of the shop! They were just chatting with each other or looking at the menu which is stuck on the glass display of the shop, waiting for the shop to open.

Not long after, the employee opened the door and everyone rushed in to get a seat. Within 5 minutes, all tables were full (I even got kicked from the table where I was waiting at, and poor husband had to stand up).

I asked where to order take away and the lady directed me to go to the register straight away. I was confused on what to order as there was ayam bakar, ayam goreng, and ayam goreng Kalasan (what? Two different types of fried chickens!? This just made my decision making process more difficult). And to my disappointment, they don't offer whole chickens and give slight price reduction (like if you order at Nando's and you can get quarter, half, or whole chicken). So, if you want a whole chicken, then you have to order two chicken thighs and two chicken breasts - and pay full price, no discount.

Because I wanted 'whole chicken', I decided to order four chicken thighs (neither me nor my husband likes chicken breast), two grilled and two fried Kalasan-style. I also wanted to try the pepes as I have missed that dish so so much! So, I ordered one pepes tahu (tofu) and one pepes jamur (mushroom).

CHICKENS (GRILLED/FRIED)

I have to say the chickens were awesome, both the charcoal-grilled chicken and the fried Kalasan-style chicken! The spices were very rich and you would want to lick your fingers after eating. FYI - it's compulsory to eat these chickens with your hands! That's the traditional way to do it.

The chilli sauce (sambal) that came with it is also really nice. It's really close to the sambal served at Ayam Goreng Mbok Berek or Ny. Suharti, but not as sweet. But be careful though because it is very very hot. As a sambal lover, I have to dip my chicken in the sambal carefully just so I don't get too much of it on the chicken.

Ayam bakar

Ayam Goreng Kalasan 

PEPES

The pepes is a winner! They taste very authentic, just like the ones I get in Indonesia. But that could also come down to the easy recipe because, just by tasting it and examining the food, I think I can already guess what the ingredients are. The only tricky part for me would be the banana leaves, because I have never ever experimented with a recipe that calls for banana leaves.

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I'm very satisfied with my order at Ayam Goreng 99 and will definitely come back to try other menu (I thought I saw sate kambing (charcoal-grilled lamb skewers) in the menu? Me wants!). When we left the restaurant, there were still people queuing outside. So, my suggestion would be to come early or be prepared to wait because it is THAT popular! Last but not least, be prepared to bring cash because they don't accept Pay-Wave or EFTPOS.

Since I had take-away, I thought I'd show you how I style my plate!

Quick Kitchen: Butter-fried Banana

This is a simple snack that my mum used to make me. I was lucky to find this banana, which I don't know the exact name of, at Sydney Market. I initially saw another variant of banana that I had thought was suitable for frying. But, since I was a bit doubtful, I decided to ask the seller. She said the one that I first saw wasn't for frying and showed me another variant that was suitable. I only purchased one bunch to try, but now I regretted it because it turned out it's really nice and I want mooooorrreee!!!

The 'star' of the recipe

INGREDIENTS:

• Banana suitable for frying - increase the odds of finding this banana by visiting big Asian grocery shops, Cabramatta, or Sydney Market (Flemington); and don't forget to ask whether it's suitable for frying
• Blue Band margarine (preferred, but can be substituted with butter)
• Toppings: chocolate sprinkles (Dutch hagelslag), condensed milk (Carnation), and grated Kraft cheese (don't try using tasty or even parmesan)

HOW TO MAKE:

1. Heat margarine (or butter) in a skillet
2. Lay each banana slice on the skillet
3. Fry and turn ocassionally
4. Scoop out the banana slices once the surface has turned golden brown (or in my case a bit burnt)
5. Arrange the banana slices on a dessert plate. Top it off with chocolate sprinkles, grated cheese, and condensed milk

Autumn Foliage at Mount Wilson

At the end of April (24th April to be exact), we went for a day-travel to Mount Wilson, a popular destination to see the autumn foliage. It takes around 1.5-2 hours to reach Mount Wilson by car from Sydney. We were quite rushed when we were there because we left Sydney quite late around 11.20 am (blame husband who ruins almost any trip and made me rush at the end although I've blocked his calendar waaayyy beforehand... aaarrrggghhh!)

We arrived at Mount Wilson at 1.15 pm. We ate our packed lunch and prayed, then went to one of the open gardens on The Avenue around 1.45 pm. My husband was very annoying around this time, because he was still checking his WhatsApp and replying to messages at lunch time although I told him to eat his lunch quickly so we can start exploring around because we were already so late, and it was him as well who made us leave late from Sydney! Truthfully, it feels like travelling with a baby! Then when we walked up to Breenhold Gardens's gate he just realised we had to pay entry fee and didn't bring any cash - well, I did, he didn't. Then he had to run back to the car to take his pocket money. Oh great, even more delay, I thought, because I was planning to visit the Turkish Bath Museum which closes at 3.30 pm. At this point, I'm already at my wits end.

Anyway, back to the trip, we eventually visited only one garden because I was rushing to the Turkish Bath House which closes at 3.30 pm. Well, I wasn't really interested in visiting other gardens either because of my tummy - not too keen on taking long walks. Then we went to the Turkish Bath Museum. Afterwards, we went back to Sydney and we stopped by at Bilpin to eat freshly baked apple pie.

THE AVENUE

This is where that iconic picturesque photo of Mount Wilson is usually taken. It is a two way road where you will be spoilt with heaps of autumn foliage on your left and right. However, when we arrived, that picturesque landscape just didn't make the cut. There were cars parking everywhere hence it's so difficult to get photo of a pretty lane with autumn trees on either side! Wrong time to visit, I thought. But we can't go there unless it's a weekend. So, we just enjoyed whatever we can.

BREENHOLD GARDEN

Entry fee: $8/adult, $2/child

Breenhold garden is the first garden that you will see on your left once you arrive at The Avenue. This garden is easy to find as the gate is literally located on the side of The Avenue, unlike other gardens where you have to pass small roads in order to reach them. The entry fee for the garden is $8 for adult, and $2 for children.

The garden is large, very large in fact, but I think it's a bit so so. There weren't many autumn foliage like what I had expected, but they have oak, maple, and Japanese maple trees which I think it's a good variation. They also have a lane of trees which is great to for taking photos. And the best part, at the back of the garden, because of the topography of the garden, you will be spoilt with a view of the Blue Mountain range. It's as if having Katoomba in your backyard! One area to improve for the garden is to have a map of the garden. It would be great if they can have it available to the visitors (also considering the entry fee that they charge) because hubby and I was having trouble finding our way out of the garden!

TURKISH BATH HOUSE MUSEUM

Entry fee: $5/adult

We were quite lucky because we managed to arrive at the museum just 15 minutes before their closing time, but eventually they closed slightly over that just after the last guests left (which I think were an elderly pair who came after us). We got lost a bit on our way to the museum. What we thought was a church at the end of The Avenue, was actually the Turkish Bath House Museum, and we didn't notice the sign as well! The estate was surrounded by short stone wall, so I'm sure you wouldn't miss it.

So, the story of the bath house is that the original owner of the estate had a wife who was suffering from cancer (if I'm not mistaken). Instead of relying heavily on chemical medication, the wife went for natural healing which miraculously extended her life by 9 years. The Turkish bath was built by the owner for his wife and son to relax their body and mind. The owner was particularly fascinated by Turkish culture, hence the Turkish influence on the bath house.

The bath house had one bathroom and a steam room. There's nothing special with the bath tub or the small corner sink in the bathroom. It's like the ones you would find in original Victorian terrace houses in Sydney. But the toilet totally caught my eyes! It's painted with blue veins and flowers, just like chinese porcelain. It's really beautiful. Nowadays, toilets are just plain white (or sometimes other colours, but it's always plain), but this one looks like a royal toilet, hahaha.

Before we exit the premise, I told my husband to take photo by the gate. I didn't even realise the gate was also 'something' when we arrived there (perhaps because we were in a rush). The gate has intricate wire design on it, and it actually says "Turkish Bath".

THE PINES ORCHARD, BILPIN

Apple pie with ice-cream: $6, Apple jelly: $7.5/500gr

On our way to Mount Wilson, I saw the sign "Fresh Baked Apple Pie Daily" along Bells Line of Road. Like my husband said, I'm celamitan, which means I can get really excited about food in an instant. The restaurant was on the right side of the road and husband was on full speed so there's no way we can make a turn. Anyway, I thought we could go there on the way back home. So, we did.

The shop is quite big (and it has a huge sign in front of it), so I don't think you will miss it. The shop is located in an area where there are heaps of apples orchard around. I think some of them are even open for public for pick-your-own apples. 

The shop had indoor and very nice outdoor dining areas. The shop sells new season apples in buckets, apple pies and cakes, honey, apple cider, and a large variety of chutney and jam. I had already purchased heaps of apples from Sydney market, so I wasn't too keen on getting the apples, hehehe. Instead, I wanted to try the apple pie that was advertised on the sign on the side of the road and the apple jam. I ordered a quarter apple pie with ice cream on top and a jar of apple jam to take home. The apple pie was quite nice, it's a bit different from the normal apple pies that I've tasted before which were like a thick sauce with chunks of soft apples. This one is more like fresh apples baked with no additional flavours (e.g. cinnamon). And the pie crust is not your ordinary short crust pastry, it's a bit cake-like but not soft. Overall, I liked it! I haven't opened the apple jam though, so cannot tell you how they tasted :).

My Sunday 01.05.2016

Cuma pengen bikin random post saja - mendokumentasikan kegiatanku hari ini, yaitu masak-masak! Setiap hari Minggu memang aku agendakan untuk belanja mingguan (kalau hari Sabtu tidak memungkinkan) dan mempersiapkan bumbu masakan untuk digunakan di minggu depan. Walaupun sekarang banyak argumentasi bahwa memasak bukanlah kewajiban istri, melainkan kewajiban suami sebagai 'pemberi nafkah', aku masih merasa menyiapkan makanan adalah kewajiban istri. Eits, jangan salah sangka dulu, jangan-jangan sudah ada yang mikir "kok jadul sekali pemikirannya" hehehe. Menyiapkan makanan dalam konteksku tidak harus masak sendiri, beli lauk atau makanan jadi pun menurutku sudah termasuk menyiapkan makanan untuk suami. Tapi memang ada kepuasan tersendiri apabila aku mampu menyeimbangkan pekerjaan dan urusan rumah. Saat ini si kecil masih di perut, kita coba lihat nanti apakah aku masih bisa juggling semua without dropping the ball.

Hari ini sebetulnya hari terakhir Wonderful Indonesia Festival. Tapi sayangnya aku kurang begitu tertarik untuk pergi karena: 1) suami pagi-pagi pergi marathon sepeda, pasti siang sudah capek dan nggak sanggup untuk jalan-jalan lagi, 2) aku belum masak apapun untuk minggu depan!, 3) rekening kami masih kering karena suami balum transfer sisa pengeluaran dari bulan lalu, hehehe, 4) aku pikir kalau ke Darling Harbour hanya untuk jajan makanan Indonesia, rasanya nggak worth-it karena di komunitas Indonesia banyak yang berjualan makanan-makanan Indonesia seperti sate Padang, pempek, etc. Hahahaha, banyak sekali ya alasannya *jadi malu*. Anyway, akhirnya aku memutuskan untuk stay at home dan memasak.

Hari ini aku berhasil mengeksekusi 3 resep. Harusnya sih 4, tapi sepertinya aku masih sanggup membuat bumbu resep ke-4 di tengah-tengah weekdays nanti. Pertama, saya bikin ayam Kentucky. Tentunya pakai bumbu jadi. Karena minggu lalu punya chicken thigh fillet tapi nggak tahu mau dibuat apa, akhirnya dibuat ayam Kentucky saja. Ayam sudah dibumbui dari beberapa hari lalu dan hari ini cukup digoreng saja. 

Kedua, tiba-tiba aku punya ide untuk menghabiskan sisa bumbu mie Aceh dan mie Hokkien yang entah sudah berapa lama ada di kulkas karena kemarin ketika makan mie goreng di sebuah hajatan, rasanya kok seperti agak mirip rempah mie Aceh. Untungnya daging giling belum sempat beku sepenuhnya, jadi masih bisa aku ambil sebagian untuk dimasak. Tapi bumbu mie Aceh sudah mengering (karena terlalu lama berada di kulkas) dan mie sudah mulai tidak bisa dikonsumsi. Setelah diakal-akali, bumbu mie Aceh dan mie Hokkien akhirnya bisa digunakan untuk memasak. Kemudian aku masak seperti biasa, dan terakhir aku campurkan sambal kecap-limau yang kubuat pagi tadi untuk menambah aroma. Jadilah makanan edible hasil pencampuran sisa-sisa bahan, hahaha. Lumayan untuk tambahan *ding*.

Ketiga, dan terakhir, aku ngidam scones! Setelah Senin kemarin disuguhi traditional scones di tempat kawan dalam rangka catch up and afternoon tea, keesokan harinya sukses ngeces pingin buttermilk scones.  Sudah agak lama tidak buat scones, jadi lupa betapa mudahnya bikin scones! Setelah buka buku resep, ternyata bahannya tidak terlalu ribet. Dan cukup aku tuang semua bahan ke dalam stand mixer-ku dan biarkan mesin yang menguleni hingga empuk. Setelah itu aku hanya perlu untuk menguleni sedikit lagi dengan tangan dan membentuk menjadi bola-bola kecil. Panggang di dalam oven selama 15 menit, dan ta-daaa seisi rumah penuh dengan wangi buttermilk! Ah wanginyaaa. Aku memang suka sekali wangi roti. That is the reason why I love bakeries and bakery section in supermarket! Ketika scones masih hangat, aku siapkan double cream dan selai stroberi sebagai pelengkap - ouuh, yumm! It's like heaven menikmati scones di sore hari ditemani secangkir teh Sosro dingin (hehehe, ini sebetulnya salah, harusnya ditemani teh hangat).

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Yak, sekian cerita masak-masakku hari ini. Nantikan cerita hari Minggu-ku yang lain di post yang akan datang (pede banget). See you :)