I was really excited about my 100th post, so much so that I made alfajores to celebrate. I have been meaning to makes these for quite some time. I’ve always wanted to try Matt of mattbites.com’s version because his photos look so scrumptious I want to eat the screen! But of course I can’t find store bought dulce de leche here so I had to make my own. I did it the cheater way 
simmering a can of sweetened condensed milk submerged in water for an hour and 45 minutes gives you delicious dulce de leche. I’ve always wanted to try that method! Sure the can could explode and I could possibly suffer burns but that’s the fun right? Okay to be honest I was scared the whole time. But the key is to keep the can completely submerged so it doesn’t explode. I used the biggest pot I could find and filled the entire thing with water… just in case!
So Alfajores… a delicious latin treat with two biscuits and dulce de leche in the middle. And then of course powdered sugar on top! I actually really liked the biscuit by itself with just a little sprinkle of powdered sugar. They’re a little cakey and not your usual cookie crunch. Almsot like a little pancake… in fact the house smelled like pancakes the whole time. Mmm I’m going to have another one now.
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Posted by: Maggie Ha
Category: Other, baking, food, mmmm, random, recipes, travel
Tags: baking, cookies, cooking, food, latin, recipe, recipes, snacks, sweets
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One of the touristy things to do… take the old tram up to the peak for a fabulous view of the city. Well, unfortunately, it was all covered with fog by the time we got up there. We got some great shots of the fog though!
I did this tram/peak thing when I went to Hong Kong about 15 years ago. It was actually one of the few things I remembered from the trip. Perhaps because my mom and I had one of those touristy picture-on-a-plate things made from up there. I think it still sits on her dresser.
The peak was completely redone a few years ago and now has a shopping mall attached with some gourmet restaurants and fancy pants dessert places. It’s pretty much expected that in Hong Kong, anything worth while will have a shopping mall attached.
Posted by: Maggie Ha
Category: Other, random, travel
Tags: adventure, asia, asian, chinese, holiday, Hong Kong, random, travel, trip, vacation
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This is by far the cheapest way to see Hong Kong - on the Star Ferry. There’s 2 decks - the older lower level and the newer upper level. They’re pretty similar, one has air con in the Summer and one doesn’t and it’s only like a HK40 cent difference. You can ride from one island to the other for about HK$2 that’s like 60 cents!
Although I didn’t have the best luck on the night view on the way back… rocky seas make for rocky pictures!
Posted by: Maggie Ha
Category: Other, random, travel
Tags: asia, asian, holiday, Hong Kong, travel, trip, vacation
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I don’t even know where to start, there’s food everywhere. There’s little stalls for baked potatoes, fries with toppings, fishballs, stinky tofu, fruit smoothies, coconut drinks, crepes, I can really go on forever. But there’s one that I wanted to highlight. They’re called Little Chicken Eggs in Chinese but they’re more like funny looking waffles.
This is the famous one and it’s located here:
No idea how to find it! It’s around the corner from the Wan Chai station. You can try asking around there, or follow the waffle smell! You’ll know when you’re there when you see a huge line and pictures of Chinese celebrities eating these waffle things.
Posted by: Maggie Ha
Category: Other, Reviews, food, mmmm, random, travel
Tags: asia, asian, food, Hong Kong, life, random, snacks, sweets, travel, trip
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There’s several different types of Hong Kong breakfasts. 1 - traditional congee with various other savory dishes like Chinese donuts, rice noodles things, and turnip cake. 2 - sweet buns, pineapple buns with a huge slab of butter, milk tea, milk coffee or both milk coffee and tea. 3 - yum cha or dim sum. I’m sure a 4th includes McDonald’s. They love McDonald’s in Asia - not just HK, all of Asia! More on McD’s later!
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Posted by: Maggie Ha
Category: Other, food, mmmm, random, travel
Tags: asia, asian, breakfast, brunch, holiday, Hong Kong, life, random, travel, trip, vacation
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Boy was I in heaven. There are plenty of vegetarian restaurants around Hong Kong. Might not have very much luck with street stalls but restaurants are open pretty late and you’re bound to find something. And there’s a street market in just about every area. Most markets have a section that sell fresh fruits.
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Posted by: Maggie Ha
Category: Other, Reviews, food, mmmm, travel
Tags: adventure, asia, asian, food, travel, vacation, vegetables, vegetarian
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On our second day in Hong Kong, we hoped on the MTR to Tung Chung on Lantau Island. Took the cable car up to the Tian Tan Buddha. It was a super foggy day and it was beautiful the way the fog sat over the mountains and over the statue. Once we made the pilgramage up to the top, we stopped at the vegetarian cafe for some snacks before heading back to Kowloon. YUM!
Posted by: Maggie Ha
Category: Other, random, travel
Tags: adventure, asia, asian, buddha, chinese, holiday, Hong Kong, life, random, travel, trip, vacation
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Old boat & about 1/4 of Hong Kong Island
The other end of Hong Kong Island
Goldfish Market near Mong Kok
When it comes to seeing the sights in Hong Kong, there’s not that many. Not saying it’s not a spectacular city, it’s phenomenal! But not in the same way a place like Rome fills your day with sights. Hong Kong’s splendor lies in the majestic city scape both day and night, the different islands, and most of all the food and the people.
We spent equal time on Hong Kong Island and the Kowloon side. Both are very different yet very Hong Kong. Not sure where to begin so I’ll just split it up into several posts!
Posted by: Maggie Ha
Category: Other, random, travel
Tags: asia, holiday, Hong Kong, life, random, travel, trip, vacation
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Singapore was exactly the type of trip I wanted: SHOPPING & FOOD! We only had 2 days in the city but boy did we take advantage of it! And we sure did eat a lot!
I love that in Singapore, it’s perfectly okay to have about 8 meals. Unfortunately you can’t chew gum, spit or be gay. Not gay as in happy, gay as in homosexual. Apparently it’s illegal?! Well, we still happened to stumble upon 3 lesbian bars on our last night so I guess it can’t be that bad.
We landed in Singapore around 1pm, got to the fabulous Scarlet Hotel and ventured off to do some shopping. We went a little shopping crazy on Orchard Road - I missed Zara so much - and after about 5 hours of shopping we decided, it’s time for food. We made our way back to Chinatown and found the hawker center in the Chinatown Complex. Vini had chicken rice and roast pork with rice for about $5. I had some vegetarian plate for about the same price. SO CHEAP and SO GOOD!
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Posted by: Maggie Ha
Category: Other, Reviews, random, travel
Tags: adventure, asia, asian, holiday, seafood, Singapore, travel, trip, vacation
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I’m off for a 7 day foodie and shopping adventure in Singapore and Hong Kong! Don’t worry, I plan to eat lots, take lots of photos, and fully recap the main events. In the meantime, happy cooking!
(image via ffffound)
Posted by: Maggie Ha
Category: Other, random, travel
Tags: vacation
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