Filipino makes it to MasterChef NZ Top 4

If you haven't been watching the latest edition of MasterChef NZ, you still have time to catch up with the Top 5 competition.  And there is good reason to watch, for we have our own 32 year old Leo Fernandez who made it to top 5!

 We weren't actually able to catch the early episodes ourselves.  A friend alerted us about this and we have been tuning in ever since.  We would have loved the episode where he showcased maja blanca and adobo!

If your region allows it, you can still watch the more recent episodes on 3 Now.  On TV, MasterChef is on Sundays at 7pm and on Mondays at 7.30pm.

In the meantime, here is one of Leo's recipes.  The judges found the lettuce spring roll very flavoursome so I would like to try that!

Photos and recipe from the TV3 website (no copyright infringement intended, such TV-related articles disappear over time so I would like to keep a copy here for archiving purposes).

To grow a tree, you first need to plant a seed

A friend gave us some avocadoes November of last year, and as is usual practice we would throw away the inedible parts (ie skin and seeds). However in this instance I had a flash of inspiration and decided to try and give the 3 seeds (or, in this case, pits) a second chance.  So I googled for the best way to get the plant going and pierced the pit with three toothpicks to suspend it on glass with its pointy end submerged in water.

Boodle fight

'We're going to have a boodle fight,' my friends said as a matter of factly while they busied themselves with covering the dining table with banana leaves.  There was also a lot of activity in the kitchen, so I knew food was involved.  Was there going to be a food fight?  Close, but not quite.

Philadelphia mini cheesecakes

Just saw this on my Facebook wall, and it looks easy to make.


More cheesecake recipes at the Kraft website.
(this is not a paid endorsement!)

Crispy Pork Belly

I came across this recipe from Annabel Langbein's website and I can just imagine how mouth-watering this recipe can be!  And to top it all, it just needs seasoning, pork, and milk!  I tried this recipe one Saturday night when we had friends over.  I was only able to get a morsel for my taste test and placed the rest on the table.  I never got to have a bite again - they made short work of it!