Sushi Hon, Westfield Sydney, CBD

We had a site visit to the beautiful State Theatre on Market St today and I definitely did not expect the interiors to be so incredibly beautiful! It was the biggest clash of styles with Baroque, Neoclassical, Greek and Art Deco all combined to somehow create a gorgeous interior. I really was mesmerised and would love to have this over the top style for my house one day, a la Marie Antoinette ;)

Anyway, I met up with the boy afterwards for some jeans shopping. That was actually the longest time I've spent just shopping for something he needed! Normally I'm the one out buying things... The shop assistant at YD was definitely one of the nicest ones I met and was so incredibly eager and helpful with all the different styles - he really knew his stuff! I chatted with him while the boy tried on at least 10 pairs of jeans and he mentioned that the atmosphere at races are amazing and convinced me that I should go for the experience! Does anyone have any comments about the Spring races? I love how everyone dresses up for the occasion! With all the fancy hats haha. It definitely is something I want to go to at least once. He ended up buying a black pair of jeans with a tinge of blue, and we thanked the helpful assistant and were on our merry way for some dinner.

If it's one thing that I love, it would have to be fancy sushi! Sushi Hon on the level 5 food court in Westfield Sydney definitely caught my eye with all these exotic looking sushi on their menu. And the best thing about sushi trains is being able to eat as soon as you sit down!

Lion King Roll, $5.80

Consisting of a coleslaw centre topped with grilled salmon doused in teriyaki sauce and kewpie mayonaise, both of us agreed that this was a winner. Great start!

Blue Mountain, $6.80

Once again, grilled teriyaki salmon sushi, topped with a scallop and a mountain of avocado with a sprinkling of fish roe! This definitely was a hard one to eat as it was a massive sushi tower!

Gold Butterfly, $6.80

If you can see the trend going on, we've been getting all the expensive plates because they're not normal offerings on normal sushi trains... The presentation for this one was lovely with the scallops being sliced in half and spread out to look like butterflies on top of a coleslaw and avocado centred sushi piece.

Jumping Crab Roll, $5.80

Crab innards topped with something that I'm not too sure what it is but it sure tasted great!

Cheese Dragon Roll, $6.80

I liked the cheese in this one, but I've had better tasting Dragon Rolls elsewhere. Not to mention there were still bones in the eel which managed to get stuck in my teeth... Awks.

Bamboo Roll, $4.80

I adored the sweet marinated tofu strips inside this roll which was topped with slices of creamy avocado.

Twins, $4.80

The prawn tempura was wonderully crispy, sitting on top of a buttery egg mix and was finished with a little dollop of sweet chilli sauce.

Creme Brulee, $6.80

And to finish, I nabbed a creme brulee! The strawberries were sweet and juicy. The toffee top made a satisfying crack as I hit it with my spoon and eagerly dug in to the sweet, creamy yet eggy custard. Addictive combination.

As you can see, overall price did total to quite a bit, which was incredibly easy when you're going "Ooh, what's that?" while already making a grab at it. Though all in all, the sushi did taste amazing so no complaints there.

I even managed to fit in some late night shopping - new tights, jeans, and a tank top!

Sushi Hon

188 Pitt St
Level 5 Westfield Sydney
Sydney, NSW, 2000

Asian-style peanut noodle salad

After my workout this morning, I was feeling quite hungry and wanted to make something filling. We had a little bit of peanut butter left in the jar and I decided it'd be good to use it all up!

To make these noodles, I used Japanese konnyaku/shirataki noodles. They are made from the natural plant fibres of konjac yam plant and have close to zero calories and carbs! That's right, you heard me, ALMOST ZERO! So fantastic for those of you who want to diet yet still want meals that will fill you up. Check out the nutritional information below!

What you will notice about these noodles when you open them up is the pungent fishy smell of the solution they use to soak the noodles in (otherwise the noodles will disintegrate as they are made from natural plant fibres) so I would really recommend really rinsing these noodles out for a few minutes at least until that smell is gone or else you WILL taste it in your dish! I also let it sit in boiling water after I rinsed it to warm up the noodles and also to ensure that smell is no longer there. These noodles on their own however don't have much of a taste so it's great for using to soak up the flavours of the sauce that you will use. I really enjoy the chewy texture of these noodles as well! Personally, I absolutely love these noodles!

This recipe really is quite flexible and you can add any vegetables or meat that you like! I love the wonderful colours that sit so prettily in the bowl and makes it quite reminiscent of the Korean rice dish bibimbap. It is also really quick to prepare so who's hungry?

Asian-style peanut noodle salad
An original recipe by Crystal Noir

Dressing sauce for the vegetables
2 teaspoons Asian fish sauce
1 teaspoon brown sugar
2 teaspoons rice vinegar
Chilli oil to taste (depending on how spicy you want it!)

Peanut sauce for the noodles
1 teaspoons Asian fish sauce
1 teaspoon rice vinegar
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon peanut butter
1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
Chilli oil to taste

Tuna and noodle salad
1 can tuna (I used springwater and can easily be subbed for mushrooms or edamame beans for you vegetarians/vegans out there! Personally though, I think some pieces of marinated chicken would taste better than tuna.)
100 grams noodles of choice
Cucumber, cut into a thin julienne
Carrots, cut into a thin julienne
Spring onion/scallions, chopped
Roasted peanuts, chopped
A GOOGY EGG WOULD ALSO BE FANTASTIC WITH THIS!

Make the dipping sauce
Whisk ingredients in a small serving bowl, making sure to dissolve the sugar. Pour equal amounts into the carrots and cucumber and let it pickle slightly for at least 15 minutes.

Make the peanut dressing
In a blender or small food processor, puree all ingredients to a smooth sauce, about the thickness of heavy cream. Pour into a serving bowl. OR you could just do what I did which was mix it all in the jar that the peanut butter came in until all incorporated!

For the noodles
Rinse under a running tap for a few minutes in a colander and then drain. Move the noodles into a separate bowl and cover with boiling water, letting it sit for about 5 minutes or so.

To serve
If you make this in larger amounts, you could just put all the vegetables in separate bowls and let everyone choose and decorate their own portion. If you're making it yourself, toss the noodles with the peanut sauce until well incorporated (don't be shy about adding a bit of extra water to help it mix better).

Add the vegetables and tuna on top of each bowl and scatter with chopped peanuts and spring onion. Serve!

Yogurt love

I spent the day with the boy today which was definitely nice and relaxing as I don't have the chance to hang with him as much as I'd like to. He drove over to my place and I made him sunbake with me outside as the weather was so nice! I was craving baked eggs so that was what I made for lunch and it went beautifully with bread.

After lunch, we hit up Westfield Burwood where I had to buy a few things, namely oats and some sugar-free drinking chocolate. I managed to score a box of Lindt's Swiss Gold Dark Chocolate Pralines for $5, saving $10!! I was ecstatic. I don't understand why it was so cheap though... Is it because people aren't into dark chocolate as much as milk or white? Well, I definitely am not complaining because they taste amazing.

And what day is complete without frozen yogurt? Noggi is like my second home.

I love their blood orange flavour! I know you guys have probably heard me rave about Noggi's blood orange frozen yogurt many times but it tastes sooo good. And I was super happy they still had to flavour there from last week so it was a definite order along with our usual biscotti. And no frozen yogurt is complete without toppings! You can only see pineapple there but there was mochi and almonds underneath the mound of pineapple. A combination of chewy, crunchy, and juicy. Bliss.

Baked Eggs
an original recipe by Crystal Noir

Serves 2

This is the type of recipe that you need to keep safe for a cold Winter's day. It really is so simple to make, and it will warm you right up. Just serve with some buttered toast or you can even make some garlic bread to mop up the flavoursome sauce.

Ingredients

1 large tomato, cut into chunks
4-6 tablespoons tomato paste or your choice of sauce (I used Leggo's tomato and mozzarella oven bake)
50g frozen corn, defrosted
50g mozzarella cheese or your choice of cheese
2 eggs
salt and pepper
Spring onion to garnish
Bread to serve

Method

1. Preheat oven to 200C. Divide the tomato paste between the two ramekins. Top with tomato chunks, corn, and any other vegetables of your preference (you can add in as many vegetables as you want or as much as your ramekin can fit! You could add mushroom, peas, etc. The possibilities are endless. I even added a tablespoon of leftover fried rice here! And I'm sure you meatlovers out there might want to add in some bacon, ham or even some chorizo). Add shredded cheese and break an egg on top. Season liberally with salt and pepper and sprinkle spring onion on top. Bake in the oven for 10-20 minutes or until egg is cooked through. Serve with char grilled bread.

Hello Mr Ducky

Well don't you look tasty?

Cooked an egg inside bread on our toastie machine! I love this toastie, it's so useful.

I have to go to work later for a couple of hours. Don't get me wrong, I love my current job but it's just that I should be looking for a proper architectural job as I graduate next year already (eep!)... But no one wants an undergraduate :(