My Very First Blog

During my Penang trip last year, I had the opportunity to taste for the very first time Joez Coconut Jelly at Dato Keramat Road in George Town.



Located near Penang Times Square, this shop sells not only coconut jelly but also pandan coconut juice and coconut shake. Claiming to be the best in town and the one and only original coconut jelly in Malaysia, Joez Coconut Jelly (aka Penang Coconut Jelly) is also available at KL Sentral and possibly in some supermarkets too!



It was a pretty hot day in Penang and my Penang food tour guides, bloggers Ken and Ann had just brought me to the Floating Temple. I guess we were all thirsty after visiting the temple and needed something to drink.

This Penang Coconut Jelly was refreshing and perfect as a thirst quencher. The jelly was so smooth and soft, and it just melted in my mouth without the need to chew or bite. It's also slightly sweet, making it a good choice for dessert.



Ann ordered the coconut milk shake which came with black pearls inside, but she did not seem to like it. Probably too sweet and too milky, and very little coconut taste. Well, I did not try it - I was just fine with my coconut jelly haha!



Loads of fresh young coconuts inside the shop!



I like that they do not put in any preservatives inside the coconut jelly.



If you ever visit Penang, do drop by this place and try their coconut jelly. Priced at RM4.20 (not sure if they have increased the price since last year), Joez Coconut Jelly is worth a try especially on a hot day!



Address : 201, Jalan Dato Keramat, George Town, Penang.
Opens : 8am - 7pm daily
Tel : 604 -229 6063
Email : info@joezcoconut.com.my
Joez Coconut Jelly Facebook Page

For the very first time in the history of my blog, I am going to talk about a recipe haha! Ok, so this is a very simple recipe to make your very own Apple Kuzu Dessert.

This is supposed to be an ideal warm dessert for the cold winter so it may be totally inappropriate for the hot weather spell we are experiencing in Malaysia lately. But don't let that stop you from trying. LOL!

Firstly, The Ingredients ....

1 red apple (preferably organic)
1 pint apple juice (optional)
1 teaspoon Kuzu
1 tablespoon cinnamon (optional)

The above portion will be adequate to serve 1-2 people (in fact, I think it's just enough for me alone!) so if you want to serve more than 2 people, adjust the amount accordingly.

Next, The Method ....

1. Cut the red apple into small cubes.



Note that I suggest using organic apples because I include the skin as well which may contain pesticides if you are not using the organic ones. Alternatively, you can exclude the skin if you wish, but including the skin will give you better texture when you bite into the apple cubes.

By the way,  how large or small you cut the cubes is up to you. I just seem to prefer smaller cubes.

2. Add water (preferably filtered since we are already talking healthy here haha!) and make sure the apple cubes are entirely covered with the water. 



Alternatively, you may want to use apple juice which you can buy from shops, or you can make yourself using your own juicer at home.

In my case, I only use filtered water. No apple juice. Too lazy to juice the apples! LOL!

3. Boil the apple chunks in water or apple juice for about 5 - 8 minutes. After that, turn to low heat and let it simmer. You may want to add in the cinnamon at this stage. In my case, I did not add the cinnamon as I did not have any in my kitchen! LOL!

4. Take out 1 teaspoon of kuzu and mix it with 1 tablespoon of water to produce a smooth paste. 



OK, I'm using a tablespoon instead because I wanted a bit more. Haha.

Not sure what is kuzu? It is a kind of climbing plant native to Southeast Asia. Some spell it as kudzu, like this packet which I bought from the Woods Macrobiotic shop in SS2. You can buy kuzu from organic shops or health food stores.



Kuzu has many health benefits too long to mention here - you may want to google it. Kuzu can also be used as a thickening agent in place of cornstarch or arrowroot powder.

After mixing with water, this is how my kuzu paste looks like.



5. Add the kuzu paste into the apple cubes and water or apple juice mix, stir for a while and turn off the fire. The liquid will thicken a little.

6. Your Apple Kuzu Dessert is now ready to be served warm! Enjoy :)



Didn't I tell you earlier that this is a very simple recipe? Haha! Try it and let me know if you like this Apple Kuzu Dessert!

Sometimes I like to daydream, and at other times, I love to reminisce about the past.

Note : This work and recording is copyrighted. All rights reserved. 

It's time to get back to blogging about my Penang trip last year. This post will be about my very first visit to the Floating Temple of Penang.

But first, if you have missed my previous posts about Penang, these links will help you get up to speed.

1. Taking The Aeroline Bus To Penang
2. Fooyo Fried Ice Yogurt @ Prangin Mall, Penang
3. Discovering The Murals Of George Town
4. The Steel Rod Sculptures Of George Town
5. Walking The Streets Of George Town (Part 1)
6. Walking The Streets Of George Town (Part 2)
7. My Visit To Fort Cornwallis
8. Penang Laksa And Cendol @ Joo Hooi Cafe
9. Penang Food Hunt : Cecil Street Market Hawker Centre
10. Penang Food Hunt : Bak Kwa Bun And Duck Leg Wrap
11. Penang Ais Tingkap (Window Sherbet) @ Tamil Street

So after tasting the Penang Ais Tingkap, I visited the Floating Temple with the help of Penang food blogger Ken and lifestyle blogger Ann, both of whom acted as my tour guides. Also known as the Hean Boo Thean Temple, it is called the floating temple because it appears to be floating on the sea.



Located at Lebuhraya Merdeka off Weld Quay in George Town, the temple is actually perched at the water's edge within the reclamation area of Yeoh Jetty. To get there, you need to park your car at quite some distance and take a walk along narrow lanes.



That's Ann in front of me with Ken further ahead.



Soon, we reached the entrance to the temple with its beautiful arch.



The temple consists of two stories. This is the main hall as seen from the front.



Lots of red lanterns hanging from the ceiling.



The pillars supporting the temple's front porch are decorated with hand-crafted dragons swirling around them.

A closer look at one of the dragon pillars.



Originally, the Hean Boo Thean Temple was just a simple wooden shrine on stilts, perched over the sea. It was often inundated during high tides. In 2012, it was reconstructed and expanded to become a 2-storey concrete temple.



I have no idea how they build the temple. As you have seen earlier, the lane leading to the temple is pretty narrow and it's quite impossible to move large concrete objects across it. Perhaps they transported those materials with boats at sea?



A lotus mural can be seen at the center of the temple compound.



There are two pavilions - one on the right and the other on the left side of the temple compound.



One of the Pavilions where you can sit down to enjoy the view of the sea.



There is a staircase with two arches above it going down to a lower platform heading towards the sea. Perhaps that's where people can arrive at the temple by boat.



Ken was taking a photo of Ann at the lower platform while I was taking a photo of them! LOL!



By the way, during high tide, the sea would flood this lower platform. That would be interesting to see, but during my visit, the sea was at low tide.

Flanking both sides of the staircase and the double arches are large lotus flower pots.





A close shot of a lotus flower.



To the right of the staircase is a High Lantern Dragon Column.



In the middle of the staircase at the lower platform, there is an altar though I am not sure what this altar is for.



Closer shot of the altar.



The second arch at the lower platform nearest to the sea is known as the Dragon Gate. According to legend, if a koi fish were to jump over the Dragon Gate, it would turn into a Dragon.



Perhaps this was why this Dragon Gate was constructed at this lower platform. Since the platform would be flooded during high tide, there is perhaps a small chance that a koi fish from the sea would get to 'jump' over this gate. LOL!



On the second floor of the temple is the main shrine of Guan Yin, the Goddess Of Mercy.



On the roof top of the main shrine are two prancing dragons and three Taoist deities Fuk Luk Sau. Fuk represents good fortune, Luk prosperity and Sau longevity.



The front part of the main shrine is lined with 24 figurines (12 on each side) depicting 24 Tales Of Filial Piety.





The view of the first floor or the lower deck from the the second floor. Can you see the lotus mural, the staircase with the two arches leading to the lower platform and flanking on both sides, the Pavilions and also the High Lantern Dragon Column on the right?



It would be interesting to see how this Floating Temple looks like when lighted up at night!

Last Saturday my family and I went to Grand Harbour Restaurant at Fahrenheit88 mall in Bukit Bintang, KL for dim sum breakfast. Located at LG2 floor, it is accessible from inside the mall itself or from the back entrance.



It was my first time parking in Fahrenheit88. Parking fee was RM6 for the first three hours and RM1 for every subsequent hour. Definitely much cheaper than Pavilion KL which charges RM3 every hour!

It was also my first time dining in this Hong Kong-style dim sum restaurant. As there were five of us, we ordered quite a lot of dim sum. These were the food we ate...

Wanton soup



Fresh juicy prawns in the wanton dumplings. Not bad.

Steamed radish cake (lo bak gou)



Did not quite like this one.

Barbecued pork bun (char siew bao)



This was average. The ones at Canton-i were much better!

Cheesy egg tart



Didn't get to try these cheesy egg tarts as we only ordered two. So not sure if they were good or not.

Freshly baked egg tarts.



Yummy egg tarts, but I think Tong Kee's is better.



Quail egg shrimp dumpling



I actually ordered this because it looks cute! Haha! Then again,  I always like quail eggs and shrimp dumplings but I never thought of them in this combination :)

Shrimp dumplings (har gow)



Yummy! My favorites in any dim sum since I like shrimps! Most importantly, the shrimps must be fresh and juicy.

Steamed glutinous rice with chicken (lo mai gai)



This was super delicious! Maybe because I did not manage to find them in other dim sum restaurants and was craving for it like mad. LOL!

Steamed yam cake (wu tau gou)



Did not like this yam cake. Seriously I have eaten better ones at the dim sum stalls bought from the market. OK, my advice is do not order both the radish cake and the yam cake in this restaurant!

Fried radish cake



This was  below average for me. I prefer the ones at Canton-i.

Wa tip



Not sure what you call these in English, but it's basically shrimp dumplings with some fried stuffs sticking to the side. Not sure what to make of it.

Shrimp rice roll 



The chee cheong fun (rice roll) was smooth and the shrimps inside were yummy.

Pork shrimp dumpling (siu mai)



I don't really fancy siu mai but I guess it's a must-order at every dim sum. They were pretty OK.

Water chestnut cake (maa tai gou)



This was my absolute favourite dim sum that day. The best at this Grand Harbour Restaurant! Love the translucent appearance of this cake. There were chopped water chestnuts embedded inside each piece. The taste was not too sweet. Just perfect!



If there is just one item I would like to order again at Grand Harbour Restaurant, it must be the water chestnut cake.

We also ordered a plate of Shrimp fried rice (did you notice we ordered mostly shrimps dishes? LOL!) but I forgot to take a photo of it. There were a few more items we wanted to order like the durian puffs, tea pot bun (lau sar bao), roast duck, crispy roast pork (siu yuk) and wanton noodles, but we were just too full. Maybe next round.

I also ordered their Hong Kong milk tea but sad to say, it was not on par with the milk tea I have tasted in Hong Kong.



Oops! Only remember to take a photo of the milk tea after I had drank it halfway. LOL!

Overall, the Grand Harbour Restaurant is a pretty decent dim sum restaurant (although slightly overpriced) in my opinion, but it still falls short of my expectation. Maybe I should not compare it with the dim sum I have eaten in Hong Kong. If you have not tried the dim sum at this restaurant, do give it a try. Besides, you can take the opportunity to visit the Tokidoki Wonderland Exhibition at Fahrenheit88 and the Batman Exhibition at Pavilion KL across the road after your dim sum meal!

But honestly, can anyone tell me where to get REALLY good dim sum (but will not burn a hole in my pocket) in KL?