Little Potluck Christmas Dinner & Gift Exchange

There’s no gift exchange in the office this year.. first time ever! Haha.. Maybe it’s because that everyone was clearing their leaves and there’s only half of us or lesser left in the office… So this year we had a little one at Jennifer’s, something like the Christmas eve lunch we had last year at Mizi’s Bistro.

Jen’s living room nicely decorated with Christmas tree and her self made fire place!  Haha… creative eh…. what’s more creative is the fire. :D

Jen prepared Miang Kham, a Thai leaf-wrapped appetizer… basically daun kaduk leaves used to wrap a little bot of each ingredients like roasted coconut shavings and peanuts and , onions, cili padi, ginger, lime and dried shrimps, then with some sweet sauce (Jen uses plum sauce with some honey). Some people use palm sugar with fish sauce, well depends on your own liking :D Wrap in little parcel, into the mouth, and chew. It’s refreshing in a way but not everyone enjoy this appetizer.. perhaps it’s because of the raw greenish taste of the leaves.

She also prepared Vietnamese spring rolls… haha.. very much of an Asian feast that day.. and healthy! Complete with rice papers she bought in Oz during her visit to her brother’s, and ingredients are vermicelli (fat ones), lettuce, carrots, bean sprouts, fish cakes, lor bak slices (can use other type of meat dishes) , fresh mint leaves and sauce (Jen uses ground chilis with fish sauce) . Everything is on your own liking and creativity… you can use seafood like shrimps and crabmeat too if you like :D It may look like only little food, but they are so filling!! I had a couple of times in Vietnam Kitchen and they have slightly different ingredients.

Dip the rice paper in hot water to soften it and fill in the ingredients you favour, wrap and yum! The rice paper Jen has was thicker, so we have to dip them in hot water, the ones I had previously in Vietnam Kitchen was smaller and thinner, only need to brush water on it and it’s good to go :D The bigger size ones are actually better and easier to wrap, compared to the small ones where all the ingredients will fall off from the torn rice paper skin.

And I bought pie tee, which I thought the fillings are just so so… i think I’m gonna make pie tee cups for Chinese New Year next year and fill them up with home made sedap jiu hoo char!  yum!

And grabbed some some satays too :D

Mun bought over some mini doughnuts!

  Everyone dig in! Hungry hungry….. Gingerbread house!!

Photo session and gift exchange! Last year we draw names in advanced so we know who we’re getting the pressie for. This year we brought our pressie, stick them with numbers and everyone get to roll the dice for their pressie! Joanne got each of us a pressie too :D very thoughtful of her.. By the tree and fire place…..  At the stairs… :D Leslie had to take the photo, so he sent his wife in… 7 angels.. muahahahaha.. only few of us but we certainly enjoyed ourselves.. thanks to Jen for organizing… else it’s gonna be a boring Christmas this year… Cos I stayed at home whole day during Christmas day and it’s so hot outside!

Oh ya… went to hard Rock at night and i think this is the biggest tree I can find there… Shocking Rocking Pinkmas!

My Christmas gift this year :DFrom gift exchange, and thoughtful gifts from friends…..haha.. ok.. that little bath gels I bought myself… too cute to resist… n Mun gave me a knitted Santa with pockets full of sweets… I put it in the office.. so no photo of it :D

Bro’s back from his 3 months internship/training in Sheraton Langkawi, so came back with chocs!! so cheap there! like half the price here!! too bad he could not find rum & raisin Ritter for me…    And this morning, was awaken by Codie’s barking…(that’s he’s reaction when he hears loud unfamiliar noises, like firecrakers, fireworks, thunder) then I heard Jingle bells playing on the road…  looked out my window and saw a music band marching along the road playing songs… Saw the banner, and they are the Divine Land Marching Band  of Falun Dafa. 

And now, back to reality, it’s a Sunday evening and I’m not happy already! Am already feeling the bluess… Go figure…