• Monday – steamed bok choy,  miso tuna
• Tuesday – vegetable chili and couscous
• Wednesday – japanese tofu curry
• Thursday – leftover tofu curry
• Friday -  Thai-style fish cakes, egg and peas fried rice

I was up from 2.30am this morning after only 2 hours’ sleep.  I had chest pains and my stomach was in knots.  My driving test was booked for 10.24 this morning.  My confidence was low after hitting the curb twice during yesterday’s lesson, something I rarely did in previous lessons. 

I had a pre-test lesson at 9.20am.  My instructor left all the ‘show me/tell me’ part of the syllabus for this morning and it didn’t seem too daunting.   We did a reverse around a corner, as well as a turn in the road.  I went for a spin down a test route. 

We then drove into the test centre and I had to reverse the car into a bay.  We then proceeded to the waiting room.  Another lady was due to do her test at the same time and she was a bundle of nerves, while I was strangely calm.  Perhaps I had given up hope, or I was exhausted from lack of sleep.  Either way, I was determined to keep my nerves in check and get the damn test over and done with.

At around 10.25am, my examiner called my name and I had to sign some paperwork.  We then did an eye test – I had to read the number plate of his car from a distance – I had it memorised when I drove into the centre earlier.  He didn’t need to know that.

We approached the car (I was using my instructor’s) and he asked me to show him how I’d check if the brake lights were working.   For the ‘tell me’ question, I had to tell him how I’d know if the ABS braking system wasn’t working.  He then got me to start the car and he asked me to bay-park the car.  I was tempted to tell him that I already did! I drove the car out of the bay and to the right, and then reversed the car back in.  The car was positioned between the lines.  Manoeuver – done.  Hallelujah! No reversing around a corner! 

We then drove out of the centre and into a housing estate nearby.  I was asked to pull over to the left and then drive off when I was ready.  This was requested of me 5 times during the test.  At one point, he asked me to pull over on a busy road, but when I was going to drive off, the car stalled.  Yikes.  Panic set in and I should have pulled the hand brake but I didn’t.  I stepped on the brake when the car rolled ever so slightly and once cars overtook me, I drove off when the coast was clear. 

I found myself at a T-junction and was asked to turn right.  Across the road from me were at least 20 cyclists waiting to cycle off.  I checked the road to my left, right, left and turned to the right.  As I did, I saw a car speeding down towards me on the right.  I knew I had made him slow down, and perhaps should have waited for him to pass. 

We then drove on a route where the speed limit was 50mph on a country road and boy did I fly along!

The independent driving section of the test was on a route I was familiar with, but I suspect I forgot to indicate when turning right.  

We were driving in a housing estate when he asked me to pull over and explained that I had to do an emergency stop.  It entailed me driving off and at some point, he was going to raise his palm up to indicate that I had to stop the vehicle abruptly.  My instructor and I only practised this manoeuver yesterday.  

We finally approached the route back to the test centre.   There is a small junction which I stopped at and on my left was the other test vehicle but we were both going extremely slow and I decided to jump ahead and drive into the centre.  &%$$! I should have waited for the other vehicle.  It dawned on me then that I’d possibly failed at the last second.

Thankfully, I didn’t.

4 minors. 33 lessons, no lie-ins in the last 4 months.  I finally passed my test.   I wouldn’t have been able to do it without the support and encouragement of Hubby, my friend E across the channel and my instructor Ally who has the patience of a saint. 

The errors I listed above made me realise that this is just the beginning and a pass doesn’t guarantee mistake-free driving.

But for now, I’m just looking forward to my weekend lie-ins.

• Monday – salmon and lentils
• Tuesday – grilled lamb steaks, roasted butternut squash, tomato and beetroot salad
• Wednesday – squash and beetroot soup
• Thursday – ayam masak merah, okra stir-fry
• Friday – lamb meatballs in tamarind sauce

I then did some independent driving along the test route.  I broke the speed limit of 30mph and did 32mph instead, but still the car behind me kept driving up the rear of my car.  I was tempted to brake suddenly.  Driving gives me road rage.   Someone once told me ‘better late than dead on time’.  I think I’m going to get that made into a car sticker. 

Lessons learnt today:

• Don’t panic – you end up makin stupid mistakes
• Do plenty of observations when parking/reversing
• Don’t rush – give yourself time to think

I decided to make a roasted beetroot risotto using pot barley for dinner on Thursday last week.  I left work on time for a change, but by the time I got home, I was cream crackered.  I decided to go ahead with meal plan anyway, but it wasn’t going to be a risotto that required a lot of stirring.

My beetroot risotto turned out delicious, much to Hubby’s surprise. 

Ingredients: (serves 2)

• 2 small beetroot (or 1 medium)
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 yellow onion, peeled and chopped
• 1 clove of garlic, peeled and chopped
• 3/4 cup pot barley
• 550ml vegetable stock
• 1/2 cup dried porcini mushrooms, soaked in hot water for 20 minutes and drained
• a knob of butter
• salt and pepper to taste

Method

1. Pre-heat the oven at 200 degrees celsius
2. Place the beetroot on a foil-lined baking tray
3. Roast in the oven for 30 minutes, until the flesh is soft when you prick it with a fork
4. Once cooked, leave to cool for 10 minutes.  Peel away the skin and dice the beetroot. Keep aside while you cook the risotto
5. Heat oil in a heavy based pot
6. Over a medium heat, sweat the onions with a pinch of salt for 2 to 3 minutes until translucent
7. Add the pot barley, followed by half the stock
8. Put the lid on, and leave to cook for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally
9. After 15 minutes, pour in the rest of the stock and leave to cook for 20 minutes (with the lid partially on) or until the stock has evaporated
10. After 20 minutes, add the diced beetroot and drained porcini mushrooms.  Stir gently for a minute until the risotto turns red
11. Add the a knob of butter and stir it into the risotto
12. Season with salt and pepper before serving

We only had time for one manoeuver today, but I more than made up for it when I drove Hubby to our favourite garden centre for brunch.  I ended up tailing a little milk truck and couldn’t overtake for at least a minute.  I saw traffic building up behind me and I could feel telephatic message sent my way from those cars egging me to overtake.  I finally got a chance and put my foot on it to overtake.  We had a lovely brunch and as I drove out of the garden centre, guess who was ahead of me.  The same milk truck.

Lessons learnt today:

• when approaching a junction, brake gently and ease into a lower gear, rolling into a stop.  Don’t speed up to the line and brake suddenly.  The latter was something I did all week in our little car
• plan ahead – if there is a bus stopped to let passenger off, overtake only if the road ahead is clear
• stay calm, don’t panic and don’t rush

Lesson #30 tomorrow.

The KitchenAid is back in action in my kitchen after a long hiatus.   I found an easy recipe for a lemon drizzle loaf in Bill’s Basics, and with the thumbs up from Hubby, was elbow deep in flour and polenta for an hour on Sunday afternoon.  The cake, as I kept referring to it, was ready in time for afternoon tea and we both enjoyed a few warm lemony slices. 

Here is the recipe for ease of reference.

Ingredients:

• 225g butter, softened at room temperature
• 225g caster sugar
• 3 eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla (not in original recipe)
• 100g ground almond
• 100g plain flour
• 100g polenta
• 2 tsp baking powder
• zest and juice of 1 lemon
• zest and juice of 1 lime
• 200g blueberries
• juice of a lemon plus 60g icing sugar for the lemon drizzle

Method

1. Pre-heat the oven at 180 degrees
2. Grease a 1kg loaf tin (I used a medium-sized one), and dust with flour
3. Cream butter and sugar until pale and light
4. Add the eggs into the butter/sugar mix one at a time ensuring the mixture is well combined before you add the next egg
5. Fold in the ground almond, flour, polenta, baking powder, zest and juice of lemon and lime
6. Gently fold in the blueberries (try not to bleed them berries)
7. Spoon the mixture into the loaf tin
8. Bake for 40 minutes
9. Cover the tin with foil and bake for another 20 minutes
10. Stick a toothpick into loaf (the middle especially) and if it comes out clean, then the cake is cooked
11. Once cooked, remove from the oven and leave to cool in the tin
12. Turn out the loaf onto a wire rack
13. Mix the lemon juice and sugar to make the drizzle
14. Pour the lemon syrup onto the loaf and leave to soak in
15. If your Hubby isn’t pestering you for a taste, leave the loaf for a while before serving!

For dinner tonight, I poached chicken supreme and then stir fried the cooked chicken with beansprouts.  The dish is devoid of any strong flavours and perfect if you’re feeling slightly under the weather.   I cooked rice with some of the poaching liquid, which I then served with the chicken and beansprouts. There’s plenty leftover tomorrow for Hubby’s dinner.   

• 1.5l cold water
• 1 inch ginger, peeled and crushed
• 1 clove of garlic, peeled and crushed
• 2 chicken supreme, skinless
• 1 tbsp vegetable oil
• 1 serving portion of beansprouts (roots removed)
• 2 tbsp kicap manis (dark soy)
• 1 tbsp oyster sauce
• 1 tbsp chinese rice wine
• a pinch of sugar
• a pinch of ground white pepper
• salt to taste
• a good handful of chopped coriander

1. Pour water in a medium pot and add in the ginger and garlic
2. Place on the stove, turn on the heat and bring to a boil
3. Once water is boiled, place chicken in the pot, put the lid on and turn off the heat.  Leave to cook for 20 minutes
4. After 20 minutes, remove chicken from the pot (reserve poaching liquid to cook rice or for stock) onto a plate
5. Slice the chicken into bite-size portion
6. Fish out the garlic and ginger from the stock and slice them
7. Heat oil in a wok and fry the garlic and ginger for 30 seconds
8. Add the chicken and beansprouts
9. Add the soy, oyster sauce, rice wine and about 50ml of the poaching liquid
10. Stir for a minute, season with sugar, salt and pepper
11. Give the chicken and beansprouts another stir for a minute
12. Turn off the heat and garnish with chopped coriander
13. Serve with rice

The rice has a subtle kick and the chicken was very tender.  I flash fried the chicken pieces in a frying pan after fishing them out of the pot of cooked pilaf as they looked a tad anemic and I like my chicken to have a bit of colour.

All in all, a good recipe and one I’d bookmark for weekend dinners.  Here is the recipe, modified very slightly, for ease of reference.

• 2 tbsp olive oil (plus extra)
• 6 chicken drumsticks (this is all my butcher had), skin removed (marinated in 1 tsp turmeric powder, a pinch of salt and freshly ground pepper for 10 minutes)
• 1 large yellow onion, peeled and chopped
• 2 cloves of garlic, peeled and crushed
• 4 cm ginger, peeled and grated
• 3 tsp ras el hanout
• 400g basmati rice, washed
• 550ml chicken stock (the original recipe called for 750ml but my rice turned out slightly overcooked)
• 1 tbsp honey
• zest of a lemon (original recipe called for orange zest)
• 1 tbsp sherry vinegar
• salt and pepper to taste
• a handful of frozen peas
• a handful of cashew nuts
• a handful of chopped coriander

1. Heat 2 tbsp oil in a large cast iron pot
2. Brown the chicken pieces for 2-3 minutes and remove to a plate
3. Top up the oil if necessary and fry the onions with a pinch of salt for 1 minute
4. Add in the garlic and ginger.  Fry for a further minute
5. Mix in the ras el hanout spice and leave to cook for a minute
6. Add the rice and chicken to the pot
7. Pour in the stock, followed by the honey, lemon zest and sherry vinegar
8. Bring the pot to boil and then reduce the heat to low
9. Put the lid on and leave to cook for 35 to 40 minutes until the rice is cooked.  Remove pot from the heat
10. Remove the chicken pieces from the pot, shaking off any rice
11. Add in the frozen peas to the pot and put the lid back on.  The peas will cook in the residual heat
12. Heat about 1 tbsp oil in a frying pan and brown the chicken pieces for 2 minutes (optional)
13. Remove the chicken from the frying pan and place on a plate lined with kitchen paper
14. Check for rice seasoning and add salt and pepper as required
15. Scatter cashew nuts and chopped coriander onto the rice
16. Serve the rice with chicken