HOMEMADECOOKIES@ARIYASOMVILLA

I've always been a big fan of Delia Smith as all her recipes work and this ones no exception - "Chocolate Nut Crunchies". Of course, I made a few minor modifications! Easy to make - a quick tip - if your working in a hot kitchen refrigerate the mixture before forming into balls - its easier to work with the dough. Bake quickly - about 12 minutes.

Should be on the menu @ Ariyasomvilla Boutique Hotel and Spa soon.

As most people know Ariyasomvilla is located in Sukhumvit Soi 1 - about 100m from Bumrungrad Hospital ..... not that with my cookies you'll need the hospital!!!

FRESHBREAD@ARIYASOM

With just a little flour, yeast, olive oil, salt and water you can make great tasting fresh bread. This recipe is from the famous baker - Richard Bertinet. I've prepared this bread several times and it has always come out well.

The only other ingredient is effort - making bread takes effort - quite a bit of physical effort actually. Bertinet's kneading method is a little different and pretty strenuous but the results are always worth it.

Ariyasomvilla is just a 100m or so from Bumrungrad and a short walk from Pleonchit BTS station.

For details of the hotel or the restaurant ( Na Aroon) contact us on 66(0)2-2548880 or write to me on davidlees@ariyasom.com

Yoga@ariyasomvilla

For the last few months we've ben hosting the Monday evening meditation classes run by Aj. Pandit. These have proved popular and we regularly get 25 - 30 meditators attending.

From the 14th June we will add a pre mediation yoga class from 18.00 - run by well known yoga teacher Khun Natsuko . The aim is to help the body feel more comfortable during the mediation practice. For anyone who has done mediation - anything that helps reduce the pain has got to be a bonus!

We are going to run these sessions for free for the next few weeks and see how they are received - so do come don and join in both the Yoga and the Meditation.

David

Queen of puddings@Ariyasomvilla

Queen of puddings is a dessert from my childhood - I quite frequently make it and serve it in our restaurant "Na Aroon". We often ate this dish in a restaurant in north Wales - The West Arms at Glanamon DG ( spelling) - well it is about 37 years since I went there!

I found the recipe in my Mothers old cookbook - The Good Housekeeping Cooking Compendium - published in about 1953!

Anyway, it's all pretty easy - fresh bread crumbs, butter, sugar, vanilla, lemon rind - combine - add pour boiling milk over and let stand for 20 minutes. Separate 4 eggs - beat the 4 egg yolks into the bread crumb and milk mixture. Divide into several ramekins and bake in the oven - about 200c for 30 mins.

The pudding should be firm when you take it from the oven - coat with a thin layer of strawberry jam. Beat the egg whites and add the sugar when it gets towards stiff peaks. I also add a little vinegar - it's supposed to help the meringue harden. Pile the meringue mixture on to each ramekin.

Turn the oven right down and even leave the door open a little - it's more a drying process than cooking - take 1 hour + . The meringue should be crispy - mine always goes a little brown as I use crystal brown sugar not white.

Serve with a little fresh cream - and enjoy...........

Ariyasomvilla Bangkok Boutique Hotel

Ariyasomvilla Hotel near Bumrungrad Hospital.

Hope to see you in our Restaurant - " Na Aroon"

Sayadaw U Tsuzana @ Ariyasomvilla

Mark down the 8th October in your diary. Sayadaw U Tsuzana will be @Ariyasomvilla to deliver a Dharma discourse - 'The way to happiness through vipassana meditation". We normally gather at about 18.30 and the discourse will normally commence at about 19.00. For more information call us on 02-2548880/3.

Ariyasomvilla a Bangkok Boutique Hotel

Ariyasomvilla a Hotel near Bumrungrad.

www.ariyasom.com

Birthday Bash @ Ariyasomvilla

September is the month of our "Big Boss" K. Ayre's birthday and of course we celebrated at Ariyasomvilla. We started with a traditional ceremony - we invited 5 monks to come and chant and give the birthday girl and all of us a blessing. The monks were then feed with a combination of our delicious vegetarian and seafood .

After the Monks had blessed us all and we had "extended our merit" we also headed to "Na Aroon" restaurant for a great birthday lunch and some birthday cake too.

"Na Aroon" besides being the name of our restaurant was actually the name of K Ayre's grandmother. Ariyasomvilla was her house and she no doubt celebrated a number of birthdays and other events in the old house. So it's great that her grand daughter is still living in the house and celebrating her birthday there as well. Tradition is still alive and well in Bangkok @Ariyasomvilla.

Ariyasomvilla a Bangkok Boutique Hotel.

Ariyasomvilla a Hotel near Bumrungrad Hospital.

Tarte Sablee au Chocolat@Ariyasomvilla

I seem to have come across "ChezPim" blog a bit late in life - K Pim Techamuanvivit - a Thai living, I believe, in San Francisco has an fascinating blog on food and beverage and has just produced a great Book - "The Foodie Handbook". The blog gets an amazing 500,000 hits a month.

Well I read the book and it contains some great recipes - I've now made the Tarte Sablee au Chocolat about 3 times and it has come out well each time.

The basic necessity is to make the short crust pastry - pate sablee - very short - very rich and delicious. Butter, sugar, salt, flour and an egg is that's required. Bake the pastry shell blind - about 10 - 12 mins.

The filling is also simplicity - beat eggs, egg yolk and a little sugar together ( ribbon stage). Melt good quality chocolate ( 70%) and add butter. Combine the chocolate mixture and the egg mixture - pour into the pastry shell and bake a further 15 - 20 minutes - or at least until just set.

Let it cool and set a little and eat with either vanilla ice cream or fresh cream or both!!

She also has a recipe for Frangipane fruit tart which was equally wonderful - I found fresh figs from Doi Khum and used those in the pie!

Come and try some of our home made desserts at Na Aroon - Ariyasom' restaurant.

Ariyasomvilla - a Bangkok Boutique Hotel

Ariyasomvilla - a Hotel near Bumrungrad Hospital