Feast for the Senses...

Last week, we (aunts/uncles/cousins/grandparents/hubby/I) celebrated my maternal grandfather's 88th birthday. It was truly a fabulous time, and a Feast for the Senses!

My mom is one of nine brothers & sisters, and although she lives in Brazil, my aunts/uncles all live in Oz, as do my maternal grandparents. Growing up in Brazil, there weren't many 'Brazilians' of Chinese heritage, and I was often mistaken for a Japanese-Brazilian (Brazil is home to the largest Japanese population outside of Japan). So growing up I was not often exposed to Chinese culture, people and food (not like I am now). As previously mentioned, my family gatherings revolve around food, and lots of it...

My aunt's 'char siu' (Chinese barbeque pork - but a million times nicer than the kind you can buy from those 'roast duck/pork/etc' restaurants)

My grandma's 'famous' Yam & Belly Pork' dish (Chinese)

Uncle's Chickpea & Saffron Stew (US Food & Wine named him in the top 10 “hottest chefs alive”)

Uncle's (again) Roast Duck & Pork (Chinese) -

Grandaunt's Nonya (Malaysian) Zong Zi (glutinous rice wrapped in bamboo leaves)

Stuffed roast pork

Another aunt's Sambal Fish (Malaysian)

Lemon Meringue - my cousin, who recently returned from her honeymoon in Europe, made this amazing dessert...this had us literally breaking into song...(well, one person, who shall remain nameless, haha)

My aunt's 'croquembouche' of red bean buns (Chinese with a Western spin),

Haha, how cute is that?

My aunt's and mom all (but one) grew up in England after they left Malaysia in 1969, so they are all heavily 'British-influenced'.

I didn't get time to take a picture of my outfit that day, but I may reprise it today/this weekend and take a photo...

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