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I just haven’t been able to resist buying baguettes lately. My kids love the different toppings I’ve been putting on them. And obviously what better time to stuff yourself silly with baguette than when they’re on sale. Two for the price of one is so worth it.

I made this for breakfast last Sunday and again for lunch this week on my kids’ request. Simply lay strips of cheddar cheese slices along the length of the baguette and top off with a strip of streaky bacon. Pop them into the oven toaster for about 8-10 minutes.

I tell ya, the smell of bacon crackling in my oven toaster first thing in the morning is heavenly. I rarely buy streaky bacon but the bits of fat in it really do add a great sizzle of flavor.

If you’re making these as hor d’oeuvres for a party, you can cut the baguette into shorter lengths and stick a fancy toothpick in the center.

Skye stays back after school a few days a week, and I have to bring her a lunch box on those days. I know it’s a drag staying back on stifling hot afternoons so I try to cheer her up by bringing her surprise lunches that I know she loves.

This means I have to pretty much cook up something different each time. That’s why I started a new category for lunchbox ideas for the lunches I’ve been packing for her.

The other day, I was making chicken nuggets and needed french fries to go with them. I don’t normally do fries at home. I figure they’ll never taste as good as the ones at McD so I might as well buy from there.

But this time, I had a bag of frozen french fries in the freezer, the first bag I ever bought to try.

It doesn’t take long to deep-fry them, just about 5-6 minutes max.

See, they turned out very nice and crisp, not greasy even though I drained them in a strainer and didn’t use kitchen rolls to absorb the remaining oil afterwards. Skye loved it. Trouble is I can’t remember what brand french fries these are.

Skye, my 12-year-old daughter, stays back after school on certain days of the week and I’ve been packing lunch boxes for her. Chicken pie is a favorite and easy enough to make, especially with ready-made pastry. The weather is so hot and humid these days I try to spend as little time in the kitchen as possible.

This pre-packed Kawan brand pastry I found at Tesco comes in packets of 10 squares but you can use any brand from your regular grocery store. It’s very inexpensive and works like a charm, just be sure they’re at room temperature before you use them.

For the pie filling, you’ll need:

• 1 chicken breast, diced
• 1 large onion, diced
• 1 clove garlic, chopped
• 1/4 carrot, chopped
• 1/2 cup chicken stock + dash of salt, pepper and black pepper

Saute the onion and garlic in olive oil till soft and fragrant. Add carrot and chicken stock. Cook on medium heat till carrots are softened. Add chicken and let it simmer down till there’s very little sauce left.

Grease your baking tray with butter or margarine. Lay one pastry square on the tray. Scoop chicken filling into the center of the square. Remember you need to cover the top of that with another pastry square, so put in too much filling. Otherwise the sides of the pastry might split open during baking.

To seal the edges of the pie, press down with a fork to create a serrated effect. Pierce the top a few times with the fork to let the air escape when baking. Lastly, brush the top of the pie with egg yolk to give it that beautiful golden finish.

Bake at 180C (350F) for about 20 minutes. See how beautiful it turns out. The pastry is really soft and flaky. The filling is entirely made with fresh ingredients so it’s pretty healthy.

You can make this the night before and pack a lunch box to the office. Heat it up at the office and everyone will soon smell it and head to your desk! A great way to save on gas and lunch money too, don’t you think ?

One of the hardest things to resist when you’re at a kopitiam (new concept coffee shop) is the kaya toast, or coconut jam toast. The bread is so airy and light that when it’s toasted, it tastes so good with all that butter and kaya oozing out at every crunch.

But I’ve only ever ordered it once or twice in all the times I’ve been to a kopitiam. I just don’t believe in paying rm2-3 for two slices of bread, no matter how good it tastes.

And it’s so-oo easy to replicate at home too. I can get a whole loaf of this airy bread for around rm3 at Tesco or around rm2 at the market. Yes, a whole loaf, not two slices!

One loaf is enough for our family of five to have one heck of a teatime party, I tell you. It’s perfect too for when visitors or my nieces/nephews drop by. It’s cheap, it’s yummy, everybody loves it especially the kids.

The trick to getting it to taste like the ones at the kopitiam is to slob on lots of butter and kaya. That’s what makes theirs so yummy (and fattening too !).

I happened to stop by Tesco on a weekday morning and saw a mountain of honeydews (or rock melons) on sale. Everyone was making a beeline for it so I figured it had to be a good deal.

Before I could stop myself, I’d grabbed 3 beautiful honeydews whose fragrance I could smell through the skin. They turned out very sweet too.

Seasonal fruits are cheapest when they’re in abundance. I tend to over-buy simply because I can’t resist the prices, and then I have to use some of it for cooking before they go bad. Fruits like pineapples, apples and mangoes taste great when cooked.

Off-season fruits tend to be more expensive so I wouldn’t buy them till they’re in season. If you’re not picky and go with seasonal promotions, you can enjoy a wider variety of fruits and save money too.