Sorry for the lack of posts... Recently my microwave oven snapped, crackled and popped for the last time... (it was older than Alex , I believe).

I went looking around for a new machine and was tempted by one of these new-fangled steam/grill/convection/microwave things but I just didn't want to spend so much when all I really wanted was a convection microwave that would be my second cookie baking machine when my glorified toaster oven of a convection oven wasn't enough. I can only bake a 1/2 dozen standard size or a dozen 1.5 inch (barely bigger than bite-size) cookies at a time. A batch of cookies would take the better part of the afternoon.

I went to Fortress, Broadway and Tai Lin and finally, Best Denki and found prices ranged all the way up to HK$4880 - more than $600 US. I found an older model Whirlpool for less than HK$2000 and it's big enough to bake a tray of cookies, although the tray that came with the machine is round... It can also grill (broil) and the usual microwave functions: defrost, reheat, etc.

I made time to bake cookies and then some! The cookies I baked in both ovens and finished the cookie dough in record time! Then, I was craving puff pastry so made an apple tart and sausage rolls for snack time.









Alex's friend Jeremy has been staying at our place the past couple of nights due to an unexpected school suspension due to an influenza outbreak here. After SARS and with bird flu looming, the gov't didn't want to take any chances. So Primary schools and Kindergartens have been suspended until the end of the month, but not Secondary schools, so Maggie still has classes. Alex does have work to do though (actually, quite a bit) so hopefully the school year won't be extended. He's missing a total of 6 days so we have work in every subject to do. (Notice the papers on the coffee table in the photo of the boys playing Wii.) We're hoping to be back in the U.S. in mid-June.