Notes of the everyday housewife

Fried meat slices with preserved mustard

2010-09-17T16:10:00.000+08:00

FM dear,

fried meat strips with 'zha cai'

Found this recipe in my latest purchase "Authentic Homestyle Cuisine" by KS Lee, and tried it out last night. What caught my attention was the plum sauce, as I never thought that plum sauce would go well with preserved mustard ('zha cai'), but it did, and the recipe is so easy you can easily rustle up a plate for dinner. Besides I think you should be able to get the ingredients easily. Going to try it again with 'ham choy'. FJ gave it the thumbs up!

Ingredients :
200 g pork (cut into thin strips)
1 pc preserved mustard ('zha cai')
1 tbsp garlic

Marinade :
2 tsp cornflour
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp sesame oil

Seasoning :
3 tbsp plum sauce
1 tsp sugar

Method :
1) Marinade the pork strips with the marinade for about 30 minutes.
2) Wash the preserved mustard and cut into strips or sliced thinly.
3) Heat up 2 tbsp oil in wok and fry the garlic until fragrant. Add in preserved mustard and meat slices and stir fry a while.
4) Add in seasoning and continue stir frying until cooked. Dish up and serve with rice or porridge!

FJ's birthday.

2010-09-02T14:19:00.000+08:00

sweet potato onde-onde

birthday celebration in the Hokkien and Cantonese tradition. 2 red eggs and mee sua according to her Hokkien side and changshou (long life) noodles according to Cantonese tradition.

Dark Lady, My fair Lady and my creation "Pink Lady". Another amateurish attempt at cake decorating

Strawberry filling and whipped cream. Supposed to put in her favourite fresh strawberries but did not have time to run to the supermart to get it.

Watermelon Agar-agar

2010-08-11T18:16:00.001+08:00

watermelon agar-agar

I don't know why they call it watermelon agar-agar, as the recipe do not use any watermelon at all. Maybe the proper name should be "watermelon" agar-agar. Been some time since I made it, though I used to make it for the children's birthdays when they were younger.

Ingredients :
40g agar-agar strips
700 ml water
300g rock sugar
1 tsp rose essence
1 egg white, beaten until frothy
Melon seeds, raisins or black jelly
Red and green food coloring

Method :
1) Wash agar-agar strips and bring to boil with water until dissolved.

2) Add in sugar and continue boiling on medium flame until sugar dissolves. Remove from heat and add in the rose essence.

3) Place a deep bowl in large container of icy water. Strain the agar-agar mixture into the bowl.

4) Stir center with a fork while allowing the sides to set.

5) Gently add the frothy egg white with a fork, stirring all the while and making sure you get the whole mixture in.

6) Color the center part red. Use a fork to spread out the red, but try to not to get the sides red.

7) Add in the melon seed, or raisins to the center. Chill for a couple of hours in the fridge. When agar-agar has completely set, turn out onto a large flat plate.

8) Brush on green coloring on the outside surface. You got to do it a couple of times to get a dark shade of green.

9) Leave color to set. Slice just before serving.

Note :

Nothing too difficult about this recipe, but it takes unrelenting patience especially if you wants to get a even red color in the center.
The recipe calls for rock sugar, but I use ordinary sugar (which is much cheaper), and you can probably reduce the sugar ( i use about 200 g of sugar), and I increased the water to 850 ml of water the second time i attempted this recipe to get a softer agar-agar.

My first attempt after a long while. Niece CK says the watermelon don's looks too ripe.

My second attempt

Sweet Corn Pudding

2010-07-26T18:15:00.000+08:00

Niece wanted a 70's theme for her birthday, and I remembered that we had sweet corn pudding at almost every party we attended then. Dug out this old recipe from my recollection and re-created this popular dessert.

Sweet corn pudding

Ingredients :
1 cup sugar
1 cup custard powder
2 cups coconut milk
2 1/2 cups water
1 tin (425 g) cream style sweet corn

Method :
1) Place sugar, custard powder, coconut milk and water in a sauce pan. Stir till custard powder and sugar dissolve and is not lumpy.
2) Put to boil on medium flame, stirring all the time till the mixture comes to a boil.
3) When mixture thickens, add in the cream style sweet corn. Stir until well mixed.
4) Pour into a lightly oiled 10" square cake tray. Leave to cool.
5) Chill in the fridge. Cut and serve.

I was so busy preparing the other goodies for the party that I forgot to take a shot of it before cutting it up.

Notes : I made it according to the recipe, and it was a tad too sweet for my taste buds. If coconut milk is not available, it can be substituted with fresh or UHT milk.

Mixed Fruit cocktail cake

2009-07-08T15:32:00.003+08:00

Mixed Fruit cocktail cake

Combined two recipes and I came up with this cake. Baked it for CK's birthday last month. CK's verdict : taste nice even though it is not so professional looking as in a cake bought from the local bakery.

For the sponge cake, I followed the sponge cake recipe from Alex Goh's ' Creative Making of Cakes'. (one of my favorite recipe books because of the easy to follow instructions and the quantity fits into the cake tins I have without me having to adjust the quantity.

Ingredients for the sponge cake :

5 egg yolks
20 g sugar

5 egg whites
130 g sugar

120 g flour
80 g melted butter

Method :

1) Whip egg yolks and 20 g sugar until light and fluffy. Set aside.
2) Whip egg whites till soft peaks formed. Add in sugar and continue whipping until egg whites become stiff.
3) Mix egg white mixture into egg yolk mixture (Item 1) until well mixed.
4) Fold in flour. Slowly fold in the melted butter until well mixed.
5) Pour mixture into a 9" dia. round cake tin and bake at 180 deg. C for 30 mins. Remove cake immediately when it is baked. Cool.

For the custard filling :
100 g instant custard
150 ml cocktail juice (from the fruit cocktail)
200 ml whipping cream
1 tin fruit cocktail (825 g, drained)

Method :
1) Add instant custard to cocktail juice and whisked until thickened. Add in the whipping cream and the tinned fruits. Divide into 2.

Assembling the cake :
1) Cut sponge cake into 3 layers. Place one slice of sponge cake into a 9" dia. loose based cake tin and spread on a portion of the custard filling.
2) Top with the second slice of sponge cake and spread with the other portion of custard filling.
3) Refrigerate until set. Remove cake from tin.
4) Decorate cake with whipped cream and sliced almonds (toasted). Alternatively arrange a layer of fresh fruits on top of the cake. Brush fruits with instant jelly topping to prevent fruits from drying.

NB : The idea for the custard filling came from "Delicious Cakes" by Amy Heng.

Chocolate coffee cake

2009-05-05T16:22:00.006+08:00

Chocolate coffee cake

Intended to make a chocolate cake with chocolate ganache, but halfway, remembered the pack of sponge fingers and instant coffee in the pantry, and decided to try out a chocolate coffee cake recipe I saw in Kevin Chai's 'My Birthday Cake'. The chocolate sponge cake is 'truffle cake' from Alex Goh's 'Temptation of Chocolate', and is my favourite chocolate sponge cake recipe.

Ingredients for the chocolate sponge cake.

5 egg yolks
20 g sugar
5 egg whites
120 g sugar
120 g flour
10 g cocoa powder
60 g butter
60 g cooking chocolate, chopped

Method :
1) Melt cooking chocolate and butter over a double boiler
2) Sift flour and cocoa together
3) Whisk egg yolks and 20 g sugar together until light and fluffy
4) Whip egg whites until soft peak formed. Add in 120 g sugar, and continue whipping until stiff
5) Fold egg whites into egg yolk mixture (item 3)
6) Fold in flour and cocoa mixture. Then add in melted chocolate mixture.
7) Pour into a 9" dia. baking tin.
8) Bake at 180 deg. C until done (approx. 30 mins)
9) Remove cake and cool. Cut into 2 layers.

Ingredients for the chocolate cream :
200 g cooking chocolate
2 tbsp unsalted butter
200 g fresh cream (whipped).

Method :
Melt chocolate and butter over a double boiler. Cool slightly, then fold in whipping cream.

Assembling the cake :
10 sponge fingers
1 cup of strong coffee

1) Cut cake into 2 layers. Spread a layer of chocolate cream onto cake
2) Dip sponge fingers in the coffee, and arrange on the chocolate cream. Cover the second layer of sponge cake. Refrigerate for a while.
3) Cover the cake with the rest of the chocolate cream. Decorate the sides of the cake with chocolate rice, and dust the top of the cake with cocoa powder.

Note :
I find this a very versatile and fail proof chocolate sponge cake recipe. Remember to use unsalted butter for making chocolate cream or chocolate ganache , or the chocolate may not set.

Onion pancakes

2009-04-15T23:49:00.004+08:00

Onion pancake cooking on the griddle
FM,
A pancake recipe for you. I served the pancakes with chicken curry, and your brother gave it the thumbs up. So maybe of having fried noodles and chicken curry, as you and your friends are so fond of having, maybe you can have pancakes next time. It is not roti canai, but, I guess, it can be a nice substitute.

Ingredients for onion pancake :

2 cups flour
1 big onion (slice finely)
1 sprig of spring onions (diced)
1 egg
about 2 cups of water
1/2 tsp salt

Margarine

Method :

1) Mix salt and flour together. Add in egg and enough water to make into a runny pancake batter. Add in onions and spring onions.
2) Let stand for 30 minutes.
3) Heat up a griddle. Oil with margarine. Pour in a scoop of batter. When it is cooked on one side, flip over and cook the other side.

onion pancake batter

FM dear,
Meant to take some pictures of the pancake together with the chicken curry, but, woe and begone, forgot to recharge the camera batteries! Will be take some more pictures the next time I make this, which will be anytime soon, since CK and FJ love it!
Will include the chicken curry recipe for you too, but, maybe that is not necessary since you have manage to cook chicken curry. Thinking of a dhall curry next.

Chocolate mousse cake

2009-03-22T00:13:00.005+08:00

Finally, got back to baking another cake. This time, it is a double chocolate mousse cake.

Ingredients for the chocolate sponge cake :

5 egg yolks
5 egg white
120 g sugar
120 g flour
10 g cocoa powder
60 g cooking chocolate
60 g butter

Method :
1) Melt chocolate and butter in a double boiler.
2) Whip egg yolks until fluffy. Set aside.
3) Whip egg white and sugar until thick and fluffy.
4) Fold in sifted flour and cocoa powder.
5) Fold in melted chocolate mixture.
6) Pour into 9" dia. base lined cake tin.
7) Bake at 180 deg. C for 30 minutes.
8) When cooked, remove immediately and cool.

Ingredients for white chocolate mousse
9 g gelatin powder
45 g water
1 egg yolk
50 g fresh milk
80 g white chocolate
135 g whipping cream

Method :
1) Mix gelatin powder and water and set aside for 5 minutes. Melt over hot simmering water
2) Melt white chocolate over hot simmering water. Set aside.
3) Whisk whipping cream until fluffy and set aside.
4) Whisk egg yolk and fresh milk over hot simmering water. Add in melted gelatin and mix thoroughly. Add in melted chocolate and mix till smooth.
5) Fold in whipped cream.
6) Place sponge cake in 9" dia. spring form cake tin.
7) Pour in the white chocolate mixture on top of the chocolate cake. Chill.

Ingredients for chocolate mousse
10 g gelatin
50 g water
100 g dark cooking chocolate
1 tsp cocoa
50 g sugar
100 g milk
2 egg yolks
150 g whipping cream

Method :
1) Mix gelatin and water and set aside for 5 minutes. Melt over hot simmering water.
2) Melt cocoa and cooking chocolate over hot simmering water. Set aside.
3) Whisk whipping cream until fluffy. Set aside.
4) Whisk egg yolks and sugar until dissolved. Add in milk, and whisk over hot simmering water.
5) Add in melted gelatin mixture and stir thoroughly. Add in melted chocolate mixture and mix till smooth. Fold in whipped cream.
6) Pour dark chocolate mixture over the white chocolate mixture.
7) Chill for at least 3 hours.
8) Blow a hairdryer lightly around the cake tin so that the mousse cake can be removed smoothly. Serve.

Double chocolate mousse cake. Did not use a hairdryer, so the edge is not that nice and smooth. (lazy to go up to my room to get the hairdryer)

Note : Sieve some cocoa powder over the cake before serving. Forgot about the cocoa powder until it was too late, and I had cut up the cake!

Hi

2009-03-11T14:53:00.005+08:00

Am back. Some time since I posted anything interesting. Getting to know the contents of my first-aid box, and finding it hard to do stuff with the band aids on my fingers. Been rather careless, and hurt my fingers a few times recently. Before one finger could recover, I cut myself on another finger. I am typing this blog with band aids on my 2 index fingers (yup, I got cuts on both my hands), and the trouble with me is that any teeny little cut on my fingers needs to be covered up properly or it will takes a while to heal.
So it has been a while since I cooked or baked any interesting stuff. I bought some sponge fingers 2 weeks ago, and I think I will be making tiramisu or whatever one can do with sponge fingers, and I remember seeing a cake with sponge fingers. Anyway, will be posting the results here, once I get rid of all this band aids, and can get down to baking again.
Meantime, while I am waiting for the fingers to heal, am catching up on my reading. Nothing heavy stuff, just a few light novels that I got from the book rental last weekend. I seldom buy books, preferring to rent them from the book rental shop. At least this way, I am saving money and saving a few trees along the way.

white almond cookies

2009-02-24T14:14:00.003+08:00

Quick and easy cookies that I baked recently, and since it uses shortening and don't have eggs, I guess it will also be suitable for vegetarians.

Ingredients :

130 g shortening
70 g icing sugar
1/4 tsp salt
80 g cornflour
120 g flour
60 g almond flakes (roasted)

Method :

1) Beat shortening, icing sugar and salt in bowl until smooth. Add in rest of ingredients and mix into a soft dough.
2) Roll out dough to 1 cm thick. Cut into rounds with cookie cutter.
3) Place onto lined baking tray, and bake in preheated oven at 160 deg C. Cool and store in air tight containers.

Clay pot chicken rice

2009-02-18T13:19:00.005+08:00

FM dear,
I have been experimenting with cooking clay pot chicken rice. Not that I have not cooked it before, but then all along I have been using a electric rice cooker, it cannot really be called clay pot chicken rice. To quote FJ, "clay pot rice has got to be cooked in a clay pot, otherwise it should be called tasty chicken rice, black rice ( because of the dark soya sauce), or maybe electric rice cooker chicken rice.
So using my recipe for my clay pot rice (http://housewifenotes.blogspot.com/2008/08/claypot-chicken-rice.html), tried cooking the rice in a proper clay pot.
First attempt : Put in the chicken too late, so by the time the chicken was cooked, the bottom rice had burned.
Second attempt : Remembered to add in the chicken earlier, and turn down the flame. Too big a pot of rice, making it rather hard to handle, and the chicken took too long to cook, and there was not much rice crust (which is the tasty part), and some uncooked rice.

My second attempt at clay pot rice. To much rice in one pot, and not enough dark soya sauce

For my third attempt, I decided to purchase another clay pot and divide the recipe into 2. One pot turned out alright, but the other was a bit bland, as the sauce were not poured equally into each pot. However, added a bit too much water, or rather the rice I used could not stand too much water, so the end result was too soft rice.

So far, have not really been successful with cooking the rice in the clay pots, so I guess will have to experiment further, otherwise maybe I will have to think about renaming it electric rice cooker chicken rice as per FJ's suggestion.

wanton in soup

2009-02-09T11:21:00.005+08:00

Wanton in soup
FM,
Hope you enjoyed the Chinese New Year gathering with your friends, and I hope your North American friends enjoyed the wanton and the other Chinese food that you all served, and I noticed that you managed to conjure up a Yee Sang, too!

Ingredients :

50 pcs wanton skin

Wanton filling :
200 g prawn meat, diced
150 g minced meat
3 Chinese mushroom, soaked and diced finely
salt, sesame oil, pepper, 1 tsp cornflour

Method :
1) Filling : Mix prawn meat, minced meat, mushroom and seasoning and stir in one direction until sticky and well-combined.
2) Wrap 1 tsp of filling in wanton skin.
3) Bring a pot of water to boil. Add in stock cube, pepper and salt. Cook wanton, and some Chinese mustard leaves or cabbage and serve in soup.

wanton all ready to be dunked in the soup

Note : Alternatively, heat 2 cups of oil in a frying pan, and deep fry the wanton for deep fried wanton. Serve with chili sauce.
For a tasty soup, keep the prawn shells to make the soup stock for the wanton. Boil a pot of water with the prawn shells. Strain and discard the prawn shells.

Easy chicken wings

2009-02-01T09:56:00.005+08:00

easy chicken wings

Dear FM,
I found this easy recipe for cooking chicken wings, and they turn out so nice and tasty that I think I got to share it with you. It is rather simple to cook, and the ingredients are what you would have in your kitchen. You know how I am always looking for easy recipes for you.
Oh yes, how are your cooking experiments going on. Been 6 months of living on your own and surviving on your student budget. Is it still choy sum, eggs and fried pork slices? Or have you become more adventurous in your cooking. By the way, the noodles you cooked look quite delicious from the pictures. Looking forward to having you cook it for me!
Ahh, the recipe for the chicken wings -

Ingredients :
6 chicken wings
1 tbsp dark soya sauce
2 tbsp light soya sauce (or to taste)
2 tbsp sugar
1 tsp sesame oil
3 tbsp chopped garlic
1 tsp black pepper

Method :
1) Marinade chicken wings with the soya sauces, sugar, sesame oil, garlic and black pepper for a few hours, or overnight.
2) Place chicken wings and marinade into a non stick pan. Add in a cup of water.
3) Cover pan and bring to the boil for 5 minutes. Remove cover and continue simmering over low heat until sauce has thickened. Dish up and serve.

chicken wings cooking in the pan

FM dear,
After returning from the supermart with your weekly food supplies, clean and marinade the chicken wings, and then freeze them. Just defrost a few hours ahead before cooking. The wings is supposed to be served with the sauce, but I found the sauce to be so oily, so I discarded it.

CK mentioned that the chicken wings looked quite familiar when I served them. Don't you think they looked like the wings that we had in the steamboat outlet in Bandar Sunway. Remember how everybody rushed for them when they were served. Could never understand why, and neither could your uncle!

Festive Shortbread Squares

2009-01-30T10:07:00.003+08:00

festive shortbread squares

An old recipe that I found in a free booklet from B&P Butterfly cornflour booklet. Easy to make and nice to look.

Ingredients :
250 g butter
170 g castor sugar
150 g cornflour
50 g rice flour
200 g plain flour
60 g red cherries
60 g green cherries

Method :
1) Grease a 32 cm x 26 cm shallow baking tray.
2) Sift together the cornflour, rice flour and plain flour.
3) Cream butter and sugar till creamy. Fold in flour and mix into a dough.
4) Press dough evenly onto greased tray. Cut dough lightly into 5 cm squares.
5) Decorate each square with cherries.
6) Baked in preheated oven at 170 deg. C for 20 minutes.
7) Leave to cool before cutting into squares

Hup tou shou or walnut cookies

2009-01-29T10:40:00.006+08:00

Hup thou shou (walnut cookies) for the Lunar new year

More than a week since I posted anything. Been busy preparing for the lunar new year - baking, shopping for stuff for new year visits, etc... stopped bothering about getting new banknotes for red packets two years (so long as it is legal tender, don't see why should it have to be crisp new banknotes).

Baked this hup thou shou or walnut cookies last Friday. Puzzles me why they call it 'hup thou' (walnut) since the original 'hup thou shou' don' have any walnuts in it, and it is not shaped like a walnut either. However, in some recent recipes, somebody decided to add some walnuts in it, and it is what I have done.

Ingredients :
140 g flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp ammonia powder
1/4 tsp salt
60 g butter
30 g shortening
20 g cooking oil
60 g icing sugar
1 egg yolk
30 g walnuts (chopped and roasted)

for glazing (beaten) - 1 egg yolk and 1 tsp water

Method :
1) Sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, ammonia and salt.
2) Add in butter, shortening, cooking oil, icing sugar, egg yolk and mix well. Add in the walnuts.
3) Shape into small balls of 4g each. Place on a lined baking sheet. Make a small depression in the centre of the cookie by using a chopstick. Glaze the surface.
4) Bake at 180 deg C for 10 - 15 minutes until cooked.

Note : Lard was used for making 'hup thou shou', but many have stopped using lard for a healthier alternative. Ammonia is used to 'loosen' the texture of the cookies. Found this recipe in Alan Ooi's New Year Cookies.

Chinese chives (kau choy) pancake

2009-01-17T16:14:00.008+08:00

Chinese chives (kau choy) pancakes

Another pancake recipe today. Had forgotten about this childhood comfort food, until I saw a friend making it.

Ingredients :
250 g flour
1 egg
350 - 400 ml water
1 tbsp oil
salt
3 tbsp dried shrimps (soaked and chopped coarsely)
6 shallots (slices thinly)
1 bunch of Chinese chives (kau choy), cut into 1 - 2 cm lengths

Method :
1) Heat up 2 tbsp oil and fry the shallots and shrimps until fragrant. Set aside.
2) Sieve flour into mixing bowl. Add in salt, egg and 1 tbsp oil. Pour in water stirring all the time to make a pancake batter. Add in fried shallots, shrimps and shallots. Mix thoroughly.
3) Heat up a tsp oil in non-stick pan. Pour in a ladle of the pancake batter and cook both sides of pancake until golden colour.

The pancake batter

NB : Serve pancake with chili sauce (I think it goes very well with Lingham's chili sauce).
Old housewife's tip : To dislodge fish bone stuck in throat - wrap strip of uncut Chinese chive around a lump of rice and swallow. Not sure whether it worked or not, but I remembered my brother swallowing this as a child when he had a fish bone stuck in this throat!

(Today's blog is dedicated to the memory of my good friend, Fei Jie who taught me how to make this pancake, and who is now spreading her good cheer and cooking in God's little kitchen. "Fei Jie, May God Bless You and Keep You Safe In His Arms" and I dearly missed the hours spent yakking away in your kitchen)

fragrant spicy rice

2009-01-11T10:12:00.012+08:00

fragrant spicy rice for dinner

This fragrant rice tastes rather nice , and I think it goes rather well with coleslaw, salad and fried chicken. Have seen something like it at fast food outlets, but without the raisins.

Ingredients :
300 g rice
1 tbsp margarine
1 tbsp oil
1 clove garlic
4 shallots, sliced thinly
1 cm pc ginger, crushed
3 cm pc cinnamon stick
5 cardamoms
5 cloves
1 star anise
2 pandan leaves
1 3/4 cups water
2 tbsp evaporated milk
3/4 tsp salt
1 tsp chicken stock granules

50 g raisins

Method :
1) Wash rice, drain and put into rice cooker. Add in the pandan leaves.
2) Heat up oil and margarine, saute shallots, ginger and garlic. Add in cinnamon sticks, cardamoms, cloves and star anise and continue to fry until fragrant.
3) Add in water, milk, salt and chicken stock granules. Bring to boil and add to the rice cooker. Switch on rice cooker, and when rice is cooked, switched off and leave rice to stand for 10 - 20 minutes.
4) Remove the spices, and add in the raisins. Mix well and serve.

Note : Instead of margarine, you can also use ghee. If evaporated milk is not available, use fresh milk. I have even used milk powder before. A friend add 1/2 tsp of turmeric powder to the rice, and let it stand for 30 minutes to get a nice yellowy color in the rice. Use basmathi rice if you have it at home.
When I am short of ideas as to what to cook, this makes a great dinner. I fry some chicken (instant frozen chicken from the supermart!), prepare coleslaw and another salad, and dinner is done.

kaya and butter on toast

2009-01-09T16:31:00.005+08:00

Michael of (http://doyouhateittoo.blogspot.com/) commented that I did not have a picture of the home made kaya for the recipe that I posted the other day.

Well, went out and bought a loaf of bread and slathered it with the kaya, and here is the pix!

My favourite morning breakfast - kaya and butter on toast and milk tea

excessive use of packaging materials

2009-01-08T12:07:00.007+08:00

Bought some new clothes for the children recently, and while unpacking them, it just come to mind the excessive packaging the manufacturers used for the clothing.

Take for example, the packaging for the school uniforms I bought for the new school year.

The materials used to pack the long sleeve shirts - 1 strip of cardboard and 2 strips of plastic to hold up the collar, and 3 plastic clips to keep the shirt in place in the plastic bag and a little plastic string to hold the price tag, the cost of which would be passed to me, the consumer! This is the packaging for just 1 shirt, so imagine the amount of packaging wasted.

Then there is this label for a pair of jeans . The manufacturer has fixed together a piece of plastic to their cardboard label with a small metal eyelet . As far as I can see, the plastic serves no purpose at all, and is just another waste of plastic.

The cardboard for the pyjamas. The pair of pyjamas had 2 pieces of cardboard and 2 plastic clips to keep the clothes in shape, so 4 pairs of pyjamas meant 8 pieces of cardboard and plastic clips in the recycle bin.

Then there are these little plastic strings to hold the price tags! How many among us would be careful enough to separate them for recycling. They are so small, that they probably would end up all over the floor, to be vacuumed up!

So, can I hope for some wake up call for clothing manufacturers out there. When will they do away with all the unnecessary packaging, the cost of which are borne by us. In my view, there is no need for the plastic strips and cardboard to hold up the collar. Just fold up nicely and put in individual plastic bags, and if possible do away with the plastic bags, too!

Home made kaya (coconut egg jam)

2009-01-07T13:06:00.003+08:00

One of my earlier childhood memory is of my mum stirring the pot of kaya over the firewood stove. My mum ran a small coffee shop, and she used to make her own kaya for the toasts that her customers ordered. She learnt to make her kaya from the Hainanese sifu that worked for us. Most of the coffee shops in the town were ran by the Hainanese, and we were the only Cantonese coffee shop owners.
In fact, in the little town, most of the businesses were along ethnic lines. The Cantonese ran the sundry shops, the Hakkas the textile business, and the Hokkiens were mostly rubber dealers.

Ingredients for the home made kaya :
600 g sugar
4 eggs
2 egg whites
5 pandan leaves
a slice of young ginger
1 1/2 coconut - squeeze for thick santan.

Method :
Beat eggs and egg whites until foamy. Add in sugar, and place in double boiler. Stir until sugar dissolved. Strain mixture for lumps. Double-boil again. Add in pandan leaves and ginger. Keep stirring and add in the thick santan. Kaya is cooked when the santan has thickened. Remove ginger and pandan leaves.

For a nice caramel colour, caramelize about 50 g of sugar in a small saucepan and add to the kaya mixture, while it it still cooking.

Note : The whole cooking process will take over an hour. The water in the double boiler should not exceed 70 deg. C . If the water is too hot, the eggs will curdle and little lumps will form on the kaya.
It is a long tedious process, but the result is certainly worth it!

Fraser's Hill

2009-01-02T08:50:00.012+08:00

Braved the long and winding road to travel to Fraser's Hill (http://wikitravel.org/en/Fraser%27s_Hill). The only way to travel to the hill is by car since the old bus that serviced the route broke down and they have not bothered to replace it. Driving to Fraser's Hill is the furthest that I have ever driven myself, and it is the first time that I have ever driven along such a winding road. The last 8 km, I had to keep my hands firmly on the wheel, as the road was so winding. The weather is not as cool as I remember from when I first went there 26 years ago. Global warming????

The Sungai Selangor Dam Regulating Dam. Diverted from the Kuala Kubu road to visit this place. I don't remember seeing any signboards, but shortly after leaving Kuala Kubu town, you can see the junction on the left.

Probably the most photographed clock tower in Malaysia! Every visitors to the hill seems to want a pix in front of the tower.

This quaint old building is the local post office.

The local police station built in 1919.

Pix from Fraser's Pine Resort.

Early morning at Pine Resort.

Dining room at Pine Resort Apartment. Rented a 3-room apartment at Pine Resort at RM338/- per night. Rates included a set dinner and buffet breakfast for 6. Food is average, but you can ask for extra rice and Chinese tea. If you can't live without the internet, there is wifi at the reception area. The apartment has a kitchen, but don't plan on doing your own cooking unless you are willing to lug your stove up the hill! Night entertainment is non-existent so remember to bring your own entertainment....

Lunch was at Restoran Hill View in Fraser's Hill. Seems to be about the only restaurant around. Of course, there is the Ye Old Smokehouse which serves western food. Actually, had wanted to eat there, but the manager looked so haughty and unwelcoming, we decided to give the place a miss. Well, their loss was Restoran Hill View's gain, and we certainly did not regret it. Nice decent food, and rice is unlimited. Our sumptous lunch for seven cost us RM74/-, and we had sweet sour pork, baby kailan, tofu, egg foo yong and lemon chicken (tasted more like orange chicken, though).

One of the oldest golf course in Malaysia

On the way back, stopped at Ulu Yam for lor mee. Also had steamed lala, stir-fried sweet potato leaves, fried mee sua, and fish cakes. Total bill : Rm66/-. After Rasa, look out for the junction to Hulu Yam (turn left). There are many outlets selling 'lor mee', and we just choose the most crowded outlet!

Steamed Chinese sponge cake

2008-12-27T13:50:00.004+08:00

The first time I ever saw my mum making this sponge cake was for prayers at my father's grave. I remember her using an old brass hand held scale to weigh out the ingredients for the sponge cake and beat the eggs and sugar in a big aluminium cooking pot using a big spring whisk (7" dia. spring). The egg batter would then be steamed in a 14" dia. steaming tray in our big wok on the firewood stove at the back of our home. Having put the cake mixture to steam, she would lit a joss stick, and the cake would be done when the joss stick burned out!

My steamed sponge cake :
Ingredients :
6 eggs
120 g sugar
220 g flour (sieved)
130 ml ice-cream soda or 7 Up (aerated water)

Method :
1) Whisk eggs and sugar till thick and bubble less
2) Fold in flour. Then add in the aerated water
3) Pour into a 8" dia. bamboo basket lined with a piece of grease proof paper.
4) Steam over high heat for 30 minutes.

steamed Chinese sponge cake

Crispy Dumplings

2008-12-22T13:15:00.007+08:00

Crispy dumplings (pix taken from "Delightful Snacks and Dim Sum" by Agnes Chang)

Dong zhi was yesterday, and together with tang yuan, I also made crispy dumplings and sui kow (soup dumplings) for the occasion.

Filling for the dumplings :
300 g minced pork
150 g prawns (diced)
1 tbsp shredded carrots
3 dried Chinese mushrooms (diced finely)
1 tbsp spring onions (diced)
1 tbsp cornflour
salt and pepper to taste
dash of sesame oil

20 - 30 pcs dumpling skin
2 tbsp cooking oil
1/2 cup water

Method :
1) Combine the ingredients for filling. Mix in one direction until well combined.
2) Wrap some filling in dumpling skin, and shape into dumplings.
3) Heat up cooking oil in a non-stick pan, arrange dumplings on top and fry on low heat until base of dumpling is golden brown. Add water, cover and cook until water is dry. Serve with sliced ginger and black vinegar.

As compared to the crispy dumpling I made yesterday. What a great difference....sigh..

NB : Found the original recipe in Agnes Chang 'Delightful Snacks and Dim', but have modified the recipe to suit my children's taste buds. I cooked half of the dumplings in a soup stock to make sui kow (soup dumplings)

Dong zhi - glutinous rice dumplings

2008-12-22T12:52:00.005+08:00

Yesterday was the dong zhi festival or the winter solstice festival (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dongzhi_Festival).
As is the tradition, I marked the occasion by making tang yuan (glutinous rice flour balls). Made the flour balls by kneading glutinous rice flour together with water, and then making into little balls which i filled with sugarcane candy (pian tang), and then cooked in a sweet broth of water, sugar and pandan leaves, and of course, not forgetting, the slice of ginger!

Tang yuan for Dong zhi

Tang yuan is normally eaten by Southern Chinese, and Northern Chinese eats dumpling to mark the festival. So in honor of the occasion I also made pan fried dumplings, and sui kow (soup dumplings) served with wanton noodles.

I took a trip back to my old hometown .........(Part two)

2008-12-18T09:21:00.009+08:00

And, of course, a trip back to my old hometown would not be complete without the food ..... had wanton noodles, toasted bread with kaya and iced milk tea, and of course, the "Kow Po special" (ABC with peanut butter ice cream) at Kow Po Ice Cream Parlor. Only remembered that I should have taken pictures after I finished eating, but it has been so long since I had them, so the moment the food were placed in front of us, we dug in..

(Note to self : On my next trip, I must remember to take pictures before I eat them)

Then of course, I had to ta-pau some foods back to sustain myself until my next trip.......

Fried taufu balls stuffed with minced pork and Chinese chives. A local speciality of the Guangxi people, which I have yet to find in any other places that I have been . Can only be made with the local taufu balls because they are soft and big enough to be stuffed. It used to be the size of tennis balls but too bad they have reduced the size!

Apom balik. Sadly it turned soft and soggy after the journey home. Can be found everywhere, but I think the ones in my old hometown are the best.

Steamed dumplings - a rice flour dumpling stuffed with shredded yam bean, dried mushroom, wood fungus, and dried shrimps, seasoned with a heavy dash of pepper. Yummy....

And, of cos, my stash of Sempalit roasted groundnuts. Can hardly find Sempalit roasted groundnuts in Kuala Lumpur (so far seen them in only 2 places - a stall in KL Chinatown and Thean Hou temple).

I took a trip back to my old hometown.....(Part One)..

2008-12-18T08:25:00.017+08:00

The old hometown looks the same, and yet...Been many years since I have been back there. My family moved away from there in 1986, and since then I have been back only a couple of times.

The old pre-war shop house where I grew up. Below was a coffee shop, and we stayed upstairs. It is now a clothes shop.
Horrors of horrors, they have replaced the wooden shutters on the windows with glass, and the air-conditioners. Haiyah..... Sure spoils the look of the place. Wish they would implement a law legislating against this!

The back lane of my old home. Glad to note that they have cleaned up the rubbish. It used to be a nightmare walking through the place, especially after a public holiday, when the garbage disposal truck took a break.

The local market. Downstairs is a wet market, and upstairs is a hawker centre.

My former primary school which dates back to the colonial era. The old wooden block that I studied in has been replaced by the concrete building on the left. Facing the school field is the old assembly hall. Luckily they have left the classrooms in the background intact. Fond memories...

As with every place with Chinese, there is always the temple. Every lunar new year eve, at midnight, the place would be brightly lit and crowded with the townspeople praying for a bountiful new year. Can remember watching Chinese opera on the makeshift stage during the annual festival in June, I think. As a grand finale, the 'toong chi' would go into a trance, and pierce needles through their cheeks. The chief 'toong chi" would be carried on a chair of knives, and they would take the gods on a parade through the town. The residents would place tables with offerings at the front of their homes for the gods.

The local Hindu temple. During the temple's annual festival, they would have a chariot pulled by cows, and go round the town. The faithful would follow barefoot behind the chariot.

The road leading to the Chinese village. Went through this place quite often to visit my cousins who stayed in the village.

Pancakes with shredded chicken

2008-12-15T13:29:00.004+08:00

Pancake with seafood (pix from Joy of Making Dimsum)

Pancake with shredded chicken (pix from Joy of Making Dimsum)

Dear FM,
Now that finals are over, thought you might be interested in trying out this recipe. Reminds me of the California Rolls that we used to make.
Actually, its a combination of 2 recipes, one is a pancake with shredded chicken, and the other seafood in an omelet roll. Think it will be interesting to combine the two recipes, though I have listed the ingredients for both the shredded chicken roll and also the seafood roll for you.
Going to make this for dinner tonight. FJ will love it, as she loves pancakes!

Ingredients for the pancake batter :

300 g plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
50 g sugar
2 eggs
350 ml water

Method :

1) Mix ingredients for batter into a smooth batter. Let it stand for 30 minutes.
2) Heat up non-stick pan and oil with some margarine. Add in a scoop of batter and cook pancake until brown on both sides.
3) Fold pancake into a cone shape and fill up with filling.

Ingredients for filling with shredded chicken :
100 g shredded chicken
100 g shredded cucumber
100 g shredded lettuce
100 g sliced tomatoes

Ingredients for seafood filling :
crabsticks
shredded cucumber
shredded carrot
shredded lettuce
enoki mushroom

salad dressing ) mix together
mayonnaise )

Method :
Place seafood filling on pancake. Add in the salad dressing and mayonnaise. Roll into cone shape. Serve with mayonnaise.

BTW, i found the two recipes in Joy of Making Dim Sum by Patsie Cheong. Have got many interesting recipes in there. Another recipe you would be interested will be the pan fried dumpling. Saw the pix of the dumpling you made. Looks delicious!

Flirty flowers - Knitting pattern for a child's cardigan

2008-12-14T11:10:00.004+08:00

another old knitting pattern...too long to type out here and i don't have one of those modern scanners/printer to convert into a word document to edit

after 21 years, the cardigan still looks good.

I fell in love with this knitting pattern when I saw it because of the embroidered flowers on the cardigan. Knitted it for Niece Andrea 21 years ago. I knitted in "Robin Bambino" yarn, and embroidered the flowers in normal acrylic yarn.

Brownies

2008-12-12T14:25:00.010+08:00

Brownies

Niece Andrea gave me this recipe, which she found in a book that she borrowed from the British Council. A very simple recipe which we have made many times for parties and fund raising events.

Ingredients :
125 g butter (lightly salted)
45 g cocoa powder
2 eggs
230 g fine sugar
60 g self raising flour
90 g walnuts (lightly chopped)

Method :
1) Line base of 20 cm square cake tin.
2) Melt butter, then add in cocoa powder until well blended. Set aside.
3) Beat the eggs. Add in sugar, and continue beating until light and fluffy.
4) Stir in the cocoa and butter mixture.
5) Fold in flour, and then fold in the walnuts.
5) Pour mixture into cake tin, and bake in preheated oven at 180 deg. C for 30 - 35 minutes, or until just cooked through and springy to the touch.
6) Cut into small squares when cooled.

NB : Brownies are at their best when moist, so be careful not to over bake them. They can be a bit sweet, and normally i reduce the amount of sugar to about 180 g.

Pan mee/min fun kuih

2008-12-12T14:00:00.003+08:00

Min fun kuih with fried ikan bilis and meat sauce

Had min fun kuih for lunch, and this time I made sure I took a pix before the noodles got eaten! Only 2 bowls because CK and FJ are not awake yet, and I will cook theirs when they wake. Min fun kuih are best eaten hot!

streamyx.com driving me crazy....

2008-12-11T15:06:00.005+08:00

My internet connection is driving me nuts again. Take for example, Tuesday, was doing something on my computer, when suddenly, the ADSL light on my modem went off again, the 2nd time in 3 weeks. Then there are the almost daily occurrences of 'timed-out error' and "page failed to load" appearing on the screen.
Every time this occurs, I would call tm.net customer service, go through the whole rigmarole again and again. Each time, some one would pick up the call, i would relate my problem, "adsl light blinking", "timed out error", "connection not stable", blah..blah.... and the voice at the other end would go through the standard questions again "have you tried making a direct connection"?, " are the other lights on the modem on", blah...blah... and I would answer "yes", "yes".... Then they will tell me to switch off my modem, wait for 15 seconds, switch on again....and they will reset my modem, and if the problem persist to call them again!
When I call them again...problem still persist and insist they open a report - they will say "ok, please take down this report no...-------, and wait for 48 hours , at which stage i will give a big gasp (FJ and CK will be making fainting motions beside me), and insist they fix it pronto.
The next day, at 9.00 am..i call them again...their reply, "Madam, we are looking into it. No updates on your problem yet. Please wait for the technicians".
So, I stay at home, and by 12.00 pm the van is at my door. In they come with their modem (it is always my modem that is at fault), come in, look at my phone wiring and say " wiring not done correctly, too many extensions, (2 phones, 1 modem), too long"blah... blah...anything but their connection, and when I insist that there is nothing wrong with the wiring, they will reluctantly take out their modem, hook it on, and hey...the ADSL light is also flickering...so it is back to their office again to remedy the connection or whatever they do, and then a couple of hours, my streamyx connection is back on again until the next time...sigh...

home style pasta (pan mee or min fun kuih)

2008-12-11T12:53:00.006+08:00

Some people call it pan mee, some call it min fun kuih. Personally, I think if it is rolled into strips it should be call pan mee, and if it is torn into pieces then it should be call 'min fun kuih'. It's one of FJ's favourite, and whenever, we eat out at hawker centres, this would be the dish that she would order. Despite eating it ever so often outside, every few days she would request that I make it for lunch.

Ingredients for the pasta :

300 g flour
15 g cornflour
3/4 cup water
1/2 tbsp salt
1 tbsp cornoil

Method :

1) Dissolve salt in water. Add solution to flour, cornflour and oil. Knead dough until smooth.
2) Place dough in plastic container, cover and leave to rest for about 2 hrs.

Ingredients for soup :

160 g ikan bilis (anchovies)
120 g shallots (sliced)
5 dried Chinese mushroom (soaked and sliced)
2 litres water
1 bunch choy sum (Chinese mustard greens)
1 ikan bilis stock cube

Method :
1) Fry shallots until golden brown and crispy. Drain. Fry half of ikan bilis until crispy. Drain.
2) For the soup : Bring water to the boil. Fry remaining ikan bilis and add to the water. Add in stock cube and sliced mushroom. Add salt and pepper to taste.
3) Cook the pasta : Bring soup to boil. Flatten the dough and tear out pieces and add to soup. Add in the vegetables when pasta is cooking.
4) Serve the pasta in individual bowls, and garnish with the fried shallots and ikan bilis.

NB : By the way, FM, if you can't find ikan bilis at where you are, you can omit the ikan bilis and add in slivers of chicken or pork. You can also cook a meat sauce with minced meat, sliced mushroom and wood ear fungus. Stir fry the mushroom and wood ear fungusm then add in the minced meat. Add in oyster sauce, pepper, black sauce and salt to taste. Thicken with corn starch.
Again, no photo is available as the pasta gets eaten before I get around to taking a shot. FJ thinks I am weird sometimes for wanting to take a shot of the food I make!

it's the holidays...

2008-12-11T10:21:00.004+08:00

Yes, have been lackadaisical in posting on my blog. It is the school holidays, and FJ and CK are home, which means that they are glued to the computer, and that leaves very little time for me to use the computer. We have two computers, but somehow, that is not enough. When they wake up, first thing they do would be to log on to their computers. Not that, I am not guilty of that too!

During the holidays and weekends, the only chance I have of getting to use the computers is to wake up early! But then, I don't have much time in the morning being busy with my daily house chores. By the time I finish my chores, they are awake, and demanding their time on the net. Of 'cos I can demand to use the computer, but somehow, they will have a mournful look when they are not facing the computer. Withdrawal symptoms, I think!!!

Looks like I will have to get another computer, but then, when they are in school, one of the computers will be idling there!

washing the car

2008-12-06T08:57:00.003+08:00

As I type this, the neighbour or rather the neighbour's maid is washing the family car again. What I fail to understand is why do they have to wash the car almost everyday. After all, the car will get dusty again once it is driven out on the road. Is it because water is free or is it because they have a maid and, of course, since the maid's wages have been paid, you have to work the poor maid to the bone... !!!???

Staying in the tropics, it rains quite often, and the rain does a good job of washing off the dust. OK, if one has to wash the car, do it fortnightly or if you have to, maybe once a week, but to do it daily....it is a plain waste of precious water!!!!

I have got to admit that I hardly washes my car. I only washes it when it gets really dirty as in i can draw pictures in the dust on the car body and that is every few months! Dirty windscreen in the meantime. Hardly ever, since the attendants at the petrol station are rather helpful and cleans it when I am there. Every few days, i just take out the carpets, give it a brisk shake and I am done with my car cleaning chores!

Recycling for a good cause

2008-12-01T10:31:00.009+08:00

I met an old friend at a political rally last weekend (yes, you read correct, I was at one such rally). Actually I went because the politician had helped at another cause that I was involved in( http://serigombakphase6.blogspot.com/), so my friends on the committee requested my presence.
This old friend is a member of Tzu Chi, and they are raising funds for a new building. Someone has donated the land, and now they need money to build. Members help by contributing money. A simple way is just to contribute Rm10/- monthly. Have agreed to join and to contribute RM10/- per month. RM10/- is not much, but I suppose if everyone just contribute RM10/- per month, within a short period they will be able to raise the money.
Another way they have come up with to raise funds is to collect junk for recycling. On the 3rd Saturday of every month, they have a Recycling Collection Centre near where I live. Members are encourage to help out and to bring recyclable stuff like paper, plastics, etc...
So come the 20th of this month, I will be lugging all my recyclable stuff to the Collection Centre. Presently, I bring all the stuff to the 2nd hand dealer where I get paid a small sum, but since this is for a good cause, I am going to bring them here.

PS : The collection centre is located near the CIMB Bank, Phase 1, Taman Seri Gombak, Selangor, and is opened on the 3rd Saturday of each month.

Simple chicken soup

2008-11-27T16:35:00.003+08:00

Dear FM

Came across a chicken soup recipe in the papers yesterday, and it sort of reminded me of the soups that new mothers take to boost their health, but of course for new mothers they add in plenty of ginger and DOM.

I used to make a simple version with less DOM and ginger, and I think it would be a very simple and nutritious soup for you to make. The other day, you were complaining to me that sometimes you can't think of what to cook for dinner.

Well for the soup you need :

1 chicken whole leg, cut into bite size
1 egg
3 Chinese mushroom, soaked and sliced
1 thumb size piece of ginger, sliced thinly
sesame oil
1 rice bowl of water

Method :

Heat up sesame oil, fry ginger until fragrant. Add in mushroom, fry for a few minutes. Add in egg and fry until fragrant. Add in chicken pieces, stir fry for few minutes, then add in water. Cook until chicken is tender. Season with salt and pepper.

Meme

2008-11-21T22:53:00.005+08:00

New at this stuff. Wasn't sure what a meme was, so I wikied the word like every self-respecting web addict would do. In brief : . A meme (pronounced /miːm/)^[1] consists of any idea or behavior that can pass from one person to another by learning or imitation.
Please proceed if interested....otherwise click the little "x" at the top right hand of this page

LAYER ONE:
– Name: Mum (thats what my children call me), Mrs...... (what everybody call me). Seems to have lost my name when I became a wife and mother.
– Birth date: 13 April
– Birthplace: a small town (so small you may not find it on the map) in Pahang, Malaysia.
– Current Location: Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
– Eye Color: black
– Hair Color: Black (saw some white strands this morning)
– Height: 5' 3" (last time I checked was when I was in school)
– Righty or Lefty: Righty
– Zodiac Sign: Aries (or according to my heritage - Boar, pig, Elmer Fudd)

LAYER TWO:
– Your heritage: Chinese born in Malaysia according to my passport (immigrant according to the clowns of a MP at Parliament)
– The shoes you wore today: no shoes, I wore Bata slippers today
– Your weakness: shoes and bags
– Your fears: alone in my old age
– Your perfect pizza: the one I bake myself.. cheese, ham, pineapple (lots of that), peppers
– Goal you’d like to achieve: at the present ..none

LAYER THREE:
– Your most overused phrase on AIM: Yo
– Your first waking thoughts: do I have to get up now?
– Your best physical feature: remind me to ask my other half
– Your most missed memory: if i missed it already, how do i tell it here

LAYER FOUR:
– Pepsi or Coke: neither, I prefer 7-Up
– McDonald’s or Burger King: McDonalds because it is everywhere unlike Burger King which is more expensive and only found in upmarket areas
– Single or group dates: too old for dates
– Adidas or Nike: neither as very expensive here as compared to Reeboks
– Lipton Ice Tea or Nestea: neither
– Chocolate or vanilla: Vanilla
– Cappuccino or coffee: neither as I am a tea drinker, but if I have to I prefer cappuccino

LAYER FIVE:
– Smoke: No
– Cuss: Once a while especially when driving
– Sing: if a hear a familiar song on the radio
– Take a shower everyday: at least twice a day, this is the tropics
– Do you think you’ve been in love: if like what they write in the romance novels answer is no, but if you find that you prefer to be with this person than with anybody else, than yes.
– Want to go to college: No
– Liked high school: Ok
– Want to get married: Already married
– Believe in yourself: If I dont believe in myself, who will believe in me
– Get motion sickness: sometimes and when I have to circle many times to look for a parking space
– Think you’re attractive: Ok, I guess, at least I wont scare anybody away
– Think you’re a health freak: not really
– Get along with your parent(s): quite well with my mother, but my father died when i was six for me to comment
– Like thunderstorms: don't mind, but hate it when my internet connection gets disconnected
– Play an instrument: No

LAYER SIX: In the past month…
– Drank alcohol: No
– Smoked: No
– Done a drug: does glucosamine and panadol counts.
– Made Out: too old for that
– Gone on a date: with the kids tagging along, yes.
– Gone to the mall?: Yes, just went today (shopping addict)
– Eaten an entire box of Oreos?: No, only had 2 pcs
– Eaten sushi: Yes, I love sushi
– Been on stage: No
– Been dumped: No
– Gone skating: No, fear of falling
– Made homemade cookies: No, prefer baking cakes to cookies
– Gone skinny dipping: Does bathing count
– Dyed your hair: No
– Stolen Anything: No

LAYER SEVEN: Ever…
– Played a game that required removal of clothing: too staid for that
– Been trashed or extremely intoxicated: No
– Been caught “doing something”: "doing something" what
– Been called a tease: Never
– Gotten beaten up: No
– Shoplifted: No
– Changed who you were to fit in: No

LAYER EIGHT:
– Age you hope to be married: Married
– Numbers and Names of Children: wanted 2, but ended up with 3
– Describe your Dream Wedding: Never thought about that, since I dont really like to dress up, or all that "yam seng" stuff at Chinese weddings
– How do you want to die: peacefully
– Where you want to go to college: No
– What do you want to be when you grow up: am grown up now (I think so)
– What country would you most like to visit: Canada (my daughter is there)

LAYER NINE:
– Number of drugs taken illegally: None
– Number of people I could trust with my life: 5 (my husband, 3 children and my brother)
– Number of CDs that I own: not counting (too difficult as they are all over the place)
– Number of piercings: None
– Number of tattoos: None
– Number of times my name has appeared in the newspaper?: few times
– Number of scars on my body: a couple
– Number of things in my past that I regret: some, but not counting (what is done is done)

Ok, all done. Not going to proof read, in case there is anything I regret putting down.

The original idea can be found at : http://thesilentpodium.blogspot.com (hope I got the details correct, still not very sure of copy/paste)

My mother's story

2008-11-20T12:20:00.003+08:00

Mother's grandfather was a merchant in China during the Ching Dynasty. He was the god-brother of the Governor of Guangdong, and was thus able to move freely between Guilin and Guangzhou to ply his trade, and one of his most lucrative trade was opium (shame to admit it, but it was then). With his earnings, he bought parcels of paddy land in his village and harvested by the peasants. However, this good life was not to last very long, as he died before 60, leaving a wife and concubine, 3 sons (who had never worked a day in their life) and various family members. To survive, the land were gradually sold off. When all the land were sold, my grandfather and his brothers had to leave their village to find work. My grandfather went to Medan, Indonesia, but was not successful so he returned to China.

My paternal grandfather and father were at that time working in Malaya. In order to obtain an introduction to work in Malaya, my mother's father decided to marry her off to my father. So at the age of 13, my mother was married off by her family, and on the introduction of his now son-in-law, my mother's father came to Malaya, where within no time he acquired a concubine despite having a destitute family waiting in China.

Rich families in China at that time had bought maids to look after the household, as was the norm in my mother's family. But my father's family were not well off so had no maids. Overnight, by welcoming my mother as their new daughter-in-law, they acquired a maid in my mother. My mother had to look after her mother-in-law and two sisters-in-law, who were not much younger than her, and also her husband and father-in-law if they were around. My mother had to take care of the house including drawing water from the well for their baths while all this able-bodied persons just sat around without lifting a finger to help.

In praise of my mother

2008-11-15T11:56:00.006+08:00

My parents were immigrants from China and I am a first-generation born Malaysian. Both of them were born in a village (can't remember the name of the village, but it is about 30 minutes drive from Jiangmen, Guangzhou, China). My father came to Malaya during the '30s and returned to China to marry my mother. Theirs was an arranged marriage, and my late mum was a child bride at age 13. Barely in her teens, she had to take care of a mother-in-law and 2 sisters-in-law. By 15, she was a young mother taking care of her 1st born in war torn Hong Kong. War had come to China shortly after her marriage, and my grandmotherwith 3 young ladies to protect from the invaders, decided to move to Hong Kong believing that it would be safer there, but then Hong Kong was also invaded.
After the war, they returned to China, where my mother had two other daughters, but sadly both my sisters died at infancy. Life was tough because of the political unstability in China at the time, and money had to last until the next arrival of money from my father and grandfather in Malaya, which was rather erratic. There were no mail or telegraphic transfer at that time, and they had to rely on messengers who travel by boat between Malaya and China.
After the fall of the Kuomintang, came the peasant revolution in China. My mother being from the landowner class (even though they no longer own land then) were made to work in the fields by the peasants, and were severely punished for every error. My grandmother suffer the most when they placed a corpse face to face on top of her as punishment for buying more than the approved amount of food for her family and still behaving like the landed class . After toiling for a few years, the peasants decided they had been punished enough and freed them. Many wealthy landowners died because they could not stand the torture, and my mother were certainly glad they were no longer landowners then.
My grandmother died soon after the torture stopped, and my mother migrated to Malaya in 1957, but sadly she left a life of toil in China only to toil in Malaya. By then my father was diabetic and had TB, and my mother was widowed a few years after coming to Malaya. Having 2 young children to take care of, my mother became a shop keeper, and ran a coffee shop in the small town that I grew up. With the little income from the coffee shop and a monthly remittance from my grand-aunt who worked as a nanny for a wealthy family in Singapore, my mother managed to bring up her two young children (me and my brother) and educated us until we completed our secondary school education.

Caramel custard layer cake

2008-11-12T13:45:00.011+08:00

caramel custard layer cake

Nice tasty cake, which I never get fed up of baking. Looks difficult but once you get down to it, is relatively easy to bake.

Ingredients :
A :
60 g sugar

B:
95 g fine sugar
220 g milk (use UHT milk)
3 egg yolks
1 tbsp custard powder

C:
90 g self-raising flour
10 g cocoa powder
50 g fine sugar
35 ml corn oil
2 egg yolks (Grade A)
95 ml water

D:
5 egg whites (Grade A)
1/4 tsp cream of tartar
4 tbsp fine sugar

Method :
1) Melt sugar (A) to form caramel. Pour into cake tin. (alternatively you can melt it directly in the cake tin). Set aside to let it cool.
2) Mix together ingredients (B) and pour onto the set caramel.
3) Beat ingredients (D) until fluffy. Meanwhile, mix together ingredients (C) , then fold in the beaten egg whites (D)
4) Pour Mixture (3) on top of mixture (B) from step 2.
5) Put the cake tin into a bigger baking tray and fill the baking tray with hot water. (3 cm)
6) Bake at 175 deg C for 50 - 60 minutes. Remove cake from oven and let it stand for 10 minutes before removing from the cake tin.

NB : In case, you are wondering won't the custard and the cake mixture get mixed together, don't worry, it won't. The first time i saw this baking demonstration, I was wondering if the two mixtures would be mixed together, but was duly assured that it would not! This cake tastes very nice when chilled. Use 100 g of SR flour and 1/2 tsp of vanilla and omit the cocoa powder if you prefer a plain cake.

warming up the car engine?????

2008-11-09T11:13:00.006+08:00

Just came in from outside where I was once again blasted for a full 10 minutes with exhaust fumes. One might think that I am staying right in the middle of the city, but then that is not the case, as I am staying 10 km away from the city in a leafy suburban housing estate, and I was standing in the compound of my house.
The noxious blast came from a neighbour's car. I just cannot understand why some people needs to warm up their cars before driving...we are talking about later models and not a 30 - 40 yr old model. ...and the car is not left idle but is driven for many hours daily. This is the same guy who left his car engine running with his toddler and pregnant wife standing behind the car.

Much has been written about carbon footprints and how we should try to reduce our carbon footprints and save precious petrol, and on the other hand there are people like this who insist on warming up their cars a few times daily (!!!), and starting the air conditioning 10 mins before to cool down the car before driving off, or leave the car idling with the air-conditioner on to cool down.

Out of curiosity, I once ask a neighbour why they had to warm up the car for so long as the exhaust fumes was getting into my home..and the answer I got - " so that Minyak lagi sedap" (so that the petrol would be more tasty) - , and I was thinking, "are they going to drink the oil"!

knitting pattern - child's cardigan

2008-11-06T17:20:00.007+08:00

A cardigan that any fashionable little miss or mum would be proud of. Kept this pattern because i wanted to knit it for FM but FM grew up before I managed to learn to knit in 2 colors.

Sorry, can't remember where I found this pattern since it was published more than 20 yrs ago, but most likely could have been from Family Circle or Woman's Weekly.

didaskaleinophobia - maybe I have it

2008-11-06T14:29:00.003+08:00

Today I discovered this message on FJ's MSN. "didaskaleinophobia- maybe I have it". Big words for a 13 yr old. Could not understand the word so did what everyone would do in this age -I 'Googled' the word.

'disdaskaleinophobia according to (http://www.panic-anxiety.com/phobias/didaskaleinophobia/) means a phobia for school.

Now why would a child who has never missed a day of school other than for illness has this - only reason i can fathom is because of the events of the past few days has affected her quite badly and crushed her spirit.

It is hard sometimes for a young child to understand why when adults refuse to listen and react negatively.

regurgitating everything....the vengeful teacher

2008-11-05T14:14:00.003+08:00

Had thought of the consequences if FJ were to complain to the Asst Headmaster, ....after all we were dealing with a teacher who berates her students as urban animals and useless just because the students do not plant trees(???), spent all their time in front of the tv and the computer and did not get up at 4 a.m(???) to pray.....
Well, FJ's action has come back to haunt her. FJ just got the total marks for Civics, and only got 63, which meant a 'C', the only C among her grades. Under the present system for Civics marks are given for Folio (class project) and also Personal Conduct (behaviour???), though goodness why is it that way, and why should it be awarded by a teacher who only teaches her for 40 minutes a week unlike her class teacher, who teaches her for longer period a week. Should not marks for Conduct be awarded by her Class teacher, who would be able to make better judgement based on the time spent with the child. But then, that is the education system. So are students at the mercy of the Civics teacher? Seems to be so..FJ's has never skip any class nor played truant, does her homework diligently (I make sure of that)....only fault is that she dared to question the teacher and to refer to the Asst Headmaster!
FJ barely got any marks for her Folio and Conduct, despite spending so much time and effort to complete her Folio project. I am not being biased when I say that FJ really spends a lot of time on her Class project! This is the child who will spend hours researching and searching for suitable pictures and information from the Net and then printing them out. She will also spend hours colouring any pictures to her satisfaction which is a long time since she adores art.
As a mother, I feel sad and angry about the whole episode, but have advised FJ to put it behind her.

dreams of the everyday housewife..........

2008-11-04T13:30:00.004+08:00

When I was thinking about starting a blog, I was looking around for an ID for myself and could not decide. Then one day, I happen to be interviewed by some media people from the local papers who wanted to know my occupation, so I replied "Homemaker". Well, they replied "Orh, housewife" in a rather superior manner. I corrected them and repeated "No, HOMEMAKER", but they insisted "HOUSEWIFE" and that it was the term used for stay-at-home mothers in the papers.
Back home later that afternoon, the Glen Campbell started rattling in my head, in the way, that sometime you get a song in your head that can't seem to go away!
Decided that "Everyday Housewife" would be my ID, next was the title for my blog. 'Dreams of the Everyday Housewife' was already taken (maybe many others had that Glen Campbell song running in their head), so decided on Notes.
Actually, this blog is like a sort of personal challenge. I wanted to see whether I would have the perseverance to start a blog and whether I would be able to keep it going with interesting items so that readers would keep returning...which I think is the greatest challenge. After all, how many would be interested in a blog by a middle-aged lady blogging about cooking, knitting, and her everyday life and comments. But of 'cos, first I would have to direct people to my blog, so one day, I discover the 'help' button, and clicked on it..never realising that a whole new world awaits me ...the world of Blogger Help Share Group , and since then have been returning almost daily to it. Met up with a whole community of fellow bloggers who have been giving helpful and encouraging comments.

So...to you all wonderful people out there : "A WARM THANK YOU and NICE MEETING YOU"

Meanwhile, am still puzzling out HTML, and how to cut and paste that Ad-Sense Code on to my page! Somehow, can't get it to the right place on my template. Then, my challenge is how to persuade you guys to click on the Ad's....but then that is a story for another day.....

...to be continued on another day

Mee Bandung

2008-11-03T13:59:00.002+08:00

FM,
Remember the Mee Bandung we had at the restaurant, (cant remember the place, since its been a few years). Ever since then, CK has been hankering for Mee Bandung, and been pestering me to cook it for him. Been searching for a mee bandung recipe and online, there are so many versions all claiming to be the authentic 'Muar Mee Bandung'. Bought a box of 'Knorr' beef stock cubes last week as I wanted to make lasagne(yes, finally made that lasagne yesterday!), and there was a simple recipe for Mee Bandung on the box!
The recipe was so simple that I think you can attempt it in your little kitchen, but then, you may not be so keen on it since you are not such a keen fan of tomato sauce, unlike FJ.
Anyway, will list the recipe here just in case.
Ingredients :
1 tbsp cooking oil
4 pips of garlic, chopped finely
6 shallots, chopped finely
2 red chillies, sliced finely ( i did not have chilies so i used chilli sauce, haha)
250 g chicken (cooked and shredded)
250 g prawns, shelled
2 stalks of lemon grass (serai), diced
1.5 l water
1 1/2 beef stock cube
1 cup tomato sauce
4 eggs,lightly beaten
salt and pepper to taste
600 g yellow noodles (i used spaghetti, as i don't like the boric acid in yellow noodles)
2 cups choy sum
2 cups bean sprouts

Method :
1) Heat oil and fry the onions and garlic. Add in chillies and serai, stir fry. Add in water and the beef stock cube. Bring to boil, then add in prawns, tomato sauce and the salt and pepper.
2) Switch off the fire, then slowly add in the beaten eggs.
3) Meanwhile, bring another pot of water to boil. Blanch the choy sum, bean sprouts and noodles separately.
4) Place noodles in individual bowls. Add in choy sum, taugeh and the shredded chicken. Then add the soup.

FM, simple isn't it! Maybe you can cook this for your friends.....or reduce the quantity for a meal for one. I did not measure out the water, and I used less eggs, so the soup was a little bit watery. FJ liked it, probably because of the tomato sauce.

Ikea - inexpensive kitchen tools

2008-11-01T20:14:00.009+08:00

Come early September, I would be waiting eagerly for the arrival of a certain catalogue, and guess what is it. Yes, the Ikea catalogue. I enjoy browsing through the catalogue looking for new kitchen stuff, especially for inexpensive kitchen tools. In fact, CK (the anti-shopping guy) always complain when I drag him shopping at Ikea because he know he will be there for many hours,so I would treat him to Ikea 's curry puffs just to console him! These are some of the inexpensive kitchen tools I got from Ikea. There are more, but am going to leave that for another day. These are my 3 favourites.
A citrus fruit squeezer for less than RM5/- . Better than the conventional juice squeezer. Cut off the top of a lemon, just turn it, and you have lemon juice. Very handy when I just want a little bit of lemon juice for my salads, etc. Then I store the lemon in the fridge to be used another day.

3 small knives for less than RM 10/- . Yellow one, i used for paring fruits and vegetables. The blue one, I used for de-veining prawns, and the red one I used for removing cakes from cake tins, because it is thin and fine enough to go around a cake tin without spoiling the cake.

A pair of whisks for less than RM 5/-. The bigger whisk for whisking eggs and making batter, while the smaller one is very handy for making sauces and gravies.

4 handy and inexpensive kitchen tools for less than RM20/-, but which I find very useful in my kitchen.

regurgitating everything....updated

2008-11-01T20:03:00.002+08:00

Well, FJ came back from school today...good news is everything settled, though not exactly to her satisfaction. The teachers came to a consensus that so long as the students answered with the key words from the textbook, the answers is acceptable, so now they have to mark all the answer papers again. As for FJ, she only got 1 extra mark, since she answered in her own words, and did not include the key words from the textbook.
Was the effort worth it? I suppose so... but then the jury is out. Probably by going all the way to the Asst. Headmaster, FJ has most likely antagonise the teacher concerned. All I can hope is that FJ will not get this teacher in her class next year. Otherwise, FJ will be picked on or maybe just ignored! But then, looking back, all this would have been avoided, if the teacher concerned had kept an open mind and listened and explained to FJ instead of telling her to go away and challenging her to see the Asst. Headmaster, which I strongly feel is intimidation as she was most likely thinking that FJ would not have wanted to approach the Asst. Headmaster!

regurgitating everything....latest update

2008-10-31T19:52:00.005+08:00

Latest update from FJ. The civics teacher today turn down her request flat...in a not so nice manner too...told FJ to get away from her, which I think speaks for the type of teacher she is. Also challenged FJ to complain to the Asst. Headmaster, which i find pretty unacceptable because i feel it is something minor, so why should she need to refer to the Headmaster. Doesn't the headmaster have other more important issues to attend to then to mediate in a dispute over some marks. I suppose it because FJ is just a Form 1 student, that she can be intimidated by the teacher, but timid her, has managed to take the issue this far.
Well, the other civics teachers agree that FJ's answers are acceptable, but they being colleagues are unwilling to get involved!
Have advised FJ just to let it go, but then to be disappointed at this young age about the education system and her teachers, who she expected to be more approachable and open-minded!

....regurgitating everything..will be continued as FJ is going to take up the teacher's challenge and will go to see the Asst. Headmaster on the matter.

Knitting Pattern - Child's sweater

2008-10-31T18:18:00.005+08:00

Patterns for sweaters for spring dating back to 1988 from "Sandra". Love this 2 patterns because they are so easy to knit. I knitted the yellow sweater in pink for FM, and a friend knitted the purple sweater for her daughter. The two child models looked so adorable, and I think I fell in love with the patterns because of them!

regurgitating everything....update

2008-10-30T21:15:00.005+08:00

FJ was unsuccessful in her appeal today. Went to see the teacher who set the questions...teacher agreed with her, but were unable to revise the marks.. reason being that he was not her civics teacher, and did not assess her answer papers. So now she has to go back to her civics teacher, i.e the one who assessed her answer paper, to appeal again. Have doubt that FJ will succeed, seeing as the teacher has already rejected her request in the first place...which i feel is pretty unfair!
The tactic now is to get the consensus from all the civics teachers in the school, I mean the agreement of all the teachers that you do not need to regurgitate the answers word for word in a civics test, and then tell the teacher concerned that. All the trouble just for a few marks, but to FJ it is a matter of proving herself correct, and an A or a B...

..regurgitating everything ..../to be continued...

regurgitating everything....

2008-10-30T18:06:00.005+08:00

Last, Friday, FJ was very upset when she came home from school...reason being that the teacher who marked her civics paper for her year end exams penalized her and marked her answers wrong because it was not word perfect, in other words she had not memorized the answers word for word from her textbook. I wonder what are being taught in schools today.. students are not taught independent thinking but instead are expected to regurgitate everything word for word from the textbooks! I can understand if it was the Moral paper, where one have to memorize the 36 Moral rules, so in other words, does it mean that a person who fails the moral paper is immoral...and one who is able to regurgitate the 36 rules are a very moral person! I wonder....
CK being the protective big brother, he is, is going to accompany FJ to see the teacher who set the questions for the civics paper, and they are going to argue out that FJ should at least get a few marks for getting the answers correct even though it is not in the prescribed format as in the text books.
...regurgitating everything continues ..once i get the latest report from CK and FJ when they returns from school today.

Knitting Pattern - Child's sweater

2008-10-29T20:50:00.008+08:00

the sweater that i knitted for FM in '93

This pattern was published in 'Sandra" in 1988. I knitted it for FM in 1993 when she was 3, but living in a tropical country she never really wore it. FJ wore it once though when she went to Genting Highlands. 'Jaeger' yarn is not available here, so FM's sweater was knitted in "Robin" 'Bambino' DK yarn.

Instructions for the sweater to fit a child 4 yrs and 8 yrs, chest measurements 58 cm and 68 cm. Figures in brackets are for the larger size. If only one set of figures, it applies to all sizes.

Materials : Yarn Jaeger, quality 'Matchmaker' 2 DK, 100%wool, 250 g
One pair 3 mm and 4mm needles, 3mm double pointed needles

Basic pattern using 4mm needles : number of sts. multiple of 11+2 edge sts.
1st row : K
Row 2 and 4 : P
3rd row : edge st., *P2 tog twice, yarn over needle (yo), K1, yo, k1, yo.k1, yo, P2 tog. twice, rep from *, edge st.
These 4 rows form pattern.

Tension : 22 sts and 33 rows to 10 cm

Rib pattern : using 3 mm needles, *k1, p1, rep from *

Method :
Back : Cast on 66 (76) sts, and work 4 (5) cm in rib, increasing 13(14)sts evenly on last row=79(90) st. Continue in basic pattern. When work measures36(42)cm, shape neck. On next RS row, work 28(33) sts. in pattern, turn and leave remaining sts. on a holder. Complete these side first. At neck edge, cast of on every alt. row 4 sts once and 2 sts. once.
When work measures 38 (44) cm, cast of remaining sts for shoulder. With RS side of work facing, slip first 23 (24) sts on holder for centre back neck, rejoin yarn to remaining sts, and work pattern to end,complete to match first side, reversing shaping.
Front : proceed for back, except neck. When work measures 33 (39) cm shape neck. On next RS row, work 34 (39) sts. in pattern, turn and leave remaining sts. on holder. Complete this side first. On neck, cast of every alt row 3 sts once, 2 sts 3 times,and 1 st 3 times. When work measures 38(44) cm, cast off remaining sts for shoulder. With RS of work facing, slip first 11 (12) sts on to holder for centre front, rejoin yarn to remaining sts and work pattern to end. Complete to match other side, reversing shaping.
Sleeve (both alike) : cast on 36 sts and work 4 (5)cm in rib, increasing 10 sts evenly on last row = 46 sts. Continue in basic pattern and increase 1 st at each end of every 6th row 5 times, then 1 st alt on every 4th and 6th row 8(12) times = 72(80) sts. When work measures 27(34)cm cast off.
To make up : Block pieces to measurements, cover with a damp cloth and allow to dry. Join all seams and set in sleeve to position. With the double pointed needles, pick up 90 sts evenly and work 2 cm in rib pattern.

NB:
I never could handle double-pointed needles comfortably, so I used a pair of 40 cm circular knitting needles for the neck.
Will upload the original pattern on another day.

Collection of Matchboxes and the Trebor Cookie Jar

2008-10-28T11:12:00.012+08:00

My collection of matchboxes

My late mum ran a coffeeshop in a small town in the '60s, and these jars were for displaying sweets and cookies on the counter. Instead of the plastic containers that we see on the counters at coffee shops today, then glass jars were used. One of the jar has the letter "T" on the lid for Trebor sweets, which were about the only sweets available then before the influx of the many brands of sweets we see today.
I started collecting matchboxes in the '80s, and when my collection got larger, my mum gave me this 2 containers to put them in, and I think it looks better in this containers then the common goldfish bowl! Thanks to my late mum for keeping this containers....
Lately, have not add much to my collection of matchboxes...bcos of the smoking ban in public places, most hotels and restaurants no longer place matchboxes on tables and in hotel rooms today. Only places I have been to obtain matchboxes were from some hotels in China... so now I collect toothpicks to remember the places I have been!
Among my collection of matchboxes are boxes from The Cave Disco (it was The place in the '80s), The Hilton (Crowne Mutiara now) and from many places which are now defunct. Some place are still around though, such as Hotel Malaya, and if i am not mistaken Hotel Waterfall in Penang which i stayed in 1981, which is like a long time ago....

Collecting recipes - Nestle Test Kitchen

2008-10-24T14:35:00.014+08:00

a recipe for marbled agar agar from Nestle, from the '70s, and the estimated cost for the agar-agar was only $1.70 then!

I have always been very keen on collecting recipes. In the '70s, there were not many cookbooks available especially local publishers, and whatever were available were beyond the means of my schoolgirl allowance. So, when I wanted recipes, I would write to local food companies requesting for recipes, and generally the companies were rather obliging. One such company which I wrote to regularly was Nestle Malaysia, and each time I wrote in, they would send me a stack of their recipe cards. Thanks to my late mum, who kept them faithfully for me despite having to move house several times, the cards are still intact although a bit yellowed with age.

A recipe for Empress Chicken. Estimated cost -$3.90 . Today, RM 3/90 now won't even buy 2 pcs of chicken thighs.

2 sides of a Glossary of spices/herbs and vegetables - with the equilvalent in Malay and Cantonese.

Crispy Spring Rolls

2008-10-23T15:48:00.003+08:00

A favourite at family gatherings. The last time I made it was for FM's farewell party.

Ingredients for the filling :

1 carrot, shredded
5 dried Chinese mushrooms, soaked and sliced thinly
1 turnip, shredded
20 g wood fungus, soaked and shredded
2 tbsp dried prawns , soaked and drained
salt and pepper
cornflour

1 pkt spring roll wrappers
egg white

Method :
1) Heat up wok with oil, fry the dried prawns until fragrant, then add in other ingredients. Fry till fragrant. Season with salt and pepper, and thicken with cornflour. Dish up and cool filling.
2) Place filling onto spring roll wrapper, apply egg white at edge and roll up.
3) Heat up oil in wok, and deep fry spring rolls until golden brown.
4) Remove and drain well.
5) Serve with mayonnaise or Thai chili sauce.

Chocolate Marble Agar-Agar Cake

2008-10-21T15:26:00.007+08:00

Chocolate marble agar-agar cake

Another recipe I found online at http://auntyyochana.blogspot.com/. Baked it last weekend. FJ complained that the agar-agar layer was not thick enough, but i supposed that can be remedied by using a smaller cake tin. As advised I used a 10" x 7" cake tin.

Ingredients :
1 pc of chocolate sponge cake

Ingredients for agar-agar layer :
400 ml milk
50 g sugar
13 g agar-agar powder
2 egg whites
50 g sugar
1/8 tsp salt
30 g cooking chocolate(melted)

Ingredients for topping :
200 ml fresh milk
50 g hot water
1/2 tbsp instant jelly
50 g sugar
10 g cocoa powder
30 g cooking chocolate
1 tsp agar-agar

Method :
1) Cut cake to fit into cake tin.
2) Mix 50 g sugar and agar-agar powder together. Add in milk and bring to boil.
3) Whisk egg whites with 50 g sugar until frothy, and while beating, pour in the agar-agar from (2)
4) Divide agar-agar into 2 parts. Add in melted chocolate to one part, and mix evenly.
5) Quickly scoop white and chocolate portion alternately onto the cake. Keep aside till half-set.
6) Meanwhile, prepare the topping. Mix cocoa powder and hot water together until paste. Mix instant jelly, agar-agar powder and sugar together. Add in cocoa paste and milk. Bring to the boil, stirring all the time to prevent lumps.
7) Pour topping onto the semi-set agar-agar. Cool and set before chilling in the refrigerator.

Tip : When making jellies, mix the agar-agar powder or instant jelly with sugar together first before slowly adding in the liquids to avoid lumps when boiling the jellies.

Home Made Egg Noodles

2008-10-20T17:35:00.005+08:00

A recipe for home made egg noodles. Used to enjoy making the noodles, but have not made them lately because I did not enjoy cleaning the noodle machine after the task. The noodle machine need to be kept clean of floor remnants otherwise the rollers turn moldy.

Ingredients :
350 g flour
3 Grade B eggs
2 tbsp cooking oil
1 tsp salt

Method :
1. Sieve flour into bowl.
2. Add in eggs, oil and salt.
3. Knead until smooth.
4. Cover and rest down for 30 minutes.
5. Divided dough into balls and roll out using the noodle machine.

A lot of elbow grease is needed if you are kneading the noodles by hand. I used the dough hook on my kitchen machine. First time, I tried it, I used the K-beater, and broke it in the process. Cost me RM70/- to replace the beater, which certainly made for very expensive noodles!
This is a recipe from 'Hongkong Delicacy'.

My teapot collection

2008-10-18T14:47:00.011+08:00

Chinese teapots. Smallest one is an Ebay find. 2nd on the left is from Hongkong circa 1987. Only the tallest one is in use, and is for brewing hubby daily Pu-erh tea supply.

Teaset bought from a shop at The Peak, Hongkong in 2005

Very mini teasets. Set on the left is a gift from my friend Pat from her trip to Bangkok

Mini teaset from Hong Kong, circa 1987

Xisha teaset from Wuxi, China- from my holiday in 2007. Hope I did not pay too much for it.

A cheerful doll house set bought from Hot Market, KL for RM5/

A brass kettle (an Ebay find)

Doll house teaset bought from a roadside stall in Bangkok in 2006. I remember I was so happy when I found it, as I thought I would not be able to find any in Thailand!

The grand dame of them all. Almost 40 yrs old. A child hood gift from my brother(the best brother in the world). As a child, whenever i was ill, he would try to find me a small gift to cheer me up, which shows his niceness as he is only 2 yrs my senior.

Mini hand painted teapots from Riccardo, Southern Pottery

Cute little teapots. Brown teapot is gift from Jacobs Cream Cracker and is shaped like a cream cracker. Centre 4 teapots are finds from local gift shops. Teapot at the back right is sold as a sauce bottle, but decided not to use for soya sauce as flies keep getting into the spout.

I like collecting teapots and tea sets, and will try to buy a teapot or tea set from wherever I travel to. In Kuala Lumpur, I will look for teapots at chinaware shops, gift shops and also RM2 shops. I also look for bargains on Ebay, and have so far have come up with some gems. These are just part of my collection.

Orange raisin cake

2008-10-09T14:44:00.006+08:00

A mixed fruit caked that I baked a few months ago

Orange raisin cake baked last week

I adapted this recipe from a recipe that i found in Creative Making of Cakes by Alex Goh. Original recipe was for a sultana cake, and is one of my favorite cakes. I have baked this cake countless times, but instead of just sultanas, I like to use a mixture of raisins, sultanas, fruit peel and cherries. I do not like the packed mix fruits available in the shop, but instead will buy them separately, and mix them together. For example, I like the taste of fruit peel, so I will add a bit more than is usually available in ready packed mix fruits.

Ingredients :
250 g butter
230 g sugar
5 eggs
1 tbsp glycerin (optional, as it is to keep the cake moist)
200 g flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tbsp milk powder
250 g raisins
60 g high protein flour
Peel and juice from 1 orange

Method :
1) Mix raisins and high protein flour. Sift flour, baking powder and milk powder together. Set both aside
2) Cream butter and sugar until white and creamy
3) Add in eggs, one at a time. To prevent mixture from curdling fold in a tabsp. of flour into mixture
4) Add in glycerin.
5) Add in orange juice and peel
5) Fold in flour, then add in the raisins from (1)
6) Bake in 9" sq. tin at 180 deg. C for 50 mins. Cool.

If I am baking a mixed fruit cake, I normally substitute the white sugar with brown sugar, and 1 tsp of rum essence (available in bakery shops) for orange juice.

Baking bread

2008-10-08T16:10:00.005+08:00

sweet dinner rolls

raisin buns (on the left) and sausage rolls

Have been neglecting this blog lately. Reason being that last week the children did not have to go to school, so were glued to the computer all the time, which meant that I did not have access to the computer. Besides, have also been busy with my knitting. Yes, after 1 1/2 months, I finally completed the pullover, and it is now on its way to North America to FM. Now that FM is living in colder climes, I have got a reason to pursue my knitting hobby, though if this carry on, she will be overloaded with knits.
Anyway, I did find time to bake, and last week, I baked cake bread (it did not turn out successfully) and pizza on Tuesday, bread on Thursday and on Sunday I baked an orange raisin cake (more on that another day).
For the bread :
Ingredients :
500 g high protein flour
1 tsp instant yeast
60 g sugar
1 tsp salt
1 tsp milk powder
1 egg (50 g)
250 g water (but i used fresh milk and water)
50 g butter

Method ;
1) Mix flour and instant yeast together at slow speed using dough hook. Add in sugar, salt and milk powder. Add in egg and water. Use medium speed, and blend until like dough (5 mins). Add in butter, and continue kneading for about 15 mins, until dough is springy.
2) Cover dough with cling wrap (I normally placed the dough in a Tupperware), and leave to rise until double in bulk (45 - 60 mins)
3) Punch down dough, and set aside for 10 mins.
4) Scale dough and shape into 40 g balls.

I made 3 types of bread from the dough :
a) Mini hot dog buns : Roll dough lengthwise, add in half a hot dog and roll up like a Swiss roll.

b) Raisin buns : Wash and dry about 2 tbsp of raisins, and add into the dough. Shape into balls

c) Dinner rolls : Roll into oval shapes, then roll up like a Swiss roll.

Brush buns with egg wash, and bake at 200 deg C for about 10 minutes.

Found the above bread dough recipe in "Bread Code" by Wendy Kor, and I think this sweet dough recipe works out better than my earlier dough recipe for the pizza.

Sweet corn soup

2008-10-07T22:36:00.002+08:00

FM,
Another easy soup for you. You have been telling me that sometimes you do not know what to cook. I guess that cannot be held, due to the limited ingredients as unlike me, you cannot go shopping everyday for food. I suggest that on your next shopping trip, maybe, you should stock up on some canned food, such as baked beans, canned soups, and sweet corn (creamy type).
For sweet corn soup, you will need

1 chicken breast
1 can sweet corn (creamy)
1 egg

Boil the chicken breast. When cooked, removed, cool and shred chicken. Retain the chicken stock. Bring stock to boil again, add in the sweet corn. Add in the chicken. Switch off flame. Beat egg lightly and add in slowly to sweet corn soup. Season with salt and pepper.

You can substitute the chicken breast with crab meat.

warm soup for cold nites

2008-09-22T14:30:00.004+08:00

FM dear,
I think there is nothing like a big bowl of warm soup for cold wintry nites. A bowl of hot chicken soup really warms the body, but today i am suggesting a bowl of vegetable soup.
Take the easy way out by opening a can of tomato soup. I doubt you would have the time or energy to make a pot of soup stock from chicken or pork bones. I would not either, as i think for a student living away from home, time and costs saving is important, and who would want to waste time slaving away in the kitchen just to rustle up a meal for one.

Peel and cut into chunks 1 or 2 potatoes, 1 carrot, onion , tomato and some cabbage leaves. Fry some bacon strips and onions. Add in carrot, tomato and potatoes, and stir for about 3 mins. Bring the tomato soup to boil. Add in the vegetables. Boil over low heat for about 15 mins, then add in the cabbage. Continue boiling. Meanwhile, cook a handful of pasta in a pan of boiling water. Drain, and add to the tomato soup, and you have a tasty bowl of soup for 1.

Butter a couple of buns with garlic butter, and toast for some nice garlicky buns to accompany your soup.

my first oven

2008-09-12T00:54:00.000+08:00

Baking has always been a passion of mine, and is something which I enjoy all the time. The first cake that i ever baked was queen cakes in home science class. Another cake that i learn to bake in home science class was a Victoria sponge cake, i.e a simple sponge cake using only eggs, sugar and flour, and sandwiched with jam.
My first oven was like a metal black box(butterfly brand) that you place over a charcoal or gas stove, but i never managed to bake any cakes as i did not know how to manage the oven temperature which is crucial for baking cakes. I only managed to bake simple cookies in that oven, and even that I was not very successful. So i used to envy my friend's mother who could bake lovely cookies and cakes using the simple black oven.
My next oven was a gas oven which my brother bought for me as a birthday present. In it I use to bake basic butter cakes or cookies. When niece Andrea was small, she enjoy blowing out birthday candles, so whenever I bake a cake I would have to place some candles on top of it for her to blow before I would be allowed to cut up the cake.
When i got married and moved into my own home, my first purchase was a Zanussi gas oven. It has since been replaced with a Europa gas oven. But I only use the gas oven for baking cakes and not roasting meats as I hate cleaning up the splatter after roasting. For roasting chicken or cha siew, I would rather use a turbo broiler, even though I may not get as nice roasts as in an oven. Or, I would use a small electric oven which i guess is easier to clean than the gas oven.

strawberry mousse cake

2008-09-08T13:47:00.004+08:00

strawberry mousse cake for FJ's birthday n to celebrate cookie ii homecoming

I have not bought a birthday cake for quite a while, and every year for the children's birthday, i would bake a special cake for them. For FM, it will be a chocolate cake, CK likes an orange flavoured cake, while for FJ who loves strawberries, it has to be a cake with a strawberry flavour. After so many years, it has become a challenge to come up with new cakes, so before their birthdays come around, i will go through my recipe collection or go online to search for new types of cakes. Once i baked a cake and tried using sugar paste, but the children did not like the taste. So now it is mostly whipping cream, ganache or jelly. I would like to try marzipan, but it is so expensive!
We postponed celebrating FJ's birthday this year because of the missing bear, and she was in no mood to celebrate. After finding Cookie II last week, I baked this cake for FJ as a belated birthday cake.
The actual cake is a raspberry yoghurt cheese cake which I found online at http://auntyyochana.blogspot.com/ , but I changed it to a strawberry mousse cake, and left out the cheese part.

Ingredients :
1 slice of 9" dia. chocolate sponge cake (as the base)

Strawberry mousse:
2 tbsp gelatin powder
110 ml water
150 g strawberry jam
1 tsp strawberry paste
150 g strawberry yoghurt
250 g non dairy whipping cream

Method :
1) Double boil the gelatin, water, and strawberry jam until dissolved. Cool to room temperature.
2) Whip whipping cream until soft peaks form. Add in yoghurt and gelatin mixture. Mix well.
3) Place sponge cake in 9" dia. spring form cake tin.
4) Pour mousse on top of spongecake, and chill.

Topping :
100 g strawberry jam
20 g sugar
200 g water
2 tbsp gelatin

Method :
Double boil all the ingredients till dissolved. Chill to room temp. and pour on top of mousse.
Chill for a few hours before serving.

I only had 1 tbsp of gelatin left, so I halved the ingredients. That is why I only had a thin layer of topping on top of the mousse.

internet connection driving me bonkers

2008-09-07T11:47:00.003+08:00

Have not been able to post anything the last few days as the Internet connection was not stable. Been like this for quite a while, but most of the time if i reset the router by switching off and on again the modem, it would stabilise and I cant recall the many times I have complained to tmnet. Every time I complained, the excuse was that my connection was the problem, in the sense that I was running the modem and telephone on parallel lines, and that I need to split from the incoming socket, whatever they meant, and refused to look into the matter further. Fed up of their excuses, hubby decided to rerun and change the telephone cabling. Well the problem persisted and this time i did not even had an Internet connection, so had to call telekom again, and insisted that they looked into the problem again. Stayed home to wait for them, but nobody turned up. While waiting, the connection came on again!
Well, got the connection up and running again, not that good either, but hopefully, i can stay connected!!

rice cooker

2008-09-01T13:42:00.002+08:00

Dear FM
I heard from your dad that you have checked out the price of the rice cookers in Canada, and that they are rather expensive (about CAD40/-) as compared to here, where we can get a rice cooker for less than RM100/-.
So I suggest that you do not buy a rice cooker, but use a microwave oven instead since there is a microwave oven available. Just buy a heat roof casserole, which I think would be cheaper. Actually for one person, i think it would be much easier to cook rice in a microwave, since you can just cook a small amount, say about a cup of rice, unlike in the rice cooker, where you would need to cook more. Then you would end up eating overnight rice all the time, or maybe frying rice.
Cooking rice in the microwave is rather easy. Just wash a cup of rice, place in the casserole with adequate water to cover the rice. Soak for a while to let the rice soften, and then cook in the microwave on high for 10 mins. Of cos, this would depend on the microwave. Some would have a present program for cooking rice. Just extend the cooking time if rice is not done yet. Let it stand for a while, and then fluff up the rice with a pair of chopsticks. You can also steam the rice, like what your grandma did way before electric rice cookers became popular and affordable.
Your daddy says that you can also cook the rice over the stove, as that is what he did when he was studying abroad, but personally i think it is rather tedious, as you would need to watch over the rice. If you are not careful, you may end up with burnt rice, which means wastage!

Found at last ......the Bata bear

2008-08-29T02:52:00.007+08:00

the Bata bear and friend at it's predecessor usual place

Yes, finally found the Bata bear. Well, somebody from Bata came across this blog about my search for the tiny bear, and circulated it among their office. And luckily for FJ, someone from Bata did have the bear, and was kind enough to give it to my daughter. Not only that, Cookie II (FM's name for the bear) came home with a little friend.
In the past one week that the bear went missing, had met many kindhearted people on online forums, etc who took the trouble to contact Bata outlets, and some even emailed me Bata's website and their HQ phone contact.
So thanks to all you wonderful people out there, esp Doreen who contacted her friend Jay from Bata Msia who agree to search their store but regretfully there were none left.
FJ is walking around with a big grin plastered on her face, and the find has definitely made her day.
My heartfelt thanks to the wonderful folks at Bata Malaysia who made it possible.
And to :
Datuk James Selvaraj (Marketing Manager of Bata):
FJ hereby solemnly promised to take good care of your bear, and to keep it safe and sound. She says a warm thank to you for giving her your bear, and also for the little companion that came with Cookie.

a lead at last

2008-08-27T17:29:00.005+08:00

Just receive an email from one of my leads. Told me to contact a certain someone at Bata HQ . Hopefully this contact will lead me somewhere, and that I will not be disappointed.
Hard to believe that it is so hard to find a bear, and I am not talking about the missing Cookie, but just a similar one to the one that FJ lost! Ebay is suppose to be the place that you can buy almost anything, but i have made countless searches using countless subjects but so far my search have been unsuccessful. I must have gone through countless ebay sales on bears, but so far no similar one has come up in my search. This is not just the past week, but I have been doing so for a few months since FJ expressed a desire to have the whole set. It is easier to look for fuwas than the bear!
Now I know how parents with a missing child feels. It must be frustrating to be pasting posters all over town looking for a lead on a missing child, and following leads from every message that comes in only to be disappointed again and again. Then are also the cruel people who would call saying that know where your missing child is and asking for a reward before they will let you know where your child is, and what about those crank calls. I would not want to imagine.

the search continues

2008-08-27T15:31:00.006+08:00

Well, the search continues for one tiny bear. Its just incredible that despite there being 10000 bears in the market, nobody has come forward to say they might have a bear for adoption. Yes, I call it adoption not buying, sounds nicer. I suppose everybody love the tiny bear very much, and is quite reluctant to put it up for adoption.
FJ just asked me today, whether I receive any replies to my online quest, and sure hate to reply in the negative. Could see the disappointment on her face.
Some people might think i am crazy the way i go searching for the bear. Niece Mei was just telling me her friend says she is so dramatic like the 10.00 pm Ntv7 drama, which i have no idea what it is about since i hardly watches any tv drama. Seems in the drama, the character went online to look for a soft toy or something.
Note to self : will, look out for the tv drama tonight to see what it is all about.

Missing FM and looking for Bear

2008-08-26T14:49:00.004+08:00

Yesterday, was at KLIA to see FM off to Vancouver. Today, she has called back to say that she has arrived safely in Vancouver, and was on her way to Victoria, BC where she will be there for the next three years. As for me here, i am missing her already. I keep looking at the clock and wondering what she is doing at the moment. Yes, I have set a clock to Vancouver time, so that it makes it easier to figure out the local time in Vancouver, instead of doing mental calculations in my head.
Meanwhile, my search for Cookie continues. Have not really got any leads. A kind lady on a forum did give me a lead, only to be disappointed. Her friend did not find any bear in her store, so her friend has extended the search to her colleagues' home. Hopefully, this lead will not turn cold.
Niece Yiew Yiew has also printed out a picture of Cookie, and will circulate among her tuition mates in the hope that one of them will have one such bear.
Have also posted my quests on ebay and lelong.com.my, but so far have not got any leads.
CK has chipped in with his spot on comments. Commented that we are like looking for a missing child, the way we have been going about the search. But in a way, I guess I also miss Cookie very much, because the little bear has become a familiar feature around the house. FJ used to place it in front of this computer whenever she was in school, and I would be looking at it when I am at the computer!

when will bear be found

2008-08-23T22:36:00.003+08:00

Still desperately looking for the bear. Have posted messages on forums, and on this blog, but looks like I or rather FJ is going to be bitterly disappointed. Today is FJ's birthday, but she has turned down other birthday gifts. All she wants is her bear, and if not her Cookie, another bear like Cookie will be ok. Actually, find it hard to understand why? A bear is a bear, but to her it has got to be that bear. Between her, FM and CK, I think they have got about 70 stuffed toys, but this is her favourite. The bear is quite small, about 6" only, but the bear has got a cheeky smirk, which I think is the reason why she is quite taken with the bear.
Yesterday, a lady on a forum responded to my request, telling me that her friend would search through her store room for one, but as yet she has not informed me whether she found the bear. Many kind strangers have responded, but none seems to have the bear or heard of the campaign.
Incredible, seeing there's got to be about 10000 bears around. I am prepared to pay more than what they paid for the bear, but maybe because it was for charity people are reluctant to sell for profit.
Still fervently hoping that someone, somewhere out there will have the bear. Actually, since it was for charity, i fondly believe there are many out there who would have bought it without really knowing what to do with the bear.

still desperately seeking bear

2008-08-21T16:52:00.002+08:00

FJ is still inconsolable and I have been desperately making enquiries on who would have a bear to spare. It has got to be the right bear, that is the cute little bear that Bata Msia imported in 2006 for their Bata Cares Campaign in aid of the National Cancer Society. At that time anybody who bought a pair of shoes could buy the bear for RM5/-, with the proceeds going to the society. I even contacted Bata HQ in Klang today, but disappointingly they did not have any left. I even begged their staff to ask around the office as to who might have one they would be willing to sell to me.
Today i was at Bata MidValley, one of their salesgirl had one, but regretfully she was not willing to sell it to me, even though I was willing to pay more than what she paid for the bear. I have even emailed the Cancer Society in the hope that they might have some left, but I guess they have more important things on their agenda than to reply to a mundane letter seeking a bear.
I am pretty confident that there must be plenty of the bears out there, as according to the Bata website, they brought in 10000 bears for the campaign which is certainly a lot of bears.
Have even gone to discussion boards on ebay seeking one, in the hope that a ebayer might have one that they might wish to sell.
FJ has even gone on to online forums looking for the bear, but so far has been unsuccessful.
Still it has been less 24 hours since we posted our search online, and I am still hopeful that somewhere out there, someone will have 1 such bear that they would be willing to give up for adoption. It would certainly be much loved and would be most welcomed by FJ.

desperately seeking bear

2008-08-20T23:03:00.007+08:00

Do anyone out there remember these bear, and the campaign by Bata Malaysia in 2006, where you pay RM5/- for a bear in aid of the National Cancer Society.
My daughter FJ, was one of the lucky adoptees of the bear, and it was certainly a well loved bear, and she took it with her wherever she went. However to her utmost distress today, it rolled out of the car near the bus stop at Jaya Jusco, Bukit Raja, Klang today without us being aware of it until it was too late. We went back to the the bus stop but we were too late, as according to the taxi drivers waiting there, a young Malay girl had picked up the precious bear and left on the bus with it.
My daughter is inconsolable and I am at my wit ends on how to get her another bear. My only hope is that someone who read this, would have one of these precious bears and would be willing to give it up for adoption by my daughter. I would be willing to pay adoption fees or make a small contribution to a charity of the person's choice.
It would be too much to hope that the person who found the precious bear would read this and return the bear. But if by some small miracle, if you are reading this or you know of someone who might have found a small well worn out bear outside the Jaya Jusco bus stop, at Bukit Raja, Klang today 20 Aug 2008 between 4.30 pm to 5.30 pm, please, please return the bear to my daughter. It would certainly make a wonderful birthday present for my daughter who turns 13 this week.
Please leave a comment on this blog, on how you can be contacted if you have one of these bears.

Flying on her own

2008-08-14T18:08:00.004+08:00

Yes, been a few days since I posted anything. Been rather busy. FM will be leaving for Canada soon so have been rather busy. She have yet to pack her stuff, or rather I think it will be me who will be doing the packing. Sometimes, I wonder do I pamper her too much, but then I tell myself, it is the least I can do to help my baby who will be leaving home on her own for the very first time. Ok, she has been away before but then it was only nearby and only for a night or two.
My eldest baby leaving the nest, and I suppose like mothers everywhere I wonder whether I have taught her well to fly on her own. My dearest baby, I hope you have adequate flying lessons. However, whether they have been enough or not, the time will come when I will have to boot you out of the nest for you to fly on your own.
All your early flying lessons have had me or your dad flying beside you, but this time, you will have to flap your own wings, and we will not be nearby to catch your fall!

claypot chicken rice

2008-08-09T13:48:00.002+08:00

Daughter
I still remember the first time i was introduced to claypot chicken rice as a small girl. It was at a restaurant near my childhood home, and was the only restaurant in the small town that I grew up in. I was only about 4 - 5 years old, and at that time I think i was more fascinated with the scoop they use for the cooked rice than the food itself. It was a giant Chinese soup spoon, and was the first time I had ever seen such a big Chinese soup spoon!
Since that time I have had countless clay pot rice, but somehow the first impression still remains. Its a simple one pot meal that I think you will be able to prepare for yourself. However, instead of a clay pot you can use a rice cooker or even the microwave.
Buy boneless chicken so there is no worry of bone fragments.

Ingredients :
2 cups of rice, wash and drained.
2 chicken thighs ( cut and marinated with soy sauce, oyster sauce ,dark soy sauce, & pepper). Chinese rice wine is optional.
3 - 4 dried mushroom, soaked and sliced
1 Chinese sausage, sliced

Place rice and mushroom in rice cooker. Add water and when water starts to boil, add chicken and sausage. Cook, and presto you have easy clay pot chicken rice.
Of cos, if you use a clay pot over a stove, you will have the nice crusty rice which you all love.

Chicken floss swiss roll

2008-08-09T01:07:00.004+08:00

Chicken floss roll, a difference from the normal sweet swiss rolls

Had a packet of chicken floss left over from CNY which I did not know what to do with, until I found this recipe in a cookbook recently. Bought the chicken floss with the intention of making crispy rolls but somehow never got round to doing it.
The original recipe calls for added spring onions but I omitted it as I had none at home. Have never been very successful with swiss rolls as they tend to crack when rolling, until my sifu told me that I got to bake at 200 deg C for a maximum of 10 mins only, and yes, I used sponge mix.

Ingredients for sponge :
150 g sponge mix
3 eggs
40 g corn oil or melted butter
2 tbsp cold water

Method :
1) Line a 14" x 10" swiss roll tin with grease proof paper
2) Whisk sponge mix, eggs and cold water until fluffy.
3) Fold in corn oil
4) Pour into swiss roll tin and bake at 200 deg C for 20 minutes. Cool.

Making up the swiss roll.
1) Spread sponge with mayonnaise.
2) Sprinkle meat floss on top and roll into a swiss roll.

If meat floss is not available, spread with some jam or kaya, and roll up.

Home made pizza

2008-08-07T14:34:00.003+08:00

Not exactly Pizza Hut stuff, but then it is healthy as there is not so much oil involved. My oven do not have a upper fire, so I cant really get a nice toasty colour to the mozarella topping unless i bake for a longer while. The yellowy stuff is canned pineapples, my fave add ons to pizza!

One of my favorite bakes on a Sunday afternoon is pizza because then the children can eat as they go about their hobbies, and that means they do not really need to move away from their Maple Online game, which they are totally addicted to. If need be, I think they can produce a theses on Maple Story!
I am quite relaxed about their computer gaming, and am quite alright with it so long as it do not interfere with their studies and homework. At least with the computer they are at home instead of out on the streets creating mischief.
However, i insist they strike a balance and include other hobbies. All three loves to read, esp CK who is rather fond of books by Jeffrey Archer and Terry Pratchett. CK is reading Prisoner Of Birth by Jeffrey Archer, which i think is a valiant effort considering his tender 14 years. He has read all the Jeffrey Archer books, but to date I have only read one, and that is Twelve Red Herrings, though I was the one who introduced his books to CK.
On my pizza, previously i would prepare a tomato sauce base of tomato paste, onion, etc, but lately I have modified my recipe and use mayonnaise or thousand island. Much easier for me, as less preparation work.

My recipe for the pizza dough :
2 tsp instant yeast and 1 tsp sugar added to 100 ml water and set aside until frothy (10 mins)
500 g high protein flour
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 tbsp butter
100 ml cold water
150 ml cold milk

Method :
1) Sift flour and salt into mixing bowl.
2) Add instant yeast, water and milk.
3) Use dough to mix together. Add in cold water. Knead dough until smooth and elastic.
4) Cover dough and proof until double in bulk (45 - 60 mins)
5) Punch down the dough then leave to rise again (about 30 mins)
6) Divide into equal portions, depending on the size of pizza you want.

Assembling the pizza :
This is up to individual taste. I normally spread some mayonnaise on the base, and then add whatever vegetable (bell pepper, onions) available and then some chicken ham or sausages.
Sprinkle with mozarella cheese and bake until done.

easy chicken rice

2008-08-06T19:24:00.004+08:00

My dear daughter,
For when you have an urge for pak chit kai (white boiled chicken) and chicken rice, today going to teach u how to make easy chicken rice in a rice cooker or micro-wave. Back home, mummy use a whole chicken and dunk it into a pot of boiling water, but I doubt you will be able to manage a whole chicken! So to make it easy for you, buy a couple of chicken whole thighs.

Easy Chicken rice.
2 - 3 pcs chicken whole thighs
2 cups of rice (washed)
2 pcs pandan leaves (if you don't have it, you can omit)
1 thumb size pc of ginger (crushed)

Place rice, ginger and pandan leaves in rice cooker. Add sufficient water. Place chicken on top of rice. Start the rice cooker. Wait till rice is cooked, keep warm for about 15 - 20 mins. and you have chicken rice. Remove chicken, cut it up, season with soy sauce and sesame oil.

Now if you are wondering how to tell whether the chicken is cooked? Use a fork, and poke it into the thickest part of the thighs (near the drumstick joint). If the liquid comes out clear, then the chicken is cooked.

Ahh..now how to cut up the chicken. You probably would not have a cleaver, and then I doubt you would dare to wield one. Do like mum sometimes do. Use a pair of kitchen scissors like the one that I have at home to cut up the chicken. Not as neat as if you use a cleaver, but then ....

Actually, I find a pair of kitchen scissors rather handy in the kitchen. I even clean fish (easier than using a knife) or to snip chives, etc.

Ohh, yes, how much water in the rice? A rather easy way. The height of the water should about reach the first ridge of your middle finger. Some advocate the thickness of a person's palm. Of course, if you are using a electric rice cooker, your problem is solved. But then, the amount of water would also depends on the type of rice use.

Egg tarts

2008-08-04T19:50:00.027+08:00

Egg tarts that I baked. Not that nice looking but according to my chief tasters, tasted nice! The egg filling look kind of pale compared to what you get from the bakery because I did not use any yellow colouring.

I think the easiest way to make short crust pastry is by using the food processor. I remember years ago watching Chef Wan demonstrating on tv on how to make pastry by using the food processor. But last weekend I use the kitchen machine, as I was too lazy to fish out the food processor from the cupboard. And, finally after quite a few years, i got to try out my pastry cutter.

Ingredients for the sweet short crust pastry
250 g flour
125 g butter
60 g icing sugar
1 egg yolk
1/2 tsp vanilla essence
1 tbsp cold water

Method :
1) Using the K beater, mix the butter, icing sugar and flour together until like breadcrumbs.
2) Add in egg yolk, vanilla and cold water and mix together.
3) Shape into a ball and chill in fridge for about 30 mins.

Ingredients for egg tart filling :
3 eggs
120 g sugar, dissolved in 250 ml of hot water and cooled.
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp white vinegar
1 tbsp of custard powder (the original recipe call for yellow coloring but I substituted with custard powder, which I think tasted better)

Method:
1) Add eggs, vinegar, vanilla and custard powder to sugar mixture. Beat lightly.
2) Roll out pastry between two sheets of plastic sheets and cut into rounds.
3) Place pastry rounds into patty tins, and pour in egg mixture until 3/4 full.
4) Bake at 180 deg. C for 15 - 20 mins. until egg sets.

my weekends

2008-08-04T17:54:00.005+08:00

One of the advantages of being a stay-at-home mother is that I have the luxury of avoiding the weekend crowds at the supermarket. I do most of my shopping during the weekdays when the children are in school. After dropping them off at the school gates, I would go to the supermarket and shop at leisure.
I hate going to the shopping centres during the weekend, so most of my weekends are spent at home with the children. The children do not enjoy shopping and would rather sleep in late and spend the rest of the day glued to the computer. I enjoy trying out new restaurants but most of the time, I prefer to go on a Friday evenings, where normally it would not be that crowded.
Mostly I would spend my weekends catching up on my household chores where the children will help me or tending to my little garden or baking or catching up on my reading.
Yesterday, being a Sunday we went out for dim sum in the morning, and i spent the afternoon baking. First I baked pizza for dinner, and then also a chicken floss Swiss roll and yes, i baked some egg tarts. All three recipes turned out quite successful although they were not that nice to look (by that, I mean nothing compared to what one would find in the shops). My children being the supportive guys were rather complimentary in their praises...
Well, according to them, the egg tarts tasted as good as the store bought ones!
I seldom try making pastry as i have never been too successful at them, but at least this time, I manage quite alrite, in that the pastry did roll out quite nicely, and did not cracked like some previous attempts.
The eggs I used for the filling were rather big so I ended up with too much egg tart filling. Steamed up the balance of the filling and chilled in the fridge. Have yet to taste the steamed eggs, so cant comment on how they tasted!

My Tissot - neither an electronic nor a mechanical fault

2008-07-31T15:57:00.003+08:00

Have got a reply from the service centre, and the verdict is that it is neither an electronic nor a mechanical fault, so what is it. To quote their reply, " I hope you understand that your watch's defect is due to wear and tear, since nothing can last forever and your watch has been running non-stop for 3 and 1/2 years", which I feel doesn't explain anything, but only sidestep the issue. But isn't a watch supposed to run non-stop until the battery wears out.
According to them, the lifespan of the watch depends much on the habit of the wearer. So what would be the habit of a wearer to extend the lifespan. Isn't the ordinary mundane life of an everyday housewife suitable for their watches. In fact I only wear my watch when i go out for the day, which is seldom. Otherwise, it is left on my dresser.
I have been advised that a battery needs to be changed every 18 mths, even if it is still running. So what is the life span of a quartz battery. As with most people, I believe we would not change a watch battery if it is still running, or do someone beg to differ.
Anyway, it is a case of once bitten twice shy, and would i ever buy a watch from the Swatch group stable, the answer is a definite NO.
Or to quote hubby ,"Put it down to bad luck." Afterall out of the hundreds of watches at the dealer, I had to choose this one.

Baking lessons with Andrea - Oreo Cheese Cake

2008-07-31T15:32:00.011+08:00

The other cake that Andrea made was an Oreo cheese cake, haha a cake for Oreo cookie lovers. Had to use a 7" sq cake tin as I did not have a 7" dia. round cake tin. Quite an easy cheese cake to make, as there is no baking involved.

Ingredients for the biscuit crust :
1 roll of 150 g Oreo cookies (keep 2 aside)
70 g of unsalted butter (melted)

Method :
1) Remove centre filling and set aside) and crush the cookies. (easiest way is to place in a plastic bag and whack with a rolling pin)
2) Mix crushed cookies with melted butter and press into the baking tin. Chill for 1 - 2 hrs in fridge.

Ingredients for cheese filling :
250 g cream cheese
120 g fine sugar
2 pcs of Oreo cookies (remove filling and crushed)
Oreo biscuit filling from above
150 g whipping cream (whipped slightly)
1 1/2 tbsp gelatin powder
80 ml milk

Method :
1) Double boil milk and gelatin powder until dissolved.
2) Cream cream cheese and sugar until smooth. Add in the Oreo filling and the 2 crushed biscuit, and the whipped cream. Mix well
3) Add in gelatin mixture and mix well.
4) Pour mixture onto biscuit crust, smooth top and chill in fridge for about 3 hours.

Pipe whipped cream rosettes and place an Oreo cookie in centre as decoration. We did not have any whipped cream left, so we left the top plain.

Baking lessons with Andrea - Peach Jelly Cake

2008-07-28T13:18:00.008+08:00

Andrea was home for the summer holidays, and wanted to try her hand at baking. So last weekend she made a Peach Jelly cake and an Oreo Cheese Cake. She did the actual baking like measuring out the ingredients and doing the mixing and baking, while I just help out by telling her what to do and the method. The cakes turn out rather nice and successful especially for a newbie at baking. We also tried our hands at making a key lime pie, but the lime filling did not set very well, though the sweet pie pastry tasted very nice. I am going to use the sweet pastry to make egg tarts this weekend. Have yet to try out my new pastry cutter which have been lying in my drawer for a few years.
We decided to use sponge mix, as it was the easier and fail proof method. Baking sponge cakes using sponge mix is fail proof, but it tastes rather bland unless I make up the cake with whip cream or chocolate ganache or like here where we use agar-agar and peaches.

Ingredients for the sponge cake :
250 g sponge mix
5 eggs (grd A)
3 tbsp cold water
60 g melted butter

Method for sponge cake :
1) Whip sponge mix and eggs until creamy. Add in cold water. Continue whipping until thick and fluffy.
2) Fold in melted butter.
3) Pour mixture into 9" dia. cake tin, and bake in 180 deg C oven for 35 mins until done.
4) Cool, and cut into two layers. Use 1 layer only.

For the agar-agar layer :
290 ml fresh milk
20 g sugar
2 tsp agar-agar powder

2 egg whites
30 g sugar

Method :
1) Put agar-agar powder, sugar and fresh milk to boil.
2) Beat egg whites and sugar until fluffy, while still beating add in the agar-agar mixture.
Cool slightly.

3) Place sponge cake into a 9" dia. spring form tin.
4) Pour agar-agar mixture onto sponge cake. Place cake into refrigerator to set.

For the Peach Layer :
400 ml water
125 g sugar
20 g instant jelly.
1 can peaches
Method :
1) When agar-agar mixture has set, score surface with a fork.
2) Arrange peaches on top of cake.
3) Boil instant jelly, sugar and water until clear. Cool slightly
4) Pour instant jelly mixture on top of the peaches, and leave to cool and set in the fridge.

You don't necessarily have to use peaches. You can also use fruit cocktail or canned pineapples.

Chocolate Chip Muffins

2008-07-25T16:08:00.006+08:00

Baked this chocolate chip muffins last week. The teddy bear guarding the muffins is Cookie, and is FJ's favourite bear. Bought it from Bata a few years ago, when they had a fund-raising campaign in aid of the National Cancer Society. Her biggest regret is that I only bought one of the bears, as they came in a few different colours. Seeing that she loved it so much, I went back to Bata to try to purchase the whole range, but by then they had already sold out the bears. Have tried to get another one from Ebay, but so far have been unsuccessful. I supposed those who purchased the bears fell in love with it and was not willing to dispose of it.

My recipe for the muffins :

100 g butter
100 g fine sugar
1/2 tsp salt
120 g flour
1 tsp baking flour
1/2 tsp sodium bicarbonate
60 g ground almonds
50 ml fresh milk
20 g cocoa powder
100 g chocolate chips
2 eggs (grade A)

Method :
1) Sift flour, baking powder and ground almonds together. (the original recipe calls for hazelnuts, but i only had almonds so used that instead.)
2) Cream butter, sugar and salt until light and fluffy.
3) Add in eggs and beat well after each addition. (to prevent eggs from curdling add in a tbsp of flour into the butter mixture)
4) Fold in flour. Add in milk, cocoa powder and chocolate chips, and mix until well combined.
5) Put mixture into paper cups and bake in oven at 180 deg. C for about 15 mins.

I don't like the taste of sodium bicarbonate in cakes so I normally reduce or omit it altogether.
I once saw Nigella Lawson on tv using an ice cream scoop to scoop out the batter for cup cakes, and it was certainly easier that way to fill the paper cups, and you can get any equal portion for each paper cups.

Cooking lessons for FM-Hard boiled eggs and the potato salad

2008-07-24T12:51:00.007+08:00

Still on the hard boiled eggs.
Today we add in some potatoes to make egg and potato salad.
Boil a couple of potatoes and eggs. When cooked, cooled and then peeled of the skins. Cut the cooked potatoes into bite sized chunks. Also cut the cooked eggs. Place into bowl, add in mayonnaise and pepper. Mix well and place in fridge for 1 - 2 hours.
If you have any left-over roasted chicken or ham, shred them and add into the potatoes, and you have a meal for one. Alternatively, you can also add in cooked shrimps, which I think FJ will enjoy as she loves shrimps.
Haha, mummy is teaching you to use a lot of mayonnaise . Beware, though, as mayonnaise is rather fattening because of the oils. For a more healthy version, omit the mayonnaise and use french dressing. I remember seeing lite mayonnaise in the shops, but I wonder how lite they are.

Cooking lessons for FM - Hard boiled eggs and making an egg sandwich

2008-07-23T16:39:00.010+08:00

FM will be leaving for N.America next month to further her studies. It is a big step for her and an even bigger step for me to let go of my baby so that she can be independent and learn to survive on her own. Like mothers the world over, I will worry and be wondering whether she is eating well and keeping warm. Probably, once she settles down to university life in N America she will enjoy life away from home, but will I be able to adapt to life without her at home! Luckily, there is the internet and web cam and life chat and budget IDD available, so at least i will be able to keep in touch with her.
Since she entered college last year, and knew that she would be traveling and staying on her own abroad, she been telling me she intended to learn to cook but my dear daughter have yet to ever find the time.
So to my beloved daughter, what are you going to do? The other day you were asking me how to boil a hard-boiled egg. You can fry an egg but you do not know to boil one! In case, you are wondering, you do not add the egg to hot water as the egg would cracked due to the extreme change in temperature. Anyway, I am wondering here how many have made the mistake of boiling an egg by adding it to hot water.

Daughter, in case you want to know :

Boiling a hard boil egg :
Put the eggs in pan of cold water, and bring it slowly to the boil. Simmer for at least 15 mins. If you can pick it up with a pair of chopsticks, it is cooked. Dunked the eggs in cold water so that the egg yolks will not have black ring outside it. Then peel the eggs. (CK, if you are also reading this and wondering why you cannot peel an egg properly without spoiling the egg white, give it a brisk knock all over so that egg shell is cracked all over, before peeling it).

For egg sandwich :
Mashed the peeled eggs with a fork, add in salt and pepper (and CK, remember to go easy on the salt), and mayonnaise. Spread on bread, and you have an egg sandwich.

still griping about it

2008-07-22T18:11:00.005+08:00

Yes, I am still griping about it. I still find it hard to accept that a Tissot watch which is supposed to be known for it quality would have moisture sipped into it after just 3 1/2 yrs. The service centre informed me that it would be due to an aging rubber gasket but i find it unacceptable that a rubber gasket would deteriorate in such a short period. The rubber gasket on my pressure gasket works just find after five years despite being subject to high heat and regular usage.
Was so disappointed that I emailed to Tissot, Switzerland to voice my disappointment but have yet to receive a reply.
Was at the shops looking at some new watches. The watch dealer recommended Tissot again, haha.. and was rather surprised when told of my experience. A Tissot is not supposed to have moisture sipping into it after just 3 yrs.
Another dealer suggested that i could have bought a fake watch, but then I did not buy it from a shop in Chinatown but from an authorised agent in Bukit Bintang Plaza. Come to think of it, I did sent the watch together with the warranty card back to The Swatch Group, KL for adjustment of the bracelet when i had it. I supposed at that time they would have noticed if it was a fake or not!
Anyway, saw some nice GC watches, but have yet to decide on the purchase, as once bitten twice shy, i am rather scared of swiss watches. Besides, the watches were selling rather cheaply, and being a layman i definitely do not know how to tell an original from a fake.
Saw some very cheap watches (RM10/-). Think I should follow some of my friends who buy these Rm10/- watches, and chucked them away once they stopped. Can have a new and fashionable watch every month.
Come to think of it, for the amount I paid for my Tissot I could have got 42 watches for 42 months (ie the time I have the Tissot) and still have spare change!
But to quote the watch dealer today ,"why buy a Mercedes, when a Kancil will do just as nicely! You buy the quality, mah!"

first the sewing machine, now my tissot watch

2008-07-21T16:54:00.003+08:00

The past few months have made a big hole in my pocket, as one after another the things at home seem to need replacing or repairing! First to go was the sewing machine, but then after 19 years of quite heavy usage, I cannot complain. Replaced 1 Singer sewing machine with a newer model just before the New Year. The next to go was the Ariston washing machine, but I am not complaining either as the machine had served me quite faithfully for 18 years. One week later, the CCD on my Kodak CX6330 camera spoilt after just 4 years, and time for a replacement as I sort of cannot do without my camera. Bought 1 Olympus FE310 to replace my Kodak. Then my Kingston flash drive could not read after just 1 month, and it was back to the dealer again. Just got a free replacement drive today. Then the Instant water heater also gave up, but then after 18 years, I am not complaining either.
Then came last Saturday. As I was just preparing to go out discover my tissot (Belle) watch of just 3 1/2 years (to be exact I bought it on 18/1/05) was not working. Thought maybe was the battery, as after all the battery had never been replaced. So first thing today, hubby sent it back to the agent, ie Swatch Malaysia for a battery replacement only to discover that the problem was worst than a flat battery. Apparently, moisture had seeped into the circuit, and it would cost me RM210/- to change the circuit. Now the million dollar question, how could moisture have seeped into the circuit. I have never gone swimming with it( i dont know how to swim), taken a bath with it or got caught in the rain while wearing it. Wear and tear of the rubber gasket was the explanation from the agent, but after only 3+ years. My old Orient lasted me 14 years, and all I had to do was change the battery every 1 or 2 years. My intention was to purchase a Japanese model to replace my old Orient watch but I was persuaded by the dealer to buy a Swiss made Tissot watch, because of their reputation and quality, and the promise that a Tissot would last me a quite a while, but looks like I have been severely misleaded. A very disappointed me will have to hit the shops to shop for another watch, as I feel weird without a watch on my wrist, and I am definitely going to follow my instincts about buying a Japanese brand (like Seiko which was my original choice in 2005), and this time I am not going to listen to whatever the watch dealers tell me. In fact,I think I will walk out if the dealers should try to persuade me to buy a Swiss made watch.
Anyway, the children should be happy about it, as i sort of hinted that I that a Longines would be a welcome 60th birthday gift, haha. Now they can save their money, as I doubt i would want to own a Swiss made watch ever again. Feel very let down and disappointed.

Steamed tau sar pau

2008-07-21T13:19:00.006+08:00

FJ likes eating tau sar pau, so i normally keeps a pack of tau sar in the freezer and pau flour at hand for times when she have the urge for tau sar pau. I prepare a batch and freezes part of it ready for hunger pangs. Just take out of the freezer, steam them again and hey presto, you have got pau to eat.
I don't like making my own tau sar as I find the process too tedious so I buy them from bakery supplies shop for about RM3/- for 500 g which is enough to make about 25 pau. Tried making tau sar, but find the result not worth my effort. First you have got to boil the beans, grind them and then fry them slowly with oil in a wok.
Pau dough can be made quite easily in a kitchen machine, but if you dont have one, you can also use a food processor or knead the dough by hand.
I use the recipe from At Home With Amy Beh 2, as I find the quantity and method quite easy to work with. As with most of recipes, I follow it through once, and then I will adapt them to suit me.
Generally, most of the times, I will reduce the sugar and try to take short cuts. Sometimes it works but of cos there are also disasters.

My Tau sar pau :

Ingredients for the pau dough
500 g pau flour
2 tsp double action baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
100 g castor sugar dissolved with 100 ml lukewarm water (sugar can be reduced t0 90g)
50 g shortening
1 sachet instant yeast (11 g) dissolved with 150 ml lukewarm water, a little flour and sugar, set aside until frothy.

Filling :
500 g tau sar (divided into 25 equal portions)

Method :

1) Sieve flour, baking powder and salt into bowl.
2) Add in shortening, sugar mixture and yeast mixture. Knead well using the dough hook until mixture turns into a smooth dough.
3) Cover dough and leave aside to prove until double in bulk (about 45 mins).
4) Punch down the dough and divide into 25 pieces.
5) Flatten each piece of dough and wrap in a portion of the tau sar.
6) Place on a piece of greaseproof paper.
7) After wrapping up all the pieces of tau sar, place pau in steamer and steam over rapidly boiling water for about 10 mins.

When I am in a hurry, I just place all the pau ingredients into a mixing bowl, and knead. Use fine sugar instead of castor sugar. It works just as well, and is much cheaper than castor sugar. In fact, I do not use castor sugar even for cakes, as I find them too expensive as compared to fine sugar. In the old days when they do not have fine sugar, I would use normal sugar and grind a batch in my food processor to save costs. The dough can also be used for making char siew pau or vegetarin pau. A friend even makes rendang chicken pau!

Hitachi washing machine.

2008-07-18T13:35:00.006+08:00

Finally after 1 1/2 mths, the shop delivered the stand for the washing machine. My old front loading machine kaput after 18 yrs of hard work, and I bought a Hitachi 12 kg washing machine from my regular shop. Decided on a 12 kg because of the amount of daily laundry. The old machine was rather small (only 5 kg), and sometimes i had to do a few loads which was not very efficient.
Little did i realise that when i decided to purchase the machine of the problems i would faced.
It being such a long time since i bought a new one, i did not realise that machines came with a stand until my good friend told me. Well, u might wonder what the stand is for. It is to raise up the machine, so that the legs do not get wet and rusts, and also so that rats and cockroaches do not get into the machine, at least that was what i was told.
Contacted the shopkeeper, and also Hitachi to inquire whether a stand was included in the whole package.
What was most disappointing was the reply I got from Hitachi. Apparently, since I did not purchase the machine from one of their distribution partners such as Sen Heng , I could not deal directly with them but had to go through the shop where I bought it from. Emailed them through the address published on their website, but I did not even get a reply to my email. So what is the use of the email address on the website. The shop where I bought it from was also having problems supplying me the stand, and gave me different replies every time I called. On my 2nd call to Hitachi,( by the time my patience was running out), managed to contact a lady who was not much help either except to confirm that the machine did come with a stand, and suggested i go back to the shop again and ask them to contact their salesman who supplied the machine.
I just wonder what sort of system of customer service that Hitachi have. At the end of the day, the machine carries the Hitachi brand and customer support should be provided irregardless of where the machine was purchased from.
As i am a regular to the shop, the owner decided to keep his good name and ordered another machine, and give the stand to me first.
Well, would i ever purchase any Hitachi equipment again. In fact, before this I was thinking of getting a Hitachi fridge, but now it is a case of once bitten, twice shy and I will be looking at other brands instead. Maybe Hitachi should learn a tip or two from the Customer Service Manager from Kenwood Kitchen Appliances who went out of his way after work to deliver a K-beater with no extra delivery charges when my k-beater broke and I could not go to Subang to get 1.

Tale of the water heater (now they call it a shower system)

2008-07-16T14:04:00.001+08:00

My 18 yr old National instant water heater (before they change their brand name to Panasonic) was not heating as well as it should be.
So time to head to the shops again. There were many models available and equally as many opinions. Intended to purchase a Panasonic, as it looks rather modern and was quite slim looking compared to the other models. But found out that the lever switch was rather fragile, and unlike other models did not have any tanks inside, but only copper tubes, so might not be so efficient and water may not be that warm.
Other choices were from Joven, Cornell, EuroUno and Singer. The Singer heater costs (RM50/-)more compared to Joven and Cornell. The shopkeeper wanted Rm250/- for both the Joven 520 and the Cornell. Didn't quite like the EuroUno, so that was out.
By then was down to 2 choices - Joven and Cornell. The Joven was slimmer and smaller (less than A4 size paper) but the Cornell looks more like a shower heater (or rather what I have been used to). Much deliberations later, bought the Cornell.
The heater is up and running, quite warm even when switched to low. This is the first time I ever bought a Cornell product, and hope that it will lasts as long as my old National water heater

food saves the day

2008-07-14T12:20:00.004+08:00

FM had to have a medical checkup for her visa application so we went to this clinic at City Sq. An x-ray was part of the procedure, we were told to proceed across the road to an x-ray clinic.
Went in and handed in our letter to the reception. Without even looking up or informing us on what we should do, the guy took our letter. Bewildered and not knowing what to do, we sat down and wait. About 5 mins. later, a man called FM's name and she went into the radiology room. After the x-ray, on inquiry, we were directed to a lady in a small room at the back, to ask on when the x-ray film would be available. Procedure done, we said our thanks and left. Disappointedly, we never receive any response such as a 'you are welcome' or a 'bye' from them. The whole experience was like visiting a govt. dept in the old days where the counter staff looks at you woodenly. As to it, we got a much friendly experience from our visit to the immigration department for our passport application.
From one square to another... We proceeded to Times Square for lunch. I rarely take KL taxis (scared, especially if I am alone), but that morning decided to take 1 as it was the simplest way to go from City Sq to Times Sq. Approached a taxi driver or rather he approached us, and he wanted RM20/- for the short ride to Times Square. Must be thinking we were not locals as we came out of the Crown Pricess. Told him to forget it, and walked further up the road to stop a taxi. The ride costs me RM 4/80, a quarter of what the first taxi driver wanted. No wonder, Malaysian taxi drivers have such a bad reputation.
Well, 2 rude experiences in just one morning.
Lunch was at Sek Hou, Times Sq. First time there, and decided to play it safe. FM had prawns with deep fried noodles in special sauce (looks and tasted like sang har sang meen), and I had la mian with chicken and mushroom in soup. Both was alright, though they could do with fresher prawns. Outlet looks like the typical outlet serving a combination of hongkie and local foods.
At least better than Food N Tea at the same place. Used to eat at Food N Tea, but did not enjoy our last two trips there, so decided to try another place. In fact was at Food N Tea last month, and the service was rather slow, and the red bean tongsui was not that fresh (a sour taste). Our food also took ages before arriving at our table.

Paddington House of Pancakes

2008-07-11T13:54:00.003+08:00

Had lunch at POHP, Midvalley yesterday. Decided to try out the place because of the name, Paddington sort of reminded me of Paddington Bear, and i am quite fond of pancakes.
As did not know what to order, decided to try their lite menu. Had the great American breakfast.
Well, if you are wondering what it is, haha..scrambled eggs with mozzarella cheese, some mushrooms, baked beans and a slice of ham on a piece of pancake. Paid an extra RM2/-, and it came with a mesclun salad and a lemon lime soda. The pancake was unlike any that i had ever tried (it looked like a piece of roti jala) and was quite bland and dry. Scrambled eggs was alrite, i guess, quite moist. I prefer my salad with at least a light vinaigrette dressing, but this salad came without any dressing! The lemon lime soda was just about the most sour lemon lime i ever tasted and I had to request them to dilute it before i could drink it.
Service : Quite slow, took more than 20 mins before we got our order despite there being less than 10 customers in the restaurant at that time
Staff : Not very helpful, as could not help with the menu, and we had to order blindly
Total bill for the three of us : Rm39.40, and i was also charged govt. tax, despite my queries that since July 08, outlets with less than RM1 mil. turnover was exempted from govt. tax.

pandan layer cake

2008-07-09T16:10:00.003+08:00

ah...finally got the image of my pandan layer cake uploaded.
Am quite new at blogging, and at uploading pictures but i believe if i prevail, i shall succeed!!

pandan layer cake.

2008-07-09T13:16:00.008+08:00

Baked a pandam layer cake and it looks like this. Its one of my favourite recipes, and it rather easy to make. This time I used prepacked coconut extract for the pandan topping as they said it would make a better looking topping, but after tasting it I think i prefer the topping made from fresh santan brought from the market.
I used sponge mix as the cake is not so crumby and is easier to cut into layers. However, for sponge mix I think you would need a kitchen machine to beat it (i uses a Kenwood Chef) at a high speed for the mixture to be thick and creamy. I was never able to get the mixture to rise properly when I used a hand mixer, or maybe it's only just my hand mixer.
The recipe goes like this :
For the sponge cake : 250 g sponge mix
5 eggs (I used grade AA)
60 g melted butter and cooled(i prefer butter
to corn oil as it tastes better
Method :
1) Beat the sponge mix and eggs at high speed (approx 10 mins using the kitchen machine)until thick and fluffy.
2) Add in the melted butter
3) Pour into a 9" dia. lined (base only) cake tin
4) Bake at 180 deg. C for about 30 mins until a cake skewer inserted into the cake comes out clean. Cool.
5) Cut into 4 layers when cooled.

Ingredients for the pandan layer topping :
Santan (1 coconut ) mixed with water to make 1080 g
270 g sugar (reduce the sugar if you dont want such a sweet topping)
2 tbsp instant jelly
95 g hoenkwe flour (use white color)
1 tsp pandan paste
Method :
1) Mix hoenkwe flour with 200 g of above santan mixture
2) Mix sugar and instant jelly. Add the santan mixture.
3) Bring to the boil, and add the hoenkwe flour mixture while stirring all the time. When mixture starts to thicken remove from stove.
4) Keep mixture in a pot of hot water to avoid it setting too fast.

Assembling the cake :
1) Put 1 layer of cake into a loose-based cake tin. (It helps to wrap the cake tin in a piece of aluminium foil so that the mixture does not leaks out.
2) Pour in a portion of the above topping.
3) Repeat the above, finishing with the santan topping.( You have got to work fast as the topping sets quite fast)
4) Cool and set in the fridge.

Oops, could not upload the pix due to internal error. Will attempt to upload the image later. Still a newbie at this uploading stuff...

looking for a knitting pattern

2008-07-08T17:44:00.001+08:00

Got 600 g of yarn, 3 in black and 3 in grey, and 8 balls of 'Panda' brand 'angel' yarn which i think is a mohair mix, that i am trying to combine into a sweater for my daughter. Since I am not a every experience knitter and have not knitted for many years, difficult patterns are out. Well, looks like i will be knitting a ordinary pullover with different bands of yarn(will make her look like a jailbird) Or else maybe I will use the dk yarn for the band, and the mohair yarn for the main piece.
At first, I thought I could just use the plain coloured yarn, but i don't think i will have enough yarn for a pullover. Or maybe, i will just knit a vest for her.