Saturday, October 31, 2015

Potato Soup

One day not too long ago, I made some truffle fries, but I could not finish them and kept them in the fridge. I fell sick and longed for nothing soupy and decided to make potato soup with the leftover fries. With tasty broth and more vegetables like carrots and onion, the soup was really delicious. 


Friday, October 30, 2015

Cheese Bread

I had a strong craving for cheese bread. It had been a while since I baked my own. There are hardly enough people to eat them at home and giving them away, strange but true, is a bit more troublesome than not giving away. I used my usual milk bread recipe, as I find it suitable and a bit contrasting with the nice salty flavor of cheese. 




Thursday, October 29, 2015

Black Rice Breakfast



This was my breakfast the other day. The black rice was cooked until they are almost porridge like, I personally like them al dente. I had them with a lot of cubed mangoes and berries and topped them with coconut milk and agave syrup. You can use honey, if you like.  That it. Now, start your day with the goodies. 




Thursday, 1AM

I could file a police report, technically.

A note to myself: baked figs with Gorgonzola and walnut.

Ugh. Really. How many more times I have to ask? How many more ways I have to remind them? How long do I have to wait? 

Yup, not even a minute can be spared for the ones that have helped them. 

Pandan waffles. Banana with PB with crepes. 

It's so wrong that I communicate a lot more with my Insta friends than with the people that should care about me. Yikes.

How did all get me "here"? 
Poor and alone, I am not. 

Blue skies, falling leaves, boots. 

Shanghai, it's been a while. 

Ocean, water, sand, white beach. Laughter and smiles. I miss. 

Abandoned. Uncaring bunch. Used. Anger. 

Journey. 

Wednesday, October 28, 2015

Healthy Carrot Cupcakes (With Recipe)

These healthy babies are good for breakfast, snacks or dessert. Or call it whatever at anytime you want to munch something. 


It seems many people baked carrot cakes over this past weekend, I was one of them. In an effort to be healthier, I made healthy carrot cupcakes. These are very moist because of the incorporation of banana to sweeten the cupcakes as well as coconut oil and the grated carrot. They are also creamy because I used oatmeal and almond flour. 

I also mixed in dried cranberries to enrich the flavor and walnut for the crunch.  The recipe is below.



Recipe

Ingredients:
1 egg
1/4 c coconut sugar
1/3 banana, mashed
1 cup grated carrots
1/4 c almond flour
1/2 c instant oatmeal
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
1/8 c coconut oil
1/4 dried cranberries (more or less, your preference)
1/4 c walnut and more for topping (more or less, your preference)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350F and line 6 cup muffin pan with liners.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the egg and coconut sugar. Add mashed banana and continue whisking. 
Add grated carrots and mix well using a spatula.
Put the dry ingredients,i.e. almond flour, instant oatmeal, salt and baking powder in a bowl and stir to combine.
Blend the dry ingredients into the egg mixture until they are just incorporated.
Mix in the coconut oil, followed by dried cranberries and chopped walnuts.
Using an ice cream scoop, fill up muffin pans layered with paper case until almost full. 

Bake 170C fan, for about 20 minutes.

Tuesday, October 27, 2015

Another Day.. Some Thoughts

It's another hazy day that I woke up to again for way too many times. I had very little sleep although my flu seemed to have gone away, most of them at least. There's quietness around me and I felt obliged to start my day. My appetite for coffee was not back yet, a sign that I am not quite there in terms of health.

For some people, another day is another worry, another problem. For me that's only true too at times, but some existing problems do not go away, they linger on and bug us like itch. The same people with the same problems continue making their problems as ours. And we continue being unable to cut them out of our life.  And we continue trying to help. And we continue being upset because everything has to be their terms. And life goes on. Life continues with its complexities, many of which can not be understood by them.

People, many of them are the ones have not lived long enough on this earth and gained enough life experiences and think they know a lot of things and believe that the opinion of the people that raise them, do not matter because now they wings and they can fly. But they are so overwhelmed by the many things that adults must be responsible for. Some of them simply quit and travel, some of them start blaming others for what they want in life, and accusing them of trying to force them to do certain things.  Funny, huh? I will add strange too. They then begin their quest in finding happiness.

Now. You raise your children to wear blue, black and white as colors of their clothing. After meeting a certain someone and his family, she wears purple and orange. Are you trying to be rebellious or are you that gullible?

And the haze continues blanketing the city.







Monday, October 26, 2015

Egg Breakfast



I prepare my meals based on what I have at home. Sometimes, they could appear a tad strange or unusual. But these days, we go with almost everything. Check the internet if you need to be convinced. I tried to use waffle iron to cook the sweet potato hash, but failed in giving a solid shape because of the nature of the sweet potatoes. They are moist and sweet. Nevertheless, they were delicious and cooked. The avocado was mashed and mixed with salt, pepper and a little bit of lemon juice. The egg was poached.  The last part of the meal was simple salad. No biggie, it was seasoned with salt, pepper and olive oil.


Sunday, October 25, 2015

Fancy Delight Egg Tarts



A friend gave us some egg tarts, taller than the normal size I had seen before. These are from a place called Fancy Delight. We got original, durian and double chocolate. I haven't tasted them yet because we constantly have too much food around. They look nice though.


Saturday, October 24, 2015

Lemon Madeleines

It was the day after we got back from our holiday in Phuket. I missed baking so much and had been thinking about baking some madeleines, as few as possible, because there were only two of us at home. I came across a recipe from Chuck Williams that uses only one egg and yields 12 madeleines. His method is different than the one I normally use. I made some adaptation and made them as lemon madeleines.

Recipe below:




Adapted from Chuck Williams (William Sonoma)

Ingredients:

1 egg
1/4 c sugar
1 Tbs lemon zest
1 Tbs lemon juice

1/2 cup flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
a pinch of salt

4 Tbs soft butter
Powdered sugar

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 165C
Butter and flour 12 madeleine molds, Set aside.

Sift flour, baking powder and salt.
Beat the egg, sugar, lemon zest and lemon juice on medium speed for about 30 seconds, then increase the speed to high and beat the mixture until becomes very thick, for approximately 8-10 minutes.
Fold the sifted flour in gently.
Add the soft butter into the above and mix well.

Spoon the batter into the molds and bake 10-12 minutes, until they are golden brown.

Invert onto rack and dust with some powdered sugar. Best eaten on the day they are baked.

Thursday, October 22, 2015

Blueberry And Mandarin Orange Scones

These are wholewheat scones with blueberries and sliced dried mandarin and topped with pearl sugar. They make a very delicious combination, especially with a cup of black coffee on the side. Perfect for breakfast any day. The recipe is below.



Ingredients:
  • 2 c flour (I use a mix of wholewheat and all purpose flour)
  • 3 tsp baking powder
  • 2 Tbs sugar
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 4 Tbs butter
  • 3/4 c buttermilk
  • 3/4 cup blueberries, tossed in 1 Tbs of flour
  • 1/4 cup dried mandarin orange, sliced
  • 1 egg for egg wash (add 1 Tbs of water and whisk)
  • pearl sugar to sprinkle the top

Direction:
  • Preheat the oven to 220C.
  • Pour the flour into a large bowl with the salt, sugar and baking powder, mix well. Add the butter, then rub in with your fingers until the mix looks like crumbs.
  • Make a well in the dry mix and then add the buttermilk. Mix quickly with a wooden spoon or spatula, it will look wet at the beginning. Mix in chopped Mandarin orange and floured blueberries.
  • Scatter some flour onto the work surface and transfer the dough. Fold the dough over 2-3 times until it’s a little smoother.
  • Pat around 1"tall and use a cutter or knife to cut according to your preference. 
  • Brush the tops with the egg wash and sprinkle some desired pearl sugar on top.
  • Bake for 10-15 minutes or until they are golden brown.


Wednesday, October 21, 2015

One More Pad Thai

Just before we took off, after we checked in and got our boarding passes, we headed to Thai Airways restaurant in Phuket airport and had our late lunch over there. There's no day without Pad Thai for us in Phuket, so we had another one and another shrimp dish.



Tuesday, October 20, 2015

After The Sunset, 15 Oct 2015

We  were blessed with another clear and beautiful evening in Phuket.










Monday, October 19, 2015

Lunch At Laguna Cafe

It's holiday and we did not want to put too much effort into anything. We went to the closest place that was opened for lunch. This time it was Laguna Cafe, just a few steps from the pool at the hotel where we stayed at.  We had decided ahead of time that we wanted to try their Pad Thai and we did order a plate of prawn Pad Thai and Greek salad to share. 




Despite asking for no bean sprouts on our Pad Thai, the order came with them and we saw that the portion was rather smallish for the hungry us. We then ordered another Pad Thai, with chicken and a reminder that we really did not want bean sprouts.  Then came another gorgeous looking and satisfying Pad Thai. Without bean sprouts. Yay.




Sunday, October 18, 2015

14 Oct 2015 morning, Bang Thao Beach

We had beautiful morning in Phuket on our second day over there. The weather was fine, the sky was blue and the a light breeze was blowing..... It was a great place to be for taking a break. Enjoy the beauties around...








Saturday, October 17, 2015

Dinner At Ruen Thai, Phuket

It was our first dinner in Phuket and it ought to be Thai food, naturally. Our food selection is super predictable too. The restaurant gave us amuse bouche to begin the night. It look like dumpling, it tasted like dumpling, it must have been dumpling, with sweet chili sauce.


We started with green mango salad, which was mixed on the spot. The salad had a very nice balance and flavor. 



Our usual suspects were Thai green curry chicken with jasmine rice (above) and delicious prawn Pad Thai below.



Our dessert was sticky rice with mango. Nice dinner.


How about..

I am nobody's last resort, I am someone's first priority.

Saturday morning, on another hazy day. Now that I am back from my short holiday and you know that, how about asking me how the holiday went. It's fine that you did not wish me a safe journey, I know you don't have me in your mind because you are simply busy with your own life and these days, you don't need me for anything much other than being here and continue existing.

How about stop saying that I am doing negative things to the relationship when I ask how things are and tell you to regularly update me with what's going on in your life and how I feel it is appropriate that you show care about my life?

This relationship has become so imbalanced, with me constantly share the stories of my life with you and you hardly share anything. You constantly disappear and only appear when you need something from me.  Communication is a two way street and so is relationship. It is always about give and take, more or less the same amount. It's about being there in sadness and happiness.  If I want a one way relationship, I'd write a blog post like this, without any expectations that people will write back. When I write to someone directly, it is only right to expect some responses.

Do not think that I am leading a lonely life because my life revolves around so few people now! It's better to have few friends than thousands of acquaintances.
Do not think that I am needy because I need to hear from you! Caring about someone that is closely related is not needy, caring about someone that you know for a long time is not pathetic.  It's too bad that you think otherwise.

Don't believe that love is conditional, even the love from your parents or your spouse.  You need to know that if you constantly treat the ones that love you like they don't matter, even if there were your parents, you could simply forget about being loved. Everyone might leave you.  Everyone could leave you to a better place.

People are smart enough to spend time with those who make them happy and better and do not want to waste time on things that are miserable and bring negativity. Life is too short, babe! Everyone wants to be happy.

How about you learn to genuinely care about the people that have been crucial in life? #gratitude

Thursday, October 15, 2015

Watching The Sunset, Bang Thao Beach

First evening in Phuket, after raining in the afternoon when we arrived, the sky cleared up and we were able to see the sunset. Amazing experience!





Before Flying To Phuket

We suddenly decided on a short break to Phuket. These are some airport pictures, peeps! The food we had and the flowers at Changi. It's a warm up to the trip. 

Ghassi prawns with saffron rice

Fish ball noodles