The Kueh for Josh - Ang Ku Kueh 红龟粿

Just noticed that Josh like ang ku kueh and since his appetite has not been too good recently due to teething and fever. I thought making some of his favourite will boost his appetite. 

Got the recipe from this malaysian's blog because I am looking for peanut fillings instead of those traditional bean one. 

Oooic Moment !! - Do you know why sweet potato is used in this ang ku kueh? According to my in law, it's to make the  kueh skin soft. 

The challenge on making the Ang Ku Kueh for me is making the dough to it's correct texture and then dividing to  the right proportion to make sure the dough is able to wrap the filling properly and the right thickness for the mold. After a few failed, the next few looks just right!! :) 

Taste test by Cloie and hubby - Nice, taste just right but skin can be thinner.

Onsen Eggs...

Tried poaching eggs...not easy really. Why I called it onsen eggs because it looked like one but cooking method different.

Pic from http://japanesefood.about.com/od/egg/r/onsentamago.htm

Can't remember where I read/see it from, the tip is you have to pour in white vinegar then when water boiled, you first make a whirl with a chopstick before pouring the egg in. Keep whirling lightly till most of the white cooked. Try it !

Goes well with soupy noodle/ramen <3

or on salad

Pic from summertomato.com

No bake cheesecake again...Rocky Road Cheesecake anyone?

Backlog : May 28th

Got this recipe from Kraft...till today, I still have not perfect a cheesecake, will probably tried it someday again.

We had fun prepping together :)

華人的杯子蛋糕 - 發糕...Chinese Cupcake!!

Surprisingly my kids' favourite cupcake is  "Huat Kueh" or called " Wa Goh Kueh" which comes with orangy sugar and grated coconut.

So I just grabbed a premix in NTUC and steamed out some of this kueh for them.  I don't think everything must make from scratch to feel good, especially if you are impatient type like me.

Not sure if it's the steamer or the timing I didn't catch right, make the kueh abit wet on the top.

Raining Cupcakes

Backlog : May-June

Cupcakes are usually first timer favourite...it's easy to make. Here's my favourite cupcake at the moment -Red Velvet, receipe from joyofbaking.

This is also the first time, I tried making buttercream...

Some mini ones for Cloie after school snack.

For decorating as a 1st time, I think this wilton set is pretty good and economical.

First attempt on Chiffon Cake using Mini Flute Pan

Backlog : May 7th

Been quite a while since I baked a cake because I have not been able to catch my oven temperature well.
The last time I baked this chiffon cake is like 4 months ago, it was a flop in terms of presentation but I managed to turn it around and it's didn't taste that bad after all....

I can't remember where I got the recipe, just googled it. Usually, recipe written online is for the usual size flute pan, if you are first timer like me and do not know how to adjust the ingredient, be prepared to baked at least 3 of this chiffon or more.

The Charred One :(

The Better Looking Other Half

You can used whipped cream or frosting to decorate single tier for tea time

or

If you have more strawberries, just sliced them and make a mini layered cake.

This is called

Ryl's Mini Chiffon Strawberries Meltdown

*I like the chiffon better chilled*

Breakfast For Kids!

Tried preparing breakfast my kids a couple months back but have stopped since they got pretty hooked on "Lucky Charm"

General Mills Lucky Charm Cereal

This yummy cereal mixed with mini marshmallows...it's difficult to get this box of cereal in Singapore. The last time I got it was in Jelita and Holland V Cold Storage and they sold out really fast. In USA when i were there in June, I brought back 6 boxes including 2 boxes in chocolate favors plus some travel pack like those below. Cute isn't it... :)  It's so easily available and I love their walmart or whatever mart there...

Back to breakfast making, I usually prepare eggs and ham for Cloie because she is not quite into just bread and spread. For Josh, it's the usual half boiled eggs in the kopi tiam downstair...

Some creative works I've done with eggs and ham

Left : Little Chick Taking a Walk in the Garden

Right: Teddy bear with heart balloons

 

Want eggs?

Just today I tried making pancakes, hopefully it will be something new for the kids.

Josh doesn't seem to like it even with ice cream or in shapes he fancied.

Taken with iphone - inspired by Jim's pancakes instruction

in cars and plane shapes

Some mini pancakes for helpers and me.

Actually this is the first time I am successful in making pancakes using premix, so pretty happy.

The day I decided to bake and decorate son's birthday cake...

Disaster or Success...You decide.

We gave our 100% effort, the cake presentation conceptualised a month ago, and the cake 1 day before his birthday.

It's a ikea dessert tray and a plastic pot that we have...

Hubby's contribution- "carpentry" work

The Complete Look

Cars Theme

The Close-Up of the main cake.

That's Us, The Happy Family.

Happy 2nd Birthday, Josh darling...

Last Minute Cupcake Lesson...

Decided to sign up for a lesson in B-I-Y to learn how to decorate cupcakes so I can complete my idea on how I want Josh's birthday cake to be like...

I personally feel that the class is not very lively and i feel kind of rush. I dislike the parking over there as well...Selfish neighbour shop sent false alarm to B-I-Y wanting me to shift my car and interrupted my lesson. If you drive and intend to attend their class, park after the petrol kiosk. 

Good class to test your creativity...and I still do not know how to handle fondant....

2 months and I am a better cook.

Cooking and Baking are definitely therapeutic for impatient people like me....Whenever I am in the kitchen, i am exceptionally calm and in peace with myself.

Cooking according to my mother in law, it's not just follow recipes strictly but also have to "aga" (estimate) the ingredients yourself and cook often to perfect it.
I can't agree less....

Baking? I like it but I yet to find the "magic" behind a well bake cake/cookies/icing.

Continue to see my dish and bake....I usually like to decorate them, and now that's really make me happy.

Baking : No Bake Oreo Cheesecake #1

Wanted to make the oreo cheesecake that I saw from this blog : Happy Home Baking

Her recipe read simple and her cake pictures also look delicious.

Invited my cousin, Lynn to join me....being me, the careless. I wrote down the ingredients without the quantity for shopping. Came home with loads then start putting everything to mixing without reading the recipe properly. Also as blur and clueless about cooking, lynn and me can even get the quantity of the ingredient wrong after reading recipe several time. We also missed 1 step - "Sprinkle coarsely chopped oreo cookies on top of the first half of cheese mixture which has been chilled. Pour in the remaining half of the cheese mixture." so u can only see 1 layer of my cheesecake.

Friends said they can see some greenish spots on my cheesecake.

It's not algae or fungus, it's just the hundreds and thousands sprinkles I scattered on the cake before chilling...

I covered them with chopped oreo immmediately instead because the sprinkles melted and looks ugly.

Taste not bad, unfortunately my hubby do not like cheesecake.

Lesson learnt : Prepare ingredients with all right measurements prior to all the mixing etc.

Baking : Cookies making with toaster oven

Wanted to add baking to my daily activties since I am learning to cook from my in law.  I mean if I never achieved anything in life at least I can cook meals for my kids and hubby and then treat them with pastries when I can.

Women mah!!...I comfort myself all the time when I am morale at all time low, if married then just take care of family and leave money making to husband, do what business...and get all "bruised" out there.

Anyway, read from many home bakers' blog that baking is therapeutic. I love anything that is therapeutic to my neurotic soul.

Know that toaster oven may not be all capable for baking, I bought Betty Crocker chocolate chip cookies premix and here how it went...

The mix is abit sticky and I have difficult dropping the dough evenly..

See them in the oven

First batch of cookies, not bad...

After a few batches, we have some nice and just right cookies and some burnt...

I think betty crocker cookies are supposed to be soft ...

These are how many cookies yielded...

Using toaster oven to bake cookies is possible, but you really need to keep an eye on the oven.

When they are almost done, looking brown and crispy. You needs to turn the pan around then after about 5 mins baking on the other side. Pulled the pan slightly out to block the oven door so it leaves a gap to introduce some cool air.

Self review - I am too impatient to be a baker... :(

I think I am creative too...see this

Dunno why, my creativity just overflow...

It's all Xiaxue's fault...kekeke

I think when you became mum, u no longer like to spend too much on art and craft

I am not using real swaroski, it's those arylic blings with adhesive from novelty gift store and Daiso.

Yes, my camera was not spared!!

All for the Power of Motherhood...

For my mother in law

Cooking : Bento for Hubby #1

Nothing fanciful...My hubby's new job is quite demanding and he sometime do not have proper lunch. Recalling one of his almost choke to death incident, rushing to pack lunch then rush to eat lunch...I decided to try making him lunch box aka bento so he do not need to rush out to get food and back.

It's actually killing 2 birds with 1 stone for us...giving him more time to eat and cut down food wastage.

I can't get up to the bento making spirits like cute character eggs or rice balls, because hubby got good appetite and doing those cuties will mean wasting abit of food.

So this bento, I made for him is like a  " REMAKE of Japanese Oyakodon". Using leftover rice and dark sauce meat and chicken.

Step 1 : Steam rice

Step 2 : Boil the leftover dark sauce meat and chicken in a pot, when it's boiling, pour 1 beaten egg over. Stirred for 1 min on small fire then pour over steam rice then put the japanese rice topping - Furikake.

I also made him a simple ham sandwich to munch along the way to the bus stop.

He is a happy and healthy office worker ever since...

Gift Ideas : Personalised Goodies For Birthday Bag...

Cloie didn't get to celebrate her birthday in school due to the HFMD.

Still we packed up some goodies bags for her friends.

Shopped all the gift shops and find their items totally not interesting and then I remember kids do loves or appreciate things with their names on it so I bought the snap bracelets and start to write their names on it with this special glue like pen I bought from ANBC in Parco.

Last year with more budget for birthday, I ordered personalised chocolates too from

Chocoholic prints for my kids' birthday...