Friday, July 3, 2020

YOGA SEEDS - my First Yoga lesson!

Since the beginning of this new decade, I resigned from my long-time employment as a nurse in KK Hospital.
It would have been my ninth year there, it was a love-hate relationship I had with my work.
I used to enjoy what I did, until there came a point where I was constantly asking myself if that was what I would be doing for the rest of my life. My answer was No.
If I didn't need the money, would I still be working there? No.
In ten years, do I see myself still working there? No.

I decided to resign. With no plans.
I was scared, terrified. But I knew I had to do it for goodness' sake. LOL
I needed to take a break to find my feet again, to find my directions.


My farewell party on my last day:






Sad to leave my colleagues behind but there, I am finally free!



There were many things I always wanted to try but couldn't find the time when I was working full-time.
One of them is YOGA.
Even though I held an 8-to-5 job in KKH, evenings were a mad rush for me to rush home, make sure my kids have dinner, playground time, shower, finish up any pending homework which they need help in, prepare for the next day's school / CCA/ tuition if any etc etc, it was like learning how to fly a plane in 2 hours.
My day-to-day life was so mad hectic/ mundane/stressful/rushed and I absolutely RESENTED it.


SO NOW, I can finally start on learning something new - learning Yoga at YOGA SEEDS.

Yay to Phase 2 of Circuit Breaker~!


Located at Bishan Park, a north-central location, it was quite easy for us to get there.

ADDRESS
: 1384 Ang Mo Kio Ave 1, Singapore 569932.
Head to Bishan Park CARPARK A.
Once you are in the carpark, head left all the way past Aramsa Garden Spa and The Bund and you will find Yoga Seeds.


Welcome to the Shala :)
The class was live-streamed for members who wanted to practice in the comfort of their own homes.




Our cui faces after class :P


If you're new to yoga like me, here's a chart for easy reference on which types of Yoga is beginner-friendly.
Some house rules in Phase 2 of Circuit Breaker:





Our instructor for today's Hatha class, Melody, was very friendly and helpful in teaching us how to adjust our postures.
She also gave alternative poses if we could not achieve what the advanced yogis could.
It made newbies like hubby & me felt at ease and not at a loss of what to do like when I did Zumba for the first time - my hands-feet-eye-coordination was all over the place!

If you're unsure where / how to start with your Yoga journey, Yoga Seeds has a friendly and welcoming atmosphere for newcomers.
I highly recommend you to check out Yoga Seeds on their website!
Class schedules can be found here.

We will be back for more lessons for sure!
Thank you Melody, Wendy and Vic from Yoga Seeds for this wonderful opportunity :)
Namaste.

Tuesday, May 12, 2020

Made HK style Double Skin Milk :)

Made my highly-missed Hong Kong Australian Dairy Company's double skin milk today.
It's surprisingly easy peasy child's play!

To make for a family of 4, I used:
- 800ml full cream milk (200ml each bowl's capacity)
- 4 egg whites
- 4 teaspoons sugar

Boil the milk over low heat and stir occasionally. Turn off fire when bubbles start forming at the sides of the pot.

Next, whisk the egg whites and sugar until it forms a bubbling foamy texture.

Sift this egg white mixture into the pot of warm milk.

Pour into bowls and remove any air bubbles on top.

Cover with aluminium foil and steam for 15 minutes, turn off fire and leave it for another 5 minutes.
Remove and serve.

Silkie eggs vs Normal egg







Who else misses Hong Kong Cha can teng food like me?!


Saturday, May 2, 2020

How to make Kuih Talam.

My hubby is a Peranakan, so it is little wonder that he loves to eat and cook.
During this Covid-19 lockdown period I have decided to learn how to make some Nonya dishes :)

Here's a simple, no-bake recipe on how to make Kuih Talam.

GREEN LAYER:

- Pandan leaves 6-7 pieces
- Coconut milk 330ml
- Tapioca flour 50gm
- Rice flour 25gm
- Green bean flour 25gm (Not the same as green bean powder. Can be bought from Phoon Huat)
- Sugar 120gm
- Pandan essence 1 teaspoon.


WHITE LAYER:

- Tapioca flour 15gm
- Rice flour 15gm
- Green bean flour 15gm
- Sugar 1 tablespoon
- Salt 1 pinch
- Coconut milk 270ml
- Pandan leaves 5-6 pieces tied in a knot

METHOD FOR GREEN LAYER:

- Use a brush to oil your desired baking pan in which the Kuih Talam will take its final shape.
- Use a blender to blend pandan leaves and coconut milk.
- Pour the mixture through a sieve into a big mixing bowl
- Pour in all the flours and combine well until smooth and no lumps.
- Stir in a pan over super low heat for 2 minutes then pour into oiled baking pan
- Steam at high heat for 15 minutes.



METHOD FOR WHITE LAYER:

- When the green layer is steaming for 10 minutes, you can start combining and cooking all the white layer ingredients over extremely low heat, give a few stirs for 2 minutes then throw the pandan leaves away.

- By now the green layer would have been steamed for 15 minutes, lift the steamer cover and pour white layer over it.

- Cover back the steamer and steam BOTH LAYERS together for another 15 minutes.



Friday, May 1, 2020

[garden to table] EASY Quail egg tart recipe.

Hi all! Hope you guys are holding up well during this Covid period.

Too many productive quails but don't know what to do with their eggs?
You guys can try this simple recipe at home with your kids :)

Pastry Ingredients:
- Plain flour 145gm
- Chicken egg x 1 (you need 1 egg yolk and half portion egg white)
- Butter 75gm
- Icing sugar 1 teaspoon

Custard Filling  Ingredients:
- Sugar 70gm
- Warm water 130ml (to combine with sugar and stir well)
- Quail eggs x 9
- Fresh milk 125ml
- Vanilla essence x 1 teaspoon







Pastry method: 
- Mix 1 teaspoon Icing sugar into 75gm Butter, add 1 egg yolk + half portion Egg white and mix well using hand-whisk.
- Pour in 145gm plain flour and knead using fingers until pastry is formed.
- Wrap in ziplock bag or clingwrap and put in fridge for 15min while you prepare Custard fillings.


Custard method:
- Using handheld whisk, mix well the 9 quail eggs with the cup of Sugar warm water (70gm sugar stir well with 130ml Warm water)
- Add in Fresh milk 125ml and whisk evenly.
- Add Vanilla essence 1 teaspoon.
- Pour this mixture through a sieve to prevent any lumps in the eggs mixture.

Preheat oven 190deg for 10 Min while you work on the dough.
Mould the dough into your casings and use a fork to poke holes on the bottom of pastry.

Pour the custard fillings into your pastry moulds.

Bake in oven 190deg celcius for 25 minutes.
Then leave the egg tarts inside for another 10 minutes before removing.




Before Covid-19, I used to think that I didn't need to bother learning cooking or baking as in Singapore, whatever you want to buy or eat is readily available and easily store-bought.
Now it's a real wake-up call for us to start thinking about going back to basics (kampong days if you may) and start investing in self-grown/ self-raised/ self-taught/ self-made, and being more self-sufficient.

It is extremely rewarding to have food harvested from garden to table.
We spend a lot on quality feed for our pets and thus we know what goes into the food we eat from the garden.

Hope you guys enjoy making this delicious tea-time snack at home!




Tuesday, January 14, 2020

{sponsored post} BakKwaDelivery.sg

When it comes to CNY shopping this year, I just want everything to be fast and easy.
I can't be in a busier time in my life right now - Adam just started P5 (his last year before PSLE), and Ashton has started P2 (bye bye honeymoon year).
Come February, my days will be spent sending and fetching them around their school/ enrichment/ tuition.

When Bakkwadelivery.sg contacted me to collaborate, I jumped for joy.
I was gonna have 1kg of charcoal-roasted goodness delivered right to my doorstep!

Let's check out the food stuff:




What BakKwaDelivery.sg website says:
"At Bak Kwa Delivery, we are highly invested in the quality of our Bak Kwa. Unlike other Bak Kwa shops who have given up the traditional methods of roasting Bak Kwa in favour of newer methods, we are still roasting Bak Kwa the same way it has been done since the 20th Century.
Charcoal roasted and bamboo sieved, our Bak Kwa gives off a mind-blowing unique fragrance and taste you’ll not find anywhere else."
 To order, simply click on SHOP.
Currently, as of 14/01/2020, the Spicy Bak Kwa option is out-of-stock, they are only left with their classic Traditional pork slices, going for $55.90 per KG (that's about 12 huge slices with each slice bigger than a piece of Gardenia bread).

There is a flat rate delivery fee of $12.90, regardless of your amount of order.
I feel the delivery fee is a wee bit pricey, but it beats having to pay for parking and queuing for hours even before opening hours to get your hands on another competitor brand.

Their website also claimed that speedy delivery can be done in 2 hours, depending on availability. 
Simply put, it was Charcoal-roasted, Bamboo-sieved goodness.
They also make great gifts for family and relatives without you having to purchase them physically at stores.
Do check out BakKwaDelivery.sg for your last minute CNY shopping!



Wednesday, January 1, 2020

Beijing December 2019 - PART THREE

Part three - Checked out of Le Zai Nanluo and on to Waldorf Astoria hotel.
After staying in their traditional si-he-yuan (cottage style), this swanky and posh hotel is something different, a change which we welcomed.









Today is free-and-easy day, after we checked in and dumped our luggage we walked around the vicinity in search of local street food and shopping.

Qian Men

The Chinese donch care if Starbucks is an American company, you simply had to fit in if you wanted business in China.

Qian Men street where we bought their local delights and some local souvenirs for quite a steal










The first and oldest cinema in China - Daguanlou