ANTS ON SWEET POTATO MOONCAKE

These are like

ants climbing up the mooncake

The bright yellow filling 

gives the impression of mashed egg yolk!

many will shy away

because they worry cholesterol

After trying

they realized that the filling is soft and nice

not too sweet!

Mashed Potato
pressed through a sieve
to get a fine texture

Filling:

500g sweet potato (orange type), peeled, cut, steamed & mashed

                                    press through a stainless steel to give the fine texture

2 Tbsp melon seeds, roasted

3 Tbsp icing sugar

2 Tbsp corn oil

2 Tbsp milk, to adjust consistency

Snow Skin:

113g kou flour

130g icing sugar

30g oil

150g water

Method:

1) combine all ingredients for Filling, except oil & melon seeds

2) slowly drizzle in oil & milk until a smooth consistency is achieved

3) add melon seeds & form into 4 balls of about 120g, leave in fridge

4) combine dry ingredients in Skin

5) mix oil in water & slowly add to dry ingredients

6) stop adding when the dough come together

7) knead until smooth, divide into 70g balls

8) roll into a disc & wrap filling

9) chill before serving

SPONGY BUTTER CAKE (Mrs Ng SK)

Butter Cake

is loved by many 

I found this recipe in so many Blogs

and each of them give credit to

Mrs Ng SK

for this buttery, fragrant, soft and moist Butter Cake

I could not help but give it a try

and

Yes, it is good 
confirmed by many who have baked and tasted

One thing they left out:

it is almost 30% more when baked!

Interested?

Hope you will find out for yourself...

230g butter

150g+50g caster sugar

4 eggs  -  separated
1 tsp vanilla extract

200g self raising flour, sifted

60ml fresh milk

1 tsp vanilla extract

1) cream butter and 150g sugar until fluffy and white, 

2) beat in egg yolk, one at a time
3) add vanilla & fold in 1/2 the flour
4) mix in milk & fold in the rest of the flour, mix until just incorporated!

5) in another bowl whisk egg white until foamy, add 50g sugar

6) whisk until stiff peak, scoop 1/3 egg white to mix into butter cream 

7) fold in the rest of egg white
8) pour into 2 lined small loaf pan or 8" square pan

9) bake in preheated oven 170'C for 45min until brown

AGAR AGAR CHENDOL

Double layer Chendol Agar agar

10g agar agar powder

200g santan

450g water

100-150g chendol, drained

100g palm sugar, to taste

1) boil agar agar powder in water until dissolve

2) add palm sugar to taste, 

3) pour 2/3 of this mxiture into a mould (rest in cold water to cool faster)

4) in another pot, boil coconut milk

5) add remaining 1/3 sugar mixture to this coconut milk

6) you may add extra sugar to the coconut milk if you prefer

7) stir in chendol

8) when sides of bottom layer is harden but centre is still wobbling, 

    slowly pour chendol layer on top, careful not to mix the 2 layers

9) chill before cutting

CLOUDY AGAR AGAR

If you want to make a double layer agar agar

usually

you need to prepare the mixture separately

but

not for this one

Everything is combined 

and 

you still get a two layer agar agar

A) 200ml santan

     1 egg

     pinch of salt

B) 1/2 pkt (25g pkt agar2 powder)

     1500ml water

     2 pandan leaves, knotted

     palm sugar & sugar to taste

1) measure volume of santan+egg & 

     discard the same amount of water from (B)

2) add salt to (A) and beat until combined, leave aside

3) add agar agar powder & pandan leaves to remaining water

4) boil until agar agar dissolved

5) sweeten with palm sugar & caster sugar if necessary

6) stir in santan mixture

7) remove from heat before it boils again

8) pour onto moulds & leave to cool

9) chill until ready to serve

PURPLE SWEET POTATO BUNS

Flavorful , moist and spongy buns

with tint of purple inside

(if you use orange sweet potato

you will get orangy tint)

I have adapted this recipe from King Arthur Flour's potato bread

115g water or milk

60g butter

1 tsp salt

1 large egg

140g steamed & mashed purple sweet potato

300g plain flour

45g sugar

1 tsp instant yeast

1) put all ingredients in bread machine, bread dough cycle

2) if not making the same day, regrigerate overnight after kneading

3) divide dough into 40g balls

4) let rise until double

5) bake in preheated oven 190'C for 20min until brown

HAMSTER IN GREAT DISCOVERY

A carriage 

for the pet hamster

This is built by my grandson Ethan

in uncle Zhixiang's home

for his pet,

the shy hamster

Not so shy now

runnning up and down

in and out

 investigating its new toy

a colourful double storey Lego carriage

When hamster comes out from the second floor,

"Oh no! Can I fall out?
I think I prefer to be inside,
more cosy 
and I am well tucked in
also, protected by the these little colourful bricks
which Ethan says
they are called LEGO
and
very expensive, you know!"

"I hope next time Ethan will built me a castle."

Transportation

Alligator, alligator, 

where have you been?

"I have been up on a 

colourful LEGO truck built by Ethan"

Alligator, alligator

where are you going?

Do you know you have a hamster inside the truck?

He is peeping out

while holding on tightly to the bricks!

"I am on my way to Changi International Airport

to catch a flight by Singapore Airline"

"Hamster? 

Oh no, I need to go anyhow!

Hold on tight my friend hamster, take care!"

I am in Changi Airport

where are you alligator? I cannot see you!

Everything is so blurr.......

It is so hazy out here!

"I have boarded the wrong plane!

I cannot see clearly

I thought I saw SG50 sign on the plane,

SG should be Singapore, right?

No, it is SCOOT plane!

Help! Help!"

At War

Tanker

Wow! 

Another Lego Sculpture built 

by my grandson, Etham Lim 

Look!

How powerful it is! 

The 2 front wheels guide the way

and the back wheels stabilise

while going up and down the hills!

No worries

It can never topple over!

Beware!

The powerful gun is targeting you

Run for your life if you are stlll able to

avoid it if you can

Bo-o-o-m! (High pitch!)

It is firing!

See how powerful the fire comes out

 shooting so far

and the trail  of dark fumes covering the whole place!

See the white flag!

They surender!

And the tanker moved on.....

TAIWAN TAI YANG BING

太陽餅

Flaky Tai Yang Bing

cut in half

Freshly baked Tai Yang Bing

waiting to be cooled

Tai Yang Bing 

looks like 

Lao Po Bing

but 

these are pale looking

These are sweet 

stuffed pan cakes

in traditional flaky outer shell

It is famous in Taiwan

If your friends come back from Taiwan

they will surely give you a box or 2

The following recipe is adapted from

Alex Goh's Tai Yang Bing

Flaky Crust

A) Water Dough

      1/4 tsp maltose

      50g hot water (added to maltose to dissolve it)

      110g superfine flour

      15g caster sugar

      45g shortening

B) Oil Dough 

      75g superfine flour

      45g shortening

Filling:

20g maltose

1/2 Tbsp hot water (added to maltose to dissolve it)

80g icing sugar (can be reduced if do not like sweet)

25g superfine flour

20g butter

Method:

1) combine ingredients in 

      water dough, 

      oil dough & 

      filling SEPARATELY

2) divide each dough into 8 portions & roll into balls as follows:

3) flatten water dough & wrap oil dough inside
4) flatten ball lengthwise with palm of hand
5) roll out dough flat into rectangle
6) roll up as in swiss roll

8) press to flatten swiss roll, & roll out into rectangle again

9) roll up as in swiss roll one more time

10) fold swiss roll in half & press with palm

11) roll flat into round to wrap filling

12) seal the edge & place on parchment paper

13) bake in preheated oven 200'C for 12-15min

Notes:

1) Tai yang Bing in Taiwan is pale looking

     If you prefer the light colour you need to tent the biscuits

     5 min after baking i.e. before it turns brown!

2) If you like the golden colour:

    glaze with egg yolk + 1 tsp water before going into the oven

Why does God allow Suffering

Did you say that your God is a good God?
And why does He allow people to suffer?
So many have to suffer pain, sickness and poverty.
You also said that your God is all powerful.
Why doesn't He have pity on these people
And take away their suffering?

Looks like you know our God quite well
Indeed He is a good and merciful God
He is the God of Love and He really cares
His heart aches when He sees His people suffer

We believe that our God is with us
He goes through with us the rejection and the pain
No choice, He has to let mankind experience it first han
In order that they may learn and grow as He planned

Before a young child could make his first step
The daddy has to reluctantly let go of his hands
He knows the child may fall but he needs to learn to stand up
He needs to be on his own one day

This is our Father in Heaven
We need to learn to grow in our ways
We may trip and fall, but
We are assured that God is always there for us

Telling somebody what to do is easy
But how many would listen and follow?
God gives us a Bible, teaching us the ways of God
But how many of us could follow closely?

The temptation of this world is too real
God has to let go His hands
A lesson learnt first hand could be painful
But God still allows it if we chose to

One thing for sure: God will never leave us
In times such as these
He knows our limit and
He will not allow it beyond what we can bear

What a good and caring God we have
We may choose to detour and be naughty at times
Do you know that He is still watching us closely
Giving us advice and sending us help when there is a need

Many of us are not aware of this during a flood (danger)
A boat could be waiting just outside our door
Many of us think that God will put us into the boat
But we need to make the first move of opening the door and jumping into the boat!

Do you want to belong to God's family?
You know that you will be protected and taken care of?
God will be on your side, watching over you
He will take you out from trouble when you trust and call on Him

PANDAN CHIFFON CAKE

Pandan Chiffon Cake

It is very light & spongy
you can eat the whole cake and you can still ask for more!

Pandan Sponge

A) 4 AA size egg yolk

     20g caster sugar
     1/4 tsp salt

     50g corn oil

B) 60g pandan juice (I replace 1/2 with coconut milk)

     90g cake flour, sifted
     1/2 tsp baking powder

C) 4 AA size egg white

    1/2 tsp lemon juice

    60g caster sugar

1) lightly beat egg yolk & sugar

2) add corn oil and pandan juice, stir to combine

3) sift in cake flour & mix to condense milk consistency, leave aside

4) whisk egg white, add lemon juice and whisk until foamy

5) add sugar in 2 portions, whisk until stiff peak

6) bring 1/3 of meringue to egg yolk mixture, mix to combine

7) transfer the whole lot of egg yolk to combine carefully with remaining meringue

8) bake in preheated oven 150'C for 50-55min until golden brown

9) invert tin onto a rack immediately after taken out from oven 

10) carefully remove tin when cooled completely

Note:
I have replaced 1/2 of the pandan juice with coconut milk
so that it is more fragrant.

SALTED DUCK EGG

I like salted eggs

Be it hard boiled or cook in soups

I like those with red yolk

Once, I made a whole lot of red yolk salted egg

If I am not mistaken

I bought the duck eggs from Butterworth, Penang

some say, I need to add cooking wine to make the yolk red

others say, I have to buy eggs with green shell

I still cannot confirm if any of them is right

200g salt

500g water

6-8 duck eggs

1 plastic or bottle with cover

1) boil salt in water until dissolve

2) leave aside to cool

3) wipe clean the duck eggs & leave aside

4) after 6 hours, pour salt water into the bottle

5) slowly put in the eggs, careful not to hit the egg against each other

6) use a small bowl to press down the egg into the brine

7) cover & leave for 16 - 20 days ( can be in the fridge)

Note:
Christine Ho (en.christinesrecipes.com) recommended 
1 Tbsp of Shaoxing wine added to the cooled brine to get RED yolk

BAKED SHORT CRUST PASTRY CURRY PUFF

Another baked Curry Puff Recipe
This time I use short crust pastry
with simple ingredients 

Of course, frying the curry puffs will have more even colour
Fortunately, the texture is not affected when baked
If you heat up before serving
They are just as crispy and nice

Filling:
2 medium potatoes, cut into small cubes
2-3 Tbsp curry powder, mix with 2 Tbsp water to form a paste
3 Tbsp cooking oil
1 stalk curry leaf
2 cloves garlic, chopped
2 shallots, chopped
150g minced meat
3/4 tsp salt
3/4 tsp sugar

2 hard boiled eggs, cut into 8 pieces each (to wrap together with filling)

1) heat oil in kuali & fry garlic, shallots & curry leaves until fragrant
2) add curry paste
3) when fragrant, add meat & potatoes, fry until quite dry
4) add 1/2 cup water, seasoning & cook over medium heat until potatoes are soft
5) leave aside to cool

Pastry:
250g plain flour
1/2 tsp salt
60g cold butter, cut into small pieces
125ml cold water

6) mix together salt & flour
7) cut in cold butter and squeeze with fingers to form crumbs
8) add cold water to bind the mixture into a dough
9) leave in fridge to rest for 1/2 hour
10) remove, and divide into small balls & roll into a disc
11) wrap filling & leave on lined baking tray
12) bake in preheated over 200'C for 35min until brown

My Prayers

Recalling how I accepted Jesus as my Lord and Savior
I can't deny that I am blessed abundantly
Life may still go on without Jesus then
But I am very sure it would not be what I am today

If it was not for Jesus in the year 2008
I could have been dead, believing and trusting man  
He walked and stood with me against the dreadful disease
Giving me visions and assurance that He would be glorified

I was able to see my 2nd daughter married in the same year
My hubby gave thanks to the Lord, witnessing and
Glorified Him during the wedding Reception
Touching the hearts of many who know of it for the first time

Lord God has blessed me with 4 lovely and caring daughters
Chin, Yee & Doreen are married to 3 wonderful sons-in-law
I know He has already planned a godly husband for Fong Fong
I put my trust in You O God,  for You have good plans for her

I am not be a perfect daughter to God, but
I know God loves me just as much as before
He is always by my side, watching over me 
Ever ready to pick me up if I happen to trip

So many years have passed, He is still so faithful
He has blessed me with 2 smart grandchildren by Chin
I know God has plans for my other married girls too 
His sovereign plan is always perfect as He knows what is best

 

Dear Lord Jesus

I am like a sand pebbles on the seashore
And yet you found me and gave me life
You love me beyond words could express

You bless me with a Godly husband
whose loving kindness encourages me and
My walk with you through troubles and storms

All that I am, I give you praise
I will glorify you for all that you have done
And thank you for watching over me and my family

You are the only true and living God
I strongly believe that if I delight in You
You will grant me the desires of my heart

In Jesus blessed name I pray, amen 

In Desperation

When life is threatened with a deadly disease
And Doctors' Reports unanimously confirmed
The mind is fed with these negative reports
Which gives birth to 'named' symptoms in the body

Who is in control?
Did you say that God is?

This is indeed a significant storm in life 
Which comes with no warning
When it happens, it is not a time to point the fingers
But rather, a quiet time with God for His guidance 

Yes, God is in control
He has done miraculous signs and wonders
He is still doing it
He is the same, yesterday, today and forever

Do not take men for their words because they are temporal 
But not God Almighty, He is the Eternal God
No evil can successfully stand against Him
He is in control - the creator of Heaven and Earth

Trust in the Lord and His Words
Jesus has come that we can have abundant life
And by His stripes, we are healed of all diseases
Call on Him, we children of God, He will hear us

His mercy and love endures forever
Stand on His promises because God does not lie
He will not allow His words come back to Him void
But it shall accomplish what it pleases Him

God is worthy of all praise
All honor and praise belongs to our God
Look to Him - He is the God who hears our cries
You can certainly count on Him

To get connected to God, first of all
We need to humble ourselves and surrender to Him
Trusting Him in our situation
Praising Him, giving honor and glory to Him