HongKong - a food paradise!

A short getaway to Hongkong. I remember sitting at the cafe in the nottingham train station, and the idea of going to HK suddenly came to me. My EJ and i intended for it to be a budget trip, for just the 4 of us (my DJ, EJ bro and I). but my dad dotes on us so much that he made it into a family trip! a pity my DJ couldn't take any more leave (since she just took a week to go to london and paris).

I really enjoyed myself. ate like a pig. met awesome people. was blessed with great weather. (: had a good time with my family!



Random yummies

My parents usually find "street food" unhygienic but my sis and i love trying anything odd and different! these curry fishballs (actually they taste more like tiny sotong balls) were super yummy! possibly my favourite snack in hk. and here's a shot of my EJ posing with it.

The famous egg waffles! they're light, fluffy and awesome! crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. 

I LOVE local bakeries like these! the freshly baked pastries smell soo good and look delicious! best part, they weren't expensive at all!

butter bo po bao. who invented something SO delicious and fragrant??

deep fried french toast with peanut butter and syrup. heart attack food, but OH SO GOOD!

more curry fishballs. these were more expensive and less tasty. 

Lord stow's famous egg tarts! 

the branch in the venetian casino in Macau. not that fantastic. i actually enjoyed the ones in the old traditional bakeries in the city. too bad i didn't take a picture!

My dad enjoying his gui lin gao! really expensive and super bitter. not my type of thing. hoho.

the places we visited:

we also went to the star avenue, the peak, etc. (the typical tourist attractions). i think my favourite was the trip to lantau island! 

more on food on the next post. (:

Happy Fathers' Day!

My post is a day late! but to all the fathers in the world, Happy Fathers' Day! although i'm sorry to disappoint the rest of you because My dad is officially the number 1 dad. (sorry, guys) so DJ, bro, EJ and i put together a meal for my daddy! although i have to say, DJ did all the cooking. and I did the baking. bro did the washing and EJ helped out here and there. the rest of the family had expensive durians at the end of the meal. eeeeeeks!

it was great spending time together as a family and seeing how happy it made my dad warms my heart. (: i'm so glad he liked the bag we bought for him! my dad's one of the most important persons in my life. One of the reasons why he is so absolutely amazing is because he always always chooses to put us first. I am who i am today largely because of my dad and i love him so much! i hope he'll realise how much we love him through our actions.

baked mussels

scallops with pak choy

steamed fish rolled in mushrooms and cabbage

wanton soup!! Absolutely yums!!!

and the Strawberry Cake i baked!! i have to say, although it wasn't very pretty, it tasted pretty awesome! the cake itself (without the frosting) was light, buttery and moist. it was perfect with the strawberry frosting! YUMS. 

a picture of the frosted cake with the photo frame i made. 10 reasons why my dad's the number 1 dad in the world. :)

i had a tough day today. but I choose to rejoice. i choose to give thanks for the many blessings in my life. :)

Marshmellow Muffins

I had a confusing day today. 

Totally enjoyed Super8 with the one and only lingyi. (: it isn't the kind of movie that would appeal to me instantly but it was fun, especially because we were surrounded by squealing girls in the theatre. haha. (: so glad i caught the movie. can't wait to catch the rest of the awesome films showing this summer!

So today was confusing not because of the day's events but i guess because of the thoughts that ran through my head.... 

moving on to yummy goodies, I dug up an old muffin recipe book and decided to give this recipe a shot. 

Marshmellow Muffins

uber chocolatey! the house smelled really really yummy when these were in the oven but they didn't rise as high as i thought they would. the result is a dense, fudgy chocolate chip muffin. love the melted marshmellows. sticky and tasty.

ahh, it's father's day this sunday! have you thought of what to give your dad yet? :)

Chip and Dale

Yay, my macbook is so pretty now!

Isn't it adorable? :)

I had a great day today! Had vietnamese food for the first time, and spent the rest of the day shopping. (: Can't wait for tmr, the day after tmr, then friday, then the weekends. then can't wait for the hongkong trip!!! (:

I need new clothes that are appropriate to wear to church. Haha. or, i could settle for jeans. hoho.

Strawberries & Cream Cupcakes

I know these strawberry cupcakes look anything but creamy but when you bite into it, you can taste the richness that the white chocolate adds to it. definitely one of my favourites so far! white chocolate, vanilla, and strawberries. perfect combination. (: 

love days like these...

Cinnamon Raisin Cake

Some days I act like a wilful child in front of God. Oh God, Why does it have to be like that? 

Some days I wake up and feel so indignant. why must I obey? 

Matthew 6:33.

But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.

Cinnamon Raisin Cake, from the Humming Bird bakery Cake Book. 

Simple, moist and delicious. yums.

White Choc Banana Muffins

White Choc Banana Muffins, adapted from Joy Of BAking. made a few alterations and added my own streusel topping. 

It smells heavenly! decided to half the recipe because at this rate, i'll be baking faster than my family can finish the food. love banana flavoured baked goods because they always smell so good in the oven. this recipe came out really soft and fluffy, the way i like my muffins. :) 

top tip for muffins: always mix until JUST combined. 

did i mention, I'm still jetlagging? not a good feeling, especially when I had to go without sleep last night and ended up napping at 1pm for 4 hours.i guess i'll have to battle it for the coming days! i'll soon be okay. Finally finished "kissed dating goodbye" by Joshua Harris. It's the kind of title that attracts weird looks so when i was reading it today while waiting for my daddy (he was seeing the chinese doctor), I could tell, it attracted some curious stares. It's been so long since i last found time to read a book i actually enjoy reading (i believe the last time i did that was actually last summer!). It's a great book, and so very suitable for me right now. it's got guidelines that i think provide good guidance but shouldn't be followed to the very last detail. everyone has to learn to lead their own life. what he's done is provide some really good advice. but how much one wants to take away from it really depends on the individual. for myself, i like the principles behind his proposed actions. but i surely will allow nature to take its own course, and definitely for God to work in my life. 

so i'm now going to read Jodi Picoult's new book, Sing You Home! (: excited. gonna spend tomorrow afternoon reading it! 

this week is gonna be a semi busy, semi me week and i'm kind of looking forward to it. (:

Maple Glazed Apple Squares

Anything Maple appeals to me instantly. i love the deep, aromatic flavour that maple syrup adds to.. just about anything. 

I chanced upon this recipe while browsing through food blogs. one of my favourite past times, next to baking. sprinkled with flour has got it all down at her blog. mine pales in comparison, somehow. i used a higher baking tray so the baking time doubled. the result was a dense and flavourful apple cake. i actually prefer the apples squares recipe over at allrecipes.com. will be trying that again sometime soon.  

had a rough day today. many confusing thoughts running through my head. kinda wish i could have some advice. went for a jog in the evening today and just spent that time praying and asking for a direction. perhaps this is a case of me being oblivious to what God is trying to tell me. 

For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline. 2 Tim 1:7

Strawberry Crumb Cake

It's a beautiful friday afternoon and I decided to devote this beautiful day just chilling in the comfort of my own home. I'm back in Singapore after 6 long months. the weather is unbearable and already i've met an ungracious aunty. how unpleasant. :( it makes me miss the people in notts. well, let me just feel contented being home.

so a Strawberry Crumb Cake to make the lousy day a better one.

I wish i knew how to make these things look yummier. anyway the trick is to drown the cake with the streusel. (: my family loved it! the cake was really moist, it fell apart quite easily. but all in all a tasty cake that i'll make again. it'll be super tasty with a scoop of vanilla ice cream! 

now that i'm back in Singapore, there's just tons to do. I'm getting unnecessarily worried over the issues that i have to deal with. i guess i'm really afraid to hurt those i love and the last thing i want to do is to ruin those relationships. sometimes it makes me scared to do what i need to do. sometimes it makes me want to back out and give in. but I can do all things through Him who gives me strength. (Philippians 4:13). perhaps one of the most popular verses in the bible. but always so assuring. Knowing that God has gone before me and whatever happens is in His plan for me keeps me going. remembering how God has brought me through different seasons and how He gave me comfort when everyone else chose to leave me, helps me fix my eyes on Him. What could be more important than yearning to grow more and more Christ-like?

i know i said i'll blog about the year. but i'll save that for another day, when i'm feeling less exhausted and when i've fully recovered from the jet lag.

you can see some strawberries here

shall try another recipe from the hummingbird bakery cake book soon. (: