Eggless Sponge Cake (The Easiest Cake)

18th April 2014 is YengYeng's 1st birthday. We didn't have a grand celebration as we are going away to Betong for holidays the next day.

As YengYeng is allergic to egg, I decided to bake an eggless sponge cake for her. Searched high and low for the recipe and it was hard to find! In the end, decided to try this recipe out of a few recipes found. It is the easiest cake that I have baked so far. And it turned out just nice..pheeww..

Ingrediant
Sweetened Condensed Milk     200g
Self-raising Flour     140g
Baking Powder    1 tsp
Baking Soda     1/2 tsp
Melted Butter     60ml
Vanilla Essence     1 tsp
Water     75ml

Method

1. Sieve the flour, baking powder and baking soda together.\
2. Mix the flour mixture, condensed milk, melted butter, vanilla essence and water and beat well.
3. Pour the mixture into a greased and dusted 6 inch diametre round tin.
4. Bake in a hot oven at 200 degree C for 10 minutes.
5. Then, reduce the temperature to 150 degree C and bake for a further 10 minutes.
6. The cake is ready when it leaves the sides of the tin and is springy to touch.
7. Leave cool for 1 minute, invert the tin over a rack and cool the cake on a wire rack.

P/S: As it is a birthday cake, I make the chocolate ganache on top of it. And the children love it! ^^

Easy Oreo Cupcake

Saw a few recipes on this oreo cupcake, wanted so much to give it a try. So, here we go!

Ingrediant
Unsalted Butter     125g
Caster Sugar     80g
Egg     2
Low Protein Flour     125g
Baking Powder     1/4 tsp
Oreo Biscuit (Crusted)     6

Method

1. Preheat oven at 170 degree C.
2. Sieve low protein flour and baking powder together.
3. Put in butter, sugar and eggs into the flour mixture.
4. Beat the mixture with an electric mixer for 2-3 minutes or until smooth white.
5. Put in the crusted oreo and mix well.
6. Bake at 170 degree C for 20 minutes.

女人，30岁以后

女人活到30岁以经历过岁月和智慧的鉴定。30岁以后，可说是另一端的新旅程。一些选择了穿上便服在家相夫教子变成了黄脸婆，担任全职妈妈。一些则选择了把家事及育儿委托以别人，全程投入创业变成了女强人。不管选择如何，大家渴望在事业，家庭以及生活上达到一个平衡点。我们，女人，当然要活得更精彩，更漂亮成为更有身价，更有魅力，优雅从容的女人。而我，很简单。。选择了做好自己，做好以下事项。

• 坚持天天喝1~2升水

       可保持身体活力又能滋润皮肤。

• 吃好食物

       所谓好食物指的是全天然，无加工食品。饮食必须多样化。不吃重口味的饮食，不吃垃圾食品，不吃隔夜饭菜。坚持吃新鲜食品。

• 每晚按时入眠，起床不必急

       定时入睡7~8个小时，养好精神面对明天。

• 抽时间做有气运动

       每天步行或做大运动，出出汗，增加心肺血管活力。

• 保持稳定的理想体重

       因年龄增长，新陈代谢缓慢，必须慢速和持久的减肥。健康式减肥法为本，不服用任何减肥药或产品。

• 保养不可懒

       每天做好保湿和防晒的程序。

• 重视外表，不求时尚但求品味

       要懂得挑选适合自己的衣物，不一定要名牌但要让自己看上去优雅动人。学习一些搭配小窍门，颜色搭配的技巧，关注自己的身材可利益充分展示自己的优点，遮盖自己的缺点。维持外表不一定是为了男人，也是为了自己变得更有自信，更有人缘。

• 每年都做一次妇科检验

       没病心安，有病早治。

• 穿好的内衣，穿好的平底鞋

       不可亏待自己的身体结构，不只要穿好的内衣及鞋，也要穿得对。

• 经济独立，想买什么就买

       不管老公有多少钱，养不养得起你，再辛苦都要有自己的事业，都必须经济独立。

• 考个驾照，买一辆车

       自己驾车，想去哪里就去，方便别人也方便自己。记得要为自己和爱车买保险。

• 经营好家庭

       女人最大的成就是经营好家庭。把家事处理得井井有条，懂得煮几道功夫菜加上甜点，这是为人妻，为人母亲最基本条件。

• 每年至少旅行一次

       地点不重要，和谁都可以。好好地放松心情，充充电。

• 读好书，写写文章

       女人真正的美来自于内涵。一本好书不只是传达知识和讯息，它也能让我们过一种心智生活。从写文章来表达自己的想法是一种锻炼自己的心智，坦然面对人生。

• 言行举止要优雅

       不粗语粗俗，不大吼大叫。姿态要优雅，说话要得体。

• 最少有俩位无话不谈的知心朋友

       要和密友保持联络。

• 不断提升自己

       不管在什么领域，不断地突破自己的极限。

• 定期给自己独处的时间

       做一些喜欢的事，让自己独自静下心来，好好地放松自己。这有助于减轻生活的压力，重新认知自己。

• 抛弃不懂得珍惜你的男人

       无论一个男人条件有多好，无论你有多爱他，不懂得珍惜你的男人是绝对不能带给你幸福！

Easy Molten Chocolate Lava (Volcano) Cake

It has been months since my last blog. I was busy moving both house and office and now, still adapting the new environment, the new daily routine and the new working environment. So much to adapt and we had a very "rushing" Chinese New Year this year so, hopefully we can really enjoy the Chinese New Year next year.

As it was a very special Valentine's Day this you (Chinese Valentine's Day and Western Valentine's Day fall on the same day), I decided to make Molten Chocolate Lava Cake for my love ones in spite of my injured hands.

So, here we go..

The Ingrediant: (For 4 person)

20g     plain flour
100g   chocolate (I buy good quality chocolate to have a smoother texture)
100g   butter (unsalted)
2         egg
2         egg yolk
20g     sugar
2tsp    vanilla essence (I skipped this)
a little icing sugar (for decoration)

1.) Melt the chocolate and butter, using double-boiled method.
2.) Beat sugar, egg, egg yolk and vanilla essence using a mixer.
3.) Then, mix 1.) and 2.) together.
4.) Add in the flour, mix a little by little slowly (as we don't want any lumps).
5.) Brush a little butter in the "tall" tin. (you could use tart tin too but a taller tin creates better lava effect).
6.) Pour the mixture into the tin.
7.) Bake at 180 degree in 8 minutes.

Hope you like this recipe! ^^

善心从同理心开始

从小都一直看着爸爸妈妈做善事，很自然地也养成我们四个兄弟姐妹的善心。在组织了自己的家庭也想把爸爸妈妈的信念代代相传。

做善事是发出与内心，是一件很自然的事。所以，在教养孩子关于慈悲，我们并没有很刻意地教导。其实，父母只要善用机会教育，在日常生活中引导孩子，那已经很足够了。

我本身认为要引导孩子的慈悲心首先要培养他们的同理心。那是因为如果孩子能够站在别人的立场感受，用他人的角度看事，懂得同理别人后，慈悲心就很自然地被启发。

现今的孩子不但聪明伶俐而且才艺超群但是人缘且不佳。我觉得这是以同理心有很大的关系。打个比方，有些小孩会这样说“我不喜欢你，你好臭。”这样的一句话，孩子很显然地没有同理心。孩子懂得做自己是好事，但是父母应该教导孩子在展现自我的同时，也要对他人多一份的体贴，这样才不会伤害到他人的感受！

培养孩子的同理心，我们首先能带领孩子观察他人的情绪。通过观察他人的情绪可了解到自己的反应，可能对他人所造成的影响而顾及到他人感受。

再来，要求孩子参与家事。这可让孩子更了解到父母身心状况，孩子也会发现自己有能力照顾他人便给予付出及关怀。

最后，在慈悲心的培养，我们要给予孩子正确的观念 【行善并非要做伟大的事，慈悲必须行有余力，要从生活中的小事做起】记得，父母也须要给予鼓励因为当孩子得到善的回应，他的慈悲心更为滋长而会持续行善！

*此文的内容只供参考。须知每个小孩都来之不同的生活环境和家庭背景所以教导的方式也肯定因人而异。

Gula Melaka Jelly, a Malaysian Delicacy!

To me, this dish is like making MAGIC! You will understand what I meant once you try this at home (^^)

Ingredient

20g agar-agar strips

200ml thick santan

200g gula Melaka/palm sugar

80g sugar (my sugar measurement is 20g)

1200ml water (I didn't measure the water, I only make sure that all the agar-agar strips are all in the water)

4 pandan leaves

1/2 tsp salt

Methods

1.) Place water, sugar, agar-agar strips, gula Melaka and pandan leaves in a roomy pan and bring to boil. Lower the heat and simmer until agar-agar strips completely dissolves, about 8 minutes.

2.) Remove the pandan leaves.

3.) Stir in the salt into the coconut milk and pour this into the jelly mixture a little by little.

4.) Return the mixture to the heat and bring it to boil and turn off the heat immediately.

5.) Pour the jelly into a glass dish or jelly mould and leave undisturbed until set. The jelly should separate nicely into 2 layers (a clear gula Melaka layer and a coconut layer)! This is why I said it's MAGIC!

Simply love the aroma and the taste! Oh my, the aroma filled the whole house!!

Easy Banana Cake

My friend bought me some banana and it turned up to be too ripe so, I decided to use it to bake banana cake. Survey a few recipes and end up very very headache with the recipes as all the recipes are very very different. Didn't know which recipe to use but in the end, decided to use the easy recipe.

Ingredients

180g butter

180g sugar (I use 140g)

2 eggs

250g cake flour

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp bicarbonate of soda

220g  mashed banana (I use 320g)

50g evaporated milk

Method

1.) Cream butter and sugar till light and creamy.

2.) Pour in the eggs gradually and beat till creamy.

3.) Add in evaporated milk and mashed banana and mix well.

4.) Add in the cake flour, baking powder and bicarbonate of soda and beat for a while.

5.) Bake at 180 degree for about 50 minutes or until cooked.