my little cyberspot

30 July 2005, Saturday, 7.35am

Walkabout

We went for a nice walkabout last night.

(Above) Centrestage at Marina Square - it's a new dining concept where several restaurants (Thai, Western, Jap etc) share a common eating area, so patrons can order from various restaurants & eat altogether. Er... pic shows the lighting of the area. The people/food are not captured as thought lighting was more interesting. ^__^

We also waddled our way to Esplanade. (Well, I waddled and my Husband walked normally!)

The Esplanade is a great place to be at on Fridays and over the weekends. A really cool band was playing outdoors for free. They're called "Ugly in the Morning" and sounded like DMB (Dave Matthews Band)! Tres cool!

(Above and below) Nice shots taken by Husband.

There's just such a nice buzz about the Esplanade. In case you didn't know, the old Glutton's Square which used to be at the carpark across Centrepoint has re-opened at Esplanade, so it is possible to get affordable and yummy hawker food there now. There were also loads of people listening to the band, eating at other restaurants, watching other free performances, looking at art. Nice to mill around.

(Above) Red & white banners for Singapore's 40th birthday!

The rooftop garden at the Esplanade was also open to the public. We crept up for a look-see. No, it wasn't filled with kissing couples (although there were a few, but they were discreetly tucked away - the rooftop is really large y'see). It was mostly people just relaxing or even, wolfing down a ta-pao dinner to a fantastic view.

Here's a parting shot:

All in all, a good walking trip for preggers!

24 July 2005, Sunday, 6.22pm

Tok Panjang - a Peranakan Dining Experience

Three of us attended a Culture DIY Tour organised by the Asian Civilisations Museum (ACM) this afternoon. Entitled, "Tok Panjang - a Peranakan Dining Experience", it consisted of a 1-hr guided tour of the Peranakan galleries at the ACM at Armenian Street, followed by 1.5-hr lunch at the Blue Ginger Restaurant, which consisted of kuai pai tee (pic above), ngoh heong, bakwan kepeting, babi pong tay, ayam panggang, udang goreng masak assam gulai, otak otak and some simmered fish dish. There was also dessert (gula melaka, chendol or durian chendol). Ooh... what happy bellies we had!! The entire tour was only $30, making the extremely yummy food all the more worth it. Plus, while wallopping down the food, the chef of Blue Ginger made an appearance and chatted with us on everything from Peranakan cooking tips to tips on how to match & wear kebayas and sarongs! He was very "animated". ^__^ I thoroughly enjoyed myself and would recommend these ACM tours for future lazy Sunday afternoons. Not being Peranakan myself, I learnt quite a bit about Peranakan culture and how unique it is. For more info on Peranakans, surf here. And for more info on ACM special tours, food-focused or otherwise, e.g., they have interesting programmes like Mosaic Workshops, Chinese Calligraphy appreciation and even Yoga (!), give them a tinkle at 6332-3284 or pick up their brochure "What's Up @ ACM" at any museum or major shopping centre. Very cool!

20 July 2005, Wednesday, 12.56pm

Presenting... the DADDY BAG!

We packed our bag for the hospital over the weekend. It's supposed to have all the essentials for preggers, daddy & new born for the stayover in the ward. (So, like, ipod, favourite snacks, fluffy bunny slippers...haha) Er... it's actually smaller than it looks! We're not kiasu, really! ^__^ Anybody got any advice on what should go into the 'daddy bag'? Do hospitals provide towels, diapers, shampoo etc.? Wld appreciate any thoughts...Thanks!

15 July 2005, Friday, 7.22pm

Good eat: Nanjya Monjya

This restaurant has a hard-to-pronounce name. (In fact, it's so hard, I'm not even going to attempt pronouncing it!) Nevertheless, it's got fantastic izakaya. Izakaya refers to both a type of restaurant as well a type of food. In terms of restaurant, there are various types of Jap restaurants in the market - from the fast food joints (Mos Burger & Yoshinoya) to the family restaurant chains (Restaurant Hoshigaoka), the high-end, usually zen-decor gourmet Japanese eateries (Wasabi Bistro at The Oriental & Shiro at Greenwood) to the much-more-humble & informal Japanese taverns, usually serving yummy meals, replete with lots of sake, and a shelf stacked full of Japanese comics for you to browse through, if you want. An izakaya joint refers to such an informal Japanese tavern. However, as mentioned earlier, izakaya also refers to a type of food, or rather, a style of serving food. Portions are usually small, a la Spanish tapas style, and it is common for patrons to order many many small dishes, so that they can try lots of different things. In other words, an izakaya restaurant does not serve up bento sets or large bowls of noodles. Instead, it specialises in Japanese tapas!

Nanjya Monjya is located on the ground floor of Allson Hotel. Perhaps because of the hotel setting, it is not quite as informal as your typical neighbourhood Japanese tavern (i.e., no shelf stacked full of Japanese comics in sight, like the one in Chako, another of our favourite restaurants which I blogged about earlier!) But, the atmosphere is distinctly informal and you'll feel at home dressed in jeans, bermudas or sandals. On the two occasions we visited, the place was packed out with Japanese clientele! Who knows where they all came from, but there were loads of them! The first time we visited, our friend had the good sense to book a table for the 5 of us. The second time round, just last Friday, we showed up quite spontaneously after ditching an attempt to find good chicken rice in the surrounding region (I had a pregger craving! What to do...). Nevertheless, we managed to squeeze two seats at the counter facing the teppanyaki / bar area and it was fairly quiet, not too rowdy or smelly. Here's what we ate:

Tuna & asparagus salad

Tofu with grilled cheese

Unagi fried rice (picture shows half portion of what was served)

Grilled cod with teriyaki sauce

Jap pancake with pork & bonito flakes

I don't know about you, but I feel that the pictures really do not do justice to the quality of food. In particular, the unagi rice was absolutely fantastic! I've had unagi rice at other Jap eateries, including En @ Mohamed Sultan, but the one at Nanjya Monjya was simply the best we've tried! Also, you may be thinking - tofu with grilled cheese? What's up with that? But, surprisingly, it was really yummy! Even the tuna & asparagus salad, what one might call a rather boring or common dish, was above average. And, just to point out, although portions were small, each serving was definitely big enough for Husband & I. When we dined with friends there the first time round, each dish was sufficient to fill 5 people, of course given that we all ate small portions - but that's tapas after all!

I would thoroughly recommend Nanjya Monjya to all. But be warned, the prices are slightly above average, with each dish priced between $10-20. With such costs involved, it's better to go with a larger group of friends (also so that you get to try more dishes!). Nanjya Monjya also serves teppanyaki and sashimi. Oh and yes, like any other izakaya, there is plenty of variety of sake too! Remember to book in advance!

15 July 2005, Friday, 7.22pm

Good eat: Nanjya Monjya

Tuna & asparagus salad

Tofu with grilled cheese

Unagi fried rice (picture shows half portion of what was served)

Grilled cod with teriyaki sauce

Jap pancake with pork & bonito flakes

Nanjya Monjya
Ground floor, Allson Hotel
101 Victoria Street
Victoria Wing #01-06
S188018

14 July 2005, Thursday, 11.30am

Feast

I'm happy to report that preggers (a.k.a. yours truly!) can still cook up feast, when duly called upon. From top left going clockwise: yummy thai olive rice (easy recipe, will post one day), cantonese-style steamed fish (recipe & tips from Gina of kitchencapers), tamarind prawns with mint sauce and char siew chicken wings (also from Gina). ^__^

12 July 2005, Tuesday, 1.04pm

Chocolate cupcakes

This recipe is adapted from Carol G Durst's "I Knew You Were Coming So I Baked A Cake". It was a gift from eons ago, and I enjoy her conversational style of writing, dropping comments here and there about her children and her life. I say the recipe was "adapted" because Durst's recipe called for baking soda and baking powder, but I only had baking soda (also known as bicarbonate soda/sodium bicarbonate) on hand. So, had to do a bit of re-adjustment to the rest of the ingredients, to ensure that the batter "rose" to the occasion, but not too high. ^__^ Also, I must add that at first, I was a bit skeptical because Durst did not put any butter into the recipe - a cake with no butter? GASP. You might also be taken aback that Durst calls for 1 cup of boiling water to be added to the batter. Hoowart. But, surprisingly, the the result was a lovely moist, chocolatey, yet not too dense cupcake, quite reminiscent of the self-saucing chocolate pudding recipe I posted a while ago. Here's the no-fuss recipe for you to try:

Chocolate cupcakes adapted from Carol G Durst
(Durst calls them the "don't do it" chocolate cupcakes, because there are a lot of things you don't need to do!)

3/4 cup cocoa powder

2 cups sugar

1 3/4 cup self-raising flour

1 ts salt

1 cup milk

1/2 cup vegetable oil

2 eggs

2 ts vanilla essence/extract

1 ts baking soda

1 ts lemon juice

1 cup boiling water

1. Preheat oven at 180 degrees celsius. Prepare your muffin tins * by lining with paper cups.

2. Combine the cocoa powder, sugar, flour and salt. Use a wooden spoon to mix these dry ingredients thoroughly.

3. In a separate bowl, combine the milk, oil, eggs and vanilla essence/extract thoroughly. Add this to the mixed dry ingredients and then, add the baking soda and lemon juice.** Use an electric mixer to beat the entire mixture on medium speed for just 2 minutes ***.

4. Add 1 cup of boiling water to the mixture and stir thoroughly with wooden spoon. Now you batter is ready to be baked!

5. Pour the batter into the muffin tins and bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean and the muffin top springs back when you touch it. Remove and let it cool completely before stealing on to try for yourself!

* There are different sizes of muffin tins & paper cups. For this recipe, I would suggest you do not use the huge muffin cups/tins, i.e., those served at Coffee Bean or Starbucks. This is because the moist chocolately taste is best savoured in smaller portions.

** Why add the baking soda and lemon juice at such a later stage? Well, as a rising agent, baking soda tends to take effect rather quickly, so it's best to add it in towards the end.

*** Why did Durst say to beat just for 2 minutes? I'm not sure but I suspect it's because either she doesn't want the batter to be too stiff or she doesn't want to incorporate too much air into the batter. Jus a guess.

Here's a parting shot of the muffin - cheers!:

10 July 2005, Sunday, 9.56pm

Reading preggie books

So recently, I've been busy reading up on tips and tricks of calm, confident parenting. Sis passed me some parenting magazines last night. Also have Babywise, Gina Ford (the Nazi Nanny) and other books from well-meaning friends and colleagues. So much to learn - it's a whole new world man!

(By the way, this entry is just a poor excuse for me to show off our new camera!! Yes, a huge thanks to all my friends (from the blogging community & otherwise) that gave suggestions on which digicam to buy. We finally settled on the Fuji FinePix F10, which most reviews emphasised turns out excellent macro shots & does particularly well in indoor light/low light conditions. Above shot is taken at night, indoors, under warm yellow light, at about distance of 7cm. Cool huh!!! Me so excited!! This camera will hopefully help us capture nice natural shots of Daniel when he "emerges". ^__^)

6 July 2005, Wednesday, 9.03am

A difficult pregnancy - a short story

B & her husband looked at each other. Surprise and a hint of fear registered on both their faces as the doctor's words sunk in. I'm pregnant? Impossible. It was too hard to believe. Using an IUD (intra-urinary device) was fool-proof contraception, or so they had been told. Well, 99% fool-proof, to be exact.

B asked the doctor what to do and he told her she had two choices. At her mature age of 42, this pregnancy was what doctors called "high-risk". Furthermore, with a plastic-and-copper IUD currently lodged in her womb, the chances of miscarriage were greater than usual. She could either (1) abort (2) keep the baby. The second option would be the more risky one and if she chose it, the doctor advised a short procedure to remove the IUD from the womb. However, removing the IUD might also increase the chances of miscarriage.

For the next few days, B & her husband went around with heavy hearts. Getting over the surprise was difficult enough. B found herself staring at her two children a lot. Both were oblivious to the situation - her elder son, 10, went about his routine, waking up, going to school, doing homework, watching TV, playing with his toy cars. And her younger daughter, 3, continued her playful and carefree ways, dragging her blanket wherever she went about the house, cololouring all her books, munching on snacks and banging at the piano. She was quite content with two children. There was no need for another. Certainly not at the age of 42. B's husband also talked about how a third kid at this stage would mean more expenses and having to work longer before retirement. What was the sensible thing to do?

B knew in her heart what the sensible thing to do was. But if getting over the surprise of being pregnant was difficult, actually carrying out what she felt made the most sense was even harder. Her husband listened to her carefully and after a while, gave her his support. It was a hard choice. But it would be the most sensible decision. They made an appointment to see the doctor again.

What was B's decision? Isn't it obvious? She & her husband decided to keep the baby! For nine months, the baby grew steadily (with the IUD lodged inside the womb, so as to reduce chances of miscarriage). At first there was the elation of being pregnant again, a feeling encouraged by the outpouring of well-wishes and congratulations from relatives and friends. But as time went by, and the baby grew heavier, elation was replaced with a numbing uncertainty. What on earth am I doing? Do I really think I can handle this? Very few people understand the thoughts of a pregnant woman. And if it is a high risk pregnancy, with special circumstances such as this one, it becomes even harder for anyone to say they fully empathise.

But B persevered, and one fine morning, on 6 July many many years ago, a healthy baby girl entered the world with some of the most piercing screams ever heard in that local hospital. They named the child "Ruth". You see, B had reasoned that God had given her the privilege of being a mother to another child and such a privilege was not to be taken lightly. Yes, there would be extra hassle, expenses and risk. Yes, she did not need another child, especially not at 42. But B & husband saw the baby not as a nuisance, accident or mistake, but as a miracle, a gift and a blessing. If my parents had not seen things that way, if they had aborted me, then I would not be here, blogging this entry, living this life, loving my Husband and praising God every day. But my parents never once considered abortion seriously because they believed that God creates life and life begins at conception. In this way, I am a direct benefactor and result of my parents' faith. And I thank God for that! Amen!

4 July 2005, Monday, 10.06pm

Big bump

I hope this pic doesn't give anyone nightmares. I am sticking out my tummy slightly, in exaggerated fashion, but essentially, yes, I am more or less THAT BIG right now. In the background are Catgirl and Neonangel. Neonangel is staring and pointing at my big bump. Teehee. ^__^

1 July 2005, Friday, 5.07am

The Cook Next Door meme

I have been 'tagged' by Chubby Hubby for this meme. Being a big blur block, I wasn't sure what a meme was, so had to go read up before finally 'getting it'. ^__^ Anyways, here we go!

(Before we start, I feel the need to explain - YES, it is 5am in the morn. I cannot sleep. Why? I am about 6 weeks from giving birth - go figure... :))

Meme asks: What is your first memory of baking/cooking on your own?

Spots: Hmm... I have a lousy memory, particularly so because I am pregnant (Pregnancy is a good excuse to blame everything on! Hee.) But I do remember when I was really young, I used to toast hot dogs in the toaster quite a bit! They were my specialty and I especially enjoyed toasting them until the skin got all burnt and dry and the usually-long straight hot dogs began to curl and wrinkle under the weight of heat. What a strange child I was...

The other early memories of "cooking on my own" would be during my college days in the good ol' US of A. In particular, my mom always made sure I packed bak kut teh spice packs and I used them frequently when I fell sick due to cold weather. It was quite funny, because to American noses, bak kut teh has quite a pungent smell. I still remember one dorm mate exclaiming loudly in the common kitchen, "Eeow...What is THAT?" when she saw/smelt my bak kut teh packet floating unappetisingly in a pot of murky pork bones! BWAHAHAHA.

Meme asks: Who had the most influence on your cooking?

Spots: Weirdly enough, I did not start cooking avidly till after I got married. So, in the first 2+ decades of my life, I had a lot of time to be influenced by a myriad of people. I would say one of my key influences was this couple from church - Adrian & Esther. Esther is this amazing cook and Adrian a consummate entertainer. Almost every month, for a substantial period of time, I would get invited over to their house to eat like all this amazing gourmet stuff, like osso buco, flambe, steak, cranberry cous cous, fusion cuisine ... the list goes on. She was a real inspiration, and so naturally, when I got married, Husband & I also began trying out our culinary skills and inviting people over for dinner parties etc.,

The other significant source of influence has been the foodblogging community. (Husband sometimes refers to this as the Flogging community, for short!). I have to make mention of Shiokadelicious, Mik (whose blog has since closed down) and Thepassionatecook who played a very influential role during my days as a young & nervous wife cooking for Husband. I was particularly inspired by Thepassionatecook because all the dishes she turned out (on a DAILY basis) had names like "Smoked haddock and leek quichettes" and she was a mother, taking care of a young kid at that time. How cool is THAT!

Meme asks: Do you have an old photo as "evidence" of an early exposure to the culinary world and would you like to share it?

Spots: Of course, my early exposure to the culinary world consisted of eating food, not cooking yet! Here I am, on my 4th birthday!

Meme asks: Mageiricophobia - do you suffer from any cooking phobia, a dish that makes your palms sweat?

Spots: I'm not really a sweaty palms type of person, but I do have a strange aversion to working with EGGPLANT. It's sad, cos eggplant is really cool (in other's people's cooking) but whenever I try to cook (boil, stir fry, bake) eggplant, disaster looms.

Meme asks: What would be your most valued or used kitchen gadgets and/or what was the biggest letdown?

Spots: My most valued gadget would be my Kenwood handheld electric mixer. I bought it like 10+ years ago and you can "see" its age as the wire has become all yellow-ed, but it works like new! The most used kitchen gadget would be my Braun Multiquick Advantage. This multiusage food processor that chops, slices, grates, dices etc., was a wedding gift from a fellow cook, Lynette, who obviously knew her kitchen equipment! I really love this gadget!

Meme asks: Name some funny or weird food combinations/dishes you really like and probably no one else.

Spots: I have recently taken a fancy to Toasted Cranberry Cheese Sandwiches. Anyone like those? Also, McDonalds French Fries dipped in its Soft-serve Ice cream is pretty cool too, but I think that's common, right?

What are the three eatables or dishes you simply don't want to live without?

Spots: At this point in pregnancy time, I'd have to say (1) Hainanese Chicken Rice (2) McDonalds Soft-serve Ice cream (at $0.50, it's the cheapest and yummiest pregnancy craving a woman could have!) (3) Sushi

Meme asks: Three quickies:

Your favourite ice cream... Hazelnut gelare
You will probably never eat... Durian (Gotta agree with Chubby Hubby on this one!)
Your own signature dish... Husband is asleep right now, but he'd probably say my Bee Bim Bap (which he's always asking for), my calming soups (e.g., pork rib and watercress soup, pork rib and corn soup, eight treasures chicken soup etc) and my lor bar.

Meme says: And last but not least: Tag three people!

Spots: YAY, I get to arrow arrow... Thepassionatecook, Baby rambutan and Aromacookery!