Made from scratch

 Somehow making things from scratch is therapeutic. Made udon from scratch today for beef udon. 

 Though I wonder does this make it actually healthier since it is not processed or still the same cos it’s still carbs

 

Health and money

 Recently Bian and I started photosynthesis sessions to build up our vitamin D. 30mins every morning whenever we can. So far it’s been going well. We rarely skip unless we need to go out in the morning. 

Our lives were also toss upside down momentarily when he found out he got brvo - an eye stroke. Went to Farrer Park -> SNEC -> Mt E. I must say his ophthalmologist family fren has good bedside manners and all and sets the patient at ease. She recommended us to a neurologist who apparently treated LKY wife for stroke. So Bian did get pretty good medical care if you ask me. Anyway at the end of the day, thankfully the stroke happened at a location of little or no consequence. Just that Bian has to watch his diet more carefully now. Although after thinking through, we thought it might have been vaccine related. Anw no way to prove it also. 

Wish my money would grow faster and I can stop working lol. 

Random updates

I haven't been using my ringfit lately. Gym is also capped at 2 pax so really hard to use. Tried to run outdoors and was bitten by several insects. Gees, all the covid19 measures just make it harder to establish an exercise routine. But for now I'm back at swimming, although it leaves my hair in tangles. 

Been reading books by Khaled Hosseini on Kindle too. Feels like I have traveled to Afghan. 

Still interviewing for job with ESL. Can't believe it. Already been 2 months... Really taking their time with this heh. Actually better for me so I also never really chase. 

While I found many abc recipes I didn't actually try alot of them in the end. Tried a few that just didn't turn out that great. So I'm back to relying on the internet. Now I know how to look for great recipes. Those with few thousands who rated almost full marks. 

Going to try making pretzel. Hope it turns out good. 

So far my best recipe is still the apple pie, tuna bun and parmesan chicken 

I decided to put off kitchenaid purchase cos there are still loads I can do n explore without it. Plus it's really chunky. 

Shopping in my head

 seems like the ringfit is not as frequently utilized as I thought it would be. Well at least hub is using the exercise mat daily. 

So far the best buy is still kindle. I suppose that's because I get new books every now and then. 

Occasionally I think of buying kitchenaid with that pasta attachment. Actually when I think back, I didn't even do all the ABC recipes that I found. Probably because not all are good anyway 

More things I bought

 I just bought ringfit adventure and exercise mat. Considering that I have thought about buying this since last year CB, I Guess u can’t count it as an impulse buy. It’s not cheap. Everything adds to abt 143. 

But I’m going to exercise!!

So far I’ve also baked curry cheese onion bread and maple zopf. Both are a bit dense. Wonder how I can make them softer ... maybe incorporate tangzong method. 

Reflection and goals

Time for some goals again. Although not sure whether having these goals are necessary. I should say they are not really goals but rather what I want to achieve. It would be good to look back from time to time and see how my priorities have changed. I should name it instead as things I would do if I had all the money and time in the world hahaha. 

Here goes! Not in order of importance:

1. Grade 8 clarinet exam by next year. I'm already doing the pieces but obviously not exam standard yet. Been dragging this for years. sometimes I wonder why do I want to give myself such stress? I'm thinking one day if I want to join some band (maybe community band) I can do so more easily with a certificate? And after all I have learnt this for so many years, I want a piece of paper to commemorate it. 

2. Learn tennis again 

3. Swim 4x a week (get fit!) - no fatty belly. My toned arms n body. 

4. Baking/cooking. I felt so proud that I manage to plough through the internet for free ABC cooking studio recipes. I'm going to try them and improve my baking! It's much cheaper than signing up a course. Auntie me feels proud of myself for saving the $$

5. Read 2 books a month. I wanna spend time to read proper books because the internet is filled with so much trash. 

Things I wanna buy and hopefully I get a good deal 

1. Watch for swimming 

2. Exercise mat (that expensive gorilla mat looks so good) 

3. Kitchenaid mixer

4. Refurbish my old clarinet 

5. New tennis racquet 

Things I bought recently

1. Zojirushi rice cooker (got it at like $80 brand new from carousel. Retail at $180). The old mistral rice cooker can't keep the rice warm without hardening it. 

2. New adidas sneakers for work ($69) (thanks hub for buying them for me!). I bought the kids version so it was slightly cheaper. Anyway it's all the same. My previous one lasted about 4 yrs and had holes on the side and back and both sides did a crocodile split on a rainy day. I had to call darling to pick me up. It was bad. Hehe 

3. Kindle - that was quite a while back. But totally worth it because of the number of books I've read to date! 

4. Containers to make my pantry look nicer

Gateau Au Chocolat (ABC Cooking Class)

Gateau Au Chocolat (ABC Cooking Class)

Total time: 60 mins (40 minutes baking time) 

15cm cake

Ingredients:

85g Milk chocolate (bar / buttons) or 65g milk 20g dark

65g unsalted butter 

25g Cocoa powder 

8g cake flour 

2 egg yolks 

12.6g caster sugar 

2 egg whites 

40g caster sugar 

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 160 deg Celcius 

2. Using a bain-marie, melt down the milk chocolate and butter. Alternatively, use a microwave, ensuring the chocolate does not overheat. (50 to 60 deg C)

3. Sieve the cocoa powder and cake flour, twice. 

4. Whisk the 2 egg yolks with the 1tbsp of sugar til frothy and white/ light cream in colour. 

5. Whisk the 2 egg whites til it looks like beer foam. Put in 1/2 of the sugar (20g) and whisk til soft peaks. Put in the rest of the sugar (20g) and whisk til stiff peaks. 

6. When the chocolate-butter mixture is slightly cool, fold in the cocoa-flour mix. 

7. Add the whisked egg yolks to the mixture by folding in gently. 

8. Add 1/3 of the whisked egg whites (meringue) to the mixture and fold in gently. Add another 1/3 and fold in gently. Finally add the last 1/3 and fold in gently, ensuring batter is well-mixed. 

9. Fill 15cm cake tin and bake for 40 minutes at 160deg Celcius. 

10. Set on a cooling rack to cool. Sprinkle / sieve icing sugar to decorate.