Oats and Raisin Steam Cake madness

I am so into cake steaming!!! HAHAHA!

After I successfully steamed the apple steam cake for my little girl, I moved on to steaming oats and raisin steam cake! And again! She loves it! She ate so much that she has to skip her dinner! Hahahaha! Bad I know! She is addicted to it too!

Let’s get back to our main topic, oats and raisins steam cake. This round of steaming I got myself a smaller mold! A better size to be packed into her snacks box and also just nice for her to hold!

On top of that, I use Blackstrap Molasses instead of honey for this cake. Why Molasses? Molasses are high in Iron and Calcium content. Oh yes! Toddler needs calcium and iron in their diet! Molasses is not as sweet as honey.

 For your reference: (I am not a nutritionist, just a researcher, you may want to check with a nutritionist/doctor if you have any doubts)

1 tablespoon blackstrap molasses: 172 mg Calcium

1 teaspoon blackstrap molasses: 1 mg Iron

Source and references:

http://www.babycenter.com/0_iron-in-your-childs-diet_10324691.bc

http://www.babycenter.com/0_calcium-in-your-childs-diet_10324689.bc

http://www.wholesometoddlerfood.com/toddlercalcium.htm

Ok, enough of nutritional info.

Let’s go back to steaming! For oats and raisins, I used rolled oats and normal raisin. Note that rolled oats takes a long time to cook (instant oats cooks faster). Hence, I soak them overnight, drain the water and I blend the oats with the raisins (because my girl dislike chewing). You can skip the blending part if your child prefers chewy texture. 

Munching on big sweet raisins makes a child happy! *Wink!*

steam oats and raisin cake

Here you go! The recipe for Toddler Oats and raisin Steam Cake! (~3 egg tart size cake).

 Not recommended for children bellow 1 year old (No Molasses for children below 1)

Steam cake recipe:

½ cup of all purpose flour

1.5 teaspoon of baking powder

1 egg

2 tablespoon of rolled oats

1 tablespoon of raisins

2 tablespoon of grated cheese (cheddar)

1 tablespoon of molasses

3 tablespoon of natural yogurt/milk

Just mix everything and steam for 8-10 min/until cook.

Have fun steaming and feeding your toddler!

Apple Steam cake for my Girl!

  After seeing a steam cake recipe shared by a wonderful mom, I decided to make some for my little girl. Sadly, my first attempt was a failure. But after fine-tuning the recipe à Whoala! I got a steam cake!

To begin with, I do not have a mini mold to make a mini cake for my mini human. So bah! She have her egg-tart size apple steam cake and she loves it! (To me…tasteless.. hehe) The upside of making this steam cake is that you can make it within less than half an hour and it is a good snack/finger food for toddlers! You don't even need a OVEN!!!!!!

She is such a poser isn't she?

Here you go! The recipe for Toddler Apple Steam Cake! (~3 egg tart size cake) 

à Not recommended for children bellow 1 year old (No honey for children below 1)

Steam cake recipe:

      A.     ½ cup of all purpose flour

      B.     1.5 teaspoon of baking powder 

      C.     1 egg

      D.     2 tablespoon of apple puree (or grated apple if you like it crunchy)

      E.      2 tablespoon of grated cheese (cheddar)

      F.      1 tablespoon of honey

      G.     3 tablespoon of natural yogurt/milk

Just mix everything and steam for 8-10 min/until cook.

Time to stock up your kitchen and have fun steaming and feeding your toddler!

Now A MOM

The word “Baby” does not mean anything to me all these years. Even though I got married early, “Baby” was not what I would even plan or think about at that time or maybe never! I could not imagine myself pregnant, carrying a baby (which I don’t at all before this), feeding a baby, going around with a baby, cleaning poop and pee and etc. Just NO! I would probably sucked as a mom. I was just comfortable as myself and doing my thing my own way and timing. Just not as a mom! I Have no idea how to handle or talk to a kid!

The fact is like it or not, the moment you get married, everyone will ask and some will pressure you about babies. Growing up in a Christian family background plus Chinese culture, we don’t live/sleep/vacation alone with our potential spouse until we get married. BAH! Very traditional and conservative I know! So why not enjoy the two after marriage before moving on to 3 or more (Just my point of view and you do not have to agree/disagree with it!)? Hewp! I can write all my point of views about marriage and baby timeline here but let’s just save it for another post or maybe not at all.

Moving to the next phase of life (Parenthood) was not an easy decision. It was an exciting move for my hubby but it was rather “yes and no” situation for me. Being neither here nor there, I was actually very lost. Making the matter worst, I have a very frequent traveler hubby (due to his job nature). It was tough to face the stress all alone most of the time which eventually draws down to depression (and yet nobody understands but God understands). Phew. After much consideration, negotiations (YES NEGOTIATE) and lectures, we finally decided on family expansion after 2 years of marriage (I was still trying to sort out my life with plus one!).

After nine months of baking (spending my entire second trimester in Montreal with hubby), I am finally a mom with a physical baby in my arms! Me being me, as hard as a rock, as rebellious and a cow, you can imagine how hard I fought between scientific/medical facts and traditional myths throughout my pregnancy plus confinement. It was not easy and until today myths still don’t make sense to me but hey! I am born Chinese! So accept it! Some advices are given through observations and own experiences without clinical test and they may or may not benefit you. And me being a researcher, I guess I would have to learn to accept some of what I don’t see/read or tested. So my advice, just listen, you might need them or maybe not along the way. CHEERS! (Seriously…. Drink more soy bean for fairer baby? Or don’t eat octopus during pregnancy or else something will pull baby in the womb and you can’t push the baby out! Muahahaha!) Ok, fine, people still do believe in those myths! So please! Respect! MILO MAKES BABY BLACK! Tell me that! I am a milo addict! OK! *Make peace!*

Beautiful Sky in Montreal, Canada

Today, I am a blessed mom of a one year old darling. I am so blessed to be given a choice to handle my baby on my own. Being a 24 hour mom, it teaches me life beyond myself. I learned to love, care and to give more than I could even imagine. I couldn’t see myself as a mom who cleans/touches poop and yet I did it! Well, I guess she changes me. It is amazing to see how God works. From month to month I see her grow, change and does new tricks like how she begin to crawl and now walk (very fast and sudden!)! It is beyond what I can imagine to see how God created human to be and experiences are beyond what we read on books/articles. As a researcher, I call this “practice brings theory to life”! Seriously, I think I read a lot ever since I am a mom! Ah well, there are so many things to learns when it comes to babies and not to forget about what to feed them when they started to eat! I have never been so serious about food until I am pregnant and even more when started feeding my baby. We all know that articles are articles. So do talk to other moms or your doctor for some information too! That is how I learn about motherhood from zero to something. HEHE! Baby friendly home? Bah! Don’t even talk about it! It was not an issue until she turns one! Now I am learning to make my home baby friendly. So do wish me luck! (Advices and Ideas are welcome too!)The journey of growing together is priceless and to be able to give the best for her is definitely a blessing from God. Her laughter and presence brings so much joy to the family.

A very playful girl

I think u can see me and my baby getting chubbier together! HAHAHA!

Hubby fed us well! *HUGS*

We as a parent, we learn so much by having so much hands on experience. We are glad to have a strong baby who is able to follow us no matter where we fly. By trial and error (I hope no serious damage), I am glad we made it! Not an easy task but a fulfilling one! *High Five!* 

Hugs to all mom and mom to be out there!

Something New

I have abandon this blog more than a year ago and guess what? I am back! Why am I writing again? 

When we were having our vacation in Hong Kong last month, Hub told me to wake my creativity once again. Giving him a confused face, "Am I that dull ever since a became a Mom? Hmmm...". 

Hong Kong can be an interesting place for creative ideas (besides shopping). The architecture of the buildings and the interior designs of the malls around Hong Kong actually inspire us to think beyond the box. As we were walking and talking about what we see and how we can creatively redesign the rooms in our home, hub suddenly suggest that I should start writing again. 

Hong Kong after a heavy downpour

Ok.. Write? It has been awhile since I last written something. I have to admit that my brain is seriously getting lazy. Just living the day with task and datelines. So, any good topic for me to write?

Hub: Now  that you are a mom, you can write about your experience as a mom. Since you are travelling again, you should have fresh ideas to share. It will be interesting!

Me: hmmm.. Sounds interesting! This means I have to start squeezing my brain juice again for ideas plus grooming again and no more slacking... (For the sake of photos!) >_<

Born in Hong Kong! I will be on my lappy/phone writing again and this time it is about motherhood, traveling with baby, food, home and many more..

Keeping my fingers crossed!

 Looking forward to find some time to write and hopefully it is inspiring and comforting or maybe  helpful to moms/mom2be/mom wanna be/lost mom/anybody!

How We Do It

When it comes to doing things, we all have our very own ways of doing it. We all eat and drink, fold our clothes, talk and arrange things differently. That is why we are all simply unique! But at some point when we begin to share our life with others, we begin to question one another or maybe worst, argue. ~'o'~. After all, we are all human beings. We just need to learn to accept that some are just born to be "chichai la" (don't bother la), some "looks OK/acceptable can already la" (realistic) and some perfectionist (perfectionist to the maximum = OCD)! So imagine a perfectionist marries a chinchai la! Muahahahahahahaha!

I have my very own way of doing things, and the worst part I only like to do it my way most of the time! *SLAP* Being a lefty can be bad enough when it comes to arranging things or how you hang your clothes. Plus 60% of perfectionism? KABOOM! So this is what I always get from my husband -->
1.  "Why la need to be so perfect? Be more realistic can or not?" =_="""
2. Me - " Can hang clothes in this direction ah?"
    Hub - " This direction better ma"
    Me - " This direction better la! Because easier for me to collect back ma!"
    Hub - " No! This direction is easier for me." *Bird chirping*
So how? Lefty vs Mr Right... ahahahaha! *punch*

Ok, enough! Let's talk about Starbucks! It has been while since I stepped into Starbucks for a nice long coffee break. It has always been my place of inspiration, especially when it comes to writing. Good eh? After much visits with my faithful date - laptop, I begin to develop something funny/weird. So, this is what I do to my frappucino.....and still doing it today!

I wrap a tissue around the cup every time I treat myself a frappucino. Wanna know why?

Frappucino = Ice Blended --> Ice melts --> cup starts sweating --> water starts dripping...--> Aya! my shirt/skirt, Aya! my book! --> wet wet la! 0_0

I used to spend about an hour in Starbucks with my lappie. What do I get after one hour? Rings of water on the table..... or maybe some drops on my lappie/magazines ^_^. So wrapping my cup is what I do to avoid the RINGS OF WATER!!! OK! don't give me the weird look! I am not a weirdo! :)

So this is how I do it... *MUAKS*
How about you?

The Magic Brush

Here is one of the very rare post from me, the plain and boring engineer. Something about make-up. Ah well, the thought of making up to work everyday could practically freak me out! Or simply say, eat the right food for the right skin is like the worst advice I would take! (That explains the pimple face AND PRINGLES is JUST SITTING NEXT TO ME NOW!) *SLAP!* Now you know my excuses to remain lazy!

Back to reality, a plain face is good for sports and beach, a little highlight is good for coffee chat, shopping, work and etc, and not to forget.. out-standing for dinner dates, wedding dinner and party! Yes, a simple make-up does make a difference. A little art on the face can make a person look more presentable and beautiful!

What I've discover last weekend, make-up is an art! There are no definite rules and guidelines. The only guideline is to colour within the line! :) It is just like when we first learn to colour an apple! We colour the entire apple red. As we grow up, we then learn to add shadings to the apple, darker red on one side and lighter red on the other! We then move to the advance level, where we are able to make the apple looks 3D! It is all up to our creativity! Just like how we colour our life! There are no limit to creativity, the limit is our mind.

Photo by Maegan

To produce a good art, we definitely need a good brush! Make-up is on the face, and face is the most delicate canvas. A hard or bad brush can hurt your face! After a good research, hard brushes hardly picks up colour compare to soft delicate brush. This means, most of your eye shadow will be stuck in the brush or drop somewhere else. Does that explains the many thick layer of eye shadow? The difference between the salon make up and make up at home? :) Good brush blends the colour nicely onto the skin and you can see a whoala effect! Get a good brush and be happy  with the results! And not to forget to clean your brushes! And clean them right! (Good tip for people with sensitive skin/ pimpled skin!)

Photo by Maegan

Ah, not to forget my little best friend... the curler! It does make wonders to the lashes! *LOVE* It makes my little lashes so lively! This is a very friendly tool before and after your mascara! 

Photo by Maegan

After much practices, I think make-up is interesting! Do remember to clean them well before you go to sleep! Of course, there is no such thing as the best make-up or facial product, it is which product that suits your skin well! Be adventurous babes! Perfection comes with many trials and practices! Even Thomas Edison did not get it right on the first trial! >_@

Make-ups do not entirely covers imperfection!  But make-up makes the world more colourful!

Photo by Maegan

Nail Colour rawks my fingers! weehee!

One.. First or the only one?

Hard I know
Nevertheless I did not let go.
Finding rest at home
After every battle with my bow and arrows.

Seeking for a breakthrough.
But can't seems to find the truth
What I am here for? I asked
Living each day with nothing but a mask.
Without realizing that my soul was buried in the dust.

Well done my dear self
It has been a year n you've done well
Battling depression in your own shell.
Time to get up and move out of hell 

Bubbly Tea!

Hello bubble blog!

Looks like I have abandon you again! Hahaha!

Trying out some new apps for smartphone.. Some blogging app..

Greetings!

How wrong can wrong be?

It is definitely heart wrenching to hear about the massive quake and the unending disaster. Having friends and family there can be the worst worry of all time, but truly thank God they are all ok! Japan have been making headlines every single day ever since the 8.9 quake. Places and faces of sorrow/hurt/fear and emptiness made the front page of the papers. News forecast cold weather ahead and this could obstruct their search for survival. False prediction and judgement are thrown upon them harshly.  Please do keep Japan in prayer (for safety and comfort) and hopefully we are able to hear good news from Japan real soon where they are able to control and minimize the damage caused by the natural disaster. Some may object, some may curse, and some may support but for sure at this moment of time they truly need all the love and support to keep them through this period of fear.

On the other hand, it is quite sad to burn my tick (gift fr hub) to Japan which have been planned months ago. But it the definitely one of the best choice at the moment to postpone the trip. However on the other hand, this remark has actually made me insensitive (at the moment of making decision) for some reason which I do not know why. To me, it is just not so right to go have fun in their house while they are not in their best and we are ought to take care of our safety as well. Don't want my family members to worry dead for sure. Japan is a strong country I believe and they can come back better. There is always another chance.

So here I am one of the "Malaysian who makes insensitive comments" following the news daily and praying for Japan's safety and recovery and also made donations to help Japan writing this. And also would like to remind the Malaysians who think "Malaysians who are insensitive" are once and now a Malaysian too. Just be proud and thankful of where you come from lest u have disowned your citizenship.  

What is in between balance and imbalance?

In between clear and unclear, there stands confusion. In between, decided and could not decide, we get depression. Unable to distinguish black and white, we get grey. If we know the ending but do not know the beginning, then we are stuck. But with a clear view/stand of yes and no, there exist a purpose and a destiny.

The question is, is it that easy?

We dream big when we were young and it just get smaller as we grow older. The fact is that our choices in career and who we want to be have been narrowed down by our decision along the way. My childhood ambition was to be a singer/actress/model and a doctor. I was told that I am fat and ugly (didn't know that I would be thin one day), therefore I did not have the courage to step out. My mom encourage me to sing and would send me for vocal lessons, but then I usually freak out, panic, stomach ache in front of a big crowd! I can only sing at home and for my mom... A doctor? ah.... I was really bad in my grades.. so bad that my mom actually encourage me to stop after secondary 5 and goes to nursing school!! MUAHAHA! But of course there are people who are able to succeed.

Where I am today, is due to my rebellion to my mom, she told me science was hard, as much as I hated science, I pursued it and scored in order to prove her wrong, however, I never thought this would take me so far and obtained more than a degree. The next question is, am I enjoying where I am today?

The fact on earning money on my own one of the joy in my life. At least I can shop for my sis, treat her black sesame ice cream, get branded bags and clothings for my mom, bring dad to dine in a nice restaurant, to bless my family as well as shopping! But the reality of working right now for me is equivalent to draining. 

As much as I like what I am doing right now is almost equals to as much as I hate it. The joy of achieving and being challenged is seriously irreplaceable! But the time which I needed to invest in it is seriously beyond my expectation. Besides the joy of no jam after work, It is almost every week now I would be late/almost missed cell group, miss my hub and the time for myself and not to forget, God. 

It was a joy to all when I moved out from my plan to pursue another, but I wonder does anyone care about the content in me? Or maybe it is just for me and God to know. 

It is never easy to be trap in between what I want, I cant decide, I don't know, "how to let go?" and "what should I do" situation. 

This is where I am, a place where rebellion has brought me to. Do I regret? Maybe a little bit, but hey, at least I know I can do anything as long as I put my heart in it! My achievements has actually overtook my expectation but yet to reach my satisfaction.

Wrong decisions does not mean we will end up in the grave, 

just follow the rainbow and I believe we can get there someday! 

Just lift our hands and say HOORAY! 

At least we did something today! 

Let not disappointment drift us away. 

Just follow the rainbow and it shall be the colours of our day! 

Entering the 3rd month

The title make me sounds like I am pregnant! LOL!

We are entering the 3rd month of 2011. What have you achieve so far?

I have been gaining inches around my waist and increase in number...not just age but weight! Argh...

On top of that.. God has been great!

photo my Camoorah