Friday 3 April 2015

Egg Tarts Recipe

It had been a long time since I last made egg tarts so I decided to make some egg tarts on the last Saturday of the school holidays in March. 

I liked to keep things simple so I used a recipe that did not require many ingredients. We did not like our egg tarts to be too sweet so the amount of sugar and icing sugar used were less than that stated in the original recipe. So if you like sweeter egg tarts, you can add more sugar. I also increased the amount of flour used for the butter pastry.

 The ingredients I used for the butter pastry were:

 280 g salted butter
450 plain flour
1 egg
80 g icing sugar

 The ingredients I used for the egg tart filling were:
300 ml water
100 g sugar
4 eggs
80 ml full cream evaporated milk

Steps to prepare the dough:

 1. Pre-heat the oven to 200 degrees Celsius.

 2. Mix butter, flour and icing sugar together in a bowl.

 3. Add an egg.

 4. Knead it into a dough. Refrigerate the dough for 20 min or until it is in a workable state.
Butter pastry dough

While waiting for the dough to be ready, we can work on the egg tart filling. 

 Steps to prepare the egg tart filling:

1. Pour 100 g of sugar into 300 ml of water. Stir until all the sugar has dissolved.

2. Add milk and eggs to the mixture above. Beat and mix well.

3. Sieve the mixture two times to get a smooth egg filling.
Egg filling after sieving

Steps to prepare the egg tarts:

 1. When the dough is ready to be used, take it out from the refrigerator. Knead it again. 

2. Take a small ball of the dough and press it into an pastry mould gently using your two thumbs. Repeat the process until all the dough is used.

3. Pour the egg filling into the pastry mould with the dough in it.

4. Bake the egg tarts in the oven at 200 degree Celsius for 15 to 20 minutes. The egg filling should still be wobbly when done. The egg tarts are ready if a toothpick can stand upright when poked into the filling.

Sera volunteered to help me make the egg tarts and she really enjoyed kneading the dough and putting it into the pastry mould. Towards the end, she also helped to pour the egg filling into the pastry mould.



Unbaked egg tarts in pastry mould on a tray

Baked egg tarts

We made a total of 30 egg tarts with diameters of about 8 cm each.

[S$6.90]Kitchen Weighing Scale Portable and Digital Ideal for cookingsellers travellers! Weighing Scale
WWW.QOO10.SG
Posted by at No comments:
Labels:

Sunday 29 March 2015

Tribute to the Late Mr Lee Kuan Yew

The late Mr Lee Kuan Yew was laid to rest this evening.

Thank you Mr Lee for everything that you have done for Singapore and for making Singapore such a good place to live in.

Rest in peace.
Posted by at No comments:
Labels:

Sunday 15 March 2015

Quotes from Episode 2 of 《流氓律师》("Second Chance")

《流氓律师》("Second Chance") is a MediaCorp TV drama serial that had started airing on Channel U on 12 Mar 2015, at 10 pm.


Below were some interesting lines said by Li Da Shan (starring Desmond Tan, 陈泂江) during his conversation with Zhang Xiaoxian (starring Rebecca Lim, 林慧玲).

美丽可以让男孩子停下，
可是智慧可以让男孩子留下。
...
美丽的女人可以让男人风光一时，
有智慧的女人可以让男人风光一世。

which was translated as:

Beauty can make guys stop,
but intelligence can make guys stay.
...
A pretty woman can make a man proud for a moment
An intelligent woman can make a man proud forever.


Posted by at No comments:
Labels:

Friday 27 February 2015

Our New Washing Machine - Panasonic NA-F75S3HRQ

Our old Samsung washing machine was spoilt four days before Chinese New Year. To be more specific, the "power on/off" button was spoilt, so there was no way to switch on the washer.

Old Samsung washing machine

Since the washer was already about 9 years old, it would be better to get a new one.

In a hurry to get a new one before Chinese New Year, we went down to one of Courts' retail stores after checking the prices of their washers at their web store. At that time, they were having a promotion on Panasonic NA-F75S3HRQ. It was a top loading washing machine with a 7.5 kg capacity. It has three ticks on water efficiency and a 12 years motor warranty. Everything looked good so we decided to buy this. However, it could only be delivered on the third day of Chinese New Year (21 Feb 2015), which was a Saturday.

Panasonic NA-F75S3HRQ 
After waiting for days, our new washing machine finally came. After trying a few times, we concluded that it could not spin dry properly. As it was within 7 days, we could request for a one-to-one exchange with Courts so we called them the next day (Sunday). We had to wait till Wednesday (25 Feb 2015) for Courts to get someone to check on the machine before we could decide on an exchange. 

On Wednesday morning, two persons from Courts came over to take a look. After checking, they told me we could do a one-to-one exchange, but they needed to inform their supervisor first. 

In the afternoon, a lady from Courts called Ardon and checked with him whether the external drain water hose from the washing machine was placed on the floor and he told her "yes". He also told her that we wanted to upgrade to another washer model so that we would not get the same problem.

Later in the day, we went down to the same store where we bought the washer and the lady who called Ardon attended to us. She explained to us that all the top loading washers these days were made with the drainage hole (located behind the washer) much lower than those made many years ago. So, the external drain water hose should not be placed higher than the drainage hole or else water could not flow out properly. So, no matter which model we chose, we would face the same problem. The ways to solve this was either to cut/saw the PVC pipe to a shorter height or to elevate the washer. Front loading washers, on the other hand, would require the external drain water hose to be placed high for water to flow out.

I had read a review saying that the height of the pipe cannot be too high for top loading washers but, at that time, we did not know that our new washer's drainage hole was lower that of our old Samsung washer. We did not think that the height of our drainage pipe was causing the problem.

The lady said we could go home and test it out again before deciding whether to change. We just needed to give her a call. So, we went home to test with the external drain water hose placed in a small bathtub (low enough so that water can flow out). After all the hassle of getting the water out from the bathtub and getting the kitchen floor quite wet, we were satisfied that the washer worked fine with proper drainage.

Small bathtub used
Now the next problem was to decide whether to saw the PVC pipe to make it lower so that water could flow out properly or to elevate the height of the washer. Ardon managed to remove the top part of the pipe (it was detachable). However, the water hose could not be properly put in the remaining pipe there and we were concerned that this may cause leakage of water. Furthermore, even without the pipe, the water hose would still be placed quite high due to its length. In the end, we decided it was easier/better to elevate the washer. 



Ardon managed to get 4 stands (sold as a set) from a shop and we placed them below the washer. Our only concern was that the washer might not be stable on the stands. 

We tested the washer again. Everything worked well. The water was drained away properly and the clothes were quite dry after the spin cycle. Thank goodness, it worked! 


Posted by at 1 comment:
Labels:

Thursday 12 February 2015

Eczema Balm

Sera had eczema on her left inner elbow. She didn't like the smell of the eczema cream I bought from a retail store so she refused to use it after applying 2 to 3 times. Normal moisturizer only helped to relieve the itch temporarily and was not able to clear the eczema rashes.

I happened to see this Theo10® Skin balm sold online and read many positive reviews about it. It could also help with minor cuts, burns, insect bites and nasal congestion. Since it could also be used for other purposes (in case Sera refused to use it), Ardon and I decided to give it a try. It was not expensive and was manufactured in Singapore. 






After about 3 applications, we saw an improvement on her inner elbow. Rashes started to clear and her skin felt smoother. According to Sera, the balm did help to soothe or numb the itchiness.
1st day after application

3rd day after application

The downside was this balm had a very strong peppermint smell. However, it was the premium peppermint essence that helped to numb the area to stop the itch. Fortunately Sera didn't mind the smell and was willing to use it. Her only concern was that Lynn could not stand the smell. So considerate!

Posted by at No comments:
Labels:

Wednesday 4 February 2015

Cast of 《信约：我们的家园》 "The Journey: Our Homeland"

"The Journey: Our Homeland" is the finale of the trilogy “The Journey”. It depicts the development of Singapore from 1966 to her era of prosperity in the 1980s. Click here for more information.


Actress Jeanette Aw would be reprising her role as Hong Muihui. Click here for more information on this. 



Rui En will play Yang Meixue, a straight-talking nurse who becomes good friends with Hong Minghui, a matron at Kandang Kerbau (KK) Hospital. Zhang Zhenhuan will play the character, Yan Yisheng - Yang Meixue's boyfriend. 



Shaun Chen, Andie Chen and Felicia Chin would be reprising their roles as a Zhang Jia, Hong Dangyong and Zhang Min respectively.

Romeo Tan will play dual roles as Hong Kuan and Zhang Yan (Hong Kuan's biological father). Hong Kuan is the first son of Zhang Min and the stepson of Hong Dangyong. Jeffrey Xu will play the role of Hong Rui, the second son of Zhang Min.

The Journey: Our Homeland also stars Rebecca Lim, Ian Fang, Julie Tan, Cheryl Wee and Shane Pow. Rebecca Lim will take on the role of Wan Fei Fei, who grew up in a poor family with her three siblings Wan Zi Cong (starring Ian Fang), Wan Zi Hua (starring Shane Pow) and Wan Fang Fang (starring Cheryl Wee). Julie Tan plays a tomboyish character named Yao Jia Hui. 

Click here for the other members of the cast of the drama serial.


Posted by at No comments:
Labels:

Thursday 29 January 2015

Ebi-fry

A few weeks ago, I found this Ebi-fry in the frozen section of NTUC hypermarket. 



Big prawns are usually quite expensive but the price for this Ebi-fry (already marinated and coated with bread crumbs) was reasonable, so we bought one packet to try out.

Yesterday, I finally took it out from our freezer. There were no instructions on how to cook this. What I did was put some oil in a deep baking tray and coat both sides of the prawns with oil. Then I placed the tray into our convection oven, set the temperature at 220 degree Celsius and heated it for about 20 minutes. I am using our oven as a multi-cooker :p. 

 After about 20 minutes, the prawns were cooked but I found them a bit too soft probably due to the oil. So I placed them onto another dry shallow pan and heated it in the oven toaster for another 3 minutes. On taking out the prawns, they were still a bit soft. However, when we ate the prawns, they were okay - crispy on the outside and soft inside. Tasted good too - not too salty and not too bland.


Ebi-fry

Perhaps next time, I should put less oil. They should turn out better after 20 minutes of heating.

Posted by at No comments:
Labels:

Sunday 4 January 2015

Episodes 29 and 30 of 《信约：动荡的年代》"The Journey : Tumultuous Times" (Last Two Episodes)

Hong Dangyong married Zhang Min despite the fact that she was carrying Zhang Yan's baby. Zhang Min then gave birth to a boy and Dangyong treated the boy as his own. 

 Zhang Jia was attacked and stabbed. He finally decided to leave the criminal underworld after much persuasion from Zhang Min, Dangyong and Minghui. He started a laundry business.

 Three years later, Zhang Min was pregnant with Dangyong's child. 

One night, some policemen entered the village where Dangyong and his family stayed (not sure whether they were going after Dangyong or some other criminals). The dogs in the village started to bark and, thus alerted, Dangyong left his house and hid from the police. On that same night, Zhang Min's water bag burst and she went into labour. She got her son Hong Kuan, who was only 3 years old, to get the  midwife to come over to help with the delivery. Incredible!

 Hong Minghui divorced Zhang Yan after her mum, Yazi, passed away.

Zhang Yan heard from Bai Gou about Hong Dangyong and Zhang Min's whereabouts. He went to the village and set fire to their house. The fire spread fast. Zhang Yan was injured and his leg got stuck under a chicken cage. Dangyong rescued Zhang Yan because Zhang Yan promised that he would own up to setting the fire and surrender to the police. However, as soon as he walked over to the police, he told the police that Dangyong was from the underground and was a wanted man. At that moment, Dangyong decided not to run away anymore. He studied law while serving his jail sentence.

 Zhang Jia finally went back to the Zhang family. In addition to the laundry business, he also started a restaurant business and was doing  quite well.

Zhang Tianpeng went back to his company and was shocked to learn from a new staff that his company had been sold away two years ago by Zhang Yan. He suffered a heart attack and passed away.

 In Britain, Zhang Yan was upset over the demise of his dad and got drunk. He then quarrelled with his girlfriend, Lulu and killed her. There was no mention of what happened to him after that. 

 Zhang Jia was attacked by Bai Gou again and, this time round, he killed Bai Gou. Hong Minghui and Zhang Jia eventually got married. Minghui was pregnant at the end of the show.

Posted by at No comments:
Labels:

Friday 2 January 2015

Episode 53 of "118"

"118" is currently airing on Channel 8, every day from Monday to Friday at 7.30 pm. 

In episode 53, Shanshan (姗姗）told Zhigao (志高) about some parents saying that the Primary 1 textbooks were too easy and that their children were already reading Primary 5 and 6 textbooks even though they were going to be in Primary 1 next year. She was worried that Viveka would lose out. Viveka was the daughter of Alex Lee (Shanshan's boyfriend).



Below were parts of their conversation.

志高：别担心，你没听说过拔苗助长吗？
对孩子的教育一定要循序渐进，千万不能怕输。
就好像灌香肠， 你不能拼命的灌。
你拼命地灌，很容易爆炸的。

姗姗： 可是大家都那么怕输， 我们这些不怕输的就惨了， 就一定被抛到后头了。

志高：每个孩子有自己的天资和领悟力。
学习、受教育不是一百米短跑，一冲就到终点的。
他就好像五千米，一万米， 甚至是全程马拉松。 
过程虽然是很长，有些孩子开始的时候跑的比较快，可是最重要的是谁可以顺利到终点。

 These were translated as:
Zhigao: Don't worry. Don't you know haste makes waste?
Plan for a child's education in a systematic way. 
Don't be afraid to lose out. 
Take making sausages for instance. 
If you overstuff the casing, it'll burst eventually.
Shanshan: But everyone is afraid of losing out. If we don't follow suit, we'll drop behind the rest.
Zhigao: Don't be certain about that. 
Every child learns at a different pace. 
Learning is not a 100 m sprint.
It's more like a marathon.
Although it's a long process, and some kids may be faster in the beginning, what matters is making it to the finishing point.

Agree totally.
Posted by at No comments:
Labels:

Thursday 1 January 2015

Happy New Year 2015!


Posted by at No comments:
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)