Craft Nest

Korean Fish Cake Side Dish...

2010-08-02T06:36:00.004-05:00

In case you didn't guess, Korean food is my new (okay, it's been awhile) craze... Korean dramas and Korean food make my day! :) :) Next to Malaysian food, and chocolate, this comes to a close second place! :P

So much so that I almost always make it a point to stop by the Korean restaurant whenever I'm in the city to get my much needed Bibimbap (stone pot rice with veggies, egg and beef). But the best thing about Korean food has definitely got to be their side dishes! When I used to go to the restaurants in Houston, we'd have at least 5 to 6 different side dishes, refillable! Yummm!

And a favourite is always the fish cakes... spicy or sweet. Delicious!

So I found a recipe and tweaked it to my advantage and it came out exactly how I wanted it to be! :D

Korean Fish Cake

"I'm not a fish lover, but Definitely a Fish Cake lover!"

1 Package fish cakes (Frozen, 14oz)

1 Onion, sliced

2 Cloves garlic, minced

1 clove shallot, chopped

2 tbs olive oil/cooking oil

Sauce Ingredients:

2 tbs Gojuchang

2 tbs Cooking wine

2 tbs Soy sauce

1 tsp Sesame oil

2 tbs Brown sugar

3 tbs water

Green onion & Sesame seed (garnish)

1. Slice fish cakes into small strips lengthwise and cut in half

2. Slice onions, roughly chop garlic and shallots

3. Heat olive oil in pan, toss in onions, garlic and shallots, stir

4. Toss fish cakes in and stir for 2 mins or so..

5. At the same time, mix all the ingredients for the sauce together and stir it into the pan

6. Toss the fish cakes, and make sure every one is coated with sauce, add some water and stir for 3 more minutes.

7. Turn off heat, garnish with green onions and sesame seed and serve.

8. VOILA! :D Dig in!

Note: Eat it when its hot, or cold - it's delicious either way! haha.. I can just eat this as a meal, it's soo good! Try it! :)

Galatians 5:22

2010-07-23T09:37:00.004-05:00

I'm not a big painter or artist - especially on big canvases, but I had bought some after being inspired by a craft/painting get-together that I attended about 2 years ago;however I just never had the time to really sit down and paint.

Then 3 months ago, when my parents were away on their trip, I decided to get creative! I ended up with a sketch and tree painting but then got caught up with school and writing papers to really finish it... But the other day after coming back from my Bali trip, I got a sudden itch to bust out my paints and finished it!

For a first time canvas paint project, I'd say it's not too bad, but the slanting words are still haunting me :P But I love love this verse, and I'm so proud to hang this piece in my room :) Wohoo! Art Work! :D

"But the fruit of the Spirit is Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness and Self-Control" -Galatians 5:22

It's a good day for SUSHI!

2010-04-23T06:03:00.011-05:00

Might I add, delicious home-made sushi?! :)

Yumm! The first time I decided to make sushi, was after I had just spent another $7 or $8 on a set of 6 measely pieces of California roll - I scoffed and said to myself, "Gah! I bet I could make it myself!!" haha..

So for some who may me a little, I can be pretty snobbish when it comes to some food (usually overpriced and average tasting), or even handbags and accessories for that matter. It probably came from my mother's influence who, growing would tell me "Ahh..that looks so simple, I can just make it for you" in order to deter me from buying random junk... and most of the time, she DID make it! And it would be just the same, or even better :P *grinn*

So yes, whenever I see a handbag that's made out of cloth, or a card that looks all fancy but the price tag is ridiculous, I tell myself, "Ahh, I could SO make that!" and I walk away feeling a tad bit satisfied :P muahahaha ..

Moving back to tonight's adventure, I had promised my parents a sushi night to "show off" my sushi-making talent.. (Yes, they had just came back from Japan btw, and you'd think they would have been sick of sushi, but they didn't even eat any!...umm, say what??!!)

Homemade Sushi
Suzy homemaker's seal of approvement!

Ingredients:
Sushi rice
Rice Wine Vinegar
Salt & Sugar to taste
Seaweed seasoning (the ones that come in packets)
Carrots, Cucumbers, Celery, Fried omelette (all thinly sliced)
Pickled raddish (the yellow color ones that Koreans use!) <--*Optional Seaweed Soy Sauce & Wasabi (for dipping)

Spicy Mayo sauce

Sri Racha chilli sauce (They almost always have these in Vietnamese and Dim Sum places!)

Mayonaise

-->Add in a ratio of 2:1 Mayo & Sri Racha .. stir!

1. Cook rice according to instructions as indicated at the back of the packet

2. At the same time, thinly slice your carrots, cucumber, celery and fry & slice omelette

(Note: As a college student I would usually just rummage through the fridge to look for stuff.. which usually included pieces of leftover chicken (pulled), or lunchmeat :P yummm!

Make it your own and come up with your own random combinations! I encourage it! :P)

3. When your rice is done, let it sit for about 20 mins or so, or till it cools down to room temperature. Add in about 3 to 4 tsp of rice wine vinegar, a pinch of salt and sugar.. stir and combine. Taste to make sure it's not overly sour, or bland. (Add seasoning or you can always opt to not put in any!)

4. Have everything ready and set up to go.. don't forget your rolling mat! If not, just be careful that nothing falls out while rolling :P

5. In order of placement: Rice, Spicy mayo sauce, (a dash of toasted sesame seeds optional!), and the rest of the ingredients..

6. Place about a scoop of rice onto the seaweed and slowly press down to cover half of the area. Don't press it too flat!

7. Adding a dollop of spicy mayo, then the rest of the ingredients..

8. Now, the tricky part!! As carefully as possible, slowly wrap up the seaweed over the ingredients and press down to hold it in (Don't worry, with enough practice you'll be a pro at it! :D)
9. Ta daa!!! Admire how you've just accomplished your first (or second) sushi roll!! :)

10. I made my mom pose, but she kept on talking and complaining about how I'm making her pose every single time :P Oh please.... *grinn*

11. Don't forget the wasabi and soy sauce for dipping!!
-------------------------------------------------------------

Freebie Picture:
And because my parents are inviting people over, my mom decided to test out a "cereal prawn recipe" that she was wanting to make on Sunday.. so I convinced her to do a test trial.. muahaha! Yeshh! :D Deliciousness!! My mom is an amazing cook, baker, etc. etc. :)

mmmmmmmm prawns are so delicious! :)

Ps: My dad really likes to pose :P

Ps: I must have it in my genes too ;)

Hearts..

2010-04-21T08:30:00.007-05:00

And other mushy things.. tee hee.. Seriously, skip this if you can't bear it :P *Grinn*

Or read it and think about it. I saw this on a Philosphy brand perfume when I was in a makeup store (yeah, you heard me :P) and I kept a mental note of it, and searched for this quote.. :)

Falling in Love by Philosophy:

When it comes to love,

You need not fall but rather surrender,

surrender to the idea that you must love yourself

before you can love another,

you must absolutely trust yourself

before you trust another and most importantly,

you must accept your flaws

before you can accept the flaws of another.

Loves it :)

Just my cup of Hot Chocolate...and Cappucino :)

2010-04-10T04:44:00.006-05:00

MMMMMMMMMMMMMMM............
My mouth is watering :)

If you haven't heard of Max Brenner's Chocolate Shop, check it out!! :)
The first time I heard about it was in Gold Coast after a tiring morning of surfing lessons .. thats right, I caught some waves! Wohooo! (and paid the price with sore arms and bruises :P)

Dan brought me to Max Brenner and I immediately fell in love with the whole atmosphere.. The store has a Willy Wonka-ness to it, and everything from the decor, to chocolate display, to the artfully crafted mugs/cups, I love it!

The Hug Mug! Cleverly crafted to fit into your palms, you cradle it and drink it through the tiny spout.. best for hot cocoa, a cold day, wrapped up in a blanket with a good book!

Dark Chocolate Hot Chocolate :)

And the Kangaroo Cup! :) Best for capuccinos and coffee.. it has a tiny groove on the side that holds cubes of chocolate, and as you sip your delicious coffee, the warmth melts the chocolate, and you use the lick part of the spoon to scrape the melted chocolate into your cup, and the mix end of the spoon to stir it all together! :) Buyers beware: There will be alot of licking :P

I think there's something going on with wearing green to Max Brenner's :P

Ps: Guess who's got herself a Hug Mug??! That's righttttt.. yours truly! :) Thank you dear, you spoil me!

Short update

2010-04-02T03:24:00.003-05:00

Hullo there!

It's been awhile, and I have to admit -I have not been having as many cooking adventures lately.. with the parental gone (yes, I live at home now :P) , I have been quite lazy and have had one too many ramen noodle days.. ahhhh

I promise, I shall get back on my feet with new and exciting cooking posts!! :) :)

muahhhss!

All You Need Is...

2010-03-23T09:22:00.003-05:00

LOVE.

...However, that is just not acceptable in todays standards.. so I have revised my plan of action:

"All you need is Love + Faith + Trust + Sufficient Funds.."

Oh wait, I forgot. And CHOCOLATE.

Yes, the world needs more chocolate. :) I rest my case.

An Easy Indulgence :)

2010-03-17T23:42:00.005-05:00

Back when I was living in The Woods, my parents, brother and I used to go for our "Routinely Family Morning Bike Rides" to the closeby shopping center.. to get breakfast.. and what a scrumptious breakfast it was!

This Bagel Shop (how appropriately named) had baskets and baskets of freshly made bagels (I love carbs!) and delicious flavoured cream cheese... MMMMMMMMM! But the best thing I had there was by far was their Bagel Sandwiches.. to the point I would stare at them making it, and memorized how to do it step by step...

Put meat on the grill, Toast bagel, Melt cheese on top of meat, spread bagel, assemble sandwich, cut into two... Voila! Easy Peasy, right??

EXACTLY.

During my years in college, I have made this sandwich countless of times.. and really, it takes about 10 minutes to do.. or less! Depending on how well you multitask ;)

After hearing Nishan's sad stories about day after day grilled chicken sandwiches (aww!), I gave him a different option for dinner.. the Bagel Sandwich!

So here it is, I've tweaked my sandwich over the years to fit my tastebuds and apetite, but do what you do best: Pick your favourite ingredients and make it your own!

Pei's Bagel Sandwich (Easy, Peasy, Japaneeesy!)

4-5 Slices of turkey,ham, (or pulled grilled chicken) etc.

Pepperjack cheese :) <---I like it spicy!

1/2 an onion (or 1 small onion)

Salt & Pepper

(*Optional: 1 fried egg)

1. Saute onions on medium heat and add in s&p to taste ..
2. Cut bagel in half and toast .. spread with butter/margarine
3. Put slices of meat/turkey/ham slice on pan and heat (without oil)
4. lay cheese slices/grated cheese on top of the meat and let melt... top with onions
5. Scoop the whole thing and sandwich between bagel.
6. Enjoy Deliciousness!! :)

Tip: Sometimes I use a bit of garlic butter to saute my onions.. which makes it taste 10 times better! :) Try it!

Doesn't that just make your mouth water?? Thank you Nishan for making it :)

G'day!

2010-03-03T05:41:00.003-06:00

Well, it's been about a week and a half since I last landed in the Sunshine state..a.k.a Brisbane.. and I've been wanting to update, but I've been in the throes of what classes to take (first week jitters), so bear with me for a bit :P

So far I have managed to bring the cursed rain to Brisbane.. it was raining when I landed, and it was raining the first day of school (which has been a normal occurance for most of my undergraduate first days of classes), and weather forecast predicts a whole shower of thunderstorms the rest of this week! SIGH! I DO bring rain.. :P

School hasn't been to bad, except for the fact that I'm "trying out" different classes by attending the one's im interested in to find out which ones I want to commit to.. the thing is, like what this new girl I met during a Biotech meeting said, "...either way, you're screwed. This class or that, it's still going to be equally challenging!" Yes, yes it is.

Well on to other news.. I've compiled a list of odds and ends that have caught my eye since being here, and I thought I might share it with you!

1. Queensland weather reminds me alot of Texas weather.. except worse! In a span of 8 hours, it has managed to rain and shine oh say, about 10 times! I promise you I am not kidding! The weather doesn't know what it wants to do.. just stick to one, I say!

2. My class is literally filled with Asians. If it isn't Chinese, it's most likely Indian. and a couple of splatters here and there.. like a girl from Canada, a guy from France, and another guy from UC Santa Barbara (Hey! US!).. my chances of being paired with an Asian person for my class is roughly 90%. Go Diversity! *grinn*

3. Although my parents live in a nice, spacious house (don't ask me what kind, I can't even tell if it's bungalow or semi-D haha!), the most popular mode of living is Queenslander houses.. which basically look like village houses on stilts.. this is so it's high above the ground, and you get more air coming in..

4. Speaking of air.. Aussies on this part don't have fans in all their bedrooms! It's annoying, and because a/c is expensive here, my parents refuse to turn it on.. so wide open windows it is. I've been spending alot of time taking showers now :P

5. Aussies like to think of themselves as "stress-free" so everything is pretty much advancing at a pretty slow rate.. which also means that everyone here drives like their grandmother :P No zipping through and cutting into lanes, you put on your signals and most of the time ppl give way..

6. Of course, there is an exception to every statement. This includes most Asian drivers, because unlike in the US where they're considered the sloowww drivers, here they basically dominate the roads and speed down the highways and lanes like it's the race of their lives hehe.. no more "Gahh! slow Asian dad!" comments from me :P Oh, and did I mention they have ridiculously small roundabouts??! It seems so silly, but I guess that's what Aussies do.

7. The prefered mode of transportation is public of course. Which I am starting to enjoy.. there's a WaterTaxi! and a bridge specially designed only for pedestrians only! How awesome is that! I've been taking the bus to and from school, and it's nice to know that the bus stop is right around the corner :)

8. Water is precious. Of course, when you live in a country where rain is sparce, that is bound of happen. I seriously took water for granted back in the US, and now I have to make sure that every drop counts ... I take quick (but clean, nonetheless!) showers, only open the taps when needed, and wash my dishes in as small flow of water as possible. You're not even allowed to water your plants! HUH!

9. Internet is a luxury. HAHA. No, seriously! We only have 2GB in our household, and trying not to have to upgrade it.. but it's a little tricky with video cams and downloads and streaming videos.. yea.. and we have 400mb given to us at the school computers, which also means if you go over - you pay to get more. Ahhh.. frugal, frugal, frugal. I guess less distraction?

10. Last and not Least, I am 8348miles, or 13, 435km or 7254nautical miles away from ppl in Houston, Dallas etc.! :( :( <---Yea, I checked it up.. don't believe me? Go look it up! hehe!
I miss having a group of friends to chill with, and no one likes being outside their comfort zone, but wish me luck!

Where are all the Msian ppl at??!!!!

In the Land Down Under!

2010-02-23T05:02:00.008-06:00

Hello peeps, It's been 2 days since I arrived in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia a.k.a The Sunshine State.. and Boy, let me tell you.. it REALLY is alot of sunshine!

With exception to the day I arrived, which suddenly turned about a thunderstorm lasting 3 minutes and in sporadic patterns hehe.. my mom said, the heavens are crying because you left Houston :P

Anyways, the flight was pretty good, I made the weight limit for 2 checked in bags! 69lbs Wohoo! And then I got the best surprise of all - Thanks Nishan, Bel, Gaya, Jon and Prabu (and I guess the brother :P) for seeing me off! And the rest for texts and phone calls! :) :) Muahhss! I really didn't intend to cry at the airport.. but as I was lining up at the security check in, and looking at everyone leaving, I got all teary eyed and all hell broke loose.. haha :P It was tears and runny nose from that point onwards.. even on the plane haha.. Wow. Real classy. *grinn*

Flight went from Houston to LA, then LA to Brisbane.. total trip was about 18 hours total + layovers... not too bad.. seeing how I was passed out for most of the 2nd half of the journey.. which I obviously regretted because I intended to watch all the movies I could! Bahh .. hehe! But note to future flight bookers: Fly Virgin Airlines! It's freaking awesome.. they really thought of the whole package, I'm thoroughly amazed! :)

Got through the customs easily :) :) And actually arrived there just as parents were turning into the airport.. and the Airport Ambassador (funny, right?!) was super nice and used her calling card so I could call my parents hehe :P

I got the grand tour of the house, and then shower, then we took a little trip to the university.. yes, I gave my parents a semi-heart attack with my driving.. haha basically I still am not as used to the left hand side of the car and I scraped the curb once.. ONCE! (Don't judge).. and the occasional driving on the other side of the road.. haha! I plan to be better by the end of this week, just you wait!

The next day with oriention I basically sat through a general orientation and learned random Aussie things like the war cry: 1st group yells out "Aussie Aussie Aussie!" and the 2nd group replies "OI OI OI!!!!!" haha.. apparently this is very common war cry. Hmm reminds me of the Aggie Hullabaloo.. except this is much more country unified..?

I spent the whole time trying to look for someone who could direct me to an advisor to talk about the courses I should be signing up for.. and only 1 person was helpful enough.. and another 1 girl who was also in the Biotechnology program who showed me the way to the building! :) And the funny thing was that me and my mom had a good laugh about how some students came here alone from far off countries, and here I am in orientation ... with my mother :P haha.. and I'm living with the rents! :D

Aside from that, just been spending time with the parents..I think they enjoy having me in the house? (haha!) and my mom has someone to nag to and feed random vitamins and my dad has someone to force to eat fruits and clear the dishes.. tee hee.

Still have to rummage through my pile of boxes, at this point I'd rather have them be burned off and me not knowing what I packed :P Oh the joys of unpacking!

Oh how I miss thee(s).. <-------------------This much!-------------------------------------->

For being my "twin" that it's a little scary how alike we are :P hehe!
For always being goofy-fun :) And knowing how to embarass me with awkward questions!

For going on my crazy museum-sightseeing adventures :)

For making me a little more girly :P

Tella, niece #1: For giving me crazy kisses, and for not remembering the time I shoved you off the bed when you were stinky :P

For Prima, Niece #2: For being a good herder and always following me around and licking your paws in the middle of the night :P

For the girls, and the best conversations we always have ;) (you know what I'm talking about!)

For only wanting the kunaku jelly I made :P And for never making me forget I eat alone Hahaha!

For childhood friends who always have good memories to talk about!

To Have

2010-02-16T10:51:00.004-06:00

"Have a heart that never hardens, a temper that never tires, a touch that never hurts.." -Charles Dickens

Happy Valentine's Day!

2010-02-14T04:35:00.005-06:00

And coincidentally it also happens to be Chinese New Years! :D Whoop!! (but there's 15 days of that, so it's all cool :) )

I thought these quotes from Peanuts were super cute, and I just wanted to share them with you! In the words of Bridget Jones, "Hurrah Singletons!" I spent the weekend with the girls, talking and talking, and then going to watch The Valentine's Day movie, which was funny and cute! :) I'll miss this, really I will..... T.T

But back to the pictures.. "Love Is...."

And last but not least, part of Josh Turner's song tee hee.. because I am in love with it :D

Oh the longer the waiting, the sweeter the kiss,

It's better my darling, I promise you this,

Next time I hold you, I'm not letting go,

Will you wait for me darling, I need to know...

Love, Love, Love

2010-02-12T15:41:00.003-06:00

Daily Thought:

"Love is always bestowed as a gift-freely, willingly and without expectation. We don't love to be loved, we love to love." - Leo F. Buscaglia

Awwwwwwwwwwwwww! <3 <3

Really?? Now?

2010-02-11T13:47:00.005-06:00

I have to admit, I'm pretty bad with timing.. I just can't seem to get lucky with timing. EVER.

So 3 weeks before my scheduled flight, I got an email from a past interviewer asking me if I was interested in a position that mysteriously opened up that week. Hmm.. Okay, I figured that the amount of money I'd be making wasn't worth that much. And it wasn't exactly dream job either. Thanks, but no thanks.

Today, I get a call from MdA asking me if I was still interested in a position that I had filed for a couple of months ago. A week before I'm leaving! What is going on? Unfortunately I had to decline it but I'm still a little annoyed that I'm getting all these late replies.. come on...!! :(

It's like the day before your (future) wedding and an ex-lover comes to tell you that he loves you and wants you back.. REALLY??! hahaha.. *Cross my fingers that never happens to me!*

Job interview:Leaving for Australia
Ex-lover:Getting married the next day

Go figure.

Days...

2010-02-10T01:19:00.004-06:00

...4 days till Chinese New Year!
...4 days till Valentines Day
...10 days till I my flight to Australia... :'(

I think I've just about let everyone know about me leaving, and I've finally informed everyone else on my departure date.. sigh.. Today my dad called me up, and said, "So when you come here next week..." AHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!

I'll try not to think so much about that for right now..

In the meantime, Realsimple has shared some valentine quotes, and I wanted to share them with you!!! I'm a sucker for everything romantic! :D

ENJOY and share some love!

Love one another and you will be happy. It’s as simple and as difficult as that. -Michael Leunig

Love looks through a telescope; envy, through a microscope. -Josh Billings

Love is friendship that has caught fire. -Anonymous

It’s no trick loving somebody at their best. Love is loving them at their worst. -Tom Stoppard

Love is the wisdom of the fool and the folly of the wise. -Samuel Johnson

To love deeply in one direction makes us more loving in all others. -Anne-Sophie Swetchine

Love is the river of life in the world. -Henry Ward Beecher

We come to love not by finding a perfect person, but by learning to see an imperfect person perfectly. -Sam Keen

Love is an act of endless forgiveness, a tender look which becomes a habit. -Peter Ustinov

Falling in love consists merely in uncorking the imagination and bottling the common-sense.. -Helen Rowland

Love needs no map, for it can find its way blindfolded. -Anonymous

Happy Nutella Day!

2010-02-05T22:24:00.007-06:00

I remember how I had an obsessions with everything Nutella.. the first time I had some I went a little wild... tee hee! I was eating nutella from the jar, and spreading it on crackers and bread! Yummm!- I just couldn't get enough of this wonderful treat!

Well, today is the day all Nutella fans only dream of! It's another good excuse to bust out the Nutella jar, and make delicious desserts! :D

In honor of National Nutella Day, I decided to teach Nishan how to make Tiramisu (I forgot to take pictures of that!!), make Nutella brownies and Nutella Truffles!! Yumm!

Nutella Truffles!

Sweetness to die for :D

Ingredients:

1 bottle of Nutella

100g dark chocolate

4 tablespoons honey

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

Cocoa Powder, dark chocolate and nuts for topping

1. In a bowl, melt Nutella, dark chocolate, honey and butter on a double boiler while stirring constantly.
2. Remove the bowl and slowly stir it- it'll start to solidify pretty quickly.. just keep stirring it and scraping the sides. I shaped the Nutella mix into a lump and refrigerate for an hour or so.
3. Working quickly, spoon a tablespoon of the Nutella mix and roll into balls. Refrigerate to let it harden and then roll onto cocoa powder or dip in chocolate topped with nuts! :D Yummm

Nutella Brownies with Dark Chocolate

Melt-in-Your-Mouth-Ooey-Gooey-Goodness!

Ingredients:

1 stick unsalted butter, melted

1/2 cup cocoa powder

3/4 cup sugar

1/2 cup Nutella

3oz dark chocolate, melted

2 eggs

1/2 cup all purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

Optional nuts, or chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

2. In a double boiler, melt the chocolate. Sift flour and salt together in a bowl.

3. Whisk butter and cocoa powder till light and fluffy.

4. Add sugar, nutella and melted dark chocolate.
5. Beat in eggs one at a time.

6. Add in the sifted flour and salt into the wet ingredients. Slowly fold in the dry ingredients and mix everything. Add in optional chocolate chips or nuts, and fold into the mixture.

7. Pour brownie mix into a nonstick pan and bake for 20-25 minutes. Cool, cut and enjoy!

Recipes credit to Sunita's World and Bake Bake Bake, respectedly.

The Week Kelly Came to Stay,

2010-02-05T22:19:00.010-06:00

..we had a cooking and baking adventure! :D

The list of goodies we made! (and bought): *drumroll, please!*

1. Dove Chocolate (because I'm such a sucker for dark chocolate and those cute wrapper quotes!)

2. H-mart Spicy and Sweet chicken!! Yumm...

3. Kelly's Creamed Corn!

...and the best thing of all...

4. Guinness cupcakes with Baileys Irish Cream frosting!

If you must know, the star of this post would obviously be the cupcakes, because it turned out so unexpectedly delicious, and the best thing about it is that it wasn't too sweet, but just right!

Anyone who knows me know that I have a soft spot for a bottle of G. every once in awhile.. and yes, even though it is predominantly a "man's man's drink", I toss aside all the chest hair growth comments and drink up every last drop :) That's right.. *grinn*

So here's the recipe I got from Nook and Pantry which, by the way, has Amazing recipes on hand!! I definitely recommend checking it out! :D When I gave my muffins away, I didn't tell the person my main ingredient.. just the Baileys part.. haha until they bit into the muffin and declared it a success (because Guinness tends to turn women away :P) ...and it worked!

Guiness Cupcakes with Baileys Cream Cheese Frosting :)

Light, fluffy and full of flavour! Every Guinness lover's dream

Cupcake Ingredients:

2 cups all purpose flour

1/2 cups cocoa powder (I use the Ghiradelli ones!)

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup light or dark brown sugar

4oz (1/2 cups) unsalted butter

2 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 eggs

1/2 cup sour cream

1 12fl.oz bottle of Guinness Extra Stout

1. Preheat to 350 degrees F. Line muffin pans with paper cups (we made about 25 or so)

2. In a large bowl, sieve flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt.

3. In a separate bowl, beat butter, sugar, and brown sugar until light and fluffy (yes, it takes awhile when you don't have a mixer!)

4. Add one egg at a time and beat then add vanilla.

5. Add sour cream and beat in, then slowly pour the Guinness

--> Note: Don't be alarmed if it starts to clump and look a little funky, just keep stirring and everything will start to mix!

6. Slowly add in dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, all the while still mixing. Scrape down the sides often and make sure there are no flour pockets hidden.

7. Pour into prepared muffin pans and bake for about 20-25 minutes. The toothpicks should come out clean. Cool on rack.

---> Note: The original recipe notes to turn the pans halfway through baking time, but I would try not to open the oven too many times as the batter tends to sink in

Baileys Cream Cheese Frosting Recipe
1 8oz cream cheese, softened

1 4oz (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened

2 cups confectioner's (powdered) sugar

2-4 tablespoons Baileys Irish Cream (Be as generous as you would like!)

1. Beat butter, cream cheese, and sugar till light and fluffy.

2. Slowly drizzle in the Baileys and stir in.

3. Allow the muffins to cool completely before piping on frosting.

4. Dig in! and Enjoy! Yummm

Does it not look amazingly scrumptious??!! Ahhh!! Baking success! :)

Kelly's yummy creamed corn and the H-mart chicken! Mmmmmmmm

Dove Dark Chocolates Hearts! Too bad Martha has horrible ideas, and taking away from the cute Valentine quotes they used to have on the wrappers :(

Chocolate Chocolate Cake...

2010-01-27T17:13:00.012-06:00

I've always been a snob for good chocolate cake-which is probably the reason why I have never really tried to make one of my own..

Growing up, my mom was always cooking, and baking (mostly baking)- and the one big thing to request for during birthdays and big celebrations was her Famous Chocolate Cake.

Now I wish I could say I have the recipe on hand, but the dear mother refuses to share it with me, and thus I am in the dark. I haven't had in it oh, say 8 years already.. but I can still remember that smell of chocolate cake baking in the oven..and it's oh so deliciousness..

MMMMMMM

Sweet, but not too sweet..

Moist on the inside, yet perfectly chewy on the sides...

Yes, the sides.. mmm my favourite parts :D

And the thing is, compared to alot of chocolate cakes that I've seen, my mom's cake doesn't have that overbearing pile of frosting.. I'm not a fan of frosting only because her cakes never really had that.. although I think there was a very thin dark chocolate glaze that covered the entire cake..

Oh My! I'm drooling now thinking about it!

So aniways, last Friday was Gaya's birthday, and her hubby decided to throw her a surprise bday party (dinner+dancing+the works)!! :)

Prabu, her husband whisked her off to the salon in the afternoon (accompanied by Bel), while the rest of us came prepared to help cut, chop, and cook curry, rice, chapati, and veggies!

I decided to bake a cake for Gaya, and after discussing it with Prabu, I scrapped the Strawberry Shortcake Cake idea (which btw, I found the best looking recipe! <--I say that because I haven't exactly made it, but it looks like a winner so far ;)), and decided to go with Barefoot Contessa's Choc. Cake recipe...

It was a little two sweet, but overall I think people liked it..

-And thanks to Nishan who was a good sport and helped me bake the cake.. and even though we ran into some problems (springform pans leaking, cake too flat, cake stuck to bottom of pan, spatula dillema (tee hee!), frosting shortage..- you get the idea), I think we managed to do pretty well for first timers! :D

C'est Voila!

Barefoot Contessa's Beatty's Chocolate Cake

For the cake batter:

Butter (to grease the pans)

1 3/4 cups all purpose flour

2 cups sugar

3/4 cups good dutch cocoa powder (I used Ghiradelli)

2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

1 cup buttermilk

1/2 cup veggie oil

2 extra-large eggs (room temperature)

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 cup freshly brewed hot coffee

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

2. Butter 2 9in round pans - line with parchment paper, then butter and flour the pans.

3. Sift flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder and salt into a bowl and mix on low speed (or by hand) until combined.

4. In bowl #2, combine buttermilk, oil, eggs and vanilla.

5. With mixer on low speed, slowly add in the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients. Add the coffee and stir just to combine.

6. Pour batter into both pans, and bake for 35 to 40 minutes, til the toothpick test comes out clean :)

7. Cool the pans for 30 minutes, then turn them out onto a cooling rack and cool completely.

For Chocolate Frosting:

6oz semi-sweet chocolate

2 sticks unsalted butter, softened

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 extra-large egg, (room temperature)

1 1/4 cup sifted confectioners/powdered sugar

1 tablespoon instant coffee powder

1. Chop chocolate (or use chocolate chips) and melt in a double boiler. Turn of heat and let cool to room temperature.

2. In a bowl, beat butter on medium speed (or by hand) til light and fluffy (3 mins), add the egg yolk and vanilla and continue beating (2 mins).

3. Turn mixer on low, and gradually add in the confectioners sugar, then beat on medium speed til lsmooth and creamy.

4. Dissolve coffee powder in 2 tablespoon of hot water. On low speed, add in the coffee and melted chocolate to the butter mixture and mix til blended. (Do Not Whip!) <--Spread immediately on cooled cake.

Assembling your cake:

1. Place your cake, 1st layer flat side up on a pedestal or plate. With a knife, spread the top with frosting (don't be afraid to be generous!).

2. Place the 2nd layer, rounded side up on top of the 1st layer, and spread the frosting evenly on the top and sides of the cake.

----> (And to decorate): Garnish with chocolate covered strawberries or fresh fruits! :D

ENJOY!

Every Picture (collage) Has A Story..

2010-01-26T18:47:00.013-06:00

So instead of a long post of just pictures, I decided to use good ol' Picassa to make collages and sum up my recent adventures :D

Collage #1:

A Kelly+Pei outing! It was the night of the UT vs. Alabama BCS National Championship Game that we had gotten yummy Korean food and then decided to head out to a bar to watch the big game! That's right.. I insisted on a "Football & Beer Girl's Night"! Booya! We went to Ernie's to meet up with a friend and her husband, and sipped on beer while cheering (for the opposite team :P)! - Although, I have to admit that UT wasn't doing very well without their QB there.. not as good a game as expected..

Collage #2:

A QA day at Discovery Green! A friend had told me about an ice sculpting competition going on that weekend at Discovery Green, and seeing how it was a little too late to gather a group to go, I took a little trip all by myself! I loved it - beautiful weather, screaming kids, and ice flying here and there :D And of course, a chance to take fun pictures :) Wheeee..

Collage #3:

Later that same afternoon, I met up with my Biochem&Genetics girls! :D It's been too longsince we last hung out, and it's the first time since we graduated that we've all been able to meetup! Everyone's been busy with school and work, and the X-mas break was the best time to meet :) Yay for catching up and Ruggles wraps! Picture with all 5 of us: (L-R) Wendy, Sarah, Shefali, Sora (who's not B&G) and me :) :)

Collage #4:

Sometime on Saturday, I had gone over to make Tiramisu with Bel & Gaya, and stayed till 2am that night.. What did we do? Well, made a fire and roast S'mores, duh!! Tee hee.. Prabu, my brother and Jon gathered the firewood, the girls got the ingredients ready, and Nishan expertly showed us how to make a fire haha.. what I didn't get a picture of was us sacrificing gummy bears to the fire *grinn*

Collage #5:

A S'more party is never complete without an ooeyy gooey picture of us all biting into this deliciousness ;) And a party is never complete without playing goofy games and huddling close to the fire talking.. Yay for a good weekend!

Collage #6:

Having a blast trudging through mud, and getting our fingers and feet dirty from Paintballing!! Whoop! Who knew I'd be an expert at sniping *grinn* Surprisingly there were no squeals and shrieks from the girls (YAY!), and I'm pretty sure that everyone enjoyed themselves!

Next post: Baking Adventures!!!!!

It's Official..

2010-01-19T03:10:00.009-06:00

I just got my Australian Student Visa approved today!

I'm relieved to know that the process is finally over, but now I'm getting sad thinking of all the friends and people I have to leave behind.. :'(

This is very sad indeed.

My highlights of the weekend:
1. Irene's surprise end of exam potluck :D I love friends who cook amazing food, and spending time just having fun! Playing the broken telephone game, Super Mario, and being goofy till 3am!
2. Paintball with the Msians in muddy, cold weather.. but it was so much fun, and we all had some pretty fun stories and battles wounds to talk about ;)
3. My Surprise Farewell Party organized by my brother and nearly ruined by me! haha.. I nearly didn't make it which made my brother leak the secret out but it all worked out eventually and we had the best time Karaoke-ing, singing and dancing out hearts out like there was no tomorrow! :D
4. Spending time with Hannah and Khalisa, and the bear hug I got :) I shall miss you HL :'(

Snippets of the night :D

With Casey, Gaya, Gowri :)

With Prabu, Marcos and Nishan

Singing with Albert, bro, and Alvin

The girlsss!!! Irene, Bel, me, Gaya and Gowri

<3 <3 <3

Not exactly the end of the night ;)

Goofiness!

O' My Buns!

2010-01-08T15:41:00.008-06:00

... indeed so. *grinn*

The last time I went back to Malaysia with the family, I made a list of all the different kinds of food I wanted to eat. The ones at the top were mainly junk food, street food and of course, seafood!

Around that time, the craze for butter buns (bwhahaha..) seemed to spread like wildfire, and I found myself standing in line buying these yummy deliciousness at every mall trip! The francise name is Roti Boy, and it's really a simple butter bun with a crisp coffee topping..

And then recently a friend told me that they sell it by the dozens here in the US, most commonly known as the Mexican bun.. hmm.. Who knew?

Well, a branch from Roti Boy (called O' My Buns) mysteriously showed up in Dallas, and when Kelly came to stay she brought me 2! Yummers! :) Scrumpdiddlyumtious!

So out of curiousity, I looked up "Roti Boy recipe", and House of Annie's has this amazing recipe as well as step by step pictures on how to make it from scratch!

Future baking adventure?? I think so!

"Well now, who is going to eat this loaf of bread?" asked the little red hen.
"I will", said the duck.
"I will", said the pig.
"I will", said the cat.
"Oh no you won't", said the little red hen. "I am going to eat it myself."
Then she called all her little chicks together and they ate the whole loaf of bread. Not a crumb was left for the duck, pig or cat.

Hello, 2010!

2010-01-05T23:31:00.006-06:00

HAPPY NEW YEARS!

Well, hello there!
It's been awhile, but I'm back with more updates!

-My parents came into town mid November, and because of crunch time, I decided to bite the bullet and accept the Masters program in Australia.. so I'll be going down under, mates! I'm super excited but this also means leaving behind good friends and people I've started to bond with :'(
-Moving all of my stuff along with my parent's shipment from Houston.. which meant:
1. No crafting
2. No sewing
3. Living on an air mattress and a very much empty room save my luggage bags..
SIGH.
-Volunteering like crazy at the museum! I got to teach a girl scouts class, an eye dissection, fetal pig dissection, lungs class as well as write up a curriculum on the Scientific Method! :D Yay to 119 hours served!
-Spending time with family friends, having Kelly stay over, and taking mini trips to Dallas & College Station to hang out with people!
-Getting my Aggie ring resized.. *sob!
-Applying for my Australian Visa and going through awkward medical exams.. haha!

And finally.. Spending New Years with the Malaysians! :D

I haven't really thought about 2010 resolutions, but here's some... :P

1. Working out, and getting in shape..
2. Keeping in touch with friends and aquaintances
3. Getting my Masters and getting a job <--that will be in June 2011

4. Being less of a introvert, and getting out of my comfort zone
5. Be more open to new opportunities.. ;)
6. Take more pictures, cook more, sew more, craft more :)
7. Listen more, love more, laugh more, be more patient.

Toasting to the New Year! WHOOP!

Girls!

See-blings!

Happy Thanksgiving!!

2009-11-26T12:58:00.006-06:00

Things I am thankful for this year:

Friends and Family that I can always count on to be there :)
Acceptance into the University of Queensland in Brisbane, Australia to do my Masters in Biotechnology!! WHOOP!
An amazing last year of college, graduating and learning so much..
Being able to be a part of a research group, my office group, the ESL program, and The Health Museum!
God - for never failing me.. for always watching over me, and knowing (always!) when the right moments are <3
A new year, a new beginning, new adventures, and new stories!

What are you thankful for this year, and what are you excited for the coming year?

Halloween Cookies!

2009-11-18T19:09:00.005-06:00

So it has been awhile since I last posted something, but I wanted to share the recipe for these scrumptious chocolate cookies that I made for Halloween.. (I know, I know, 1 month too late!)

I found these among the Woman's Day online magazine article titled, "Chocolate Boo Cookies", and you can get the recipe here!

In case you're not up to clicking things, here's the cut and copy version (I tweaked it some to fit my taste!)

Chocolate Cookies: Good for any Scrumptious Occasion!

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened

1 cup sugar

1 large egg

1 tsp vanilla extract

1⁄2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1⁄2 tsp salt

21⁄2 cups all-purpose flour

(Optional: Orange Zest! <--Pei's extra oommphh!)

1. To make Dough: Beat butter and sugar in a large bowl with electric mixer until fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla. On low speed, beat in cocoa powder and salt until blended. Gradually beat in flour until blended. Add in orange zest and gently incorporate it into the dough. Press dough into a flat disc and wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate 1 hour or until firm.

2. Heat oven to 350°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. On a floured surface or silicone baking mat, roll out dough to 1⁄3 in. thick. Use cookie cutter to cut out shapes. Place shapes 1⁄2 in. apart on baking sheets.

3. Bake cookies 15 minutes or until firm. Cool on wire rack 2 minutes, then remove to rack to cool completely. Reroll, cut and bake remaining cookie dough scraps.

Tips on making these cookies:

-Maybe it was just me, but they got soft really quick, so you might think of refrigerating the dough between baking, and only rolling out small amounts at a time..

-The ones I made were crunchy, just the way I like 'em! With a hint of orange zest, but you could also put in orange juice to give it more of a kick!

"Perfect in Every Way Possible"

2009-11-02T19:34:00.004-06:00

Dear Readers,
Halloween this year definitely made up for all those missed Halloweens! Wheee! I had a blast of a time, and the best part of all of it is, my costume was 70% homemade! :D

This year, my friends and I made plans to go to Austin to soak in the Halloween craziness that is 6th Street! I decided, Why not make it a good costume seeing how I haven't made much of an effort for the past years.. so my choices came down to these 3:

a) Sexy Scientist (kitten heels, lab coat dress-like, and test tubes)
b) Chef (wooden spatula, chef's hat, full apron)
c) Sexy 50's Housewife <----------- DING! DING! DING!

So I set about looking for things I could make:
✓ Cutest Cherry print fabric from Joann's
✓ White ruffle fringe (What is it called??!)
✓ Beige fabric to make fabric peony brooch
✓ Pearl necklace + Pearl bracelets
✓ Cute black skirt with pocket (That I had already sewn in the last sewing project!)

It took about half a day sewing my apron, including pockets perfect for keeping my wallet and phone! (And as a 50's wife, I had to have my lipstick at hand! ;D)

I also copied a template for the peony flower brooch from Martha Steward's website! I frayed the edges to give it a more vintage-y look and pinched several petals and sewed it together to give it more depth and texture .. it turned out so well for a first timer! And I sewed on a super cute button to go with it, definitely proud of the finished product :)

I also found a string of craft pearls from Joann's for cheap and strung it onto an elastic chord, and even though it didn't go all the way around, I had a collared shirt to hide the empty space!

Enough talk, here are pictures!

-Things I love about sewing: My jar of threads, my awesome 50's apron, my felt donut pincushion, my jar of slowly accumulating buttons!, and my Peony fabric flower brooch <3>

Fabric Peony Brooch.. Ahhh! I love it so!

And last and not least.. the whole ensemble! I sneaked my brother's SLR camera again to take my pictures tee hee! I'd have to say, my outfit was tastefully classy, and none of that "scantily clad costumes" :P <--- Although, I got a very weird comment from a friend of a friend suggesting I wear that more often when I'm married?? hahah! My friends had some pretty kewl costumes as well! :)

Irene- forest nymph, Melvin- Popeye (we saw 5 of them that night!), Jon- creepy zombie, Benedict- devil, Belinda- hula girl, Nishan- the Apple dude, Emily- Avril Lavigne-esque, Albert- a tree (I thought his was the funniest, and definitely the most unique!), Prabu- beat up guy, Gaya- witch, Andrew- a Spartan, and Jennifer- Rennaissance girl?

Yay for the best Fall weekend!

Happy Halloween!!

2009-10-31T11:55:00.007-05:00

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

Well, I don't think I've properly celebrated it (i.e dressing up, giving candy, trick or treating, Partying) this American holiday since I started college.. haha! Actually, the first time I stepped foot into a club was my freshman year of College at UTDallas for a Halloween party, with a friend from class.. and let me tell you, I probably was more grossed out that not when I saw all those college students dancing.. :P (But that's another story)

Over the years, I've always shied away from the Halloween parties only because a)I never had a costume to wear, and b)I always had a test the week after Halloween!

Anyways, this year, I somewhat had reason to celebrate, and I can't wait to post more pictures of my costume(s)! Yes, that's right, I have *drum roll please*... TWO COSTUMES!

To my story : I started volunteering my time at a Community Center for less fortunate people about a month ago, so I've been teaching an ESL class to about 20 students.. majority of them married, and children, and have been living in the US for about 2 years or so... we have majority Hispanics, and Vietnamese and a lady who's Haitian. I love my students, and it couldn't come at a better timing that I got to teach this class!

Anways, this year I decided that I was going to have fun and games for my ESL students and decided to dress up as a "Nerd"! Haha, you say, isn't that what you are already? Well, yes, and no.. I've been nerdy, but I wanted to go all out an exaggerate it teehee!

Ta Daa! I bought a white shirt, and felt letters and ironed on the phrase "Talk Nerdy to Me" and on the back it was "QTPi" <--- Get it?? Cutie Pie! *Grinn!* I taped up my Harry Potter glasses with tape and paper, and bought super cheap suspenders (Urkel-icious!):D

I also wanted to make cookies and decorate them, but by the time I didn't expect them to come out so tiny.. so I kept those for myself, and instead made a last minute rice krispy treats (that was too hard and stuck to my pan but luckily this lady saved me with her spatula :D)

We learned about the history behind Halloween, and learned terms associated with the holiday, and then we played pass the pumpkin! :D It was super funny watching adults get so excited over this game, and although it was educational, I hope they still had fun!

Here are a medly of pictures:

I made up questions for my Pumpkin game using people I knew! :D

And today I'll be in Austin going out for once on Halloween night! WHOOP! I'll update later on my cutest outfit ever! :D

If there was a name....

2009-09-15T22:03:00.006-05:00

... for my food orgasm, it would be called, "Antonio's Spicy Chicken Quesadilla" *Grinn*

I mean, come on now -Take. A. Look. At. This. Babyyy ~

Yummm.. only makes my mouth water and my stomach go, "Yes! Yes! YES!!!" Tee hee!

Let me break it down to you.. it's appearance says it all: crunchy, huge and delicious! It's cheese, chicken, tomatoes, onions, cilantro, topped with tortilla chips, drizzled with ranch sauce.. because, everyone knows that a college student lives for ranch :D (Or is that just a Texas A&M thing??)

Sigh.. too bad it is 1.5 hours away from where I live, sadly.

So last weekend I went down to C.S after a much hectic drive.. I decided that I needed to be on campus and running errands and getting things done all before lunch, so I made a little Itinerary the night before, woke up at 6:45am, and left the house around 7:30am only to find myself in the throes of Thursday morning rush hour. Hrmmppphh.. Although, things went smoothly after I got out of the congested city, and smooth sailing from that point on, followed by much boy-band singing :) LOUDLY.

My Itinerary of the day:

~~-Wake up 6:45am, leave 7:30am~~

~~-Get Blinn transcripts~~

~~-Get A&M transcripts~~

~~-Meet with Vanessa 10:30am~~

~~-Sneak into dorm to deliver Tiramisu~~

~~-Lunch with Corinne~~

~~-Meet with Dr. B~~

~~-Meet with Veronica~~

~~-Meet with Julie, Zaria, Lisa~~

~~-Murphy's Law with friends!~~

As you can see, it all got accomplished, all within record time too! :) I managed to have enough time to talk to all of my recommenders and even got to talk to my old graduate student who I worked with for a semester.. it's encouraging knowing that they're in Grad school doing the things they love, just like how I'm hoping to do the same..

I got to spend time with some friends, chilling at Murphy's Law which is this awesome Irish pub in Downtown Bryan :) I love being old enough to be able to go out on a Thursday night and not have to run into young college students *Grinn*

Friday was pretty relaxing seeing how I'd already accomplish most of what I wanted to do, just visiting friends and such.. and went to a friend's shindig that kept us up till 6am! It was fun, but getting up early the next morning to drive down to Austin was a little painful .. :P

Anyways, I had lugged around my sewing machine, which unfortunately came with a transformer because of the voltage differences here in the US and the ones in Malaysia. I had promised to make my friends skirts, and so that's what I made the whole Saturday! It was sewing, pressing, ironing, sewing, pressing, ironing.. but I did it! *Takes a Bow* I felt very much like a sweatshop worker, toiling away at my sewing machine, but I did receive payments in the form of food.. haha!

So that was my weekend, and despite the horrible rain and storms that I seem to be cursed with every time I take a road trip out of town, I brought it back to Houston.. where it shall probably be for the rest of the week SIGH!

I'm in Love!!

2009-09-05T11:41:00.007-05:00

.. With Skirt #2! Tee hee! *grinn*
So, I had plans to use twill as my fabric for a second skirt, but due to money issues (yeah, I didn't want to pay $7 per yard right now), I settled for Black Broadcloth at $2.50 per yard! Yayyness!

I eyeballed it to 1 yard and 7/8 inches (Don't ask why I decided that) .. and used elastic again.. but the kicker is that I made a wide sash as a waitband from the same leftover fabric to cover up the elastic! So it looks like a high waisted skirt but it's also so comfortable due to the elastic :) Wheeeee..

I had just enough leftover fabric to make the sash, but it wasn't long enough to tie into a ribbon, sadly... just a basic knot... which still looks amazingly classy!
I think the best part of my skirt is that I actually made a side pocket for it! If you want to know how to make pockets, this is the best video to watch, hands down! I sat there for 20 mins, watching the clip step by step, and it's so clear that now it's pretty much second nature to be able to make in-seam pockets! (Credits to Candi Cane Canncel and Village Expert for this tutorial!)

So here's my finished product:

What do you think? I love the poofiness of it, but I hope that the fabric isn't as sheer! haha!
Pictures of the back of the dress, front and side views.. I think the pocket is definitely the attention stealer :) LoVe LoVe it!

Ps: I finally figured out which setting to use to fix the blurriness and darkness of the pictures! Yay!

SKIRRTTTT!!

2009-09-04T01:34:00.004-05:00

Okay, first of all, let me apologize for this horrible picture.. my camera has been really unpredictable lately, and ever since I dropped it and broke the battery door while on vacation in Egypt, it's been like this ever since. I need to seriously get a new one..

Sigh. Just try not to stare at the picture for too long - Trust me *grinn*

Back to my project - Hooray! A skirt that's wearable! It's fabric from the stash that my mom got me, and I decided, hey this one seems the closest to skirt-ish!

I was looking through blogs and forums trying to find a pattern I could understand on how to make skirts, but I just decided to wing it in the end...

Skirts-Made "Over-Easy"
(Made at your own risk *Grinn*)

Step 1: Measure out fabric by wrapping it around your waist. Make sure there's enough room for gathers and when the elastic goes on that there's enough space to bunch up. I'd add 11 or 12 inches if I were you. No harm done if there's more fabric! Let it fall to the desired length + 2 inches for seams.

Step 2: Cut out fabric, and fold it lengthwise. Sew the edges together, open and press the seams down with an iron.

Step 3: Fold top of fabric 1/2 inch and then 1 inch more or whatever the width of your elastic band is. Press and pin. Sew around the top, leaving a small gap at the end for where your elastic goes.

Step 4: Measure your elastic. Pull the elastic rather tight on your waist, but making sure that there's enough room for you to step out of the skirt!

Step 5: Pin a safety pin through one end of the elastic, and thread it through your skirt. Once you get to the other end, sew both the elastic ends together. Make sure that it's tight enough before you sew the seams shut.

Step 6: Hem your skirt by folding 1/2 inch and by another 1/2 inch. Sew around skirt.

Voila! Say hello to a new, cute poofy skirt! :)

Because it is elastic, I made my skirt into a high waisted skirt, with a black belt to hide the band. Topped with a black top to not overpower things, black heels, and I'm out of the door!
(Let me know how it looks! )

Good luck!

Sewing Craze!

2009-09-02T18:18:00.002-05:00

I don't think I've had a sewing post for a while now.. So here it is!Sometime in July, my dad's friend came into town, and inside the suitcase, was a nicely packed sewing machine! *leaps for joy* Oh and here's the kicker: My mom also packed some awesome fabric that she got from Angola, along with random crazy knick-knacks.. :D :D

Wheeee! I love it, look at the piles and piles of cloth to choose from! And they're super cute too, and Oh-So-Unique!

So then I got down to sewing purses, and when I decided to make a skirt, spent 1 hour learning on the internet how to make pockets (..because you just can't have a cute skirt without pockets!) - I'd say, not bad for a first circle skirt.. although it could always use a bit more flare and length at the back *grinn*

That was basically the whole of July - sewing, sewing and sewing :)

But now I'm in the process of Grad school applications, and essays galore - Wish me luck!

I was joking with a close friend yesterday, about me being a future graduate student/researcher with an knack for sewing.. Tee hee!

Oooh.. can you say test tube koozie?

Rum Raisin-ness!

2009-08-20T19:39:00.007-05:00

Confession #1:

I have this obsession with Rum Raisin EVERYTHING. Ever since my dad brought home an ice cream tub of this wonderful concoction, I have been hooked on to it and has definitely trumped all the other ice cream flavours (Here, Here!) - Thank you Haagen Daaz!

Well, about a year ago, several things happened:

1. One of my closest friend & her then boyfriend bought me this amazing ice cream machine for my birthday :) - I had been raving about making rum raisin ice cream myself.. (That's next on the agenda ;))
2. I spent most of my free time during the summer of '08 camped out at B&N reading cookbook after cookbook. I wrote down a compilation of recipes and had to constantly tear away from them because it only made me hungry each time!
3. I spent hours online and books looking for rum raisin recipes.. rum raisin ice cream, rum raisin muffins, rum raisin truffles; you name it, I probably wrote them down!

However, due to kitchen contraints (no proper utensils at the dorm kitchen I was living at), I had most of my recipes tucked away in notebooks, shoved in between pages of other notes, that sort of thing...

Until last week when I decided, "Hey, I'm going to make Rum Raisin Muffins!!" - I dug up my stash of notebook paper-written recipes, and found one that turned out to be a pretty good success story :)

Voila, d'ici!

Rum Raisin Muffins

(Scrumptious in every way possible)

1/2 Cup (3 1/2 oz) Raisins <-- I would double that if I were you ;)

3 tbsp Dark rum <---- DOUBLE!

1 Cup (2 Sticks) Sweet butter, softened

1 Cup Superfine sugar/Normal sugar

2 Cups Self raising flour

1 tsp Baking powder

4 Eggs

For the Syrup:

5 tbsp Dark rum

2 tbsp Unpacked light brown sugar

1. Soak raisins in rum 2-3 hours or overnight (I'd suggest overnight, it soaks up more flavour!)

2. Preheat oven 350 degrees.

3. Combine all dry ingredients, then wet. Beat till smooth, and stir in raisins.

4. Line muffin pans with muffin cups.

5. Bake 20 mins.

--->While baking, you can start making your syrup:

6. Combine rum and sugar in a pot on low heat, until the sugar dissolves.

7. Let it simmer for 5 mins or so, and remove from heat.

---->Now back to the muffins :)

8. Check to make sure muffins are done via toothpick, and remove from oven.

9. Let cook for a bit, and poke 5 holes into each muffin.

10. Pour warm syrup over muffins and allow in to soak all the yummy goodness :)

They taste so delicious out of the oven, and especially with the Rum syrup, it just tops it all! And yes, a note to self: Add more raisins and more rum! The alcohol evaporates eventually anyways, so the more the merrier! *Grinn*

Pretty Darn Delicious!

2009-06-16T18:01:00.006-05:00

I made stuffed mushrooms today, and it was delicious! I sort of use odds and ends of what I had left in the fridge, but it was more than enough :)

Viola!

If you thought of making some, here's my recipe:

Pei's Stuffed Mushroom Recipe

1 Tub of White mushrooms, stems removed and set aside
1 Medium sized/small jalapeno
1/2 Red bell pepper
1/3 Yellow or sweet onions
2 Garlic cloves
Olive oil
Salt & Pepper
Chilli powder/Italian seasoning/Any spices you have on rack

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Gently wipe down mushrooms with a damp paper towel, and place on baking sheet in rows.
3. Roughly chop up the stems, jalapeno, red bell pepper, onions and garlic cloves.

4. Saute the raw ingredients, with salt & pepper + spices and set aside.
5. Using a cooking brush, brush the mushroom caps with olive oil (or you can drizzle) and sprinkle salt and pepper lightly over.
6. Fill the caps and bake for about 15 minutes or so until they look cooked.
7. Optional: Sprinkle with cheese (I used pepperjack) and Enjoy!

Another option you could do would be to add in lunch meat (I used peppered turkey the last time) if you wanted a meat dish. Oooh.. I've been meaning to make stuffed mushroom using Portabella mushrooms :)

Next cooking project!

Post-Graduate!

2009-05-21T00:49:00.005-05:00

Tee hee.. Not really a craft/cooking post, but just a little 'Hooray! note' to celebrate finally being a post-graduate! :) I got my diploma around 3pm, on Friday the 15th of May, and now have finally joined the ranks of unemployed (sadly) for the next few months(?)

May is for:
-My parents being in town for 2.5 weeks, and for attending an old friend's wedding! ahh! The whole world is in love, it's pretty crazy! *Grinn*
-Moving back into the 2 bedroom apartment that my brother and I share.. finally after 4 years of living in a dorm room, I finally have my own room to myself again, and a real kitchen to cook in.. a cause for celebration!

Oh, and awesome, awesome news! I presented my mom with the Felt Truffles I made, and she loved them - And surprised me by telling me that she was planning on giving me one of her extra Singer sewing machine.. HOORAYness!

Craftiness plans for the summer (assuming time permits):
-Felt projects .. I want to launch a "Unedibles" collection :)
-Sewing projects - purses and bags galore! I have ideas I'm itching to sew something!

Cooking plans for the summer:
-Digging through the cookbooks and experimenting!

In the meantime, I'll be planning and sketching out things I'll be making, and applying for jobs and graduate school. Anyone have any suggestions/job offers for recent Biochemistry graduates??

Photo: With the fam on Graduation day :)

Procrastination

2009-05-11T21:35:00.008-05:00

What do I do when I'm supposed to be studying for a final? Updating this blog, of course! *Grinn* I hope this doesn't come and bite me in the butt when results roll in.. urgh (I'm almost done, I'M ALMOST DONE!)

So I thought I should post a medley of thing I have made throughout the school year.. I have been getting my hands "dirty" in felt; I just found out last year how much easier it is to sew using felt! And from there I've only gotten more creative in making little knick-knacks :)

Oh, go on, show off that work *Grinn*

Last summer I was busy doing research at school, taking summer classes as well as working part-time, but that didn't stop me from indulging myself in cute fun projects, as well as teach my roommates how to sew! The funny story was that they had seen me hand-sew all of my purses for about a week before telling me that one of them actually OWNED a sewing machine! Ahh!

Felt Project #1: Tick-Tac-Toast!
-I saw a toaster template online that was the cutest thing, so I decided to make myself a slice of toast ala felt style :) It is currently on display on my dashboard, right next to my Strawberry Chocolate Cake! Felt Project #2: Strawberry Chocolate Mini-Cake
-It turned out better than I expected it to! Felt Project #3: A Slice of Tiramisu Cake Topped with Strawberries
:) yummm! The very thought of Tiramisu makes me mouth water :DCrafty Project: Tell-Me-My-Fortune-Clutch
-I cleared up my closet over Christmas Break and found a stash of Fortune Cookie Fortunes that I had saved over the years, and so I decided to make a fun purse/clutch out of them! I'm waiting for a special occasion to use it!

Project #4: Dark Chocolate Truffles...
Oooh! I wanted to make something special for my friends for Singleton's Day, but due to upcoming tests and sorts, I fell short and decided that instead I would present these to my mother instead :) I have an obsession with Chocolate, but then again, Who Doesn't? Alright, I'm back to studying.

Tiramisu Laced with Rum :)

2009-05-10T15:43:00.007-05:00

Actually, it was meant to be a White Russian Tiramisu cake, but due to my lack of Kahlua or more like, the 'abundance' of stashed rum in my dorm (my roommate is 20 hence the word "stashed"), I decided instead to use rum in my recipe. I took this recipe off a book I was reading in B&N, and somewhat tweaked it to fit my own taste. Sad to say, the first time I made Tiramisu I made them into mini cakes which were super delicious, and even though I gave in this time to Ladysfingers, I must say that it's still pretty yummy!

I made this for a Girls-Gettogether-Potluck dinner and they loved it! And the next week I made it for the Korean Ladies I do volunteer Conversation Partners with (And boy, they sure wolfed it down pretty quick!)

Here's the recipe, substitute kahlua for rum if you prefer (I just make very strong coffee!), or don't if you would like the virgin kind :)

Tiramisu my way:
White Russian Tiramisu

1/2 cup marscapone cream cheese
1, 8oz. fat free cream cheese
1/2 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup black brewed coffee
2 tablespoons rum or kahlua (optional!)
1 package Savoiardi Lady's fingers

1. Brew coffee and cool down to room temperature
2. Let marscapone and cream cheese stand in room temperate so it is soft
3. Combine cream cheese, marscapone, brown sugar and 2-3 tablespoons of coffee with hand mixer or by hand (add optional kahlua or rum)
4. Using a deep dish/square container, dip the ladies fingers one by one into the coffee (they get soft very quick) and line the bottom of the dish.
5. Then take some of the cream cheese mixture onto the lady's fingers and smooth out to the corners.
6. Dip the rest of them lady's fingers again and line the top of the dish.
7. Smooth the top with the rest of the cream cheese mixture.
8. Sprinkle with unsweetened cocoa powder or shave some chocolate over the top!

Yummm!

Note: I prefer to let it refrigerate overnight or for a couple of hours - Just to allow everything to soak through.. Trust me, it's worth it!

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!!

Me and mum at Egypt! She's a cute petite woman with the skills of an artist, baker, chef.. basically SUPER MOM! I <3 you!

First Post

2009-05-09T18:13:00.003-05:00

There's a first time for everything - Well this is my first Crafting-Food-Documenting blog! I currently own a more personal blog, but I wanted to make this one specially for delicious foods and crafts I plan to make in the future! Look out for me, you won't be disappointed!

Home-Made for Sale

2009-04-01T13:03:00.001-05:00

Things to sell

Contact Me!

2009-04-01T08:29:00.000-05:00

chocolaterie@gmail.com

Why, Hello there! =)

2009-04-01T07:51:00.008-05:00

My sewing, baking and cooking adventures never really started as a young child.. I was the typical tomboy who almost always came home at 6:50pm in time for dinner with a scrapped knee and dirt on my shirt. Typical.

It wasn't til I came to the States that a longtime friend started getting into the knack of cooking and baking and got me interested. Well, more like SHE was interested, and I merely followed. I am so grateful it caught on..and has stuck on for the better!

The last semester of high school, out of a crazy whim I decided to take a sewing home ec. class and to my surprise, I realized how much I enjoyed it, and was even astonished with what I could make with some cloth, a needle and thread and sewing machine!

I was hooked on from that point on, and in my years of college, I spent any free time I got baking, cooking, browsing bookshops and writing down recipes in random craps of papers tucked between an old notebook, and hand-sewing most of my bags...

And now this. I have realized since I started my 'hobbies' that I want to bring something special to the table. I want to write about food that I love, food that makes the reader interested enough to read, and excited to try. I love cookbooks with pictures- I mean, who doesn't? Food is such an essential part of my life, and I want to share my adventures with you!

I love the homey-hand made feel of a purse, bag, pillow.. whatever you name it! The fact that someone had carefully out each element and detail to bring a unique piece really touches my heart. I want to be able to bring that, and I hope that you find my collection as sharing a piece of me with you :)

Much love,
Pei - Yi
xxx