F1 Singapore – First Night Race in the World

Brief Introduction :

F1 is the most advance and most expensive car motor sports (IMO). The cars are open wheel racing cars. All the cars almost look the same but they are not when you look closer. Different teams are completely different. Try to notice the nose of the car (some are high, some are medium and some are low), the front and rear wings, side pods etc. The different in designs are mainly because of aerodynamics. The other difference is the different brand of engines used.

It’s a game to me and my kids to spot the differences between teams and notice the improvement of designs & engines with the same team.

Unlike with other racing cars like CART or Champ car racing, F1 doesn’t have turbo chargers. They rely on pure Naturally Aspirated (NA) engines. They have to maximize their technology to achieve higher horsepower every year.

3 Qualifying rounds will take place before actual GP (Grand Prix). Driver with the shortest time around the race track will be on the pole (first car), second faster will be next diagonally behind the first car on the pole and so on.

F1 and the Tikis :

F1 was introduced to me years back by my friend Alderman from Philippines. He is F1 fan and thought me some basic knowledge and rules of F1. Thanks Explorer for your patient and knowledge. From the day you introduce me the sport, I enjoy it till day.

Guess which team I support ? Well, years back, I supported McLarren (because Kimi Raikkonan is so cool….Iceman indeed), my eldest son likes Williams BMW (because Montoya is skillful and Ralf Schumacker is fast) and my youngest support Ferrari (because Michael Schumacker – Ralf Schumaker’s brother is a legend).

Years passed, drivers joint different team , car changed, engines improved. The legendary Michael Schumaker had retired as F1 driver, Montoya left too, Kimmy join Ferrari so does Massa. Lewis Hamilton is with Mclarren, Fernando Alonso is with Renault, Nico Rosberg in Williams etc. They are all the raising stars of F1.

So, for my idol Kimi, now we all supported FERRARI !!!!!

Singapore – The World FIRST F1 Night Race :

Prince of the night - Fernando Alonso (Renault)
(Nico Rosberg-Williams comes in second and championship leader Lewis Hamilton-McLaren third)

Bernie Ecclestone described the Singapore race as Jewel in the F1 crown.

McLaren boss Ron Dennis said that the night race is not just a new experience but a big step in the history of grand prix racing.

Singapore has proven every success and our model can be apply to anywhere in the world. Plans to turn the Japanese GP into a night race is the next the world will be keen to look at.

More then 300,000 people poured in over the three days, lightings are fascinating, hawker stalls offering authentical Singapore food, jugglers, magicians and singers entertain the masses, F1 cars howl through the modern as well as historical buildings, all details are being observed.

The race was a new experience for every driver on a street circuit under powerful spotlights and it turned out to be one of the most exciting of the season. Teams, visitors, journalist, drivers……all had given us a big thumbs up.

The Unlucky Ones :

It’s painful and miserable to see Ferrari’s Massa started from pole and Kimi third but were both met with disastrous mistake which cost them the race and valuable points.

Massa was in 13th place finish which means he is 7 points behind Hamilton with just another 3 GP left (Japan, China and Brazil). He was in the pit on lap 15 but was given the green light to drove off too early with fuel hose still attached to his car. One of the pit crew was floored and carted off in a neck brace. Massa had to sit in his car at the end of the pit lane and wait for his crew to ran and pull out the hose. Chances for him to win was ruined by giving a drive through penalty and he could only rejoined in 18th place.

Kimi rammed his car into the barriers with just 4 labs left.

Nelson Piquet (Renault) was rammed into a wall causing massive damage to his car. Fortunately he managed to climbed out unscathed but safety car was deployed.

David Coulthard was also drove off with fuel pipe attached and knocked over a mechanic who was subsequently stretched off.

Adrian Sutil slammed his Force India into the wall bringing the safety car out again. It happened just after Massa left the same wall, else he would have slammed right onto Massa’s car.

The Aftermath –

This morning my colleague knowing that I’m supporting Ferrari, kept telling me how stupid the Ferrari drivers are and how lousy the Ferrari Team is whenever he saw me.

I’m furious of course. I asked him to “SHUT UP, DIAM DIAM” !!! However, he still kept criticizing continuously and laughing hilariously. So, I told him “You know nothing, you SHUUUUUUTTTT UUUUUP !!!!”

You know what ? He still kept laughing. Hahaha……So, I said to him “I forgive you because you are ignorant.” Then I started laughing louder then him Haaaaaa…….XOXO. My other colleague said "You guys add up already more then 100 years of age, still like little kids." Hey, that's what friends are for right :P

It’s not Ferrari’s fault anyway. We are just lack of a little bit of luck that’s all. Hehe…

Sunny Golf House Warming

Ringgggggggg…..Phone range on Friday night for invitation to Sunny Golg’s place on Saturday evening for house warming. He has shifted in since December last year and we had done our mini housewarming a few times there. Haha…this time, his sisters requested for a grand housewarming and it’s set on Saturday evening (27.09.08).

Sunny Golf is like a younger brother to my mum. He is like a father to me even though he is not that old. How he played and teased my kids makes me recall how he tickled and swing me around when I was as young as my little Princess. His family and my family met every week to have good food, watch soccer (his younger bro is Singapore National Soccer Team Player), ride roller coaster, watched drive-in-movies, traveling, playing catching with his younger brothers, nieces and nephew etc etc. Time really flies. All of us ended up in different places, experiencing different lives and slowly drifted apart. I’m eagerly anticipating the meeting with all of them again.

When time approaches, we drove to pick up otah from a otahman who is supplying Muar otah for clubs in Singapore. It cost S$1.20 per piece. Sorry Otahman, your otah is not as good as mine :P
After picking up the otah, we drove by F1 circuit hoping to have a gleams of some of my favorite cars and hear the roaring noise . However, the night was still young and race had not commenced.

We reach Sunny Golf’s place on time and I recognized all his sisters, brothers, in-laws, nieces and nephews. However, the nieces and nephews couldn’t recognize me. It’s not that I’m too old ok. They just have poor memory and I have a better one that’s all. Haaa…..Sorry, no hard feelings Sunny’s family….I know you wouldn’t mind cos you guys know me too well…..I’m VeryTiki remember.

Great food was prepared by Sunny Golf’s sister and nice fruit pie was served on top of dumplings, curry chicken, mixed vegetables, otah, poh piah, spice roll, grass jelly and bobo chacha. Sunny’s family grown up in Malay Kampong in Singapore. Their culinary skills are greatly influenced by Malay style. However, they have reduced the chili for guests that cannot take spicy food. They are all born chili queens and kings.

We complete our duty in consuming as much food as we are able to, tapao food back, rob Swiss rolls that Pebbles & Riffle bought for Sunny and headed for our second program. Sorry Sunny. I’m guilty of not helping you to clean up the place. I’m sure you won’t mind. It’s not my fault. It’s Pebble’s fault. WAHHAAAAA………Hmm…..anyway, she is used to being blame for nothing. One tiny additional blame is nothing to her.



Riffle’s Swiss Roll is fantastic. Soft from the outside, creamy and rich inside. I love the coffee, mango, berries and durian. It’s long I have not tasted a cake with good coffee butter cream and I’m thankful for Pebble granting my wish.

We continued with our MU v Bolton match and F1 qualifying match. We ended up turning on two TVs with two programs so that we could walk around and watch both. MU made us proud this round. Ronaldo, you are so handsome. Hehee…..

Simple Apple Pie Recipe

At times I have craved for certain food or desserts. Most of the time, I crave for desserts. This crave will motivate me to try making/baking whatever I crave for. Last month I wanted so much to eat Cheese Cake and I pamper myself with one non bake peach cake (recipe can be found on “RECIPE Cake”). Today, I’m missing apple pie. Haha…

Here’s one that I bake that is for 8 servings.

Pie Plate – 9”

CRUST (for one double crust):
Ingredient (A)
2 1/2 cups plain flour
2 tbsp. sugar
1/4 tsp. salt
Ingredient (B)
1/2 cup chilled cold butter
5 tbsp. chilled cold vegetable shortening
Ingredient (C)
8 tbsp. ice water

FILLING
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/3 to 2/3 cup sugar
Pinch of salt
6 - 8 medium sized apples (Peel, core and slice in even size)
2 tablespoons margarine

(Mix flour, nutmeg, cinnamon, sugar, salt well and add apple. Stir well and dot with margarine.)

(Note : My picture of the pie is using 5 apples as my kids requested to have a flat pie. I prefer one that is with 8 apples.)

STEPS :
Place Ingredient (A) into a big mixing bowl and stir together till combine.

Cut chilled butter and shortening (B) into the bowl using pastry cutter or knife. I find it easier using forks. Do not over mix and try to squeeze the butter/shortening with your hand.

Add ice water (C) into the bowl and mix until a dough is formed and holds together. You may add a bit more water if the dough is too dry (like cracking).

Turn the dough onto a clean and lightly floured surface. Knead it till the dough is smooth. Divide it into two parts. One for base crust and the other for top crust. Flatten both half into a disk (like a CD disk) and wrap up with saran wrap or clean plastic bag if saran wrap is not available. Chill for half an hour.

Roll out one disk on lightly floured surface to form a 12 inches diameter round base. Grease the pie plate with butter (or olive oil / sunflower seed oil). Place the flatten dough into the pie plate. Trim away excess dough from the edge with a knife. Poke holes on this base crust using forks. Place it back to the refrigerator while getting ready the fillings and top crust.


Get ready the fillings and roll out the second disk for top crust. Bring out the base crust from the refrigerator, add filling and cover it with top crust. Use a fork or your fingers to pinch the edges together. Cut a few slits or use forks to poke holes on top crust.

Preheat oven at 270 degree for 4 minutes. Place the pie into the oven and bake for another 40 – 50 minutes until crust turn brown. You will see juice begins to bubble through the holes you poke. Use skewer or satay stick to insert into the pie crust to test if the pie is ready. If it comes out clean, the pie is ready.



TIPS :
1) If your oven is of strong heat, you may cover the pie using aluminum foil to prevent it turning too brown.
2) When apple is too juicy, it will exudes a lot of juice. Thus, it is advisable to leave the apple after mixing for a while before picking them up and placing them onto the base crust.
3) You may include other fruits like berries, peach, resins to add extra flavor.
4) I choose Crisco shortening as it is 0% trans fat. It has markings on the wrappers indicating 1T, 2T etc (1T = 1Tbsp) for easy measuring. I don’t even need a measuring cup to measure how much to use.
5) Use remaining dough if any as decoration on the top crust.

Barley Water

Ingredients :
300g Barley Pearls
300g Rock Sugar
3 liters Water
5 Pandan Leaves

Method :
1) Wash barley pearls (don’t need to sock)
2) Tear vertically from the center of the pandan leaves into three or four smaller strips so that the fragrant will emerge better while boiling.
3) Place water and pandan leaves into a pot and bring to boil.
4) Add barley pearls and simmer till barley pearls are soft.
5) Add rock sugar and boil till sugar dissolves
6) Serve warm or cold.

Tips :
1) Barley water is cooling. It’s also very good for kids who loves to eat heaty staff.
2) Do not over cook barley water as it will change it’s property to become heaty instead. (Many drink sellers tends to overcook barley water as it gives a thicker and stronger taste.)
3) People who’s body is cold in nature, drink barley warm.

P.S. My cute and handsome son is the assistant cheif and camera man :P

Funny Faces - GAGS

To all my friends who are facing problems.
To all my friends who are blessed without problems.

"Don't Worry, Be Happy !!!"

能解决的问题，就不是问题。。。所以，不用担心。
不能解决的问题，担心了也无济于事。。。所以，也毋须担心。
(A problem that can be solved, is not a problem...So, don't have to worry.)
(A problem that cannot be solved, Worries will not solve it....So, there's no need to worry.)

学着放下，快乐地活在当下。
(Learn to let go. Live at the present with Joy.)

尽量的让自己快乐，尤其是在自己很不快乐的时刻。
(Make yourself happy as much as possible, especially during hard time.)

A picture speaks a thousand words. These pictures were taken when we were having great worries. SMILE my friend......Just Smile !!!

New Creation Church + Guan Yim Temple = Love

Roselle has been troubled by her mum’s sickness and we have suggested her to do prayers. We believe that with faith, nothing is impossible and miracles will happen. I’m Buddhist and she is Catholic. I truly believe what my respectful teacher (Sri Sathya Sai Baba) taught me and many others. He says “All religions call upon the one, Omnipresent God.” It is this unitary faith that he has been emphasizing that touches me, guiding me and healing me.

I have been conveying his message to my love ones and whoever in need that “Believe in God – for there is only One God for all mankind, though He may be called by many names.”

Last Sunday we arranged a trip to the Guan Yim temple in the morning for Roselle to put forward her doubts and worries. We pray for her mum’s recovery. She was given a message mentioning that there seems troubles but there’s a lotus flower rooting and blooming. Peace in choppy wave. I told her not to worry as her mum’s condition will improve. God is great.

To reassure her, we arranged with Pebbles and Riffle for attending a service in New Creation Church. I went to the Church before as a supplier of polybags and their kindness and love they had shown to a non Christian is very much appreciated. That is also the reason why we suggested visiting NC Church. This was also my first time attending a service with my kids. We met up with Pebbles + Riffle and proceeded to the Church.

We went to 4th floor as 3rd floor is occupied. Princess is only 2-1/2 year old and supposed to join the children’s class. Graciously, they allowed us to stay with Princess for our first visit with Pebble’s explanation. Pebbles accompanied Roselle to the healing room where she could do her prayers with guidance. She returned with tears.

Songs were sung and they were very touching and nice. Messages were sent across to us too. I can’t help myself to relate the message to Baba’s teaching. It’s not comparing or competing whose teaching is better. It’s mere relating the similarities in the teachings.





Pastor’s teaching : God’s power is in God’s Word. Jesus does not have to appear in the flesh for our healing and manifest miracles. God’s Word is like seed that we can sow and brings forth a mighty harvest.

Baba’s teaching : God is Love. He is omnipresent. God’s word is like ray of sun that shines at us and through us. His words are words of Grace and Pure Love. He is with us and in us. Seek it within you for there’s the ocean of nectar divine.

Paster’s teaching : God will not force us to take his word and stand on it. He lets us decide.

Baba’s teaching : God put forth his gracious love to all mankind. It’s like a man sprinkling water in a hot summer. Those who are standing in the open area enjoys the cooling mist, those choose to take shelter behind a tree receive some and those taking shelter behind tall buildings collect none. We decide where we want to stand. We can make changes and move to any spots we want. We decide. He gives and he guides.

Instruments played while Joseph Prince was addressing his message. It’s angles’ visits.

While Baba’s birth mother is pregnant with Swami, Tamboura leaning against the living-room wall twang and drum on the floor throb as if an expert hand were beating it. It foretold an auspicious birth of Baba.

It doesn’t really matters which religions you are from. It’s the spiritual principle that has been teaching. This path of Love, this virtue of Love, this duty of love, this obligation of love that has been extended to us. God is Great and we are bless with his divine and pure Love.

Sri Sathya Sia Speaks :
There is only one Caste, the caste of humanity
There is only one Religion, the religion of love
There is only one Language, the language of the heart
There is only one God and He is Omnipresent

There’s something funny happened while we were in the service. We had a good laugh whenever we talk about it. When bread and small cup of red juice passes around (representing flesh and blood of Jesus), Roselle and I pick up a piece and put into our mouth instantly. We didn’t know that we have to wait for the blessing before we eat. I have a misconception of eating immediately because in my JC, we would go up to the pastor and he will give us the bread and drink where we would eat immediately. God is great, he blesses us with double dosages !!!

After the service we notice that there’s F1 show held on ground floor lobby. Click click click, my habit to take pictures again. Black ninja was approached by a lady and he filled up a lucky draw coupon. Wish you good luck handsome (that lady said he is handsome and should have many girl friends). Haha…see who is the mother lah.

Riffle bought some doughnuts and we headed home as ET got ready food at home waiting for our arrival. All of us squeeze into Riffle’s F1 car. It’s really fun to pack like sardine and race like F1 driver. We drove passed F1 race track and we keep making F1 car’s noise “OOooooo…….”. We had great food and MU Super Sunday match (draw again.....sigh....) Anyway, it’s a wonderful day filled with Love and joy.

Rice Cup Cake / Huat Kueh / Fat Koh (Pre-Mixed)

Ingredients :
1 Egg
240ml Water (I replace it with Sprite / 7-up)
1/2 tsp Baking Powder
Some food colouring
1 Packet of Cup Cake Mix
(I use Sing Long Traditional Cup Cake Mix. It’s easily obtained from NTUC Fairprice supermarket from the Flour section)


Method :
Pour Traditional Cup Cake Mix, Eggs and 120ml water into mixing bowl at low speed for 1 minute and another 4 minutes at high speed.

Add the remaining water (Sprite/7-up) and mix at low speed for 1 minute and another 4 minutes at high speed.

Prepare paper cups, pour in the batter and steam for 12 minutes.

Tips :
1) I replace water with Sprite or 7-up so that the cake will have a lemon taste and it rises well.
2) You may add additional Eno (Fruit Salt) about half a teaspoon to let the cake smile wider. In my pictures, I didn’t add Eno as I wish to test the result without Eno Salt.
3) To have more fun, I have added chocolate chips, resins, rainbow colour candy resins, almond, dry fruits or nuts etc.
4) I like to use natural fruit colouring extract from fruits. Eg. Red from smashing cherries.
5) You may pipe in some fruit jam (to add on colour and flavour) and stir it lightly to have some marble effect (please refer to my pictures).
6) Boil the water first before placing the cakes in the double boiler. After placing the cakes in, do not open the cover (to retain the heat so that the cake will rise and smile better).

Tortally Jelly Crystal (Pre-mixed)

Ingredients :
1 box of Tortally Jelly (90g)
1 can of Fruits of your choice
500ml of water (I prefer to use juice)

Method :
Drain juice from can fruits.
Distribute fruits (in my picture, I use longan) equally into mould.
Dissolve jelly in a cup (250ml) of hot water.
Stir it and when dissolved, mix in another cup (250ml) of cold water.
Pour into moulds and place in the refrigerator.
Ready to serve in around 15 minutes time.

Tips :
I prefer to use the juice / liquid drained out from the can fruits in replacement of water. It will enhance flavour of the jelly. Just heat up half of the juice so that it can be used to dissolve jelly. The other half will add on later. If the juice is less then 500ml, you may add on water to make it 500ml

Queenscup Volleyball Tournament 2008

My son Supercute is a great volleyball player. He has been selected as first 6 of school team.

Day after day he undergone hush trainings and he was all ready for the major match against Queenstown Secondary School for The Queenscup Volleyball Tournament. His division had made his school proud by bringing back a silver medal. His division lost the 1st set 16-25 and won the 2nd set 25-22with him scoring the ace for the win on 2nd set. They lost eventually on the 3rd set and was awarded silver.

We were all eagerly waiting at the doorstep for his arrival home. Sunny gong gong came over and ET bought a wide spread of food for celebration. We were all delighted and started snatching the trophy.

Supercute is very happy too for his achievement. However, the sad thing is that his coach Mr Koh has better offer and will be leaving the school to work for a private establishment. He announce the news to the players and they were all filled with sorrows. The kids love him dearly as he is a fantastic coach. All girl players were broken into tears. However, Mr Koh will select a new replacement himself and I trust that he will get a coach as responsible and experience as him.

All the best to you Mr Koh for your future undertakings. Do keep in touch with the kids. They are going to miss you deeply. Supercute promises that he will definitely work harder and train better to make you proud. He promises too not to put your effort into waste. I never see him so committed before. Thank you Mr Koh. You are the best leader.

Supercute. You have made us very proud. Your trophy has added to our existing collection and I’m sure you will excel in near future.

北京残奥运会08闭幕典礼 Bei Jing Paralympic 08 Closing Ceremony

One World One Dream…..The curtain of Beijing 2008 Paralympic Games dropped yesterday (17.09.2008) and the idea of One World One Dream is still touching many of our heart. It was a perfect ending to both Olympic and Paralympic Games with credit to artistic directors Zhang Yimou, Zhang Jigang and many volunteers.

Olympic Games Opening Ceremony showcased a prosperous China and Paralympic Games Opening Ceremony presented the respect that Chinese people hold for life and their reverence for the harmonious relationship between heaven, earth and human beings. From the painting in Olympic Opening Ceremony which incorporated both ancient and modern elements to the letter sending by audience and atheletes to the future in the Paralympic Closing Ceremony, this interactive characteristic was carried out at a level never seen before in previous Games. China has all the talents, love, foresight and culture that makes us all truly proud.

For all the unforgettable moments and strength the athletes displayed during the games, for all the supports from their family and friends, for those voluntarily supported the events, you have my utmost respect.

The Beijing 2008 Olympic Games and Paralympic Games successfully concluded with an ideal ending:
A letter that carries the dream of the entire human race into a bright future.
The dream lives on though the flame fades.

(Would like to thanks Alder for forwarding the pics for the events.)

Mid Autumn Festivals 2008 with Verytiki Family

Takes me a while to complete my part 2 of Mid Autumn Festival XOXO….Here’s the story :

After setting up prayer’s table for the night and had our Wan Tan Mee as dinner, we proceeded to my dad’s place for the Lantern Parade. Everybody is ready for the parade. Click click click….photo taking session again for me, my cute niece Xian Huey and my 1st bro “Fong”. I didn’t know that photo taking is our family’s gene.

The kids have grown up so fast and they are not so keen in carrying lanterns but playing with fire. The have great fun playing with fireworks as well as burning dry leaves, sticks and paper lanterns. My poor eldest sister-in-law Tong Tong ended up carrying all the lanterns and bags for the kids. My 3rd sis-in-law Kathy's job is to make sure all the lanterns are lighted up.

The night had to end early as my niece Charlene is having her exams so does Supercute. We headed home for our prayers. Click click click …..again. Pictures were taken.

Supercute and Black Ninja wanted to make the night special by arranging a mysterious gift in the balcony. They forbided all the adults to enter the balcony. After 20 minutes, we were allowed to enter. What a great surprise. They arranged a big heart shape on the floor using tea candles. It’s really beautiful and so romantic. Boys, you did it again. You make us proud with your brilliant creativity.

We ate the yogurt mooncake before we call it a night. I like to try exquisite mooncakes besides the traditional ones. The mooncakes are special mooncakes – yogurt flavour, lemon greentea, sesame, lotus, jelly, yam and curry. Not to worry Pebbles, We had reserve all except the yogurt for you and UR. We shall continue the feast on Saturday.

Nuffnang Free Movie Ticket - Babylon A.D.

Many thanks to my beautiful niece Charlene for introducing me to Nuffnang. I've been in Adsense programme for sometime but she told me last night that Nuffnang (an advertising programme where bloggers can generate income when their visitors visit their blog-CPM or view the advertisement on their blog-CPC) is generating steady pocket money for her in S$. Hm......$$$$.....I love $$$$$....Hahaha....

I gave it a try today and managed to joint the scheme. To my surprise, they have many interesting events and contest that I can join. Currently they have collaborate with 20th Century Fox movies to give away movie tickets of Babylon A.D. Ofcourse, I'll not miss the oppotunity.



I'm always interested in reading/watching sci-fi story and movie since the age of 4. I'll not give this show a miss for sure.

Friends, wish me good luck to win the tickets. If you do not wish me it's ok, just buy me the movie ticket !!!! Wahaha......Cheers.

Zion Road Hawker Center – Double Happy Bah Kut Teh & More

Advance booking was done on Saturday night with my eldest bro “Fong” and 3rd bro “Song” to have lunch with my dad on Lantern Festivals today (14.09.2008). My lovely and cute 3rd sister-in-law (Kathy) will be present too (my bro Song and Kathy station in Penang). My second brother “Sun” is not a fan of Bah Kut Teh and he gives it a miss.

We met in our regular spot, Zion Road Hawker Center, in the afternoon for lunch. My dad is a fan of Double Happy Bah Kut Teh (双喜肉骨茶). We become close friends with the stall owners since 20 years back while they were in Hill Street Hawker Center (already extinct). The stall is run by Ba Kut Teh Uncle, Auntie and their 2 sons. They are very friendly people. It’s like going to friends’ house for lunch. So warm and so loved. Never short of laughters.

As usual, we ordered steaming BKT in clay pot, vegetables, extra toppings of seaweeds, livers, intestine and pig skin (good supplement for our collagens). Their rice is something that I would highly recommend as it is charcoal cooked. I can’t express with words. You just need to try the difference. The nice aroma and texture will let you fall in love with rice. You can just eat it plain. We are always served with rice looks like Fuji Mountain.

Greedy us always order extra dishes…….deep fried dumplings from the store along side with Double Happy BKT – the Hao Bei stall (华北). The crispy dumplings are crispy outside and juicy inside. Serve with vinegar and ginger chili dip. How can anybody resist ? The stall order is a chubby uncle who likes to disturb my Princess. They all adore her and at times give her free dumplings. Hahaa….

Fried Kuay Tiao (at the corner) is a must to try. I don’t remember the name of the stall but you can never miss as they always have queue. Not many fried kuay tiao fried with leek (韭菜) and they did. It is so Teo Chew and so authentically prepared.

The opposite stall selling Xiao Wan Tang (hot pot seafood soup with noodles) is Supercute’s favorite. Not only the soup is delicious but they serve on pot with wax candles to keep the soup warm.

Black Ninja and Roselle ordered chicken rice (along side with BKT) as usual. They ordered white chicken plus lemon chicken rice. The uncle too become Black Ninja’s friend.

My eldest bro is vegetarian. He brought along his own food from another Malay coffee shop in Zion Road just around the corner of Zion Road Hawker Center.

There’s one stall selling Cheng Tng dessert which is running by an old uncle. His stall is on the same stretch with Hot Pot Soup stall. His Cheng Tng is so famous that many came all the way from as far as Changi and Woodland. However, due to his funny character, he has not many friends and at times shouted at customers. Even though, people still comes to him and forgive him. As usual, he is also our close friend. I don’t know why all the people there seems very friendly. Perhaps my dad is very good in building relationship with people for his direct character. Good or bad, he will just tell directly without fear of offending. That gets him many friends I guess.

As usual, I took many many pics and Black Ninja did the same. He manage to took some pics of “crocodile” in the river (Singapore River) next to the Hawker Center. I’ve posted the pics in my slide show. Take a good look :P

Tummy big big liao. My dad made us Chinese Tea with combination of Green Tea and Da Hong Pao tea. You cannot find it else where. The taste will stays and smoothen your throat. ET bought sweet pineapples as closing ceremony to conclude the day.My dad’s good friend Uncle Yuan pop by for ET’s pineapples. He stays nearby and will pop by when he knows we are there.

Time to leave and looking forward to meet again in the evening for our Lantern Carrying Ceremony. I’m wondering will the kids be enjoying carrying the lanterns or the adults.

Mooncake Festivals Eve 2008

Supercute, Princess and Roselle stayed over in Sunny Gong Gong’s house last night and had a wonderful lunch and cycling session today in East Coast. They returned as 3 red cooked lobsters.

It’s eve of mooncake festival and we had a pre-holiday party with my best kaki Pebbles and UR. We had steamboat dinner with oyster egg omelettes and steam crabs. Pebbles bought delicious Indian rojak. The spicy gravy is simply heaven when dip with fresh onions. The oysters were marvelous and the crabs were sweet. Roselle, ET and I are oyster lover. I’m already dreaming of going for oyster buffet……drooling drooling…..

UR came later part of the evening for he needs to work. I did propose him to take mc as there’s early kickoff of Manchester United vs Liverpool soccer match. Luckily he didn’t listen to my evil advice cos the match turns out to be a disappointment.

Our devils scored first goal and ET was cheering with excitements. However, Wes Brown give present to Liver Pool with own goal. Sigh…..without Roselle’s darling Ronaldo, MU seems straggling. Weak mid-field and bad luck (it’s 13th…..13 is unlucky number), MU loose the game.

Anyway, we cheered ourselves up Pebble’s mini-pastries bought from Four Leaves Bakery, Maria’s Homemade Jelly Mooncakes and Coffee Latte. With our overfed chubby bodies, we proceeded to the room for The Mummy movie starring Michelle Yeoh, Jet Li and Brendan Fraser. It’s more like kiddy show and big kids like us enjoy it.

HOMEMADE OTAH

My kids love otah. They use to buy it from some a Malay uncle near my house who is selling it on his mobile stall. It’s not cheap take into consideration of the portion. So, one day I told my kids, “Hey kids. Your mum knows how to do it. Fresher, tastier and most of all……cheaper.”

The best is to use oily fish like mackerel. If you wish to be innovative, you can also try other fish like tuna, sardine, salmon, etc. When you have excess fishes in your fridge and you are tired of frying or steaming, try doing otah with it.

What you need :
Mackerel fish – 200gm (Mince into fish paste)
Corn Flour – 3 tablespoon
Sambal Chilli – 3 tablespoon (if you like it spicy, you can add more)
Oyster Sauce – 1 teaspoon

Place all the ingredients in a bowl and mix well. There after, you can either steam it, bake it or BBQ it.

(A) Steam :
Put all your otah mixture on a plate.
Boil some water in your wok, place a metal stand and place your plate on top.
Cover it and steam for about 10 minutes.

(B) Bake :
Place your otah on greased aluminium foil and wrap it up firmly.
You may pack them in about 10 wraps.
Preheat your oven (not microwave oven of course) 220 degree C
Place all the otah warp into the oven and bake them for 10 minutes

(C) BBQ :
The most authenticable way is to wrap them in banana leaves.
Place the otah mix in the center of banana leaves and faster with
toothpicks at both end.
BBQ them on charcoal for 5 - 10 minutes depends on how strong
the fire is.



(In the above slide show, I Steam the otah. We serve the otah with Chicken Soup Macaroni top with Japanese spices. My sons love potato chips. Thus, I let them have it as a side dish. Funny right. Anyway, they love it.)

Tips :
For busy people like me….Hmm…..actually busy is only an excuse. Lazy is the reason :P
You may consider getting fish paste from supermarket where they sell such paste for making fish balls. As for Sambal chilli, you can also get it off the racks. It comes in many varieties and brands. You can find them in bottles and packets. You can also get it from wet market where there are stall selling pre-mixed spices.

If you wish to mix your own house brand sambal chili, you can make it with onion, turmeric, galangal, chili, balachan, garlic, buah keras and lemon grass. (haha…troublesome isn’t it ?) I skip this. Yeah…

I like to add some surprises in my otah. Sometime, I’ll add some squid, prawn or crab meat. My preference is squid but my kids prefer prawn and crab stick.

If you are not sure whether the otah is cooked, you can use toothpick or satay stick to test by poking it into the otah. If it comes out clean, your otah is done.

It’s very simple and I’m sure, you will do it again and again after your first try.

Fruity Prawn Salad

Ingredient :
One Canned of Mixed Cocktail Fruit
250g of Fresh Prawn
Coleslaw (I prefer Kraft Coleslaw)

Cook prawn, deshell and halved it. Drain syrup off the canned cocktail fruit. Place cocktail fruit into a nice plate and lay the prawns nicely on the fruit. Chill them in the fridge till ready to serve.
Upon arrival of your hungry guests, squeeze coleslaw on the salad and serve them with pride. You may light a candle and place it on the salad, dance or march your way to the dinning table ;-)
There’s no secret to this recipe. Just Serve Cold.

In Search of USB Cable for Camera

I have been pushing ET to source for me a USB cable so that I can upload my pics taken from the digital camera (Panasonic Lumix DMC-F7) which I rob it from him. The camera does not come with a cable. So, it’s his job to look for one !!!!! Kekeke….

It’s a beautiful Sunday morning and we decided to give it a try to search from Sim Lim Square for the cable. Princess, Jo and Supercute tag along. Black Ninja choose to stay at home for his favorite PC game. Princess was so happy and dressed up like an angel.

We searched the whole building but in vain. They do not sell cable. What a disappointment. There’s no choice but to go for alternative….Card Reader. Managed to get a All-In-1 Card Reader/Writer for less then S$20.00.

It’s almost 3pm and we headed to the food court for lunch. The Indian food stall is surprisingly good. They serve good Garlic Nan with Mutton and Samosa. Jojo tried Shanghai Cha Jiang Mian. It’s delicious too. Supercute had his favorite chicken rice, dumplings and Dao Suan (cos his nick name in school is Dao Suan).

Guess what I was busy with the whole afternoon after returning from Sim Lim ? Downloading and organizing all my pictures !!!! Yeah !!!!!

Bak Kut Teh, Moon Cake, Tea & Prawn Salad

It was another lovely weekend I enjoyed with my family and friends. I was rather sick with unbearable headaches yesterday (Saturday) and I prayed hard to god to let me recover so that I can enjoy the evening. As usual, god granted my wish. Thanks god, thanks Baba (Sri Sathya Sai Baba)….my spiritual teacher.

ET has displayed his culinary skill and prepared delicious Bak Kut Teh with winter melon, vegetables and golden mushrooms. Verytiki Prawn Salad and UR crackers were the kid's favorite. The recipe of Prawn Salad is rather simple. I’ll post it in a separate blog post under “RECIPE Salad”.

After dinner, Pebbles and I were so busy taking pictures of the moon cakes she bought from Holiday Inn Atrium. I was busy exploring different lightings and angles (what to do, when camera is no good, I’ve to practice my skill to compromise. Haha…), while Pebbles was busy arranging the slices of moon cake on the plate. Nobody was allowed to taste the cake till we were done. Supercute was complaining but, sorry son, the moon cake did taste better when you wait. Don’t you think so ? Indeed, it taste marvelous. Soft, smooth and not too sweet. It blended so well with a hot cup of Japanese Green Tea (玄米茶)

No EPL for the night !!!!! Have to wait till next Saturday. Glory Glory Man United !!!!! See you next week (13.09.08). Can’t wait to see how you are going to trash Liverpool. No soccer…….it’s ok…..Pebbles manage to superseded with volleyball. I guess she enjoy playing with princess : P

Marina Square & Tan Kim Seng (陈金声) Fountain

It’s end of the week and it’s time to pamper myself and my family. ET proposed a night out in search of good food. We had chosen Marina Square.

We parked our vehicle near Padang so that we can enjoy a slow walk and introduce my kids to Tan Kim Seng(陈金声) Fountain near Esplanade Park. The fountain was built to commemorate Mr. Tan Kim Seng’s contribution toward Singapore’s first public waterworks. I had been there almost every Saturday with my family when I was a kid, as small as my princess daughter now. We would visit Satay Club near by for the fantastic satay and chandol/ice kachang dessert, play catching around the fountain and hide and seek in the World War Two monument near by.

After a short history briefing, we headed to Marina Square. On the way there, we passed by an underpass which link to MRT station. There are so many young people dancing and playing skating. They dance so well that we almost wanted to join them. We drop the idea as we are very hungry.

We proceeded to Marina Food Loft on 4th flour. It is a well designed food court that holds a perfect mix of international food stalls. It has stalls selling local dishes, Japanese, Korean, Indian, Hong Kong, Western cuisine at reasonable prices. You may choose to enjoy your food in air-condition or waterfront seats. We had chosen the open-air tables where we can enjoy a panoramic view of Esplanade waterfront with soft pipe music. We ordered our favorite food. There’s Korean Hot Plate Chicken for me, Dim Sum for ET, Korean Grill Fish for Jojo, Japanese Bento for Black Ninja, Japaness Tempura Bento for Supercute, Satay, Sotong with nice Juices and Tea to go along with. The chicken satay and sotong are thumbs up. The food were so marvelous that we ended up digging into each other’s plate. For a moment, we thought we were on vacation in Spain as it is playing Spanish Instrumental music while we were enjoying our food. It’s our best food court experience we ever have.

After the sumptuous food, we started gallivanting around the square. ET enjoyed updated himself with latest sound systems where my kids, Jo and I were stuck in the children’s corner. We ended up playing swing and slide together with our princess. We had great fun.

The night was ending and we are tired else we can continue with karaoke in KBox, bowling in SuperBowl or night movies in Golden Village. Next time perhaps.

Roselle Flower洛神花 (Luo Shen Hua)

My family and I like to try unique things especially food. Two weeks ago, while doing my routine shopping for grocery in NTUC Fair Price super mart, a packet of red beautiful looking flowers (fruits) caught my eyes. It is displaying on the fridge racks. They are Fresh Roselle Fruits. I’ve bought dried Roselle flowers but not fresh Roselle fruits. I grab it immediately.

Not knowing what to do with fresh fruits. Not knowing if I should cut it out to eat, smash it to make a paste for my bread, extract the juice or boil it with water like what I've did for the dried flowers. I seek help from Wikipedia and flipping some books from library. Here’s what I’ve found :

The Roselle (Hibiscus sabdariffa)
It is a species of hibiscus. It is an annual subshrub growing to 2-2.5m tall and takes about six months to mature. China and Thailand are the largest producers. It is a relatively new crop and industry in Malaysia (Terengganu state). Surprisingly, Singapore is also growing in Organic Farm. The one I bought is actually grown in Singapore. Best of all, it is Organic too.

The LEAVES are deeply 3-5 lobed, 8-15cm long arranged alternately on the stems.
The FRUITS are harvested fresh, and their calyces are made into a drink rich in vitamin C and anthocyanins.

The FLOWERS are 8-10cm in diameter, white to pale yellow with dark red sport at the base of each petal. It has a Calyx at the base about 1.5-2cm wide and turns bright red as fruit matures. Calycus are normally dried and use to make ice and cool roselle drink.

USES :
Roselle, has been used in folk medicine as a mild laxative, and treatment for cardiac and nerve diseases and cancer. In Europe and America, calyx is use as food colouring. . In Africa the flower tea is use as a tea to relief cough. In Thailand it is use as a tea to reduce cholestrol. This drink is particularly good for people who have a tendency, temporary or otherwise, toward water retention.

In France the green leaves are used like a spicy version of spinach to give flavour to fish and rice dish. In Myanmar the leaves are main ingredient in making Chin Baung Kyaw Curry. The heated leaves can be applied to cracks in the feet and on boils and ulcers to speed maturation.

What I’ve done with my kids :

RECIPE :

1) TEA :

200g roselle fruits (The packet I bought from NTUC Fairprice is 200g per pack at S$2.80/pack)
2 – 3 liters water
Some rock sugar to taste (Cane sugar is equally good)
Cooking time : Abt 8 – 10 minutes

In Africa it is commonly sold in the street where people use to make it into sugary herbal tea. Put the roselle and water in a pot and bring it to a boil for 8 to 10 minutes or till water turns red (don’t have to cut the fruit). Then, add sugar. Drink as floral tea. You can also combine with Chinese tea leaves in the ratio of 1 : 5 (Roselle Tea : Chinese Tea).

2) BEER :

Combine the Roselle tea with beer. It gives a fruity berry/current taste beer.

3) COLD BEVERAGE :

Boil dried flowers for 8 to 10 minutes (or until the water turns red), then adding sugar. Served chilled. You can mix with mint leaves, dissolved menthol candy, and/or various fruit flavors or juice. Alternatively, you can add Soda into the tea to make it a fantastic carbonated beverage.

4) JELLY / AGAR AGAR :

Just add Roselle juice to your jelly/jam/agar agar recipe. It will have a taste very similar to Black Current candy like Ribena.

5) ROSELLE JAM :

Ingredients :
1 kg apples, washed and chopped
200g roselle flowers (don’t have to cut)
1.50 liter water
75g sugar per 100ml liquid

Put the roselle, chopped apple and water in a pot and bring it to a boil for 20 – 30 minutes until the apples are very soft. Drain the liquid into a bowl (use clean filter bag or cloth). Do not squeeze the filter/bag as this will make the jelly cloudy). Just set aside and let it drip by itself. It will take a while, just be patient. You may leave it overnight and let it drip by itself till the next morning.

Discard the fruit and flowers. (You can use the apple for apple pie or apple fruit bar if you wish). Measure the liquid to determine amount of sugar use (75g of sugar per 100ml of fluid. Place juice in saucepan, heat up and add sugar. Stir well till sugar dissolved. Cook rapidly and bring to boil for another 15 minutes.

Test if the jelly is done by scoping a little of jelly out from the saucepan, place on a clean plate or saucer and place it in the fridge (while the rest of the jelly is still cooking in the saucepan). If a skin like texture is form, the jelly is ready. If not continue boiling and testing. Place the jelly in sterilized jar. Allow to cool and store.

This Blog Post is specially dedicated to my lovely Water Retention Friend......Pebbles !!!!

Roselle helps water retention.

NON BAKE PEACH CHEESE CAKE

The Cheese Cake Picture looks familiar ?? Yes, I posted it in my earlier blog post when we had it as a Singapore National Day Birthday Cake on our national day celebration. I've been receiving some requests for sharing the recipe of my Non Bake Peach Cheese Cake. It's easy to prepare and save you some trouble of baking. Kids can do it so why don't you give it a try.


INGREDIENTS :

The Cake :
400g Digestive Biscuits
120g Butter (melted)
1-1/2 tsp Gelatin
100ml Hot Water
1 tbsp Lemon Juice
250g Philadelphia Cream Cheese
4 tbsp Condensed Milk
1 tin Evaporated Milk – Chilled overnight

The Top Decoration :
1/2 Peaches (sliced)
2 tbsp Gelatin Dissolved with little Hot Water

METHOD :

1. Crush biscuits into fine crumbs. Mix the crumbs with melted butter in a mixing bowl. Mix well and press crumb mixture into a 9” baking tin to form a firm and even crust. Chill for 2 hours while making the filling

2. Dissolve 1-1/2 tsp gelatin with hot water. Stir in the lemon juice and put aside.

3. Mix cream cheese and condensed milk well.

4. Whip the chilled evaporated milk until thick and combine with the gelatin mixture and (3). Beat till the mixture is smooth. Pour filling into crust and decorate with sliced peach. Pour the dissolved 2tbsp gelatin over the cheese. Chill overnight to set.

TIPS :

1) I prefer to line the tin with aluminum foil before pressing the crumb into the tin for easy removal. It’s not necessary but I prefer as it’s really very easy when removing the cake from the tin.
2) I add extra peach cubes into the cake to give it an extra peach flavor and it looks prettier and colorful when you present slice cake to your guess.

3) You may wish to use Oleo biscuits if you like to add some chocolate flavor into your every bite. Digestive biscuits are preferred as it will compliment the light and fruity cheese cake.



4) I actually freeze it at times and serve it as ice-creme. My kids really love their cheesy ice-creme. Best of all, it's calcium rich.

4) Be creative by changing the fruits to Kiwi, Strawberries, Blue Berries or any seasonal fruits of your choice.

Saturday…The Feasting Day

Saturday is a day I look forward to as I’ll be meeting Gong gong, Uncle R and Auntie Pebble :P to enjoy lots of laughter, chatting and Makan makan. All of us love desserts with good coffee. We had steam boat last Saturday for dinner and Roselle drink to aid our digestion. Recipe and in formations on Roselle Flowers/Fruit will be published soon in my blog.

After dinner, ET and UR decided to go for a stroll in search of desserts. They bought Dao Suan, Ice Jelly with cocktail fruits and Cheng Tng. My son said he must eat Dao Suan as his classmates give him a nick name Dao Suan. So, I took a pic of him “Dao Suan” eating “Dao Suan”.

I bake Apple Pie in the afternoon eagerly waiting to share with UR, AP and GG. That’s my first try of a new recipe given to me by a friend. I did some research on Internet trying to improve and make it my version of Verytiki Apple Pie. I’ll put up the recipe soon in my blog under “Recipe Cake”. Check it out then.

Coincidentally TS bought a box of apple pies too. Too bad, if TS and I didn’t fall asleep, we will have our apple pie as supper. I had them in the next morning as breakfast instead. Guess who’s apple pie taste better ??????......Verytiki Apple Pie lah !!!!!! Still need to ask de meh ?????

Don't complain that I'm boastful. I'm just very me....VeryTIKI ;p

Tiong Bahru Park

Ring Ring……my phone rang on a relaxing Friday night. It’s my dear nephew Xian Wen requesting for my permission to stay over at my place with his sister Xian Hui. Of course they are always welcome to enjoy their weekend with Supercute, Black Ninja and Princess as they had just completed their CA term examinations.

All the boys are having fun with computer games and the girls were playing imagination slide by stacking up pillows and resting a mattress on it to form a tilting slide. They are all having a wonderful fun time and seem to me that they were not going to sleep for the entire night. To encourage them to have an early rest, I proposed to have morning exercise on the following day in Tiong Bahru Park. They agreed to wake up at 6.30am and went to bed immediately.

Tiong Bahru Park had been around for as long as I can remember. I used to have morning walk on Saturday morning with my parents and brothers as early as 6.30am. After the walk, we would proceed to a small stall selling half boiled eggs, toasts and coffee on a little hill in the park. Those were the days…..the happy days. The small stall was no longer there and replaced by a pyramid like stage in activity area. The pyramid is for instructors to play music and show visitors how to do their exercises.

Today, it is face-lifted by introducing Gan Eng Seng Secondary with a nice soccer field, good route for jogging, fitness corner, large open fields, central playground, sandpit and activity area where you can find many early birds gathering early in the morning (6.30am) doing aerobic dance, line dance, Qi Gong, Sword Art, etc. You can find people of different age range doing exercise and jogging. Girls, if you want to see muscular men, go to the fitness corners hahahaa…….Old Aunties, if you want to see handsome uncles, go to the activity area.. haaaaa…..Oops…sorry. It’s just a joke.

TB Park is very near to Tionh Bahru Plaza. It’s at the corner of Lower Delta Road, Henderson road near Tiong Bahru Road. There’s a small car park in the park. However, you can rarely find cars parking there cos most of the people walk there. Here’s the full detail location of TB Park : Tiong Bahru Park

As for the Scenery and Surroundings, you can find many Palm trees providing shades for the visitors. Shelters are distributed evenly and ample sitting benches can be found. I love seeing senior uncles and aunties sitting around on the benches chatting happily. That’s how life should be isn’t it ?

Why go to a gym when you have TB Park ? Their fitness corner is simple but good. You can do your warm up and stretching before your jogs. You can find foot massage stone walkers too. I have a friend who is wheelchair born. He told me that TP Park’s toilet is wheelchair accessible. How wonderful.

I personally love the serenity of the pond with wooden bridge and exotic plants along the pond. I found some berry trees in the park near the pond. I do not know if they are edible but the flowers and berries are beautiful.
Not to worry about your post exercise meal. There are many easy accessible eating places like Tiong Bahru Plaza, Tiong Bahru Market, Red Hill Market, Bukit Ho Swee Market etc. All within walking distance.
My niece, nephew and kids had a great time playing swing, spinning wheels, sliding, swinging, climbing in the wooden fun train in sandpit central playground. There after, we proceed to Mcdonald for breakfast in Tiong Bahru Plaza to conclude the morning fun.