I must remind myself not to overeat... or else I will become like that... AGAIN

6 months ago... when I was doing my internship... my weight INCREASED DRASTICALLY to 79.9kg.

I must remind myself not to overeat during CNY...or else I will become AH BUI again.This picture will serve as a reminder...SOH KIAN HUAT, remember!

兔年好Lobang *Bonus* - 翁清海来拜年! Vincent sends his CNY greetings!

*this post is linked to fifth avenue


独家！Vincent Ng sends his CNY greetings to our fifth avenue readers!



Next Monday and Thursday, we will be uploading some martial exercises which may help to burn off your excess calories from CNY! Catch Vincent's exclusive interview as he shares with you his latest happenings, difficulties he has met in setting up his martial arts school - Wufang, and highlights you can find in his latest edition of his fitness book!

Fifth Avenue team wishes our readers a Happy Chinese New Year. 兔年行好运！

Reunion Dinner with NTU Hall 14 老人 club - Binjai Park Peperoni Pizzeria

We declared ourselves as the Hall 14 老人 club... but in our heart, is full of vibrance and youth. If you were there with us, I think you will agree that we are the noisiest bunch. But I'm sure we brought liveliness to the restaurant. ;)


This 21inch pizza is definitely bigger than my head. Yea... I know I have big head. I think 2 or 3 times bigger lah...haha!


Junyue and Ben Lum proving to you this pizza is HUGH.
The China boy cum Xinseh-to-be Yixia(right), together with my roomie Dennis(left)... actually is ex-roomie lah. Cos I rented my hall to him liao...


Gatherings are always full of gossips, yea...JUICY gossips. Whose the 男女主角? Hmm， for us to know... for you to find out!


我们是不老的传说...


The ladies... from left, Serena, Daphne, Geri, Meixian, Huiyee


The handsome guys... haha.
Left, 2nd row: Yongyang, Yixia, Justin, Weiyong,Joseph, Darius
Left, 1st row: Dave, Dennis, Chun Hern, Ben Lum, Junyue, Myself, Clement, Desmond


We are the BANG BANG BANG group. lol...

朋友. 新年快乐. 万事如意. =)

Fab Five Fri...Saturday

Once again I'm playing along with Frizzy at Heaven's Gift for Fab Five Friday.

I'm sharing five photos that I took during the week. I encourage you to click the link and visit Frizzy's blog. While you're there, check out the photos that the other participants have posted.

This photo of a pretty pink rose was taken in my backyard. I mentioned last week that I love flowers, and roses are my all time favourite. I also mentioned that I'm not much of a gardener. Unfortunately, my rose bushes have to make do without the proper pruning and feeding that they need to do their best. They do, however, still look beautiful in the summer.

This is my dog Lucy. I've taken lots of photos of her because she's just so adorable! She's 9 months old and a Spoodle (Cocker Spaniel cross Miniature Poodle). Aww... aint she cute :)

I spent part of Australia Day at the beach. For those of you who aren't familiar with Australia Day, I could write a whole post about it, and I won't try and give you an Australian History lesson today. Suffice to say that it's a public holiday marking the arrival of the first convicts to Australia and, coming at the end of the summer holidays as it does, is a "last hurrah" for fun in the sun before the school year starts and the country gets down to business.

This is my gorgeous boy Josh, all ready to jump into the surf on Australia Day.

In the centre of this photo is my beautiful girl Alana. My hubby Chris is in the foreground.

The "other Aussie flag". The surf lifesavers play such an important part in keeping everyone safe at the beach.

The red and yellow flags mark the area of the beach that is safe for swimming, and are an iconic Aussie image.

I hope you've enjoyed my photos this week, and again encourage you to visit Frizzy and check out the other participants.

Quotes of Inspiration

Fat Ass Friday and my take on The Biggest Loser.

I can't even pretend that I worked on weight loss this week. I didn't. But you know what? I don't feel bad about myself, or guilty, because I know that I don't eat excessively and my diet is generally healthy.

Watching promos of The Biggest Loser's new season is a real eye-opener. This season the trainers have to spend a week living with the people that they are going to be working with, and they must EAT THEIR FOOD. ALL OF IT. And it's horrifying to see what these people eat. They go through the drive-through at McDonalds THREE TIMES A DAY. They eat whole tubs of icecream covered in chocolate sauce and lollies for dessert FIVE TIMES A WEEK. They have their own special recipe for creamy pasta that involves whole cartons of cream AND sour cream. What the hell???

Of course these people are significantly overweight, unhealthy and lack energy. Of course with a few weeks of healthy eating and exercise, the weight will fall off them. And good for them. In exchange for personal training and support with nutrition they are putting their lives on the television screen for all to see in the name of entertainment. They deserve to have great outcomes.

But it also makes me a little bit cranky. It seems so unfair. I don't eat anything like these people. I stick to three meals a day with healthy snacks. I eat regular food - fruit and veg, breakfast cereal, sandwiches, casseroles and the like. I like a glass of wine with dinner, and I'm partial to a hazelnut latte. I can honestly say that I take care to get the nutrients that I need and don't eat too many foods with "empty calories" - foods that have lots of fat and sugar but don't provide any nutrients. I walk the dog every day, swim once a week, and practice tai chi. So why do I look alarmingly similar to some of the (admittedly smaller) biggest losers?

So, what are your eating habits like? Please don't gloat if you are one of those annoying types that can eat whatever they want and stay slim. Have you unlocked any secrets that help the metabolism to ramp up and burn those calories? Is running the answer? Lots of protein? Cutting carbs? And do you enjoy watching The Biggest Loser?

If you'd like to participate in Fat Ass Friday then click on the button at the top of the post and play along!

兔年好Lobang (6) - Learn more about your New Year snacks Part 2

Chinese New Year is just 1 week away! This article, Fifth Avenue will be bringing you more recipes such as Kuih Bolu and Kuih Lapis! Also, you will get to see how Bak Kua is made!

Let's start the ball rolling with Kuih Bolu!



Recipe: Kuih Bolu

Ingredients:

3 eggs
1 cup sugar
1 1/4 cup flour (sifted)
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
1/4 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
2 tablespoons cooking oil/butter (optional)

Method:

1.Beat the eggs with an electric hand-mixer until frothy and then add sugar.
2.Continue to beat until the sugar is well dissolved and the mixture becomes sticky.
3.Add in the vanilla essence and fold in the flour gradually and then add in the cooking oil/butter.
4.Continue to beat the batter with the hand-mixer until well-blended.
5.Grease the kuih Bolu moulds and fill up to the surface level.
6.Bake in preheated oven at 375 degree Fahrenheit for about 15 minutes or until golden brown.
7.Remove Kuih Bolu from the moulds and cool on wire racks. Dust with powdered sugar, if desired.

Cook’s Note:
The traditional kuih bolu recipe doesn’t call for cooking oil or butter, but the auther find them a tad too dry. Adding the cooking oil/butter makes the kuih bolu comes off the mould easily. Also, as you can see, the kuih bolu are over baked because the author had lost track of time. They should be light brown in color.



Next, let's take a look at Kuih Lapis!



Kuih Lapis Recipe

Ingredients:

12 oz butter
2Tbsp condensed milk
20 eggs yolks
5 oz icing sugar
2 oz superfine flour, sifted with
1.5 tsp all spice
2 Tbsp brandy (optional)

Method :

1. Lined and greased a 6 inch cake pan. Preheat oven at 380 degrees Farenheit.
2. Beat butter and condensed milk till smooth. Leave aside.
3. In another bowl, beat the egg yolks and icing sugar till pale and thick.
4. Fold butter into egg yolk mixture.
5. Lastly, fold in sifted flour in 2 batches until combined. Add brandy.
6. Turn the oven to grill function. Put cake pan into oven for 1 minute.
7. Put a small ladle ( about 2.5 oz) batter into pan and spread evenly. Bake for 5 minutes or till the top is brown.
8. Remove from oven and and scoop the same amount of batter for the second layer. Repeat the same process.
9. After you have finished the last layer, turn the oven to bake function. Cover top of the cake with aluminium foil and bake for another 5 to 10 minutes.
10. Remove and cool on wire rack.



Next, we will take a look at how Bak Kua is made... this video was actually featured last year in Omy.sg 《体验36》-- 烤肉干考诚意， with Sieyen as the voice-over, and myself experiencing the process of "烤肉干". Let's take a look at this video again!


《体验36》-- 烤肉干考诚意



Credits:
www.omy.sg
http://rasamalaysia.com/
http://nyonyafood.rasamalaysia.com/
http://www.hpb.gov.sg/

Chinese New Year with Ex-Bosch Colleagues @ Chinatown

Had a new haircut today, and was out with Bosch colleagues... brought them around Chinatown, since they are all not Singaporeans...


We really ordered lots of food...


Hokkien Mee...


Satay...


In the end... this was what we bought! Lol...shared among 4 persons... LOL!


From Left : Khun Mi, Louise, and Nui...
At the busy Chinatown...


Another... anyway, Khun Mi and Nui were from Thailand, and Louise from Malaysia.


Can you feel the CNY mood! Dong dong qiang, dong dong qiang!


This is Khun Mi and myself here. She was my superior when I was in Bosch... now's she back in Thailand Bosch. This week was her business trip in Singapore...

They are not only my colleagues, but my good mentor, good friends.

恭喜发财！

Apple Cider Vinegar

The many uses of Apple Cider Vinegar are vast and really fabulous! This is an amazing all purpose potion. I'm only going to touch on the benefits of using it for your hair and scalp, but Google ACV and you will find PLENTY of uses not to mention major health and cleaning benefits.

  Itchy and Dry Scalp

The great thing about ACV is that it has natural occurring acids and enzymes that kill the "bottle bacillus", a bacteria that is one of the causes for many scalp conditions such as dandruff, itchy scalp and sometimes hair loss. The bacteria works it's way into the hair follicle allowing dry crusts, (white flakes), to form that itch and flake and this can be embarrassing for those that suffer from dry itchy scalp.

A simple at home treatment for dandruff and itchy scalp is to apply full strength ACV to the scalp, massage in, and leave on for a half hour to an hour before shampooing your hair. Make sure to rinse your hair in cool/tepid water after shampooing and conditioning. This will ensure that your cuticle will seal itself shut promoting lots of natural shine.

For an extra strength solution, apple cider vinegar can be infused with oils such as tea tree oil which is another excellent natural anti-dandruff ingredient. Or you can add lavender which is has a calming effect on the senses.

 Vinegar Hair Rinse 
Hair and skin are on the mildly acidic side of the pH scale, 4.5 to 5.5.  Apple Cider Vinegar rinse has a pH of 2.9. On the other hand, many of the hair care products we use, such as cheap shampoos, bleach, hair color, and straighteners are way on the opposite end of the pH scale and are too alkaline for hair and skin. Over use of these products result in dullness and lack of bounce in the hair. Not to mention, these products can cause your color to fade too quickly. That is just money down the drain, LITERALLY!

Rinsing with apple cider vinegar will help reestablish the natural pH of your hair and remove the buildup that occurs over time from different product usage.

Rinsing will also close and seal the cuticle which covers and protects the surface of each hair strand. This creates a smoother surface which can be your 1st defense against frizz and add shine.

Don't worry about the slight vinegar smell you might notice after rinsing. It will disappear completely as your hair dries. And you shouldn't smell like a tossed salad :)

Make your own after-shampoo hair rinse by mixing 1/3 of a cup of ACV into a quart of water. You can store this mixture in a plastic spray bottle for better control and keep it in the shower so it's ready to go. If you would like to make a smaller batch of this vinegar/water solution, try mixing 1 tablespoon  of apple cider vinegar into 1 cup of tepid filtered tap water.

This ACV spray solution can be used once or twice a week...Or often as needed!  Let me know how it works for you and good luck on the battle against the flakes!

Xoxo,

Jaclyn

Happy Australia Day!

It's hot :(

Feeling a bit un-Australian because we're not at the beach or barbeque-ing. We are instead sitting around at home with the air conditioner on, watching TV, playing on the computer, and trying to decide whether or not to go to the beach a bit later in the afternoon when it cools down a bit. Wish we had a pool!

I'm going to use this opportunity, it being Australia Day today, to invite you to indicate your interest in participating in Beautiful Bloggers Australian Adventure House Swap. Go on! Click on the link and check it out! I'll wait...

Now that you're back, I'll tell you a bit more about what I have in mind for the House Swap. Firstly - DO NOT PANIC - by demonstrating your interest you are not going to make yourself vulnerable to me turning up on your doorstep demanding entry! You are not committing to anything!

Secondly, I want everyone to be able to join in the fun of learning about Australia, my town, and the activities of my daily life. And I want to learn about other countries too. So I'd like to run a series of blogging challenges. For example, I might write a post titled "Brisbane Water National Park" and challenge all participants to post about a place of natural beauty near their home. Or I might write "Meet the Gosford Tigers AFL Club" and challenge everyone to write about a local sporting or community club that their family is involved in. Get the idea?

Thirdly, if I get enough interest we might even be able to run a competition in which followers vote for their favourite post in each category. If there are enough people following my blog and participating we might even find some sponsers to donate items for giveaways! Yay!

Of course the idea is that once my family and the other blogger's family are safely installed in each other's houses, the blogging will continue! Imagine what amusing posts we'll be able to write about our experiences with culture shock in another country, trying the local food, meeting the people and living the life.

Lastly, I'm using my readers' interest (or lack thereof) as a guide for whether or not to go ahead with this idea. If there doesn't seem to be much interest, I will put the idea on the backburner for another time.

So, Happy Australia Day one and all, and I hope that you will give me some feedback about the house swap idea.

Happy Birthday Mummy. =)

Happy Birthday to my dearest Mum. =)
辛苦了! 多半年， 我就可以养你了！

兔年好Lobang(5) - Learn more about your New Year Cookies

This week, Fifth Avenue will be bringing you some knowledge about the common CNY goodies. Not only will we be bringing you some recipes, but we will also advice you to eat in moderation and healthily. Let’s start the ball rolling with your favorite pineapple tarts, Kuih bangkit, and Nonya Ang Koo Kueh.




Pineapple Tarts Recipe

Pineapple Filling

Ingredients:
4 large pineapples
300 g sugar
1 clove
1 inch cinnamon stick
1/2 star anise
250 g liquid glucose
2 Tbsp wheat flour or wheat starch (Tung Mein Fun)

Method:
1. Slice and grate pineapples till fine. You can use a food processor do grate it.
2. Strain the grated pineapple till dry.
3. Let it simmer in a wok toll the juice has dry up. Add sugar and, star anise, cinnamon stick and clove.
4. Stir till the pineapple has thickened and dry. Add maltose or liquid glucose.
5. Stir till the pineapple filling is thick, sticky and dry.
6. Add wheat flour. Continue to stir for about 10 minutes or until filling is dry.
7. Leave to cool and shape into small balls.

Note : You can make the filling in advance and refrigerate it.

Pastry

Ingredients:
500 g butter
140 g powdered sugar
4 egg yolks
650 g all purpose flour
1 Tbsp cornflour
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp vanilla essence

Egg Brush
1 egg yolk plus 1Tbsp water

Method:
1. Preheat oven at 150° C.
2. Cream butter and sugar till white.
3. Add in egg yolks and beat at low speed for 1 minute.
4. Fold in flour gradually.
5. Insert pastry into cookie press and press into strip of about 3 inch each.
6. Put the rolled pineapple filling onto the pastry and roll it up.
7. Brush with egg brush.
8. Bake for 30 minutes or when tarts is light golden brown in color.



Next, we take a look at Kuih Bangkit...




Kuih Bangkit Recipe

Ingredients:

1200g tapioca flour
13 eggs yolks + 2 egg whites
400g fine sugar
500g coconut milk

Method:
1. Sift tapioca flour. Fry on wok until light. It takes about half an hour to 45 minutes. Leave to cool completely.
2. Whisk eggs and sugar till thick and pale.
3. Slowly add in egg mixture into flour mixture using a spatula or hand.
4. Gradually add in coconut milk while kneading the dough.
5. Knead dough till smooth and whitish in color.
6. Dust wooden mould with tapioca flour. Put dough into mould and gently knock it out.
7. Dot the cookies with red dot if desired.
8. Bake at 180 celcius for 20-25 minutes or till cooked.

Cook’s Note:
Kuih Bangkit is cooked when the back of the cookies are slightly brown.



Last but not least... know more about Ang Koo Kueh too!



Angku Recipe

Ingredients:
Green Bean Filling
300g Split Green Bean (Washed and soaked for 6 hours)
200g Fine Sugar
4Tbsp Oil

Method:
1. Steam green bean over boiling water for 30-40 minutes till soft.
2. Blend or mashed green bean till become a paste.
3. In a wok, combine green bean paste, sugar and oil. Stir on low medium heat till thick and do not stick to your hands.
4. Cool it and shaped into 30 balls of about 20g. ( The size of filling will depend on the size of your mould).

Angku skin

Ingredients:
1/8 tsp Wilton orange coloring
200g Wheat starch ( Tung Mein Fun)
150g Water
500g Boiling Water
4Tbsp Sugar
500g Glutinous Rice Flour
100g Mashed Orange Color Sweet Potato
250g Water
120g oil

Method:
1. Mix coloring, wheat starch and water. Stir till blended.
2. Add in boiling water and mix till smooth and become translucent.
3. Add in sugar, glutinous rice flour, sweet potatoes and water gradually. Knead till combined.
4. Slowly add in oil and keep on kneading till smooth and do not stick onto your hands.

To Make Angku:

1 banana leaf, cut into rectangle to fit the angku mould
3 Tbsp oil

Method:
1. Lightly grease the cut banana leaves with oil.
2. Divide skin dough into 30 pieces. Flatten each dough into 1/4 inch thick and wrap the filling inside. Roll into a ball.
3. Lightly dust the Angku mould with glutinous rice flour. Press the dough ball into the mould and lightly knock it out.
4. Place Angku on the banana leaf.
5. Steam over boiling water for 10 minutes.
6. Brush the surface of the cooked Angku with oil to give it a glossy look.



Source:
http://nyonyafood.rasamalaysia.com/
http://www.hpb.gov.sg

Cheers to our last semester at Geylang

Was out with the MAE guys @ Geylang yesterday. Drinking at Kopitiam, supper and chilling out. From left, myself, Junyue, Wei Ze. Together with Chengsiong, Alexis and Derrick.


This bugger Junyue, can't drink. Turn red so easily and started speaking nonsense after one cup of beer. Lol...


Cheers! Let's chiong for our last sem and get ready to graduate! Woohoo!

I've decided to participate in Fab Five Friday at a blog that's new to me - Heaven's Gift. It's Saturday here at my place, but I'm not letting that stop me :)

Fab Five Friday is about sharing our top five photos for the week. So if you like taking photos, you might like to click on the link, visit Heaven's Gift, and play along too.

I don't think I actually took any photos this week, but since it's my first go at Fab Five Friday I don't think anyone will mind if I post some photos that were taken earlier.

This one is of a Gardenia and was taken in my front yard. I'm not much of a gardener, but I love any flowers with a scent and Gardenias have the most heavenly perfume. I associate the smell of Gardenias with Christmas because they bloom in summertime. This photo was taken just before Christmas.

This is the trunk of a Scribbly Gum, taken in my back yard. It was taken in the evening as the sun went down and I love the shadows and the colours where the bark is coming away.

This photo was taken just before Christmas at a beach that my kids and I like to go to. It's called The Haven because it is in a sheltered bay so is very safe for families. Because my kids are 10 and 12, I can sit under the shade of a tree sipping coffee while my kids swim, play on the sand, or explore the rockpools for starfish.

I took this photo on New Year's Eve sitting in the waterfront reserve in my town. Every New Year's they have a family-friendly fireworks display at 9pm. We got there at about 7:30pm so we could get a good position, and I took some photos as the sun went down.

This is one of my nieces, Darcy. The photo was taken a couple of weeks ago when my family and my sister's family went on holidays together. One night we got out the glow necklaces and sparklers for the kids to play with after dark. Though the photo is grainy, I just love it!

All these photos were taken on my iPhone. I don't own a camera, but my phone goes everywhere with me so I find it the easiest way to make sure I capture special moments.

Have these photos in any way inspired you with a desire to visit Australia? If so, you should check out the Beautiful Bloggers Australian Adventure House Swap. 

Quotes of Inspiration

The mystery of "the camera adds ten pounds"

I'm joining in again with Brandy for Fat Ass Friday.

Just click on the button to visit her blog and hear all about her battles with Cheddar Biscuits and Zumba in the quest for a slimmer and more shapely ass!

I'm not fully on the weight-loss bandwagon yet, but I still enjoy playing along.

I'd like to pose an interesting question: Why is it that while the mirror can lie, the photograph never does?

Do you have this experience too?

I don't know about you, but I can easily look at myself in the mirror and be fooled that I look great - certainly not overweight at all! But when I look at photos of myself I see the awful truth - I am actually overweight after all. How does this happen?

Another mind-boggling mystery for us to all meditate upon...