Howl At The Moon - 2nd July 09

It has been a very long time since I've gone clubbing on a weekday, well not that it makes any difference to me. (In fact if I want to, I could drink anytime of the day, any day! Ha) A friend of mine turned 31 yesterday and we took her to this place called Howl At The Moon at Emerald Hill. Frankly speaking, I did not know what to expect. After all, most places are so pretentious these days, and I mean both the bars and their patrons.

When I got there around 8.30pm, I was very surprised that the band(mainly Caucasian but 2 locals) was already playing. On the stage they had the usual setup; drums, guitar (?) actually I don't think there was a guitar.

In fact, the band stood out simply because they had 2 baby grands, drums, saxophone, trumpet (?) and perhaps a couple of other musical instruments. And at ALL times, the stage have 2 singers on piano singing. Towards the end of every hour, all the other band members get on stage to perform before replacing the first 2 singers on piano. This means that in order to qualify to join the band, you have to play ALL the musical instruments. How impressive is that? I met one of the guys and he told me that he learnt the piano in 8 months! They made up songs as well, rude of course.

It was very spontaneous, entertaining and engaging. This is the first club that I have been to that plays ONLY live music. The band does not take any breaks, you don't have to listen to stupid techno. Not to mention that they get patrons to play games. Birthday girl had to do crazy shot, then with another friend they had to dance to "I'm a Little Teapot," and I had to compete with 3 other people and say the phrase "Suck it to me" as many times as possible in 60 seconds. My friends had high hopes for me, unfortunately after a bottle of Cloudy Bay, my tongue was tied and I burst into laughter. This other guy was pretty good but when he said it quickly, he sounded like he was saying "sodomy." His friend went last and he was good. All he said was, "suck me suck me suck me," which was both smart and funny.

I was chatted up by a guy and when I told him that I am married, surprise surprise, he owned up to being married too. *Men*. No swapping of phone numbers, instead we were comparing our kids' photos! That's a first in a club.

I suppose we all have the most fun when we least expect it.

Red Velvet Cupcakes:

2 1/2 cups (250 grams) sifted cake flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons (15 grams) Dutch-processed cocoa powder

1/2 cup (113 grams) unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 1/2 cups (300 grams) granulated white sugar

2 large eggs

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 cup (240 ml) buttermilk (I personally find vinegar better than lemon juice)

2 tablespoons liquid red food coloring

1 teaspoon white distilled vinegar

1 teaspoon baking soda (please note baking soda, not powder!!! i made this mistake few weeks ago. it still turned out alright)

Cream Cheese Frosting:

4 ounces (113 grams) cream cheese, room temperature (i didn't bother with the rest, only cream cheese and some lemon juice)

(And the writing in yellow is simply because I ran out of other colors, and the icing ran)

4 ounces (113 grams) Mascarpone cheese, room temperature

1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1/2 cup (60 grams) confectioners' (icing or powdered) sugar, sifted

3/4 (180 ml) cup heavy whipping cream

Read more: http://www.joyofbaking.com/RedVelvetCupcakes.html#ixzz0KCzLJ73a&C

Blueberry Cheesecake Gateau

Oh it looks so heavenly, and I hope it tastes as gorgeous as it looks. Thanks Reena for the recipe. For those who are interested, you can find it on bbc.food.



Ingredients
255g/9oz self-raising flour (I made my own self raising by using cake flour mixed with b.p.+ salt)
1 tsp baking powder
225g/8oz caster sugar
225g/8oz butter (softened)
4 large eggs
1 tbsp milk

For the icing and decoration
400g/14oz light soft cheese (I used half mascarpone half cream cheese)
200 ml whipping cream which I folded into the cheese
grated zest of 2 limes and the juice of 1
110g/4oz icing sugar
225g/8oz blueberries

Method
1. Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4. Grease a deep 18cm/7in round tin, and line the base with greaseproof paper.
2. Put the flour, baking powder, sugar, butter and eggs into a large bowl and beat with an electric mixer on slow speed until everything is mixed together. Increase the speed and whisk for 2 minutes. Stir in the milk. I thought this step was a joke. What's with all the creaming stage we've learnt from baking 101???
3. Spoon the mixture into the tin and level the top, bake for 50-60 minutes, or until the centre of the cake springs back when lightly pressed, and the mixture is starting to come away from the sides of the tin. To avoid dome-like appearance, I should've separated batter into 2 separate tins. Domes are so amateurish!
4. Leave the cake in the tin for 5 minutes, then turn out on to a wire rack and leave to cool before decorating. This cake keeps in an airtight tin for 2-3 days.
5. To decorate, split into three layers.
6. Beat the cheese until soft, then beat in the lime zest, juice and icing sugar. Sandwich the cake back together with two thirds of the cheese mixture, and spread the rest on the top.
7. Arrange the blueberries in tight circles around the top of the cake, starting in the centre. Keeps for one day in the fridge. I left it under the aircon for few hours and ate it.

My Father My Hero

My earliest memory of a conversation with my father was probably when I was 5 years old. It was a sunny Saturday morning, my brothers and I were being babysat by my dearest grandma at my uncle's shophouse @ No. 3, Jalan Lumut.

Growing up with many cousins, there was peer pressure and there was a need to be like everyone else. My female cousins from my mother's side of the family are all very petite and pretty. I stood out as I looked very different from them, and in terms of size, they refer to me as fat. So I probably worried that I was not pretty like the rest of them.

That morning, when my father came to visit us (my father's shop is opposite my uncle's shop), I asked my father if I was pretty. My father told me that being pretty is not important. He said, "Being smart is so much more important than being pretty."

I thank my father for his wisdom, foresight and most of all, for being my father.

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY MY DEAR HUBBY!

Today is our first year wedding anniversary. Unfortunately, I am alone here in my kampung still waiting for my baby while my hubby is flying to Beijing for work this afternoon. He has been very sweet, wanting to cancel his trip so that he could be here with me. But I have already assured him that I can cut the umbilical cord by myself. :)

Did you know that the traditional first wedding anniversary gift is paper? I suppose it does make sense. If you are given diamond / jewelry in the first year, what do you expect by your 50th wedding anniversary? A diamond mine in South Africa?

List of Traditional Wedding Gifts:-

1st Paper
2nd Cotton
3rd Leather
4th Fruit, flowers
5th Wood
6th Sugar
7th Copper, wool
8th Bronze, pottery
9th Pottery, willow
10th Tin
11th Steel
12th Silk, linen
13th Lace
14th Ivory
15th Crystal
20th China
25th Silver
30th Pearl
35th Coral
40th Ruby
45th Sapphire
50th Gold
55th Emerald
60th Diamond

Happy Birthday Dave!

Our dear family doggy is 2 years old today. Although he is not really handsome or cute, but he is very endearing.

Biodata

Name : Dave Dunmore Kirby

DOB : 12th May 2006

Breed : Boxer

The most surprising thing about Dave:

Most people presume from his looks that he's fierce, but he is the most cowardly dog I have ever had. Think Scooby Doo.

What Dave likes:

Run in the park.

What I dislike about Dave:

Suck up to my hubby and completely ignore me whenever I ask him (not) to do something.