Colour me Tuesday: Turquoise

Legit

"Is there an illegal version of it?"

Wen asked.


The conversation started "I thought you were making kuih lapis as in the 9 layer kuih with red pink and white stripes! Say la it's Sunflower* cake"

The sentence before was actually "It's call Kuih lapis Legit". And hence Wen's reaction of the illegal version.


*Sunflower cake is a brand that sells only kuih lapis Sarawak, which taste like heaven and cinnamon together, moist and fattening, just the kind we love. And one fine day the bakery at Uptown decided to vanish into thin air, leaving heaven no longer a place on earth. But hope is still there when there is a hungry kid with the time to spare, a little patience and 20 egg yolks.


It was Raya and all I can think of is kuih lapis (the sunflower version, not pink red stripe_ and prior to that one of my friend gave me a small loaf of Nescafe kuih lapis, but nothing taste as good as the original flavour. And so I went in search for Kuih Lapis Legit recipes. Recipe adapted from MadBaker, but I changed it a little. Instead of 340g of sugar I used about 290grams (and it taste alright, not too sweet!) and for the mixed spice I made it myself by mixing cinnamon powder (1 teaspoon), star anise (about 5) and cloves (about 12). (REMEMBER to sift your ground spices before adding into the flour!). And I double sifted my flour cause I want more air incorporated (did you know that the more you sift your flour, the less you'll need? I actually had extra 10 grams of flour after I double sift it!)

Kueh Lapis Spekkoek (legit!)

Ingredients
20 egg yolks
4 egg whites
500g salted butter
3 tbsp condensed milk
290g sugar
200g plain flour
2 tsp ground mixed spices
2 tsp vanilla essence

Method
1. Butter the base of an 8″ X 8″ X 2.5″ pan and line with baking parchment.
2. Pre-heat your oven, selecting the grill function.
3. Sift the plain flour and mixed spices together.
4. Beat the egg yolks and sugar together until pale yellow, thick and creamy
5. Cream the butter and condensed milk together until soft and fluffy. Add the creamed butter to the egg yolk mixture and mix until combined.
6. Beat the egg whites until medium firm peaks.
7. Fold in the egg whites, followed by the flour mixture into the rest of the batter.
8. Stir in the vanilla essence and rum until well-combined.
9. Spread a thin layer of batter onto the parchment paper.
10. Grill for 7 - 8 mins on the lowest rack in your oven or until lightly golden brown.
11. Remove cake pan from oven and press the baked layer down lightly with a metal fondant smoother. Prick all over the layer of cake with a toothpick.
12. Repeat steps 9 to 11 for each layer. (Optional: Add prunes on every second or third layer).
13. For the last layer, turn the oven down to 180 degrees C and bake on middle rung for 15 minutes or until golden brown.
14. Remove from oven and run a paring knife along the edges of the cake pan.
15. Turn the kueh lapis out of the pan and remove the baking parchment.
16. Flip cake back upright and let cool.

This is like my version of daring bakers challenge. You'll never know how the processes work till you try it! It was pretty tiring considering you'll need to check it every few minutes. I think it's best to preheat your pan in the oven so the batter spreads easily around. Use a scoope or measuring cup to pour into the pan to get more even layers. Mine was a little burnt cause I made a mistake by grilling the last layer first THEN I bake it for another 10 minutes or so. Also it doesn't help if you're skyping with a friend in Singapore while baking cause you get preoccupied and forgotten to check on the layers hence there were darker "lines" in certain layer cause the top was a little charred. And that's prolly the reason my cake was a little dry at the end, but I guess after leaving out for a couple of days it should be more moist and the flavour of the spices will set it more. Give it a go!!! I took about 3.5 hours to prep and bake. For easier steps, prep everything before you start mixing the ingredients, that way things will go smoothly and you won't mix up the steps. ;)

20 egg yolks, is a whole lot of cholesterol. Did I mention 500 grams of butter too? No wonder they taste so good.

Tip: for normal oven without the top bottom option (like mine) put on Grill function and what I did was place a pan at the very bottom rack to "shield" direct heat on the bottom layer, so the only the top layer is being grilled. And I've read recipes of them baking it in a waterbath, I think that's how they make it more moist, shall try it next time!! :)

Ash

note: this is no an advertorial.

Some backdated picture before I left. Heard lotsa raving reviews about Liese bubble hair dye and because I am marketers' dream come true to be so easily sold by advertisements and the little adventurer in me decided to give it a shot! I simply had no time to spare to head to Yen's and my regrowth is disgusting. I think the Hoe sisters have this thing of whenever we're leaving home for a longer period we'll need to fix our hair, because who knows what might happen (read: maybe meet a new guy and no you don't want ugly 3 inch regrowth, and no, it's no where near the ombre effect wtf)

At RM38 a pop, I'd say it's a pretty good deal (unless you get to buy at a cheaper price I hate you!). Known as the queen of DIY hairdye in the family, this is probably my 10th time or so dying my own hair so the processes were no stranger to me!

I have always wanted to get ash brown colour though the "ash" that Liese has is not the ash that I wanted, I want like more ash you get what I mean (more la la wtf). They have I think 8 different colours and I think I wanna try this purple thing shade next wtf.

Trust the Japanese to do it better. Their packaging is prettier, the gloves are better (they gave RUBBER gloves (can top as condom if you run out of it wtf) and the usual brands like Loreal, Garnier etc they give you PLASTIC gloves. -_-

The usual process, mix colourant into oxidizer liquid (they call it empty 1 into 2 haha) and INVERT it instead of shaking it vigorously. I always find it so scary that whenever I try to shake the bottle vigorously the bottle might explode or the tip of the squeezy bottle will pop open and splat all over. Then I cap on the foaming cap! Funny is you don't press to release the foam but you squeeze the bottle gently. (Reminds me of the Neutrogena foaming cleanser hahaha love that).

Apply evenly onto your hair and massage it into your hair like you're shampooing your hair.

Wait for 20-30 minutes (I did the mistake of leaving it on for 35 minutes cause I was watching drama -_- But then again the longer you leave it on the more intense your colour becomes cause your hair strands will work its magic with the oxidizer and become more damage and let it DYE (haha pun intended).




END RESULT:

sorry no picture wtf. The colour came up pretty close to what it shown on the packaging! Except that my hair was previously dyed red so there's still a tinge of red undertone to it, but I'm very satisfied with the end results!!! My hair is evenly dyed (or is it my skills? haha) and my roots were nicely covered in a slight ashy tone. LOVE IT!!!

So verdict: Get a pack if you don't have time for the salon or maybe the wallet to pay for salon coloured locks. It's actually pretty fun to dye your hair on your own just that you'll need to wear black, and avoid staining yourself case getting dye on your skin is similar to Mondays, like a bitch.

Tom Ford

Remember me mentioning about wanting to get new specs? I did! And I'm in love!!! Still need some adjusting to the new lenses (fml power increase by 0.25 on right eye, I thought my power was stabilized and was considering lasik T_T)

I think I look... a little funny, or maybe I'm not used to. Or also maybe cause I was trying it on with makeup on. You know this kinda decision you have to make with your hair up and down, fringe up and down swipe back side sweep with makeup without makeup. But then I cannot be bothered wtf. I mean it's what I've been looking for, tortoise shell, squarish frame and it's new!! hahaha I'm so superficial sometimes I mean all the time.



PS: I realise I haven't been posting pictures of myself lately =/ Don't know why but haven't been feeling... pretty. No mood to dressup, no mood to put on makeup etc. le sigh.

RELAX TAKE IT EASY

Was looking through my pictures and found these!!! AHAHAHAHAHAHA This was in 2009 when the sisters popped by Melbourne and we were having dinner at Stalactites (Greek food mm yummy baklava and souvlaki) but look at this!!!!

and damn I look kinda different right? hahaha please say yes!!!! hahahahaha

Words don't come easy

I don't know how to put this in words. Many people have asked me and wondered what I have been doing for the past few months and so many months has gone by. To be honest, I have been doing nothing. It must sound really disgusting, living off my parents, all I do is waste money (well that is all what you're concern about no? how we spend our money, really it's none of your business) and waste time cooking. I mean to me it's not a waste of time, it's something I find enjoyment in doing, past the time. And no, I have not found a job. And no I don't need you to tell me what I need to do, really, I spent most of my lives listening to what I should do, but actually what I COULD and WOULD do, is totally different from what I should do and what I wanna do. WOULDA COULDA SHOULDA whatever.


Life goes on and so here I am. I'll be taking some time off, to myself, with full support of my parents and rest of my family and my friends (well most of them don't have a choice anyway haha) and I'm going away for couple of weeks. There is a return ticket, don't worry (unless anything happens *touch wood*).

What I know is this ticket comes with a complete package that will guarantee me with unlimited time to myself (#foreveralone wtf), happiness, soul searching and maybe discover a side of me that I never know and a guaranteed lifetime experience that though money is spent to gain it, but it's something more than, way way way much more than what money can buy . It has always been a dream of mine to go away on my own, search for things that I've never seen before, discovering new routes in life, eating different weird food and delicious ones of course :P Maybe I have been too hard on myself on the whole diet fitness thing, maybe I am unsure what I want in life, maybe a break from routines is all I need.But here I don't need any of your judgments nor your support, if you hate what I'm doing, I can't do a thing, if you are here for me to show your support, I thank you in advance.

I will still be updating this site when I get the chance too, some might be scheduled, some might be impromptu, who knows? :)


I just hope this hiatus won't go on for too long, but then again, who knows how long this will take? How far will I go? Only time will tell.


All the best in your lives, come back soon, there will be updates, I promise. :) *crosses pinky*

Triple chocolate!!!

Was dad's birthday last week and decided to make triple chocolate cheese cake!!! Wanted to make like a zebra print on the inside, you know looks like stripey when you cut it open!

Made with oreo base YUM!!!

SORRY I SUCK I never take after shots!! Was too busy eating LOL but taste a bit funny and too jelak!!!


Solutions for leftover oreo's? EAT!

3 random things that happened today.

source: justlittlethings.tumblr.com

1. Didn't manage to spend more time with my family (read: supper) but in the end I sacrificed sleep for some awesome Bak Kut Teh fix. Now now if only I can have some lau sah pau mmmmmm ALSO I manage to print out pictures that I've been wanting to print and give out to friends and some just for keep's sake. I miss flipping through photo albums. I have 469 pictures printed in total and god I'm still not done sorting them out! But looking through the pictures made me noticed how much I've changed and nostalgia came flowing like Nigeria falls.
2. People actually remembers the random things I say! GOOD ON YOU MATE! Pay attention to those you are talking to next time, you never know how itty bitty details count! :)
3. Thank you to random dude with long hair and the gf for letting me go first by holding the door. I always, ALWAYS say THANK YOU louder when someone do so.

Anna Catherine

photos credit: vanessa jackman

I think I have a major girl crush on Anne Catherine. Don't know where she came from but her smile is just GORGEOUS!!!!! I'm considering chopping my hair short like hers despite my pau-like face. T___T I mean how can one make leopard print + check print work!!!?? SHE DID!!!

Love her style, her smile, her hair, her eyes, her clothes. I think I might just turn lesbian for her wtf! (sorry I'm straight, I will still dream to marry Takeshi Kaneshiro, fuck Hugh Grant/jong yong-hwa/goong yoo/song seung-hyun/top/ryan gosling/theo hutchcraft and whichever hot men I've mentioned here before hehehehe)


I mean like her style is so... nonchalant chic. "So today I feel like carrying a huge bag and wearing skirt so I put on a beret and voila!" T__T Doesn't help much that these people are born pretty and thin and lean and they can carry off any shit.

I need to rediscover my style... Haven't been having the "zen" to dress up lately but then again I've spent way too much on my "kitchen". OH WELL!