Song Lists From My Ipod

MJ Dangerous Album via

Music. Never underestimate the power of music. It can instantly change your mindset. It can evoke feelings of happiness, sadness, anger, love and it can also be a great tool for motivation and relaxation. In fact, I really think that music can amplify or bring out the positive power from within you. *Try You Tube-ing these: the happiest/most motivational/relaxing songs ever.

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Dear all,

It is time I share the song lists on my ipod as promised before. Many of these songs have been painstakingly chosen over the past 10 years - they are the best of the best, I would say. They are really the 'classics' which I will not get tired of listening to even when they are on replay mode. And there is, in fact, a song list for just about everything I do daily. For my pre-dawn brisk walks, my solo-dancing sessions, housework, driving, bus/train rides and also for the occasional relaxation/lounging/winding down at night. Yes, I am such a slave to the music [na na nae]! I am into various genres like Bossa Nova, Jazz, Classical, Oldies, Pop, and my favourite, RnB (Rhythm and Blues).

PS: Read about how I fell in love with RnB (thanks to something my brother did) at the end of this post. No one should be forced to read long stories unnecessarily, right?

Hopefully, you can find your favourite songs here that can help amp up your daily life :) So, here you go!

All-Time Favourites - Great for brisk/leisure walks, lounging, bus/train rides and especially driving. [By the way, no speeding please! No fiddling with phone while driving please! Just cruise with care. You say you have to rush to an important meeting, pick up an important phonecall or return an important message? But, what can be more important than a life, you tell me?? You may kill yourself or even someone else!].

1. Turn Your Lights Down Low

The Countdown Singers

2. Once In A Lifetime (L.A. Mix)

Gregorian [The Best 90's Party Album]

3. Miss You Much

Janet Jackson [Design Of A Decade 1986-1996]

4. Can't Take My Eyes Off You

Lauryn Hill [The Miseducation Of Lauryn Hill]

*I love to sing this to my son. Sometimes I just can't stand him, sometimes I just can't stop ogling at him lovingly.

5. Dying Inside To Hold You

Timmy Thomas [The Best 90's Party Album]

6. What's Up (4 B's Mix)

DJ Miko [The Best 90's Party Album]

7. Close To You (Downtown Remix)

Whigfield [The Best 90's Party Album]

8. Missing (Todd Terry Remix)

Everything But The Girl [The Best 90's Party Album]

9. Doo Wop (That Thing)

Lauren Hill [1999 Grammy Nominees]

10. Beautiful Girl (DJ Rob Dinero Stand By Me Remix 12")

Sean Kingston w/Ben E. King

11. Gonna Get Your Love (Radio Edit)

S-Sense Featuring Jenny B [Heart Attack 91.3]

12. Stole

Kelly Rowland [R&B The Collection 2]

13. I Try

Macy Gray [RnB The Collection 2]

14. Everything's Gonna Be Alright

Sweetbox [In Tune]

15. I'll Be Missing You

Puff Daddy

16. My Place

Nelly Featuring Jaheim [BLaZn Sykwitit Vol 24]

17. Mercy Mercy Me

Jeff Golub [Closer]

18. By Your Side

Sade [Closer]

19. Corcovado

Everything But The Girl [Closer]

20. If I Ain't Got You

Alicia Keys [The Diary Of Alicia Keys] 

Audiophile/Jazz/Bossa Nova - Great for relaxing, lounging, bus/train rides and driving. Many of these songs can instantly transport me to Paris and it felt like I was in a scene from Da Vinci Code on the quest of the Holy Grail which begins in Musée du Louvre. Also, one of my childhood friends actually use many of these songs (esp. those from Pink Martini) during her wedding night. Great ambience!

1. So Nice (Summer Samba)

Bebel Gilberto [Audiophile Bossa Voices]

2. O Barquinho

Karrin Allyson [Audiophile Bossa Voices]

3. Quando A Lembranca Me Vem

Miucha [Audiophile Bossa Voices]

4. Fly Me To The Moon

Ana Caram [Audiophile Bossa Voices]

5. Gailos Abertas

Ramon Leal and Beatrice Binotti [Audiophile Bossa Voices]

6. Smoke In The City

Marcelo Salazar Featuring Itamarah Koorax [Audiophile Bossa Voices]

7. Hang On Little Tomato

Pink Martini

8. Anna (El Negro Zumbon)

Pink Martini

9. The Gardens Of Sampson and Beasley

Pink Martini

10. Autrefois

Pink Martini

11. Clementine

Pink Martini

12. Sympathique

Pink Martini

13. Amado Mio

Pink Martini

14. La Soledad

Pink  Martini

15. There's A Kind Of Hush

Snow Rose

16. Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head

Snow Rose

17. More Than I Can Say

Snow Rose

18. The Girl From Ipanema

Stan Gets/Astrud/Jo [Bossa Nova]

Clean The Home - I know, it's such a boring title. But these songs make doing house chores so much more enjoyable with that joyful rhythm. I do not play these songs for other purposes other than for housework, so much so that hubby and I will be turned into 'housework mode' the moment we hear these songs! But come to think of it, this song list is actually great for a little dance during an afternoon slump ;) It'll instantly perk you up!

1. Samba de Orfeu

Bob Brookmeyer [Bossa Nova]

2. O Pato

Coleman Hawkins [Bossa Nova]

3. Minha Lagoa

Luiz Henrique [Bossa Nova]

4. Meditation

Oscar Peterson [Bossa Nova]

5. Summer Samba

Baden Powell [Bossa Nova]

6. Agua de Beber

Astrud Gilberto/Antonio Carlos Jobim [Bossa Nova]

7. Felicidade

Joe Henderson [Bossa Nova]

8. Fly Me To The Moon

Astrud Gilberto [Bossa Nova]

9. E Luxo So

Luiz Bonfa [Bossa Nova]

10. Besame Mucho

Los Panchos [Perhaps Perhaps Perhaps]

 

Dance Baby Dance - Just let go of everything and groove to the music! Great for brisk walks too. It's a random mix of old and new songs on this list.

1. Mack the knife

Bobby Darin [Perhaps Perhaps Perhaps]

2. Fire

Babyface and Des'ree

3. The Hustle

Van McCoy

4. All About That Bass

Megan Trainor

5. Shake it off

Taylor Swift *shake all that stress off instantly!

6. Crazy In Love

Beyonce

7. Grown Woman

Beyonce

8. Single Ladies

Beyonce

9. Check On It

Beyonce

10. Run The World (Girls)

Beyonce

11. Hey Ya

Outcast

12. Hot In Herre

Nelly

13. Y.M.C.A. (Remix)

The Village People [Super Hits 1993-2003]

14. Can't Take My Eyes Off You

Hermes House Band [Super Hits 1993-2003]

15. Mambo No. 5

Lou Bega [Super Hits 1993-2003]

16. Papa's Got A Brand New PigBag

Carrilio [Super Hits 1993-2003]

17. What's Up (4 B's Mix)

DJ Miko [Super Hits 1993-2003] *this is also in the all-time fav list

18. La Copa De La Vida (The Cup Of Life)

Football All Stars [Super Hits 1993-2003]

19. Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence (Heart Of Asia)

Watergate [Super Hits 1993-2003]

20. 1 Thing

Amerie [Hits 2 Hot To Handle]

Let's Relax - R.e.a.l.l.y R.e.l.a.x. Sit down on a comfortable chair. Let go of the tension of your shoulders. Then of your face, ears, arms. Breathe in deeply. Breathe out slowly. Repeat slow, relaxed breathing. Slow down your thoughts. Slow down your world. And then close your eyes. And smile.

1. Cielito Lindo

Marta Gomez [The World's Greatest Audiophile Vocal Recordings]

2. Spanish Harlem

Revbecca Pidgeon [Best Audiophile Voices VI]

3. Dream A Little Dream

The Beautiful South [Closer]

4. Vincent

 Sara K. [Best Voices 3]

5. First of May

Angela [Best Audiophile Voices VI]

6. Perhaps

Janet Seidel [Best Voices 3]

7. Don't Make My Brown Eyes Blue

Sofia [Best Voices 3]

8. Don't Know Why

Angela [Best Voices 3]

9. Close To You

Noon [Best Voices 3]

10. That's Amore

Sofia Pettersson [Best Voices 3]

11. Corcovado

Carmen Cuesta-Loeb [Best Voices 3]

12. Love's Theme

Barry White and Love Unlimited Orchestra [Pure Disco 2]

* This is the favorite song of my life :) I can replay it back-to-back the whole day! Read about my deepest feelings towards this song here.

13. La Mer

Cynthia McCorkindale [Bistro Blue]

14. La Vie En Rose

Cynthia McCorkindale [Bistro Blue]

15. C'est Si Bon

Cynthia McCorkindale [Bistro Blue]

16. Soul Bossa Nova (Original Version)

Quincy Jones and his Orchestra [Jazz- The 2 of Us (Day)]

17. So Danco Samba (Album Version)

Stan Getz and Joao Gilberto [Jazz- The 2 of Us (Day)]

18. Over The Rainbow

Jane Hombre [Jazz In The City]

19. Just The Way You Are

Various Artists [Jazz In The City]

20. Come Away With Me

Nelly Jackson [Jazz In The City]

21. More Than This

Charlie Hunter Feat. Norah Jones [Pink Champagne (Disc 1)]

22. Fly Me To The Moon

Julie London [Pink Champagne (Disc 1)]

PS: There are more songs in my list which I shall not bother everyone with - there are just too many songs I love! I actually adore many music legends of my time e.g. Micheal Jackson, Whitney Houston, Mariah Carey and Beyonce. I also like Mandarin music legends like Ah Mei, Sammi Cheng, Teresa Teng, Jay Zhou and Beyond. Furthermore, there are some songs that is permanently tagged with some very close people of my life.

Brother: Ride Wit Me - Nelly (read about this below)

Sister: The Moon represents my heart - Teresa Teng. We used to sing this song for our evenings walks in the huge grassland near our old house.

Hubby: Unchained Melody - Righteous Brothers. (Have you watched the film Ghost?) I knew that hubby was The One when we sang it together loudly in his car - there was so much rapport between us and chemical reactions within me that led on to an unsettling sense of déjà vu. Have we really met before, my dear? The best part is, we were not even together yet!

Son: My Bonnie Lies over the Ocean (bring back,... bring back my Bonnie to me, to me) This song brings back so much loving memories of my newborn child. Sadly, the origin of this song seems to have nothing to do with love. 

How I fell in love with RnB

I didn't think too much about music until one day, my brother did something while we were teenagers. I can't imagine typing about this so many years later - we are now in our 30s, have our own family and living separately in our own flats. Anyway, that scene can be replayed vividly in my mind's eye:

Once upon a time, as usual, my brother was dancing around the house (irritatingly!) while blasting RnB music (it's Nelly's Ride Wit Me). I happened to walk past him and that was when he starting grooving his butt at me! He was really into the music as if in some sort of blissful trance. So, not to be outdone by him, I grooved back at him. By now, my brother intensified his moves, with arms swinging in the air, and I retaliated too, as my little sister watched on in amusement. That dance episode really ignited my love for RnB music, thanks to my brother. Now, whenever I dance to RnB music, I feel that I am in my groove (literally!) coupled with a feeling of absolute joy.

You see, different people can be drawn to different parts of the same song. My brother loves moving to RnB beat, rhythm and bass, and I am both into singing along to the lyrics of the song and dancing to the beat. But it was only until I was studying English Literature in university that I realised song lyrics are actually poems! Why didn't I see the connection? Those rhymes and syllables.

Fast forward about 15 years, my love for RnB is still going strong. Like I did since I was in primary school, I still love dancing to RnB music regularly - it instantly makes me feel 5 years younger.

Yes baby! Don't ever stop movin your booty!

By the way, it's Christmas in a couple of days so Merry X'mas to everyone! Stay warm and cosy with your loved ones! Here's a beautiful X'mas tree, about 1 hr 30 mins bus and train ride from home! It's worth the effort, since my 4-year-old boy is rather fascinated by the sheer size of the tree. That awestruck look in his eyes and the way he said wow! is priceless :0

X'mas tree at Vivocity, Singapore.
My son in blue jacket, prancing around, looking for fun.



The Song Of My Life

Love's Theme by Barry White's Love Unlimited Orchestra


This is the best-loved song of my life. I can replay it non-stop for the whole day. Why is it chosen as such? Maybe because it was frequently heard on the local radio during the most carefree days of my life - I am finally financially stable, got a job I love and I met my husband-to-be. Or perhaps I simply have great feelings toward this song. It reminds me how beautiful life is and how great it is to be simply alive.
 



Even the sky and land can smile. A man's face winking at you. Can you see?

Here's a short note about how I deeply feel when I hear this song:

Suddenly, you burst into a new realm of boundless, ultimate expansion, both of your mind and also your body, releasing the energy of unlimited love in you. Now, you have the capacity to embrace the whole wide world.

This is a song of total freedom, of absolute liberation!

I'm grateful simply for being alive, to be even breathing in air, to feel, touch, see and be aware, awake and conscious. It is such an ultimate bliss to be able to experience life itself, even for a short span of several decades.

For that, I'd say: Life is already a celebration by itself! So, love and laugh through life!

[Click here to listen to song]

Essential Cooking Tips

Hi guys, it is with a heavy heart that I have to come to the following decision: I have to stop all the cooking from today onwards - well, at least for the next few months. And this is because my fingers are blistering badly! It's not that I enjoyed the painful itches and the nightly bandaging ritual (ouch!) but really, cooking for my loved ones brings me so much blissfulness. But still... long sigh...

For those who know, I just blogged about my signature dish in my previous post and I think that it represents a great milestone in my culinary journey. On a military ranking scale, it felt like I've just passed my BMT [Basic Military Training - with all the sweat and pain] and has turned from a recruit to a corporal or a 3rd Sergeant. Yap, it literally felt like that :). And with that, I think it is now a good time to draw up a beautiful line under my culinary chapter with this post on cooking tips that I've picked up over the past three years.

Don't worry though, I won't disappear yet. This just means that I am going to divert and then focus all my energy onto the other topics and continue to grind out useful notes and lists. So stay tuned :)

Before I go on, let me say a soft goodbye to my kitchen comrades.

Dear fellow soldiers, thank you all for your heroic contribution in all the kitchen wars that we have fought together. Your service is greatly appreciated. You are all great men condiments! A little farewell for now. But we shall unite again. One day!

Essential Cooking Tips

1. If there is not enough noodles to make a meal, add in bee hoon (soaked). Especially for laksa, mee goreng, hokkien mee, char kway teow, etc. 

2. Add 1 tsp sugar to your dish while cooking if it's too saltly. You can also add sweetened water of any kind, e.g. milk or syrup, if you like. Yes, basically, you flatten out saltiness with sweetness.

3. Add milk powder into your curry, laksa or other spicy dishes if you find them too spicy. (Dissolve about 1 heap Tbsp milk powder with some warm water before adding in). Yes again, you flatten out spiciness/hotness with sweetness. 

4. Actually, you can also even out sourness with sweetness and also the other way round - even out sweetness with sourness. E.g. you can add lemon/lime juice to drinks/dishes that are too sweet or you can add sugar to drinks/dishes that are too sour.

5. Do not cook leafly vegetables for more than 4 minutes in high heat. This will ensure vegetables remain crunchy and that its nutrients are retained. Soggy and yellowish vegetables are signs of overcooking and have not much nutrients left. Basically, you can cook vegetables within 4 minutes in these 3 easy steps:

• 1st minute: Put vegetable into heated oil on medium-high heat and stir to mix well. You can fry onion, garlic or ginger with the oil first.

• 2-3 minutes: Add a little water, if you like, and cover the wok completely. This will bring out the sweetness of the vegetables, esp. Kailan. [Note: if cooking softer vegetables like spinach, reduce wok covering time or just fry till vegetables turn dark green without covering the wok.]

• Final 1 minute: Remove wok cover, add in seasoning (e.g. oyster sauce, salt, sugar) and stir fry quickly and dish out.

6. When cooking shallots and garlic together, fry the shallots for about half a minute first before putting in garlic. This is because garlic cooks faster and is therefore easier to get charred.

7. For many chinese dishes, the first thing to do is to fry shallot, onion, garlic or ginger in the oil. Basically, this is to season the oil and make it tasty. After seasoning the oil, you should ensure that it coats the ingredients evenly.

8. If recipe calls for fish sauce, you can replace it with soya sauce or just use salt.

9. If your dish is tasteless, and it's troublesome to cook again, mix in a little soya sauce and sesame oil.

10. Use only chinese honey, or chinese wine/vinegar in chinese dishes for it to taste 'right'.

11.. Add in 1 tsp of cornstarch dissolved well with 1 Tbsp of cool water and add into your dishes while cooking. This will result in a thickened sauce which will better stick onto the food thus, making the dish tastier.

12. Cook red or green bean soup in pressure cooker or rice cooker for a softer bite. Traditional cooking in pot takes too long. Add orange zest (thinly scrape the orange skin avoiding the white bitter part!) to red bean soup and pandan leaves to both red and green bean soup. Some people like to add sago for the extra bite.

13. When cooking chinese desserts, use only rock sugar for an authentic taste. E.g. Red/green bean soup, pearl barley drink and chrysanthemum tea. Basically, red bean soup is heaty; but green bean soup, barley and chrysanthemum drink is cooling and is thus suitable to consume in hot weather. Sometimes, I add in sweetened melon strips (dong gua) and lessen the amount of rock sugar used when cooking pearl barley drink.

14. Evenness is very important when cooking chinese food. Therefore, all ingredients should be 'loosen up' before cooking them. Example, overnight fridged white rice, noodles and beehoon should be well separated (not stuck together) before you begin your cooking. But, you can ignore this tip if you have the skills of a typical chinese chef who has no problem achieving 'even' cooking by sending food flying above the wok and then swishing them in circles on the wok! 

Pineapple Fried Rice (My Signature Dish!)

This Thai dish has now become one of my family's perennial favourites. We will have it for dinner just about every other week. At least, whenever I serve this, my hubby will go "wahhh" and my son did not say "it's not nice". So, this is now officially my signature dish, as my hubby dubbed so. 

The golden fried rice - flavoursome, aromatic and delicious!

I never thought that one day I'll have my own 'signature dish', but more than 3 years down my culinary journey, it happened. And I am greatly humbled, although it's nothing like a remarkable accomplishment, but still... Today, I have a roof over my head and food in the kitchen for all those cooking experiments... I mean, there are people elsewhere who are starving and with only a few dollars to their name and I know exactly how that feels.... so how can I not be grateful for all the things that I have now? 

Pardon me, while I bathe in my reflective thoughts. 

Anyway, on a lighter note, the best part about this dish is, it's one of the easiest dish to churn out, in terms of ingredients used, preparation and cooking method. You just have to cut all the ingredients that you have in your fridge into bite sizes, cook all of them in one pan and serve immediately with toppings. It's actually a perfect quick-and-easy, 'clear-fridge', one-dish meal.

So, this is almost like a cooking-day off for the mummy especially when her hands are blistering from all the house chores! 

As easy as it sounds, the end product will not disappoint. In three words, this dish is flavoursome, aromatic and delicious! [delicious = aroi mak mak in Thai]

Recipe

Serves 2. Adapted from here with my own changes.

2 Tbsp oil (use canola/sunflower oil for a healthier version)

2 tsp minced shallot

2 tsp minced garlic

Rice, chilled overnight (cooked from 1 cup raw rice)

1 or 2 beaten eggs

Meat/protein that you have, 100-150g in total, all cut into bite size 

Vegetables, cut into bite size, about 2-3 cups in total, more, if you love veggies

Roasted cashew nuts and dried raisins/cranberries - just a handful, this is optional

100g pineapple cubes (I used canned pineapples)

Pork/chicken floss 2-3 Tbsp for each person

Chopped spring onion, 1 Tbsp for each person or as much as you can handle! (It's filled with vitamin A and C)

For the sauce (mix all well in a cup)

1 tsp Turmeric powder

1 tsp Fish sauce

2 tsp Oyster sauce 

1 Tbsp Butter

1 Tbsp Pineapple juice (I used the syrup that comes with the canned pineapples)

1 Tbsp Concentrated liquid soup base (or replace with 1 tsp soup base in powder form)

1. In a deep pan on medium fire, scramble the beaten eggs in some heated oil. Set aside.

2. In the same pan, heat remaining oil and fry shallot and garlic till fragrant.

3. Next, fry the meats till almost cooked and then fry the vegetables follow by the pineapples.

4. Add in the rice and mix well. Then pour in the sauce and mix well. Add in nuts and dried fruits, if using. 

5. Finally, mix in the scrambled eggs and dish out onto 2 serving plates. Sprinkle dish with pork/chicken floss and spring onion and serve!

*NOTE*: Lightly wash away the sweet syrup if using canned pineapples or it will be too sweet. Loosen up the chilled rice with fork before you start cooking to prevent them from sticking together - doing this makes cooking easier. Examples of meat/protein can include: marinated chicken cubes, prawn, crabmeat, luncheon meat and/or tofu. Examples of vegetables can include: caixin, spinach, frozen mixed vegetables, onion, cucumber, bell peppers, chilli and even button/shiitake mushrooms.

Quick and Easy Basic Sponge Cake (with Variations)

That perfect golden-yellow hue!

After years experimenting for a not-too-sweet and butter-oily cake, I finally settled for this recipe. 5 ingredients in 4 steps. This is the easiest cake ever! Great for beginners. Here's my version of a basic, fluffy cake recipe. Turn it into a banana cake, chocolate cake, fruits and nuts cake, blueberry cake or any other types of cake to your liking. Plus: solutions for common baking problems at the end of post.

Recipe

125kcal per 1/8 slice

330kcal for 1/3 of the whole cake

Makes a 8" X 1" cake

100g Self-raising flour

50g Sugar

50g Salted Butter, softened at room temperature

3 Tbsp or about 50 ml Full-cream milk

2 Eggs (53g each, w/o shell)

1. Put all ingredients into a bowl.

                               

2. Using a manual hand whisk, mix everything carefully till batter turns smooth and lump-free. [Note: After this, if you are mixing in fruits and nuts, switch to using a spoon]

From this...

...to this.

3. Next, bake for 40 mins. PS: I 'bake' using a rice cooker with cake function. You can try baking in the oven @ 170 degrees for 25 mins.

                              



4. Finally, let cake cool and cut with a wet knife for serving.

A perfect sponge cake!

*As this is a rather small cake, you would want to double or even triple the ingredients accordingly for a bigger cake. You may also want to experiment with different flavours and ingredients for fun (see below). But, be wary not to be sucked too deep into the whirlpool of baking frenzy (like me) where your days are either spent on baking experiments or helplessly thinking about the next cake that you'll be baking - very addictive!

Experiment with your own creations now!

1. Wholemeal/Oat Cake. Replace 50g flour with 50g wholemeal flour or oats or even both. All 'flour' should add up to 100g. My favourite one is 40g s-r flour with 30g wholemeal flour and 30g oats.

2. Nutty, Seedy and Fruity Cake. Mix in about 2 Tbsp each of your choice into the prepared batter. You can also sprinkle them on top of the batter. Some of my favourites include:

• Nuts like almond flakes, crushed walnuts/pecans/cashew, pine nuts
• Seeds like sunflower seed, pumpkin seeds, flaxseeds, black/white sesame and
• Small dried fruits like sultana, black/golden raisin, dried cranberry/blueberry/prune. Reduce the amount of sugar to just 30g as dried fruits tend to be rather sweet.

3. Different Flavoured Sponge Cake. Unless otherwise stated, add the ingredients below before mixing the batter.



Moist and yummy banana cake with walnuts, pine nuts, and cinnamon

Banana Cake: Add in 120g of mashed banana (from about 2 medium bananas) before mixing the batter and, if you like, add in chopped walnuts and a dash of cinnamon after mixing the batter. PS: If the bananas are very ripe (which means they are very sweet), I'll use about 30g of sugar instead as I don't have a sweet tooth. And because mashed banana has a 'heavy' texture, I used only 1 egg to counter that - using 2 eggs is okay but will result in a not so fluffy cake. So, for convenience, here's the banana cake ingredients that I use: 100g Self-raising Flour, 30g sugar, 50g salted butter, 120g mashed banana, 3 Tbsp full-cream milk, 1 egg.

Blueberry Cake: Mix in 1 cup blueberries or other berries and 2 Tbsp of almond flakes into the prepared batter. Reduce the amount of sugar if your berries are very sweet.

Other Fruit/Vegetable Cake: Add in other fruits like apple, pineapple, mango, peach or even durian! Or add in vegetables like pumpkin, sweet potato, corn and carrot. Just mix in 1 cup of them (diced into small pieces) to the prepared batter before baking. I made pumpkin cake that day and my hubby whipped them off in an afternoon!

Tea Cake: Replace 30g flour with 30g (2 Tbsp) of instant 3-in-1 tea beverages powder like milk tea/teh si and ginger tea/teh halia. All flour and powder should add up to about 100g (i.e. 70g flour plus 30g beverage powder). Reduce sugar to 30g if you like. Teh Si Cake anyone? ;)

Coffee Cake: Replace 30g of flour with 30g (2 Tbsp) of instant 3-in-1 coffee beverages powder like coffee with milk, cappuccino and latte. All flour and powder should add up to about 100g (i.e. 70g flour plus 30g beverage powder). Reduce sugar to 30g if you like. Cappuccino Cake anyone?

Green Tea Cake: Replace 30g flour with 30g (2 Tbsp) of green tea/matcha powder. All flour and powder should add up to about 100g (i.e. 70g flour plus 30g beverage powder).

Chocolate/Milo Cake: Replace 30g flour with 30g (2 Tbsp) of chocolate powder or milo. All flour and powder should add up to about 100g (i.e. 70g flour plus 30g beverage powder). If you're using pre-sweetened 3-in-1 Milo powder (instead of the unsweetened Milo powder that comes in tins), reduce sugar to 30g, if you like.

Kaya Cake: Add 2 Tbsp kaya and reduce sugar to 30g.

Pandan Cake: Add 1 tsp pandan essence.

Vanilla Cake: Add 1 tsp vanilla essence.

Cheese Cake: Add cheese pieces or shredded cheese of your choice into the prepared batter.

Yogurt Cake: Add 2 heapful Tbsp of yogurt. Preferably plain greek yogurt.

Lemon/Lime/Honey Cake: Add 2 Tbsp of lemon/lime juice or 1 Tbsp of honey or both of them. Reduce sugar if you like. For a zesty kick, add in finely-shredded pieces of lemon/lime rind (the outermost layer of those citrus fruits, avoiding the white bitter parts).

Chocolate chips/Oreo chips Cake: Add in 2 to 3 Tbsp for either of them into the prepared batter. Oreo Cake anyone?

Egg Cake (Mandarin: Ji Dan Gao): Add in another egg yolk in addition to the 2 eggs used.

4. Muffins and Cupcakes. Yes! Use the same batter to make muffins or add cream toppings to make cupcakes :)

5. Try your own combination (at your own discretion!). Add herbs, dried garlic pellets, ginger/nutmeg powder, ground cinnamon/five spice powder, cajun, ham, meat floss, salted egg yolk ([pseudo] mooncake anyone?), dried seaweed flakes, bonito flakes and anything else to your liking. You can also combine the ideas from 1 to 4. Example: Wholemeal Banana Pecan and Cinnamon Muffins! The possibilities are endless - you simply have to let out your adventurous streak :)

Solutions for common baking problems

Years of trial and error gave me insights of some baking problems. Just want to share my findings. Hope it helps :)

• Dry, hard cake: Add more butter
  
  
• Rough texture: Add less milk
  
  
• Doesn't rise properly/too dense: Add less milk and egg, but will result in a drier and less chewy cake.


• Add more milk if you use less eggs to keep the cake mixture 'balanced' and to have a successful cake.

I will update if there's anything good. Now get your creative juices flowin' and mix away!

Our Headaches: What Causes the Pain?

This question has been sitting in one of my pocketbooks for a few years but it was only until recently that I have been fervently looking for its answer. For a few months, I searched on the internet and kept a lookout for it in magazines, newspapers, and TV shows, but with no satisfactory answers.

Just to clarify, I'm not looking for what causes the headache (which usually yields answers like stress, anxiety or due to an underlying disease). Rather, I'm interested in knowing what exactly caused the pain itself.

A photo showing dissected parts of a human brain.
Taken during one of the first Psychology lectures

Finally, one fine day, I heard Dr. Oz briefly mentioned about the source of pain for headache on his show, in a way that really answered my question! Thanks Dr. Oz :) It's short yet succinct. And so, here the beautiful answer goes:

From Dr. Oz show:

" ...Physical and emotional stress alters the brain chemicals which, in turn, causes spasms (dilation/opening and closing) of the blood vessels in the brain. These spasms are what we feel as pain..."

Essential Home Tips

This is a list of home tips that I've garnered over the years. Hope that you can benefit from it.

1. How to prevent pills from getting stuck onto your throat? Do you often have your pills or vitamins sticking onto your throat and not able to fully swallow them? Not a nice feeling, yeah? Try this: Wet your throat by drinking a mouthful of water, preferably warm. Then, put some water into your mouth before popping your pills inside. Make sure all the pills are coated with water (swirl them with your tongue and separate them if they stick together) before you swallow everything down. There, you've got a smooth one!

2. How to get rid of house lizards in the friendliest way? Some of you may know that eggshells make a wonderful source of plant fertilizer. But do you know that they can effectively ward off lizards too? With a toddler at home, having lizards poo lying on the floor of my home is unimaginable - to think that my child tend to pick up anything from the floor and put everything into his mouth straight away! So, from a conversation I've overheard the other day at the supermarket, I learned that egg shells can actually drive lizards away. Just place some cleaned egg shells in places where lizard droppings are abundant. It worked really well for me as most of the lizards are gone! In fact, when I 'equipped' one room with it (I put it above the window grilles), they will move to other rooms. Why did this work? Hmm... perhaps lizards have an innate fear of birds? And eggshells emit 'bird odour'? I don't know.

3. How do you remove unsightly price tags/stickers from the new stuff that you'd just bought? One of my main peeve about buying something new is the price tags or stickers that are difficult to remove. They are really sticky and get torn while you're halfway through. If you're in this mess, grab a cotton cloth, drench it with olive oil and try to rub the sticker remains away. You may need to exert force for trickier cases. OR, a smarter way to get around this is to tear it away immediately after you pay for it while they're still 'fresh' and not so sticky. This applies especially to hot and humid climates like Singapore. OR, another easy way is to put it in an aircon room for a while before removal. The gist is to remove them when they are as DRY as possible.

4. How to clean your water boiler/airpot?

I have a 3-litre boiler that I clean everytime I see whitish deposits in the water, or when I see mineral 'barnacles' forming on the sides of the boiler pot - about once every 2 months. I'll either use the juice of 2 lemons or about 100ml of vinegar (distilled or rice wine vinegar) and boil it together with a full pot of water in the boiler as usual. Let the acidic hot liquid sit in the boiler for about 4 hours before pouring them away and flushing the boiler pot with clean water before boiling a fresh pot of water for consumption. This also removes the brownish pot stains, but for tougher stains you will have to repeat the procedure.

Both lemon and vinegar works well but vinegar is a stronger cleaner so I suggest using lemon first, especially for brand-new boilers. Also, remember to wipe down the nozzle area which may be stained with coffee/tea/milk stains - you'll need to bend down and look up the nozzle for a better view. Wipe down thoroughly with a clean tissue dapped with some hot/warm clean water. If left unclean for too long, there might even be mould. Yikes!


Extra boiler tip: Buy them tall enough so that you can refill taller bottles. Once I bought one that is too short and it was very inconvenient. Also, a three-litre boiler is enough for 3 persons, if you drink cooled boiled water from it. And always remember, change the boiler when the rubber gasket that runs around the rim of boiler cover has turned flat and has ceased to seal the boiler properly. Extra electrical energy is used (and wasted) to keep the water around boiling point. This also holds true to faulty fridge rubber gaskets that trims around its doors - more energy is used to keep the fridge cool because the door is not sealed well when closed, as if the door is left opened permanently!

Once, I replaced an old boiler as the hot air gushes out from everywhere, scalding my hands. To my surprise, the electricity bill for the following month reduced significantly by 20 bucks. Coincidence or not, I believe a large part was due to the faulty boiler gasket.

Also, buy boiler with a touch button for dispensing water. It is so much easier than having one that comes with a huge button that you have to exert strength while dispensing water. Imagine the effort and time taken to fill up a 2 litre bottle!

5. Instant beverages clip. I like to drink instant beverages in 2 to 3 batches as I cannot finish one whole packet in one go. Often, I also make my own version of teh si, teh halia or yuan yang (milk tea, milk tea with ginger and coffee plus tea - all with my own adult milk as creamer) and couldn't finish the whole packet. So, to keep the remaining contents fresh, I'll fold down the packet opening a few times, secure it with a wooden peg and put them in the fridge.

6. Sewing tip. Use tape to keep stray threads from scattering all over the table/floor while you are sewing.

Also, if you have no needle holder, try sticking them on the thread. I had mine on my favourite colour (blue) so that I won't forget which roll of thread they are on.

In addition, if you are at the end of the sewing line and trying to tie a dead knot to secure the line but found that you do not have enough thread left, try this: after looping the thread with the needle, make the knot by entering the needle from the other side where the needle hole is. Hope this really helps.

7. Remove batteries from rarely-used remote controllers. This also applies to your other electronic/electrical gadgets or devices or even toys. If not used for a period of time, batteries which are left in the device may corrode which may, in turn, damage the device itself. Once, I returned home from a one-week vacation and found that the TV remote controller was not working. I opened the battery compartment and found leaky batteries that have corroded the area! Lesson learnt: Remove batteries from remote controllers before leaving house for holiday trips.

8. Do note that there's an expiry date for wet tissue, especially the antibacterial ones. If you buy wet tissue for its antibacterial properties that kill germs, you should look out for its expiry date.

9. How do you clean pillows? Unless otherwise stated in the care instructions of pillows, I'll sun and air my pillows on my window grilles every month. If needed, I'll beat it by throwing/slamming it on the floor several times, which helps retain its shape.

This is one great use of horizontal window grilles

10. Tip for chilli lovers! If you love sambal belacan chilli but dread the oil that comes with it then this tip is for you. Simply drench the chilli with a tissue for a few minutes to soak up the oil. Then remove the oil-drenched tissue either with your fingers or with a chopstick. And now you can enjoy your favourite sauce worry-free as you are saving loads of calories! But remember, do not remove ALL the oil as the chilli will become really dry.



11. Dilute handwash/dishwash liquid to prevent over-drying the skin of your hands. Replace half the liquid with water and mix well. This will, in fact, makes rinsing an easier job!

12. Equip your home with an effective 100% food grade liquid cleanser. Not only does it safely clean fruits, vegetables and baby/kid's stuff (e.g. toys, nursing bottle), it is also an excellent odour removal. After preparing foods like fish or prawns, I always use it to remove fishy odour from my hands, the kitchen sink and even the dish washing sponge. I also use it to remove the onion and even pet odour from my hands. And every weekend, using a bottle brush, I'll use it to wash the family's water flask and everyone's water bottle.

13. Remove sticky residue of cloth-like handyplast using body/hand lotion. Just use some lotion to 'melt' it and rub it away gently. In trickier cases, use a cloth dapped with the lotion for rubbing. But more importantly, in the first place, you should remove it after you have wet the plaster with some tap water. It is not only easier to remove but also much less painful, especially if you are removing for a baby or toddler with delicate skin.

14. A first aid box is a must for every home! I like to put them in a container with a clip-on overhead torch as shown below. Tip: Include lavender essential massage oil in the box so that you can take a whiff or use it for a quick neck/shoulder massage when you're feeling stressed out. Yes, this is my version of emotional first-aid!

More importantly, I'll use it to 'rescue' my son whenever he gets his fingers/leg stuck in his toys (this happens rather frequently!). Just pour a good amount on the stuck area and gently shift from side to side till the stuck area slips out smoothly. Remember, DO NOT use force - you might hurt the fingers/legs. You can even make an instant aromatherapy to relax your mind and body. Just drip a few drops of the oil in a cup of hot/warm water to enjoy the scent (this works best in air-con room and is especially helpful in inducing sleep at night). Anyway, I'm loving my first aid box!

15. Take fruits or veggies out of fridge to wash only when you're about to eat them. This will help retain its freshness and crispiness. Once, a strawberry farmer told me strawberries are 'afraid' of water as they will start to 'rot' immediately upon contact with water. Conclusion: wash fresh produce (fruits/veggies) just prior to consumption.

16. Mind the gap! Take a GOOD LOOK at the spaces or grooves between the spikes of your hair brush, toothbrush and dining utensils. Are they filled with brownish grime and dirt? If they are (yikes!), then it's time to clean or replace them. Most grime can be removed easily by spraying it under a high-pressure tap for just a few seconds. Thank goodness I still have left just one of this tap in my entire home - the rest are water-saving, low-pressure types. For forks, use a smaller fork to scrape out dirt in between the grooves.

17. Buy a grout brush. The protruding brush bristles in the middle part of the brush makes cleaning the tile grouts a much targeted and less back-breaking job. I wished I have bought them earlier because it makes grout cleaning so much easier. Now, my bathroom tile grouts are as good as new, even at the wall-to-wall and wall-to-floor joint! The best part is, they cost only 2 dollars! After all the struggles with tile grouts cleaning, this calls for a celebration!

 

18. Clean all electronic gadgets regularly to protect your family from harmful bacteria. Once in awhile, I'll use Dettol wipes to clean the house phones, handphones, computer keyboards and tablets to remove dirt, grime and harmful germs! And if I'm doing spring cleaning, I'll use Dettol wipes on my home's light switches, fan switches, door knobs and remote controllers (e.g. those of air-con, fan, TV, DVD player and game station).



19. Keeping foods fresh. Remove as much air from your food packages before resealing them in order to keep them fresh, mold-free and crispy. Read: Air = moisture, and moisture promotes decaying. Therefore, you must also make sure that your hands are absolutely dry when you are picking out food from the packages from the fridge. They should also be returned to the fridge as soon as you are done with them to prevent condensation. Keep silica gel pads that come with your food packages until you finish the food - they help absorb moisture and thus, keep your food fresh.

20. Squeak alert! Do not ignore squeaky parts of any furniture joints in your house. Treat them just like the joints of your knees - squeaking indicates they are wearing out and needs fixing and lubrication. Examples include: bolts and nuts of all furniture, movable parts of windows and doors (e.g. hinges), sliding tracks, bearings and etc. Remember, the longer you ignore them, the faster they will wear out completely. Can you imagine a ceased up door lock? Lubricate joints by dripping them with enough oil and move the joints a few times to let the oil seep in between.

21. Solutions for your little 'artist' at home. For the umpteenth time, your little kid has scribbled something on the floor tiles or cabinet again. For me, I always use a colourless nail polish remover dabbed onto a cloth to remove them. Cleaning is a breeze! To solve this recurring problem, I gave him a wall with a whiteboard and told him that he can only scribble there. Sometimes he 'forgets' about it and still draws at the wrong places, but at least this has significantly reduced my cleaning chores.



22. Construction site facing your house windows and is making your house dusty? Not an air-con person and don't wish to shut your windows all day? Try this: designate one room in your home to put all the displays, whatnots, and difficult to clean stuff (e.g. books, hi-fi system) into it so that you do not have to spent time wiping them everyday. This 'clean room' should have its doors closed at all times so that dust cannot enter. This has saved me so much work. Return all stuff to their former positions when the construction works are completed.

23. How to clean tough stains on bathroom glasses and glass soap dish? Just like how you would clean your water boiler (see no. 4), put some acid (lemon or vinegar) and very hot water and soak the affected area for at least 2 hours. The stain should come of easily but repeat if necessary.




24. Insert strings of drawstring pants or bags using a plastic coffee stirrer that comes with a loop. Is the waist string accidentally removed from your pants and is difficult to put it back in? Simply tie one end of string to a plastic stirrer with a loop and slip the plastic spoon through by pushing with your fingers until it appears on the other side.

Wondering what's the wooden stick doing there? Its for me to untie any stubborn knots easily. Please see below. Basically you just stick the sharper end of the chopstick into the knot and wriggle your way out :0

25. Use shower soap to wash toilet. For many years, I've been searching for that perfect multi-purpose toilet cleaner. I've tried many of them bought from the local supermarkets but they were disappointing. They either failed to remove the soap scum on the shower glass or they are too harsh that they give my skin (on hands and feet) blisters. Once, in my dismay, I simply used my lavender body shower (diluted with water) to wash down the whole toilet and it worked! The toilet is clean, the glass is scum-free (although, not perfectly but still fine by my standards), I didn't get blisters and my bathroom smells heavenly. Take note not to use fancy body showers that leave a white film or stain after they dry up, especially those that come with moisturizing or whitening properties. You may need to try a few types to find the right one.




26. Invest in an ironing board according to your height. I recently bought a new ironing board as the old-school one that I owned gave way. But this time, I bought one that can be adjusted to a higher and thus, a more comfortable height for me, and I wonder why I didn't notice that the old one was at a level too low for comfort and was putting a strain on my back every time I iron. With this new ironing board, I don't have to slouch while ironing anymore.




27. Interchange insoles of your shoes to get a perfectly-fitting shoe. Are you giving away yet another new pair of shoes simply because they give you feet pain? Before that, perhaps you can try swopping the insoles of your shoes (from an old or a new shoe) to find a better fit. Insoles can totally change the fit of your shoes. The next time you want to discard an old shoe, keep the insole that is still in good condition. You can swop it with your other shoes that doesn't fit well. Most insoles are lightly glued to the shoe and can be removed by tearing out carefully. Remember, wearing a pair of comfortable shoe is the first step (literally) to creating a wonderful day.




28. How to make your clothes last longer. 

1. Wash and dry them inside out. Do not use too much detergent.
2. Do not dry them directly under the sun
3. Iron them inside out
4. Iron them with minimum heat which is just enough to straighten them.
5. No pulling or tugging at them especially when they're still wet.