Midnight Trysts

Tonight, I had a mega craving for a sweet and savoury snack. Raiding the pantry, I realised I hadn't THAT much to play around with but found some basic bits to whip up some cupcakes with a peanut butter frosting. Not quite Martha Stewart, but a fantastic snack and gift (if your frosting skills are better than mine!! The best part, all you need is a whisk, a tablespoon, and a bowl

Classic Fairy Cakes (makes 6)

50 g Softened Butter

50 g Caster Sugar (or 4 table spoons)

50 g Self Raising Flour (or 4 table spoons)

1 large egg

1 table spoon of milk (or 1.5 table spoons)

1 tsp vanilla essence

Whisk softened butter with sugar until a creamy consistency. whisk in egg and vanilla, and fluff in sifted flour and milk. Mix the dough just until everything is incorporated. At this point, the mixture should hold relatively well on the whisk. No runny mixture here. Spoon into cupcake tins lined with colourful fairy cake liners and bake for 15-20 mins at 180 degrees until golden brown.

While you wait, make the peanut butter frosting with

80 g Softened Butter

100 g Icing Sugar (3.5 tablespoons)

1 tablespoon peanut butter
a few drops of vanilla essence or 1 satchet of vanilla sugar. If you use vanilla sugar, reduce icing sugar accordingly (about 10 g)

Whisk (with an electric hand mixer I have come to realise, or if you have awesome muscles) until you get a pale creamy mixture of a relatively fluffy consistency. Incorporate peanut butter and whisk for another 8 minutes. Scoop frosting into a piping bag or ziplock bag and place in fridge to set.

By now your cupcakes should be done. Let them cool on a baking rack for about 30 minutes and pipe frosting onto the top of these little gems. If you are using a ziplock bag, snip off just the tip and frost accordingly. Sprinkle with some hundreds and thousands and voila, happy home made cupcakes in under 45 mintues! 

:)

A little daily reminder

[via]

We all have days when we go 'woe betide me', 'life sucks', 'why does this always happen to me?' If you have that luxury of time to browse the world wide web, here's a little mantra to keep in mind for days that are gloomy, when you wake up on the wrong side of bed, and everything seems to be going wrong, or that everyone else seems to be in a better place than you are. You may not have to make the best of EVERYTHING, but making the best of something out of everything, is a good enough place to start anyway :).

Happy midweek Wednesday.

Un weekend anglais

As we turn into autumn, and enjoy the last of 2011's flowers

....wispy reeds along the edge of lakes in Regent's Park

 

we make our way towards little antique markets admire vintage tea cups..

  

potter off to the market to acquire some sweet end of summer confiture...

to share home made Delia inspired mini scones over a pot of tea and natter with friends..

Here's a typical October weekend in our little neighbourhood in Angel Islington.

Camden Passage 2011

The last sunny Friday

Naxos, 2011

As I tap away at work on the first Friday afternoon of the month, I couldn't help but notice that the sun is absolutely blazing and with clear blue skies. Feels like summer, and it does put you in a 'holiday' mood. Think big white brollies, pink vespa, blue skies. For that, a little photo from the lush island of Naxos off Greece.

Looks are deceiving -- it's just 14 degrees outside, but it's my favourite kind of weather.

TGIF !

Somedays

 

Naxos 2011

You just feel like a little snooze. This little furry friend from Greece was absolutely handsome, and oh-so-lazy. Kitties and pups in this part of the world just nap all day long.

M'0'numental - Looking back

Naxos 2011

Today, I pondered about this thing about turning 30. People wax lyrical about how monumental it is, what they have achieved so far, what the seek to accumulate in the next 10 years, you know the drill. Today, I wondered about this big -0 thing. Right, get your minds out of the gutter What I meant was that I tried to dust out some old memories from that almost long forgotten bank of mine, and tried to recall me aged 10, and aged 20. Obviously i'd skip age 0, my mom will probably attest to her (then me) screaming our socks off. I was her first born you see, for her, as they say - the rest is history. She was 'gifted' with two more daughters after that. More recently, she acquired a four legged son, Mr Socks, aka Cobbey. Just for fun, I'd challenge you to think about what you remember of yourself, at each m'0'numental turn of the decade. As for me,

Aged 10

I joined a new primary school further away from my home, and I went sulking and begging that I didn't want to go because I had no friends. My first month at school was hell, I hated my teacher Mrs Bertha because she was so strict, I hated going to school because I was shy and everyone was cliquish. Playing five stones by yourself for the first two weeks was quite traumatic. I didn't have fancy hello kitty kit and was a bit of a awkward geek. But that year, I met my best friend whom I hold dear to my heart today. I have since lost touch with most other primary school classmates except for the odd acquaintence. I remember her well, straight fringe, glasses, neat pony tail with a black ribbon. That was the best thing that happened to me at age 10. Iris you rock my world. Here's to 20 years of friendship!

On a random recollection, I realised that my IC photo (which I still hold now) was taken that year. Whatever baby fat I lost in the last 20 years, I've put back on since I've moved to the UK!

That year was also my first memory of grief. My paternal grandfather whom I saw every week since I was born, passed away. It was my first attendance at a funeral, and the first time I saw my grandmother cry.

Aged 20

I met a boy earlier that year whom I thought was the love my life. It was my first 'serious' relationship and it was one that further along taught me many lessons in life, the most important of which was that my strict father who was a man of few words, whom I thought didn't love me and whom I struggled to get along with, was in his own quiet and stern ways my pillar of support through the very tumultous break up. It changed our relationship from there on.

It was also the year I started blogging at http://equinox-han.livejournal.com/ . I can't say I've kept a really good blogging record, but I should get round to downloading all my entries at some point.

It was also the year I made very dear friends from university, through handball, eusoff and law school. Friends whom I still am in touch with till today, and although we don't meet often (due to the sheer problem of geographical distance - Sydney, Singapore, New York, Hong Kong), it was the same 10 years ago, as it is today. We may have different lives presently, but the friendship hasn't changed one bit.

Age now

This year was a particularly difficult year for me. I am with Mr S, whom I should say I love dearly and with whom I spent the better part of my 20s with. We waded through some serious personal challenges this year, and we seem to have come out stronger. I hope this year will pass, and that we will see some positive moves towards our future together.

My best friend's daughter turned 1. It is a reminder to me that we are about to embark on a new era in life, an adult one, if you will, with commitments and responsibilities. I used to freak out at these two words, but am now coming to terms with, and welcoming the next decade of adulthood.

I have made some very dear friends in the course of my time in London, and it is my resolution to keep these people who matter to me a part of my life in the next decade, as the world grows a little smaller through more affordable airfares, whatsapp, skype, emails and what have yous, it is just a little easier to keep in touch. One just has to make the effort.

Lastly, following on from one of the anecdotes aged 20, my blogging life turns 10 in December. Happy birthday to that. :)

our children will never know...

Only a child born in the 80s and before can make the link. I think of my dad fondly when I see this photo as I think of the endless weekends of frustration when me and my sister's story teller cassette tapes used to get knotted up inside the tape player. What's your best memory from the 80s?

Q3 round ups

Oia

There's been a bit of a hiatus on my part recently, due to visiting friends, long weekends, and a bit of a holiday with all the sunshine we've been getting at this part of the world. It is 3rd October today and sun is blazing through the window - 30 degrees! No coat, no tights, no sign of autumn / winter acoming. That said, I wished that autumn would ease in a little more gently. I can't complain much about the very pleasant sun (it makes people smile on Mondays, believe me!) but I can't wait for my favourite season of the year to roll by.

A quick update on what i've been up to since the last post.

:: I turned 30.

:: I made no resolutions on turning 30.

:: It was non-eventful, but a simple life is good that way. :)

:: two my lovely friends Siew and Jas visited London. It's always so nice to catch up with girlfriends from home

:: visits from other friends Mun and the newly married E who is about to move to Perth

:: a birthday trip to Barcelona

:: two weeks of hiking in the Meteoras, and flopping about in the Aegean sea

:: the most awesome picnic ever in regent's park enjoying the last of the summer roses

:: my once-a-year tennis game in Islington

Now that Q3 is properly over, I should get round to planning life in the next few months. A topic of discussion came up yesterday: 'if you could press a button to make yourself non-existent (i.e. it would be as if you never existed, and people around you will be 'obliviated' (to use H. Potter's term)), would you do that?' Right now, I can't really think why I'd do that, I am curious to know what the next decade brings. :)