Wishing You A Blessed Christmas!

Wishing you a blessed Christmas and a wonderful time with your loved ones! May the reason for this season bring you a renewed love, hope, and peace! :)

Enjoy this little clip from an all-time favourite Christmas cartoon - A Charlie Brown Christmas:

Welcome Gorgeous Ethessa!

We're so sorry that we've been missing in action ! 

We've been busy rejoicing the arrival of our beloved Ethessa ! She came about specifically on 5 December 2011, 12.12am! 

Congratulations to both proud daddy and mommy, Darren Phang & Siew Yee (non other that our own co-author of the blog!)

May the Lord bless your household with abundance of love, joy and peace! 

KG

A Builder or a Destroyer?

My husband had a man-to-man talk with a friend just the other night over "ikan bakar " (grilled fish).

The friend was deeply discouraged by his wife.
"Why does she need so much money? Not that we don't have enough to eat. She just wants to see money piling up at home," he said.

The fear of having not enough money drove his wife to nag every day. She wanted him to work 7 days a week to earn more. It came to a breaking point for the friend when the wife said, "You are no good!"

"Why must you bring me down like this?" he told the wife.
"Oh, you feel down? Good! You should! Because you are no good!" she shouted back.

Mind you, this friend is not a lazy man. He works hard for the family and he brings food back to the table every day.

This couple is simple-minded, thus their conversation to each other was very direct.

I know a couple more of career-minded women who had discouraged their husbands "subtly" through their words and actions. Most of the time, it is about money.

Maybe these wives tried to push their husbands to become better by harsh words. But little did they know, they were destroying their men.

I suppose it is safe to say, women are generally talkers compared to men. They like to talk things out and sometimes, did not weigh the consequences of their tongues.

Proverbs 18:21 says "Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof".

Sometimes, it is easy to see whether a married man has "life" or walking towards "death" through his walking style and facial expression.

Does he yearn to go home after work every day? Is there a smile on his face when people ask about his wife? He has a "life-builder" wife at home.

Does he prefer to go out for a drink and delay as much as possible from going home after work? Does he walk with his back bent downwards? Does he frown and roll his eyes or become hesitant when people ask about his wife? He has a "destroyer-wife" at home.

Of course there could be many other issues or problems that the couple could be facing but these are just examples that I have witnessed from people around me that are related to the tongue.

Wives are the closest friend and confidante to their husbands and wives are meant to support their men.

Are we building our husbands to become better men or are we destroying them?

Thankfully, there is guidance from the Bible with regards to our tongues:

First, let us not worry or fear too much because;
Luke 12: 25-26 - And which of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life’s span? If then you cannot do even a very little thing, why do you worry about other matters?

Let us not think pessimistic but rather;
Philippians 4:8 - Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.

Control our tongue;
Proverbs 21:13 - He who guards his mouth and his tongue, Guards his soul from troubles.
1 Peter 3:10 - For he that will love life, and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips that they speak no guile:

Speak wisely;
Proverbs 10:31- The mouth of the righteous flows with wisdom..
Proverbs 12:18 - ...But the tongue of the wise brings healing
Proverbs 31:26 - She opens her mouth in wisdom, And the teaching of kindness is on her tongue.

Show sincerity through our action;
1 John 3:18 - My little children, let us not love in word, neither in tongue; but in deed and in truth.

Love our husbands unselfishly and believe in him;
1 Corinthians 13:4 & 7 - Love...does not seek its own...believes all things

And do him good;
Proverbs 31:11-12 - The heart of her husband trusts in her, And he will have no lack of gain. She does him good and not evil; All the days of her life.


I pray we will all be "life-builders" to our husbands. As we become blooming wives, may they too become blooming husbands!

-SY

Apple Pastry

It's a relaxing Sunday and I'm craving for something sweet. But not too sweet as I'm on a diet.

So, I decided to whip something up. And this is really easy if you have ready-made pastry in your fridge.
Recipe as below.

Recipe

Puff pastry ( I used Pampas - recommended by KG - recommended by The Sudden Cook)
2 apples - peeled, thinly sliced
Juice from half a lemon
2 tablespoon of sugar
1 tablespoon of cinnamon
Strawberry jam

1. Pre-heat oven to 180C.
2. In a bowl, mix the apples with the lemon juice, sugar and cinnamon. Set aside.
3. Take out the pastry from the freezer and thaw as instructed.
4. Cut the pastry to the smallest square of your desire.
5. Place about 2 apple slices onto each square.
6. Place a baking sheet onto an oven tray.
7. Gently place all the pastry squares onto the tray.
8. Bake for about 25 minutes until pastry turns golden brown.
9. Once done, spread some strawberry jam all over the pastry and the apples.
10. Wait for about 10 minutes before placing the hot yummy pastry into your mouth!

Note:
1. You can use any fruits that you like - peaches, kiwi, banana, etc.
2. You can use any jam that you like.

-SY

Chinese Fried Rice

I had some leftover white rice from yesterday and hence, I thought it'll be a good idea to put it to some good use. 

Chinese Fried Rice it is! 

It took not more than 15 minutes to get this meal out (I took slightly longer due to the photo taking process though).  

Ingredients:-

1 1/2 bowl of white rice, overnight

1 tbsp of butter 

2 tsp of garlic

1 stick of chinese sausage ("lap cheong") 

1 1/2 cup of assorted vegetables

1 lightly beaten eggs 

2 tsps of  oyster sauce

A pinch of salt to taste

3 dashes of pepper 

(Optional : prawns, diced chicken, fried salted fish) 

Method:-

1. Heat up the pan with butter. Fry the garlic till fragrant. 

2. Stir fry the chinese sausage for a minute.

3. Add in the overnight rice.

4. Mix the assorted vegetables and mix well with the rice. 

5. Add in the beaten egg.

6. Lastly, add osyter sauce, salt and pepper. To taste to your liking.

7. Stir for a minute and serve while it's hot!

I usually will add in some fried salted fish. Somehow without the salted fish, it lacked some "completeness"! *grin* 

Have fun, ya all ! 

-KG

Lemon Glazed Blueberry Muffins

Here's a special treat for someone sweet who just had her birthday few days ago! Yes, that's you, Julie Anne!

Too bad, she's too young for sugar intake still. Oh well, we'll just enjoy these with her papa and mama and KG and her hubby! Aunty Yee will give you some kiwi instead!

Recipe courtesy of Gourmand Recipes and can be found here

-SY

A virtuous wife

One morning, I received this article on my email inbox. It's  from one of the daily online devotion subscription I've subscribed to (click here if you're interested, lots of profound christian teachings) and I thought it'll be good to share it with you.  It spoke to me to the core and it brought light to me with it's profound teaching, especially in this area of being a wife. Painful but necessary. 

I hope you'll take time to read through this article and May God enlighten you and guard you from all the misconceptions the world has been teaching us on "equality". 

I,myself for one need to repent and pray that God will humble me before God with this wisdom! 

 Proverbs 31:13 : She seeketh wool, and flax, and worketh willingly with her hands.

A virtuous woman is not above dirtying her hands and working hard at manual labor. She has no illusions or pretensions about her role. She knows that productivity and wealth begin with her hands, not with her mouth. Though capable of using her brain to leverage her assets and labor, she has no qualms about adding her sweat equity to the family estate. Let every lazy or pampered woman humble herself before this wisdom from God.

Here is a trait of a perfect woman, which King Samuel learned from his mother to find a great wife (31:1,10). Women must grasp that a woman wrote this lofty description (31:10-31), in case she thinks the bar is set too high, the traits lack sufficient glamour, or they emphasize a wife as her husband’s helper. God made the woman for the man, and learning this lesson is the first step to being a great woman (Gen 2:18; 3:16; I Cor 11:9).

A virtuous woman does not need everything done for her. She hunts for raw materials to make useful or valuable things for her family. She is a willing worker – cheerful and content; and she has initiative to work hard on her own. She does not need prodding. She sees a need, and she rolls up her sleeves and attacks the project. She does not hope her husband will do it for her after his work; she finishes it to spend the evening with him!

A pampered wife flitting from tea to reading to drawing violates God and women. It is not found in God’s word or in any prosperous society. God made women to work, and they realize one of their chief goals by diligent use of their time. Every Christian woman must make sure she is more virtuous than Victorian. Being a “keeper at home” has nothing to do with taking it easy and making the husband the only or primary worker.

Some women think they have it rough to get up with their husbands and be expected to accomplish a day’s work while he is at work. They prefer rising late, pacing themselves through a few chores, talking on the phone, surfing the Internet, reading a book, visiting the spa, getting their nails done, and then asking their husbands to bring supper home. It is terrible that many of these are so-called Christian women! Great women work as hard or harder than their husbands, and they are agreeable and thankful to do so.

In a glorious pursuit of a wife for Isaac, Abraham’s servant found beautiful Rebekah fetching water at a well (Gen 24:15-16)! What about her violin lessons? Forget it! How did he qualify her? He waited to see if she would graciously volunteer to draw water for his camels (each can drink 20 gallons in 10 minutes!). What did she do? She ran to get the water fast enough for these thirsty beasts (Gen 24:18-20)! Isaac had himself a winner! If you think this is an exception, then read where Jacob discovered Rachel (Gen 29:9-18)!

Prissy girls can live and die single beside lazy women, or they can dream of effeminate rich men who will pamper them like dolls into boring oblivion. Marriage is NOT for a woman to find a gravy train so she can read, shop, and nap most of the day before manipulating her husband to bring supper home. Marriage is for a man to find a lover who will help him build the family and estate by bearing children and working hard!

The church is the bride of the Lord Jesus Christ, the King of glory. His Father did not choose His bride, nor did Jesus die for her, in order for her to have a life of leisure. Those who make up the family of God were chosen to serve and work to glorify God and help one another (Matt 20:25-28; Rom 14:8; I Cor 10:31-33; II Cor 5:13-15; 12:15). Christian saint, how cheerfully and hard have you worked this day to please your Husband?

-KG

Shaoxing Druken Chicken

This is one of my favorite dishes. Easy to prepare but most importantly, it is yummylicious. If you have old-aged uncles and aunties coming by for a visit/meal, you can consider cooking this dish. My hub's grandmother, uncle, auntie, mum and dad enjoyed it ! :) 

If you have a claypot, this dish is best cook in a claypot to maintain its fragrance. If not, no worries. It still taste as good! :) 

Ingredients :-

1 tbsp sesame oil

1 tbsp shredded ginger

1/2 free-range kampung chicken - cut into serving pieces

10 g black fungus (muk yee), soaked and shredded

100 ml warm water

Seasoning:-

3 tbsp shaoxing wine

12 tbsp osyter sauce

1 tbsp light soya sauce

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp sugar

3 tbsp shaoxing wine - add in last

Method :-

1. Soak the black fungus overnight.  Wash and shred it. 

2. Heat up 1 tbsp sesame oil and saute shredded ginger until fragrant. Add in chicken, shredded black fungus and stir-fry until aromatic.

3. Add in warm water, seasoning and cover the lid. Simmer until the gravy has thicken. 

4. Add in extra 1 tbsp shaoxing wine and remove from heat. 

5. Serve immediately! 

Do let me know how the dish turns out for you! : )


-KG

Authentic Asian Curry Puff

Another recipe passed down by my beloved Mom - Authentic Asian Curry Puff !

Ingredient : 
400g diced chicken breast
3 small sized potatoes
4 tbsp minced onions
5 stalks of curry leaves (up to your preference, I used alot since i love the fragrance!)
3 sheets of Pampas Puff Pastry


Marinade :-
1 tbsp of light soy sauce
1 tsp of sambal
1 tsp of sugar
1 tsp of salt
3 tbsp of chicken curry powder


Method :
1. Cut the potatoes into small cubes. Fry for few minutes in 2 tbsp of oil. Drain and set aside.

2. Diced the chicken breast meat and marinate it with the marinade ingredients above for half and hour.

3. Meantime, minced the onion and curry leaves.

4. Once done, heat 1 tbsp of oil in a pan. Fry the onion and curry leaves till fragrant.


5. Add in the diced chicken meat and fry it thoroughly.

6. Add in 1/2 cup of warm water, stir evenly and close the lid. Let it simmer in slow fire (with occasion stir) for about 10-15 minutes or it thickens.

7. Add in the potatoes (the reason why i add in the potatoes only at this stage is because if you add in too early, it will become too soft. Hence, it depends how cook you fried it in Method 1).

8. To taste and add the ingredients to your liking.


9. Allow it to cool and leave it overnight, refrigerated.

10. Next morning, thaw the pastry sheet as per instructed in each packaging.

11. Cut the pastry into 4 mini size.


12. Roll in the fillings you've prepared. Brush a lightly beaten egg on puff.

13. Bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes at 200C.


14. Serve while it's hot!

I'm very much inspired by the suddencook food blogger. I've tried quite a number of her recipes and all turned out really tasty and good! Hence, due to her craze for the pampas pastry, it got me addicted as well! So got myself the Pampas Puff Pastry! Highly recommended. My hubs loves the texture and the taste so very much that he said he can eat the pastry as itself.


p/s: psst, thesuddencook, i think we should get some advertisement fees from the Pampas company :P


-KG 

Special Post : Julie-Anne Chou!

This post is specially dedicated to someone special. Wait, this someone comes in the set.  Since she can't read this post yet, hence, this dedication goes out to both the daddy and mommy too! ; )

Blessed birthday Julie-Anne Chou! 

You're really God sent! Thank you for spicing up my life with your laughter and ever-loving warm hugs! Auntie Kath adores you, loves you very dearly! May God continue to fill you will love and abundant heavenly blessings! 

I know this sounds a bit lame, but i just had to text the mommy with this "brilliant" thoughts I came up with. Hope it'll put a smile in both Chris and Jane Chou. Thank you for being my very dear buddies.

"I like Jane because she is a great friend of mine. 
I like Chris because he too is a good friend of mine, 
but i LOVE julie best because she is both of them combined!" 

Ok, enough of my lameness.

Blessed day ahead everyone!

-KG 

Wedding Customs

I have a childhood friend who is getting married next week. Actually, in the "government's perspective", she's already married. Next week is the customs that a Chinese would need to go through (i.e. jimui session, stepping out of the bride's family house, tea ceremony) and, of course, the "compulsory" wedding dinner.

My mom and I had a fun chat with her as she talked about the items that she needs to buy for the wedding. For example, a potty for the room, a red umbrella for her to use so she can walk from her house to the car, a red bedsheet, some "lin zhi" and a bedside lamp. She questioned her mom on why these are needed for a wedding. Her mother had no idea but insisted that she follows "what other people are doing" for "good luck".

My mom had some knowledge about the customs and gave some insights:
1) A roasted pig as a gift during "ko tai lai" from the groom's family - In China, it means 2 things:
i) A whole pig with its meat and bones means although the daughter is now under the care of the groom's family, she is still the flesh and bone of her own family.
ii) Symbolises that the bride is still a virgin

2) Potty in the room - In ancient times, the toilet would be far away. It is more convenient to have a potty in the room so that the newly-weds would not need to walk off during their first night.

3) Red umbrella - Most probably, it is to avoid demons from possessing the bride.

Although some customs hold logical sense, some are purely superstitions.
Mom gave my friend some wise words. She told her that following all the customs blindly, especially the superstitious ones, will not promise a good and blessed marriage. At the end of the day, if the couple is not able to love and give it all, the marriage will still be over. Only God can grant a blessed marriage, given that we walk in His obedience.


Some say, "it is better to just follow the customs than to bring bad luck upon myself". Well, I have heard and seen newly married couples ended up in divorce and separation. They, too, abided to all these customs.
Should we just follow such superstitions blindly? What's your view?

What are some of the customs that you had to follow? Do you know their purpose? :)

SY

Nestum Diced Chicken

Ingredients:-
1. 2 cups of nestums
2. 400 g chicken breast - diced
3. 1 egg - lightly beaten. 
4. 1 tbsp osyter sauce - to marinade 


Method :-


1. Dice the chicken breast meat.

2. Marinade with 1 tbsp of osyter sauce, overnight. 

3. Lightly beat 1 egg. 

4. Pour 2 cups of nestum on the plate. 

5. Dip the diced chicken breast into the lightly beaten egg.

6. Coat the meat with nestum till well covered. 

7. Fry the chicken on medium heat by batches till golden brown. 

8. Dish out and serve! ; ) 

Simple is it not? Trust me, it's absolutely delicious! 

p/s: I'm biased. I'm a big fan of nestum. Hehe. 

Enjoy cooking! 

KG

Hearty Potatoes Meat Stew

I love this dish since I was young ! Thanks to my mommy for passing down the recipe of this dish to me. 

Main Ingredients : 

1.  2 medium sized potatoes

2. 400 g pork fillet 

3. Few slices of ginger

4. Minced garlic

5. Sauce : 2 tbsp of osyter sauce, 2 tsp of soya sauce, 1/2 tsp of dark soya sauce, 3 tbsp of water (taste to your liking).  

Method : 

1. Marinate the pork fillet with osyter sauce with a little sprinkle of pepper, overnight. 

2. Deep fry the potatoes for about 5 minutes and dish out (if you fry potatoes longer than the recommended time, consider reducing the stewing time lest the potatoes becomes too soft). 

 3. Heat 2 tablespoon of the remaining oil in a frying pan, add the minced garlic and ginger. Cook over medium heat for about 2-3 minutes of until just golden. 

3. Add in the meat and fry about 1- 2 minutes 

4. Return the potatoes back to the pan. 

 5. Add in the sauce mixture. 

 6. Stew it for 20 minutes with lid covered. Stir every 5 minutes.

7. Dish out and serve hot with white rice & leafy green vege! 

Enjoy! 

 KG