eHomemakers Malaysia

Today is one of the busiest days of my life. Having arrived in Dungun at 2 am last night, I had to then type out the recipes for my class for the next morning. It was a demonstration and lucky enough, no one noticed the tremendous exhaustion I felt (not even a yawn) that made even the wall seemed comfy enough for me to lean on relaxingly. It was a 'special cakes' class and one of the items was 'Red Velvet Cake' (I reckon that words and fashion reach across this part of the country pretty fast these days, hence, this cake has made its name here as well). Whether you see it as a stale version of chocolate cake or a cake with a bitter aftertaste (due to the beetroot juice), this cake has its own distinctive class and has made its way to the best bakery boutiques in town. I ngredients : Cake : preheat oven to 170C A : 280g self-raising flour + 20g cocoa powder (sifted) B : In a jug, pour 135g milk + 2tsp lemon juice/vinegar + 80 g red dragon fruit...

It was a very hot day today. It was too hot for me to walk to the mini-mall nearby. So, my Mom dropped me off there at around 1pm today. The Easter Sale at the Christian bookstore officially started today, which was why I was so excited to go there.   I've had my eye on the ESV (English Standard Version) Study Bible for a long time now. The leather edition sells for above RM224! Because of the Easter Sale discount, for a limited time, I can get it for only RM179! So, this afternoon, I headed straight to the Christian bookstore and bought it! The last pristine copy left! It's like the Study Bible was waiting for me to buy it!   I'm so excited! I can't wait to delve into it tonight during my quiet time. I have extra motivation to read the Bible now! I've been rather lax lately, I hope my enthusiasm lasts though! Heck! I'll make it last! I've never read the Bible cover to cover in all my years as a Christian, well, this is the year I'll finally succeed...

Anyone can get used to anything, even if it is unpleasant or difficult. That's what I found out during my years as a dialysis patient. I've been a dialysis patient for 6 years and counting now. At first I encountered less problems (after I got free of my IJC : which is the tube inserted into my jagular vein, that is, my neck before my arm access matured), as my body was still new to dialysis. But now, going into my 6th year, my heart is not as healthy as it once was, and the phosphate, calcium & potassium levels have accumulated in my blood due to careless eating. As a dialysis patient, I can't eat like a normal person. Well, after 6 years I guess I kinda think : "What the heck! I'll die someday even if I'm careful anyway, so I might as well enjoy eating", and went on my merry way eating whatever I like, however much I like, "to hell with portion control!", until the doctor gave me an ultimatum..... So, in  a nutshell, I have to rea...

  Muffins are one of my favourite comfort foods as they are effortlessly easy and breezy to prepare. Such lovely, fluffy and crumbly cupcake-like goodies make excellent breakfast, kids' lunch and even picnic munchies. Spruce them up with blueberries, oatmeal, dried fruits for that ultimate guilt-free snack that pairs beautifully with a steaming cup of coffee in the morning or those fancy-flavoured tea in the evening. Muffins can be prepared in 2 ways - Creaming method & Muffin method. Personally, I prefer the latter as they are more traditionally 'muffin-like' (crumbly and has more substance unlike the more cake-like and fluffy nature of the other type). However, my kids love the cake-like muffins and fortunately, I have an excellent fluffy muffin recipe that I can play with to get as many flavours and colours possible! 1 recipe many variations...time-saving indeed.  Ingredients : 50g butter 70g fine sugar 1 egg (beaten lightly) 50g self raising fl...

How can I NOT write about durian again when it is still in season! Its provoking smell (I find it gorgeously fragrant while others may find it unbearable offensive!) has tempted me to bake yet another favourite. I managed to get some of those striking golden pulps again (one of the best grades of durians) as I was driving along Dungun road. For today, it’s Durian baked cheesecake. Ingredients Bottom layer Crumb crust for 9 inch pan (square or round) 250g crushed digestive cookies 90g butter melted 50g granulated sugar Filling 500g cream cheese (softened at room temperature) 100g brown sugar + 50g caster sugar 3 eggs, lightly beaten 2 tbsp corn flour 400g durian flesh + 200g cream (blend in food processor) Method 1. Preheat oven to 180°C. 2. For the base, mix the sugar and crushed biscuits. Add melted butter to it and mix well. Press mixture into mould. 3. Beat the cream cheese at slow speed until it becomes a smooth mixture. 4. Add both sugars and mix ...

The season is here again!   I can see those beautiful spiny and spiky skin which promises the incredibly delicate, creamy and succulent pulp within, but as they say, ‘either you love it, or hate it’. For me, it’s one of the seasons I welcome most. The smell would still linger in the house even after hours the fruit was savoured by us. Obviously, its presence can be smelt within metres away, of which, to some can be extremely repulsive. I, on the other hand, find it addictive.   Nothing from this fruit would go to waste. Even the skin is normally used to repel insects and pests, particularly mosquitoes and rats. Under ripe durians makes lovely ‘bubur durian’. Overripe durians? Do not waste this as it can be further fermented to become ‘tempoyak’. The pulps that are just ripe can be eaten fresh or with accompaniments like sticky rice or bread.   The list of duiran-based desserts and dishes is endless. With a little bit creativity and innovation, you’ll get w...

When I was young, I had always been intrigued by what’s going on in my grandma’s big heavy clay pot over the fire, or the cake tin in my mom’s big black box which could be preheated, or even the stack of steamer pots in the kitchen that puffed away steam when it was heated.   Whatever put into any of these three equipment would certainly turn into a fabulous, scrumptious edible masterpiece that would leave us siblings salivating by just catching a whiff of those irresistibly delicious-looking delicacies (except for a few burnt, overcooked stuff which mainly resulted from the cook’s own carelessness or loss track of time).   As far as I can remember, I was completely clueless (but curious to know) of how those mouthwatering array of food on the table made its way there.    Only when I started schoo did my mother let me (patiently let me) participate in the kitchen activities, especially during the festive seasons.   I had no inkling at that t...