DIY: How to make a Christmas Hairband

Ho ho ho...Here is the 'Step-by-step guide on 'How to Make a Christmas Hairband'. And this is my early Christmas gift to all :)

Materials:
Scissors, acrylic felt (white & red), felt marker, needle, thread, glue (E6000 or UHU), black hairband and scallop scissors (optional).

Steps (with pictures shown below):

1. First, draw 6 circles on the red felt (diameter: 6 cm).
2. Cut them out.
3. You will get 6 red circles. Put 2 of them aside.
4. Take 4 of them. Fold it in half.
5. Then, fold again.
6. As shown in the picture.
7. Using a needle and a red thread, sew it few times at the tip (holding all the layers) and make a knot.
8. Repeat steps 4-7 until you get four petals.
9. Now, get ready the white felt and draw a circle (diameter: 4.5 cm).
10. As shown in the picture.
11. Cut it out and put aside.
12. Draw another white circle (diameter: 6 cm).
13. As shown in the picture.
14. Use a pair of scallop scissors and cut slowly at about 3 to 4 mm away from the circle. (If you don't have the scallop scissors, don't worry, you can always draw the wavy line and cut it carefully).
15. Take the four petals (from no. 8), sew it onto the white scalloped-circle.
16. Repeat for all four.
17. Now, get the 2 red circles (from no. 3). Fold it in half.
18. Fold it again, 1/3 to the front (as shown in the picture).
19. Fold it again, this time 1/3 to the back (refer to the picture).
20. You will get something like a 'S' shaped petal.
21. Sew it at the tip, holding all the layers together.
22. Then, sew it to the centre of the white scalloped-circle with the 4 petals (no. 15).
23. Stitch it nicely at the centre and end it with a knot. Repeat steps 17-23 for the second petal.
24. Now, you will get a nice red Christmas peony!
25. Turn to the back.
26. Apply some glue to it, make sure you glue the knot and the stitches.
27. Place the black hairband to it, at the desired position. Hold it carefully for few minutes.
28. Then, get the smaller piece of white circle (from no. 11) and apply some glue on it.
29. Put it onto the back of the peony (no. 27). Press nicely and leave it for 10 minutes to let it dry.
30. Now, your Christmas Hairband is DONE! Simple and nice, right?

Enjoy and Blessed Christmas!

'Kam Puang/Kolok Mee' (Foo Chow Noodles) Recipe

Hi all, as I promised..here is the 'Kam Puang/Kolok Mee' (Foo Chow noodles) Recipe. 'Kam Puang' mee is a very famous Foo Chow's local delicacy. Fyi, Foo Chows from Sitiawan, Perak call it 'Kam Puang' and in Sarawak they call it 'kolok mee'. Actually the traditional Kam Puang recipe uses lard (from pork) and pork crisps, but I replace it with shallot oil (remaining oil from Steamed Pumpkin Cake) and shallot crisps-healthier :) My parents have been making their own mee (handmade noodles) since I was young and I always love it. And now, my children and husband also enjoy this delicacy so much :)

As usual, i only share simple and easy recipes...So, to make it an easy recipe, you don't have to make the noodles yourself. I replace it with Sakura 'You Mian' that i bought from Tesco (picture as shown at the end of the article) and replace the sliced 'char siew' with hard-boiled eggs. And you still can enjoy the 'authentic taste' of this delicacy!

'Kam Puang/Kolok Mee' (Foo Chow Noodles) Recipe

Ingredients (for 4 servings):

• 4 'pieces' of Sakura 'You Mian' noodles (you may use yee mee too)
• Some vegetables - i use 'Siew Pak Choy' (chopped)

For toppings:

• 2 eggs (cut into 2) - you may use minced meat/'char siew' pork (BBQ)
• 3-4 shallots (minced and fried)
• Some spring onions (finely chopped)

For seasoning (sauce):

• 3 tablespoons of shallot oil (i use the remaining oil from Steamed Pumpkin Cake)
• 1 tablespoon of thick soy sauce
• 1/2 tablespoon of light soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon of oyster sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon of Maggi seasoning/mononatrium glutamate (MSG)
• A pinch of white pepper powder
• 1/2 cup of hot water

Steps:

1. First, prepare the sauce. Add all the sauce ingredients together and mix it well.
2. Then, prepare the toppings' ingredients.
3. Boil a pot of water. Boil the vege for 5 minutes. Remove and drain it and keep it aside. 
4. Next, boil the noodles in the pot and cook for about 5-6 minutes.
5. Drain and run cold water through them and place them in a big bowl.
6. Add the seasoning mixture (sauce) to the noodles and mix well. Portion them in 4 plates.
7. Garnish them with the toppings and that's it!

Preparation time: 15 minutes

Cooking time: 10 minutes

Enjoy!

I use these noodles...

These are the ingredients.

I left out this in the above picture...

Black Bean Soup Recipe

Hi all, yay TGIF...here comes my mood to write. As I promised, here is the 'Black Bean Soup' recipe. This is the simplest soup recipe for my family. You can try it too!

Black Bean Soup Recipe

Ingredients (4-5 persons):

• 1 cup of black beans
• 1/2 'kampung' chicken
• 7 cups of water
• Some cooking oil
• 1/2 teaspoon of salt or some light soy sauce
• White pepper powder (optional)

Steps:

1. Get ready a cup of black beans (I bought it from Tesco). Soak for few minutes, then wash and rinse them. Click here to read the benefits of black beans.
2. Grease the wok with some cooking oil and pour in the black beans. Stir fry for about 5 minutes.
3. Then transfer it to the slow cooker.
4. Add 7 cups of water.
5. Now, get ready the 'kampung' chicken and boil it  for few minutes before you transfer it to the slow cooker.
6. Let it cook in slow cooker for at least 4 hours. Then add salt/light soy sauce before you serve.
7. That's all, your soup now is ready!

Preparation time: 15 minutes

Cooking time: 4-5 hours

Enjoy!

You may want to refer to the photos here:

Smiley Nasi Pattaya Recipe

My girl, Sarah loves 'nasi pattaya' and she always hopes that i can cook for her. So, I decided to cook a simple dinner for her last week...and it turned out to be a cute 'Smiley Nasi Pattaya'! And healthy too...

Smiley Nasi Pattaya Recipe

Here are the ingredients (for 4 persons):
For fried rice:

1. 1 cup of white rice + 1/2 cup of unpolished brown rice (soaked & cooked)
2. 2 1/2 cup of water (to cook the rice)
3. 1 carrot (shredded)
4. 1/2 cup of sweet corn
5. 1/2 cup of celery (chopped into small cubes)
6. 8 fish balls (cut into 4 pieces)
7. 3 small garlic (cut into small pieces)
8. 4 eggs (for topping-smiley's face)
9. Some cooking oil

Mixture of sauce:

1. 1/2 tablespoon of thick soy sauce
2. 1/2 tablespoon of oyster sauce
3. 1/2 teaspoon of Maggi seasoning (Cukup Rasa)
4. A pinch of salt
5. A pinch of white pepper powder
6. 50 ml of water (add to the mixture 1-5 to dilute it)

Garnishing:

1. 1/2 cucumber (sliced)
2. 16-18 of cherry tomatoes
3. 4 sweet corn (from the fried rice)
4. Some tomato/chilli sauce
5. 8 black beans (optional-I got it from my 'Black Bean Soup')

Steps:

1. Fried the garlic with  some oil till brownish.
2. Add in fish balls and stir.
3. Then add in the sweet corn, shredded carrot and celery.
4. Continue to stir for about 5-6 minutes.
5. Then, add in the cooked rice.
6. Continue to stir for about 10 minutes and it is ready.
7. Use a bowl to portion the fried rice. Place the fried rice in the bowl and press it and then topple it onto a plate. (It will hold the fried rice in a nice mountain shape). Repeat till you get 4 plates.
8. Now, you can prepare the egg. Crack an egg and stir it. Then, spread it on a flat pan. (Tilt the pan in a circular motion to spread it equally). Cook for about 5 minutes and transfer it unto the fried rice in 7. (I didn't wrap it, so 1 egg per person. If you want to wrap it you may need a bigger pan and 2 eggs per person).
9. Now, you can garnish it as shown in the picture.

• 4-5 tomato cherries as smiley's hair
• 2 slices of cucumber as smiley's eyes
• 2 black beans as smiley's eye balls (optional)
• a corn as smiley's nose
• some tomato/chilli sauce as smiley's mouth

P/s: I served it with 'Black Bean Soup'...a simple and healthy soup :)

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Cooking time: 25-30 minutes

Enjoy!

Pumpkin-Potatoes Soup Recipe

Another pumpkin recipe that now become my family's favourite...It is 'Pumpkin-Potatoes Soup'. It started when i had the leftover of pumpkin from my previous recipe, 'Steamed Pumpkin Cake (Kuih)'.

Easy Pumpkin-Potatoes Soup Recipe (4-5 persons) - Non Dairy

Ingredients:

• 220 grams of pumpkin (chopped into small cubes)
• 250 grams/3 potatoes-medium size (chopped into small cubes)
• 150 grams/1 sweet potatoes-medium size (chopped into small cubes)
• 4-5 cups of water
• 1 small garlic (cut into tiny pieces)
• A pinch of white pepper powder 
• A pinch of Italian herbs (optional)
• A pinch of salt
• 1/2 teaspoon of Maggi seasoning (Cukup Rasa)
• Some cooking oil

Steps:

1. Chop the pumpkin, potatoes and sweet potatoes into small cubes. (The smaller the cubes, the shorter the cooking time.)
2. Now, place all the cubes in a pot and add in 3-4 cups of water. (The amount of water depends on your pot size. Just make sure there is enough water to cover the cubes.)
3. Boil it for about 15-20 minutes or until they are soft. Then set it aside to let it cool down a bit.
4. While waiting, you can chop the small garlic into small pieces and fry them in a pan till brownish.
5. Now, get ready your blender and pour in the mixture in no.3. Blend it till puree state.
6. Pour the blended mixture into the pan in no.4. Then, add in 1 cup of water (you may add more water if you want to, but I prefer thick soup!) and stir it.
7. Bring it to boil.
8. Then, add in white pepper powder, Italian herbs and Maggi seasoning (Cukup Rasa). Stir it.
9. Your pumpkin-potatoes soup now is ready!

Preparation time: 10 minutes

Cooking time: 15-20 minutes

Enjoy!

P/s: My girls love it when she dips her garlic toasts in it, a great combination. Yummy!

Steamed Pumpkin Cake (Kuih) Recipe

Hi, I'm back again. This time with a kuih recipe...pumpkin cake! Yes not yam..as my hubby don't really like yam. And why pumpkin? Because no matter how i cooked the pumpkin..i still couldn't get my girls to swallow the pumpkin..until i discover this 'secret recipe'! Actually, my mum used to make this yam cake when i was young, i just replaced it with pumpkin. It is an easy peasy recipe..trust me!

Steamed Pumpkin Cake (Kuih) Recipe 

Here are the ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cup of rice flour
• 2 tablespoons of wheat flour
• 1 tablespoons of tapioca/corn flour
• 2 cups of pumpkin (shredded)
• 3 cups of water
• 1/2 teaspoon of salt
• 3 small garlic (chopped into small pieces)
• 1 teaspoon of five spice powder
• 2 teaspoon of Maggi chicken seasoning (cukup rasa)-optional
• A pinch of white pepper powder

     Garnishing

• 1 stalk of spring onion
• 6 shallots (sliced)
• some cooking oil for frying

(I don't like shrimps, so no shrimps in my list! You may add it if you like..both in batter and garnishing ingredients) - Mine: Vegetarian :)

Steps:

1. I prefer to do all the cutting and chopping first. So, get ready the pumpkin (shredded), garlic (finely chopped), shallots (sliced) and spring onion (chopped) . 
2. Now, prepare the garnishing. Fry the shallots till brownish, drain and dry it and set it aside to let it cool down. You may keep it in a jar to maintain its crispiness. (The remaining oil, you can keep it for making the sauce of 'Kam Puang/Kolok mee' - a type of Foo Chow mee. Chop the spring onion and keep it in a container/bowl and place it in the fridge (maintain its freshness).
3. Pre-boil your steamer pot. 
4. Now, put together all the flours, salt, five spice powder and white pepper powder in a mixing bowl. Pour in the water and mix well.
5. Get ready your wok and pour in some oil and fry the garlic till brownish.
6. Then, add the shredded pumpkin in and stir fry for about 5-6 minutes.
7. Now, pour in the batter and continue to stir.
8. As you stir, the batter will thicken..continue to stir till it gets lumpy and dry but still soft.
9. Get ready your cake pan (my pan size: diameter: 20 cm) and grease it.
10. Pour the mixture in and press it well to cover the whole pan evenly.
11. Place the pan in the steamer pot and cover it well. Steam on high heat for 40-45 minutes. (Test with a fork/chopstick. It is ready if it comes out clean.)
12. Take it out and let it cool down before you garnish and cut it.

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Steaming time: 40-45 minutes

Enjoy!

P/s: Thanks to my grandma for her tip: Add some wheat flour to the batter to make the texture nicer..not so sticky and wobbly!

Some pictures here:

Useful Tips for Baking Banana Muffins!

Hi everyone. After baking many times of banana muffins for the past two weeks, I had discovered a few simple tips that make the baking process much easier and make the muffins tastier :)

Here, I'm happy to share the tips:

1.   Choosing the bananas...

• Choose the overripe bananas. This is because overripe bananas are easier to mash, make the muffins moister, tastier and healthier. (http://www.herbs-info.com/blog/scientists-find-ripe-banana-dark-patches-combats-abnormal-cells-and-cancer/)

2.   How to mash the bananas...

• After peeling the bananas skin, put all the bananas in a clean plastic bag. A small plastic bag will do, not too small and not too big!
• Tie the plastic bag and press the bananas with your fingers till all are mashed to puree state.
• Cut a hole at one of the corner of the plastic bag.
• Squeeze the banana puree slowly into the mixing bowl. (Please refer to the pictures below)

3.   Use self-stand baking cups instead of a muffin tray with soft muffin cups...

• This will save your time because you don't have to grease the muffin tray and preheat it.
• And save cost as well. For beginners, you don't have to get the extra utensil.
• For city folks in Malaysia, you can get 1 box (20 cups) for RM3.90 at Mr. DIY shops!

4.   How to pour the mixture into the baking cups...

• Get ready another clean plastic bag, pour the mixture slowly into it.
• Tie the plastic bag.
• Cut a hole at one of the corner and squeeze out the mixture slowly into the baking cups. (Please refer to the pictures below)

5. After the Muffins are done...

• After 20-22 minutes, your muffins are done. Do not open the oven door or take out the muffins immediately. 
• Leave them in the oven for about 30 minutes. This is to avoid the drastic change of temperature which can cause the muffins to become flat again.

Hope you find these tips helpful! I really enjoyed baking these tasty yet easy-to-make muffins for my family...especially when I have little helpers around me to help out. My girls love to beat the egg and pour the mixture into the cups :)

Enjoy and share it!

Easy Choco-Banana Muffins Recipe

Another Easy Muffins Recipe: Choco-Banana Muffins

My girls love chocolate cakes. So, I try to add chocolate flavor to my banana muffins. This time, I just add 1 extra ingredient, 2 tablespoon of coco powder to the existing recipe (Easy Banana Muffins Recipe)! And the result was as awesome as the original one :)

Give it a try!

Ingredients (for 6 big muffins):

• 1 egg
• 4-5 bananas (5 if medium size, 4 if large)
• 40 grams of raisins
• 1/3 cup of cooking oil
• 1/2 cup of fine/caster sugar or less
• 1 teaspoon of baking soda
• 1 1/2 cup of self raising flour
• A pinch of salt
• 2 tablespoon of coco powder

Steps:

1. Get ready 4-5 ripe bananas and mash them. (overripe bananas are better, moister and healthier).
2. Preheat oven to 180 degree Celcius.
3. Crack an egg in the mixing bowl, beat slightly and add caster sugar, raisins and coco powder to it. Continue to beat for few minutes.
4. Then, mix the mashed banana, egg mixture, and cooking oil together (wet).
5. Get another bowl, sieve and mix self raising flour and baking soda together. Then add a pinch of salt (dry).
6. Now mix wet and dry ingredients together. Use your hand mixer to mix it well.
7. Get ready 6 cupcake cups and pour the mixture slowly to each cup till 70% full. (You can get these cups from Mr. DIY shop at RM3.90 for 20 cups. They are easier to bake in oven, you don't have to buy a muffin tray and grease it!)
8. Bake in oven, 185 degree Celcius for about 20-22 minutes. Try it and you will love it!

Preparation time: 10-15 minutes

Baking time: 20-22 minutes

Enjoy!

Easy Banana Muffins Recipe

The Easiest Banana Muffins Recipe!

Hi, just sharing..I'm not good in baking. But after i tried making these muffins, I'm very confident that all mummies can make these. This is the easiest and the simplest muffin recipe! You don't need to have an expensive mixer and baking utensils. You just need a manual hand mixer and 2 bowls. And of course a simple oven :)

Ingredients (for 6 big muffins):

• 1 egg
• 4-5 bananas (5 if medium size, 4 if large)
• 40 grams of raisins
• 1/3 cup of cooking oil
• 1/2 cup of fine/caster sugar or less
• 1 teaspoon of baking soda
• 1 1/2 cup of self raising flour
• A pinch of salt

Steps:

1. Get ready 4-5 ripe bananas and mash them. (overripe bananas are better, moister and healthier).
2. Preheat oven to 180 degree Celcius.
3. Crack an egg in the mixing bowl, beat slightly and add caster sugar and raisins to it. Continue to beat till whitish in colour.
4. Then, mix the mashed banana, egg mixture, and cooking oil together (wet).
5. Get another bowl, sieve and mix self raising flour and baking soda together. Then add a pinch of salt (dry).
6. Now mix wet and dry ingredients together. Use your hand mixer to mix it well.
7. Get ready 6 cupcake cups and pour the mixture slowly in each cup till 70% full. (You can get these cups from Mr. DIY shop at RM3.90 for 20 cups. They are easier to bake in oven, you don't have to buy a muffin tray and grease it!)
8. Bake in oven, 185 degree Celcius for about 22 minutes. Try it and you will love it!

Preparation time: 10-15 minutes

Baking time: 20-22 minutes

Enjoy!

P/s: Thanks to my mum and dad for the splendid kampung bananas (organic)!

Here is the picture of a manual hand mixer and a mixing bowl:

Loom Bands Craze Gallery

Here are some of the pictures of my loom bands' collection! Most of them i did with my girls quite some time ago...

Here, just sharing how my girls play with their loom bands accessories when they were told not to wear them on hands. And as a mum, I really don't want to stop their fun time and creativity...So, I allowed them to put the accessories on their dolls and soft toys :)

Hope all of you have fun too :)