End 2021 with A Bang to Start 2022 on A Higher Note

 

May 2022 be the year you experience bliss, awesomeness, magnificence, and cheerfulness! Make this new year another year to love, laugh, and give! Happy New Year!

 

Having said that, let me do some recap of some notable anecdotes that I'd like to blog about as part of my annual summary.

 

• I have started cooking again, not so very often but when I did, I enjoyed the process. Most of my meals are on my Instagram - fried rice, pancakes, porridge, pasta, sliders, curry laksa, Bak Kut Teh (attempt 1), Bak Kut Teh (attempt 2), rice cooker "Claypot" chicken rice, and masak lemak Chinese style.
  

• I was hospitalized for knee arthroscopy in May. Check out my past IG post below.
  
  

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A post shared by Joyce Rachel | Mom Blogger (@joycescapade)

• My recovery after the surgery was pretty smooth - 2 weeks post ops, 1.5 months post ops, and 2 months post ops.

 

• My boys and I celebrated our birthdays at home - mine, L1, L2.

 

• Created my Linktree profile.

 

Check out my compilation of annual posts since 2007. 

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Handpicked Notable Meals in 2021 After MCO is Lifted

 

 

 What's life without food and friends? I'm so blessed! Here are some handpicked photos from my recent makan-makan adventure after the dreaded MCO is finally lifted, hopefully for good. Woohoo!

Above is lunch at Breakfast Thieves, Jalan Riong, Bangsar. Terry Benedict (bottom plate) is highly recommended. It comes with slow braised black pepper Aussie beef brisket, mushrooms, renkon (lotus root) chips, crisp potatoes, crisp kale, English muffins, tomato salsa, two poached eggs, and silky brown butter hollandaise.

 

 

 Then, on a rainy afternoon, I ordered Korean food for lunch. This bowl of Kimchi Jjigae served with rice and a sunny-side up egg is super comforting for the soul. I couldn't remember the name of the restaurant on GrabFood though. Gotta find out later so that I can reorder again.

 

 Indian food at Original Penang Kayu Nasi Kandar at Jalan Telawi, Bangsar for lunch with colleagues.

 

 Japanese food at the ubiquitous Pasta Zanmai during a weekend staycation with the hubby.

 

 Good food is best enjoyed with good friends too. This is at my favorite hideout in Bandar Kinrara Puchong. If you're in the area, look for Bayou Diner. Pretty decent food, not super crowded, and it's really a peaceful diner to just chit-chat and chill.

 

 The Chicken Rice Shop. What's your verdict? I think it's pretty decent. I love the chili and ginger paste that they serve together with rice and chicken.

 

 I'm told that Baba Low's 486 Bangsar, Lorong Kurau serves one of the best Nyonya Laksa in town. I agree! It's super flavorful and hearty. The generous serving of cucumber julienne is refreshing as they provide another texture to the entire dish.

Not forgetting Arabian food at Bedouin Arabian Cuisine, Jalan Wan Kadir, TTDI. You have to come with at least another 3 friends and order this humongous plate of food. I don't remember what is it called but it comes with 2 types of rice, 2 types of chicken, and 2 types of lamb shank.

If you're a fan of spiced tea, you must order their Adeni Tea.

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Simple Homey Christmas 2021 Spread

 

 

Christmas 2021 was celebrated in a simple and homey way. We had sugee cake, fruit cake, chicken and beef satay with spicy peanut sauce.

 

My parents-in-law also taught their grandkids how to make putu mayam from scratch! I forgot to take a photo of the apparatus used to make these delicious putu mayam.

My mom-in-law cooked a pot of delicious chicken curry with so much potatoes and all I did was to eat all the potatoes I could scoop from the pot. Hahaha!

 

Not forgetting the iconic Roti Paung and some local kuih-muih for breakfast and tea time.

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Masak Lemak Chinese Style Ala Mom-in-Law

 

Masak Lemak Chinese Style Ala Mom-in-Law

 

The last round I went back to my husband's hometown, my mom-in-law cooked her masak lemak which I truly loved! I asked for her recipe, modified it a little bit based on what I have in my fridge, and tada! Here's my masterpiece.

Ingredients: Fish balls, fish cakes, tomatoes, firm tofu, fu chuk sticks, mushroom seasoning, coconut milk, and turmeric powder. Not seen in photo are 2 cili kering (dried chili) and some black peppercorns.

How to: First, I heat up some cooking oil and add in dried chili and black peppercorns. Once they are fragrant, I add in fish balls and fish cakes and cook until fragrant. Then I add in tomatoes, firm tofu, and just enough water to cover the ingredients. Once the water is boiling, I add in mushroom seasoning and fu chuk sticks. I let it simmer for about 15-20 minutes over medium heat.

 

Then, I turn down the heat to low, add in coconut milk and turmeric powder and let it simmer for about 5-8 minutes over low heat. Finally, I season with some salt before I turn off the heat.

Serve this masak lemak piping hot with mixed grains rice. My ultimate comfort food!

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Recent life quotes

 

"Owning our story and loving ourselves through that process is the bravest thing that we will ever do." -  Brené Brown

Key takeaway: You're the main character in the story of your life. Always. Forever. Don't forget it. Acknowledge it.

Yes, you have all the rights to grow at your own pace and your own time. Don't feel guilty about it. Don't be gas-lighted to think that you're left out for not being in the game.

How do you know that the side you are used to is better than the one to come? So much truth!

Self care truly means love yourself. No one will ever love you like how you love yourself. I'm getting better everyday!

Key takeaway: Struggling is not a sign of weakness. Never forget the strength behind the struggle.

Trust is what will bring us to where we want to be.

Finally, don't forget to appreciate all the progress you've made; allow yourself to feel how you feel; remember you're still learning; focus on what you love and enjoy; define "success" on your own terms; I'm a work in progress!

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My boy's five-year-old birthday celebration

First, let's talk about the birthday cake. It's a beautiful Burnt Cheesecake decorated with Avengers superheros figurines as requested by the birthday boy.

The birthday boy stared intently at his birthday cake. He's very impressed!

Next, the birthday cheese & fruit tarts.

Beautiful, aren't they?

If you're guessing who's the baker, you can look for Whisk of Joy. Check out my other orders from the same baker.

Finally, let's see what we had for lunch. We ordered two regular pizzas from Domino's and these delicious dishes from EzPz Pasta & Such.

Shepherd's Pie, Seafood Spaghetti Aglio Olio, Grilled Beef Meatballs in Gravy, Roasted Mixed Vegetables, Mixed Fruits Salad, and Butter Herb Rice.

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Household Favorite: Rice Cooker "Claypot" Chicken Rice

 

I lost count of how often have I been cooking this household favorite one-pot dish - Rice Cooker "Claypot" Chicken Rice. It's my favorite go-to dish to cook; the ingredients are easy to find and cooking time is relatively short with my trusted Philips Avance Collection Fuzzy Logic Rice Cooker (not an advertisement ya, haha).

 

 Here's a previous blog post that I published in 2018. There are more photos on that blog post that depicted the cooking process. This post is a revisit and I tweaked the recipe to suit our current taste preference.

Ingredients:
(Serves 2 adults + 2 kids under 8)

1-2 tablespoons vegetable oil
500g whole chicken thigh, cut into pieces
5-6 fresh Shiitake mushrooms, rinsed and sliced
4 sticks lap cheong (Chinese dried sausages), casing removed and sliced

1 piece salted fish

2 cups brown rice, rinsed and drained
1 tablespoon oyster sauce
1 tablespoon dark soy sauce
850ml-1L filtered water

1 tablespoon mushroom powder

Salt to taste, optional

 

How to:

1. Heat up vegetable oil in a frying pan over medium-high heat. Add in chicken pieces, mushroom slices, lap cheong slices, salted fish, brown rice, oyster sauce, dark soy sauce and stir everything until evenly combined.

 

2. Transfer the mixture into the rice cooker, add water and mushroom powder. Switch on the rice cooker and select the "Casserole rice" option and press start. The timer will set itself to 1 hour.

 

3. 10 minutes before cooking stops, the rice cooker will beep. At this point, add in salt to taste.

 

4. When the rice cooker beeps again for the second time, it means cooking is done. Dinner is ready to be served.

 

5. Serve it any way you like, with or without garnishing is fine.

Share with us your photos too if you have tried cooking this recipe! Happy cooking!

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Lunch Date @ Koffie Craft, Holland Boutique Cafe in Kuala Lumpur

 

Cherry Berry Oven-Baked 'Dutch Baby' Pancake

This beautiful pancake is served with 3 scoops of Vanilla ice-cream, cherries, blackcurrants, fresh mango, whipped cream, raspberry sauce, and almond flakes.

 

Salmon Fillet

Cooked to perfection and served with beans, salad, potato waffles, capers, and sauteed red onion rings.

 

 

Home-Roasted Pumpkin and Red Apple Salad

Comes with crisp white and red cabbage, Romaine lettuce, roast capsicum, oven-dried cherry tomatoes, and red onion rings in their house dressing. Topped with toasted walnuts.

 

 

Koffie Pompoen (Pumpkin Latte)

With real pumpkin!

 

'Dirty' Chai Latte

Love my cuppa chai latte!

Koffie Craft

 

Unit UG-2, The Sphere

No 1, Avenue 1,

Bangsar South City,

8 Jalan Kerinchi,

59200 Kuala Lumpur

Website - https://www.koffiecraft.com.my/

Facebook - @koffiecraft
Instagram - @koffiecraft
Deliveries - koffiecraft.beepit.com

Phone: +60 3 5033 2135
WhatsApp: +6017 381 7876

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Homemade Ang Ku Kueh (Red Tortoise Cake) by My Mother-in-Law

 

Ang Ku Kueh or Red Tortoise Cake, is a small round or oval-shaped Chinese pastry with soft, sticky glutinous rice flour skin wrapped around a sweet filling in the center. It's molded to resemble a tortoise shell and is presented resting on a square piece of banana leaf. This is the best description of ang ku kueh I found from Wikipedia.

Best thing is, my mother-in-law makes her own ang ku kueh!

 

 

If you'd like to find out which recipes to follow, you can follow these two video links as recommended by my mother-in-law:

https://youtu.be/TP0L85jU_gQ

https://youtu.be/4SFUm0y13fc

 

 

Those round balls are shaped from homemade mung bean paste. The pinkish dough is the ang ku kueh skin dough.

 

 

Remember to lightly dust the ang ku kueh mould with glutinous rice flour.

 

 

Press the dough ball into the mould gently.

 

 

The kiddos love pressing the dough ball to fit nicely into the ang ku kueh mould. They say it's like playing with their play dough.

 

 

It's indeed a great indoor activity with the kids, especially during a lazy, rainy afternoon.

 

 

Lightly knock the dough out of the flour-dusted ang ku kueh mould.

 

 

Place ang ku kueh on the banana leaf. Steam over boiling water for 10 minutes.

 

 

Then, brush the surface of the cooked ang ku kueh with oil to give it a pretty, glossy look.

 

 

Thumbs up from my ang ku kueh boy!

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