What’s the worst that can happen?

The best advice that I’ve ever been given came from an ex-boss. I was a bit younger then, and definitely a lot more immature. One day as I was sharing with her my doubts and fears, she asked me, “What’s the worst that can happen?”

Nobody learns how to ride a bike by being afraid of falling. Great things would never be accomplished if people were afraid of failing. I once knew a man who was shortlisted for a prestigious job and invited for an interview. He never showed up for the interview because he was afraid of being rejected. It sounds stupid put like that, but how many of us turn down opportunities because we’re afraid of failure? It is always easier to stay in your comfort zone and not venture out to pursue your dreams. Many rationalize this fear by deciding that their dreams are not worth the risk. ‘Why should I leave this cushy job? I only think that I will be happier there, what if I’m not? What if I fail? I end up with less than I have now…’

All great things come with their risks. Great businessmen never rose to where they are by being afraid to take that critical step. Sure there are failures and sure there is always a big possibility that you will fall. But really, what is the worst that can happen?

Tango Market

Of late the voices in my head have been getting louder.

I don’t mean the crazy ones that tell me that hot water from the bathroom sink is hot enough to cook instant cup noodles with (ah the joys of a dorm room). Or the violent ones that try and convince me to punch annoying people in the face for the betterment of humanity.

I mean, the bitchy ones that have a smart ass comment  for every situation. I suspect it might be because the bitchy side of me has finally found acceptance over here in Hawaii, where I can say what I think (most of the time) without being judged. But then again, there are still comments that I can’t say out loud as I think them…

To the girl walking through the CO-ED dorm dressed in her underwear: All your clothes in the wash sweetie?

Damn, I would love to say that out loud to her one day. Some day chun, some day.

Before you think too badly of me, let’s get back on task.

If you live in Honolulu, go and eat in Tango Market. Try their duck confit with risotto cakes, you won’t regret it. It’s about 15 bucks before taxes and tip but damn it’s worth it. Here’s the address because i’m nice that way.

1200 Ala Moana
Bldg 6 Ste 601
Honolulu, HI 96814

and a photograph of the food you can expect, because this is a food blog after all.

 

Chocolate and Butterscotch Chip Cookies

It’s been a long time ol’ baking blog of mine. Don’t worry, I haven’t forgotten you baby. It’s just been a tough few months.

Okay, maybe not ‘few’. It’s been a long 7 months.

Quick summary: Did an internship with Coke, went through a bad breakup, left Singapore to study for half a year Hawaii, mended my broken heart in Hawaii and fell in love with the place.

I’m currently in Hawaii, definitely the most beautiful place I have ever been. It’s like living in a dream. A beautiful dream that I never want to end.

Take 2 Yuzu! Matcha Yuzu Cupcakes

This is take 2 of my yuzu cupcake series! If you haven’t seen take 1, you should definitely go and check it out!

Anyway, as I mentioned during take 1 yuzu, I wanted to experiment around with the cupcake base, this is the result of it! I think that the slightly bitter taste of the matcha powder goes better with the yuzu. It’s so exotically Japanese that I want to squeal and decorate it with sakura blossoms and stuff… *squeals*

This cupcake is not meant for people whose idea of matcha is heaven and earth jasmine green tea. That is not matcha. Matcha is more grassy(?) than that.

Pictured below: Grassy cupcake.

Yuzu Chocolate Cupcakes

The next few weeks are going to be very exciting. Singapore is holding its next general elections and my generation is going to be voting for the very first time.

Maybe it’s a self-centered point of view but it feels like we are living in a time of change. The rise of social media and the internet have helped to level the political arena. It helps too that Singaporeans are generally well educated and (hopefully) able to make logical macro type decisions that will benefit the country. (or am i just deluding myself?)

Yet, there are still my peers living around me who remain steadfastly apathetic and live with their eyes closed. They are too content with the world that surrounds them. When everything is going well in your life, it becomes easy to forget about the less fortunate who are working harder than ever just to put food on the table, or the ones who fall through the gaps and are forgotten by society.

Be it for the ruling party or the opposition, I hope everyone will vote very carefully because this is a responsibility that should not be undertaken frivolously.

In this climate of severity, the cupcakes that I made this time round feel somewhat more mature than usual. It might be the bitter tang of the yuzu fruit, or the heavy texture of the chocolate cake, but everything about it screams “adult”.

Hazelnut blueberry biscotti

Lately, WordPress has been messing with my feelings. For entire days, I won’t be able to access the system to edit or create new posts. =( Not like I had the time too anyway.

What’s with the world lately? It’s just too depressing. =( The past week, I have been secretly panicking. See, there’s this frightful phenomenon known as the “MID-SEM CRISIS”. It’s a horrible thing that strikes in the middle of each semester, when deadlines pile up and things don’t appear to be going well. And it creeps up on you slowly, like an evil snake and when you’re looking the other way IT STRIKES! Another word for it is the “HELL WEEK”.

This round was quite bad. The blow to my ego was unfortunate. But anyways, there’s no looking back because it would be freaky if there was someone standing behind me right now. Wait what? Anyway, ANYWAY, things have taken a turn for the better and my prospects are looking up! I’ve actually gotten calls for internship interviews which is a great relief. (By the way, if your company is looking for an intern… and you love sweet stuff…you know who to email).

So here are some Sunflowers to take away the gloom from the day.

Japanese Light Cheesecake. It’s so fluffy!

It’s been a long and bad week.

The markets are down, my test was disgusting *@#* and people were mean.

You know it’s been a bad week when you tally the junk food count and it goes something like this.

1) Slices of cheesecake, 4

2) Chocolate consumption in weight, 300gram

3) Chocolate chip cookies eaten, 10

4) Ice cream in number of scoops, 4

5) Burger King meals eaten whilst having project meeting, 2

6) Coke drunk, 1 bottle

7) Cereal eaten at midnight, 4 bowls

The list goes on…and I was only in school for 3 days!

You must be wondering why I still can fit through my doors. Not for long I’m sure, if this keeps up. So imagine my relief when I found a cheesecake recipe that both satisfies my need for comfort food and doesn’t weigh too heavily on the tummy fats.

Changes

Whilst studying for my copyright law test, I decided to make changes to my blog.

I seriously doubt the intelligence of my decision, especially since I just got another post admitted into tastespotting. I just pray that people who click on that post will not be rebuffed by the empty musingat webpage but will follow through to here.

I feel a bit insecure because even though I always gripe about how people never visit my blog, the reality is that there are people reading. Like really. I get a minimum of 20 views everyday, thanks to tastespotting. Some days it hits a few hundred.. how many of you will follow to my new address? Sigh. But the cut has to be made now before it’s too late so I shall just grit my teeth and bear with the pain.

I’ve also adopted a CC license, as you can see at the side of the page. This means that all the photographs on this blog are available for non-commercial use, as long as you license your finished work under the same free license. Oh, and don’t forget to attribute me. Giving makes the world go round.

So here’s another beautiful photo (in my not-so-humble opinion) to landmark the changes in my blog!

It’s of the latest $70 million Sentosa Boardwalk, have you visited it yet?

Valentines’ Day Carrots!

I haven’t updated in ages I know. My bad.

So anyway, after 3 years of loveydovey-ness, i finally found out that my boyfriend dislikes chocolate! Oh the horror. This took place a month before valentines day.. and after giving him chocolate related foods for the past two years… oh the horror…lets not dwell on the past.. horror…

In addition, my boyfriend, (whom i have named BUNNY, solely because it rhymes with honey and wunny- do you pity him already?) NEVER eats enough vegetables. I tell him that he would never be able to poop properly if he doesn’t ingest sufficient bowel-moving, earth-shaking fibre. But does he listen? No. So of late I have been trying to sneak fibre into the cakes and cookies that I bake for him.

I am the mastermind! Beware my schemes!

I’ll be honest with you, this is the first time that my carrot cake has succeeded. And, this is NOT the first time that I have attempted carrot cake. This carrot cake right there below this line, has gotten rave (hopefully not out of sympathy) reviews and devouration (not quite a word, but an awesome descriptor).

EDIT (12 MAR 2011): I baked the cake again to use up my excess cream cheese frosting. It’s just as awesome as the last time. =) So don’t worry and go ahead and bake this!

Strawberry Jelly Cheesecake happiness =)

Christmas is an awesome time of the year. Especially when Mel is Santa. =) I know it’s a waste to use ramekins for cheesecake purposes but but… all my souffle attempts have not been blog post worthy. And the ramekins photograph so beautifully with the cheesecake.

Gourmet! These babies are gourmet! Not even available off the shelf in Singapore, she got them from the UK. This must be love. And there are 4 in the set, what an awesome number that is for baking. 1 souffle for my sister and 3 for me. =) Awesome.