Still Learning

Stocks I should have bought in 2009:

1) Genting Singapore (SG)
2) Amazon (Nasdaq)
3) Google (Nasdaq)
4) TopGlove (KLSE)
5) Apple (Nasdaq)

Stocks I should have left alone:

1) Berjaya Sports Toto &%W*#E^&E#

Stock I don't regret buying:

1) Adobe
2) Berkshire Hathaway
3) Public Bank
4) BERNAS

Missing Him

Saying goodbye is always hard, especially to my little baby.

It is my dearest wish that one day we'd be able to bring our pets travelling with us (at a reasonable price).

So here are a few snippets of what he has been up to the weeks before I left:

Wrestling with a ring binder




I had just laundered his towels and stacked them nicely on the wooden crate (and I mean minutes before this). Of course, BooBoo can never resist a new place to lie down on and had to climb on top of the pile immediately.






Doing his look-at-me-I'm-so-cute pose under the dining table, one of his favourite hangouts

Another favourite place to roll about - the fluffy pink rug

Dearest BooBoo, behave yourself at the vet's, we'll see each other again soon enough.

And I'm Off (tommorrow)

Tommorrow I'm off to Penang.

But first comes a 6-hour wait at the Kuching Airport.

Well, I've armed myself with a good thick book, plenty of chocolates (obviously my root canal two days ago hasn't taught me anything), a warm sweater and comfy platform shoes, I'm good to go.

Home sweet home, here I come.

Too Bright

Booboo needs the lights to be OFF when he sleeps, please.

Now, go away and leave me alone.

Coconut and Palm Sugar Cupcakes

These are super-rich, moist cakes flavoured Malaysian-style, with coconut and palm sugar. Now, these two are common enough in chendol (green vermicelli in a cold soup of coconut milk), sago gula melaka, and bubur chacha.

I decided to put them to work in a cupcake, just for fun.

These turned out dense, super moist and with a gorgeous flavour. I used coconut cream (really thick and rich, with an almost sludgy texture) as the liquid instead of coconut milk, which would probably result in a lighter texture. But after the 3rd day of eating and still no sign of abating, I'd recommend using the cream.

After they're baked, these babies with are brushed with a palm sugar syrup, which is just palm sugar (gula melaka) melted with a little water until a sticky sugar syrup is obtained.

Coconut (oil, milk) has gotten a really bad rap in the 20th century. These days, people are extolling about the miracle effects of Virgin Coconut Oil, and milk as well. So these probably won't make you fat *grin*. And they do have such a sweet, nutty coconut scent that's almost delicate.


Coconut Cupcakes with Palm Sugar Syrup

1/2 cup unsalted butter
1 cup minus 2 tablespoons castor sugar
1 cup cake flour
2 eggs
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup coconut cream
2 walnut (unshelled)-sized knobs of palm sugar
4 tbps water

Preheat oven to 180 degC. Grease your cupcake tin (or use a silicone one).
Cream the butter and sugar till light and creamy.
Add the eggs and stir to combine.
Fold in the flour and coconut cream, alternately.
Fill with batter till 3/4 full.
Bake for 20-25 minutes or until a tester inserted into your middle cupcake turns out clean.

Meanwhile, if your palm sugar comes in big blocks like mine does, chop/pound these into smaller pieces as they will melt quicker.
Put the palm sugar and water in a saucepan.
Bring to boil over medium heat and stir till all the sugar is dissolved.
Continue simmering until you get a nice sticky syrup and no solid traces of palm sugar are left.

While the cupcakes are still warm, brush them with the syrup

Serve cold. I found that after 2 days of sitting in the fridge, the cake became all smooth and rich, and made for one hefty (but thoroughly enjoyable) breakfast.

Self Indulgence

I probably should mention that I turned 28 not too long ago. Damn that number THREE-OH is looming.

AK took me for a sumptuous buffet at the super popular Lemon Garden Cafe at the Shangri-La Kuala Lumpur. I loved the smoked duck breast, Tandoori Prawns, salmon sashimi and sticky chocolate cake the most.

In addition, I also bought a lemon meringue pie from a little cafe in Mid Valley (which turned out to be so good), a slice of key lime pie from (again, I can't recall the name) from a cafe in Bangsar Village, and lots and lots of bakua and kaya puffs to cart home.

We visited Ikea, where I went a little crazy picking up a mass of stuff for the kitchen in the new place (stainless steel wall shelf and railings, hooks and a cutlery container).

For myself, I indulged in the following:

1) A 20 cm JW Schillings chef's knife (on sale - RM150), that I cut myself with pretty deeply the first day I used it - I am terrified of that knife now)
2) A slew of cookbooks - Sherry Yard's The Secret of Baking, MFK Fisher's The Gastronomical Me and Martha Stewart's Baking Handbook
3) Lancome Vibrating Mascara - supposedly it lengthens the lashes with prolonged use. Hey, no harm hoping, right? It is a bit thick and clumpy for my taste, but with a lash comb this can be easily rectified.

All in all, a pretty indulgent one.

New Home, new Tree

After 4 years of sharing houses with other people, we get out own little place. Granted it's a rented one, but we get to live by our (granted, my) rules.

So this year, after 3 years of couldn't-care-less-about-the-Miri-home, I bought a modest Christmas tree, ice blue LED lights, silver ribbons and a few baubles in teal and silver. I lugged everything back, immediately put up the tree and lights and asked for BooBoo's opinion. Am a little bit disappointed that he merely blinked (and otherwise showed no interest), but am pleased nonetheless with how it looks.

Counting down to Thursday when I leave for Penang :)