Miraculous NINE

We have come a rather long way- 9 years in marriage to be exact with 2 beautiful boys. Each year you will celebrate the day with me in your best possible way which always never fail to bring a smile on my face.

Our 2 Lovely Boys

This year is a no doubter too. I enjoyed our very late lunch at my favourite place again, the movie (though it was an all-boys movie) & the super huge dinner (which was totally AWESOME). 

Dinner @ Texas Road House

But I guess you will have to agree with me that nothing beats the gift that’s bestowed upon us unexpectedly as a mark of our 9th year wedding anniversary (which is gonna to make our 10th even more special). 🙂

In Anticipation

Happy 9th Wedding Anniversary !!

(with many more years to come 🙂 )

Christmas Bake: Cherry Vanilla Pound

I know in Singapore it’s already Boxing Day today. Hope everyone had a fun time. Anyway it’s still Christmas here in Idaho. A tad boring for us since we have some travel restrictions and are still in the midst of settling down (so we’re kind of stuck in here at home).

Cherry Vanilla Pound Cake

This is my FIRST bake since I’ve arrived. I can no longer wait for my boxes. I have to start using the Kitchenaid that my hubby got for me as an early Christmas present. I just need to bake something………….

Early Christmas Pressie from Hubby 🙂

So I bought some disposable aluminium loaf-pan foil. Can’t imagine that I got so excited about it and was already wide awake at 5.30am.

Servings: 8 slices

Ingredients:

• 150g Cake Flour (Sifted twice)
• 150g Unsalted Butter (Room Temperature)
• 100g Caster Sugar
• 3 Egg Yolks
• 1/8 tsp Baking Powder
• 1/4 tsp Salt
• 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
• 120g Frozen Dark Sweet Cherries
• French Meringue: 3 Egg Whites & 30g Caster Sugar

Preparation:

• Sift the flour and baking powder.
• Prepare 8″ x 3 3/4″ x 2 1/2″ Aluminium Loaf-Pan
• Preheat oven to 170°C/335°F

Method (with step-by-step photo) 

1. Cream the butter to incorporate air till pale yellow.
2. Add sugar and salt, whisk till light and fluffy(mayo-like texture).
3. Whisk in egg yolk one at a time.
4. Mix in the vanilla extract.
5. Prepare french meringue in a clean mixing bowl (To read up on how to whisked up meringue, click here).
6. Fold in 1/3 meringue into butter mixture.
7. Fold in the sifted flour & baking powder quickly till it just disappear into the butter mixture. DO NOT OVERMIX as you will end up with a tough & dense sponge.
8. Fold in remaining meringue quickly.
9. Mix in the frozen dark sweet cherries.
10. Fill up the loaf-pan 3/4 full.
11. Bake at 170°C/335°F for 60mins or when skewer comes out clean.
12. Cool down before serving.

Oh and did I mention that I love baking in this winter because cakes and cookies can get so quickly cooled down just by opening a slight bit of the window. 🙂 A total natural cooler!!

Getting a blast of Cold Air

Verdict: Strong hint of vanilla (which I totally love) and the tanginess of the dark cherries balances out the sweetness of the cake. As usual the body of the cake moist and tender. 

Relocating to Idaho

It’s more than 2 months since I updated this blog. Nope…… I have not abandoned this site. It’s just that we have been busy relocating to Idaho as I’ve mentioned here (also the reason for starting this blog).

We’ve been here for slightly more than a month and we’re already more or less settled down (with a miraculous surprise :)) . My boys have already started school and are enjoying themselves tremendously, I’ve already been put to work by my employer (aka my hubby) with only a pot and a pan. As for my hubby, he was soon to put to work too :).

My Boys Totally Enjoying School

Now you must be wondering, “Where on earth is Idaho ?” and “How is the place like?”  Idaho is a land famous for their potato and it’s  a state in the northwestern region of the United States (Read here for more).

Pic Image: (Google Maps) https://maps.google.com.sg/maps?q=Idaho&ie=UTF-8&ei=QHKsUpPZBdPboASYqYKoBw&ved=0CAoQ_AUoAg

Well as for how much I like it, l really do not know. Perhaps because I have been under the vast blue skies and stepping on the luscious greens of the Great Down Under??? Perhaps because we had arrived during winter where everything seems dry, grey and brown??? It is really not a place to fall in love with at first sight. Looking at the above map of our location (we’re not near the coast), my BIGGEST pet peeve here is not being able to fresh fish here. Everything is either prepacked or frozen. Nothing at all like the supermarkets of Toowoomba (where we stayed in Queensland) or like the convenience of the Singapore’s (my hometown)  wet market or supermarket too where we can get fresh food all the time.

Luscious Greens & Clear Blue Sky @ Toowoomba, Queensland

VERSUS

Greyish Blue Skies & Bown Grasses @ Mountain Home, Idaho

Having said that, though we have not been to any place of interest yet, we’re very lucky to have a good size of the Singaporean community here. Not to mention that our sponsor (someone who takes care of us till we’re settled down) is ONE OF THE BEST. From mobile lines to our mode of transport to housing basic necessities to food, he really did a fast and great job. 

Best Sponsor in TOWN!!

By now other than cooking our basic daily food, I have not yet done any baking yet. However there are times we have been eating out and I do have a few favorites now. I will share them with you in time to come that’s because I’ve not been very hardworking with my camera too. 🙂

Cheesecake Factory @ Boise. By far my favourite restaurant. Never fails to impress + SUPERB Service!!

That’s all for now folks and have a great day. 🙂

Also WISHING YOU GUYS A VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS in advance 🙂