Tuesday, 8 May 2012

Grandpa Chia's 89th Birthday


Mr. L's maternal grandpa turns 89 this year.
He is truly blessed with 6 children and 7 grandchildren who are all filial towards him. Such a  close bond they have. Grandpa Chia is still going strong and healthy despite some difficulty in walking and in hearing. I wish him a merry Happy Birthday, and for him to remain as healthy & happy, and more birthdays in the years to come. Long live Grandpa Chia!

 

His birthday lunch gathering was celebrated at Quan Xiang Yuan (Jing Ji) Seafood Restaurant. This traditional Hokkien Cuisine restaurant serves quality Chinese dishes and Seafood at reasonable prices. Heard that it is so popular that making reservations a must! Even stars like Gong Li and some Mediacorp artistes have dined at Quan Xiang Yuan. And, no doubt about that, since this restaurant which used to occupy one unit boomed over the years into occupying not two but three units, was fully packed with hungry customers. 


泉香园(清记)海鲜菜馆 Quan Xiang Yuan (Jing Ji) Seafood Restaurant
252 Jalan Besar  
Singapore 208925
Tel: 62946254 / 62929351
Opening Hours
Daily
11.30am - 2.30pm
5.30pm - 11.00pm

Monday, 7 May 2012

I Hear Wedding Bells

Not ours of cause but Mr. L's friend, Rajeev's wedding and another was his youngest uncle, Jensen's wedding. It was a privilege to have witnessed two very different wedding ceremonies just a week apart from each other and I'm very much looking forward to attending another great wedding in July.

The happy couple, Rajeev and Manali tied the knot on the 28th. It was my first time attending an Indian wedding and immediately the entrance which was beautifully set up with a long red carpet leading up to the main ceremonial room drew my attention as though I was entering an Indian palace. Loud beats of the tabla together with other instruments i.e. the sarangi, shehnai and zither made some rather catchy sounds that unknowingly my foot was tapping to the ground, synchronizing to the beat of the music as well. The Indian wedding is very much a kaleidoscope of colors and sounds, flavors and flowers which was inviting.


Speaking of colors, the outfits especially the sarees the women wore were all so rich and bright in color. I simply adored one that a little girl was wearing; the different beautiful prints and embroideries enhanced the beauty of her saree, showing its exclusivity.
 
Not for long, the ceremony began. If am not wrong there are 13 steps to the  usual Indian wedding ceremony but because it was all in Hindu, all we did was watch from a distance and followed the crowd as groups of them slowly headed downstairs for lunch.

Have always loved attending engagement parties and/or wedding luncheons and dinners, not only because you get to dress up and put on your best but what truly makes me love these blissful occasions is being able to see the smiles off everyones' faces, the love between the couple sharing their joyous moments with loved ones.

Last Saturday, Jensen and Amanda exchanged their vows at the Church of The Holy Cross and held their dinner banquet at Mandarin Orchard Hotel. Food wise, it wasn't the best but I must say both the bride and groom together with the bridesmaids and groomsmen were all very enthusiastic. The groomsmen and the groom himself were especially enthusiastic during the gate-crashing torture games set by the bridesmaids and I think just for fun & laughter, that should be the way.


Personally, though setting such games are tests for the groom to see if he is willing to go through them all because after all his goal is to get his bride, it clearly reflects on real life situations that the couple may face in the future and whether your husband-to-be is willing to face obstacles and overcome hard times together with you.


I must also take my hat off to both the groom and groomsmen when they performed two dance routines specially for the bride which certainly brought much attention to the entire ballroom. I love their wedding shots photographed by the talented Lindy Truter. Her works are truly amazing! Their shoot was taken in South Africa and it amazes me how magnificent South Africa is; the richness in color from its landscapes, the old houses, the friendly smiles of the locals - it's just BEAUTIFUL! I love the scrapbook they did up of the trip as well.


I admire their commitment in planning their wedding perfectly. It certainly is one of the most fun and worth remembering weddings I've ever attended. For whatever the future holds for them, I wish the loving couple a happy and blessed marriage!

Even though marriage is still quite a long way more for us, sometimes we do still wonder how ours would turn out to be like. We wonder whether our bridesmaids and groomsmen would be as enthusiastic or even more? Would our wedding be, simple or grand? The food be Chinese or fusion? The venue be the usual hotel banquet setting or outdoor setting?

Almost everyone was asking how we are going to better/outshine that. Honestly, our (or at least my) 'Wedding List' is still blank and the paper is as white as snow. But, I foresee the days, months we'll be stressed out planning our big day; from which bridal boutique to settle with, the wedding theme, flowers, wedding shots, programme planning, caterer for church wedding, guest list(s), etc.

I once came across a quote saying, "It seems like people put more effort into their wedding than they do in their marriage." That got me thinking that it is in fact rather true but yet we still go ahead and try to outshine from the rest.

As for me, our marriage journey together is still a blank canvas waiting to be painted. We won't know how/what our future as husband and wife would be like but we certainly hope that we would and can always be there for each other in good times and especially in bad times and never to forsake each other. Never to go back on our vows, and to be the best parents for our children.

Yours truly,
Ashley.

Saturday, 28 April 2012

A Year Older

A Happy Birthday to Alex!

Celebrating Alex's birthday, we dropped by Wimbly Lu for a marvellous dinner outing. Alex also brought his "girl-friend", Pearlyn along, and we had a wonderful time chit-chatting, taking shots with AJAX and Alex's polaroid camera. However, my feel is that Wimbly Lu is not really a dinner place with their limited main menu, rather their focus was on their desserts. Nevertheless, it is a wonderful place to kick back and chillax with a bunch of friend - wonderful ambience! And that was much like what we did after desserts. We brought our boardgame - Trans America - and had a few rounds of game (with Charmaine winning most of the time, what a "monster" I created in her). But I still love her... 


Wonderful place for desserts!

 Time for a game of Trans America...

Tuesday, 17 April 2012

Weekend Bakes: Macha Red Bean Cupcakes


In celebration of Jie's Birthday, Mr. L and I thought it would the perfect week to have our second Weekend Bakes and try out a new cupcake flavor as a surprise Birthday cake for Jie. Mr. Lwas excited almost all week when we settled with Macha Red Bean because, did you know they are his favorites? And, he sneakily ate the unwanted bits almost all by himself

Overall, I loved how the Macha Red Bean Cupcakes turned out (very pleased) though all we need now is just a couple of minor adjustments to the recipe, this new flavor will soon be added to the existing  cupcake list and ready to be 'FOR SALE'. But, what I loved more was how serious Mr. L was when he was filling the cores with red bean. Very focused indeed! One more reason why I heart Thee.

Yours truly,
Ashley.

P/s - Dear Jie, here's wishing you a wonderful and blessed birthday and many more ahead. With lots of love, Ash and Mr. L

Wednesday, 11 April 2012

Nadaman @ Shangri-La


Thanks to my dear Ashley, we got to enjoy a sumptuous Teppanyaki dinner at Nadaman, Shangri-La. Definitely a well spent evening with a fine dining experience. Besides the good food, our eyes were glued to the wonderful culinary skills of the 'ojisan' chef right in front of us. It was as though he was performing a dance with his hands and iron griddles on the grill. Totally entertaining! Enough said, take a look at the sumptuous spread that left our stomachs bloated and satisfied...

 1. Japanese Assorted Appetizer

 2. Seafood Salad

 3. Soft Shell Crab Ura Maki (~inside roll out)
   
4. Dobin Mushi (~Teapot Soup)

5. Wakame Tamago Soup (~Clear Seaweed Soup with egg)
   
6. Hatate Kaibashira & Ebi (~Scallop & Prawn)
  
 7. Asparagus Su-age (~Deep-fried Asparagus, smoked salt)
   
8. Gyuniku Usugiri (~Sliced Sirloin Steak Roll with Garlic Chips)

9. Moyashi (~Bean sprout)
  
10. Seafood Fried Rice

  11. Ogura Macha Ice Cream (~Green Tea Ice Cream with Red Bean)
   
12. Kuromitsu Kinako Mochi 
(~Japanese Sweet Dango, Kinako Soybean Flour)

Seeing the photos have stimulated my appetite, I'm off to grab something to bite!

Love always,
Leslie

Tuesday, 3 April 2012

Bread & Butter Pudding



Two Saturdays ago, the both of us picked up Ajax, a bread & butter pudding recipe, the necessary kitchen equipment & utensils, and our baking courage to experiment this new recipe.

Though it's not our first time baking/cooking together, doing something like this once in a while can be pretty fun and can learn a thing or two from each other. Am certainly looking forward to our next 'Weekend Bakes' date. Any suggestions on what recipes we should try? :)

Love,
Leslie & Ashley.

Monday, 2 April 2012

Monday's Letters


Dear Mr. L, a well spent Sunday afternoon prawning with ‘The Saints’ yesterday. Catch for us was pretty neat I say. We were in luck! But of cause we couldn't beat the regulars. It's the thrill and excitement when the prawns are hook on and out of the water, and then enjoying our hard work the fresh juicy & sweet meat and egg roe after 3 hours with great friends. But, what’s more highlighting than catching big head prawns was how you managed to get one of your catches stuck in between the roof panels. There goes one extra one we could have enjoyed. heee.

Yours truly,
Ashley.