I haven't blogged in almost a month!

FINALS ARE COMING. PERIOD.

Coffee Loaf

So, I was feeling the baking itch 2 days back so I decided to use the TangZhong method to bake a loaf of coffee bread for breakfast!!! YUMZ always loved home-made bread!
It was really fluffy and stayed fresh longer than normal home-made bread!!!

Pandan cupcake with Gula Melaka butterscotch.

I used the recipe for the Magnolia Vanilla Cupcakes and added my own dash of pandan essence instead of vanilla.

Taken from The Little Teochew

Recipe
Adapted from Food Network

Yields 12 cupcakes
- I halved the measurements and converted everything to metric. Please refer to the recipe link for measurements in cups.
- 85g self-raising flour*
* I did not have any, so I made my own using these estimates: 85g plain flour + 1 1/4tsp baking powder + 1/8 tsp salt
- 70g all-purpose plain flour
- 113g unsalted butter, softened
- 170g caster sugar
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1/2 cup milk
- 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract (or vanilla bean for even more intensity)

1. Preheat oven to 170°C (350°F). (I used 150 because my oven is weird)

2. Line muffin tins with cupcake papers.

3. In a small bowl, combine the flours. Set aside.

4. In a large bowl, on the medium speed of an electric mixer, cream the butter until smooth. Add the sugar gradually and beat until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition.

5. Add the dry ingredients in 3 parts, alternating with the milk and vanilla. With each addition, beat until the ingredients are incorporated but do not over beat. Using a rubber spatula, scrape down the batter in the bowl to make sure the ingredients are well blended.

6. Carefully spoon the batter into the cupcake liners, filling them about 3/4* full.
* I found that 2/3 full works much better ... those which I filled to 3/4 full actually spilled to the sides during baking. This batter rises quite a bit, so it's best to err on the side of underfilling.

7. Bake for 20 to 25* minutes, or until a cake tester inserted into the center of the cupcake comes out clean.

*Reduce temperature at the end if needed

8. Cool the cupcakes in tins for 15 minutes. Remove from the tins and cool completely on a wire rack before icing.


Instead of buttercream, I made Gula Melaka butterscotch, which when refrigerated, can be spread like jam :)
I think I used 100g of butter to half a block of gula melaka, and then melted it over a water bath ^^

sooooooo.... I'm like crazy early for lecture, and hence sitting all alone in the LT. You can totally hear a pin drop lol. oh, and I have this fear that I'm sitting in the wrong lecture theatre! Hope I'm in the right one!
My bf was supposed to accompany me to school today to sit in for lectures, but he had to back out at the last minute. Can't blame him, it'll be too boring haha. <3
Oh well, shall do some readings before lecture starts!
Can't wait for CNY to arrive in another few more days. Need some extra cash! Too many 21st birthdays this year...will go broke!

The daily grind of school life is finally settling in but I believe the CNY holidays are gonna mess it up again. le sigh. haha.
Just baked some honeyjoys and kueh lapis over the weekend. The kueh lapis was exhausting!!! 2 cakes took me about 4-5 hours? :( but it was sinfully worth it hehe.

S.E.A Aquarium

On one of the Fridays before the school semester started, my boy and I headed to the newly opened South East Asian Aquarium at Resorts World Sentosa. I had so much fun there! Being a big fan of aquariums, we did spend a while in there taking photos and admiring the marine life :)

Shipwreck Cove

THE TUNNELLLL

Weird blue-ish lighting haha

They had this see-through platform with some nurse sharks + stingrays

Spot the 2 weird fishes in pink and yellow!

SEAHORSE :)

Spastic us :X

The touch pool! I touched the chocolate chip starfish hehe

The entire fish tank was filled with these little buggers haha. SHO KEWT

HUNGREH BOYYY

Both of us literally camped at every exhibit, waiting for the crowd to clear. haha. Somehow, for some weird reason, the crowd comes and goes in waves. So, we had those brief periods of just the two of us. YAY. It was a friday afternoon after NYE, and it wasn't so crowded cos the majority of the school kids were back at school ^^

Fishes swimming in schools, and in a circular motion. I don't want to be a fish... mundane life.

I ATE THIS CRAB'S LEG BEFORE HEHE

NAUTILUS! If I remember correctly, it resembles the Pokemon called Omanyte. haha. Correct me if i'm wrong!

BOUNCY JELLIES

This is actually an upside-down jellyfish 

SEA NETTLE! SO PRETTY!

Don't they look as if they are flying?

Manta Ray

Those windows you see behind are the hotel rooms i believe

Happy Tummy!

Scary moray eels

HAMMERHEAD! Couldn't get a close up. I think the hammerheads' territories were nearer to the surface

At the souvenir shop area

Met Jet for dinner after that at vivo. Had Carl's Junior hehe

Superman

All in all, I had fun! Paid 20 bucks for student admission and it was pretty worth it. Can totally not do anything but relax in the aquarium. The large panel area at seating areas on the floor too! Though I have seen aquariums with more variety and larger creatures, I believe in years to come, more marine life will be added in to liven up the place. Will be looking forward to that!