Tasty Thursdays: Banana Tropical Drink

As I look forward to spring/summer weather, I've been craving tropical drinks. Found this lovely recipe for the Banana Tropical on Drinks Mixer, and not only does it sound heavenly, but so easy to make! (This recipe serves 1).

Ingredients:
1 banana
1 25g yogurt
2 dl pineapple juice

Directions:
Put all ingredients in a blender and blend for 3 minutes. If the mix isn't liquid enough (depends on the banana), add another shot of pineapple juice. Decorate with a piece of the banana and a piece of a pineapple.

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Infinity Guitars

Today's song is "Infinity Guitars" by Sleigh Bells.
[image source]

Foong Kee - The Best Char Siew and Roast Meat/Sio Bak in Singapore?

When I was in KL over the new year, I had blogged about savoring the best char siew ever, and was lamenting that Singapore did not have an equivalent of this simple but delicious dish.

Well, fret no more. And by chance, whilst at Keong Saik road for another food purpose, I had inadvertently found the nirvana of char siew and roast meat in Singapore.

Foong Kee is, in fact, was very established and outside of Fatty Cheong, another establishment which I have yet to go to, is hands down, serving the best char siew in Singapore right now.

Situated in a simple coffeeshop and facing a row of shophouses, this quietly looking eatery will surprise those who fancy a good bowl of wanton noodles and a plate of roast meat and char siew.

Char Siew and Roast Meat

Just looking at the plate itself, you could tell this was no ordinary plate of roasted meat. The roast meat was done simply to perfection. The skin was beautifully crisp and had that pretty tinge of orange. It was also not over charred.

The meat underneath was still moist and tender and the combination of flavors and textures would put most reputable HK restaurants to shame. And this was served at a local coffeeshop no less! Heavenly.

The char siew was impressively brilliant as well. The glaze was superbly done, with the char done to perfection to give a nice balance of sweet and bitter burnt flavors. 

The meat itself was from the pork shoulder, which usually renders a more fatty texture, and hence, an excellent melt in your mouth feeling. Supreme.

Roast Duck

The roast duck was also good, but perhaps not reaching the same heights as the char siew and roast meat. The skin was nicely done, but not too crispy, and the meat still had a slight chewy bite, but was otherwise palatable.

Wanton Noodles

The noodles was also nice, and whilst not exceptional, it was at least above average when you toss it with the sharp chilli sauce that came with it. Unlike some places, where they focus on the meats and totally ignore the noodles, Foong Kee at least got this aspect just right.

The irony was that for a wanton noodle place, we had not even bothered to order the wantons though I was told on good authority that they made a mean wanton as well.

Alas, I will provide an update on the wantons the next time I am here, and I will be visiting this more often to savor the char siew and sio bak. For sure, until I visit Fatty Cheong, these 2 dishs reign supreme for now.

The best char siew and sio bak in Singapore? You bet.

Foong Kee

6 Keong Saik Road

Outfit: Fancy that

Dress: Shoshanna from Rent the Runway, Shoes: Jessica Simpson (similar), 2 Set Bangle: T Plus J Designs, Bangle: J Good, Earrings: Express

In honor of the Oscars I decided to get real fancy for my B-day weekend. Isn't this Shoshanna dress amazing! I love that you can rent it and not break the bank. ;) Plus Rent the Runway sent me a $20 b-day credit so I had to cash in!

What do you think?

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Gluten Free Extra Crunchy Chicken Tenders

My mom got me this great cook book called "Recipes for Gluten-Free Kids" and I knew I had to try the crispy chicken strips first as they are my son's favorite food.

I am a firm believer that a recipe is more of a rough draft and you then improvise and make it work with what you have in your home. I did not have a few ingredients and didn't like some of the ones it says to use, so I made it up as I went along!

Here is what the recipe from the book say:

Ingredients:

2 cups gluten-free corn flakes

1 cup gluten-free pretzels

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1/8 teaspoon paprika

1/8 teaspoon mustard powder

1 cup gluten-free all-purpose flour blend

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

3 eggs, lightly beaten

1 teaspoon gluten-free soy sauce

1 pound chicken tenders

nonstick cooking spray

bbq sauce or honey mustard (optional)

Instructions:

1. Preheat over to 350 degrees. Combine corn flakes and pretzels in food processor, pulse until coarse crumbs form.

2. Pour crumbs in shallow dish, stir in garlic powder, paprika and mustard powder. Combine flour blend, salt and black pepper in another shallow dish. Combine eggs and soy sauce in third shallow dish.

3. Coat chicken with seasoned flour blend: shake off excess. Dip in egg mixture, drain. Transfer to crumb mixture; coat both sides with crumbs.

4. Spray large nonstick skillet with cooking spray. Working in batches brown chicken on both sides; transfer to large cookie sheet.

5. Bake 10 minutes or until chicken is cooked through. Serve with bbq sauce or honey mustard for dipping.

I had chicken breasts so I used those instead of tenders or cutting the breasts up.

I used 2 kinds of cereal and pretzels instead of corn flakes.

My food processor was not working so I smashed the cereal and pretzels on my counter. ;)

I skipped the soy sauce and mustard powder.

I ended up baking for 20 minutes.

Here is what my version looked like:

I highly recommend this recipe (or my version at least) as it was BEYOND de-lish! I also used just regular honey to dip it in and doubled the recipe so we could all have yummy crunchy chicken breasts for 2 days!

Inspirational Tuesdays #103

All collected images were found randomly online. Click on image to view source.

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The Writer

Today's song is "The Writer" by Ellie Goulding.
[image source]

Giveaway: Eucerin Skin Care products and $25 Visa Gift card

As a member of CBN I was teamed up Eucerin for a really great product review and giveaway! Here is some info:
"This month we’d like to send you a “Love Your Skin Kit” on behalf of Eucerin. This care package includes the amazing Eucerin products below that help improve skin’s moisture along with a $25 Visa Gift Card to give your skin care regimen a boost!

• Eucerin Skin Calming Daily Moisturizing Crème (8 oz.) Is a gentle, non-greasy formula that combines calming oatmeal and rich emollients to help relieve dry, itchy skin for softer, healthier-looking and more comfortable skin.
• Eucerin Skin Calming Body Wash (8.4 oz.), is a unique body wash formulation that combines soap-free cleansing with omega oils and other natural lipids to nourish and soothe.
• Eucerin Skin Calming Itch-Relief (6.8 fl. oz.) is an external analgesic lotion for itchy skin flare-ups with cooling menthol and natural oatmeal for effective relief that lasts up to 8 hours."

I have been using all 3 products for over a week now and I love all 3!
-The daily moisturizing crème is wonderful. It doesn't leave a greasy feeling and keeps your hydrated and smooth. I have actually been using it on my kids as well. This time of year we all have super dry skin! Gotta love winter! ;)
-I was a little scared of the body wash because it is an oil. I was wrong to be scared! It's wonderful! I get out of the shower already feeling like my skin is not only clean, but also hydrated.
- I used the calming itch-relief on my elbows and ankles. They don't itch, but they are the driest parts of me! This stuff rocks! There is a cooling sensation that happens and it's pretty wonderful! ;)


"For your readers looking for more information about how to take care of your skin, Dr. Sarnoff and Dr. Ingleton, your 2012 Eucerin Skin First Council Members and experts when it comes to the health of your skin will be sharing their tips and answering your questions for healthy, lovely skin on the Eucerin Facebook page.

When your readers visit the Eucerin Facebook page, they can get a FREE sample of the Eucerin Skin Calming Crème to help keep their skin moisturized and looking healthy this winter! All they have to do to receive a sample is “like” the Eucerin Facebook Page and follow the instructions on how to take the Eucerin Skin First Pledge."

To enter to win all 3 Eucerin Skin care products and a $25 Visa gift card simply "like" Eucerin on Facbook.
-For an extra entry follow Eucerin on Twitter
(leave one comment for each you do)

*This giveaway is open to US readers of 18 years and older. Winner will be announced 3-8-12 at 7:00am. Good luck!

Oscars Red Carpet 2012

My favorites on the Oscars Red Carpet were Milla Jovovich in Elie Saab and Kate Mara in Jack Guisso.
Others that I like were: Jessica Chastain in Alexander McQueen

Rooney Mara in Givenchy -- finally, something not black! It's a refreshing look for her and I really like the contrast of her dark hair.

Leslie Mann in Roberto Cavalli -- she claims this dress was so tight that she couldn't move in it, but I do like the beading on it & the way the dress just drops to the floor

Jennifer Lopez in Zuhair Murad -- who knows why she was at the Oscars, but she looks incredible in this dress

Ellie Kemper in Armani Prive -- At first, this look seemed dull while I watching the Red Carpet. This probably didn't translate well on television, but looking at photos, it looks amazing & I like the glimmer & color.

and Angelina Jolie in Atelier Versace -- she's stunning in pretty much anything but look, she's smiling!
As for worst dressed, I didn't find any look that looked too revolting, though there were some questionable styling choices.

Who were your best & worst picks?

[Photos from Yahoo]

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Voodoo

Today' song is "Voodoo" by Oh Land.
[image source]

Dragon Phoenix at Liang Court - The Best Yam Pot and Yu Sheng in Singapore

The Lunar New Year season may be past us, but I could not resist talking about having the best yu sheng ever at this landmark Chinese restaurant in Singapore.

Started by Hooi Kok Wai, otherwise known as one of the Four Heavenly Kings of Chinese food, they have moved from Middle Road to Maxwell and finally, now at their present premises in Liang Court.

There has been a recent debate on whether Yu Sheng or Lor Hei was started by Singapore or Malaysia, and my personal view is that it does not really matter in the end.

According to his Mr Hooi's son, and Mr Hooi himself, Yu Sheng was a New Year dish that they came up with for people to begin an evening of festivities, and eventually it became more of a tradition to stand up and toss this salad like dish as a toast to the coming new year.

Yu Sheng ingredients

Yu Sheng and Lor Hei has also certainly evolved over the years. But the core ingredients remain largely the same. The finely cut vegetables, the sweet plum sauce, the raw fish (usually salmon these days) and the crunchy crackers constitute this celebrated dish.

Dragon Phoenix Yu Sheng

For Dragon Phoenix, being the pioneer of this dish, I was pleasantly surprised to find that they did mix the ingredients in a rather different manner from most restaurants.

The sauce is actually mixed first in the plate before tossing in the rest of the ingredients. The result of this is that it looks more like rojak in a way, and yet the ingredients were much better infused with the sauce.

As for the dish itself, I must compliment it as the best yu sheng I have tasted thus far. The flavors were bursting in my mouth, and the textures were incredible. Every bite had a mouthwatering experience that it is really hard to describe.

Yam Pot

We have had yam pots almost everywhere these days, and to find good ones is also a bit rare as well. Again, I was surprised to learn that Mr Hook was also the pioneer of this dish. And the story behind this dish was even more intriguing.

You see, when Mr Hooi was courting his wife, his wife was raised by nuns and they were vegetarian. Mr Hooi thus had to concoct a vegetarian dish to serve to the nuns and in a way, to score some points. Well, he eventually came up with this yam pot dish, which originally, had no meat in it.

As for the yam pot served in Dragon Phoenix, it also looked very unusual, as the top of the yam pot had this explosion look that was both different and spectacular.

Tastewise, it was marvelous. The deep fried texture of the yam was flaky and crispy, and did not exhibit the floury flavors of other less well made yam pots. Inside, the ingredients were well cooked and seasoned and combined well with the crispy yam.

Besides these 2 dishes, Dragon Phoenix is also well known for coming up with the original chilli crab, and a host of other classic Chinese dishes that we know so well today.

Mr Hooi's son now leads the restaurant, and he is keen to continue in his dad's footsteps. He is also part of the younger generation that aims to market his dad's classic dishes to a more youthful audience as well.

Dragon Phoenix is indeed, a true Chinese classic.

Dragon Phoenix Restaurant

177A River Valley Road

#06-00 Liang Court (via Novotel Clarke Quay entrance)

Outfit: Colored Denim

Top: Loft, Jeans: Express, Necklace: Jewelmint, Bracelet: Kristin Hassan (style sold out), Shoes: Rocket Dog

This is a perfect example of everyday wear for me. Hair day 3 so top knot it is, colored denim, cozy knit, and minimal jewelry (yes, this is minimal! lol). Is anyone else super pumped for color denim shorts for spring/summer?! I am. Getting them in green and blue for sure. And maybe yellow....okay, and maybe orange. We'll see ;)

*Today is the last day to get 20% off on all Kristin Hassan Jewelry by using code LISA20 at checkout. 

My New Bags

The hubby treated me to bags for my b-day this year. Let me explain, he said here is X number of dollars and buy yourself bags. Okay, I can work with this! In fact, I love this idea of buying what I want!
I knew I wanted to shop at Piperlime because they sent me a $30 b-day gift card. My first find was this new Kate Spade case for my IPad:

It is $50 so after my gift card I had only used $20 of my b-day bag money. Up next I wanted to find a wallet/small clutch. I have way too many items I carry in my wallet so I was due for a new one. I got this beautiful floral Fossil one:

Beautiful right?! I love it! Since I was on a bit of a Fossil kick I found this amazing crossbody bag in mint and knew right away it had to be mine!

I just adore all the gold hardware. I also love how the inside of the strap is canvas. SWOON. I am so happy with my new bags! My hubby knows me well enough to know I always love being told what to shop for. Plus I've been lusting over bags lately so I kinda got my fix. It was a win win!