Baby Dedication

Yesterday we had a dedication session at church where parents of newborns come together to pledge our commitment before God and other witnesses that we will dedicate our child to God and bring them up in the fear of the Lord. The most solemn pledge is that we as parents will live in such a way that is a good and godly example for our future generation (eeek ... it's not gonna be easy but  by the grace of God we shall, we shall!)

Parents and newborns all in a row!

Memento from church; first official bible verse for Lucas. AMEN!!!

A New Beginning!

Today is the official first day of my new "job" of being an SAHM (stay-at-home-mum)! Well, I managed to accomplish a fair bit today; took down the Christmas tree and decorations, swept and mopped the floor, did two batches of laundry, cleared a whole bunch of trash, cooked lunch and dinner while juggling the little one the whole time! Phewww... I'm so beat right now. He's finally asleep (after several 'fake' doze-offs) so I can take a few minutes to write this post. His schedule is still rather unpredictable now and I don't really know what to expect from him and myself so we'll take it a day at a time. Anyway, it has been a good day and I'm going to bed early. You know what they say; sleep when baby sleeps ... zzzzzzzzzz nite nite!

Cheers to 2011!

Thank you folks for staying with Shortcake for yet another year! 2010 was amazing as it's the year we were blessed with our precious prince Lucas. We are now looking forward to 2011 as it's gonna be better than ever. Why, well in the words of Oprah Winfrey; a new year is another chance for us to get it right. And God knows there are many things I would love to do all over again differently on a clean slate ... so out with the the old and bring on the new!

Have a BLESSED NEW YEAR ahead!

Here's to the bright New Year, and a fond farewell to the old; here's to the things that are yet to come, and to the memories that we hold. - Author unknown

Feliz Navidad!

Feliz Navidad!

For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.

Isaiah 9:6-7 (King James Version)

Here's wishing all my dear blogger friends, secret followers and precious readers a very Merry Christmas! Thank you for your visits, your comments and your support *muax* May the blessed miracle of the season bring warmth, joy and love to your heart, your life and your home ... and have a beautiful brand new start in 2011!

Oh and since it's Lucas' first Christmas, I guess I'll let him take the lead with this year's greeting, we'll feature the Krazy Koala next round :)

Virtual Scrapbook page created via Smilebox

Tom Yum Style Fried Vermicelli with Thai Omelette

Learnt another new recipe from mum; tomyum fried meehoon! Looks like having her around to help with baby has some unexpected culinary benefits too! Mum got this recipe from another relative and she’s made her modifications along the way, and here’s my version. It’s a fair bit of work and preparation but the ingredients are easy to get and it’s really worth the effort!

Tom Yum Style Fried Vermicelli with Thai Omelette

This recipe is good for 2 pax. Just multiply accordingly if you have a bigger party. I’m using ballpark measurement here as it’s a pass-down recipe.

What you will need:
1. Meehoon (Asian rice vermicelli) - soak and drain half a pack, around 200gms max
2. Garlic - a few cloves, chopped or crushed
3. Red onion - one large palm sized onion, or 2 small ones, sliced
4. Kaffir lime leaves - a handful, around 6 to 8 leaves, julienned
5. Red chilli padi - aka bird’s eye chillies, julienned, around 2 to 4pcs depends on how much heat you prefer! (do not use green chilli padi, they taste different and the color is all wrong!)
6. Dried chillies - 5 to 6 chillies, soaked and roughly chopped, this also depends on how much heat you prefer!
7. Fish cakes - 1 small bowl, sliced (can be replaced with meat/seafood or tofu for vegans)
8. Carrot - 1 medium carrot (6 t 8 inches lengthwise), finely grated
9. Cabbage - half a small cabbage, shredded
10. Lime juice - squeeze approx 6 to get half a bowl of juice, set aside 1 or 2 for garnishing
11. Thai fish sauce - approx 2 tablespoons or more depending on your taste buds
12. Pinch for taste - ketchup, spicy chilli sauce, salt, pepper
13. Cooking oil - duh
14. Coriander and slices of red chillies - optional, for garnishing (I like my food pretty!)

Raw ingredients at a glance.

Prepare everything before you start!

Ketchup and chilli padi sauce optional but the Thai fish sauce is an absolute must!

For Thai Omelette:
1. 2 eggs – beaten along with items 2 and 3
2. Thai fish sauce
3. Sugar, salt, pepper


Method:
1. Firstly make the Thai omelette, set aside to cool, pat of excess oil and slice thinly.
2. Then sauté items 2 to 6 together in hot oil till fragrant.
3. Add the fish cakes or whatever other meat you want, stir-fry till ‘browned’
4. Add carrots and cabbage and stir-fry till softened and cooked.
5. Add in softened vermicelli and stir-fry in low heat
6. Combine items 10 to 12 and pour over the vermicelli as it will get dry and soak up moisture readily.
7. Add water gradually if the vermicelli looks too dried-out (hint: it should not stick to the wok!)
8. Continue to stir-fry in low heat till vermicelli is evenly coated and tastes and feels right.
9. Serve with coriander and sliced chilli with the shredded omelette at the side.

Step-by-step stir-fry illustrated. 

Hint; a sturdy non-stick wok and extra long chopsticks will be great help here!

What makes this so different from the usual fried meehoon are the kaffir lime leaves, the lime juice and the fish sauce which gives it that citrusy Thai-inspired, sour, tangy flavour. I find this a really spicy and appetizing meal for any time of the day. A word of caution though, this is seriously not for those with very mild taste buds!

Kaffir lime leaves (aka daun limau purut) gives Thai food that distinctly citrusy heavenly scent!

You seriously can't do without this!