Pancake

Last two weeks we were having a long weekend due to Raya. Of course I wouldn't want to waste the holiday going to shopping malls again. So I tried out this Pancake recipe and made some pancakes for brunch. This is no ordinary pancake although it is plain :/ Complicated huh? The butter, milk and sugar proportions are just nice. Hence the taste is super delicious. I kinda feel it tastes like PHOP pancake but the texture needs some improvement though. Could be the plain flour. I substituted cake flour with normal flour because my cake flour was full of mold eww...


Ingredients:
2 eggs
50g sugar
70g plain flour (cake flour is optional)
1/2 tsp baking powder (put a bit more if you are using plain flour)
30g evaporated milk
30g butter (melted)

Methods:
1. Sift flour and baking powder.
2. Use mixer to whisk eggs and sugar until light and fluffy.
3. Gently fold in flour, follow by evaporated milk.
4. Lastly fold in melted butter until well combined.
5. Cover and put in the fridge for 1/2 hours.
6. Heat up pan and cook.

Sewing Project: Transform Long Pants to Short Pants

 

This light blue long pants is given by the boyfriend's mother. As you can see from the picture above, the pants has a narrow bottom which looks like skinny pants. The waist fits me fine but it doesn't look good on me with its length since it is tailor-made for a different size.

I cut the pants until above the knee and left about 2 inches length extra for seaming. Well obviously it is too much, but for a beginner it is always safer to have extra space for try and error.

Closer look of the cut pants with pins attached to one leg. I called it leg because that's how I call it haha.

Close up of the pins on the pants. I measured 1cm from the bottom and draw a line around the leg. Unless you have a steady hand otherwise it is very useful to have a line as guideline while sewing.

The illustration above shows how I sew the bottom. I'm not sure the proper way of sewing the bottom but I came out with two ways. Either sew from outside or inside. Outside means without folding the pants to the wrong side and sew below it. Inside means you have to fold the pants to the wrong side and sew. I tried both ways and it worked the same to me haha.

Even with a guideline, my sewing still 'bengkang bengkok' lol. Nevertheless, it looked much better than the first few times. In order to hide the imperfection, I decided to add some cute buttons.

These flower buttons are really cute. Definitely add a lot of cuteness to the pants.

And the final result.......

Tadaaa......

It will look much better after ironing. Check out the cute pockets lining got a bit of wave.


Happy sewing and Selamat Hari Raya!

Durian Cake

This recipe is courtesy of a friend of mine. Her version of durian cake looks much more appetizing than mine. This recipe is super easy so don't worry if you are just a beginner. I actually finished baking this in one hour. You may skip the filling and topping just like I did. The cake itself taste delicious enough. I plan to use the same recipe but substitute with chocolate chips instead of durian. Just by imagining it already makes me salivating.

Cake (Ingredients)

170 g self raising flour (sift for a fluffier cake)

170 g butter
140 g sugar
115 g mashed durian
4 egg yolks
4 egg whites (beaten)

Cake (Directions)
1.Preheat oven to 180C or 350°F.
2.Cream butter and sugar until fluffy.
3.Add in the egg yolks one at a time.
4.Beat well before adding the next yolk.
5.Add durian meat and beat well.
6.Next, add in the beaten egg whites.
7.Last but not least, add in the flour.
8.Put in a 8 x 8 greased pan and bake for an 1 hour. Baking time might be different depending on the oven. I only bake for 30 minutes.

Cake Filling and Topping (Ingredients)
350ml whipping cream
150g durian flesh, pureed
1/2 tsp gelatine, dissolved in 50ml hot water

Cake Filling and Topping (Directions)
1.Whisk whipping cream on medium speed until soft peak.
2.Stir in 150g durian flesh and gelatine, until welll mixed.

Sewing Machine: Where to buy?

Update: Hey guys! Thanks for dropping by and leaving your sweet comments. This entry was posted quite  long ago so I guess there will be some new updates. Will keep you guys posted!

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Are you looking for a sewing machine? If you are located in KL, Malaysia and looking for a sewing machine but has no clue where to get it, this post might be helpful. I was having the same problem finding an affordable sewing machine months ago. After days of searching through the internet, I still couldn't find any useful information. Most of the websites or forums which I came across are not up to date. Hence, the information provided is pretty doubtful.

There are a few common brands available in the market. The most well known of course is Singer, follow by others such as Brother, Toshiba and Global.

Finding a sewing machine which suits you is a big headache. As a beginner I believe everyone is clueless on what are they looking for. The only thing which I can differentiate between the models are the number of patterns. The more patterns or functions a machine has, the higher is the price. Well as for me, since I'm a greenhorn I opt for something simple and basic. Ease to use, basic functionalities, affordable price, not too bulky are my only requirements. I'm currently using Brother LS-2125, which cost me around RM529.

You may want to check out Singer outlets for their range of sewing machines. As far as I know, the cheapest is around RM750 with some basic functions. Good enough for beginners. The price obviously is more expensive compare to other brands since their sewing machines are very promising and could be better in quality. Check out their websites (http://www.singer.com.my/) for the list of outlets. However, do bare in mind that some of the outlets may not be available anymore. So it is always the best to call up. If you are around Subang or Sunway area, check out Singer at Carrefour Subang. They have plenty of models and they even sell second hand machines. If I'm not mistaken a second hand machine is priced at RM800. Singer do provide monthly installment scheme with 0% interest. According to the sales person, they do provide training once you've purchased the sewing machine. You may want to enquire that too.

The next brand is Brother (http://www.brother.com.my/). If you are on a tight budget like I did, you may consider Brother sewing machine. It is available at Carrefour, Midvalley (where I got mine). Based on their website it is available at Carrefour, Subang as well but I couldn't find any after so many visits. They have another outlet at Jaya 33, Petaling Jaya but I'm not too sure of the availability. The last time I called up they said that outlet is their service center. Do check out other Carrefour branches like Wangsa Maju or Ampang. There are two models displayed at Carrefour Midvalley, LS-2125 and BM-2600. The price is around RM500 and RM700 respectively with 1 year warranty from Brother itself. You are allow to extend the warranty to another 2 years by adding RM30 but the 2 years warranty will be under Carrefour. I was so glad to find out that Carrefour is giving out RM10 cash voucher for every RM100 purchase, if you make the payment using CIMB card. So in total I received RM50 cash voucher! At the end the machine only cost me RM500 :)

Besides Brother, Carrefour Midvalley also selling Global (http://www.globalsewing.com/) sewing machine. There is one model being displayed but I couldn't recall the model number. The price is around RM700. It is also available at Tesco. Check out both stores to compare the prices. Some forumers said that Courts Mammoth has Toshiba sewing machine. Another options for people who is looking for installment scheme.

Good luck in finding your sewing machine!