Matcha Cupcakes again!

Making my own vanilla extract

Finally got round to doing this. I suppose this makes sense given how often I bake.

To make your own vanilla extract you will need:

1 cup of vodka
3 split vanilla pods
Since my vodka bottle is 350ml I put in 5 vanilla pods.

Store in a cool dark place and shake once in a while. Use after 2 months! Can keep adding more vodka and used vanilla pods into the jar.

Yay!

Mocha cupcakes with mocha buttercream frosting

Recipe from Brown Eyed Baker. 

Mocha Cupcakes

Yield: 12 cupcakes

Prep Time: 15 minutes Baking Time: 17-20 minutes

1-1/3 all-purpose flour
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon salt
½ cup whole milk
½ cup strong brewed coffee
1½ teaspoons espresso powder
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
½ cup granulated sugar
½ cup light brown sugar
1 egg, at room temperature

1. Mix the espresso powder into the brewed coffee until dissolved; set aside to cool to room temperature.

2. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a standard-size muffin tin with paper liners.

3. Whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

4. Beat the butter and both sugars together on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes. Add the egg and beat until combined. In a measuring cup, combine the milk, brewed coffee mixture and vanilla. Slowly add the flour mixture, alternating with the coffee mixture, ending with the flour mixture.

5. Divide the batter evenly between the 12 liners. Baking for 17-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of a cupcake comes out clean. Cool completely before frosting cupcakes.

(Cupcake recipe adapted from My Baking Addiction)

Espresso Buttercream Frosting

Makes enough to frost 12 cupcakes

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
2½ cups powdered sugar
1½ teaspoons vanilla extract
1½ teaspoons espresso powder

1. Mix the espresso powder into the vanilla until dissolved; set aside.

2. Using the whisk attachment of a stand mixer, whip the butter on medium-high speed for 5 minutes, stopping once to scrape the sides of the bowl. Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the powdered sugar a little at a time, waiting until it is mostly incorporated before adding more. Once all of the powdered sugar has been added, scrape the sides of the bowl and increase the speed to medium-high and whip until fluffy, about a minute or two. Add the espresso and vanilla mixture and continue to mix at medium-high until it is completely incorporated, scraping the sides as necessary.

Decorating tips: I used round tips and kept dotting!

Revisiting 798

Mountain man and I haven't been back to the 798 art district since before I found out I was pregnant with Mountain Boy. Come to think of it I don't know why we don't go there more often. It's a gorgeous place filled with a vibrant youthful energy. Because we had to lug two kids we only covered a very small area but we will definitely go back there more often.

Salt dough fun

Thanks to my niece Shannon, mountain boy and I had a whole afternoon of fun with salt dough.

Beijing Badaling Safari Family Excursion

Highly recommend going there. But drive your own car in. The public transport isn't great and they really limit you to one seat per ticket. The kids and bags have to go on our laps.

But it was great because we got really close to the animals, and we even fed milk to the bears! It's great fun.

Furry friends

Despite my very elaborate efforts to get him to eat breakfast he still wasn't actually into the food as much as he was into the decorating and cutting.

Stay home activity 3

Cupcake garden made by mama n mountain boy.

Stay home activity 2

Helping mama bake lemon cupcakes! He is pretty good w the instructions.

Paper City

Mountain Boy had been sick for 3 days so we are both going loco at home.

In a moment of brilliance i was inspired by mb to draw some roads for his Tomicas, one thing led to another and we built an entire make believe city with endless possibilities!

To make your own paper city, you will need:
Colored paper (or white is fine!)
Markers
Sticky tape
Your child's favourite Tomicas
His imagination

Start with a blank piece and draw a cross junction. Involve the child by asking him where he would like to go. Mountain boy said he wanted to go to the airport, zoo, beach, swimming pool, school (yes he loves school and we even drew 3 of his friends), shopping mall, and a tunnel! Just keep adding more paper with each destination and you have yourself a paper city, built 100%from degradable materials.

He had a good time fetching his "friends" from school and going to a few different places. Of course his little excursion involved a number of car crashes n aeroplane explosions!

Off to a baby date lunch

Out and about

For the first time I am taking lil out without mountain boy. Isn't she adorable and amazing? She has a glorious 2.5hr nap prior to this. Maybe she knows that I'm going to take her out so she has to be on her best behavior.

Stay home mom plus stay home kids equal crazy

The man I wanted to marry...

....when I was 13. I finally saw him in real person yesterday.So Starstruck i was.

ER visit number 5

Not counting the false alarm visits, this is the fifth time mountain boy went to the er for an injury. He fell backwards and hit his neck on a chair, afterwards he complained n shrieked from pain whenever he moved.. No broken bones but he needs to keep the brace because it comforts him. Sigh...

I am in awe of these beautifully delish coconut cream cupcakes from carrot top mom. Omg omg omg... Are the mini cupcakes cute or what! The mini ones are best for those who don't want to commit to the whole cupcake. But then again aren't cupcakes for those who don't want to commit to an entire cake? Commitment problems apparently make adorable cupcakes. I'm obviously going coconuts over these cupcakes.

Coconut Cream Cupcakes

Yields 18 cupcakes

INGREDIENTS

• Cupcakes:
• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 2 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 1/3 cups sugar
• 3 large eggs
• 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 cup reduced coconut milk (NOT Reduced Fat. See below), room temperature (TOTAL, begin with 2 14oz cans of coconut milk)

• Frosting:
• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 8 cups powdered sugar
• 2/3 cup reduced coconut milk (see above), room temperature
• 2 Tablespoons vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 cups unsweetened flaked coconut, (optional, for garnish)

DIRECTIONS

1. For reduced coconut milk: Bring 2 cans (14 ounces each) coconut milk to boil in large deep saucepan over medium heat (coconut milk will boil up high in pan). Boil until reduced to 1 2/3 cups, stirring occasionally, 30-45 minutes. Transfer to small bowl. Cover; chill (coconut milk will settle slightly and thicken as it cools). DO THIS AHEAD, allowing to chill overnight: Can be made 2 days ahead. Keep chilled, allowing to come to room temperature when ready for use.
2. For cupcakes: Position rack in center of oven; preheat to 350°F. Line eighteen muffin tins with paper liners. Whisk flour, baking powder, and salt in medium bowl. Using electric mixer, beat butter in large bowl until smooth. Add sugar; beat on medium-high speed until well blended, about 2 minutes. Add vanilla. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating and scraping sides well after each addition. Add half of flour mixture; mix on low speed just until blended. Do not overblend. Add 1 cup reduced coconut milk; mix just until blended. Add remaining flour mixture; mix on low speed just until blended. Divide batter among muffin cups. Bake cupcakes until tops spring back when gently touched, about 20 minutes. Transfer cupcakes in pans to rack; cool 10 minutes. Carefully remove cupcakes from pans and cool completely on rack.
3. For Frosting: Cream butter on high for 2 minutes. Add powdered sugar, reduced coconut milk, and vanilla extract. Beat gradually at first, until combined. Beat on high for an additional 2-3 minutes, or until smooth and creamy.
4. Frost cooled cupcakes. Sprinkle with coconut if desired, for garnish. (They will have plenty of coconut flavor without the garnish!)
5. Do not refrigerate. As with all my cupcake recipes, the flavors are best at room temperature! 

Lily Inspired: Esteemed

Dear Lilybuff,

If you're reading my entries chronologically down the years, you may find that my entries to you are not chronologically organized according to the natural progression of your life. Sorry about that, i'm haphazard that way.

4 years ago on this date, your dad and I got married. The days were long but the years went by quickly. Your dad recently uploaded our wedding pictures unto the new iPad3 that he just bought. I looked at the pictures feeling both happy and sad because it reminded me of the beautiful yesteryears...Or rather the yesteryears where I was still beautiful/slim. I have been lamenting about how fat i've gotten after 2 kids. He half-jokes about how he knew i was going to be big after he met my mom (sorry mom). And frankly i knew this was coming but i just didn't think it'd be so fast. He of course then tells me that he too has gotten fat. True. But it doesn't make me feel better about myself.

The point of this entry is not how you should keep yourself slim, because i obviously don't know the secret to that. But I just wanna say that you need to be able to find a man who loves you and your potentially expanding hips/waistline/thighs/arms/feet (yes feet too). And the secret to finding a man who loves you is to love yourself first. 

I had a chat with Mountain Boy's teacher, she's someone whom i respect and run to for advice on parenting. She said that for girls, a high self-esteem is very important. (Self-esteem is a term in psychology to reflect a person's overall evaluation or appraisal of his or her own worth). Without which the girl may get into future trouble when she seeks validation from the wrong sources. Girls with low self-esteem are prone to sexual abuse, unwanted pregnancies, prostitution etc. And as a mother, it's my duty to protect you, to love you, and to teach you how to love yourself.

A friend once told me... "A boy must by paupered, a girl must be pampered". Actually i coined the english version myself and i'm proud of it, but it's derived from a chinese saying. Reason being a boy needs to be toughened and trained so that he can be the head of the family, but a girl on the other hand needs to be showered with constant love and attention so that she will have high expectations of her future husband. Sounds like a recipe for neediness but it's just the opposite. The more secure you are, the less needy you will be, makes sense? It's more about providing a safe and honest environment where you can develop a sense of self-worth. I say honest because I will let you know when I think you are doing well and when you are not, otherwise i'd just be nurturing an egomaniac which is not the goal here.

It's going to be a long process but we're in this together. 

PS: Happy Thirdmay Mountain Man. Love your expanding waistline too.

Very hot

Happy Thirdmay!

Well we are celebrating our anniversary early this year, under the coconut trees of Sanya in Hainan Island. Love being back in the tropics but my three other pale-skinned family members are completely roasted!