Three Types Of Dumplings

DUMPLINGS DAY.... 

I love dumplings, from young till now, however, as I age, I cannot eat as much as I used to during the yesteryears when I was young.  LOL...  Those days I could eat 2-3 without feeling any bloating in the stomach but now if I eat like this, I think I won't be able to eat anything else for the day.  One big dumpling can last me throughout the day so I try to refrain eating much cos I want to save some space for other food!  

Today during lunch time, my friend bought 3 types of dumplings for me to try.  After steaming them hot, we shared them, I try to minimise my portion but eventually, I ended up eating the most.  If I want to have dinner, I better do my 30 minutes miracle walk... I have been following the walk on youtube ever since the lockdown period, believe me, it is really good for seniors... like me!  Initially, I tried doing 20 minutes, then slowly, increasing it to 30 minutes and 40 the most.  Feels so good after the "walks" at home, really have to keep fit after all the eating and sitting during these three months plus.

Oh, back to the dumplings... here they are.... 

chan

Three types... on the right is Indonesian Bah Chang....

The darker colour is the normal local one...

and two yellow ones is called the Alkaline dumplings

also known as Kee Chang in Hokkien...

The difference between the local and Indonesian dumpling is the rice...

the Indonesian dumpling consisted of mashed the sticky rice and the beans together,

the ingredients inside is almost the same as the local ones except this one has two cilipadi inside..

So it is sort of spicy.... 

Something different... 

Anyway, I prefer the sweet ones... Kee Chang!

Kaya And Peanuts Dumplings During RMCO

STEAMING MODE... 

I have half of this and that in the fridge, I mean two different kinds of jam, one is coconut jam (kaya) and peanut butter.  Both are homemade, given by two friends of mine.  One way to finish them the remainder of the jams is to make some homemade dumplings aka "pau" ... 

This time I used wheatflour instead of all purpose flour...

See my mess?  Did I really do that?

Odd shapes somemore.... 

Into the kuali they go....

This time I differentiate them....

Round ones are filled with coconut jam.... 

This is the best one among them all.... 

I will stick to wheatflour... 

The texture is softer this time and more fluffier... 

Must practise more on the shaping of the dumplings!

Pizza On A Lazy Sunday

PIZZA BREAD... my lazy styled... 

I saw six slices of bread on the table, remainder from Saturday, what should I do with them?  If I spread them with my jams, I could only finish two slices max and the rest would be left on the table again.  And if I open one can of tuna, I would be able to get all the six pieces spread and eaten for lunch and dinner.  I opted for latter.... 

Firstly I cut a big onion and two small red chillies, diced them and mix with the tuna.  Use some butter to spread on both sides of the bread and add in two beaten eggs, top up with the tuna and mozzarella cheese.... Bake them for 20 minutes at 160 degrees celsius.  

One can of tuna for six pieces of bread.... 

A bit of cheese will do.... for me... 

Into the oven they go....

Almost done.... 

Did I finish the 6 pieces?

No, I couldn't... LOL.. 

Gave two pieces to my neighbour and one to my furry member... 

Took 2 pieces for lunch and 1 piece for dinner... plus a mug of oats!

My simple meal for my lazy Sunday... 

Homemade Kimchi Soup For Dinner

DINNER TIME.... 

My son made his own Kimchi and brought a tub home for me to try.  Oh, what do I do with it?  Never tried cooking it before, the only times I tried were in the Korean restaurant and they were served as appetizers, were they not?  No worries, the part time cook said he would do the soup for us.  All I had to do is to get some fresh pork meat, beancurd, mushrooms and he would do the rest....

And he actually did it... with me hovering beside him, of course... LOL.... 

I find the Kimchi soup very appetizing indeed...

I could just eat it with plain rice... 

Our portions for dinner.... 

Two big bowls of Kimchi soup, leftover fish balls from lunch....

.... And a tub of durians called Musang King... RM35..

Once a blue moon, it is fine....

A very heavy dinner indeed...

Surely and dearly I would gain some weight by the time they leave Ipoh!!

5 Top Tips For Children Who Wear Braces

Image by Michal Jarmoluk from Pixabay

If your child needs to get braces and you’re unsure how to help then don’t worry, you’re definitely in the right place. Whether they’re having braces fitted for the first time or they’ve had them for years and they’re starting to experience issues, you need to ensure you’re doing all that you can to make wearing braces both pain and stress-free. Luckily, there are lots of ways in which you can do exactly that. From letting them know what to expect beforehand to going for regular check-ups, the more you’re doing the more comfortable they will feel. With that in mind, here are 5 top tips for children who wear braces:

Let Them Know What To Expect Beforehand

One for the best things you can do for your child when it comes to them getting braces, especially if it’s for the first time, is to let them know what they can expect beforehand. From the installation to the healing process, the more they know about wearing braces the better prepared they will be. For a guide to wearing braces as a child, you can visit this site here. It may be worth sharing with them once you’re done reading.

Stock Up On Soft Foods For The First Few Days 

If your child is having braces for the first time, you need to ensure you’re stocking up on some soft foods that they can eat. Whether that means buying lots of soup or getting a couple of tubs of ice cream, the more prepared you are the better. For a guide to the best foods to eat after getting braces, you can visit this site here.

Make Sure You Go For Regular Check-Ups

Once your child has had their braces fitted, you need to be sure that they’re going for regular check-ups. Whether this is to check their progress or to discuss any issues they may be having, you need to be sure they’re being checked as often as possible. From incorrect fittings to pain, there are lots of common issues associated with braces. For more information when it comes to incorrect fittings and braces that have been applied with indirect bonding, you can visit this site here.

Seek Assistance If They’re In Pain

If your child is experiencing pain, you need to be sure you’re getting help as soon as you can. In most cases, this will mean booking an emergency dentist appointment.

Buy The Necessary Toothpaste And Tools To Help Keep Them Clean

Finally, you need to ensure you’re buying all of the necessary tools they need to be able to clean their braces and teeth properly. Although a toothbrush is a good start, you may find they need a little extra help. If you’re struggling, a little bit of research will go a long way.

With lots of great tips and tricks to bear in mind, you can ensure your child’s experience with braces is a pain-free as possible. What else can you do? Did we miss anything off of the list? Let us know your thoughts and ideas in the comments section below.

Light Lunch From Bercham

BERCHAM DELIVERY AGAIN... This time we ordered from three different parts from Bercham, three different places but all in Bercham and she charged us an extra one ringgit which I readily agree to pay.  I feel it is very justified that I don't feel nice and I gave her more than what she charged.  My son also agreed that we should give her more, for being so accommodating as well.  And ended up her thanking us again and again for giving her support so often.  Oh my, some people are really nice!

So what did we order?  Nothing spectacular actually... We wanted more actually but the stall was not open, so we ended more only these.... 

Vegetarian noodles and 20 pieces of the fish balls...

Too bad the salted chicken and roasted pork stalls were not open yesterday...

These giant balls cost only RM1 each... 

On top of these, we also ordered 3 coconuts RM15

And a packet of Cendul RM3

All in, our lunch cost RM50 from Bercham.

Street Food From Bercham

AFTERNOON SNACKS....

There is this place in Bercham called "Wai Sik Kai" in Cantonese aka Food Street whereby there are two rows of vendors selling afternoon snacks.  As far as I can remember, there are a few stalls selling Laksa, popiah, roasted pork, "koay kak", fried noodles, desserts such as nyonya kuehs, coconut water and beancurd soya (Tau Foo Fah).  

Now with this Covid season, I don't go there at all but thanks to this lady, she will deliver the goodies to our house for just RM5 extra.  We normally made our orders one day before and she will deliver to our house.  We can order any kind of food as long as it is in Bercham where she stays, either morning or afternoon.   I like to request for her services and she willingly obliges.... 

Yesterday we ordered these for our afternoon so-called lunch or tea time... it was around 1pm when these were delivered.... 

Not much but enough for us... LOL... 

Two packets of Koay Kak... 

Kaya Puffs...

and 3 bowls of sweet beancurd desserts... 

The special is the fried Neen Koe and the Fried Yam... 

Will definitely order them again one of these days!

Homecoming During RMCO

WELCOME HOME.... even if only for a short while...

When interstate travelling was approved on the 10th, my kids took the opportunity to make a trip home.  Immediately after work at 6pm, they drove back to Ipoh, reaching here before midnight.  It has been several months since Chinese New Year in February.  They have been working from home ever since the lockdown in March and now they are home, they are still working during the day.  Mommy here has to tend to their meals, breakfast, lunch and dinner.... Isn't that nice?  LOL...

They saw my postings on homecooking in my blog here and now they want to try them all.  Of course, not all... I must have the mood too, right?  LOL... Actually they miss the Ipoh hawker food more than my homecooked meals, no doubt about that.  But due to the RMCO, it is a bit troublesome to go out to eat, we have to write our names and contact number at the hawker centers and for those dine-in restaurants, they use mysejahtera or other scan codes.  Ever since they came back on Friday, we have been eating at home....

They wanted Apom Balik... 

So I did them... 

This time I couldn't get the whole pancake evenly brown... 

But the fillings is still the same...

Add in more peanuts and sesame seeds... 

For dinner, my son requested for potato chicken... 

I marinated the chicken with red wine this time... 

A vege dish with broccoli, capsicum and mushroom... 

Just two dishes for the three of us.... 

And for desserts, I made Herbal Jelly to cool down our body system... 

Kurma Bread Baking At Home

BREAD MODE ON...

My friend gave me a packet of Kurma (Dates from Middle East)... she found them tad too sweet to eat from the box so she suggested to me that I bake a loaf of bread using the dates.  No problem... let me try doing that.  I cut them up into smaller pieces, I used around 10 big dates, added in crushed walnuts, pine nuts and almond flakes as well.  I like to eat my bread with lots of fillings! 

Definitely more than 30gm as instructed in the recipe... 

Kneading process.... 

After 3 hours.... 

Took the whole loaf to my friend.... 

The holey are actually the dates... 

One bite filled with nuts and dates...

Can just eat it like that without any spread of jam... 

Give Your Business A Productivity Boost With These Tips

If left unresolved, disruptions and technical problems will quickly put a stop to the productivity of your employees. From keeping a close eye on the system to encouraging staff to report on any potential problems that may arise, there are plenty of ways to ensure that technological malfunctions are less likely to become a problem. Networking, work-related software and applications and other digital resources will go a long way towards improving the productivity and performance of your business.

Image credit: Pixabay CC0 License

Find a faster and more efficient Internet service provider

 Slow Internet speeds are a massive problem that companies can no longer afford to ignore. Upgrading your service contract or choosing a supplier that can ensure that your company's current and future needs can be met can be a big advantage. In the longer term, costly delays and lengthy bottlenecks that are the result of bad internet access and connectivity could end up costing the company much more than an infrastructure upgrade.

Manage your network

 Failure to keep an eye on your IT business network can be a recipe for a business and technology disaster. From risks posed by cybercriminals and unsecured devices to simple settings that may have been incorrectly optimized, unwillingness to automate and make sure your network is as intuitive as possible and working to improve your infrastructure performance can lead to no end to any IT issues that could otherwise be avoided. Consulting with a managed IT service provider such as CyberJaz or other specialists on topics such as network safety, device management and in-depth training for your coworkers can be of benefit to you. If the staff doesn’t have the resources to do their work, they can't be productive and earn you money.

Ask the workers for suggestions

 Your workers serve as a point of contact for the technology needed to operate your business. Even those with little or no understanding of technical principles may still provide valuable observations and knowledge, as they are the ones on the front line using it. Incentivising employees to come forward with their ideas or to speak up when they find a problem will make it much easier to recognize and resolve any issues that might otherwise become a significant technical problem. Business owners who want to do it all on their own may find it hard to find effective ways to improve their everyday business processes.

 Make an investment into a point of sale system

 Sustaining a more efficient and problem-free customer experience with all customers is key to improving customer satisfaction and customer loyalty. An automated point-of-sale (POS) system will speed up the procedure, remove many of the accounting and inventory management activities and ensure that all employees are free to focus their attention on the needs of their customers. An out-of-date POS process could be a significant liability, one that causes your business to suffer more than you might realize. 

By keeping an eye on your development systems, investing in your IT infrastructure, and gathering input from workers and peers alike, you will find that your company performs efficiently and much more productively, growing your profit levels.

My New Hobby With Wesing App

LET'S SING!

With this MCO, CMCO and now RMCO, by now I am used to staying at home, it is more tedious to go out.  So much precautions to take, masks, sanitizer, queues, and SOP to follow.  However, I must applaud these safety precautions, only that I have to adjust to these procedures from now on.  It is a good thing... yeah....

Oh, I have digress.... I wanted to post on my favourite hobby, singing!  Yes, at my age, I still like to sing but I have to admit the stamina is not as good as decades ago.  But still.... I carry on singing and listening to myself sing... at home!  I got to know a singing app through a friend who posted up her singing in Facebook.  It is called wesing.... and I downloaded it to my iPad recently. 

Once downloaded the app, I can choose my own songs, sing it and then if it is "pass-able" I post it up to the app and allows other "singers" to listen.  LOL.... I find it interesting!  At first, I just sang through the iPad mic.... but actually it is better to use earphone with a mic.  And after a few sessions, I purchased it online and it arrived yesterday.

Came in the black pouch....

And quickly I tried it on and sang my heart out yesterday.... 

A few songs actually.... 

True enough, it is easier to sing through the small mic than using the one on the iPad....

I can hear the music clearer and with nice echo too!!

Here is one song I sang without the earpiece.... 

It is a duet with a Filipino guy... his voice is fantastic!

Don't laugh, OK! 

https://wesingapp.com/user/609c988320293082314e/song/CcGEMQc4lTrcvcuz-LookingThroughTheEyesOfLove?lang=en&g_f=personal

Dining Out At Dozo Japanese Restaurant

JAILHOUSE BREAK...

For the first time since March 18th, I dined out with my friends a couple of nights ago.  At first we thought of food delivery but it was kind of a special day, we forgo the idea of delivery.  Since Ipoh is kind of "green zone".. we plucked up our courage and made a reservation at Dozo, a Japanese restaurant.  We went there early at 5.30pm, upon entering, we have to sanitize our hands, scan the Wesejahtera app and filled in our details.  Then we were ushered to our dining table.

No more back to back table but three of us could be seated at the same table.  No point going if each of us had to be seated separately, right?  Then came the empty plates and they were still very warm to my touch.  Hmmm... kind of comforting though... No more sushi-s on the moving belt like those days, we just had to take our orders from the menu. 

This is free of charge when we "checked-in" through their Facebook page...

Cost around RM30 for this roll... 

Their house special salad dipped in roasted sesame sauce... 

Spicy Ramen....

Unagi fried rice....

And shrimps from the appetizers page.... 

For the 3 of us.... 

Bill came to RM119... 

For desserts, we had to take-away...

Bought three scoops of ice cream from Inside Scoop...

And back to my house to continue with my friend's birthday celebration... 

Home Cooked Dishes

NOT MUCH HAPPENING... and lazy too....

My neighbour gave me half pumpkin and I have been keeping it for a couple of days before I finally decide what to do with it.  I cook it into small chunks and sauteed it with minced meat, okra and basil leaves.  Yes, it would be great to put in some small cilipadi but unfortunately, I did not find any in my fridge.  Steamed a bowl of rice and that was meal for dinner....

One dish meal.... 

Pumpkin reminds me of sweet potatoes...sweet after cooking...

Another dinner meal consist of Sambal Fish, black pepper met and a hard boiled egg 

I only boiled the egg, the other two dishes were "sponsored" by my neighbour...

LOL... 

Kampung Durian Season Is Out

AGUNG BIRTHDAY... I did not know it was a holiday today until someone told me last night.  It used to be on the 6 June, as far as I could remember.  Anyway, everyday seems to be a holiday to me... that is why I need a few seconds to think what day it actually is.... and it is Monday today.

I had a busy weekend, I spent my Saturday morning sending my car for service and I was told to wait 3 hours.  Mana Boleh???  I quickly SOS my friend who came to pick me up... we went to do some chores, buying groceries in old town and Bake With Yen.  After that, we went searching for durians!  Bought some in First Garden before proceeding to Pengkalan to get more from a regular seller.  All in all, I myself bought 10 durians!  They cost RM10 per kilo and I spent nearly RM90 for them.  Not too bad, a very fruitful loot, no name durians, just the original ones called Kampung Durian.

Can't wait to get home to open them myself...

So I ate some at my friend's place.... 

The Originals... real Village Durians....

Ate a fair bit and took home the rest....

Called my neigbour over to help me open them.... 

And now I still have two tubs in my freezer...

Will slowly savour them bit by bit.... 

Good Food From Good Friend

A BIG FEAST.....

Could not remember when, but I did go to my friend's place one morning to collect the goodies... and it was indeed a feast for me.  My friend is really nice, ya!

She got these all early one morning and called me to pick them up...

So Much!! 

It has been a long while since I last ate vegetarian noodles... 

And I chose this to eat when I reached her place... 

While I was eating the noodles, she did these for me....

Mua chee!  So yummy!!

And for the rest of the stuff, I took them home....

For lunch, I took Nasi Lemak minus half the rice.... 

Followed by the vegetable dumplings....

And for dinner, I had these two homemade meat dumplings!

Wow.. what's next??

Oh yeah, she gave me pineapple jam too...

I spread them on two pieces of cream crackers... just as desserts...

Hebat?

All eaten in one day... what a Stomach! 

LOL...