relax

we all need a breather from our hectic lives once in a while. i guess this was the day i didn't do anything productive at all, but i had fun simply being accompanied with my own thoughts :) 

Chewy oatmeal chocolate chip cookies:

4 fistful of oats (processed into oat flour) (it should be one serving / half a cup of oats!), 15 almonds (processed into almond butter), one square of chocolate bar, & an egg :) 

If you want it to be more chewy, you can always leave the batter in the fridge for a while!

I didn't add any sugar because I used 90% chocolate and there's already some sugar inside. But you can add sugar/honey into the recipe if you want to :)

Amount Per Serving (12 cookies)

  Calories 467.5  Total Fat 31.5 g  Saturated Fat 11.5 g       Total Carbohydrate 39.7 g     Dietary Fiber 10.9 g Protein 18.8 g  Sugars 2.2 g (well, maybe slightly more, i couldn't find 90% chocolate in the custom recipe calculator)  

i miss being in the water where the only voices i heard were the ones in my head

The Silver Linings Playbook was... hmm, I'll give it a 7/10, the book focused more on Pat's psychiatric issues as well as the relationship between him and his family. There were some moments in the book which were really good and quote worthy like the ones I've posted, but I feel that there was a lack of interaction between Pat (the main character) and his 'romantic interest' Tiffany until the end of the book!  I guess that they focus on it more in the movie, and the story line is a bit different, so I'm quite excited to watch it :)

“I don't want to stay in the bad place, where no one believes in silver linings or love or happy endings.” 

“If clouds are blocking the sun, there will always be a silver lining that reminds me to keep on trying.” 

Everyday, all day

Hello everyone, hope you're having an awesome 2014 so far! 3 weeks have almost passed, what have you accomplished so far?

I'm trying to start an accessories store (more details coming up soon!), organise a flea sale, as well as do some volunteering work! Oh and of course, find a job/ways of earning $$$ so I can finance myself to pursue hobbies, so yes, busy January so far.

Anyway, in the midst of all the business, there's one thing that keeps me going everyday, and that's none other than...

BREAKFAST. 

I have many friends who actually skip breakfast to get more sleep & then rush to school, but it's a pretty bad habit! Did you know that breakfast is actually the most important meal of the day? Without it, you'll feel really tired and find it hard to concentrate for those morning lessons. (And fall asleep in tutorials!!!)

Also, breakfast can help with weight loss, especially when you eat food high in fiber like wholegrains (oats, brown rice), which keeps you satisfied for a longer period of time. Furthermore, breakfast kickstarts your metabolism and increases it. On the contrary, if you skip breakfast, your metabolic rate is slowed down and you'll tend to eat way more for lunch and dinner.

Lastly (but most importantly), food always makes us feel better! What better way to start the day other than eating and just taking the time to relax for a bit before heading off for a long tiring day of school? :-)

Some people decide to just gulp down Milo / eat a food bar for breakfast, but that's quite bad too. It's not even filling, and processed foods are high in sugar! It causes a spike in blood sugar levels, making you feel really energetic for a while and then extremely tired afterwards (like an energy crash).

I'm definitely no master chef (i'm LAZY) and unlike those food bloggers to make 'nice' looking breakfasts all the time just to post them up on Instagram. Also, i'm trying to kick the habit on relying on my mom for breakfast, so now I just tell her to head to work straight and i'll prepare my own breakfast (I'm already 19, can't rely on parents already...) What matters the most is the nutritional value! So in this post, I'm going to share with you some simple (aka: non-fancy) recipes that can be done in less than 20 minutes, and you don't have to be watching the food cook all the time for most of them (except the pancake recipe but it's really easy to prepare and very yummy!). Yeah, you can actually use the 20 minutes to go brush your teeth, bathe, change, whatever, and tadah food is ready to be served :-)  Start eating clean today, no more excuses!

 

OAT CEREAL: Pre-heat oven to 150 degrees, place rolled oats inside for 10 minutes, slice apples while waiting and you're done! I sprinkle cinnamon over mine to make it apple cinnamon flavored :-) Apples and oats are full of fiber! You can also add toppings like almonds, cashew, pumpkin seeds, dark chocolate etc... it's up to you! YES, all these toppings contain fat, but they're healthy fat which helps you to cut body fat if taken in moderation.

   

YOGURT: Buy yogurt. (Preferably Greek Yogurt from Fage - greek yogurt doesn't have added artificial sugar that contributes to weight gain!!! Plus greek yogurt is concentrated with protein.). Open yogurt package. Throw in any sorts of fruit, oats, nuts and enjoy! :-)

 

FRUIT PARFAIT / OVERNIGHT OATS: Soak oats in milk/yogurt overnight, leave it in the fridge. In the morning, slice fruit if needed and throw em inside! You can also layer yogurt with it :-) Just scoop the oats first, then scoop yogurt into tall glass and repeat process.

 
SWEET POTATO & EGG SALAD: Preheat oven to 150 degree. Poke holes in sweet potato with a fork. Wrap sweet potato in aluminium foil. Throw sweet potato in oven. Throw eggs into a pot. Boil water with eggs inside to make hard boil eggs. Sweet potato is full of complex carbs, and eggs are a good source of protein. Wash and tear vegetables for salad and combine everything together. Done!

 

 FLOURLESS BANANA PANCAKES: Peel banana, peel peel banana ( I usually peel two large ones). Add eggs (I use 3). The consistency should be quite runny. Blend them together. Heat your frying pan, throw butter in. Slowly scoop mixture in. Be careful not to burn the 'pancakes', they cook really fast. Tip: just watch the edges, if it's solid enough to be flipped over, do it. Bananas are simple carbs that can give a boost to your energy levels before a workout :-)

Hope you've learnt something about clean eating from my post! You can also post up pictures on Instagram and mention me if you do prepare these simple breakfast ;-)

2013

Hi. How have you been?

2013 has been a hell of a ride. Whether the experience was good or bad, we have all made through another 365 days breathing, able to read this post and clearly alive. That's something to be thankful about itself. The word 'one' has a connotation of importance and a fresh start. While most people are going to make new year's resolution tomorrow (1/1/2014), I would like to think of what I'm going to do as a year's long resolution instead. There's only one thing I truly want - happiness. 

On a daily basis, we pursue after wealth, fame, recognition and love. However, deep down, the essence of why we do so is because we perceive that they bring us happiness, and we all want to be happy. 

Did you know that happy people live longer in general?

So why waste time being upset over the past? Let's start 2014 by learning how to be happy and grateful with the little joys in life. 

Like... travelling and food. 

Many people feel that travel has to take place outside of Singapore, because 'Singapore is just too small and boring', but that's not the case! I have a long list of places that I have yet to visit and I really want to. Well, maybe not simply shopping, but I believe that anyone can find pleasure as long as they are taking a break from their hectic work schedules. 

One such place is the Grandstand.  It's a 10 minute walk from the main road, which distances itself from all the busy vehicle traffic. The whole area is really chill with cafes and restaurants along the exterior, and more food places in the interior as well as a huge supermarket with everything from sushi to cakes. BUT the best thing is that they provide shuttle buses from Toa Payoh MRT, Botanic Gardens MRT and Clementi MRT! It's located at:

200 Turf Club Road, Singapore 287994

My top place to hang out would be Pasarbella, because the shuttle bus stops directly outside the West entrance! The whole concept is basically free-seating, so you get to buy whatever food you want and just plop down any where. There are also more seats on the second level. Or you can choose to eat and walk along if the portion is small enough :-) 

Sorry in advance for the lack of interior pictures &/or elaborations, the lighting was too dark and I only had my phone camera... plus I can't possibly try all the food here at one go. So this post will focus more on visuals, and what food you can find inside Pasarbella so you can have a glimpse & decide what to eat/sample over there!

Took this picture when I visited Slappy Pancakes with my friends, shall blog about it sometime soon. 

When you first enter, you'll be greeted by Oceans of Seafood, which sells fresh seafood and then cooks it on the spot if you choose to dine in :-) It's expensive...

If you walk straight up ahead, you'll see western food like Charly T's, a Middle Eastern dining place (Shiraz Mazzeh) and Japanese Shabu Shabu buffet (I think it was around $27 for adults for dinner...)

If you turn right (from Oceans of Seafood area), ... you'll see a huge cooking pan filled with paella. 

Le Patio is a European concept store which also sells crepes for dessert.

Bistro Bontintin, which serves salads and pies.

You can sample gourmet cheese from the Cheese Ark! Also, cheese platters can be customised, with add ons like nuts. Perfect for a classy house party.

Bread from Gastronomia. There's also cake being sold here + they serve all day breakfast too, which is an omelette fried with toppings you can select yourself like mushrooms and onions!

Oh and further up, there are lots of beer / wine shops like the Great Beer Experiment! I'm sure there's happy hour for some of them so... :-)

Breakfast from CICELY kitchen! They sell herbs and spices as well.

Wanted to try Bitesize Monster which sells waffles on a stick but unfortunately they were closed for the day.

Cakes by Rabbit Carrot Gun, which also has an outlet at East Coast (have yet to tried it...)

This was taken at the Seasalt Carribean Deli, which sells fish and chips ($18 for salmon / $20 for garoupa)! The cook was so nice and friendly, cos when I asked for sweet potato fries, he gave me a mixture of all the other fries/chips for the same price! The serving was so huge too (we shared among 3 people). We also ordered a dish (can't remember the name) but $12 for a mixture of steamed root vegetables, beef, pulled pork and chicken.

An artist practices her craft at the place down the ramp toward the next section of Pasarbella.

The organic grocer... I WAS SO EXCITED WHEN I WAS HERE. they sell a variety of organic / health products here that i've never seen before like nut butters (like cocoa + coconut / hazelnut / almond ) in a portable packet form (as a snack), and even chocolate and CLIF bars going for around $1.50 each (at the discounted section)! Plus they have lots of no sugar / low sugar energy bars too :-) They also sell the usual organic snacks and baking products. (I didn't buy anything though...)

Seventh Heaven Ice-cream. Ice-cream and me : best friends forever - so true.

Organic homemade cakes from Dutch Colony Coffee. The red velvet cake is coloured with beetroot. Plus, they roast their own coffee!!! 

1872 Clipper Tea. They sell iced teas like berry-flavored and passionfruit for $5 (So expensive...) but lucky for us sometimes they have free samples of tea hehehe. You can have a whiff all the different kinds of tea leaves,  some which are unique flavored like apple-tini (rum mixed with apple flavoring). I bought some lychee tea, $11 for 24 packets. (I really like lychee a lot and have been searching everywhere for it!)

Oh and there was this Mekhala cafe which sells 'natural' Asian food like sauces and seasoning, as well as paper rolls and COCONUT PANCAKES for only $7 (yes I love coconuts too). They also have lifestyle products like for skincare, haircare and body :-)

Bonheur Patisserie, which specialises in macaroons (1 for $3). 

2nd floor: Auum, which does manicures and pedicures.

Cute kids salon.

Chillout area outside with powerplug for people hopeless attached to their smartphones or laptops aka me.

South exit leading towards Giant. There's a foodcourt and other dining establishments around this area like Curry Garden (Indian food) so feel free to eat there too!

Have a great new year ahead everyone :-)