Little Joy Factory

Do you love to buy food and groceries in bulks for your family? I do. I loved the Costco experience during the stay in U.S a few years ago. When I heard Fairprice Warehouse Club follows the model of Costco, I was very excited and could not wait to visit it . With the high cost-of-living in Singapore, buying quality goods in bulk definitely helps to reduce cost. Since its opening, I have patronized the warehouse club twice and have spent a few hundred dollars there. 

My age must be catching up with me ... I forgot that I bought one pack of Greek yogurt, and bought another pack again. Now  I have 2kg of Greek yogurt in my fridge! Being a cost-conscious housewife, I have to make sure they are consumed before the expiry date. The initial plan for Greek yogurt was to make a healthy cheesecake. With 2kg of Greek yogurt,  I baked different flavours of cheesecakes almost every week.  After 3 weeks, I have used up 1.5kg of yogurt. My family seemed to have had enough of my " cheat cheesecake " for now.

送走了忙碌的二零一四年，二零一五年在宁静祥和中悄然降临了。也许是我生日中也带数字15的原因吧，感觉和2015年有着自然的亲近感。那种浮躁疲乏的心境随2014一扫而空，仿佛暴雨过后的清晨，凉爽而清澈。 今天是女儿的生日，标志着她正式步入了青少年时期。而明天, 又是开学的第一天, 她即将展开中学直通高中六年的学习生涯。可以说是女儿生活中里程碑的日子。全家决定好好庆祝一下。一早起来，烤鸡炖鱼，蒸煮烹炸，很有点过年的气氛。饭后女儿自己去取回提前预订的生日蛋糕， 在欢声笑语中点燃蜡烛，许下生日和新年的愿望。。。看着她快乐的脸庞，我的心里也充满了喜悦。 居住在新加坡，感受不到四季的变化，时间仿佛过的格外快。人人脚步匆匆，日出而作，日落而息。 有了假期，又马不停蹄地出国旅游，在忙碌中度过。这样的日子，十年如一日，偶尔会感觉茫然。看到一页页翻过去的日历，有时真的不知道时间都去哪了。庆幸家有少女初长成，让我看到时间流逝带来的惊喜和变化。相信再过六年，我们又会收获另一份成长带来的满足。那么就让时间在指间悄然滑过吧，父母安康，孩子无忧无虑的长大，这就是一切努力和付出的回报了。 

My French lady boss will be leaving Singapore for a new job assignment in Morocco.  I am totally clueless about Morocco until someone mentioned Hollywood movie  Casablanca . Oh,  Casablanca is in Morocco! Well, that's all I know about this exotic country.  My boss is so nice that she wants to give us a feel of Moroccan.  So, she invited us to her house one day,  and prepared famous Morocco chicken tagine for lunch.  Served together with couscous, this plate of spiced chicken just hit the spot. We are so impressed as if we were under the Moroccan sun!

Greek yogurt is much thicker and creamier because it's strained three times to remove more whey and lactose. It has high protein and lower carbohydrates as compared to regular yogurt.  I have been using Greek yogurt to replace sour cream in dipping sauce, and it tastes really good. Never thought of making "cheesecake" with Greek yogurt until I chanced upon this recipe from Pinterest. A cheesecake without cheese?

新加坡海南鸡饭很出名，可我几乎没吃过。肯德基到处可见，我也很少光顾。不是为别的，说来你也许觉得好笑，鸡曾经是我儿时的宠物。

My elder daughter suggested me making Tiramisu last month.  I told her give me some time to find a good recipe first. I knew nothing about Tiramisu except that it uses Mascarpone cheese and ladyfingers. So, I bought these two ingredients, and stored them in the fridge. Two weeks have passed,  I have not found the right recipe yet.  One day, my Italian colleague Giulio gave us a pleasant surprise in the office. He brought his homemade Tiramisu to the office !  Italian dessert made by an Italian,  do I still need to search for the "right" recipe?   Giulio was so nice to translate his recipe from Italian to English and shared it with me. He asked me to send him the pictures after I have tried his recipe. Here you go, Giulio!