These Are a Few of My Favourite Things

This is the second post of a few photos about the small happy things that have cheered up my days recently. You can find the first entry here!

Coffee isn't coffee unless it's the real stuff - espresso! And it tastes even better home-made with my cute Bialetti coffee maker given to me by my dad. We both love our cuppa but are particular about the taste. I also never take my coffee black. Cappuchino is the word and this maker is an easy and affordable way to make quality coffee at home and it brings back lots of memories. I love those coffee moments with my dad. He makes the coffee, carefully measuring the water and pressing the ground in the machine, placing it on the stove and waiting for it to make its magic. Then he heats up the milk and foams it with his small cute milk frother. The coffee is perfect but what I enjoy the most are the endless conversations about anything on earth that we share over the cups of freshly made coffee. Dad I miss you! <3

I always drink my coffee from my favourite mug that my hubby got me three years ago. You can read the whole story here.

With the coffee I always crave for something sweet! And I'm not really one of those people who eat one piece of chocolate and that's it. No, I take as much as it takes to finish my cuppa, which is quite a lot :D But my home-made chocolate is just simply sooooo good. Recipe here!

I love this Chinese painting given to me by my mum before she left back to Finland in September after visiting me here in Singapore. It's called "The Four Seasons" and she wanted to give me this because there's obviously no change of season in Singapore. This painting reminds me of Finland and how it's snowing there already by now. Mum is miss you too!! <3

 

A very small things that made me smile was when I found this in a papaya. A heart. In a papaya! What a beautiful thing! <3

What made you happy today? Noticing the small beautiful things around us just requires a bit of attention, that's all! :)

X Ang Moh Chick

These Are a Few of My Favourite Things

I was thinking of introducing a new Instagram-like sequel where I share a few photos of the things that have recently made me happy. The idea of this The Sound of Music (what a wonderful happy film!) sequel is to inspire also you readers to, if not shoot, at least write down or really pay attention to those small beautiful things in life. Our mood is what we decide it to be - and I'm saying this even though I'm not the best example of a person who can simply decide to be happy on a day when you wake up and 1. You decide to make a cappuchino since you slept very poorly and there isn't any milk in the fridge. 2. You look at the sky in the morning and you're SURE it won't rain today and don't take un umbrella (ah, I'm Singaporean enough to know this by now!) and voilà, it's raining not cats and dogs but little uncles when you head out. 3. You pour coconut water over your laptop while blogging and it stops working... I could go on, and yes, all this has happened to me! 

I got lost in my thoughts... Anyways, so after all the stuff that makes you think that things can't possibly go any more wrong (they usually will), you can stop for a moment and think. Think what happy, nice or positive has happened today. It can be a very simple thing, or perhaps something larger. You have a part to play in this game too - you have a chance to save someone else's miserable day. Just a small compliment, a helping hand, or simply a smile can have a huge influence on a stranger's mood. And as that person becomes a tiny bit happier, he/she is more likely to spread the joy... And so on. Well, you know what I mean.

Here are a Few of My Favourite Things recently.

I slept poorly but woke up to a beautiful morning and thought to myself how grateful I am to experience living so high up that I can take panoramic shots from my bedroom window.

I love enjoying tea from a pretty pot and especially from a small Japanese cup. The flavor is so much better this way. Just like drinking coke from the bottle isn't even nearly as good compared to coke from a can! ;)

For me the best way to empty my mind before an important day, or to relax after a long day, is to read magazines. My favourites are food, fashion and wellness magazines and I could read recipes and interviews and look at beautiful pictures for hours...

When I got home it was so windly that the curtains were swaying horizontally and all the papers from the bedroom table were on the floor. But what a perfect weather for a cup of hot chocolate! You can find my recipe here.

I heard that my interview appears at www.expatsblog.com frontpage! I was very happy about this :) Please go and take a look here!

What made you happy today? :)

X Ang Moh Chick

A Long Weekend

My weekend felt exceptionally long. It's probably because I was a bit sick and had to pretty much stay indoors for the week. When the weekend came, I really felt I needed to get out of the house and attended two events, a new brand launch and a Skechers store opening. Besides these two, I pretty much just took it easy, drank some good coffee, ate some homemade yummy chocolate (recipe here) and comfort food.

I will share more about this brand launch with you later on! Right after it, I attended Skechers media event at Bugis. I was with my blogger friend Peiwen and used her as a model ;)

The kids' shoes are actually pretty cute. I tried on one (adults!) pair that suit my outfit ;) - and they we really comfy!

As I still felt a bit weak after being sick, I opted for some soup. Comfort food! :)

Roasted nuts on top of a soup is actually a great idea, I have to try it at home! Just that the soup has to be creamy like this one. Too bad that it's usually so hot that I don't feel like taking any soupy stuff.....

Later on I also cooked some salmon for dinner.

Hope you had a relaxing weekend - we are half way through until the next one!

PS. I had a laugh going through some old photos, especially those failed ones, and I'm planning to share some of those with you. Just to show that being a blogger ain't as easy as it may look like... ;)

Dress: People's Market   Earrings: Chanel

X Ang Moh Chick

The Best Hot Chocolate Ever!

Okay, so I live in Singapore, a country with non-stop 30ºC around the year and humidity that makes your hair decide it wants to look like bird's nest. Still, I'm a fan of chocolate ;) You can find my all-time most popular home-made simple chocolate recipe here. This drink can be enjoyed cold or warm but I actually enjoy it hot on those days when it's pouring heavily and the thunder is just right on top of me (which happens quite often here). That's when I feel GREAT! :D I've always loved thunder. My dad says when I was younger I always wanted to go outside when it's the worst possible weather and just stand there, with a raincoat on, and listen to the nature playing its loudest performance. I can still remember that... 

Anyways, back to Singapore and the recipe! What you need is your favourite milk (I don't recommend anything 'light' because the cacao power will not mix well and.. it just doesn't taste that good :D), 1 tablespoon of cacao powder, cinnamon, honey/agave syrup to sweeten (if your milk isn't sweet already), 1 teaspoon of maca powder (optional) and your favourite mug! Cacao powder includes lots of antioxidants and minerals such as magnesium, nitrogen, zinc and iron that have good effects for example on blood pressure and the immune system and that can help in headache, anemia, diabetes and cardiovascular disease. They don't say chocolate is good for you for nothing! ;)

Finally, a short anecdote. My husband made us two mugs with our pictures on them when we first took time apart. One for me, one for him. I had just been to Singapore for an exchange and had to leave to Finland. We had been dating for two months. But we survived the long distance thanks to skype, watsapp and lots of great memories, just like the ones I get to re-live every time I enjoy my cup of hot chocolate!

Next post will be about something completely other than food, promised ;)

X Ang Moh Chick

Spinach Pancakes and Cranberry Jam

Yes you heard correct - pancakes can well be savoury! Spinach pancakes is a common dish at Finnish schools where the food is free from primary school all the way until university where is's government subsidised. 

Food is not only one of the most important joys of life, it's a way to gain energy for the body and the brains, share love, try something new and of course most importantly enjoy the taste of life! For me even food can look pretty and visually appealing. Presenting food in a nice way makes it taste much better ;) Moreover, food is a great way to bring back memories. I felt like having something Finnish and eating these pancakes brought me back to my school days!

These spinach pancakes are packed with iron and good carbs to give you strength for the challenges of the day. First you need to prepare the sweet&bitter cranberry jam. 

Mix 3 tablespoons of chia seeds with 1 dl of water. Place in the fridge for about 15 minutes or until the seeds have 'jellified'. Mix the jelly with a handful of grated cranberries, or alternatively use a blender. Add in honey to taste, about 2-4 tablespoons depending on how sweet you want your jam to be. Place the ready jam in the fridge to wait.

Here is what you need for the pancakes:

• 1 cup white quinoa + 2 cups water
• 1.5 cups grated pumpkin
• 3 eggs
• a large handful of spinach
• 1.5-2 cups rolled oats
• fresh or coarsed parsley, black pepper, salt to taste
• butter or oil for frying

First cook the quinoa in 2 cups of lightly salted boiling water for about 15 minutes. Set aside to cool. Pulse the pumpkin in a blender and then add rest of the ingredients. If you don't own a blender, grate the pumpkin and spinach until fine, then mix with other ingredients. The mixture should be thick enough to be shaped into patties. If it's not thick enough, add more oats.

Place the mixture in the fridge for 30 minutes. Heat the oil or butter in a large pan, adding enough so that the patties will not stick to the pan. Form the mixture into pancakes in your hands and fry about 4 pancakes at a time. Fry for about 3 minutes per side.

Enjoy with your homemade cranberry jam!

Sidenote: After happily eating my pancakes I noticed that my quinoa package is full of tiny tiny Singapore ants running around. Lovely. Should have named the post 'Spinach Pancakes with an Anty Crunch'. 

X Ang Moh Chick

A New Cafe Find and a Fashion Mistake

I was asking around for recommendations of good cafes, since I'm a huge fan of coffee and cafes - especially those that have a unique atmosphere, something different from all the chains. Good coffee and variety in the menu are naturally a plus ;) So pretty late at night we took the train to Bugis and walked pass Arab street.

And there it was, in the middle of nowhere. A cafe/restaurant/bar that looked interesting and different. It was called Symmetry Cafe.

We sat outside at first to take a look at the menu, which has options for breakfast, dinner and lunch, wines and beer to choose from and also a good variety of coffee drinks. We had just eaten so we ended up just ordering drinks.

Wearing a long sleeve (:D), it was quite hot outside so we took a look at the inside of the cafe. I love all the small details; notes on the window, design of the toilets, bottles on the shelves, cute cups and cookies to go with the coffee.

The only thing I would perhaps change is the music. Somehow I feel that this place calls for jazz... :)

After the drinks I went to the toilet - this is where I discovered the fashion mistake. Can you spot the difference?

So I wore my dress upside down the entire day. Oh well, that happens. And I learned that actually the dress doesn't look too bad upside down either ;)

PS. There are three more days left before the Weekend Flow! Please RSVP to my email angmohchick@gmail.com and bring all your friends with you!


Dress: Max&Co.   Cardigan: Essentiel   Shoes: Fuasto Zanetti/Tangs  Earrings: Green Poppies


X Ang Moh Chick