When Daddy Bakes (1)

Over the last few years, I have developed a new passion in baking. It started off with baking cupcakes for our own parties and gatherings, to cookies and now I have ventured into cakes.

Last weekend I made two chocolate cakes at one go, and last night I made two cheesecakes. It was Tai-tai's special request.



Cakes in the oven.




Cooling off..



Almost there...



Voila!! The final product!

I followed the following recipe, which was easy to follow and led me to the desired results:

(Recipe for 1 cake)

New York Cheesecake

250g pkt plain Digestive biscuits
125g unsalted butter, melted
750g cream cheese, at room temperature
215g caster sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Finely grated lemon rind from 1 lemon
2 tablespoons plain flour
4 eggs
300ml sour cream
Strawberries for decoration

Preheat oven to 160°C. Line the base of a 23cm (base measurement) springform pan with non-stick baking paper.

Place the biscuits in the bowl of a food processor and process until finely crushed. Add the butter and process until well combined. Transfer to the lined pan. Use a straight-sided glass to spread and press the biscuit mixture firmly over the base and side of pan. Cover with plastic wrap and place in the fridge for 30 minutes to chill.

Meanwhile, use an electric beater to beat the cream cheese, sugar, vanilla and lemon rind in a large bowl until just combined. Beat in the flour. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition until combined. Fold in the sour cream until just combined.

 

Pour the mixture into the base. Place the pan on a baking tray and bake for 1 1/4-1 1/2 hours or until just set in the centre (a bit wobbly but this is perfectly fine and how it should be). Turn oven off. Leave the cheesecake in oven, with the door ajar of about 5 inches for 2 hours or until cooled completely (this will prevent cheesecake from cracking). Place in the fridge for 4 hours to chill.

 

Top the cheesecake with the strwberries.






Mes filles aiment à chanter la chanson française

Après notre visite en France en Septembre, mes enfants aiment écouter et chanter dans la musique française. 

Voici leur chanson préférée par Indila - "Dernière Danse":

Oh ma douce souffrance
Pourquoi s'acharner tu r'commences
Je ne suis qu'un être sans importance
Sans lui je suis un peu "paro"
Je déambule seule dans le métro
Une dernière danse
Pour oublier ma peine immense
Je veux m'enfuir que tout recommence
Oh ma douce souffrance

Je remue le ciel, le jour, la nuit
Je danse avec le vent, la pluie
Un peu d'amour, un brin de miel
Et je danse, danse, danse, danse, danse, danse, danse
Et dans le bruit, je cours et j'ai peur
Est ce mon tour?
Vient la douleur
Dans tout Paris, je m'abandonne
Et je m'envole, vole, vole, vole, vole, vole, vole

Que d'espérance
Sur ce chemin en ton absence
J'ai beau trimer, sans toi ma vie
N'est qu'un décor qui brille, vide de sens

Je remue le ciel, le jour, la nuit
Je danse avec le vent, la pluie
Un peu d'amour, un brin de miel
Et je danse, danse, danse, danse, danse, danse, danse
Et dans le bruit, je cours et j'ai peur
Est ce mon tour?
Vient la douleur
Dans tout Paris, je m'abandonne
Et je m'envole, vole, vole, vole, vole, vole, vole

Dans cette douce souffrance
Dont j'ai payé toutes les offenses
Écoute comme mon cœur est immense
Je suis une enfant du monde

Je remue le ciel, le jour, la nuit
Je danse avec le vent, la pluie
Un peu d'amour, un brin de miel
Et je danse, danse, danse, danse, danse, danse, danse
Et dans le bruit, je cours et j'ai peur
Est ce mon tour?
Vient la douleur...
Dans tout Paris, je m'abandonne
Et je m'envole, vole, vole, vole, vole, vole, vole

After many years...

Most people would have thought that I have abandoned my blog since no postings were made for quite a number of years.

True.

I have abandoned my blog. But only because it was involved in a situation that I do not wish to elaborate further. Suffice to say that I had swayed the content of my blog away from its original intention and now I wish to put things back on track (perhaps those entries are no longer around).

Many things had happenned during the years of my absence from the blogging world. I have lost weight (a lot) and was invited by Kevin Zahri to share my journey in his website. And now somehow I am slowing gaining back the kilos that I have lost (sigh).. But I made a promise to myself that once I have sat for my final written exam this Sunday for my MBA programme, I will start my running routine again by utilising the treadmill that we have bought almost 10 months ago (yeah... still got another 2 more instalments to go).

We have moved to a new and bigger house. Tai-tai and myself spotted a new residential area not far away from where we lived on one evening, and it was a love at first sight for us. We sold the house to my sister and her husband, and moved into a 2.5 storey semi-detached house, much to the curiousity of our friends and relatives considering that there are only four of us who would be living in it.

My two angels are now in school, Aisyah in Standard 3 and Aliyah in Standard 1. I am very proud of my angels, and have always emphasised that they must try their level best in everything that they do. Both have surpassed the expectation of me and Tai-tai, especially our Aliyah who is so manja.

Above picture: Aliyah with her friends at school.