Baking Cookies @ Bake & Go - Tools of The Trade (ToTT)

People who know me for a period of time will learn that i may be a person who eats all over Singapore but given a knife, a chopping board, a frying pan and a pot, i am hopeless in effectively utilising them to whip up a good meal.

Hence, i was a bit apprehensive when Korny suggested we popped over to Bake & Go for cookies baking. Truth is: i am afraid i will either burn the cookies or destroy the kitchen - or BOTH!

Thankfully, it's not easy to even go near to either of the scenario! The kitchen set up is fuss free, mess free and you are in good hands with two friendly staff who will help you in times of needs and difficulties!

First Step

Preparing the Dough

Come in cans with flavours ranging from vanilla, chocolate and strawberry, the cookie dough was already pre-packed and ready for use immediately without involving the flying flour, splashing water and sticky eggs!

This is exactly what you get! In addition to the dough, each can comes with either a pack of chocolate chips or peanut bits!

And it's playdoh time! Using your creativity, do whatever you want to the dough.

The one above was inspired by a piece of rough shit mixed with peanut bits - definitely constipated.

Each of us chose a flavour so that we can mix and match with three different colors! I tried to shape a molar tooth for the above with red dough as the pulp.

Second Step

Baking in Progress

Before baking commences, a final touch is inevitable!

Vanessa's fiery, vibrant artwork that looked the best!

Kon's random yet tidy art pieces that included mini piles of black poo (guys will think of practical stuff in life and shitting is indeed a natural occurrence for mankind).

My ugly, nonsensical designs gave the visual impression that a kid, no more than 4 years old, made them!!!!

No more change once the doors are closed and the knobs are turned! Being my virgin bake, I was desperately curious to see how my cookies will turn out to be!

Third Step

Time to Eat

Ta dah~!!! The heat will cause the dough to expand and that's the reason why two-inch spacing is necessary to prevent the art pieces from merging with one another!

Kon's version had the most delicious and colourful display!

Mine was just pathetic.... =_=

Never one to depend solely on visual appeal, the least i can say was that the biscuits tasted very good - maybe a bit soft but definitely something i would love to munch while watching TV!

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The baking experience was fun and the time spent was so satisfying (taking up roughly 45 minutes to an hour; it's the designing that took up a lot of time)!

Nothing beats eating the cookies you mould with your own hands - no matter how fugly they eventually turned out to be!

Location

896 Dunearn Road, #01-01A,

Sime Darby Building

Singapore 589472

(near to the Macdonalds at King Albert Park)

Price

Cannot remember but it should be around S$12.00 to S$13.00 per can.

Additional Information

Bake & Go is located within Tools of the Trade (ToTT); a heavenly realm (36,000 square feet) for people who enjoy buying loads of kitchen accessories and that includes unique items like the expert looking chef's hat!

If you love to learn cooking or just wish to expand your culinary skills, ToTT does offer cooking classes and has fully equipped cooking kitchens to accommodate those lessons!

There's even a cafe! Gosh, this almost feels like a mini-IKEA!

Angry Birds - Valentine's Hogs & Kisses

Please bear with me as i have finally updated my Angry Birds Seasons iphone application and found a new episode on romantic Valentine's Day!!!!

US$0.99 for a game that seems to give me new levels every ang moh festive season is just so worth it!

Never one to bow down to the threats of those cute (who can resist those hair bows) yet evil piggies, i shall help the colourful birdies in their noisy crusade to rescue their pitiful eggs!!

Though the episode is easily completed within an hour, my heart shall not lie still till i get three stars!!!!

A Humongous Burger @ De Burg, Ghim Moh

For a person who has always associated burgers with the likes of Macdonalds and Burger Kings, it's somewhat unnerving to see the sentence: "burgers are not fast food".

Coming from an unassuming burger stall located in a coffee shop with nil name, it's rumoured that De Burg serves the best burger in Singapore! Wah, is it a matter of a company being too big for one's boots?

Trying will be the one and only way to ascertain the rumours!

De Burg Decadence

Not one to pay high price for a burger, i have to thank Mr Kon who insisted once again to pay for this meal! People who know Kon well, will know he is no scrooge when it comes to allegedly good food.

Highly recommended and available for sale only on Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays and Public Holidays with limited portions, this is no doubt the burger Kon chose (the wagyu patty should be the deciding factor i guess)!

Layers of ingredients beautifully placed on top of one another; i thought the perfect, thick 'burger look' existed only on advertisements!

This dazzling baby proved me wrong when Kon happily brought it to the table. Just the look was enough to stimulate the three major pairs of salivary glands in my mouth!

Shiok SHIok SHIOK!!!! It was flawlessly good and so so fulfilling! In my opinion, this was better than DB burger!

Get your hands dirty and your mouth oily! Don't ever attempt to separate the ingredients and think they will taste fine. The burger is not to be devoured in such shameless way! Give it some dignity!

To quote an example, the huge portobello mushroom had a sour vinegarish flavour, the vegetables were bitter while the extravagant wagyu patty was bloody sweet (pun intended)! Merge them together and it was plain delicious!

That's exactly what a real burger should taste like!

Twin Sausages Combo

This was for Ms Tan but i could see from her eyes that she would have preferred to exchange it for a De Burg Decadence!

My taste buds could not get over the weird tasting spicy Italian sausage (the darker one) and would have preferred the pork cheese sausage from Cold Storage instead of the one here.

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While i am typing here, my mind kept drifting to the first bite i had for the De Burg Decadence!! Guess i don't have to wait long to try the other more economical offerings De Burg has!

Location

Block 10, Ghim Moh Road,

#01-78, Singapore 270010

(Opposite Buona Vista MRT Station)

Opening Hours

Tues-Sat: 1130-2130hrs

Sun/PH: 1115-2115hrs

Mondays? Closed.

Price

DeBurg Decadence - S$26.95

Twin Sausages Combo - S$12.25

No GST, No Service Charge!

Additional Information

NUS Staff can get a 5% discount off the bill! And the same goes for civil servants, staff from Singapore Airlines, Government Hospitals, NTU, Polytechnics, NGO (Non-Governmental Organizations) and VWO (Voluntary Welfare Organisations)! And not forgetting hardworking students from NUS, NTU and Polytechnics!

To enjoy the discount, please show your staff or student pass!

Haunted Red House @ Pasir Ris

The red house in Pasir Ris has always been placed on the list of the top ten most haunted places in Singapore.

Notice the Orb!

My post today is not to confirm nor debunk the list since i can no longer run as fast as before. Furthermore, my blog is more or less a pictures blog - photos taken at night usually suck without a tripod and flash creates too much brightness that is not optimal when you are supposed to be trespassing.

Okay! Fine fine fine, i am scared okay!! Both of the paranormal and the men in blue; the mata aka police!

Anyway, it was rumoured that there was a mass murder in this infamous property and besides the usual haunting signs (noises, some sightings of apparitions, cold spots etc), the most notable item was said to be an old rocking chair with a doll sitting on it.

Creeepy!!!!!!

My personal encounter a few years ago was on the infamous stone lions manning the main gate. I am not sure if it's imagination but i thought i saw the head of the lion moved! I didn't think too much about it since the very important issue then was "should we go in or not?".

Many stories on the red house are available on the internet due to its close proximity to three holiday chalets (Downtown East, Costa Sands and Aloha Loyang) that are popular with the youngsters and you may wish to do a google search to read the latest updates.

Going into the barricaded private property will be more exciting (and physically demanding) but judging from an experience i had, you are running foul with the law that is just not worth the effort.

Tau Suan with You Tiao (油条) @ ABC Brickworks Food Centre

Apparently the Mandarin term for Tau Suan can be 豆爽, 豆萱 or 豆宣. Not that it matters much to me but in all my life, i had no idea that there's any other Chinese term for tau suan!

Learning is indeed a lifetime affair.

Usually, tau suan is bought from a dessert store that sells a wide array of sweet indulgence like, ice kacang, sweet potato soup, borbor cha cha etc. Therefore, it's rare to find a youtiao stall that actually sells tau suan, when the cut cullers are merely its sidekicks.

Such a stall actually exists in ABC Brickworks Market and Food Centre!

Trying it out when my favourite (then) char siew stall had not opened for business, i was damn happy to finally have had more than enough you tiao to go with my mung bean (or split bean) soup!!

Yipppeee!!! It has always been less satisfying to find out i have a bowl half filled with tau suan yet without a single piece of you tiao floating on it!

Depending on individuals, i actually prefer this bowl of tau suan that has nasal-mucus-like texture and lesser concentration of beans. Mom and pig sister think the directly opposite way! Humans are interesting, aren't they?

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Location

Stall #01-33,

6 Jalan Bukit Merah,

ABC Brickworks Market/Food Centre

Price

Tau Suan - S$1.00

You Tiao - S$0.50

(Pork Free - As Indicated At The Stall)

Health Screening (2011)

No matter how much i hate to know the result, well aware that i have not been a good boy man when it comes to abstaining from deep fried, fatty food, i will still drag my feet to the location where the annual medical health check exercise for my company was held.

It's that kind of excitement i could not resist! Just like my fear of height; my legs will get all wobbly, my head will start spinning but i would still challenge this common phobia!!

After that routine extraction of my blood that filled three vials and an easily accomplished task in loading the urine capsule plus a few other boring procedures, it's a painful wait for at least a month for the medical report!

To reduce the anxiety in view of the unknown statistics, a heavier intake of food is an appropriate comforter (since i am not hopeful at all, might as well binge as much as i want before the dreadful truth was shoved to my face).

Shockingly, i clear the medical checkup!!!!!

My most dreaded category (total cholesterol) has dropped from a staggering high of 251 points in 2009 to a desirable 198 this year! Wahahahahahaha *pleased*

And amazingly, even with a perceived intake of food that seems to increase year on year, i managed to cut two kilograms from my weight. According to the Asian BMI, my height requires another reduction of two kilograms.

All other categories remain optimal.

*wide grin*

Time for some celebration! Who is keen to join me for the gastronomic buffet at Melt The World Cafe?! As a treat for me? :)