Singapore Adventure: MasterChef Cookie

Just when I thought all the birthday air has cleared after March, there is still room for one last birthday surprise from my Hubby Cookie after all. :)

Hubby Cookie knows how much of a fan I am of Gordon Ramsay and the show MasterChef.  So, he got me this...

MasterChef Cookbook
The Contestants and Judges of MasterChef and JoAnn Cianciulli

What a great finale to a fabulous series of birthday surprises! :)

I haven't started reading the book yet, but I have done a bit of peeking inside.  There are pages of photos from the MasterChef US show.  The recipes cooked up by the contestants can also be found inside grouped in chapters under Breakfast, Soups, Salads & Starters, Pasta, Poultry, Seafood, Meat, and Desserts.  I also saw pages on basic cooking techniques like chopping an onion (which was done as a challenge on the show's first few episodes), filleting salmon (which could have been helpful to Sharone Hakman during the wedding party episode), and poaching an egg (which show winner Whitney Miller did fantastically in one episode). 

At this point, I am so psyched to see if I can try one of the recipes in the book.  I'd probably give the pasta recipes a go.  Will post my attempts here so keep posted. :)

Singapore Adventure: Simple Christmas Feast

It's my first Christmas away from my family. Last year, though I was already based here in SG, I came home for Christmas to spend the festive season with my family and friends. This year, I spent a wet Christmas in SG. But the best part of it is I get to spend the entire day with my Cookie. ^_^

We started Christmas Day late. Skipped breakfast but I made up for it by serving a nice seafood dish for lunch. My (almost perfected) Buttered Garlic Shrimps.

My Cookie is not as big a fan of seafood as I am. But since it's Christmas and he loves me too much, so he pretends he is a fan every now and again. Well, with a little blackmailing strategy which involves him not getting any dessert, he did down a few pieces of shrimp that I shelled for him. :P

And being a good boy that he is, finishing the lovely shrimp dish I've prepared for him, he deserved the Lechen Flan reward I had for him. :))

When lunch was done, we spent some time in front of the tube. After we've gone tired of all other shows available on cable, we decided to give in to the urge of seeing a "free copy" of Twilight. We've been meaning to catch it in the theatres but never really got to it. And most likely by the time we don find the time, it would most likely not be showing anymore.

Read the book, seen the movie. Well, I am a fan of the book, but not so much of the movie. The movie was a bit of a disappointment to be honest. The way the story was told in book was very fluid, spontaneous, and the way the words were put together and told through the dialogues in the book sounds deliciously as you read them. But the movie, it gave me a feeling of skipping a few chapters or randomly flipping through the pages of the book. The acting was not as convincing making the dialogues sound flat, almost losing its flavour. Sorry if I am being too critical, I just really am not a buff of screen adaptations of books. Well, I did enjoy A Walk to Remember and Stardust, but still something is lost when the book is translated to the silver screen.

So, after almost 3 hours of Twilight, half the time spent blurting out side comments, it's time to prepare Christmas Dinner. This time, nothing fancy, just some Grilled Pork Loin Chops and a sidedish of Buttered Baby Carrots and Roasted Cherry Tomatoes.




The Cookies had a great Christmas. ^_^

Singapore Adventure: Kinokuniya Shopping Spree

As a friend of the boyfriend unit has come to town for some visiting and shopping, where else to bring him but Orchard Road?


And so while there, I grabbed that chance to scratch my credit card crazy with purchases at Kinokuniya. Well, not all the books are for me. I only bought two for myself and the others are for my cousin Rose.


Book # 1: Stephenie Meyer's Twilight


Oh yes, I am joining the bandwagon. My curiosity has been triggered with all the fuzz about this book. When I was home in the Philippines last September, I have been warned that this book has been selling like hotcakes amongst college girls. But I was not as convinced at that time. When I returned to Singapore weeks later, movie posters for the same book have been splattered at the Dhoby Ghaut MRT station. And so, I am finally giving in.


I've always been a fan of vampire stories. I've seen both movie adaptations of two of Anne Rice's vampire novels. Apart from plenty of other Vampire versus Lycan a.k.a. Werewolf flicks. And this new vampire novel should be interesting for me as well.



Book # 2: Jason F. Wright's The Wednesday Letters

It had an interesting red cover, the font title on the cover is not as catching but match the red front cover perfectly, it is thick enough that will make you believe it has quite a story to tell and best of all, the title itself will just make you think, what do those letters have to reveal?

Aren't we all curious little creatures who'd cringe over peeking into other people's private mails? Well, this is my confession. I am sucker for letters, specifically, love letters. This should give me a dose of my long-lost creative juices for writing letters and poetry. It's been quite a while since I've penned one. Hopefully, reading this book will just give me a jumpstart to find my "muse" again.

The other books are for my cousin. She meant to buy the books when she was here a couple of weeks ago, but I told her to hold it off until she's sure it will not be available at Powerbooks in the Philippines soon. But it seems that the release dates for these books in the Philippines are still indefinite, and so I just purchased them for her, all 4 volumes in the series. My Cookie will just bring them home for her.

Singapore Adventure: Paulo Coelho, Back-to-Back

After my NDS Flashcart decided to conk out and bail on me, I am back to reading again. And having some Paulo Coelho books lying in the shelves proved to be a real treat.

And so, it's time for a Paulo Coelho Back-to-Back. ^_^

The Devil and Miss Prym

Set in a small village where the people are content with their everyday lives working the mountains, tending their animals, and living simple lives. And one uneventful day, a stranger - The Devil, comes to present them with a wager through a local girl, Miss Chantal Prym.

Interesting storyline, interesting characters, and an interesting ending. Again, a recipe of a memorable novel.

I enjoyed every page of the book. However, at some point it became a bit predictable for me. But nevertheless, it was still a good story, and a book with so much life lessons to impart - especially about the perpetual battle of good and evil in us.

- o0o -

The Zahir

A story about obsession. Obsession over chasing for a lost love. Love not only in the romantic sense, but love as an energy that is slowly vanishing amongst people.

The storyteller is a novelist, who remained nameless in the novel, narrating the story of his life after his wife left. He told of quest to finding the love he lost and the journey he undertook that finally led him to her and to "love".

The storyline is a bit too heavy for me. But it is a good read. Made me realize some things about my own experiences. The ending was well-written - it was heartbreaking and it was beautiful.

Singapore Adventure: Unpacked

Since we have moved to the new house, which is already 3 months ago since 03 February, some of my things have remained packed in boxes. Well, I didn't see any purpose in unpacking when I really have no use for the items from the boxes. They might as well just be kept inside the boxes and away from dust or sunlight, right? But then, since there really isn't anything to do during the 4-day CNY holiday, I just went ahead and unpacked them.

Now, my books are neatly piled in the built-in bookshelves of the common room. Well, I don't have a lot. I didn't bring all of my books, just my favorite ones, and those that I have not yet read.

My favorite ones would include the "gift books" (very useful when I do journalling for my scrap pages and post cards), the Bob Ong books (extremely entertaining except for two - Bakit Baligtad and Alamat ng Gubat), the Mitch Albom books (tear jerkers), and my recent favorite, Adeline Yen Mah's Chinese Cinderella (truly heartwarming). There are also a couple of books which I brought along from home or bought here that I have not read yet such as Mitch Albom's For One More Day (bought here at Times), Gabriel Garcia Marquez's Of Love and Other Demons (bought from Philippines in August 2007), Paulo Coelho's The Zahir (birthday 2006 gift from college bud Khends) and The Devil and Miss Prym (Christmas 2007 gift from my cousin Rose).

Sigh, I hope this year I can finally push myself to read again. Maybe piling my books in the shelf will provide the motivation. ^_^

Singapore Adventure: Kwentuhan Muna

I am happily reading again. Hehehe... And yesterday I finally finished the last few pages of Mga Kwento ni Lola Basyang by Severino Reyes. I started reading the book when I was still back home but only found the time to finish it here during the 30-minute train rides to and from work.

The book is written in Filipino and was printed in large font so it was easy to read. The Filipino used is a bit too "Filipino" for me but it was a pleasant experience. Not only was I entertained, I was also given a chance to rehash my Tagalog. Hehe...

The book is a compilation of Lola Basyang's most loved short stories. Mostly about adventure, magic, and mystery. Were there love stories? Most of the stories in this compilation had a "love angle". Some even ending in the cliche "happily ever after" tone.

My favorite short story from this one is "Ang Mahiwagang Kuba" (The Magical Hunchback?). I even shared the story with my Prince Cookie during one of our Skype sessions and he (seems) to have enjoyed it as well. ;)

So, Mga Kwento Ni Lola Basyang is a wrap. Moving on. :)

Singapore Adventure: "Abnormalite"!

Today, I finished Bob Ong's latest book - the Red book. It is entitled MacArthur. An apt title for the essence of the short story, but funny that there is no mention of it in the little book's 98 pages.

Yes, I have Bob Ong's book here. Surprised? Hehe... Well, my Cookie brought it for me from home. It is a pasalubong from my cousin Rose.

I miss reading. It has been a while. I cannot recall anymore the last book that I have read. Hmmm.. Let me see... *thinking* *thinking* *thinking* Sheesh! I cannot remember!!! But this one sure has fired up my wanting to read again. I brought with me a couple of books here to Singapore. I just have to find time to catch up on my reading. The train proves to be a good venue since that's how I finished Bob Ong's book - during the 30-45 minute train ride from our flat in Sengkang to our office at Dhoby Ghaut.

I enjoyed the book. The author takes you to a rollercoaster ride of emotions. I found myself laughing out loud in one chapter, then holding back the tears in the next, then wide-eyed in horror in the following. Of course, the informality of the language gave more appeal to the book... or is it just Bob's style? Like some of his previous books, this one still delves on our countries social issues, with a twist! Hehehe...

Go grab the book. It is truly worth your while. ;)