I had leftover evaporated milk this week and decided to make Lychee Milk Pudding based on this recipe which I have modified. I do not have a food processor (YET) to puree the lychees, I omitted the eggs + butter and I also used less sugar. Below is my version.
Ingredients:
1 can Evaporated Milk
1 can Lychee in Syrup Water
2 cups Water
1 packet Gelatin/Agar-agar Powder
6 Tbsp Sugar
1 tsp Vanilla Extract
Method:
1. Separate lychees from the syrup water and set aside.
2. Add gelatin/agar-agar powder and sugar to syrup water, evaporated milk and water. Set to boil.
3. Add vanilla extract and blend well.
4. Put one lychee fruit into individual molds or ramekins.
5. Pour gelatin/milk/syrup liquid into molds and set to cool for 10 minutes before chilling in refrigerator.
Getting on a plane for a long-haul flight next week and there's a wee bit of conflicted emotions that's been nagging at me, so I thought I ought to purge it out of my system via writing. Despite biting the bullet and allowing myself the recent shuffle of changes, I do feel slightly displaced... still. Moving on was the hardest part, and now it's just a matter of rebuilding and settling into a new comfort zone. I know that in time, the unfinished businesses will be wrapped up and everything will be better than good. The last two years have been so very exciting and I've gotten to experience many wonderful things that I most likely wouldn't have had I not been so depressed prior. I think it all really hinges upon a choice to start living the life that I truly desire and all of a sudden, everything becomes a blessing.
In the last several hundred days, I have (in nonchronological-order):
- thrown a rockstar birthday party for myself in New York City.
- walked through the ruins of Angkor Wat and felt a spiritual transformation within me.
- squeezed into a tuktuk with my parents in Bangkok and giggled all the way during the ride.
- sang karaoke with a group of great friends in Singapore who let me lick the screen when Jam Hsiao's music video came on.
- acquired a scar on my left palm from surgery and ended up getting over another scar, the one inside my heart.
- sported the coolest, most bad-ass purple highlights in my hair.
- partied with celebrities and models in Taipei, and got macked on by a lesbian in a club there.
- pampered myself inside the private villas of Bali.
- gotten a beautiful tan in Playa del Carmen and that would be the last time I worshiped the sun.
- posed with the cherry blossoms at DC with my girlies.
- become totally enamored by my baby nephew who arrived in this world not that long ago, but feels like he's been part of the family forever.
- roamed the little alleys of Gang Nam district and salivating at all the street food.
- transported my kitty cross-continent and celebrated her post-quarantine release.
- curbed my nervousness and started to drive on the other side of the road; now I do it effortlessly.
- inked my body with Khmer prayers by a master who applied the tattoo freehand.
.
.
.
And this list will continue to grow, just as I have grown to appreciate the various facets of my existence.
So to my friends who are currently going through a rough patch, please hang in there and trust that things will turn around for the better in due time. I know you can't see the light at the end of the tunnel now and that's alright. No one can tell you when to feel better, there is no timeline to this sort of thing. You just have to go through it— the anger, disappointment, denial, sadness, heartbreak, despair, desperation, bitterness... and then one day after you are done processing all these emotions and exhausted yourself from all the negative energies, the empty vessel that you have turned out to be will begin to channel a different kind of energy. The positive ones!
I believe in the power of positive affirmations, because they are strong daily reminders for me to think positively. I have found affirmations to be very helpful personally.
The above are some of designs I've done. More can be viewed and are available on mysoti.com as tee-shirts. Regardless of what stage in life you are at right now, I hope you find some of these affirmations meaningful to you. :)
1 Squid, cleaned, scored and cut into small pieces 1 Red Bell Pepper, cubed 3 stalks Celery, sliced 1/2 cup Water Chestnuts, cubed 1 Tbsp chopped garlic 1 tsp oyster sauce 1 tsp soy sauce 1 Tbsp sugar Some oil Some cornstarch mixed in water
Stir fry garlic in oil, add bell pepper, celery, water chestnuts. Add squid and the rest of ingredients.
In my earliest days visiting Singapore with my dad, sometime around the late 70s, I remember him bringing my mom and I to eat Sup Tulang at a hawker center. Sup Tulang, literally translates to "Soup Bones", is an Indian Muslim dish consisting of lamb bones swimming in bloody-red gravy. I wouldn't exactly regard this as a soup, but it's served with so much gravy I guess that's why they call it a soup. It is normally served with baguette pieces to mop up the gravy. The appeal of this dish lies in the little bits of meat and tendon clinging onto the bones, as well as the bone marrows. Super delicious!
Last week while I was in Surabaya, our family was driving to have dinner somewhere and my dad randomly brought up the subject of mutton which somehow led to a discussion of Sup Tulang and how delicious we remembered it was. My sister mentioned that Anthony Bourdain had done a segment showcasing this dish on his TV show. My brother-in-law, who had never tried Sup Tulang before, became extremely curious about it. Before long, all of us were salivating while imagining this tasty dish that can only be had in Singapore. So I googled for Anthony Bourdain's show and decided to go to the same exact hawker center to have my fill of Sup Tulang for nostalgia's sake.
Haji Kadir-M.Baharudeen Golden Mile Food Centre 505 Beach Road #B1-13-15 Singapore 199583 12.30pm to 1.30am Closed alternate Wednesdays
Turned out this establishment, Haji Kadir at Golden Mile Food Center at Beach Road, which Anthony Bourdain went to, is truly super famous for its Sup Tulang! One local taxi driver whom I encountered previously had also recommended this place. (I love chatting w/ taxi drivers about their favourite local joints for good and cheap food; hey, might as well get some insights on what the locals love to eat while sitting in a taxi, right?)
Haji Kadir menu (and conveniently, the phone number for home delivery).
There it is... Sup Tulang (Item #15), MmMmMmMmmMmMMmmmMMM~~~!!! I ordered an $8 portion, bungkus (ie. bring home to eat). I'll tell you why later, keep reading.
Ladies and gentlemen, this is Sup Tulang. A humble dish of just lamb bones without a lot of meat, as you can see, in thick tomato-based gravy that is both sweet and peppery. What's that green straw doing on the plate? Ah, that is to aid in sucking the marrows out of the bones because you don't want to waste anything. Many will say that the marrows are the best part! And I absolutely agree; if you have never had marrows before, the best way I can describe it is sorta like a jelly-like substance. A rich source of collagen, I say, although some think of it as artery-clogging food. This is hardcore food indeed.
Now there was a very good reason why I packed this dish to enjoy at home. Because it can get VERY VERY messy!
My tips for eating Sup Tulang:
1. Do not wear white clothes!!! These bones are slippery and they will fly out of your hands. 2. Be prepared to get your hands and fingernails dirty (but fortunately the gravy washes off easily w/ soap and water post-feast). 3. Make loud slurping sucking noises while getting as much marrows out as possible, even with aid of straw. 4. Wet wipes. The sauce will get all over your face. 4. Dental floss. The bits of meat will be stuck all over your teeth.
Sounds like too much trouble to eat? HELLZ NO!!! The experience of gnawing on a lamb bone, soaking up a piece of baguette with gravy and getting to the marrows are all worth it. Trust me, this dish is really very delicious. If you're up for it, ask to kick up the spice for an even more finger-licking, lip-smacking euphoria. Perfect for supper with a mug of ice cold beer on the side. :)
By the way, I must note that even though this is mutton, there is an absence of that gamey-ness commonly associated with lamb. Not really sure why, maybe the gravy overpowered it in this case. FYI, I was reading an issue of Cook's Illustrated recently which said the strong gamey flavour is caused by and comes from the fat layer in lamb, so try to remove as much of the fat as possible when preparing lamb at home. Perhaps because Sup Tulang is mostly bones and there's virtually no fat around the meat, this does not smell pungent at all.
