Baking Diary: Classic Butter Cake

Traditional and rich butter cake is always the best. This easy recipe yields sweet and buttery cake with simple ingredients! The cake is extremely buttery, moist, soft and fluffy. Every bite brings you home. I love having them with a cup of coffee or tea for afternoon.

Baking Tips:

• Use a premium quality butter. I like Golden Churn and Lurpak brand butter.
• Keep the butter at room temperature. (Take out from the fridge an hour before)
• Use a hand mixer or stand mixer to make the batter in the beginning, then change to spatula to fold the batter gently after putting the flour. 
• Sift the flour for a smooth cake batter. 

These are the ingredients of the butter cake: 

• 250g salted butter
• 220g castor sugar
• 240g all purpose flour
• 50g milk
• 5 eggs
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon vanilla essence
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

1. Cut the butter into small pieces and put into the mixing bowl. Beat until fluffy and white. 

2. Beat in castor sugar to the butter. It should turn more fluffy and white than before. 

3. Add salt to the mixture to enhance the taste of butter. Continue to beat until the batter can form triangular tips at the end of the whisks. 

4. Combine the flour with the baking powder, then sift them into another large mixing bowl and set aside. 

5. Add eggs, one at a time, beat well after each addition, but remember to stop at the fourth egg. 

6. Before putting the last egg, add two tablespoons of dry ingredients and beat well. Then beat in the last egg.

7. Remove the mixing bowl from the mixer and change to a spatula. Alternatively add flour and milk, by dividing into 3 batches, fold well with each addition, until all flour and milk is incorporated. Be extra gentle so you don't destroy all the air bubbles from the creamed mixture.

8. Add vanilla essence to the batter. Fold it gently. 

9. Pour the batter into a 7"x 7" square cake pan. Line the cake pan with parchment paper beforehand. A parchment paper helps immensely and ensuring the cake remains intact. 

10. Bake in preheated oven at 180°C for 45 minutes, or until a cake tester comes out clean. Remove cake from oven and let it rest in the pan for 10 minutes, then gently remove the cake from pan and let it cool completely on a wire rack. Once the cake cools to almost room temperature, cut into slices. 

Tadaaa... the cake is done! Look at the fine texture of the cake. The taste and flavor turn out good too! This butter cake recipe is quite simple to make and can be tried even by beginners. Yes, simple is the best! 

Get Busy with Me: How I Spent My 28 Days at Home?

Well, it's really unpleasant being forced to stay indoors, but we should consider ourselves blessed that we are ‘trapped’ comfortably in our own homes. And as we idle about the house with not much to do, we suddenly find that we have been handed ‘too’ much time. Don’t get hung up by boredom! With more time in our hands, here are some productive things you can do while during quarantine period. 

1. Daily Devotion

Enhance each day with verses from the Bible and draw closer to God each day. I've chosen Acts as the book to study during this period. There are 28 chapters in Acts, just fine for a 28-day devotion. Acts is the story of the start and spread of the Christian church. It opens with Jesus returning to heaven and the Holy Spirit coming in His place. Jesus’ followers start following the Holy Spirit’s lead, and 28 chapters later, the Gospel was spreading across the known world.

2. Baking and Cooking

We’re all craving something sweet and soothing during the quarantine. So why not try spending a few extra hours in the kitchen and master some baking recipes that you haven’t had the time to tackle? During this quarantine period, I have tried to make Belgium waffle as I've been craving for some time. I have tried many combinations of waffle ingredients and made many attempts, but it just seemed like all the waffles I had tried before tasted bland and dense. Finally, I made a successful one!

Other than baking, I did prepare quick and healthy meals that can have real benefits for my family. Simple meals are often the tastiest. You don’t have to be perfect in making every meal. I often do cooking in normal days, but I had more time to learn new dishes such as bitter gourd omelette and stir fried string beans during this quarantine period. 

3. Video Calling

I made video calls weekly for fellowship and Sunday school' meeting. This allowed me to stay connected and catch up with my friends and church mates while social distancing. We had the chance to help and support each other in spiritual growth. Besides that, during this critical period, my teammate and I had to make online presentation on our final year project. We also had to use video calls for our discussion.

4. Online Classes and Revision

My university conducted online classes as students and lecturers have been ushered indoors to help prevent further spread of coronavirus. My midterm exam had been converted to assignment. I had to watch live lessons given by lecturer on every Wednesday and had to submit my handwritten answers after the classes. I also spent some time doing revision as preparation for my final exam. 

5. Workout from Home

Basic workout routines don’t require too much. A quick search on Youtube and Google is all you need to feasible workout ideas which you can do at home. During this period, I've used Tabata, a form of HIIT (high intensity interval training) as my workout routine. My Tabata workouts consist of 20 seconds on, 10 seconds rest and repeating this for four minutes. My workout exercises include burpees, squats, mountain climbers, jumping jacks, high knees, rotating toe touches, jump switch lunges and plank. I also add 30 sit ups to my workout to get a flat stomach. 

6. Blogging

Finally I made it during this period and managed to update my blog since I always can't seem to find the time to work on it. This is the best platform to express myself and to share the bits and pieces of my life.

Okay, these are part of the activities I have done during the quarantine period. This is a great time to relax, spend time with your family and friends and catch up on all the undone tasks. So, stay at home, we're all in this together.

Outfit Sharing: Casual Khaki Series + At-Home Photo Shooting Ideas

Are photos considered beautiful only when there are nice backgrounds? No location is perfect. A location is perfect only when you know how to fully utilize it. You can actually make full use of the spaces and corners in your house for a photoshoot. 

College Casual - Khaki Plaid Top + White A-Line Skirt

These photos were taken at the balcony of my house. Sunlight is a yes for balcony photo shooting. So, let's begin with this summer Korean version of khaki plaid top. This is one of the casual college outfits that I wore to classes during my degree study. 

 

You can make your hair wavy to look elegant but I had chosen to braid my hair and wear a white beret hat, a little playful feel to match this outfit. I also put up a pair of khaki furry earrings. 

I matched this top with a white A-line skirt to look younger and fresh, and also a white knitted sling bag and white floral sandals. 

Kawaii Casual - Khaki Oversized Jumpsuit + B&W Striped Tee

Oversized jumpsuit is a casual and lazy outfit and is suitable for gathering with friends. Khaki colour makes you look slim and sophisticated. In this outfit, I've matched with black & white striped tee to create an unmissable feature. This series of photos was taken in front of my parent's built-in wardrobe. This creates some at-home feeling. 

I did double ponytail with some braids in front so that my hair looks fuller. White fur ball long drop earrings were chosen in this outfit. 

I've matched this jumpsuit with big ribbon khaki rattan bag and a pair of lovely white sneakers. The shoelace of the sneakers are replaced with ribbon so a beautiful bow will be formed when you tie the ribbon. 

Smart Casual - Khaki Canvas Jacket + B&W Striped Tank Top + Long Black Pants

This khaki canvas jacket or other outerwear are suitable for formal events as well as leisure activities. This is such a comfortable and stylish outfit to wear for many occasions. I matched this jacket with a black & white tank top and a long black pants. The shooting spot for this outfit is the entrance of my house. I like the tiles design on the wall. 

For my hair, I made it curly and added some gold hair pins. I also selected a pair of long fish earrings to look cool in this outfit. 

I selected a black canvas bag with khaki strap instead of a handbag and a pair of khaki flats instead of high heels so that I won't look over mature. 

Dressy Casual - Khaki V-Neck Knitted Top + Checkered Lotus Leaf Skirt

This background is my room's white door. I like this kind of clear and bright background. The last outfit, this khaki V-neck knitted top is a mix of sweet and sexy feel. It is more suitable for a date with your loved one. 

I've matched it with a checkered plaid skirt with lotus leaf edge and a beige round sling bag. 

In this outfit, I selected the same color of accessories so that it won't look messy, such as a beige pearl pin and a pair of beige ruffle slippers. 

That's all the outfits I'm gonna share with you guys. Try these beige outfits whether you're a modern traditionalist or trendy fashionista. You will find that the key to achieving a polished, sophisticated look is actually quite easy.