Enjoy an Appetite for Life with Nestle Singapore

Hello Nestle fans! Recently Nestle has initiate a "Give-a-Basket" campaign which runs from now till 31 October 2013 over at Nestle Singapore Facebook Page. The aim is to enable you to send your colleagues, friends, loved ones and etc a virtual baskets of Goodness, Activity or Togetherness to get their Appetite for Life going.

Through this initiative, Nestle hopes to spread the message of  "Enjoy an Appetite for Life" using the 3 main pillars which forms G.A.T (represent Goodness, Activity and Togetherness) that can inspire our life to the fullest.

Nestle Goodness Basket

GOODNESS is about eating well to ensure we get all the nutrients required to fuel and energize our body. And since there is no scientific proof on good/bad food but instead it's more like good or bad diet, there is no worry for you to indulge in an occasional chocolate or ice cream.

And for instant, you could also add some vegetables, meat/seafood to a bowl of MAGGI Instant Noodles to make it a more complete meal like what I often prepared as a quick meal.

Nestle Activity Basket

A serving of ACTIVITY like walking, running, cycling or etc should be include in your daily schedule to help you release endorphins which make you feel good. And with some snacks and beverages from Nestle Milo, I am sure you it would boost up your energy level and makes you feel energetic while coping with the activities.

And during most of the school days, my boy would packed his favourite Nestle Milo Cereal plus a pack of Milo Proto Malt for his tea-break in school which he loves to share the Milo Cereal with his classmates.

Nestle Together Basket

TOGETHERNESS draw the company of loved ones so that we could enjoy the wealth of wellness and balance in our hectic life. For example, sharing a pack of KIT KAT with my little one while taking a break from his homework makes it a great bonding time between us. And also the same thing goes with a cup of NESCAFE which served as our after dinner beverage where everyone sits around and have a chat on what happened on the itself.

HOW TO SEND THE NESTLE VIRTUAL BASKETS

Nestle Singapore Facebook Page

To start sending your virtual baskets, first you have to LIKE Nestle Singapore Facebook page in order to participate in the "Give-a basket" contest. Next, click on the Appetite for Life (refer to the photo above) to select a virtual baskets of Goodness, Activity or Togetherness.

To proceed with the sending, follow the steps shown:-

1. "Enter friend' name", click Next;
2. Choose a Photo (optional) from your facebook album to tag with the virtual basket;
3. "Write your note" in the space provided on why the recipient(s) need the doses of Goodness, Activity or Togetherness in their life.
4. The best entries received will entitled your recipient to win a real basket with Nestle products (there are 18 baskets to be won weekly). 

So let's hop over to Nestle Facebook Page and start sending our virtual baskets to friends and relatives now to show our appreciation for what they deserved.

Furthermore, I am also TAG-GED together with other fellow agents (bloggers) by Nestle on a MISSION for their Operation AFL (Appetite for Life). With Operation AFL being divided into three teams namely, (T)ogetherness, (A)ctivity, and (G)oodness, I have been assigned to Team (G)oodness.

Remember to stay tune and find out more about my MISSION assigned in the next upcoming post. Till then have a great weekend ahead. Cheers!

Cherry Blossom Mantou vs Steamed Sakura Chicken With Choya

My experiments with using pickled cherry blossom continues after my first recipe on Matcha Cherry Blossom Chiffon (抹茶盐渍樱花戚风蛋糕) in April. And also with the extra packets of supply that Joyce (ahpoohbear) loop back for us from her recent Osaka trip, I am able to try out more fusion recipes using pickled cherry blossom.

In this post I am sharing two recipes such as Cherry Blossom Mantou (Asian-style steamed bun with pickled cherry blossom) and Steamed Sakura Chicken With Choya (Steamed chicken mid-joint using picked cherry blossom and choya).

CHERRY BLOSSOM MANTOU
(樱花馒头)

Here I am making a two-tone colour steamed bun (mantou) using Sakura Leaf Powder for the green portion but you could always replace it with Matcha powder according to your preference. The sakura leaf powder added a distinctive taste to this steamed bun leaving it with a sweet and savoury flavour that makes you go for second helpings.

(Make: 6 pieces  | Preparation: 55 minutes | Cooking: 15 minutes)

Ingredients:
250g All-purpose Plain Flour
1/2 Teaspoon (2g) Baking Power
3g Instant Dry Yeast
110ml Lukewarm Water
10g Milk Powder
1 Teaspoon Sakura Leaf Powder
Some Salt Pickled Cherry Blossoms (盐渍樱花), soaked in water
25g Caster Sugar
10g Unsalted Butter, soften

Method:-
1. Add dry yeast into the lukewarm water and give it a quick stir, set aside for about 2-3 minutes till bubbles appeared.

2. In a big mixing bowl, stir in sift plain flour, milk powder and baking powder together with caster sugar till combined.

3. Next slowly add in yeast water into the flour mixture and stir using a metal spoon or clean hand till it forms soft dough.

4. Knead soft butter into the dough till it does not stick to your hand and divide the dough into 2:1 ration size.

5. With the smaller dough, knead in Sakura Leaf Powder till combined then proof the two doughs in a warm place for 20 minutes.

6. Next, flatten the doughs to release the air in it. Place the green dough on top of the plain, roll it up into a oblong shape and proof for another 15 minutes.

7. Cut the dough into equal portion, place each portion on the steamer rack with greaseproof paper below. Place some drained sakura flower on top and rest for another 15 minutes.

8. Sprinkle some water on the mantou before placing the steamer rack into the pot of boiling water and steam them over medium heat for about 10 - 12 minutes (depending on the size of the mantou). When done, removed and served hot/warm.

STEAMED SAKURA CHICKEN WITH CHOYA
(樱花梅酒鸡)

My inspiration for this Steamed Sakura Chicken with Choya (樱花梅酒鸡) comes from our all-time favourite; Steamed Rice Wine Chicken (蒸黄酒鸡) which I would prepare at least once a month. And with some pickled sakura on hand as well as Choya (plum wine) that mum bought during her recent trip, I decide to use these two special ingredients to try out this dish.

(Serves: 2-3  | Preparation: 10 minutes | Cooking: 20 minutes)

Ingredients:
6 - 8 Chicken Mid-joints
1 Teaspoon of Grated Ginger
1 Stalk Spring Onion, cut into sections
100ml Choya (Japanese plum liqueur)
Some Salt Pickled Cherry Blossoms (盐渍樱花), soaked in water

Method:-
1. Lightly marinate chicken mid-joint with grated ginger, cornflour and pinch of salt.

2. With some ginger slices and spring onion below, arrange the mid-joints on top and place the drained sakura flowers that had being soaked for 5 minutes (rinse well) on it (refer to the photo above).

3. Lastly pour in choya and let it stands for 5 minutes before steaming the mid-joints over medium heat for 20 - 25 minutes till tender.

The mid-joints were infused with the combination of Choya and pickled Sakura leaving it with a refreshing and fragrance after taste. Also after steaming, the soup broth was full of flavour due to the essence from the chicken and choya. Do give this a try if you happen to have a bottle of Choya at home and don't worry about the pickled cherry blossom as you could always omit it for a new recipe.

Lastly I would be submitting this Cherry Blossom Mantou to this month Aspiring Bakers #31 - Bao Ho-Chiak (May 2013) hosted by Miss B of Everybody Eats Well in Flanders.

Exploring The Convenience Stores and Bakeries In Tokyo, Japan

Whenever we travel to a country, we love to visit their convenience stores to see what special food/beverages or stuffs they offered in it. And since Korean, Japan and Taiwan all have convenience stores like Seven Eleven (7-11), Lawson and Family Mart it makes us thrilled whenever we visit these stores because we could often find similar stuffs that we tried and miss having it.

I am not sure about your habits, but for us we always like to stock up some bites and beverages from these convenience stores for our bus journey as well as supper in the hotel room. And as you view through this post, you could find all kinds of food and beverage they offer in the stores as compared to what we have in Singapore.

[Day 6] Shabu Shabu @ Shabujo, Shinjuku

Japan trip won't be satisfied if we did not try their sushi, sashimi, omurice, shabu shabu, takoyaki and etc. So on the last night of our trip, we decided to go for Shabu Shabu which was perfect for that  cold and wet evening when everyone needs some hot food to keep warm. So after searching around for a decent Shabu Shabu restaurant near our hotel at Shinjuku ( 新宿), we finally settled for Shabujo which is listed in their recommending food good guide. For your information, Shabujo is about 6 minutes walk from JR Shinjuku Station, East Exit.