Australia 2013 | An Outback Adventure in Northern Territory!! #NTAustraliaSG

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Australia. One of my favourite travel destinations for sure :) In fact, if the boy didn't have to come back and take over the family business, I would have loved for us to stay on a few years after uni to work and live there a little longer.

I've been to most of the major cities in Western Australia, Queensland, Victoria and New South Wales but I've not been to the Northern Territory yet. So as you can imagine, I'm super stoked that tomorrow night I'd be flying there with other Singapore Blog Awards winners to explore NT as part of our grand prize! Uluru, here I come!!

Our 1-week itinerary is jam-packed with lots of fun activities and experiences that I don't think I can sleep tonight from excitement ;p We'll be visiting the World Heritage-listed Kakadu National Park, cooling off under waterfalls in Litchfield National Park, dining under the stars at the iconic Uluru, having camel rides at the desert and much, much more. I really can't wait to share with you more when I get back and yes, you can see live updates of my NT adventures on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Unfortunately, like last year's Macau trip, the boy & Lil Pumpkin can't join me on this adventure as we aren't able to deviate from the itinerary, and for a lot of areas e.g aboriginal landmarks in the national parks, special permits actually have to be sought to enter. I'll be taking lots of photos to share the memories with them though... and hopefully plan another trip back there with them in the future! Lil Pumpkin will love to see the crocodiles at Crocosaurus Cove I think heh.  

Of course, I plan to chat with them online daily but I'm told in some places we're visiting, there's no phone / data connectivity at all!! It's like we're back to the old days where we aren't bogged down by all our devices and maybe, that isn't such a bad thing after all. It'd be a good time to really, really rest, unwind, and take in all that NT has to offer. Agree?

P.S. I've scheduled some posts while I'm away, including the weekly Wordless Wednesday Linky and the monthly Celebrate Fatherhood guest post, so check back! Plus don't forget to enter my giveaways for 3-6 months of Vanish products and "Today" I Am children's book. The latter is open to readers worldwide!

P.P.S. Thanks to mum and the boy for taking care of Lil Pumpkin while I'm away! I take comfort in knowing she's happy and safe with the both of you around :)

Read all My Ultimate Australia Outback Adventure posts here.

* Disclosure: My Ultimate Australia Outback Adventure trip was sponsored by Tourism NT, thanks to omy.sg. No monetary compensation was received, and all opinions are my own.

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Best Family Blog 2013 at Singapore Blog Awards #OMYSBA2013

Last Sat was the biggest blogosphere awards ceremony in Singapore, the annual Singapore Blog Awards. It was also one of the most memorable day in my blogging journey as Sakura Haruka won the Best Family Blog Award!!!

I was so emotional I could cry... well, was close to it but luckily I held it together. So shocked, so happy, so very very thankful. It is still very unbelievable and I'm really just slowly letting the news sink in even after these few days. 

Very glad that the boy and Lil Pumpkin were there to share the special moment with me too. They are my inspiration and loves of my life. Without them, really, Sakura Haruka as a parenting and lifestyle blog wouldn't exist! This blog started out 2 years ago to celebrate who I am as a person, and to share how I incorporate my passions into our family life. Sometimes I like to look back at my first post, and I'm glad to say that I've stayed true to myself all these time.

Felt bad that after I went on stage to receive the award I had to run around to take photos with the rest of the winners, give interviews, talk to the guest-of-honour etc. that I didn't really have time to just soak it all in and spend time with them there. Thanks for this photo of them Kaika. The rest of the photos here are also taken from omy.sg, Sze Ping & Leo as I really didn't have time {or my mobile for most of the time haha} to shoot anything!

Receiving the prestigious award from the Guest-of-Honour, Mr Lawrence Wong, Acting Minister for Culture, Community and Youth and. Senior Minister of State, Ministry of Communications and Information.

Group photo with the rest of the winners from the main categories. All of us have a chance to travel together to Northern Territory, Australia as part of our grand prize! Look forward to getting to know them better then :)

Group photo with ALL the winners from the main and special categories, with the GOH, awards sponsors, event organisers etc!

Having a little chat with Mr Lawrence Wong after the prize presentation. He was very interested to know more about our blogs and what we write about. I think the government is slowly but surely recognising the power of social media heh.

One of the things that make blogging so meaningful is the community. Who said you can't make frineds online? These are some of the best mates {Kaika, Leo, Willy, Jerome & Karen} I've met through blogging and I'm very thankful to each of them for the laughter, inspiration and ideas shared.

I know it's not the Grammies or anything, and although I appreciate each and every family, friend and reader, I'd like to say thanks to a few special people who have really been so outstandingly supportive me and my blog. This list is not exhaustive, so forgive me if I miss anyone out.

The boy: I love you. Thanks for all the care, concern and time you've supported me with to pursue my blogging hobby. I know I can always count on you to be my number 1 fan, and even if nobody else reads my blog, I always know you will :)

Mummy: Thanks for showing me what parenting greatness is, and inspiring me to share more on what parenting means to me.

Daddy and sisters: Thanks for all the family love and support. Because of the happy home and upbringing I had, I'm able to be the person I am and achieve all that I have today.

Lao Ma {mother-in-law}: Thanks for being so understanding and giving even in this hobby which you support, but may not really understand :P I can always feel your pride in me as your daughter-in-law, and you've always treated me as one of your own.

Oliveolyz, Adrine, Stacy, Joy, Theresa, Maryann, Susu, Jith, Brandi, Grace, Emily, Jess, Alissa, Angeline, Deb White, Susan, Veronica, Kaika, Willy, Leo, Chun See, Jerome, Iris, Sau Jun, Joey, Valyn, Yiwei, Mag, Elrica, Shannon, Janet, Ruilong: Thanks for being such loyal readers and friends of the blog! All of you have helped mould me to be the blogger I am today. 

So what's to come after winning this award? I'm very honoured to be recognised for the effort I've put into Sakura Haruka, and I don't really have any grand plans at the moment except to continue blogging in a way that's true to myself and from my heart. I'd definitely want to continue sharing more insights and ideas on how to live an inspired family life here in Singapore. If you'd like to suggest how I can make this blog better, do contact or leave me a message :)

Once again, thank you all for your kind support!!! Be sure to continue reading as I've some great blog giveaways coming up too.

P.S. Theme for the night was the 1960s, so I had a 上海滩 {Shanghai Bund} look inspired by the movie "In the Mood for Love {花樣年華}". Willy said I have a  古典美 {classical beauty} look ^^V

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Braised Hakusai Chinese Cabbage with Dried Scallops & Shirataki Rice Cooker Recipe #OMYSBA2013 #PanasonicCookingSG

Rice cookers are not just for cooking rice anymore, and you can use them creatively to cook soup, porridge, bake cakes, steam dumplings or even braise vegetables!

When I attended the cooking workshop at ONAKA restaurant last month, I was given a rice cooker recipe book as a door gift. I'm not sure if it is sold in stores, but reading it was very inspiring. You don't even need an expensive rice cooker to whip up the dishes, although if you use one from Panasonic, it has Advanced Fuzzy Logic technology {seriously, the Japanese comes up with the cutest names heh} that can amazingly make independent judgement calls based on the ingredients and cooking environment to adjust the temperature and cooking time for you accordingly so that you don't need to keep watch over your meal as it cooks. Wooooah.

If you like one-pot cooking, you will like cooking in just a rice cooker. From the cookbook, there were 28 recipes and I learnt various cooking techniques with a rice cooker. I've made beef pasta sauce, pork belly with kimchi and also adapted from one of the recipes to cook Braised Hakusai {Chinese cabbage, 白菜} with Dried Scallops and Shirataki {konnyaku noodles, しらたき}. It was really good!

I reckon this dish is pretty healthy because of the hakusai, wolfberries and shirataki added. Shirataki are translucent, gelatinous traditional Japanese noodles made from konnyaku {kanjac yam plant}. I love konnyaku and shirataki because they're high in fibre, and gives you the full feeling of eating carbos.. but has very low calories! Its name means "white waterfall", describing the appearance of these noodles.

Recipe adapted from Panasonic Cookbook Braised Chinese Cabbage with Dried Scallops

Time: 
About 1 hr

Ingredients:
1/2 large hakusai {chunked}
8 pcs dried scallop {soaked}
3 pcs garlic {minced}
2 tbsp miso paste
300ml water
1 chicken cube
3-4 tbsp wolfberry {soaked}
1 packet of shirataki {200g}
2 tbsp oil
2 tbsp sesame oil
2 tbsp corn flour
1 tbsp sugar
2 stalks sping onion {diced}
3 chilli paddi {diced}

Method:

1. Place garlic, oil and sesame oil in rice cooker. I'm using the Panasonic Rice Cooker SR-MG182 for this dish.
2. Press "Menu Select" to select "Steam" menu, press "Cooker Timer" to 3 mins. 
3. Close the lid then press "Start". Wait until it beeps.
4. Add hakusai, press "Menu Select" to select "Steam" menu then press "Cooking Timer" to 5 mins.
5. Close the lid then press "Start". Wait until it beeps.
6. Stir well then add in the miso paste mixed in water and chicken cube.
7. Press "Menu Select" to select "Steam" menu then press "Cooking Timer" to 15 mins.
8. Close the lid then press "Start". Wait until it beeps.
9. Stir well then add dried scallops and wolfberry, press "Menu Select" to select "Steam" menu then press "Cooking Timer" to 15 mins.
10. Close the lid then press "Start". Wait until it beeps.
11. Stir well then add shirataki, corn flour and sugar, press "Menu Select" to select "Steam" menu then press "Cooking Timer" to 10 mins.
12. Garnish with spring onion and chilli paddi {optional}.
13. Serve hot.

Tips:

• Original recipe called for chicken broth {300ml} but I just had miso paste at home so used that instead.
• Add more shirataki if you don't intend to eat it with any carbo. It's still pretty filling this way.
• Be careful when opening lid as hot steam may cause burns.
• Take care of your rice cooker by never leaving food in it. If food is left in the pot, the smell may linger in the pot, sealing etc. and affect the next food cooked.
• Avoid using metallic or sharp utensils to prevent scratches and damages to the pot.

* Disclosure: Panasonic SR-MG182 rice cooker was provided by Panasonic Singapore as part of a series for Singapore Blog Awards Best Cooking Blog category. No monetary compensation was received, and all opinions are my own.

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Green Tea Maccha ｛抹茶｝Azuki Ice-Blended Latte Smoothie Recipe #OMYSBA2013 #PanasonicCookingSG

Maccha {green tea, 抹茶} is absolutely my favourite tea. It is a powerful antioxidant that helps to eliminate the free radicals in your body and hence reduce your risk of cancer, heart disease and progression of diseases such as Alzheimer's. It also boosts your metabolism rate {which can help in weight loss}, improves brain operation, digestion and function of the urinary system. So much win!!

Not only is it beneficial to health, it's also superbly fragrant and flavourful. A good brew of maccha, to me, is smooth, frothy and bitter like how it's prepared during sado {Japanese tea ceremony, 茶道}. But in any case, I love maccha-flavoured anything! Ice-cream, cakes, cookies, noodles, pudding and yes... smoothies! 

I brought back this packet of Uji maccha green tea　{宇治抹茶グリーンティ} powder that's slightly sweetened from our recent Japan travels. I prefer unsweetened maccha but thought it was so convenient to just add water and/or milk to make a maccha drink... no brewing required! Used it to make a Maccha Azuki Ice-Blended Latte Smoothie and it tastes as great as those store-bought ones at a fraction of the price haha.

Prep time: 
20 minutes

Ingredients:
4-5 tbsp sweetened maccha {green tea} powder
1.5 cup milk
1 cup ice-cubes
1 tbsp azuki beans paste

Method:

1. Place all ingredients in the blender.
2. Blend until desired consistency.
3. Garnish with whipped cream and dust with maccha powder. Add a dollop of azuki beans paste.
4. Serve chilled.

 Tips:

• Maccha powder is easily available at Meidi-ya, Sakuraya Fish Market, and the Japanese food section of major supermarkets in Singapore. 
• Ready-made azuki beans paste is available at Daiso, Meidi-ya and Isetan supermarket.
• If you have unsweetened maccha powder, just add sugar to taste. 
• Chocolate and maccha goes very well together too, so dust a layer of chocolate powder over the smoothie if are a chocoholic!
• Maccha tastes best when fresh so do keep your matcha powder in an airtight container in a cool place {up to 6 months} or in the fridge {up to 1 year}. Avoid over-exposure to oxygen, light, humidity or high temperature.   

P.S. I'm looking for a cookbook that has a good variety of recipes using maccha. If you have any to recommend, let me know! :)

* Disclosure: Panasonic MX-AC210S blender was provided by Panasonic Singapore as part of a series for Singapore Blog Awards Best Cooking Blog category. No monetary compensation was received, and all opinions are my own.

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Quick Strawberry Bread Pudding Microwave Recipe #OMYSBA2013 #PanasonicCookingSG

The boy doesn't really have a sweet tooth so sometimes it's quite hard to make desserts at home when there's no one to share the extra calories with and I have to finish off everything myself. Hey, I'm trying to eat healthier, ok?? :P

I like this quick bread pudding because I can just make one serving, and don't have to spend hours mulling over the it or have a lifetime of leftovers. And unlike traditional bread pudding, you don't even need an oven for this. Just a few minutes in the microwave oven is all one needs! Definitely a fast and easy comfort food :)

Prep time: 
25 minutes

Ingredients:
1 slice of white bread
6-8 strawberries {fresh or frozen}
Soft butter
1 tbsp cinnamon powder
2 tbsp honey
1 egg
1/3 cup milk

Directions:

1. Spread the bread with butter and sprinkle it with cinnamon powder.
2. Tear the buttered bread into medium-sized pieces.
3. Layer the bread and strawberries in a microwave-safe bowl. Sprinkle cinnamon powder between each layer. It expands which cooked so make sure the bowl is not filled to the brim.
4. Put the egg, milk and honey in a bowl. Whisk it together.
5. Gently pour the mixture onto the bread and strawberries. Let it sit for about 10 minutes.
6. Microwave for 3 minutes uncovered. The cooked bread pudding should be soft but not soggy. If still uncooked, microwave in 30 sec bursts.  
7. Remove from microwave when cooked {check with a toothpick}.
8. Garnish with whipped cream / ice-cream and dash of cinnamon powder.
9. Serve warm.

Tips:

• You can use cinnamon sugar instead of cinnamon powder and honey. I just happened to have those at home :)
• Any non-crusted bread or even a mix of kinds of breads creates a tasty bread pudding. Raisin bread or other fruit breads adds flavour without the extra costs of secondary ingredients.
• Replace strawberries with any of your fave fruits! It's taste great with apples, bananas, blueberries, raisins etc. as well.

My mum likes to make the mug chocolate lava cake in the microwave too. Will share that recipe soon as well since "microwave-baking" is so much easier than baking in an oven! :)

P.S. Last day to support us in the Singapore Blog Awards! Please give us your last vote in the Best Family & Best Cooking blog categories today. Thanks so much! :)

* Disclosure: Panasonic NN-SV30 Steam Microwave Oven was provided by Panasonic Singapore as part of a series for Singapore Blog Awards Best Cooking Blog category. No monetary compensation was received, and all opinions are my own.

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{Best Family Blog vote here | Best Cooking Blog vote here}

Not sure how to vote? See full instructions here.

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♫ The Hills are Alive, with the Sound of Music ♫ #OMYSBA2013

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When I was growing up, the Sound of Music {1965} was one of my most-watched films at home. Probably because it was one of my mother's favourite movies. I've watched it with her so many times, I know the lyrics to all the songs by heart... yeah, all of them. Should I be proud or embarrassed?? haha

The Sound of Music has inspired me on so many levels. As a child,  I wanted to keep my hair like Gretl von Trapp {the youngest kid}, learn to play the guitar and oh yes, run on the hills and lay in the grass to sing, be free and "climb every mountain, ford every stream, follow every rainbow, until you find your dream..." {lyrics from Climb Every Mountain sung by the Mother Abbess by the way}.

Looking back, I realise that I was inspired by Maria von Trapp {played by Julie Andrews} to be the kind of mother that I want to be as well. 

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To be confident, and brave in what I set out to do, and not live in comparison with other parents in the way I bring up my children... {well, one at the moment, but we're hoping for two!}. Just like how every child is unique, the way each of us teach our kids is of course different, and being different doesn't mean you are wrong. If it's suited to your child's individuality, temperament and needs, why not?

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To inspire my children to take time to stop to enjoy the moment, and not rush through life trying to complete all the "milestones" and "tasks". Life after all, is a journey, and not a race.

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To be present, comfort my children through all their fears, hug them when the thunder scares them and be someone they turn to when feeling sad. 

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To parent creatively and think out-of-the-box when savouring life's joys with my children... and help them realise that their imagination is the limit to reaching their dreams!

Oh, wearing matchy-matchy things with them while doing it is a bonus too haha.

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And to show my children that love conquers all.

This is the kind of mother that I aspire to be. There are of course days when I feel that I'm worst mother in the world and beat myself up over it, but when I see how happy, spirited and healthy Lil Pumpkin is, I realise that hey, I must be doing something right :)

The Sound of Music is definitely a favourite on our family movie playlist. I hope Lil Pumpkin will grow up having fond memories of watching it with me, just as I have the best childhood memories of watching it with my mother :)

Which TV/movie character inspired you when growing up?

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{Best Family Blog vote here | Best Cooking Blog vote here}

Not sure how to vote? See full instructions here.

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Cooking Workshop at ONAKA Restaurant & Wine Bar #OMYSBA2013 #PanasonicCookingSG

Have you ever considered what are the essential cooking appliances in your kitchen?

I think most of us have a decent-sized kitchen where we can fit in the microwave oven, convection oven, stove, rice cooker, blender, food processor, thermo pot and maybe throw in a bread machine, ice-cream machine and juicer :P However, when I was living in Japan, my apartment was quite small and my kitchen was even tinier. My mum used to say it was "stamp-sized" {gee thanks! haha}. Space constraints really make you think harder about what you need. There was no way I could even fit in a built-in cooktop or wall oven, so all I had was one portable gas cooker, a small microwave oven, rice cooker, and oh yes, a blender because I liked to make smoothies. I seemed pretty handicapped in whipping up a lot of delicious dishes those days, but in actual fact, that's all anyone ever needs actually to create a wholesome meal.

Over the weekend, as one of the Singapore Blog Awards Best Cooking Blog finalists, I attended a cooking workshop at ONAKA Restaurant & Wine Bar. Head Chef Jason and Sous Chef Benson were there to teach the participants how to create 5 delicious, yet healthy dishes - Onaka Living Green Smoothie,  Yam Cake, Farmer Pie, Apple Pastille, and Hong Kong Style Ginger Egg Pudding using just a Panasonic blender, rice cooker and microwave convection oven.

Yup, these yummy delights were created with just those 3 kitchen appliances!

This is the Onaka Living Green Smoothie... so refreshing! I'm quite surprised that they included this as a workshop recipe since it's one of the restaurant's signature drink ;) It's pretty easy to make and one of the key ingredients is spirulina, which is a 100% natural and a highly nutritious micro salt water plant. It's known to boost the immune system, improve digestion, reduce fatigue, cleanse the body etc. Basically a superfood haha. Chef Jason said you can get it in powder form and use it as a natural green colouring to your dishes as well.

Because it's just so awesome, I'm gonna share the simple recipe with you here too *grinz* You're welcome.

Ingredients:
1 x coconut {water + flesh}
1 tbsp extra virgin coconut oil
1 x pear {core removed}
1 tsp spirulina
5 leaves baby spinach

Method:
1. Place all ingredients in blender
2. Blend until smooth
3. Serve chilled

In the 3.5 hours workshop, the chefs shared more cooking tips for the different appliances, and also on the origins of each dish, and how they adapted it to suit ONAKA's philoshophy of making healthy food tasty, and tasty food healthy.

No frying required to make the shallots nice and crispy! All done in a microwave oven with just a dash of oil ;P

Pouring the yam mixture into a plate to be steamed in the microwave oven. It's amazing how technology has advanced so that a microwave is no longer just to "heat things up", but you can grill, steam, bake and prepare varied styles of dishes with it. Even a rice cooker is not just for "cooking rice", but you can cook soup, congee and even bake in one now!

I'm always happy to eat yummy food, and learn more cooking tips and recipes heehee ^^V

The Hong Kong Style Ginger Egg Pudding was so smooth and reminded me of the one we at in Macau.

Farmer's Pie made with chicken, edamame beans {first time I've eaten it in a pie!}, vegetables and seasoned with konbu shio.

Yam cake with chicken, chinese mushroom and dried prawns. I'm not really a fan of yam cake, but this was really nice especially when served hot. Some yam cakes are pan-fried, so steaming is really a healthier option.

Apple Pastilles used green apples, sultanas, brown sugar, cinnamon powder and lemon juice. And oh yes, spring roll skin! Didn't expect that now, did ya? :) Susu made something similar before with banana, cinnamon sugar and popiah skin... definitely something I want to try at home.

I'd be posting the recipes for the rest of the dishes on my Facebook page later. Do check it out there!

What are the must-have appliances in your kitchen?

I Blog on Tues with Essentially Jess. 

* Disclosure: The event coverage of Cooking Workshop at ONAKA Restaurant & Wine Bar was due to an invitation from Panasonic Singapore, thanks to omy.sg. No monetary compensation was received, and all opinions are my own.

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{Best Family Blog vote here | Best Cooking Blog vote here}

Not sure how to vote? See full instructions here.

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